The square before Konoha's Hokage Building was packed with people, yet it was deathly silent.
Three thousand Sarutobi Chunin occupied the best positions for controlling the square's perimeter like a silent gray tide, their eyes sharp and their presence murderous.
At the center of the square, the leaders of Konoha's major clans, Jonin representatives, and even some civilian ninja representatives who had been "invited" crowded together in a dense mass. Every gaze was fixed on the crude wooden platform temporarily erected in the middle of the square.
On the platform, there were only two people.
On one side stood Hiruzen Sarutobi, still wearing the White Hokage Robe and his conical hat.
He did his utmost to maintain a calm, imposing expression, but the knuckles of the hand holding his pipe had turned somewhat white, and a vein at his temple twitched faintly.
Behind him stood Minato Namikaze, Jiraiya, and a handful of Sarutobi Clan elders who remained utterly loyal, but their presence was distinctly weaker than that of the opposing side.
On the other side stood Shimura Danzō, dressed in black robes and leaning on a cane.
His lone exposed eye swept over the crowd below, and the corner of his mouth beneath the bandages seemed to hold a cold curve.
Beside him stood Aburame Shikuroo, Kurama Murakumo, Inuzuka Kiba, Gekko Wuzang, the Ishikawa Clan Leader, and other core members of the "encirclement."
Even more strikingly, a short distance away, representatives of the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans led by Shikaku Nara, Chōshū Akimichi, and Inoichi Yamanaka also stood quietly. Though they had not openly taken sides, their very presence was a subtle signal.
The air was as taut as a fully drawn bowstring.
The one who broke that deathly silence was Jiraiya, standing one step behind Hiruzen Sarutobi.
This heroic man, who