"Danzo's background, and the fact that he and the Third Hokage have been companions since childhood—once those come out, no one will believe what Konoha says. The people of the Land of Fire will probably feel they've been deceived, and they'll distrust Konoha even more."
"The Daimyo of the Land of Fire may not interfere lightly in Konoha's affairs, but once this gets out, his opinion of the Third Hokage will likely fall.
"Hmph. If the Daimyo is displeased, all he has to do is hold up a few matters that require the Capital's involvement. That'll be enough to make the Third Hokage suffer."
"It's a good plan. Danzo can't explain this away, either. If he claims he joined forces with us, that lie will fall apart at once. We won't even need him to come forward."
Ōnoki's anger eased considerably. He truly hadn't thought that far ahead. One person's ideas were limited; a group could see much more.
And judging by how things stood, Iwagakure had nothing to lose.
"Good. We'll spread the story as planned. Expose the Third Hokage's shameless true face and let every ninja in the Shinobi World see Konoha for what it is."
Iwagakure, which had remained silent until now, began to strike back. It leaked word that Konoha's Root had never been disbanded, only hidden away.
It also claimed that Danzo and the Third Hokage had colluded, using the Tailed Beast incident to help Danzo escape his imprisonment in Konoha.
The rumors emphasized Danzo's background. As the Second Hokage's disciple and the Third Hokage's lifelong companion, how could he possibly betray Konoha and defect to Iwagakure?
The rumors found plenty of believers as soon as they surfaced. After all, any ninja of some standing in the Shinobi World knew about the relationship between the