The Shimura Actually Has Ice Release

Takeshi's words, to be fair, were actually quite decent.

But the giant belch at the end completely ruined the moment.

"That idiot..." Kakashi closed his eyes, no longer willing to look at him.

Will of Fire... am I the only one who truly understands the Will of Fire?

Yes, the Will of Fire that the Third preached—to me, it truly means protecting one's comrades and the people who matter.

Takeshi is right. I can't just fall into despair like this. I need to take action and show them what the Will of Fire truly means!

Moved by Takeshi's words, a long-lost fighting spirit returned to Sakumo's eyes.

Death may bring closure, but the disgrace would follow him—and Kakashi—forever.

Looking at his son, Sakumo gave a genuine smile. Bringing this child back from Kirigakure had truly been the right choice.

Seeing Sakumo smile, Takeshi breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed the man wouldn't be seeking death anytime soon. What remained now depended on how Konoha's elders would respond.

...

Danzo, who had been urgently recalled from the daimyō's estate, sat expressionless in the meeting room.

He had already heard the details of the incident, and had issued punishment for Yamanaka Akira's negligence.

However, the fact that his own son had physically assaulted Yōmei Rikujin had taken Danzo by surprise.

It seemed Takeshi shared a deep bond with Sakumo.

In that case, he had to do everything in his power to protect Sakumo.

"Now that everyone's here, let's begin." Hiruzen, with an unlit pipe between his lips, sat up straight and looked at the other three already present.

At Hiruzen's cue, the two advisors exchanged glances. After a brief moment of silent communication, Mitokado Homura spoke first, just as agreed upon beforehand.

"Danzo, what did the daimyō say?"

"He told us to handle it internally." Danzo's expression didn't budge as he calmly stated the fact.

"What about the subsidies?" Koharu still clung to a last shred of hope.

This woman was obsessed with money.

Danzo cursed her inwardly, but his tone remained flat:

"Naturally, there won't be any."

"I see. In that case, the only thing left is how we deal with Sakumo..." Though the answer was expected, the two advisors still showed visible disappointment and shifted the discussion toward Sakumo with resigned expressions.

"The White Fang of Konoha is a powerful jōnin and an effective deterrent against Sunagakure. I believe we shouldn't punish him too severely." Now that the conversation had reached a topic he cared about, Hiruzen took the pipe from his lips and stated his stance.

"But doing so will confirm the rumors in the village. The civilians will believe we're covering for him, and it might spark a wave of shinobi voluntarily abandoning their missions." Mitokado Homura's expression was stern—he did not agree with Hiruzen.

"That's right. As Konoha's leadership, we must uphold justice, even if the one in question is a war hero. He must accept the consequences." Koharu sided with Homura.

Once the two advisors had spoken, everyone's attention shifted to Danzo.

If Danzo supported them, the vote would be 3-to-1. The advisors' stance would then have to be adopted, and even the Hokage couldn't override that.

"Strip Sakumo of his jōnin rank, demote him to special jōnin, and assign him to the border to fend off Sunagakure infiltrators." Aware of the gazes upon him, Danzo didn't offer a direct opinion but instead presented a solution.

Stripping him of his jōnin rank wasn't much of a punishment. With Sakumo's skills, he would inevitably rise again.

As for the border...

Border missions were full of danger and death. They had long been manned by the Sarutobi and Shimura clans as well as civilian shinobi. Except in wartime, major clans rarely sent their own people there.

"This plan will definitely silence the villagers." The two advisors nodded. They hadn't wanted to come down too hard on Sakumo anyway. Still, they were surprised Danzo had chosen to let off someone who publicly belonged to the Third's faction.

Seeing no opposition, Hiruzen also nodded. He and Danzo had worked out this plan together, so of course he wouldn't object.

"Very well, let's go with Danzo's proposal. I'll leave it to you two to issue the official statement. Let's get this matter settled quickly."

"Understood. I'll have someone deliver the notice to the daimyō's office afterward. Hopefully we can salvage some of the damage." Koharu nodded. She had always been the liaison with the daimyō, and she hoped to smooth things over.

"Good." Hiruzen approved her suggestion.

With the release of the public notice, the scandal surrounding Hatake Sakumo abandoning his mission—once the hottest topic in Konoha—finally came to a close.

All the blame had been shouldered by Sakumo alone. Yōmei Rikujin's plan had succeeded; he wasn't held accountable by the higher-ups at all.

But...

Locked up in the Root base, his face swollen like a pig's head, he stared at the Root shinobi before him with utter despair in his eyes.

After the beating from Takeshi, Root had given him no medical attention. He had been left to groan in pain in the holding cell until Danzo returned.

"Yōmei Rikujin. Yōmei Hanae. Both are suspected of leaking village secrets. By order of the upper ranks, your shinobi statuses are revoked. You are sentenced to life imprisonment and will serve your sentence in the ANBU prison."

Yamanaka Akira stood in front of Yōmei Rikujin, reading out the orders Danzo had given him.

"No—no, no, you can't do this! It was all Sakumo's fault! You can't treat me like this!" Yōmei Rikujin, who had struggled so hard only to meet this end, couldn't accept the outcome. He crawled forward, clutching at the man's pant leg, trying to vent his outrage.

"Get off." Yamanaka Akira wasn't about to humor him. With a swift kick, he sent Rikujin flying and signaled with his eyes to the subordinates beside him.

The two Root shinobi understood the message and nodded. Shortly after Yamanaka Akira left, they dragged a weeping, wailing Yōmei Rikujin out of the cell, hauling him toward the depths of the Root base.

The punishment of Yōmei Rikujin and Yōmei Hanae was carried out in secret. For a village the size of Konoha, the disappearance of two people didn't cause much of a stir.

Just to be safe, though, ANBU used Transformation Jutsu to impersonate the two and lingered around their home for a while. Once all rumors died out, they stopped.

People are forgetful.

Old scandals are replaced by new ones—and completely forgotten.

As new gossip began to spread through the streets of Konoha, no one spoke of Sakumo's case anymore.

And the man himself was already preparing to depart.

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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