The office instantly fell silent.
Utatane Koharu jerked her head up and stared at him in disbelief. "You... dismissed Danzo?!"
"Hiruzen, without him handling those dirty jobs for you in the shadows, can you manage on your own? How many hidden threats in the village still need someone to 'clean them up'?"
Hiruzen did not hesitate in the slightest.
"We no longer need Danzo."
Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke coldly.
He knew perfectly well-that lord had already ordered that Danzo would have no further role to play.
Naturally, there was no need to keep him around. But he would never say that aloud.
Seeing how firm he was, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu both froze for a moment.
In the end, they exchanged a complicated look and made no further attempt to persuade him.
Utatane Koharu merely sighed softly. "...Since you've already decided, we won't say any more. We only hope you can withstand the pressure ahead."
Mitokado Homura nodded as well. "We'll cooperate on the official statement. As for Sasuke... do we need to arrange for someone to look after him?"
Hiruzen waved a hand. "Someone is already handling that. Go back and rest. There's plenty of cleanup work to do tomorrow."
Seeing his resolute attitude, the two said nothing more and respectfully took their leave.
The office fell silent again.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat alone in the Hokage's chair and slowly let out a breath.
He reached inside his robes to touch the Blank Scroll, his fingertips growing slightly warm.
Sarutobi Hiruzen closed his eyes and quietly lit his pipe.
Then he picked up his brush and began writing his own ending...
Sarutobi Hiruzen did not sleep all night.
He burned through one pipeful of tobacco after another, scattering ash across the floor.
The Blank Scroll lay spread across the desk