While the war in the Land of Rivers raged on, new problems began surfacing in the village. The Third Hokage sat quietly, glancing at Danzo, his advisor. This was Danzo's moment to step up.
Typically, in these situations, the Third Hokage would lean on Danzo's advice. Danzo was ruthless and decisive-the type of man needed to handle tough problems.
Unlike Koharu and Homura, who were good at running the medical and logistics departments, they weren't cut out for making difficult decisions that required a firm hand.
They hesitated, never fully committing to either side, but Danzo? He acted swiftly.
"How dare they target my men? These fools must have a death wish," Danzo thought to himself, fuming. Whoever attacked his agents had to be spies sent by another village. They might have already infiltrated the village's inner ranks.
After a brief pause, Danzo gritted his teeth and said, "Hiruzen, we need a full internal investigation. We can't afford to let this slide. If we don't root them out now, this will come back to bite us."
"An internal investigation?" The Third Hokage was taken aback.
A thorough sweep like that would ruffle feathers, and if things went wrong, it could cause chaos. Especially since ANBU would be the first to be inspected.
As for Root? There wasn't much to worry about there-Danzo had already ensured that no one in Root could spill any secrets.
"Isn't there another option?" The Hokage hesitated. A full investigation was possible, but targeting Anbu first seemed risky.
Danzo, growing frustrated, slammed his hand on the table. "Hiruzen, this is no time to be indecisive! If the location of our village's barrier nodes leaks, we're in big trouble. Or do you plan on changing the entire system?"
"..." The Third Hokage wanted to roll his eyes.
Changing the barrier system?
Konoha's barrier covered the entire village, and each node was fixed in place. Replacing it would require a massive overhaul, both in manpower and resources. And with the war against the Sand Village still ongoing, that wasn't an option.
"Danzo has a point," Koharu interjected. "Now's not the time for mercy."
"I agree,"
Homura added. "We need to conduct a thorough sweep of our ranks. If we don't, and something happens while we're fighting in the Land of Rivers, it could be disastrous."
Koharu and Homura may have lacked the will to take such decisive action on their own, but they had no problem backing Danzo when he did.