Meanwhile, in Konoha.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, and Utatane Koharu.
Inside the Hokage's Office Building, the four elders gathered.
Danzo Shimura, anxious, paced the office, leaning on his cane, the 'thump-thump' of his steps and cane never ceasing.
Hiruzen Sarutobi put down the documents in his hand, which reported that three clan members had been murdered!
Taking an irritated drag from his pipe, Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned and said, "Danzo! Stop pacing, you're making my head spin."
"How many assassinations have there been this month? And multiple Special Jonin and Jonin have been attacked and killed!" Danzo Shimura stomped his cane on the floor, gritting his teeth.
Utatane Koharu's face was solemn as she slowly said, "And all those involved are from our Four Great Clans. This is clearly a targeted act of revenge!"
Danzo Shimura turned and growled, "Hiruzen! We can't let this continue. Has the Intelligence Department found out who is targeting our clan members yet?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a cloud of smoke and shook his head, "There are no survivors each time, making it difficult to find valuable clues!"
Homura Mitokado pushed the intelligence files in front of him, "According to the summary of intelligence over this period, our clan members, regardless of gender or age, have all encountered danger. It seems someone has put a bounty on them!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, "I know that. It's the bounty hunters doing it, but the question is, who is placing the order? That's the crucial source!"
Homura Mitokado continued to analyze, "Based on the deaths of Sarutobi Jiri, who was the first to die, and all the other Ninja who have met their demise since then... the enemies they faced all used genjutsu, and most likely visual genjutsu!"
Danzo Shimura suddenly startled, speaking in a low voice, "Visual genjutsu, and hatred for our Four Great Clans… such people are not many!"
Hearing this, Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado couldn't help but look at Danzo Shimura, awaiting his next words.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze also sharpened as he asked, "Oh! Danzo, do you have any leads? Tell us."
Danzo Shimura's single eye gleamed as he gritted his teeth and said, "Within my knowledge, there is only one person who fits these criteria and possesses such ability!"
The three simultaneously asked, "Who?!"
Danzo Shimura enunciated each word, "U! Chi! Ha!... Itachi!"
"What?"
"That can't be, can it?"
Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado exclaimed in surprise one after another.
Hiruzen Sarutobi also took a deep drag from his pipe, then, after a moment of thought, said, "This... it shouldn't be possible. I know Itachi quite well! He wouldn't do such a thing!"
Danzo Shimura sneered, "How old is Itachi? Not even fourteen. A person's mindset and values at that age are very easily changed!"
"Especially since he's in an extremely dangerous organization like Akatsuki. That organization is full of SSS-rank psychopaths; isn't it easy to corrupt a child?"
Danzo's eyes were grim as he continued, "I should have been listened to earlier. We should have captured Itachi and brought him back to Konoha, keeping him under control! Only then can we be completely safe!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi still shook his head, "Impossible! Itachi's will cannot be swayed by anyone; we all know that, don't we?"
"Hiruzen! Let me handle Itachi."
Danzo made this request.
"No!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected him.
Danzo made the request again.
Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected him again.
"Hmph! Hiruzen, you will regret this!"
"Danzo! You remember this, I am the Hokage!"
The two Advisor old friends quickly stepped in to mediate, calming down the Third Hokage and Danzo.
A moment later, Hiruzen Sarutobi refilled his pipe with tobacco and lit it. After a deep puff, he said, "Could it be other Uchiha Clan members? Are we missing anyone?"
Homura Mitokado looked incredulous, "How could that be? We've carefully checked the roster and the bodies multiple times! Unless someone was resurrected and crawled back from hell."
"But how could that be possible?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi and Utatane Koharu both fell into thought, considering other possibilities and enemies.
Hearing this, Danzo Shimura was suddenly startled. He thought of a terrifying ocular jutsu, the basics of which he happened to possess.
"No..."
Danzo Shimura's expression became unprecedentedly serious as he continued, "It might actually be possible. Someone might have crawled back from hell!!"
Homura Mitokado looked up in surprise, "What did you say?"
Seeing all three looking at him, Danzo Shimura said in a low voice, "Have you forgotten the Uchiha Clan's forbidden jutsu that can change fate?"
Everyone recalled some terrifying memories, and cold sweat involuntarily dripped from their foreheads.
Izanagi!
Izanami!
How much panic did these forbidden ocular jutsu, which had vanished into the river of history, stir up in the Ninja World at the time!
Few people in Konoha still knew about it, but as old relics who had lived for nearly seventy years, they certainly did.
The Uchiha were almost demonic; they could actually change all of their own fate, even the fate of having died.
They could even determine the fate of others!
Just thinking about it made their scalps tingle; it was truly terrifying!
This was also one of their motives for fearing and wanting to eliminate the Uchiha Clan.
And as the Darkness of the Ninja, Danzo Shimura, in order to strengthen himself, collected all usable powers, including the powers of the Senju and Uchiha.
It could be said that in this world, Danzo Shimura was one of the people who understood the Uchiha the most.
Therefore, when Itachi Uchiha brought the Masked Madara to him, he did not completely deny the reality that Madara was still alive.
In Danzo's view, Madara Uchiha had indeed died at the hands of Hashirama Senju, but Madara Uchiha could have absolutely used the forbidden jutsu to revive!
This was also the reason Danzo believed Madara was still alive, because at that time he saw that the Masked Man had only one eye!
And using that forbidden jutsu would inevitably result in the loss of one eye!
Thus, Danzo concluded that even if Madara Uchiha was still alive, he was an old man, and an old man who had lost half of his power.
So he didn't feel much fear, but instead used his power to eliminate the Uchiha Clan.
And in order to be able to use the Masked Madara's power again in the future, he promised the two Masked Men to conceal this information.
Therefore, in this world, only Itachi and Danzo Shimura knew that Madara was still alive!
Hiruzen Sarutobi asked in confusion, "But it is said that that forbidden jutsu can only be used with the power of the Mangekyo."
Danzo sneered inwardly: Would I tell you that by combining the powers of both the Senju and Uchiha, even the Three-Tomoe can be used?
Danzo said profoundly, "Who can guarantee that no one in the Uchiha Clan has awakened the Mangekyo?"
"Don't forget, Uchiha Fugaku, Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Itachi—they awakened the Mangekyo in silence, instead fearing others would know!"
Homura Mitokado's forehead was covered in cold sweat, "Indeed, even if someone in the Uchiha awakened the Mangekyo, we would absolutely not know about it!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's face grew increasingly grim. If this were true, it would be a very terrifying matter.
He knew how obsessive and emotional the Uchiha Clan members were; anyone who harmed their loved ones would face dire consequences.
Let alone having annihilated the entire clan!
Although the official story was that Itachi Uchiha did it, and it had nothing to do with the Hokage's faction.
Outsiders might believe it to be true, but those within the Uchiha Clan knew exactly what happened!!!