Now, there was no way to explain this clearly anymore.
Seeing the Uchiha clan's rising hostility, the Root captain silently thought, "This is bad."
Although Shisui wasn't killed by them, the fact that they appeared here meant they were indeed on a mission to hunt him down.
Moreover…
The one who took Shisui's right eye was indeed Danzo, the leader of Root.
If this matter got exposed, it wouldn't just throw Lord Danzo into the eye of the storm.
It might even ruin his reputation completely!
The situation was dire.
"Fugaku, please let me explain,"
The Root captain gasped and forced himself to explain to Fugaku, hoping he wouldn't make this a bigger issue.
However…
"Kill them! Avenge Shisui!"
"The damn Konoha higher-ups! It's bad enough they always oppress us, but now they directly attacked Shisui!"
"Hand over Shisui's eye!"
Among those who arrived, not only were there Uchiha moderates, but many hawks as well.
They had long harbored resentment against the Konoha leadership.
And since the one who died was Shisui — someone they had placed great hopes on —
Their eyes turned red with fury.
A fierce murderous aura burst out toward the Root ninjas.
"Wait…"
Sensing the air thick with tension, Fugaku immediately called out sternly.
He gestured for his clan not to act rashly.
Firstly, he didn't want to see his clan members clash with the Root's covert ops.
Secondly, with Shisui's death, they lost a major asset.
If a conflict broke out with the village, the consequences would be unimaginable!
"Do not act hastily,"
Fugaku took a deep breath and shared his thoughts.
"At least, until the full truth is investigated, do not make a move."
As soon as Fugaku finished speaking,
all the Uchiha present showed a flicker of surprise in their eyes.
No one expected that at such a critical moment, Fugaku would still be partial to the other side!
"Clan leader, does this even need investigating?"
"It must be them who killed Shisui-nii!"
The Uchiha began accusing the Root ninjas, convinced they were the culprits.
"Listen to me…"
But even so, Fugaku forbade his clan from exacting revenge with violence.
Killing a few Root ninjas wouldn't be difficult.
The real problem lay in what would happen afterward.
If those ninjas were all killed, there'd be no witnesses.
Who could prove they killed Shisui?
Then, the Konoha leadership could use the incident to their advantage.
This was no joke.
After all, the Konoha Security Force had a notorious reputation for violent law enforcement!
They needed solid evidence
to avoid being framed.
It had to be said…
Though Fugaku lacked decisiveness as clan head, he was no fool.
When faced with normal problems, he could at least think calmly and try to see the bigger picture.
After analyzing the situation, Fugaku believed these men must not be killed.
Of course…
Though he advocated for restraint, Fugaku didn't overlook their intentions.
"To clear your names, we hope you will cooperate with our investigation."
At this critical moment, Fugaku switched to the commanding tone of a Security Force captain.
He demanded these Root ninjas comply without resistance.
No one understood Shisui's strength better than him.
A handful of Root ninjas were no match for Shisui.
In truth…
They were merely pawns assigned to handle Shisui's corpse.
The real culprit who took Shisui's eyes and killed him was someone else!
That someone was…
Danzo!
Fugaku's eyes narrowed, his presence radiating a powerful aura that pressed down on the Root ninjas before him.
Killing a few pawns was meaningless.
If they truly wanted to avenge Shisui,
they had to expose the mastermind behind it all.
With solid evidence,
they would leave him speechless!
And these ninjas' words would serve as testimony — human evidence!
Once they had that,
even confronting Danzo face-to-face would be nothing to fear!
For a moment, Fugaku's mind raced with clarity like never before.
He organized his thoughts and shared them with the rest of the clan.
Then, with a gesture, he ordered his people to disarm the Root ninjas.
They would be detained first within the Security Force's custody.
As for Kaze who stood to benefit from Shisui's death he remained silent, quietly observing Fugaku's performance.
But…
These Root ninjas weren't about to surrender so easily.
From the moment they joined Root,
they had devoted their body and soul to Konoha's covert operations.
They willingly accepted Danzo's deadly "Tongue Curse" to safeguard vital secrets.
Just thinking about how skilled the Uchiha were at genjutsu made their hearts tremble.
What if…
Fugaku really did use the Sharingan's power to uncover something?
That would spell absolute disaster for Lord Danzo.
Yes.
Though they hadn't killed Shisui directly,
they had witnessed Danzo personally take Shisui's eye.
They had also received the order to hunt Shisui down.
If these scandals were exposed,
Danzo's fate would be…
No...
The Root captain shook his head slightly.
If things went wrong, it could only intensify the conflict between the Uchiha clan and the village.
Bloodshed would break out!
For Lord Danzo.
And for Konoha's stability.
Such a thing absolutely must not happen!
"A true ninja endures hardship to achieve their goals,"
the Root captain suddenly raised his right hand, his gaze fixed at a 45-degree angle toward the sky.
The sun was bright, the sky cloudless.
"Lord Danzo, I'm sorry…"
Silently apologizing to Danzo in his heart, the Root captain clenched his fist tightly.
In that instant, a dark premonition surged in Fugaku's mind.
He stepped forward quickly, trying to stop the Root captain's action.
But it was too late.
By the time he reached the captain, the man had already fallen backward, stiff as a board.
Thud!
As the Root captain collapsed to the ground, the other three teammates slowly closed their eyes and fell forward.
"Damn it…"
Fugaku gasped, cursing under his breath.
Soon after, Uchiha Kiyoshi hurried over and knelt beside the Root captain, lifting his mask.
Though the face beneath was somewhat unfamiliar, the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth explained why he collapsed so suddenly.
Before the operation, these Root ninjas had prepared poison in their mouths.
After all, their target was Shisui Uchiha.
If the mission failed, they were willing to sacrifice themselves—
To protect Lord Danzo's secrets.
Even though they bore the deadly "Tongue Curse" seal,
only those truly dead could keep secrets forever!
"He's dead…"
Kazekage raised an eyebrow, surprised these guys would all commit simultaneous suicide.
But thanks to their masks,
even the Uchiha's Sharingan couldn't detect their poisoned act.
"Danzo really knows how to raise ruthless people."
(T/N: And so the pot shadow got another pot over his head, although half of it originally belonged to him. Anyway hope you all enjoyed this chapter.)
50 Stones = One Extra Chapter
100 Stones = Two Extra Chapters
200 Stones = Three Extra Chapters
Keep the power stones coming.