Chapter 936 : Danzo's Misery

Unable to figure out the mystery, Hiruzen's clone could only let out a long, tired sigh. He muttered, “It's impossible to get to the bottom of this. There's too much that we do not know. Scour the battlefield once again to see if we missed something. Fujin, get rid of the seals left behind by the Root.”

Everyone immediately followed his orders, while Hiruzen's clone continued standing at the same spot and observing the deep. empty hole.

A few minutes later, the other clones returned empty-handed. There was no additional evidence. Hiruzen's clone sighed, “Let's return. Shikaku, assign a few patrol squads around this area later. In the future, always examine such intel with great scrutiny. If their goal is to eliminate our rank S ninjas, they won't stop with Danzo. Alternatively, it may be a way to track the movements of Akuro or other ancient experts.”

Shikaku's clone nodded, already weighing the implications. If Konoha were to lose any more S-rank shinobi, it wouldn’t just be a strategic disaster. It would also mean fewer hours of sleep for him and far more restless ones at that. He had no intention of taking such a problem lightly.

The clones returned to the waiting army in silence. Fujin’s and Kakashi’s clones were the first to dispel, transferring their memories in an instant. The others handed over the scrolls containing the bodies of the fallen Root operatives, including Danzo Shimura, before quietly vanishing as well.

As the memories surged back into their main bodies, fleeting signs of tension crossed their otherwise composed expressions. The weight of what they had uncovered, or failed to, settled in. But none spoke. In the end, Hiruzen gave the official order to retreat.

The rest of the army, watching from a distance, remained frozen in uncertainty. They had marched out under strict orders, denied context or explanations. Now, watching their commanders return without so much as a word and issue the order to retreat, confusion simmered beneath their calm exteriors. No briefings were given, no conclusions shared.

For the ninjas, it was a march into mystery and back into silence. Whispers spread quietly, trying to piece together what might have happened beyond the treeline. The lower ranked ninjas immediately asked their superiors about what had happened, but even their superiors were clueless.

Hoka asked Fujin, but received no answer. The ones close to Kakashi were similarly left hanging. As such, countless speculations and conspiracy theories floated in the army. By the time they returned to Konoha, the rumor mill was overflowing with increasingly ridiculous possibilities. Needless to say, the possibility of something as drastic as Danzo's death wasn't one of those ridiculous theories.

The ninjas in the army weren't the only confused ones. The spies in the village were far more confused.
One wondered, ‘What the hell did they do in less than half a day? Where could they even go in so little time?’
Another spy thought, ‘They shouldn't even have reached the borders. What was so critical that they had to send such a powerful lineup?’
An Iwa spy analyzed, ‘Did Lord Tsuchikage send a force secretly into the Land of Fire? No, that doesn't sound like him. Could it be someone else? However, who can it be? Even Kumogakure wouldn't want a war with Konoha at this time… Besides, none of them look injured. They couldn't have been in an intense combat…’
A spy with colorful imagination wondered, his mind filled with terror, ‘Don't tell me! Did another master of the Flying Thunder God jutsu appear in Konoha? Did they teleport the entire army somewhere, complete their objectives and return so quickly? Who did they hit? Shit! I need to report immediately! But these bastards are watching like hawks!’

Konoha's army had returned so quickly that the spies didn't even have time to send out messages. Only 3 spies had tried so far, all of whom were caught. Of course, there was an exception. Nearly every spy from Suna attempted to send messages out within one hour of Hiruzen and the rest leaving Konoha. Danzo looked over the operation to catch every single one of them, precisely replicating Hiruzen's success during the Chunin Exams.

Ironically, the surprise of Konoha ninjas, enemy spies, even combined together, paled to the confusion, shock and disbelief Danzo experienced when Hiruzen informed him of what they witnessed. The words struck not like blades, but like the absence of sound after a great crash—leaving Danzo suspended in a world suddenly unfamiliar, where nothing lay where it once did.

Danzo did not speak, did not blink, his breath caught as though the laws that bound the world had been rewritten in front of him. Hiashi and Shibi were caught off guard by his state. In all their years of dealing with Danzo, they had never seen him so lost.

The others also felt pity for Danzo, while sympathizing with him, though they were more concerned with figuring out the mystery. The only exception was Fujin. His expression was identical to the remaining ninjas in the Hokage office, but he took great satisfaction from Danzo's misery.

Fujin couldn't help but wonder, ‘If he felt so much confusion while alive, would his mind have remained sane? Then again, he wasn't completely sane. Hmm, perhaps years of scheming in the dark can cause irreparable mental damage. I need to do more pranks in between my training and fighting. I wonder who'll volunteer…’

After enough time passed, Hiruzen probed, “What do you think, Danzo?”

Danzo sighed in frustration and exhaustion, “I don't know what to think anymore…”

Despite experiencing the battle firsthand at the cost of his life, the intel Danzo possessed was no different than what Hiruzen and Shikaku possessed. If they couldn't figure it out, there wasn't much hope for Danzo to have a breakthrough.

Suddenly, Danzo said, “Hiruzen, let me handle Sunagakure's spies. I'll oversee the operation to uproot their entire spy network!”

No one expected Danzo to suddenly change the subject, completely ignoring the mystery of his death. Yet, most understood his thoughts. Venting frustrations on someone else was a good way to clear their heads and calm down. Shizune asked in surprise, “Are we still targeting them? Can't Akatsuki or Akuro take advantage of it?”

Danzo immediately refuted her, “Akuro wouldn't care about such things. Akatsuki could try to take advantage, but not so soon. They'll suspect a trap. Interfering would be too risky.”

Shizune asked, “But, aren't they our allies? Why don't we target other…?”

Danzo scoffed, interrupting Shizune. He asked, “Weren't they our allies when they teamed up with Orochimaru to backstab us? All alliances are temporary. You should never trust them beyond a certain limit… If they are such good allies, why do they have so many spies in Konoha?”

Agreeing with his old friend, Hiruzen explained, “There are two kinds of battles. One, which is fought openly and known to everyone. The other is fought in the dark, away from the eyes of the public and without any traces.

In light, we should always show benevolence and tolerance. It may cost us in the short while, but it is more beneficial in the long run. However, you have to be completely ruthless in the dark. Not only it restricts their strength and affects their morale, but it also creates an important deterrence effect.”

Glancing at Fujin, Hiruzen added, “Of course, some care must be taken. No proof of our involvement should be left behind. And, you shouldn't go overboard, forcing the other side to confront you openly…”

The memories of Fujin's actions in the Land of Wind still haunted Hiruzen. Plenty of time had passed since then, but Fujin's tendency to go overboard hadn't reduced one bit. Hiruzen and Shikaku had even exploited it to make Ay pay heavily. Luckily, Fujin had always been good at hiding his tracks and misleading the enemy, which eased Hiruzen's troubles considerably. However, Fujin's actions in Iwagakure lacked that aspect too. Hiruzen wanted to make sure Fujin didn't repeat such acts.

Fujin chuckled, his words sending a collective shiver through the group, “I guess we won't be attacking Sunagakure then…”

Everyone's gazes immediately concentrated on him. They understood Fujin was joking, but it wasn't the appropriate time to joke. To their surprise, Fujin said, “A pity. Since you won't need my help to get rid of their intelligence network, I'll be returning to my journey…”