The Hidden Cloud Would Take the Blame, Whether It Liked It or Not

Shisui could no longer sit still when he heard that.

"Lord Hokage, that's absolutely impossible."

He hurried to speak up.

"Jin is an Uchiha. How could he possibly kill members of his own clan?"

"He had grudges against those men, sure, but that happens all the time among the Uchiha. It's hardly a reason to murder someone."

"Besides, Jin is just a student fresh out of the academy. He couldn't possibly pull this off."

Hiruzen Sarutobi said nothing.

He neither nodded nor shook his head, simply remaining silent.

A long while passed.

Fugaku Uchiha broke the deadlock first.

"Shisui has a point. Jin Uchiha certainly isn't capable of this."

His tone was unyielding, leaving no room for argument.

In his eyes, Jin Uchiha was an utterly ordinary member of the clan. To put it bluntly, he was little better than a useless nobody.

Someone like that killing three of their elite? What a joke.

Inoichi Yamanaka considered it, then spoke up with a reminder.

"There's something I need to emphasize again: how those three Uchiha clan members died."

"They were killed instantly. There wasn't the slightest sign of resistance from beginning to end."

"The killer's Body Flicker Technique was exceptional, and he shattered all three men's hearts with a single punch each."

"This was a Taijutsu expert skilled in the Body Flicker Technique."

Everyone sucked in a sharp breath!

His words sent another shock through the room.

Yes, they all knew about the incident, but they hadn't been clear on the details.

Now that Inoichi Yamanaka had laid them out, everyone's mind began racing.

Were there ninja in today's Shinobi World who specialized in Taijutsu?

Yes.

But there were precious few who could truly be called Taijutsu powerhouses.

If anyone came close, the Hidden Cloud Village was probably the likeliest possibility. After all, the Third Raikage A had developed a secret art that used Lightning Body Tempering.

As a result, their ninja were generally formidable in Taijutsu.

And there they were, back to the Hidden Cloud Village again.

Koharu Utatane frowned.

"The Hidden Cloud Village is already at war with our Hidden Leaf. Do they really need to resort to tricks like this?"

Homura Mitokado picked up the thread.

"The key isn't whether they have a reason. It's what they're after, if the Hidden Cloud Village really did this."

"Or rather, what do they stand to gain?"

With both elders speaking in turn, the atmosphere in the room grew even heavier.

Indeed.

By this point in the discussion, the possibility that Jin Uchiha had done it had long since been discarded.

An Uchiha failure wasn't worth wasting everyone's time on, and he didn't have the ability anyway.

Political power struggles in the Shinobi World were still at their most rudimentary stage.

Even Hiruzen Sarutobi, the most adept of them all, was frankly only at an elementary-school level by the standards of Jin Uchiha's previous life.

No matter how hard they thought about it, they could never work out Jin Uchiha's approach.

Shisui, meanwhile, finally felt a weight lift from his heart.

Thank goodness. Whatever conclusion they come to, at least Jin will be safe.

At that moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke.

"Shikaku, let's hear from you."

"I'd like to hear your opinion."

At the Hokage's words, every gaze turned to Shikaku Nara.

When it came to brains, the Nara Household's reputation was second to none in the entire Hidden Leaf.

You could trust the Nara Household's intellect without reservation.

Shikaku Nara had been holding his chin in his left hand, pondering the matter all this time.

Now that everyone was watching him, he let out a heavy breath, a trace of uncertainty in his voice.

"I've actually been wondering whether we're making this too complicated."

"Maybe the whole thing is quite simple."

"Let me go through it from the beginning. Help me think it over and see whether my guess holds up."

"Two years ago, a squad from the Hidden Cloud Village came to the Hidden Leaf to capture people with Kekkei Genkai. Some were killed, others were captured, but one Cloud ninja lost his nerve and ran."

"A little while ago, the Hidden Cloud Village caught that deserter."

"Right now, they're fighting our Hidden Leaf. So they found a use for their trash and staged this whole incident."

"Their objective wouldn't be complicated, either."

"They want to throw our Hidden Leaf into complete chaos."

"Think about it. With something like this happening now, the Hidden Cloud Village wouldn't normally be anyone's first suspect. If anything, it would be easier for them to keep their hands clean."

"Make the Hidden Leaf's lineages suspicious of one another—and using the Uchiha as the trigger is a brilliant move."

"We all know what the Uchiha's temper is like."

"Under normal circumstances, this incident would definitely cause an uproar among the Uchiha. The Moderate Faction might be manageable, but the Radical Faction wouldn't let it go."

"Not to mention that the Uchiha control the Military Police Force. If they really started investigating, they'd turn the Hidden Leaf upside down."

"By then, the Hidden Leaf would inevitably be in chaos."

"Never mind the Hidden Leaf as a whole. The Uchiha might fall into internal turmoil first."

"Just think it through. Our Hidden Leaf is fighting on four fronts right now. What would happen if internal strife broke out at a time like this?"

"The Hidden Cloud Village has some capable people."

Everyone sucked in a sharp breath!

Shikaku Nara's theory sent waves of shock crashing through everyone's mind.

But when they carefully considered it, it really did seem to fit.

At this critical juncture, their enemies were surely hoping the Hidden Leaf would collapse from within.

Once internal strife broke out, the other ninja villages could wipe out the strongest village, the Hidden Leaf, without even breaking a sweat.

Who wouldn't be tempted by such an enormous prize?

Before they knew it, everyone present had accepted this explanation.

"Exactly. That's what's going on."

"The Hidden Cloud Village is rotten to the core. Utterly shameless."

"We can't fall into their trap."

"At a time like this, we need to stand together more than ever."

Everyone began talking at once, sweat beading on their foreheads. The theory had thoroughly frightened them.

Fugaku Uchiha reacted most strongly.

After hearing those words, he slammed his hand on the table.

"Lord Hokage, everyone, let me make this clear today: there will be no trouble within the Uchiha."

"I swear on my ancestors' honor. If anyone dares cause trouble during the war, I, Fugaku Uchiha, will be the first to punish him."

He was drenched in cold sweat.

If the Uchiha really caused them to lose the Third Shinobi World War, the blame would be far too heavy for him to bear.

So he wasted no words and swore an oath on the spot.

In truth, he wasn't the only one. Even Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, had broken out in a cold sweat.

That was close. Too damn close.

He had nearly stepped right into the trap himself.

He could easily imagine the enormous disaster he would have caused if he had actually ordered a thorough investigation.

To say the Hidden Leaf was surrounded by enemies hardly did its situation justice.

The Hidden Cloud Village, Hidden Stone, Hidden Sand, and Hidden Mist had all declared war on the Hidden Leaf at once, and the village was already desperately short of ninja.

Now even fifth-year students had to be pushed onto the battlefield.

If this incident sparked infighting on top of that, they would be in serious trouble.

Whatever the truth was, the investigation had to stop.

Their top priority now was to keep the Hidden Leaf united.

With that thought, Hiruzen Sarutobi rose to his feet and delivered his final decision.

"This matter ends here."

"This was a devious scheme by the Hidden Cloud Village to lure our Hidden Leaf into disarray."

"Fortunately, our Jonin Commander, Shikaku Nara, was sharp enough to see through their vicious plot at once."

"Announce this to the entire shinobi world. I want everyone to see just how sinister and ruthless those scoundrels in the Hidden Cloud Village are."

"And issue a formal warning to every faction: don't even think about using filthy tricks like these against the Hidden Leaf. We won't stand for it."

"Consider yourselves warned."