Everyone racked their brains, but no matter how hard they thought, they could not figure out who the attacker was.
In their eyes, there simply should not exist such a person or such a force capable of doing something like this.
"Ridiculous. This is too ridiculous!"
"Could it be fake news?"
Many people were doubtful.
But soon, someone produced solid evidence, forcing everyone to believe it.
"So there are actually people like this—forces like this—hidden in our shinobi world?"
"Too terrifying."
"What is their goal?"
"Who can still resist them?"
Some people wondered whether it might have been Sunagakure.
After all, in the current shinobi world, Sunagakure was the strongest village, and Rasa was the strongest shinobi.
But someone immediately refuted it.
"It wasn't Sunagakure. Sunagakure was also attacked. The ones who attacked Sunagakure were the Nine-Tails and an enormous blue giant, like the technique Uchiha Madara used back then."
"Susanoo?"
"That's right. Susanoo. Sunagakure suffered no damage because Rasa was strong enough. He stopped the attackers alone. Otherwise, their situation would not have been any better than Kumogakure's."
This made the people of Kumogakure deeply envious.
"It really is good to have such a powerful shinobi in the village."
"If only Rasa were in our Kumogakure."
Another Kumogakure shinobi heard this and grew somewhat dissatisfied.
"How can a shinobi think about relying on others? Do you think if you praise Rasa, he'll come protect Kumogakure? Impossible. Besides, Raikage-sama already did everything he could."
"The attacker was too strong. If that attacker had gone to Sunagakure, Rasa might not necessarily have been able to stop him either."
"Our Kumogakure was simply unlucky."
At this time, some people began paying attention to the situation surrounding Sunagakure's attack.
"The ones who attacked Sunagakure were Uchiha. Does that mean this was an Uchiha clan operation?"
But someone quickly rejected it.
"Impossible! If the Uchiha clan had that kind of strength, why would they need to fear Konoha?"
"They could have directly taken Konoha down."
"Why would they need to run all the way to the distant Land of Water and establish some sailing group?"
"So many Uchiha would not have died for nothing."
Many people agreed with that view.
"That's right."
Then someone discovered the blind spot.
"Why did the Nine-Tails appear in Sunagakure and attack Sunagakure? Isn't the Nine-Tails Konoha's?"
"Why did Sunagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Takigakure all suffer attacks, yet only Konoha was not attacked? It's very hard to say this has nothing to do with Konoha, right?"
"That's right. No matter how you look at it, Konoha is very strange in this matter."
At that moment—
A rumor quietly appeared among the crowd.
"The organization that attacked the major shinobi villages is called the Akatsuki. The Akatsuki and Konoha have formed a partnership. This operation was carried out jointly by Konoha and the Akatsuki."
"The Nine-Tails was handed over to the Akatsuki by Konoha."
When this news reached Konoha, Danzo shot to his feet.
"Nonsense!"
"Konoha has never done such a thing!"
"It wasn't Konoha!"
"This is framing us! This is slander!"
When he had first heard that several other shinobi villages had been attacked, Danzo had been delighted.
After all, if other shinobi villages suffered attacks, that meant their strength had been weakened.
And if the strength of other shinobi villages weakened, it meant Konoha had become stronger by comparison.
Danzo felt as if he were simply chosen by the heavens—the destined Hokage.
The moment he became Acting Hokage, such good fortune had arrived on its own.
Then if he became the true Hokage, would he not easily lead Konoha back to the position of the number one shinobi village?
Restoring Konoha's glory was just around the corner.
But this sudden rumor struck Danzo directly in the face.
Once everyone believed it, Konoha would have effectively provoked public anger.
There were two targets mentioned in this rumor.
One was Konoha.
The other was the Akatsuki.
The Akatsuki could not be found, making retaliation difficult.
But could Konoha not be found?
Danzo immediately went to Homura Mitokado.
"Homura, I need your help to make an announcement in Konoha Weekly and clarify this matter."
"The attacks on those shinobi villages have nothing to do with Konoha."
"We also do not know any organization called the Akatsuki."
"The Nine-Tails was stolen by someone."
After saying this, Danzo lowered his posture and added a few more words.
"Homura, I know you have some opinions about me. There have been quite a few conflicts between us. But this matter concerns all of Konoha. It is not only about me."
"At a time like this, we need to stand together and overcome this crisis hand in hand."
Danzo was calculating the worst-case scenario in his heart.
If Konoha truly suffered a joint attack from several other shinobi villages, manpower would be needed.
At such a time, even if Danzo disliked Homura Mitokado, he still needed Homura Mitokado's strength.
Otherwise, Danzo would not have said so much. He would have directly removed Homura Mitokado from his position and appointed a new person in charge of Konoha Weekly himself.
Danzo's concession caused Homura Mitokado's expression to soften slightly.
"Very well."
Takigakure.
When the people there heard the rumor, they were furious.
"Konoha has gone too far!"
"Where did this Akatsuki organization even come from? Aside from Kakuzu, what other members do they have?"
"Could it be that Konoha has been supporting these rogue ninja all along?"
"What does Konoha want?"
"If they wanted the Tailed Beast, they could have just said so. We're only Takigakure, a small shinobi village. Would we dare refuse them? But now, not only did they seize our Tailed Beast, they even killed so many of our people!"
But some people had a favorable impression of Konoha and felt this matter might not necessarily be connected to them.
At this time, others immediately spoke up.
"How could it have nothing to do with Konoha?"
"The Nine-Tails is Konoha's Tailed Beast. It appeared in Sunagakure and attacked Sunagakure. Without Konoha, the Nine-Tails couldn't even leave Konoha."
"Exactly. The one who attacked Sunagakure also included an Uchiha. Wasn't there a rumor before saying Uchiha Fugaku created the Nine-Tails' rampage and killed Minato Namikaze? Maybe it was Uchiha Fugaku."
Some people began cursing Uchiha Fugaku harshly.
"Uchiha Fugaku is simply a beast in human skin."
"As a member of the Uchiha clan, he didn't help the Uchiha. He watched those Uchiha rebel and die. Instead, he cooperated with Hiruzen Sarutobi, and now he's following Shimura Danzo's orders to attack Sunagakure."
"What exactly is inside that man's head?"
"What does he even want?"
"Does he enjoy being a dog that much?"
When Uchiha Fugaku heard these remarks, he nearly exploded with anger.
"Too much!"
"That's too ugly!"
"I'm not that kind of person at all."
"I didn't do either of those things."
"I have never been anyone's dog."
"This has nothing to do with me!"