Hanzo was dead, and Hiruzen Sarutobi had been whisked away by Minato to the Land of Grass camp for Tsunade's emergency treatment.
Now, the problem of how to handle the aftermath had become a thorny issue.
The safest course of action was naturally to collect the bodies, seal them into scrolls, and for the three of them to return to the main camp. After all, with top-tier powerhouses like Chiyo and Hanzo having already made their moves, no one could guarantee that more ambushes didn't lie ahead.
Both Sakumo Hatake and Sarutobi Yuki—the sole surviving member of the Hokage Guard—were of this mind. Hatani, however, voiced his opposition.
"Hanzo's final words, combined with Akimitsu's sudden betrayal, point to one person as the mastermind behind this assassination attempt on the Third Hokage."
Hatani's reason for opposing them was simple: he couldn't let Danzo get what he wanted.
"Was all of this truly Lord Danzo's—truly his doing?"
Sakumo, who had arrived late to the scene, still found it hard to believe after hearing Sarutobi Yuki's explanation. "Could this be a deliberate ploy by Hanzo to stir up internal strife within the village?"
"If that's the case, shouldn't we be even more urgent about returning to Konoha?" Hatani countered, glancing at the silent Sarutobi Yuki. "The Third Hokage never ordered Danzo to leave the Land of Grass front. But Sakumo-sama, do you remember seeing Danzo anywhere after the Four-Tails and Five-Tails appeared?"
Sakumo closed his eyes in contemplation. No matter how hard he searched his memory, Danzo had vanished from the battlefield the moment the Tailed Beasts erupted.
"I agree we should return to the village."
Sarutobi Yuki finally broke his silence, siding with Hatani. "If this truly has nothing to do with Lord Danzo, he shouldn't be back yet. But if he has already reached the village ahead of us..."
Yuki trailed off, but his implication was crystal clear.
"Furthermore, for the sake of the village and the Third Hokage, we must return to Konoha," Hatani added, playing his trump card as he saw Sakumo wavering. "This short blade was a gift from Minato; it bears his Flying Raijin formula. Once we are inside Konoha, Minato can use it to bring the Hokage's orders directly to the village—or even teleport the Hokage himself back once he's stable."
He held up his Blink Dagger. Of course, he omitted the specific details of the gift—namely, that he had given the dagger to Minato first for practice and Minato had only returned it after mastering the technique.
"Very well."
Hearing that, Sakumo finally stopped hesitating and nodded in agreement.
The trio, carrying scrolls containing the three corpses, set off once more for Konoha. As they moved, Hatani couldn't help but ask Sarutobi Yuki about the time of death of the traitor, Akimitsu.
"Yuki-aniki, when exactly did that traitor Akimitsu die?"
"It's useless," Yuki replied, shaking his head slightly. His face was grim, his eyes burning with deep-seated resentment. "If that damn traitor really was one of Root's, their brains are rigged to self-destruct the moment they die. The Intelligence Division won't be able to extract a single scrap of information from his head."
"Oh? Does that mean we can still extract Hanzo's memories, then?" Hatani asked, showing no sign of disappointment.
"We should be able to," Yuki nodded, though his brow remained furrowed. "But there's no telling how much useful information we'll actually find."
"Heh. We don't know, and more importantly, Danzo doesn't know either," Hatani said with a confident smirk.
"You want to use Hanzo's body to bluff him?!" Yuki's eyes lit up, his expression finally brightening with excitement.
Hatani nodded.
Nearby, Sakumo Hatake watched them talk as if Danzo's guilt was already a foregone conclusion. He couldn't help but let out a bitter, silent laugh. But deep down, his heart was in turmoil.
It was one thing for Hatani to have a deep-seated grudge against Danzo, but now even Sarutobi Yuki seemed convinced that the assassination was Danzo's handiwork...
Could Danzo really be the mastermind behind all of this?
The trio traveled at a breakneck pace. However, because they had started late and had been slowed down by consecutive ambushes from Suna and Rain, the sun had fully dipped below the horizon by the time they reached the final stretch.
They didn't dare stop to camp. Under the pale glow of the moon, they pushed forward at maximum speed.
By this time, Danzo Shimura—escorted by his Root ninjas—had already reached the gates of Konoha.
"Lord Danzo?!"
The gate guards—predecessors to the likes of Kotetsu and Izumo—greeted him with a mixture of excitement and confusion, bowing deeply.
With disaster striking in the Land of Rivers and along the coastline, Konoha was currently in a state of panic. Koharu Utatane was struggling to maintain order on her own. Danzo's return was seen as a godsend.
Yet, they found it strange. Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo had both been at the front lines in the Land of Grass. If Danzo was back, why hadn't the village's true pillar, the Third Hokage, returned as well?
"Immediately summon all Jonin and Clan Heads to the Hokage Building," Danzo commanded, his face a mask of stern authority that masked his inner triumph.
The guards immediately scurried to obey.
"Ryoma, Tanuki—guard the main gates. No one is permitted to enter or leave the village without my express permission," Danzo added, turning to two of his subordinates. Even though he believed his plan was foolproof, he wasn't taking any chances.
"Yes, sir."
Aburame Ryoma and the agent codenamed Tanuki bowed. Danzo then led the rest of his entourage in a grand procession toward the Hokage Building.
Looking at the silhouette of the building bathed in the final, lingering embers of the sunset, Danzo could no longer suppress the excitement he had held in check.
Finally. I am finally going to be the master of that building.
He clenched his fist tightly.
Hiruzen, just watch. Under my leadership, Konoha will truly become powerful!
"Tsunade, how is Sensei?!"
Back in the Konoha camp in the Land of Grass, Jiraiya ignored Tsunade's visible exhaustion as she stepped out of the operating room. He rushed forward, his voice thick with anxiety.
"I've used the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique to remove most of the toxin after stabilizing him with the antidote. He hasn't woken up yet, but he's out of danger. He's just exhausted and suffered significant blood loss, so he'll be out for a while."
Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Mitokado Homura, and Minato all let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Lady Tsunade, roughly when do you expect the Third Hokage to wake up?" Minato asked, his voice still tinged with worry.
Everyone else had rushed to the medical tent the moment they heard the news, but Danzo had yet to show his face. Recalling Hanzo's words, a cold sense of vigilance took root in Minato's heart.