Shisui was left speechless by Rokuro's rebuke. The old Shisui had always been someone Rokuro barely bothered to take seriously — and that was before Rokuro's strength had climbed to the point where he could single-handedly kill Kakuzu's ally: an opponent of the caliber of Kakuzu's henchman. Now that his power had reached the high ranks, Shisui had even less to say.
Rokuro shoved Shisui aside and strode up to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"When the leaves flutter, the fire keeps burning," Rokuro asked, his voice calm but sharp. "Third Hokage, that famous line attributed to the First — does Konoha still live by it?"
"Of course," Hiruzen answered without hesitation. "It's the essence of the Will of Fire. Whoever becomes Hokage must never forget it."
Mention the Will of Fire and Hiruzen immediately switched to his protective mode; no one in the hall dared dispute him. In Konoha, that was political correctness incarnate — to question it was to set yourself against the whole village.
"Good," Rokuro continued. "If the Will of Fire is still our guiding principle, then let me ask you this: 'When the leaves flutter, the fire keeps burning' — doesn't that boil down to passing the torch?"
"Of course—" Hiruzen opened his mouth.
Rokuro cut him off. "If it's about passing the torch, then the new generation must always be favored over the old. To the new generation, every elder is fuel — they must burn for the younger ones, light their path forward!"
Under the banner of political correctness, nobody interrupted Rokuro. And he had a point.
"Age-wise, I'm one of the youngest genin in Konoha. The only genin my age is, apparently, Uchiha Itachi — Fugaku's son. Given that, can I say that all Konoha shinobi should protect Itachi and me? Even if you won't actively protect us, you mustn't frame us — and you mustn't sweep things under the rug after something happens, right?"
"If you really let that happen, the Will of Fire becomes an empty slogan — just a phrase. Third Hokage, am I wrong? Is the Will of Fire only lip service?" Rokuro's voice rose until it echoed.
Hiruzen's face contorted into something between guilt and discomfort. "Rokuro, you're right. The Will of Fire isn't a slogan. It's a rule every Konoha shinobi must follow! Kakashi — arrest everyone in the mission-assignment office. Send them to the interrogation division. Find out who's been selling our intelligence to the enemy, who betrayed their comrades!"
"As you command!" Kakashi and the ANBU moved.
Rokuro fanned the flames. "Kakashi-senpai, tell the interrogators this: whoever could transmit intelligence that fast didn't use normal messenger birds. It wasn't a lone summons beast either — it must have been a whole clan of nin-beasts. Only a large, tightly knit beast tribe can form such an efficient intelligence network, and there are very few shinobi in Konoha who could sign a contract with such a tribe."
Kakashi merely nodded. He already knew — better than most — how rare and dangerous those kinds of summonsible alliances were. In the canon, only the Toad Mountain (Mt. Myoboku) had anything like that; one of the toads left behind during the Pain invasion specialized in far-travel communication. That toad — the one Danzo killed — could cross space in ways no ordinary messenger could. Cultivating a summons beast capable of spatial translocation wasn't something a small tribe of a few dozen animals could manage.
Kakashi suspected Danzo was behind the leak. He dared not say it aloud. As a member of the Hokage faction, he understood what would happen if he named Danzo: the rift between the Hokage faction and the Uchiha would explode into open war. Tensions were already high; exposing this would be like pouring cold water on a pan of boiling oil — an explosion would be inevitable.
Even knowing Hiruzen would cover for Danzo because they were old allies, Rokuro left the meeting feeling vindicated. He wasn't trying to humiliate Hiruzen — he had another goal.
Just as Rokuro turned to go, Hiruzen called after him. "Rokuro — how did you defeat Kakuzu's ally? That man trained in tabu arts like the Earth Grudge Fear and has decades of battle experience. He's not easy to fell."
Rokuro had expected the question and already prepared his answer. "Kakuzu's ally was strong — maybe even above jōnin level. But no matter how strong, he was still human. And I'm Uchiha."
As Rokuro spoke, he glanced at Hiruzen — and for a flash, no longer even a full second, his Sharingan revealed itself: the double-tomoe.
Everyone present saw it. They were all seasoned shinobi; the blink was enough. Hiruzen's face showed a staged pride after his initial shock. Orochimaru, who already knew Rokuro's strength, showed no surprise. The faces of the Ino–Shika–Chō trio were serious, but none changed as much as the Uchiha around them — Uchiha Fugaku and the elders.
"Rokuro opened his eyes?" one Uchiha blurted. "He already has the double-tomoe?"
"I thought Itachi was the most gifted of the new Uchiha generation. It seems Rokuro isn't inferior." Fugaku's expression twisted with conflicted pride and worry.
"Even Itachi hasn't opened his eyes yet. He can't match Rokuro." Shisui gave a relieved nod — then remembered Rokuro's past barbed remarks and winced.
Word spread fast: Rokuro, at seven, had awakened the double-tomoe Sharingan and had slain Kakuzu's ally. Danzo Shimura heard immediately.
"Damn Uchiha," Danzo hissed. "Another forbidden child has appeared. I didn't expect even someone like Kakuzu's ally to fall to him."
A cold-faced middle-aged man spoke up. "Lord Danzo, Uchiha Rokuro has the double-tomoe at seven. He may awaken the Mangekyō in the future."
That man was Ryoma Aburame — in the root hierarchy, a veteran who once guarded Danzo and knew much of the black arts. "According to Root's intelligence, those who awaken the eye in childhood are always monstrous geniuses. Rokuro's talent may be among the most exceptional in Uchiha history."
"Such people should not be allowed to live!" Danzo rose and paced, teeth bared.
"Has the Wood-clone research progressed?" Ryoma asked.
He shook his head. "The experiments were led by Orochimaru. Many techniques only he understood. Without him, our people can't replicate them. Even if Lord Danzo personally went to plead, Orochimaru wouldn't come back."
Danzo's smile turned predatory. "I've fallen out with Orochimaru; he scorns me. But when people are desperate, they have no choice. I will make him my subordinate again."
END OF CHAPTER
35 CHAPTERS AHEAD!!
Forbidden Java Jutsu - MrBehringer's Secret
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