Sarutobi Hiruzen did not engage in a discussion with Danzo about whether the Uchiha were trustworthy.
To minimize the impact of the situation, he immediately implemented emergency measures.
First, he ordered the Anbu to retrieve the only remaining body of the Kumo ninja as the others had been reduced to ashes.
At the same time, he instructed another team to investigate the residence where the Kumo peace treaty envoys had been staying.
It didn't take long for the Anbu to return with troubling news—one of the envoys, the leader of the peace delegation, was missing.
Hiruzen's expression darkened.
He put two and two together.
If the missing envoy had been part of the group that attempted to kidnap Hinata, then this was no longer a rogue action—it was a premeditated move by the Raikage himself."
If the plan had succeeded, Kumogakure would have gained access to the secrets of the Byakugan.
And if it failed?
They had already prepared a backup plan.
After two days of mounting tension, the Raikage sent envoys to deliver an official response.
Konoha Village – Hokage's Office
Sarutobi Hiruzen carefully read the letter sent from Kumogakure.
Their stance was clear.
They didn't want the situation to escalate beyond control.
However, the person who died was a close brother to the Fourth Raikage.
Thus, Kumo demanded that Konoha hand over the one responsible for his death so they could administer their own justice.
This, they claimed, was necessary to quell the anger of their people.
If Konoha refused… then war would be inevitable.
At the same time, The Four Fossils of Konoha—Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and Shimura Danzo—had all gathered in the office to discuss countermeasures.
(T/N: What do you think of this new name? At least its better than F4 right? Or do you guys have a better suggestion?)
However…
Besides them, Uchiha Shisui was also present.
"What does the letter say?" Utatane Koharu asked bluntly.
Naturally, Hiruzen did not hide anything and summarized the contents.
"Furthermore, Kumogakure specifically mentioned that they have already investigated and confirmed that the culprits who killed their envoy leader were the Hyuga Clan's leader and Uchiha Kaze."
"In other words, as long as we hand over Hiashi and Kaze, they will be willing to sign a new peace treaty and act as if nothing ever happened."
It was worth mentioning that every village had spies hidden within their ranks.
Even though the Kumo squad that night had been completely wiped out, Kumogakure could still gather intelligence from other sources.
As for whether Hiashi actually participated in the killing, Kumogakure didn't really care.
What they truly wanted was the Hyuga's Byakugan.
They simply hadn't expected an Uchiha to be involved as well.
Since that was the case, they wouldn't let go of such a golden opportunity.
"Hmph."
Danzo suddenly let out a cold snort. "A sworn brother of the Raikage? That so-called 'envoy leader' was nothing more than a Jōnin from Kumogakure."
"Someone like that wouldn't even have the chance to interact with Kumogakure's higher-ups."
"If you ask me, this is just a smokescreen."
Danzo's stance was firm—he refused to believe the Raikage's nonsense.
Their true goal was nothing more than the Hyuga's Byakugan and the Uchiha's Sharingan.
"That may be true, but the current Raikage is in his prime, and Kumogakure has both the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails Jinchuriki..."
Koharu agreed with Danzo's assessment, but when comparing the two villages' military strength—
The Third Hokage was already in his twilight years, and Danzo had lost an eye.
The Fourth Hokage had sacrificed himself to seal the Nine-Tails.
Orochimaru had defected.
Jiraiya and Tsunade were missing.
At this moment, engaging in an all-out war with Kumogakure would be far from a wise choice.
"Not only that, but a single move could trigger a chain reaction. The other villages might take advantage of the situation as well,"
Homura added, voicing his opinion.
"Given Konoha's current state, we shouldn't handle this matter with an overly aggressive stance."
"After all, they're only asking for the culprit."
"I recall that Hiashi has a twin brother—he's the leader of the branch family now and looks exactly like him."
"Besides, he was marked with the Caged Bird Seal from birth. If he dies, his Byakugan will be sealed instantly."
"As for the Uchiha, since Kaze was the one who caused this mess, he should take responsibility for it himself," Homura said.
Koharu added, "It's not like he even has the Sharingan."
At this, Hiruzen looked at her with a serious expression.
"Actually, he awakened his Sharingan at the age of five," Hiruzen replied. "And now, at fifteen, he has already mastered the three-tomoe. If we demand that the Uchiha hand him over, they won't take it lightly. The Uchiha would never allow their clan's Sharingan to be wielded by an outsider—especially now that he's emerging as a prodigy."
Hearing this Koharu and Homura were stunned.
Shisui, who had been silent up until now, nodded in agreement.
"Indeed, Hokage-sama is right," Shisui said. "The Uchiha will never let anyone outside the clan possess their Sharingan, especially someone like Kaze. Asking for his surrender could lead to unrest within the clan. It could cause a revolt, and Konoha can't afford that right now."
Koharu's expression stiffened as she realized the gravity of the situation.
"Then..." she hesitated, "what do we do now?"
Hiruzen's gaze grew even more determined. "We must be careful, but we can't let this slip through our fingers. We'll have to find another way."
The room fell into a deep silence.
After about half a minute, Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly spoke.
"This matter is of great importance. Even if we must take action, we should have the support of the parties involved."
He paused, then added, "Let's convene a special meeting. We will have representatives from both the Hyuga and Uchiha clans come to the Hokage building."
"If both families are willing to sacrifice for the village, I will respect their decision."
As he spoke, Hiruzen's gaze focused on Shisui. Their eyes locked.
"This matter, Shisui, will fall to you. Please inform Fugaku."
Shisui immediately knelt on one knee. "Yes, Hokage-sama."
In the next moment, Shisui vanished with a swift motion, disappearing from the Hokage office.
He made his way swiftly toward the Uchiha compound.
...
Half an hour later.
Shisui arrived at Fugaku's home and relayed the Konoha high-ranking officials' thoughts.
Fugaku's face darkened as he listened.
The fact that Kaze, with his remarkable strength, had single-handedly wiped out a Kumogakure elite and four Chunin spoke volumes about his potential.
It made it clear that Kaze was a prodigy of the Uchiha clan, a valuable piece in the struggle against Konoha's higher-ups.
However, now...
The Third Hokage wanted to offer Kaze's corpse in order to quell the storm.
Naturally, Fugaku was not pleased with this development.
"Clan Leader..." Shisui noted Fugaku's change in expression and, sensing his unease, spoke gently. "This is all for the sake of the village."
(T/N: So I had to remake the entire chapter. Anyway hope you all enjoyed it.)