Upon learning that Dove, Octospike, and Moth had been killed by a Cloud shinobi, Danzō immediately thought of the Kumogakure ninja still present in Konoha.
But that wasn't the only reason Danzō had dispatched his Root operatives—his true objective was to find Veigar Koshima.
So far, he had received no updates on Veigar's whereabouts. For Danzō, who was eager to secure Veigar for his own plans, that silence was troubling.
Worse yet, Danzō had already considered the worst-case scenario: that Veigar had been either abducted or killed by the Cloud ninja.
After all, Kumogakure did have a history of attempting to kidnap people from Konoha.
Still, one thing puzzled Danzō—why had Dove and the others clashed with a Cloud shinobi in the first place?
At Danzō's command, all Kumogakure shinobi currently in the village were placed under full surveillance.
Meanwhile, Renchi Furuyama, who had returned to his employer's side, noticed Konoha shinobi appearing in the vicinity.
Thinking back on the assassination he'd just carried out, he was confident he had left behind little to no evidence. That reassurance helped him stay composed. After all, if Konoha made a move against him without proof, the consequences would be dire.
Their group had been formally invited to the village—any rash action from Konoha could irreparably damage the village's reputation as one of the Five Great Shinobi Nations.
Such a move might discourage all future diplomatic visits to Konoha, and in these tense times, it could even ignite a war between the two villages—perhaps one that would drag the entire shinobi world into chaos.
Even so, Renchi stayed on high alert. If Konoha somehow did find evidence, or if they decided to act without it, his tension would sharpen his reflexes for a swift response.
Morning sunlight spilled into the room as Veigar Koshima, who had stayed up the entire night, prepared a hearty breakfast in the kitchen. He hadn't seen Minato Namikaze since the previous evening.
Hearing movement at the front door, Veigar assumed Minato had finally returned—but to his surprise, it was the voice of Kushina Uzumaki that rang out.
"Minato! Hurry up and come out—we're supposed to go shopping!"
She had arranged to meet Minato earlier, and, true to her word, she'd shown up bright and early.
But instead of Minato's reply, it was Veigar who opened the door.
"Veigar?"
"What are you doing here?"
Kushina blinked in confusion. Her gaze swept the area—and after a moment of silence, she confirmed it. This was Minato's home.
She hadn't knocked on the wrong door.
Veigar greeted her with a courteous smile and bowed slightly.
"Good morning, Sensei's wife!"
"Something came up yesterday, so I stayed here at sensei's place for a few days."
"Please, come in—he should be back soon."
He stepped aside to let her in.
"Well, alright then… I'll wait inside for him."
Kushina's face flushed a little when she heard herself addressed as "Sensei's wife," but she kept her composure and walked confidently into the house.
Following her in, Veigar remained respectfully at her side.
"Have you eaten yet, Sensei's wife?"
"I just finished making breakfast—would you like some?"
Kushina, who had just entered the house, glanced over at the table—and her eyes widened in surprise.
"Wait, you made this breakfast?"
She hadn't expected someone as young as Veigar to be cooking.
Veigar gave a modest nod.
"Yes, I just finished preparing it."
"Please, have a seat. I'll go bring out the rest from the kitchen."
He turned back toward the kitchen to retrieve the portion he'd set aside for Minato.
As the two of them sat across from each other at the table, Kushina lifted a spoonful of the millet porridge Veigar had prepared. After a single sip, her eyes lit up with delight.
"Wow, this is delicious! Veigar, how are you this good at cooking?"
Veigar offered a gentle smile.
"I'm glad you like it."
"Like it? I love it!"
Kushina exclaimed with her usual fiery enthusiasm and quickly resumed eating.
Meanwhile, the Konoha Military Police Force and several elite shinobi had spent the night scouring the village for the assassin who had killed the three Root operatives—but to no avail.
At sunrise, all Special Jōnin and above were summoned to a meeting at the Hokage Residence.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at the head of the table, his expression stern. The room full of high-ranking Konoha shinobi was silent—the atmosphere thick with unease.
Suddenly, the doors to the meeting room swung open. All eyes turned to see Danzō enter, his face cold and unreadable.
"Hiruzen. Any leads?"
Danzō walked to the front of the room, stopping just before the Third Hokage.
But Hiruzen didn't answer. Instead, he turned to another man in the room.
"Tomou. You give Danzō the update."
As captain of the Police Force, Tomou Uchiha had expected to be called upon and responded immediately.
"Yes, Lord Third."
He turned to Danzō and began his report in a calm, precise tone.
"Lord Danzō. We've confirmed that the jutsu used by the killer was the high-powered Lightning Release: False Darkness technique. All three ANBU were killed with single, fatal strikes—quick, clean, and efficient."
"While the attacker left behind little useful evidence, our analysis strongly suggests the killer is a Cloud shinobi still present in the village."
"And given the technique's lethality, the perpetrator is undoubtedly of jōnin-level strength."
Though Renchi Furuyama hadn't left behind conclusive evidence, the Uchiha-led Police Force wasn't easily fooled. While they couldn't name the killer outright, all signs pointed to a Kumogakure operative.
Unlike Danzō, whose suspicions were driven by paranoia and conjecture, Tomou's report was backed by sound reasoning and analysis.
After listening to the summary, Danzō immediately turned to Hiruzen.
"Issue the order, Hiruzen."
No one was surprised by Danzō's response.
He had long been the most hawkish voice in the village—a man known for his aggressive policies and uncompromising stance. That he had sent out Root operatives even without evidence spoke volumes. Now that the evidence did point toward Kumogakure, anything less from him would've been out of character.
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