The villagers admitted their mistake, and Shimura Danzō's secret was exposed

"Heavens, that man looks like Lord Senju Ye, the First Hokage's disciple who subdued the Nine-Tails all by himself!"

"That's him! If Lord Senju Ye hadn't arrived in time, that Nine-Tails beast would have killed me."

"Lord Senju Ye! Lord Senju Ye..."

Seeing how popular that so-called "Senju Ye" was, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt displeased.

Still, after an awkward cough, he immediately forced a smile and began trying to ingratiate himself with Shisui Uchiha.

"Ahem, Senju Ye, so it's you."

Hiruzen Sarutobi had originally thought Senju Ye belonged to Konoha's Hidden Guardians, left behind by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.

But now, judging by the timing of his sudden appearance, this fellow clearly favored the Uchiha Clan.

That was not good news for him.

He had to speak first, seize control of the conversation, and probe where the other man truly stood!

"As expected of Lord First's disciple. You truly are a young hero. Considering our ages and seniority, you ought to address me as..."

"I said I didn't think much of your proposal. Didn't you understand?"

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

Shisui Uchiha had no intention of wasting words on Hiruzen Sarutobi's attempts to get friendly.

Terrifying wood release chakra surged wildly from his body. Under everyone's gaze, it struck Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō, making them both grunt.

"You talk too much!"

"Understood. From this moment on, neither I nor the Anbu will interfere in matters concerning the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

After experiencing Shisui Uchiha's wood release chakra at close range, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally chose to yield for the time being.

What terrifying chakra fluctuations. This fellow seems even stronger than me!

With Uchiha Fugaku, who has awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, and this Senju Ye, who possesses Wood Release...

The Uchiha Clan really is about to rise to prominence!

With a silent sigh, he realized it was time to choose a side to preserve the power and interests he held...

Having reached that conclusion, Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped forward on his own without any prompting from Shisui Uchiha and spoke.

"Senju Ye is right. The child in Clan Head Fugaku's arms is indeed the son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and Kushina Uzumaki."

"Naruto, the son of true heroes!"

At Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, the civilians and shinobi below all grew agitated.

But before they could speak, Senju Ye suddenly snapped, his voice carrying his powerful chakra.

"Silence!"

"..."

"Do you have any idea how much pain the Fourth Hokage and Kushina Uzumaki felt when they decided to seal the Nine-Tails inside their child?"

"But they understood who they were and what their duties demanded! For the will of fire, to protect Konoha, they ultimately chose to sacrifice themselves and their child to seal the Nine-Tails!"

At that point, Shisui Uchiha pointed straight at Naruto in Uchiha Fugaku's arms and continued.

"But what about you?"

"Every one of you shouted for blood, wanting to attack the son of heroes. Do you even consider yourselves human? What right do you have to stand here and pay your respects to the Fourth Hokage and Kushina Uzumaki?"

"You ungrateful wretches have no right to remain here, no right to set foot where these heroes rest. Get out, all of you!"

At Shisui Uchiha's shout, the Konoha civilians and shinobi below trembled slightly, and the guilt in their hearts rapidly swelled.

Before long, in full view of everyone, the row of Uchiha Clan shinobi dropped to one knee before Naruto and bowed their heads in silent mourning.

Seeing this, the members of the various clans behind them, along with the civilians and shinobi who had been shouting insults moments earlier, all knelt at once and cried out.

"What? He really is Lord Fourth Hokage and Lady Kushina's child! Our little hero!"

"And we actually treated him like that? What were we doing? We were wrong, we were wrong, terribly wrong!"

"Lord Fourth Hokage, Lady Kushina, we have failed you and the son of heroes!"

"We're sorry! We're sorry..."

For a time, cries of remorse and self-reproach rose one after another, echoing throughout the Graveyard.

At this sight, both Shimura Danzō, who had already retreated to the edge and was about to leave, and Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had now chosen to side with the Uchiha, looked grim.

They knew that after tonight, the villagers would formally accept the Uchiha Clan.

The hostility and conflict between the two sides would undergo a tremendous shift!

Yet just as Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō thought the matter was drawing to a close...

Shisui Uchiha, who had just stirred the villagers' emotions, suddenly whipped his head around to look at Shimura Danzō, who was preparing to slip away.

At the same time, several Uchiha Clan shinobi, longswords in hand, blocked the route Shimura Danzō and the Root members had to take to leave.

"Danzo, don't be in such a hurry to leave. I sensed something familiar coming from your arm."

As he spoke, Shisui Uchiha extended his right hand, and wood release chakra spilled out.

"That sensation reminds me of my late teacher."

This is bad!

Shimura Danzō, who had intended to accept his defeat and stop contesting custody of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, suddenly narrowed his eyes.

Could this fellow really be Hashirama Senju's disciple?

Otherwise, how could his perception be so terrifyingly keen that he could detect the problem with my arm?

After Shisui Uchiha spoke, Uchiha Fugaku also stepped forward with Naruto in his arms and said coldly.

"Lord Senju Ye, I sensed the presence of the Sharingan of Kagami Uchiha on him. Kagami was a clansman of ours who met with misfortune long ago."

"Kagami Uchiha?"

Hearing Uchiha Fugaku's words, Shisui Uchiha feigned ignorance and asked.

"Fugaku, are you certain?"

"I am."

Uchiha Fugaku nodded solemnly.

Seeing this, Shimura Danzō completely lost his composure.

Senju Ye alone was enough to give him a headache and make it difficult to find an excuse to escape. Now Uchiha Fugaku, who had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, had joined in.

These two bastards weren't here to fight me for custody of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki today. They wanted my life!

"I see..."

At those words, Shisui Uchiha slowly turned toward Shimura Danzō, and an utterly terrifying wave of chakra surged wildly from his body.

"Danzo, come on. Explain it to the two of us."

"..."

While Shimura Danzō's expression kept shifting, Hiruzen Sarutobi silently took a step back.

He had known about the experiments Shimura Danzō and Orochimaru were conducting for a long time. He had simply never exposed them.

But he would never admit that, even under threat of death.

If someone had to die, Danzo alone would suffice. He would never turn completely against Senju Ye and Uchiha Fugaku for Danzo's sake.

Danzo, for the peace of Konoha, you'll just have to shoulder the blame...