Chapter 146: "Jiraiya, Are You Still Going to Stand in My Way?"
Inoichi Yamanaka, Shikaku Nara, and Chōza Akimichi appearing all at once made Hiruzen Sarutobi pause for a moment.
But he quickly recovered. He immediately realized why the three of them had rushed here in the middle of the night.
They must be…
Taking Ikeizumi's side!
After all, Inoichi had made the decision to side with Absolute Justice some time ago. And as allies of the Yamanaka clan, the Nara and Akimichi clans would naturally make the exact same choice.
This realization made Hiruzen's expression turn grim.
However, Hiruzen's foul mood was not directed at the Ino-Shika-Chō, nor was it directed at Uchiha Ikeizumi.
It was directed at the long-dead Danzō!
If Danzō hadn't fought Ikeizumi that time and nearly wiped out the Yamanaka clan, just as Ikeizumi had coincidentally not harmed any of them, would the Yamanaka clan have abandoned their Hokage to side with Absolute Justice?
Hiruzen's teeth ached with frustration.
Too bad Danzō is already dead…
Otherwise, I'd give him a good tongue-lashing to vent all this pent-up anger.
"Lord Hokage." A cold, yet somewhat boyish voice suddenly rang out. It was Itachi Uchiha, who had finally arrived at the Sarutobi clan compound.
Fugaku, who was following at a distance, did not approach the compound. He stood on the rooftop of a building nearby.
From his vantage point, Fugaku had a perfect view of the Sarutobi clan compound.
He saw many unexpected people there.
"Lord Hokage, Elder Koharu, Jiraiya, Kakashi Hatake, Tsunade, the Orochimaru student, Inoichi Yamanaka, Chōza Akimichi, Ikeizumi, Shikaku Nara…" Fugaku's eyes widened in surprise. Isn't this a little too many people to show up tonight?
Adding in the large groups of ANBU and Root ninjas, it looked as if more than half of Konoha's elite fighting force had gathered!
…
"Brat, what in the world is going on?" Tsunade took a step forward.
She first shot a displeased glance at Koharu, then gave Ikeizumi a friendly pat on the shoulder, unable to contain her curiosity. "You came here with these two kids and their swords, with such a fierce attitude. This can't be a simple late-night visit, can it?"
"And what's the deal with you, old man?" Tsunade looked at Hiruzen, directly calling the Third Hokage and her former teacher "old man" to his face.
Hiruzen, however, showed no signs of being offended by the "disrespectful" title, as he had clearly grown used to it.
Tsunade glanced around at everyone. "You couldn't have gathered so many ANBU and Root ninjas just to have a late-night chat with Uchiha Ikeizumi, could you?"
"And… "
Tsunade turned and looked at a stern-faced Jiraiya behind her. "Why are you here too, you old pervert? Were you also following me with Shizune?"
One question after another tumbled from Tsunade's lips, throwing everyone in the vicinity a new riddle to solve.
But it also served to slightly defuse the tense atmosphere.
"Hmph!"
Koharu snorted, explaining, "If this brat hadn't gone mad tonight, would I have had to mobilize so many Root ninjas in the middle of the night?"
She wouldn't have bothered to explain to anyone else, but she still had some respect for Tsunade.
Koharu gritted her teeth, her face shrouded in hatred. "This brat killed a lot of people tonight! Over a dozen from the Koharu and Mitokado clans combined! And now, he's going after the Sarutobi clan!"
"If Hiruzen and I hadn't mobilized Root and ANBU, the Sarutobi clan would have suffered his wrath as well! And yet… there are still people who support and side with this lunatic. It's a total breakdown of morals! A complete loss of ethics!"
"Some people were raised under the Will of Fire… but tonight, I can't see even a shred of the Will of Fire in them!"
Koharu's sarcastic words were aimed at the Ino-Shika-Chō and Anko Mitarashi.
However.
Her barbs seemed to have little effect, as none of the people she was targeting even flinched.
Koharu's words made both Tsunade and Jiraiya stop short.
Tsunade mumbled, "I guess I was right. This brat… really did come here to 'dispense justice.' And he's not holding back, is he? He's not thinking about anyone else at all!"
Jiraiya's face turned serious. He took a deep breath, walked past a few people, and stood in front of Uchiha Ikeizumi.
He looked sternly into Ikeizumi's eyes and said gravely, "Ikeizumi, is what Elder Koharu said true? I rarely get involved in Konoha's affairs, and even when I do, I don't interfere. But this is different. I, Jiraiya, have to step in this time."
"Killing more than twenty fellow Konoha villagers in one night—that's the act of a mass murderer. This shakes the very foundation of Konoha and weakens its power. Ikeizumi, is this truly the justice you claim to have?"
Ikeizumi lifted his eyelids, looking indifferently at Jiraiya. "When justice is weak, you endure and do not kill when you see evil."
"But when justice has a strong, absolute hand and no longer fears any storm, to see evil again and not to judge it, would be to let justice fade."
"And if justice fades… there will be no one left to avenge the countless victims who died in this ninja world with hatred and regret in their hearts."
Although there were many people present, only Ikeizumi was speaking, and his voice reached everyone's ears.
Ikeizumi's gaze went past Jiraiya, landing on a Sarutobi clan ninja standing behind Hiruzen.
He said coldly, "Kōya Sarutobi."
When he uttered the name, the ninja froze, his face a mix of disbelief. He instinctively took a few steps back, trying to hide behind others.
