บท 23: Ch.23 There Is One!
"One at a time, don't push!"
Outside the shelter, a Hidden Leaf Chūnin was directing the crowd of evacuees.
Uchiha Shinji, who had changed his clothes, blended into the crowd, following the orders and walking with the others toward the shelter.
Clearly.
After stopping the rampaging Nine Tails and awakening Naruto, he merged into the crowd like an ordinary villager, heading for the shelter.
The Hidden Leaf's shelter was located within the mountain behind Hokage Rock.
Following the group to the entrance of the shelter, just before entering the mountain, he paused and glanced back at the village.
The chaos over there was gradually settling down, as if the situation had been brought under control.
Hopefully, Naruto is alright!
With that thought, he looked away and continued walking with the crowd into the shelter.
"Shinji, over here! Over here!"
As soon as he entered the interior of the shelter, before he could take in his surroundings, a voice called out to him.
Following the sound, he saw Shion bouncing up and down from a distance, waving to him.
Is she crazy?
Shinji turned his face away.
At this moment, he was terrified of drawing attention. How could he dare to act too familiar with Shion, the priestess of the Land of Demons, especially with so many people watching in the shelter? That would be asking for trouble!
So, he ignored Shion and instead glanced around the inside of the shelter before making his way to where his classmates were.
Haku approached him, saying, "Shinji, I'm so glad you're okay."
Lee also stepped forward, adding, "We were all worried when we couldn't find you earlier!"
Shinji nodded, neither distant nor overly friendly.
Then, noticing that most of his classmates, including Haku and Karin, were present, he felt more at ease and sat down.
But the moment he sat down, a sharp pain shot through his eyes!
This time, the pain was far more intense than before, as if something was stabbing into his eyeballs.
At the same time, his vision suddenly blurred.
Having grown accustomed to the high perception of his Mangekyō Sharingan, this sudden blurring of his sight made him extremely uncomfortable, even causing a wave of dizziness.
Haku, noticing Shinji's discomfort, immediately supported him. "Shinji, are you alright? Are you hurt?"
His classmates all turned their concerned gazes toward Shinji.
Even Karin, still sitting alone in a corner, quickly glanced over when she heard that Shinji might be injured, hesitating as to whether she should roll up her sleeve.
"I'm fine."
Shinji waved his hand, then leaned back and closed his eyes.
The unusual sensation in his Mangekyō Sharingan didn't surprise him too much.
In just a few short weeks, the use of his Mangekyō Sharingan had been absurdly intense!
During the first invasion, he had relied on his Mangekyō Sharingan's power, using Susanoo Tomoshibi to take down the Hand Demon. Later, he used Susanoo Tomoshibi again to save Shion.
And just now, to subdue the Nine Tails, he had completely relied on the power of his Mangekyō Sharingan.
No skill—just brute force!
Although he had quickly subdued the terrifying Nine Tails, the toll on his dojutsu was far greater than he had anticipated.
"It looks like I'm on my way to achieving the 'fastest blindness legend,'" Shinji thought, sarcastically mocking himself.
At this rate, it wouldn't be long before he'd have to get used to living as a blind man.
If he were to regret anything, he looked around at his surroundings.
Not far away, Iruka-sensei was holding a list, counting the students inside the shelter, his face full of worry and anxiety.
And throughout the shelter, there were sounds of crying.
The expressions on people's faces showed fear and helplessness.
During the last Nine Tails incident, the Fourth Hokage had been there, but this time, who could subdue the Nine Tails and save the Hidden Leaf?
Even the students of the Ninja Academy were filled with fear and unease.
Tenten, sobbing, clung to Iruka's arm. "Iruka-sensei, is everything really okay outside? When can we go home?"
Iruka comforted her, "Don't worry, everything will be fine. You have to trust everyone!"
Shinji observed all of this and looked away. "I'll let it slide this time, but next time, I definitely won't overexert myself—definitely!"
Suddenly.
The red warning lights inside the shelter all went out.
An elderly man walked in and announced, "The situation has been resolved. Everyone can leave the shelter in an orderly fashion!"
Shinji glanced at the man and recognized him as Mitokado Homura, one of the Hidden Leaf's elder advisors.
"It's over?"
"Thank goodness!"
"We can finally go home!"
Instantly, cheers of relief echoed through the shelter.
Many villagers who had lived through the previous Nine Tails attack even hugged each other and wept, grateful to have survived another catastrophe.
Shinji stood up with the others and slowly made his way out of the shelter, feeling utterly exhausted from the day.
...
In the Hokage's office.
The Third Hokage glared at the gathered Anbu in front of him and scolded, "How could something like this happen? Someone explain it to me!"
One of the Anbu members braced himself and stepped forward. "Hokage-sama, we've completed our investigation. We can confirm that this was a premeditated attack."
He then explained how the attackers had lured away the Anbu protecting Naruto by targeting Karin, allowing them to ambush Naruto.
Koharu Utatane, one of the elder advisors, frowned. "I don't want to hear the details. I just want to know—did you capture them?"
The Anbu member lowered his head. "I'm sorry, but due to a shortage of manpower, we were unable to capture the assailant who attacked Naruto Uzumaki."
"Useless!"
At that moment, Danzo barged into the Hokage's office, flanked by two of his subordinates.
The Anbu member stiffened at Danzo's rebuke but could only bow respectfully to him. "I'm sorry."
Danzo ignored the Anbu and instead turned to the Third Hokage. "Have you confirmed it? Was it Uchiha Sasuke who used dojutsu to control the Nine Tails?"
The Third Hokage clasped his hands behind his back, turning to look out the window without answering.
From all the evidence, it seemed likely, but he found it hard to believe that a seven-year-old could possess such power.
Koharu took over the conversation. "Although the scene was chaotic, there were more than ten witnesses who claimed they saw the Nine Tails' eyes transform into the Sharingan pattern!"
Finally, the Third Hokage spoke slowly. "We've confirmed with Kakashi that Sasuke has awakened the Sharingan, and it's the two-tomoe version."
Danzo's face twisted into a snarl. "I heard that when Naruto was ambushed, Sasuke was nearby! It seems we've all been tricked by that brat!"
Koharu seemed puzzled. "You think Uchiha Sasuke orchestrated this attack? Danzo, are you out of your mind?"
Danzo, clearly frustrated, replied, "Right after the ambush on Naruto, someone infiltrated my base while I was off dealing with the Nine Tails."
Koharu frowned even deeper. "What does this have to do with Uchiha Sasuke?"
At this point, one of Danzo's Root shinobi stepped forward, bowing respectfully to the Third Hokage and Koharu before explaining, "The attacker's dojutsu was incredibly strong. Just a glance was enough for me to fall under their illusion."
There was no doubt.
This Root shinobi, who had followed Danzo into the Hokage's office, was the same one Uchiha Shinji had controlled with genjutsu during the infiltration of Danzo's secret vault.
The Third Hokage squinted his eyes, his expression growing even more serious.
Koharu also recognized the severity of the situation and pressed, "Are you certain the attacker used dojutsu to control you?"
The Root shinobi nodded. "The attacker wore a mask, so I didn't get a clear look at their eyes. But I'm certain the attacker was an Uchiha who had awakened the Sharingan."
Danzo's loyal subordinates had undergone intense training to resist interrogation and genjutsu.
Even though the genjutsu had taken hold immediately, this Root shinobi had still been able to deduce key details about the attacker.
But the problem was, after the Uchiha massacre, there shouldn't have been any Uchiha left in the village who fit that description.
No, there was one!
The Third Hokage and Koharu simultaneously thought of the newly revealed Uchiha Sasuke.
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