Chapter 104: Chapter 104: Public Outrage, and the Elder Council in Panic
Early in the morning, the villagers of Konoha woke up to find new pieces of paper plastered all over the streets in prominent locations.
Curious, they went up to check, and what they read shocked them to their core.
"Telescope Technique, created by the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. This technique allows the user to lock onto another's chakra and observe them remotely. It can also be used to peek into unshielded areas such as the rivers, bathhouses, and hot springs of Konoha. A warning to the women of Konoha: avoid bathing in the rivers, bathhouses, or hot springs."
"The technique requires a crystal ball as a medium. Hand seals are as follows..."
"This is a jutsu!"
"Telescope Technique, huh? Sounds impressive... Wait, isn't there something off about this? Are we all being watched?"
"Being watched is one thing, but this technique can be used to spy on women bathing! Someone, write this down—this is gold!"
"So this was developed by the Third Hokage himself? That's amazing."
For a moment, those who saw the notice became excited. Some shinobi even quietly memorized the hand seals for the jutsu.
Why are so many villagers gathering?
Noticing the commotion, the members of the ANBU Black Ops arrived to investigate, only to be dumbfounded by what they saw.
As members of the Hokage's personal guard, they were well aware that the Third Hokage often carried a crystal ball to "keep an eye on things."
But now, someone had spread this information to the public, and it was likely that many people had already taken note of it—including spies from other villages.
This was a disaster!
The ANBU quickly moved to disperse the crowd and began tearing down the papers, rushing them to the Hokage's office as fast as they could.
"Hokage-sama, we have a major problem," one of the ANBU reported, their tone filled with urgency.
Although it was barely dawn, the Third Hokage had already started his day, seated at his desk and handling paperwork. The panicked arrival of the ANBU caused his heart to skip a beat. What he feared most were the potentially devastating reports from the front lines.
"What is it?" he asked, bracing himself.
"Hokage-sama, it's best if you see for yourself," the ANBU member replied, hesitating as they handed over one of the papers they had removed from the streets.
Paper?
With his pipe in hand, the Third Hokage glanced at the paper on his desk, puzzled.
This is just an ordinary piece of paper, he thought.
If this was frontline intelligence, it wouldn't be written on regular paper like this. It would be on specially coded paper or a scroll.
At least it's not news from the frontlines, he thought, somewhat relieved. Anything else, I can deal with.
"What is this?" he muttered, frowning as he picked up the paper. But the moment he read its contents…
Cough, cough!
The smoke he had just inhaled shot out through his nose in shock, nearly causing him to choke. Tears welled up in his eyes as he stood up abruptly, his face a picture of disbelief.
Telescope Technique?
Yes, it was indeed the Telescope Technique. But the real question was—who had leaked it?
Wait a minute!
As far as I know, I'm the only one who knows this jutsu. Jiraiya has been begging me to teach it to him for years, but he never learned it.
How could anyone else know about it, let alone spread it like this?
And there it was, in black and white—claims that he had used the technique not only to monitor everyone but also to spy on women bathing.
Sure, he had done that a few times, but having it plastered all over the village for everyone to see? Not even the Third Hokage's thick skin could prevent the flush of embarrassment that crept up his face.
His hands trembled as he pointed to the paper on his desk.
"Who did this? How did this happen under your watch?" he demanded, his voice quivering with anger.
What were the ANBU even doing? The news was already spreading like wildfire before they noticed!
The Third Hokage rarely lost his temper with the ANBU, but this time he couldn't hold back.
The war had left the economy in shambles, with villagers struggling due to reduced incomes and rising prices. Complaints were already piling up, and now this scandal threatened to turn those complaints into full-blown outrage.
The worst part was that the Telescope Technique could single-handedly ruin Konoha's bathhouse and hot spring industries—key parts of the village's economy.
These businesses were major taxpayers, too. If this scandal drove customers away, the economic fallout would be disastrous.
But that wasn't even the worst of it. Once word spread, everyone would associate Hiruzen Sarutobi with this perverted jutsu. His reputation would be shattered, his name dragged from the heights of respectability into the gutter.
A Hokage could have his vices, but letting them become public knowledge was unacceptable—it would destroy everything.
Feeling like he had been plunged into the icy wastes of the Land of Frost, the Third Hokage's heart sank as he furiously questioned the ANBU.
Even during previous crises, the Third Hokage had only ever given the ANBU mild reprimands. After all, they were his direct subordinates.
The ANBU member reporting to him could only offer a bitter smile beneath their mask, lowering their head in shame as they explained, "Hokage-sama, the ANBU on patrol last night didn't notice anyone suspicious. We have no idea how these were posted all over Konoha. The team is working hard to remove them and disperse the unaware villagers."
"What?"
The Third Hokage's voice rose in pitch, disbelief setting in. He had assumed only a few had been posted before being caught.
But he had been too optimistic—it wasn't just a few. These papers had been plastered all over the village, in every prominent location, practically everywhere except the Hokage's office itself.
This was a full-blown disaster…
"Sarutobi, what on earth is going on?"
Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane burst into the office, looking as if they were about to have a collective meltdown.
Villagers had initially been curious, but as more and more started reading, complaints and outrage began to swell.
Times were tough enough during the war; everyone was barely scraping by.
And then, the Hokage himself was caught engaging in such behavior. Don't you have a wife? Haven't you ever seen a woman bathe before? Why do you need to spy on people?
Just hearing the word "surveillance" made members of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans squirm.
These clans were used to being closely monitored, especially the Hyuga, who had long resigned themselves to it.
The Hyuga had chosen to lie low, accepting whatever the village's leadership decided without interference.
But the Uchiha? Their pride wouldn't allow them to take it lying down.
This difference in attitude was a constant source of tension between the two clans, especially when debating which had the superior dōjutsu in the shinobi world.
As soon as they heard the news, Koharu and Homura rushed to the Hokage's office, arriving just in time to encounter a crowd of irate bathhouse and hot spring owners demanding answers.
Even with the best possible spin, this situation was getting out of control.
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