Aoki Yoru flipped his hand, and three Kunai instantly appeared in his grasp, which he threw towards Ding.
Watching the flying Kunai, Ding's pupils instantly contracted, his face filled with horror, as he saw that each Kunai had an explosive tag attached, sizzling loudly.
Boom—
A violent explosion suddenly erupted, the blast wave sweeping through the surroundings as a massive fireball appeared in the sky above Konoha.
Aoki Yoru tightly shielded Chino in his arms with one hand, while his other hand had already formed a seal:
"Lightning Release: Lightning Shock Bomb"
An orb of electricity was shot from his hand, detonating with a second loud noise inside the fireball; Ding's body froze completely in the lightning, then crashed to the ground, lifeless.
This was something he had developed to deal with sound-based Ninjas; its advantage was the loud noise, though he hadn't expected to use it in this situation.
Swish, swish, swish—
At this moment, Ninjas and Anbu who had heard the commotion rushed over from all directions, surrounding the scene tightly.
"What was that explosion just now?" a Ninja stepped forward to ask.
Aoki Yoru recognized him as Captain Inuzuka of the Police Force and immediately breathed a sigh of relief; at least it wasn't the Anbu.
"Someone was kidnapping children in Konoha. I discovered it, chased after him, and ended up fighting him." As he spoke, he adjusted his hold on Chino in his arms.
Captain Inuzuka looked at Ding on the ground, who was clearly dressed as an Anbu, and fell into a dilemma; one slip-up and he would be dragged into big trouble.
"We will investigate this matter thoroughly. For now, you need to come with us to the Police Force to be questioned." As he said this, he signaled his men to move forward and detain Aoki Yoru.
"Captain Inuzuka, isn't that against the rules? To bring someone in for interrogation at the Police Force without clarifying the facts or having any evidence is a bit too hasty."
A silver-haired figure appeared in front of Aoki Yoru.
Seeing his teacher arrive, Aoki Yoru immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Kakashi was a famous figure in the Village, and with his protection, at least the truth wouldn't be twisted.
Captain Inuzuka was suddenly in a difficult position; neither side was easy to mess with.
Just as the two sides were deadlocked, a dark shadow appeared on the scene like a ghost.
"Jonin Hatake, Chunin Aoki, Hokage-sama summons the two of you to the Hokage Office immediately."
Aoki Yoru, holding Chino, exchanged a look with Kakashi, and both saw understanding in each other's eyes.
It seemed this matter had already alerted the highest level of leadership.
"Let's go." Kakashi took the first step, his voice calm, "Let's go see Hokage-sama."
Aoki Yoru followed closely behind, shielding Chino even tighter.
At this moment, not only was the Third Hokage in the Hokage Office, but the two Advisors and Danzo were also present.
Seeing the three of them enter, Danzo attacked first, slamming his cane heavily on the floor and shouting sternly:
"Aoki Yoru! You have some nerve! You dare to attack and kill an Anbu member within Konoha's borders? Are you trying to betray the Village?"
He glanced at him, then explained the cause and effect of the matter to the Hokage, looking at the Third Hokage:
"Since this Advisor says he is an Anbu member, then his kidnapping of children is even more unforgivable. He might be a spy from an enemy country. I implore Hokage-sama to extract his memories; everything will then be brought to light."
Once these words were spoken, Danzo's pupils contracted sharply, his fingers gripping the cane turning white from the exertion. If memories were truly extracted, the dirty deeds of Root would all be exposed.
"Absurd!"
"An Anbu Ninja's memory contains Konoha's highest-level classified intelligence! How can one easily read his memories?" Danzo pounded his cane on the floor, speaking with a fierce expression but a cowardly heart.
"Oh my, Advisor Danzo, do not worry. The Anbu has its own intelligence department; it won't be leaked."
Kakashi interjected at the right moment; although he couldn't take Danzo down in one blow, making him suffer was good enough.
"Enough!"
Seeing this, the Third Hokage stopped their argument and spoke to Aoki Yoru with a kind expression:
"Yoru, you should first take the child to the hospital for a check-up. The Village will investigate this matter thoroughly and give you a satisfactory explanation."
Aoki Yoru had long expected it would end up being swept under the rug, so he bowed and withdrew with Kakashi.
Konoha's night was quiet and peaceful.
"Kakashi-sensei, has it always been handled this way in the past?"
Walking down the road, Aoki Yoru's expression was ugly. In any other place, this would be a major incident, yet it was being brushed off so lightly.
He didn't believe the Third Hokage would severely punish Danzo; Danzo had done many dirty deeds and was still jumping around alive and well.
In his past life, watching the anime, he only felt angry and disdainful towards what Danzo did. Now that it was happening to him, it felt as heavy as a thousand catties.
Is this the capriciousness of power!
Kakashi said meaningfully, "Ah! Things will get better."
The two walked towards the hospital in silence.
At this moment, in the Hokage Office.
The Third Hokage stared fixedly at Danzo. His gaze no longer held any of his usual gentleness, leaving only a solemnity as heavy as iron.
"Danzo, tell me honestly, are you still secretly conducting Wood Release human experiments?"
"Hiruzen, I am doing this for Konoha. The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is uncontrollable. If it goes berserk again, causing another Nine-Tails incident, Konoha must master Wood Release."
"Enough, you dare to conduct human experiments in private."
The Third Hokage took a deep breath and said word by word:
"From today on, Root is immediately disbanded. All members are to be reassigned to the Anbu and will be under my direct jurisdiction. You, Danzo Shimura, are to be confined for reflection starting today. Without my order, you are not allowed to step out of the confinement room a single step!"
"Hiruzen, you will regret this."
Danzo's face was livid, and he walked out, gripping his cane tightly.
"Danzo, I am the Hokage."
This sentence, which Danzo would remember for a lifetime, came from behind him again.
On the other side, at the Ninja Hospital.
What made Aoki Yoru breathe a sigh of relief was that Chino had only inhaled a sedative and was unconscious; she would wake up once the drug wore off.
He brought the child back to the Outer District. Grandma Chidao and her family, who had discovered the child was missing and were out looking for her, showed expressions of surprise and joy when they saw Aoki Yoru holding Chino.
Aoki Yoru just told them that a spy had stolen the child, and he had discovered it and snatched her back. He didn't want this family to be dragged into trouble.
"Thank heavens. Several children have gone missing in the last few years; this time, thanks to Yoru." Grandma Chidao prayed.
Amidst the continuous thanks from Grandma Chidao's family, Aoki Yoru returned to his residence.
"Bang—"
He punched the wall. What Grandma Chidao said about several children going missing in recent years stung him deeply.
Although the Ninja World was essentially a large slaughterhouse, to act so blatantly against the children of the Village was just too unscrupulous.
Konoha's original intention for founding the Village was to keep children off the battlefield, yet now they were being put on experimental tables.
Orochimaru had taken the blame for the previous incidents. Since Orochimaru defected, these were all moves by Root. He didn't believe the Third Hokage didn't know; after all, he had planted moles in Root, he was just pretending not to see.
He took a deep breath, calming himself down.
"What can I do now?" He shook his head, mocking himself.
Better to just lay low and go dance on their graves after they die.
At this moment, Aoki Yoru understood a bit about why no one went to rescue the Third Hokage during the Konoha Crush plan; he really was due to step down.
When the time came, if he had enough strength, he would send Danzo down to reunite with the Third Hokage.