Silence.
Absolute silence.
The entire office became so quiet it felt like sound itself had been erased.
Crack.
A teacup slipped from Koharu Utatane's hands and shattered on the floor.
For someone of her status—one of Konoha's top elders—to drop a cup from sheer shock…
It was the definition of losing control.
But at this moment, no one even looked at her.
The ANBU messenger.
The Sarutobi genin.
Hiruzen.
Homura.
All of them were in the same state—
stunned, stiff, and visibly shaken.
"Damn it…"
After what felt like forever, Sarutobi Hiruzen finally sank back into his chair, his face pale with disbelief.
He swore to himself—
he'd never taken this much psychological damage in a single day.
The Sarutobi clan's shinobi being wiped out meant the Sarutobi had effectively suffered social death inside Konoha.
And now even Shimura Danzō was dead—
another pillar gone from Hiruzen's side.
Koharu finally seemed to recover enough to make a strangled sound—half scream, half gasp—before she slumped into her chair, trembling.
"How… how is this possible?"
Homura Mitokado stomped the floor as if he'd lost his mind.
His face twisted. He clutched his head with both hands and shook—hard enough to look unhinged.
Because the truth was undeniable.
Inside that box—
was Shimura Danzō's head.
Blood had smeared it. The features were ugly, half-obscured.
But Hiruzen, Koharu, and Homura had known Danzō for decades.
They recognized him at a glance.
And from the twisted expression and the unwilling eyes—
it was obvious.
Danzō had died full of rage and regret.
"Why… why did this happen…?"
Hiruzen stared at the head, pain twisting through his chest.
Then the rest crashed into him again—
the Uchiha "vanishing."
The Sarutobi shinobi slaughtered overnight.
His skin went cold.
"Danzō… dead?" Koharu whispered, voice breaking. "How could he die?"
"Why?" Homura breathed harshly. "Does the Uchiha clan still have some hidden method?"
They forced themselves to inhale, trying to crush down the fear.
But it wouldn't flatten.
Because yesterday was supposed to be a celebration day.
They'd stayed awake all night, excited, waiting to hear that the Uchiha were gone forever.
Instead, they'd been struck by a thunderbolt.
And the more they connected the dots—
the more terrifying it became.
Uchiha vanished.
Sarutobi shinobi killed.
Danzō dead.
If you thought about it carefully…
Maybe the "clown" wasn't the Uchiha.
Maybe—
the clown was Konoha's high command.
Them.
Hiruzen, Koharu, and Homura exchanged a look.
In each other's eyes, they saw the same thing:
fear.
Then Hiruzen suddenly clenched his fists and barked an order.
"You two. Get out."
"Y-Yes, Third Hokage!"
The ANBU and the Sarutobi genin looked like they'd been granted a pardon. They scrambled out of the office, practically tripping over themselves in relief.
They weren't idiots.
Something huge had happened to Konoha.
And staying in the room while Konoha's top elders radiated pure fury?
That was a good way to die without anyone lifting a finger.
Once the door closed—
Hiruzen's face hardened into a snarl.
"Damn it. We were played."
"Who's calculating behind our backs?"
"The Sarutobi clan's shinobi being wiped out—this is a slap across my face!"
For years, no one had humiliated them like this.
Kill Danzō?
Wipe out the Sarutobi shinobi?
What was the message?
Was someone testing how much Konoha's leadership could endure before snapping?
"Now what?" Koharu hissed.
"The Uchiha extermination plan has clearly failed," Homura said, jaw tight. "We have to find the mastermind."
After venting, the three stared at each other again.
Killing intent filled the room.
They weren't used to being cornered.
Worse—
they didn't even know who had moved the blade.
All they could do was rage in place.
After a long silence, Koharu's eyes flickered.
"…Could it be the Uchiha?"
Her voice grew sharper as she spoke, as if forcing reality into a shape she could accept.
"That cursed clan… they killed Danzō and Root's elites, then turned around and slaughtered the Sarutobi shinobi, and finally fled Konoha overnight."
"No," Hiruzen cut in immediately, voice cold. "Impossible."
"You're joking."
"We know the Uchiha's strength," he said sharply. "If they had that kind of hidden power, the extermination plan would never have been approved in the first place."
"If they had a back-up plan, why would they endure for so many years?"
Homura nodded grimly, adding the final nail:
"We've been suppressing and isolating the Uchiha for years. They've never dared to resist."
Koharu fell silent.
The office sank into another dead quiet.
And in that quiet—
all three of them felt it.
A vague, growing sense of doom.
As if an enormous net had already been cast over Konoha, and the village was only now noticing the threads.
Then—
Bang.
The office door opened again.
An ANBU shinobi rushed in, breathless.
"Third Hokage—Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha clan head… and Elite Jōnin Uchiha Ren… have arrived."
"What? Fugaku?"
"He dares show his face?" Homura's eyes widened. "That's walking into a trap!"
Koharu's lips curled. "Good. Very good."
And Hiruzen—
who had been grim and aching inside—
suddenly looked like he'd been thrown a lifeline.
His eyes lit up.
Heaven had a road and he wouldn't take it—
Hell had no gate and he came straight in.
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