Danzo was dead?
That old man who had once stood alongside the Third Hokage.
The leader of Root, who had lived in Konoha's shadows for decades...
He was just dead?
Everyone's first reaction was stunned disbelief.
It was simply too shocking.
How many days had it been?
How long had it been since Konoha issued the wanted order and sent ANBU after him?
Homura shot to his feet.
His face flushed red, veins bulging one by one across his forehead.
Both hands slammed down on the table, his eyes nearly rolling white with fury.
"Impossible..."
His voice was sharp and rushed. "Danzo's own strength was not weak. Unless a Kage-level fighter was deployed, then..."
"There's nothing impossible about it."
Tsunade cut him off, her voice as calm as if she were commenting on the weather.
"I'll hand the body over to the interrogation team later and see if they can extract any intelligence."
She leaned back in her chair, arms folded.
Her gaze swept across Homura's face, then Koharu's, then the clan heads and their various expressions.
Danzo's corpse had no head.
The Yamanaka clan's secret techniques for extracting information from the dead were meaningless now.
She was not worried that Konoha would discover anything it should not from that body.
The clan heads' expressions eased slightly.
Hiashi leaned back in his chair, the sharpness in his pale eyes fading a little.
Shikaku's fingers stopped tapping.
He lightly touched the tabletop once, as if placing an invisible shogi piece.
Inoichi put away his kunai and stood properly again.
The Inuzuka clan's ninja hound stopped growling.
The insect hum around the Aburame clan head gradually quieted.
Danzo had coveted their clans' secret techniques and bloodlines for years, and he had caused no small amount of harm to their people.
Now...
They only felt that he had died well.
Beautifully, even.
But Homura and Koharu could not accept it.
Of the old friends from their generation, some were dead, and some had scattered.
Only Danzo had remained.
And now, Danzo was dead too.
"Then... who killed Danzo?"
Koharu's voice was hoarse and shrill, her cloudy old eyes threaded with bloodshot red.
Her cane had fallen to the floor, but she forgot to pick it up.
She simply braced her empty hands against the table and stared hard at Tsunade.
Tsunade narrowed her eyes.
Her gaze settled on Koharu's face, carrying a faint, condescending scrutiny.
"I naturally have my channels..."
Her voice was neither loud nor soft, but every word carried weight.
"What? Does Elder have an objection?"
"Or has Elder forgotten? Danzo was a rogue ninja of Konoha. Dead or alive, it made no difference."
Koharu's lips moved, as though she wanted to say something.
But Homura stopped her.
That aged hand gripped her wrist tightly, his eyes sharp despite the fury in them.
Koharu turned her head and looked at Homura's ashen face.
Then she deflated like a punctured balloon.
Her shoulders sagged, and she said nothing more.
She knew she had no ground to stand on.
Before this, she had still wanted to protect Danzo.
Now that Danzo was dead, she did not even have the right to question it.
The reason the two of them had compromised and accepted Tsunade's judgment of Danzo was because they had believed that even if Danzo became a rogue ninja, no one would be able to kill him.
Compared to being judged by Konoha, fleeing at least meant he could live.
But they never expected that, after such a short time...
The bad news would already arrive.
The entire office fell silent.
But everyone understood the guesses no one dared speak aloud.
At Tsunade's back stood at least one super Kage-level powerhouse.
Defeating a Kage-level fighter was not impossible.
But killing one required more than strength.
It required absolute overwhelming power.
Only a super Kage-level existence could do something like that.
Someone who stood at the peak of the shinobi world and looked down on all others.
Who was it?
Jiraiya-sama?
Some people silently guessed in their hearts.
One of the Sannin. The legendary Toad Sage. Tsunade's old teammate. One of Konoha's strongest combatants.
If it was him, it was certainly possible.
Or could it be someone else?
All kinds of guesses churned in everyone's minds.
But no one spoke.
Tsunade showed no intention of explaining, and they did not dare ask.
"Enough."
Tsunade spoke, her voice returning to the steady authority of the Hokage.
"Danzo's matter ends here. Next..."
She paused.
"We discuss the aftermath of Root."
The clan heads composed themselves and turned their attention back to the main seat.
Homura righted his chair and silently sat down.
Koharu bent over to pick up her cane, her fingers still trembling slightly.
Order returned to the office.
But the doubts in everyone's hearts continued to surge, lingering for a long time.
...
At the same time.
Inside Kurenai Yuhi's bedroom.
Kurenai, her eyes damp, was nestled close to Teizawa.
Her long hair spilled down, covering half of her flushed face.
Her movements were gentle and focused.
Her lashes lowered, as though she were completing some sacred ritual.
Teizawa leaned against the headboard.
His fingers slid through her hair as he enjoyed this brief moment of warmth.
He had come to say goodbye.
Konoha's many affairs had already been settled.
He had no reason to stay any longer.
After all, his true base was Sunagakure.
Though he was a little reluctant to leave the women of Konoha behind...
This was not his territory in the end.
So he had to leave sooner or later.
One day, when I take Konoha for myself, I'll throw a banquet right here...
Muttering nonsense in his heart, Teizawa lowered his gaze to Kurenai in front of him.
Before leaving, he planned to properly say goodbye to his women.
And Kurenai was the first.
"Kurenai, I'm going back to Sunagakure," he said.
Kurenai froze abruptly.
Her whole body went stiff, as if she had been placed under a paralysis jutsu.
She raised her head, panic filling those red eyes.
She simply stared at him in a daze.
Teizawa reached out and pinched her cheek.
"Once I leave, I probably won't return to Konoha for a while."
His voice was soft, but every word was as clear as if it had been carved into stone.
"So I've decided to give you a child. While I'm gone, let them protect you."
Kurenai was completely stunned.
This was far too sudden.
She was not ready at all.
Her mind was a complete mess.
"You... what nonsense are you talking about...?"
Her voice floated unsteadily.
But once Teizawa said it, he gave her no chance to avoid the conversation.
The rest of the morning passed behind closed doors, with all the words Kurenai could not say dissolving into his embrace.
(End of Chapter)
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