I'll Give You What You Asked For

After a brief moment of shock, Shinji Yamanaka showed the composure of a seasoned mole. He forced down his panic and wiped every trace of it from his face.

He could not understand how anyone had tracked his movements so precisely when he had been so careful last night. But he also knew he had erased every trace in advance.

As long as he denied everything, an unsupported accusation about his whereabouts could not convict him. He was still a registered Konoha ninja, not a criminal or a rogue ninja.

Shinji Yamanaka took a deep breath, looking more aggrieved than ever, as though he truly had been wronged.

"Lord Hokage, I retired to my room after nightfall and never left it. I certainly didn't disguise myself as some black-robed man to threaten anyone. Someone is trying to frame me. Please investigate this thoroughly!"

Shinji Yamanaka insisted he had never gone out last night, bringing the entire office to a standstill.

Under Konoha's interrogation rules, they could now resort to extraordinary measures.

They could have the Anbu use genjutsu to extract the truth, or have the Yamanaka Clan use a Mind Secret Technique to force their way through his memories.

Either method would break the deadlock at once. But Hiruzen Sarutobi held his pipe without speaking. Hesitation flickered in his eyes as smoke curled upward and he weighed his options.

Shinji Yamanaka was no rogue ninja. He was a full-fledged ninja of the Yamanaka Clan. Using such methods without evidence could easily arouse suspicion among the ninja clans if word got out, even if Inoichi Yamanaka had no objections. It could drive a wedge between the village and its clans.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had ruled Konoha for decades and was a master at balancing competing interests, but even he found himself at