บท 186: Chapter 186: Secrets Exposed, No One is Clean
Takuya stood close to Tsunade, pressing against her back. Tsunade immediately felt a tickling sensation and shifted uncomfortably.
Just as she was about to tell Takuya to back off, she heard him whisper, "You think if these ANBU guys had been caught spying on girls in the bathhouse or sneaking around the red-light district, they'd die of embarrassment?"
Tsunade's discomfort vanished instantly, her forehead veins bulging as she clenched her fists. Grinding her teeth, she hissed, "Do you think everyone is like Jiraiya? Kid, you're only ten! Is this really what you should be thinking about?"
"But didn't Jiraiya say even the Hokage enjoys peeking too?" Takuya countered innocently.
"Cough, cough…"
Both Tsunade and Takuya drew attention. Those nearby, including Homura, turned to glance at the two. Homura, in particular, caught sight of Tsunade clenching her fists, clearly on the verge of hitting someone. Takuya, meanwhile, stood close behind her, whispering something casually.
What the…?
Homura blinked in surprise. Could it be that Tsunade's into this kind of thing? After all, Takuya was still just a kid.
From where Homura was standing, it looked like Takuya had his arms around Tsunade, causing her annoyance. Tsunade, of course, wasn't the type to appreciate such behavior—especially in public. And this wasn't exactly the time or place for romantic games.
Right now, Homura could only shake his head and think to himself, Kids these days.
Wait a minute… Wasn't Takuya usually hanging out with Kushina and Mikoto Uchiha? Now he was tangled up with Tsunade too? This kid really knows how to play the game.
Homura's gaze at Takuya grew more curious and slightly judgmental.
What? Takuya noticed the look Homura was giving him and rolled his eyes in frustration. We're just talking quietly; what's your problem?
"Stand properly," Tsunade warned, shooting Takuya a sharp look. Now wasn't the time for this kind of nonsense.
Shrugging, Takuya straightened up and turned his attention to the ANBU and Root members standing in the hall. He couldn't help but wonder how many of them would be exposed during this internal investigation.
Spies had been known to infiltrate even the elite ranks of the ANBU. It wasn't a one-off occurrence, either—this happened in every village. Konoha wasn't the only one placing spies in other villages.
Still, some villages had it harder, like the Mist. The shinobi from the Hidden Mist Village were pretty distinctive, likely because of the unique geography of the Land of Water. Their ninjas were among the easiest to spot out of all the five great nations.
Inside the Interrogation Hall, reactions varied. Some shinobi clearly didn't want to go through the inspection, while others looked perfectly calm. A few, however, seemed distinctly uneasy. Meanwhile, there were others—mostly Root members—who stood expressionless, waiting their turn.
It was no surprise. Danzo had brainwashed most of his operatives, whereas the Third Hokage would never take such drastic measures with ANBU.
The investigation began with the squad captains. Given the limited number of personnel, the highest-ranking members of ANBU were only captains. After all, the ANBU was Konoha's only division without a formal "chief" position.
The ANBU technically answered directly to the Hokage, so adding another leadership layer seemed unnecessary. However, over the years, the division had lost its original purpose.
Since Koharu and Homura had gained more power, the ANBU had shifted. Now, it wasn't just the Hokage who could command them—Danzo and the village elders also wielded influence over the unit.
The once pure "Hokage's personal guard" had turned into a joke.
"Relax. Don't resist, or it could cause damage to your brain," a member of the Yamanaka clan gently advised the shinobi about to undergo the mind probe.
Hearing this, Takuya nearly burst out laughing. The poor shinobi had already been on edge, but now they were even more terrified. The Yamanaka might have meant well, but they weren't helping calm anyone down.
Nerves aside, the inspection continued.
One of the Yamanaka placed his hand on the shinobi's head, sending his mental energy into their brain to sift through their memories. The shinobi's face twisted in discomfort, clearly struggling, while beads of sweat formed on the Yamanaka's brow as he concentrated.
It made sense. Fast-forwarding through someone's memories was no easy feat. It was like binge-watching a full TV series in one sitting. Mentally exhausting.
The Yamanaka clan's secret techniques allowed them to perform this task. Any other ninja would've been driven mad by the sheer volume of memories.
Even the clan's leader had come out to assist with the inspection, lending his talents to search through one of the senior captains, codenamed Black Hawk. After a few moments, the Yamanaka leader nodded to the Hokage. "He's clean."
"Phew." Black Hawk rubbed his temples, feeling like his head was about to explode. He exchanged a glance with the Yamanaka leader, silently communicating, You'd better not spill any of my secrets, or I'll come after you.
The Yamanaka leader smiled sympathetically and nodded. He knew this investigation would earn his clan no favors. Even if they promised not to reveal anything they found, who was going to trust them now?
Everyone had skeletons in their closet. Once those came to light, trust would be hard to maintain.
Black Hawk exhaled sharply and moved to stand beside the Hokage, waiting.
"Next."
The process was moving quickly. Each Yamanaka took only a few minutes to scan through a person's memories, checking if they had done anything that might jeopardize the village.
As for any dirty secrets? The Yamanaka would simply pretend they hadn't seen those.
"You…" the Yamanaka clan leader sighed.
The recently inspected shinobi panicked. "I'm not a spy!"
"I know you're not a spy," the Yamanaka leader replied, "but some of the things you've done will need to be reported to the Hokage."
The shinobi had once abandoned his teammates during a mission, leaving them to fend off enemies while he fled to save himself. Getting caught for something like that wasn't going to end well.
This was the kind of secret you could live with—until someone dug it up.
Before the Hokage could even speak, two Jonin stepped forward, ready to take the offending shinobi into custody.
Knowing he couldn't fight his way out of this, the shinobi gritted his teeth and accepted his fate. Betraying your teammates might not be a death sentence, but it would certainly land you in prison.
And that was still a better fate than being labeled a spy. Once you were marked as a traitor, there was no coming back from that.
One by one, the ANBU and Root members were examined. Several were found to have committed offenses, though none serious enough to be labeled traitorous. Even so, the Third Hokage's expression darkened. This was his personal unit, after all. Knowing they had such disgraceful pasts stung his pride.
And it served as a stark reminder: No one's memories are clean.
Even if you've never betrayed anyone, having your past laid bare for others to see was always going to be uncomfortable.
This inspection would certainly make the Yamanaka clan a lot of enemies.
Still, the investigation pressed on. Roughly one-third of the personnel had passed already.
"Die!"
**********
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