The Shimura Actually Has Ice Release

"Where is Danzō?! Where the hell is Danzō?!"

After being "educated" by the two village advisors and watching them leave, Hiruzen roared at the empty room in frustration.

A few minutes later, a voice came from behind him.

"Danzō-sama just left the Daimyō's residence. He's still on his way back to the village."

"So it's you, Suzume. Head out immediately. Tell Danzō to hurry back—I need to speak with him." Recognizing the voice without turning, Hiruzen kept his back turned and issued the order to the ANBU behind him.

"Understood. If Danzō-sama asks what it's about, what should I tell him?" Suzume asked.

"Don't worry. He won't ask." Hiruzen shook his head, thinking of the strength of Danzō's subordinates.

He figured Danzō had likely already received word of the advisors' visit. Now it was just a matter of finding out who leaked the information...

"You, take your men and investigate. Find out what really happened here." Concerned this might be connected to Danzō, Hiruzen called upon his trusted subordinate to begin an independent investigation.

...

"No way, are they serious? That 'White Fang of the Leaf' actually..."

"I heard it from someone else. Supposedly, the failed mission caused huge losses for the village..."

"Keep your voice down! Isn't that kid over there White Fang's son?"

"Yeah... poor kid. Such a good child, stuck with a father like that."

As the school bell rang, students left the building in small groups.

Kakashi, who was walking silently beside Takeshi, soon noticed the whispering around them.

Mission failure?

His father?

Impossible!

His father was the most outstanding ninja in all of Konoha!

But... yesterday, it was the ANBU who brought Father home...

Beside him, Takeshi also heard enough to confirm that the situation with Sakumo had indeed erupted.

He still wasn't sure whether the old man had anything to do with it.

In his past life, plenty of conspiracy theorists had blamed Danzō for Sakumo's suicide. Whether that was true or not—well, Kishimoto never clarified it.

Still, with all the blame already on the "Shadow Kage," what's one more accusation?

Glancing at the silent Kakashi, Takeshi reached out and held his hand.

"Kakashi, no matter what they say... Sakumo-san is still the greatest shinobi, and the best father you could ask for, right?"

"Takeshi..." Kakashi's lips moved slightly as he looked at him with gratitude.

The gossip didn't last long. After all, Sakumo had built a decent reputation in the village over the years and was still regarded as a hero of the last war. When the other students saw Kakashi, they stopped talking.

As the rumors spread throughout the village, even Yamanaka Akira, whom Danzō had sent to investigate, got wind of the situation.

"Find out who leaked it. Investigate thoroughly—focus on those who were part of the mission!" Yamanaka Akira barked the order, his expression turning grim.

Damn it. This was a mission Danzō-sama had personally assigned. If it failed because of this leak, then...

With ANBU and Root operatives mobilizing across the village, more and more pieces of the puzzle began surfacing.

Eventually, all evidence pointed to a single individual—a female chunin named Yōmei Hanae.

"Yōmei Hanae, a chunin. She's the wife of Yōmei Rikujin. She began spreading rumors about the mission this morning. It seems like this is connected to Yōmei Rikujin."

A Root ninja reported the intelligence to Yamanaka Akira.

"Should we apprehend her?"

After a brief moment of thought, Yamanaka Akira ultimately decided to hold off and await Danzō's command.

"This incident has already gone public. There's no point in arresting her now. I'll report to Danzō-sama first and wait for further orders."

Elsewhere, Hiruzen also received report.

Upon hearing that the leak came from Yōmei Rikujin's wife, even someone as composed as him couldn't hold back a curse.

"That coward!"

To him, it was painfully obvious what Yōmei Rikujin's goal was—force Sakumo to take full responsibility for the mission's failure, thereby clearing his own name and dodging any punishment.

"Bring Yōmei Rikujin to me immediately!" Not wanting things to escalate further, Hiruzen gave the order without delay.

"Third Hokage-sama!" Before the ninja could move, an ANBU suddenly appeared and delivered a shocking report.

"Yōmei Rikujin has gone to the Hatake household and is furiously berating Sakumo."

"Damn it!" Hiruzen's expression twisted. This was bad.

If Yōmei Rikujin openly confronted Sakumo, it would utterly ruin the man's reputation.

"Hurry! Restrain him—but do it discreetly. Don't let the villagers catch wind of this!"

As the ANBU departed on their mission, Hiruzen reached for his Hokage hat, intending to head out himself.

But then he hesitated.

If he showed up, it would confirm that something serious had happened—making the situation even harder to contain.

So, Hiruzen slowly lowered the hat and stayed where he was, hoping the ANBU could handle it without his involvement.

At the same time, he couldn't help but curse Danzō's Root operatives.

Why hadn't they taken any action against Yōmei Rikujin?

If Yamanaka Akira knew Hiruzen was blaming him, he'd probably cry out in frustration.

After all, both Hiruzen and Danzō had only ordered their subordinates to suspend Rikujin and the others from active duty. They hadn't restricted their movements—only banned them from leaving the village. Who could've predicted that Yōmei Rikujin would charge straight to Sakumo's doorstep?

...

"Hatake Sakumo! If you have even a shred of conscience, you'll go to Hokage-sama right now and confess! Take full responsibility for the mission failure!"

Outside the Hatake residence, Yōmei Rikujin had completely lost the composure expected of a jōnin.

He pointed furiously at the tightly shut front door, shouting at the top of his lungs.

"I was ready to sacrifice everything for Konoha! For the Land of Fire! I was willing to give my life! But you—you abandoned the mission, and now the village and the country are suffering irreversible losses! And you still have the nerve to wear that Konoha headband?!"

As Rikujin's voice grew louder, a few passersby stopped to see what the commotion was about.

Inside the house, Sakumo stared out the window, stunned.

"I..." he whispered, his lips trembling.

He couldn't understand it.

Why would the comrade he risked everything to save now be denouncing him like this?

All he wanted was to protect his team, to shield those he cared about...

Why?

Why had it come to this?

Sakumo wanted desperately to throw open the door and confront him—but when he thought about how it was his decision that led to the mission's failure, he lost the will to stand.

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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