After a month of anxious waiting, Shimura Danzō finally received the news that made him give up hope.
The news of Wood Release's emergence still hadn't spread through Konoha.
"Have you found out who's spreading these rumors?" Shimura Danzō asked, his expression dark.
"After investigating, this subordinate learned that the rumors seemed to have spread throughout Konoha all at once. I also heard that the Police Force's Media Bureau is planning to print the news of Wood Release's emergence as tomorrow's front-page headline."
"The Police Force!" Shimura Danzō ground out, his voice making his current mood perfectly clear.
Now it was all but certain. The Police Force really had been behind what happened last time.
Who would've thought? After the Uchiha Clan changed leaders, they'd become a little different—started using their heads a bit more.
With their old way of doing things, they'd never have thought of striking back like this.
What a pity. None of you can compare to this old man when it comes to spreading rumors.
"Pass down the order. Have our people help the Police Force spread the news about Wood Release. Focus especially on the interaction between the Sharingan and Wood Release. Leak some of the information from our previous laboratory experiments."
"Yes, sir."
Danzō's goal was simple: pin both the Wood Release experiments and the Sharingan experiments on the Uchiha Clan. That way, even if someone reported the experiments he'd conducted, he could easily claim that the Uchiha Clan had framed him.
That would let him avoid being put on the defensive yet again.
"You're still too green to take me on." Shimura Danzō spoke calmly, though he felt rather pleased with himself.
Still, he needed to give Hiruzen and the others a heads-up, so that old fool wouldn't fly into a rage at him again later.
Well, he'd have to prepare for Orochimaru's sake, too. If anything went wrong, he'd have to throw him under the bus.
Sacrifice you all to protect this old man.
Everything I do is for Konoha.
I'm sure you can all understand, right?
......
"Understand my ass!" Sarutobi Hiruzen roared furiously.
"What did you tell me back then? 'I've told you everything you need to know. Believe what you want.'" As he spoke, he mimicked the way Shimura Danzō had sounded at the time.
"Hiruzen, I did this for Konoha, too. The Sharingan's ability to counter Wood Release is obvious. I discovered this by chance; it wasn't intentional," Shimura Danzō hurriedly explained.
He absolutely couldn't let Hiruzen know that he'd conducted the experiments to stabilize the Hashirama Cells in his body.
He could only blame it on the Wood Release experiments he'd carried out back then.
A glint of determination flashed in Shimura Danzō's eyes. There was nothing wrong with what he'd done.
"And you two?! Did you know about this?!" Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly turned to Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, who were seated nearby, and shouted at them.
The two had been working just fine in the Administration Department when Danzō suddenly showed up and asked them to come with him.
They'd thought there might be some juicy gossip, but instead, they'd almost gotten burned themselves.
Seeing how furious Sarutobi Hiruzen was—and since they really hadn't known anything about it—they had no intention of pleading for Danzō. They quickly spoke up to say they hadn't known, either.
"Danzō, Danzō. You really have gotten bold. You even lied to me!" Sarutobi Hiruzen paced around Shimura Danzō as he spoke.
"Hiruzen, I just explained. This matter was supposed to be sealed away permanently. But after our talk last time, I returned to the Root Base only to find that the laboratory had been destroyed and the experimental data leaked. How can you say this is my fault?" Shimura Danzō sounded almost aggrieved as he said this.
"So it's my fault, then? I shouldn't have dragged you into a conversation last time—is that what you're saying?" Sarutobi Hiruzen said sarcastically.
"Hiruzen, that's not what I meant! I—" Shimura Danzō had barely started to explain when he was interrupted.
"Enough! We're not here to argue over whose fault it is. We need to figure out how to resolve this!" Sarutobi Hiruzen cut him off, then took a deep breath and spoke slowly.
"That's right. Coveting the Kekkei Genkai of a clan within the village is a serious taboo. We must make this decision carefully," Utatane Koharu chimed in, agreeing with Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Since Danzō is already planning to pin the blame on the Uchiha Clan, my suggestion is that we see it through to the end. We can use this chance to destroy the Uchiha's reputation in the village once and for all, so they can never become Hokage." Mitokado Homura spoke up, endorsing Shimura Danzō's plan.
It was true. No one would choose someone who coveted another clan's Kekkei Genkai as Hokage. After all, doing so could easily expose the very foundation of that clan's standing.
Once its core secrets were exposed, it would be like standing naked in the Ninja World. With all its intelligence out in the open, others could develop ways to counter it.
In the Ninja World, intelligence was an extremely important factor.
That was especially true of a ninja's personal information, which they guarded closely.
They did so to increase their chances of surviving in the Ninja World.
This move was undeniably vicious. It would make the Uchiha Clan abandon all hope of ever becoming Hokage.
Mitokado Homura's suggestion made Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes light up. Not bad. If they handled it this way, Danzō would be saved, and the Uchiha wouldn't become Hokage. It was a win-win.
"Homura, Koharu, you two will handle this." Sarutobi Hiruzen began assigning tasks. "But remember to be careful. Don't let anyone else catch you."
"What about me?" Seeing that Sarutobi Hiruzen had given the two of them assignments but had left him out, Shimura Danzō grew anxious.
"You're going home and staying there!" The moment Danzō brought it up, Sarutobi Hiruzen could no longer hold back and roared at him.
"Don't even think about going anywhere!"
"You are not to get involved in this matter! Understood?!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's series of shouts left Shimura Danzō stunned.
You've changed, Hiruzen.
Don't you trust my abilities anymore?
Ignoring Shimura Danzō, who was still feeling sorry for himself, Sarutobi Hiruzen turned to the other two and reminded them, "Remember, you must be careful. Don't end up like certain people. You know what I mean, right?"
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura understood exactly who Sarutobi Hiruzen meant. They could only smile awkwardly and agree, assuring him they would be careful.
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded in satisfaction. So far, these two old classmates hadn't caused him any major trouble. They were much more reliable than Danzō.
Utatane Koharu seemed to think of something and suddenly said, "Hiruzen, what about the Fourth Hokage...?"
"I'll handle Minato. Just focus on your own tasks."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's confident demeanor gave them some reassurance. They stood and took their leave.
Shimura Danzō didn't want to stay either and prepared to leave, but Sarutobi Hiruzen called after him. "Danzō, you really aren't hiding anything else from me now, are you?"
"No. You know everything I've done." Shimura Danzō answered gruffly without turning around.
But I haven't told you about what your student did.
If other people expose that, you, the Third Hokage, won't come out of it looking good, either.
That was what Shimura Danzō thought.