The air in Konoha's Jonin Meeting Hall was heavy as lead, as though even breathing had become a luxury.
The lingering glow of the setting sun filtered through the stained-glass windows, casting mottled patterns across the ancient wooden floor. The swaying patches of light drifted through the solemn chamber like restless spirits.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat upright at the head of the table. The pipe between his fingers had gone out long ago, yet he still unconsciously rubbed its smooth sandalwood mouthpiece.
Those hands had once unleashed the Five Release Great Combo that shook the entire Ninja World, yet now they trembled almost imperceptibly. The shadow of Danzo's defection and the horrors of the dissolving pools within the Root Base gnawed at the will of this hero of the ninja world like a festering disease.
The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were as deep as knife marks, and his silver temples seemed to have gained several more strands of frost overnight. The bronze chandelier hanging from the meeting hall's dome cast uneven shadows across his face, making his exhaustion all the more alarming.
On either side of the long table, the representatives of the major clans sat in silence like statues. The Uchiha Clan's new patriarch sat in the shadows, his scarlet Sharingan burning silently in the darkness. Three Magatama rotated slowly, as if they could see through every soul in the room.
The Hyuga Clan patriarch sat rigidly upright, veins faintly bulging around his pure white eyes. His three-hundred-and-sixty-degree vision took in every minute change within the meeting hall.
Their gazes were like tangible blades, all cutting toward the empty "Elder's seat" in the center. That had once been Danzo's place. Now, only an ornately carved redwood chair remained, gleaming blood-red beneath the sunset.
"Root