Unfortunately.
As soon as Ikeizumi said his name, many people who knew him looked his way.
This drew the attention of others who didn't, and soon… everyone present was staring at the ninja named "Kōya Sarutobi."
Jiraiya also turned to look, confused.
"Nine years ago, during the Third Great Ninja War, you sold a piece of Konoha's war intelligence to a Cloud Village ninja for ten million ryo. This led to the fall of one of Konoha's defensive positions, resulting in the deaths of one Konoha Jonin and seven Chunin."
Ikeizumi's voice continued to echo. "Four years ago, you conspired with a Cloud Village ninja to kidnap Hinata Hyūga. You ran away in a panic when you found out that Hizashi Hyūga and the Cloud ninja were fighting, leaving the Hyūga clan to deal with the situation."
"One year ago, the Third Hokage entrusted you with overseeing a Konoha infrastructure project and gave you seven million ryo. You pocketed four million and built a shoddy structure. On a rainy day, it collapsed, killing an innocent passerby."
With every word Ikeizumi spoke, the face of the ninja named "Kōya Sarutobi" grew paler.
In the end, his expression was as white as a sheet. Sweat dripped down his back, and he was completely drenched.
"Jiraiya."
Ikeizumi said slowly. "Do you think justice's desire to execute him is what shakes Konoha's foundation? Or was it his past actions that shook the very foundation of Konoha that you speak of?"
Jiraiya, who was standing there with a serious expression, was speechless.
He could tell from the ninja's reaction that the horrible things from his past were absolutely true.
"Yaotsuki Sarutobi."
Ikeizumi called out another name, and a civilian woman from the Sarutobi clan suddenly froze. Her beautiful eyes widened, and the look of terror in them was impossible to hide.
"Twelve years ago, due to a promiscuous lifestyle, she gave birth to a baby girl in secret, without her fiancé knowing. She then drowned the baby in a public restroom in Konoha, dismembered the body, and flushed it down the toilet."
With a "thump," the woman named "Yaotsuki Sarutobi" collapsed to the ground in terror.
Yaotsuki muttered nervously to herself, as if trying to explain or convince herself, "She… she was… she wasn't even a toddler yet. How can a baby that's not even a toddler be considered a person? If she's not a person, then what I did wasn't murder, right?"
When she looked up blankly, she saw her unsuspecting husband staring at her with a look of utter shock.
She then looked to Lord Hokage for help.
But she found that the Hokage, a distant relative of hers, had glanced at her and then closed his eyes with a look of deep disappointment.
Yaotsuki was dazed, as if she had been scared senseless.
"Jiraiya." Ikeizumi asked, "Do you think the justice that wants to execute her is the act of a mass murderer? Or is she, who killed her own biological daughter, the mass murderer?"
Jiraiya was speechless.
He could tell from the woman's reaction that this terrible past was definitely true.
"Kazunori Sarutobi."
When this name was called out by Ikeizumi, Yaotsuki's "unsuspecting husband" raised his head in panic.
But he heard Ikeizumi continue, "Three days ago, the same night your wife publicly said you were impotent, you went into your own daughter's room with a twisted mind, trying to prove your virility."
The despairing Yaotsuki, who was sitting on the ground, suddenly froze.
When she came to her senses, she looked at her husband with a mixture of shock and anger.
"Kazunori Sarutobi!" She shrieked, her voice filled with a rage that ignored the presence of so many important people. "I knew there was something wrong with Sakura's behavior these past few days! But no matter how much I asked, she wouldn't say anything! So it was you!"
"You beast! You monster! You're her father, her own biological father! And she's only a ten-year-old child! What were you doing?! Are you even human? Do you have any shame or morality?!"
"I'm a beast? I'm a monster?" The panicked Kazunori retorted, his face flushed. "How do you explain the child you had with another man that you kept from me?"
"You even dismembered that child! And flushed the pieces down the toilet! Aren't you more of a beast and a monster than me? You're the one who isn't even human!"
"What's more, maybe Sakura isn't even my daughter! Maybe she's also a bastard child you had with another man!"
Yaotsuki's neck veins bulged as she screamed, "She's our daughter! Don't you think I know if she's your daughter or not?! You monster!!!"
She suddenly summoned an incredible burst of strength, lunging forward and grabbing a kunai from the belt of a Sarutobi clan Genin standing nearby.
With a twisted, pale face, she drew the kunai and plunged it into her husband's abdomen without hesitation.
Pshh!
The kunai pierced her husband, making him cry out in pain and his face contort.
"Ahhhhhhh! Are you insane?!" Kazunori desperately kicked his wife off and pulled the kunai out of his stomach.
Blood gushed out with a "thump."
Yaotsuki, her hair in disarray, scrambled to her feet and lunged at him again. "You filthy beast! Die!!!"
Panicked and in pain, Kazunori plunged the bloody kunai in his hand into his wife's chest.
Pshh!
This entire scene lasted for a full thirty seconds. But no one present, not even the Sarutobi ninjas standing right next to them, stopped the bloody spectacle.
The Sarutobi ninjas watched the couple with a mixture of emotions that were hard to describe.
They watched Yaotsuki collapse to the ground, her eyes vacant.
And they watched Kazunori fall limply, his hand clutching the gushing wound on his abdomen.
The smell of blood filled the air.
Burning the nostrils of everyone present.
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