Within a short time, files on everyone connected to Uchiha Setsuna were laid before Kazemori Masaki. The Anbu only had the authority to investigate and arrest—in practice, mostly to investigate, since arrests required a signed order from Masaki. The actual verdicts also required his decision, but he intended to discuss how to proceed at the Jonin council once he returned.
Although Masaki had the authority to issue orders directly, he did not want to act too arbitrarily, especially in a matter like this. If his successors treated it as a precedent, he felt it could easily become a means of purging their opponents.
Masaki now held immense power. To advance his policies, he needed supreme authority, but the experience of his previous life made him extremely cautious about exercising it. That was why he placed such importance on discussions within the Jonin council. Whether his successors would follow that example, however, was something he could not guarantee.
Masaki intended to establish democracy within Konoha Ninja Village before his term as Hokage ended, so that future Hokage would exercise their authority cautiously. Neither complete democracy nor absolute dictatorship, but centralized democracy—that was his ideal.
Although various factors prevented Masaki from implementing it directly at present, he could set an example for future generations and lay the groundwork for their acceptance. For precisely that reason, he would never allow the Anbu to carry out executions on their own. Their role was to gather evidence and investigate.
The Anbu answered directly to the Hokage, and Masaki placed great importance on their loyalty. He would not treat them as Root did its members, so he regularly checked on their situation and even personally took part in guiding them. In part, this was because he needed the Anbu to remain loyal to the Hokage, but