Surround and Kill Madara Uchiha?

After the shock, Hiruzen Sarutobi gritted his teeth. Veins bulged on his forehead, and every word he forced through his teeth carried the fury of a man who had been played.

"Danzo! Do you take me for a three-year-old?"

His pipe trembled between his fingers, its smoke twisting violently in the moonlight.

"You urged me to use Impure World Reincarnation, saying Kokoro no Suke could identify his killer and clear your name!"

"Then Kokoro no Suke said the killer looked like you, and now you're telling me it was Madara Uchiha!"

"Do you think I'm so senile you can feed me any story you like?!"

Danzo's face remained expressionless, but the half hidden beneath his bandages twitched.

The rotten idea of using Impure World Reincarnation had indeed been his.

At the time, he had genuinely thought Kokoro no Suke could name his killer. Who knew that useless fool hadn't even seen who killed him? Worse, he had said the killer looked like Danzo, making the case against him even stronger.

Now that Hiruzen Sarutobi had brought it up in front of everyone, Danzo had no answer. He couldn't refute a single word.

Uchiha Fugaku folded his arms, a mocking smile of satisfaction curling his lips.

"Lord Danzo. If you're going to make excuses, at least make them plausible. Madara Uchiha? Even Orochimaru would make a more believable culprit!"

Danzo turned his lone eye toward Fugaku and stared coldly at him.

There was no anger in that eye, no embarrassment at being mocked. Only a grim seriousness.

"Have you all forgotten that Uchiha from the Night of the Nine-Tails...?"

The air over the Training Ground froze.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's fingers tightened sharply, making his pipe creak. The mockery and anger vanished from his wrinkled face in an instant, replaced by grim apprehension.

Uchiha Fugaku's smile froze as well. His folded arms fell to his sides, and the Three-Tomoe Sharingan slowly appeared in his eyes as he stared hard at Danzo.

The Nine-Tails' Rampage.

It was the most horrific night etched into Konoha's collective memory.

The Nine-Tailed Fox had appeared out of nowhere in the center of the village. Its claws tore through streets, its Tailed Beast Bombs flattened homes, and countless ninja and civilians were crushed to pulp in their sleep.

The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had traded his life to seal the Nine-Tailed Fox with the Reaper Death Seal, saving Konoha. His wife, Kushina Uzumaki, had also died that night.

That night, Konoha lost its Fourth Hokage and countless elite ninja. The Uchiha Clan lost Konoha's trust.

And the one behind it all... the man wearing the Spiral Mask, with only one Sharingan visible, remained at large. His identity was still unknown.

That Masked Man was an enemy of all Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi suppressed the anger surging in his chest and spoke slowly.

"That Masked Man was Madara Uchiha?"

"But Madara Uchiha died long ago. The First Hokage killed him at the Valley of the End. It's in the ninja textbooks. The entire Shinobi World knows it."

"Besides... with Madara Uchiha's strength and temperament, why would he skulk around like this?"

"Back then, he controlled the Nine-Tailed Fox and faced the First Hokage head-on. He was utterly fearless!"

"Even if a man like that were still alive, he wouldn't hide his face and resort to petty tricks!"

Uchiha Fugaku nodded too. The mockery had faded from his face, but his doubts remained.

"Madara Uchiha is a legend of the Uchiha Clan. That's exactly why I find it even harder to believe he'd hide in the shadows and strike from cover."

"Someone that powerful would either fight openly or not fight at all. Scheming to turn people against each other isn't Madara Uchiha's style."

Danzo sneered.

The laugh was hoarse and grating. It echoed across the empty Training Ground as though mocking their ignorance.

"Madara Uchiha was once unstoppable... but he suffered grievous wounds fighting the First Hokage. His strength declined. He's no longer the man he was."

"He came to me once. He wanted us to work together against the Uchiha and Konoha's Hokage."

At that, Hiruzen Sarutobi's and Uchiha Fugaku's expressions changed at the same time.

Danzo ignored their reactions and continued, a faint note of pride in his voice.

"I refused!"

Refused?

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Uchiha Fugaku both let out cold laughs.

Even Might Guy, standing behind Hiruzen Sarutobi, couldn't stop the corner of his mouth from twitching.

Uchiha Yongye stood behind Fugaku and mocked Danzo outright. "An old dog refusing to eat shit? Heh... You might as well tell us you're Qin Shi Huang!"

Danzo's fingers clenched around his cane until his knuckles creaked. The half of his face beneath the bandages twitched several times, and murderous intent nearly burst from his lone eye.

That damned Uchiha bastard had humiliated him in public again!

Last time, Yongye had kicked him over in front of everyone, called him "Old Dog Danzo," and forced Hiruzen Sarutobi to remove him from office.

This time, Yongye had called him an old dog eating shit to his face and said something about Qin Shi Huang.

Danzo didn't quite know what Qin Shi Huang was, but Uchiha Yongye's tone, expression, and biting sarcasm made the message clear: You old dog, at least make your lies believable!

But Danzo couldn't lash out. For his plan to work, he needed to convince Hiruzen Sarutobi and Uchiha Fugaku to join forces with him against the true mastermind.

If a junior's taunts made him lose control now, everything he had done to set this up would be wasted.

Danzo drew a deep breath and forced the rage threatening to overwhelm his reason back down into his chest.

Then he acted as though he hadn't heard a thing.

Ignoring Yongye was the only response Danzo could manage right now.

He went on.

"All three of us are victims. Suspecting me is foolish!

"The killer is Madara Uchiha. He wants to destroy the Uchiha and all of Konoha. He deliberately stirred up conflict between us so we'd kill one another while he reaped the benefits!

"Hiruzen, have you thought about it? Kokoro no Suke was killed, and I'm the prime suspect!

"Fugaku, have you thought about it? You were ambushed, and I'm also the likeliest attacker. What happens if you both decide I did it?"

He didn't wait for them to answer. He gave the answer himself.

"Hiruzen Sarutobi would fight me to the death. The Uchiha Clan would seize the chance to launch a coup. Konoha would descend into all-out civil war. Who would be happiest then?"

Silence fell over the Training Ground again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows drew together in a deep furrow.

He had to admit that Danzo's argument made sense. The mysterious killer's goal did appear to be stirring up turmoil within Konoha.

And the enemy hiding in the shadows would indeed benefit most from civil war in Konoha.

Uchiha Fugaku sank into thought as well.

Danzo's words brought back the feeling of being ambushed the night before.

The Man in Black's Vacuum Spheres had been far more powerful than Danzo's, but his Hand Seals, the timing of his attacks, and even the way he stood had all reminded Fugaku of Danzo.

If the man really was Madara Uchiha, then with his legendary strength and the Sharingan's ability to copy techniques, imitating Danzo's fighting style would be no problem at all.

But all of that rested solely on Danzo's word.

Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his head. His old eyes had regained the calm scrutiny of a Hokage.

"That's just your word. What proof do you have?"

Danzo did not answer at once.

He remained silent for three full breaths, then slowly raised his head. In the lone eye not covered by bandages burned an almost mad resolve.

"I pretended not to know he was in Konoha and arranged to meet him in seven days."

"When the time comes, the three of us will join forces and surround and kill him! We'll read his memories... and the truth will come out!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's pupils contracted slightly.

Uchiha Fugaku's Sharingan slowly turned.

Surround and kill... Madara Uchiha?