At the Hokage Cabinet meeting, the reports from Hatake Sakumo and the others had already reached every senior official. Everyone read them carefully, and the room remained silent during the opening of the meeting.
After a while, Kazemori Masaki spoke first. "Everyone, what do you think?"
"This was undoubtedly a setup." Shimura Danzō put down the report. "Although we have no evidence, I believe the lord was indeed framed, and Tobi was certainly the mastermind!"
The others nodded in agreement with Shimura Danzō. The report was detailed enough for them to draw many conclusions, and there was a strong possibility that the lord was innocent.
"They really covered every angle. We may suspect them, but we have no evidence to speak of. The lord has truly had his name dragged through the mud." Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head slightly.
After Asuna and the others returned to the Capital, Tobi presented the evidence he had obtained to the Daimyo. Furious, the Daimyo demanded severe punishment: the lord's entire family was to be arrested and executed to reassure the public.
Upon receiving the news, Kazemori Masaki immediately declared that such measures were unacceptable while the truth remained unclear. Even if the lord had genuinely been connected to the Evil God Worshippers, it might have been his personal involvement alone, as demonstrated by the fact that his trusted retainers knew nothing about it.
The lord's trusted retainers truly knew nothing about the Evil God Worshippers. Mizuki and the others had established that through interrogation, and even the Daimyo could not deny it. Of course, if he insisted on proceeding, there was nothing to prevent him. He was the country's sovereign, and taking his anger out on others was perfectly reasonable—at least in his own eyes.
This sort of feudal collective punishment had long