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Chapter 85N
🕑 Added 2025-07-04 15:04:01 +0000 UTCChapter 85N
After subduing Hatake Kakashi and Sarutobi Asuma—who had been acting erratically—the group finally turned their attention to the scene where the former Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had died.
The situation at the scene was complicated, enough to make even Uchiha Rēn raise an eyebrow in surprise.
Sarutobi Hiruzen’s headless corpse lay in the middle of the corridor, a large pool of blood staining the surrounding floor. His severed head wasn’t far from the body. The Executioner’s Blade, now covered in blood, lay discarded nearby, and Biwa Jūzō’s corpse was also close to Hiruzen’s.
From the state of the scene,
Everyone present could piece together what had likely occurred.
One glance at the rock spear embedded in the wall, still stained with flesh and bone fragments, and another at Biwa Jūzō’s mangled legs, made it clear that Hiruzen had impaled Jūzō’s feet using Earth Release. During the fight, Hiruzen had clearly held the upper hand.
After all, aside from his severed neck, Hiruzen’s body bore no other visible wounds.
In contrast, Biwa Jūzō’s arms, back, and legs were covered in fresh injuries. It was obvious he had taken a severe beating. This raised the question: how had Hiruzen, who clearly dominated the fight, been suddenly decapitated?
From the position of the corpses, it appeared Jūzō had somehow ignored his damaged legs, surged forward, and managed to decapitate Hiruzen in a final strike. The logic seemed plausible enough… except, of course, it was impossible.
Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn’t a training dummy.
How could he have just stood there and let Jūzō attack?
Given Hiruzen’s skill, even a fully capable Jūzō would have had no chance of landing a serious blow—let alone in his injured state.
Unless,
Hiruzen had been immobilized, unable to dodge or defend against the attack.
Everyone present had battlefield experience and sharp intuition. Almost in unison, they turned their eyes toward Jūzō’s hollow right socket. If there was a clue, it had to be there.
"Hatake Kakashi, Sarutobi Asuma."
Akimichi Torifu looked at the two men kneeling like prisoners, their arms pinned behind them by the ANBU.
"Tell me what exactly happened here?"
Torifu asked.
If anyone knew what had transpired, it was these two.
"It was him! Hatake Kakashi colluded with the Mist ninja to kill the old man!" Sarutobi Asuma shouted, his glare toward Kakashi like that of a wild beast, as if he were ready to tear into him.
Kakashi remained unmoved by Asuma’s accusation. His expression was cold, devoid of the vitality one might expect of someone his age. Only after Asuma finished shouting did Kakashi speak quietly: "I don’t know."
"Biwa Jūzō lost badly. Sarutobi—the Third—had already secured victory. He was interrogating Jūzō about who had sent him when Jūzō’s right eye suddenly ruptured in a gruesome way. The Third seemed to be caught in some kind of binding genjutsu, unable to move, and then was decapitated in a single stroke."
"Lord Hokage, you’re probably wondering what technique Jūzō used to paralyze the Third. I’m sorry, but it all happened too fast. So fast that I didn’t even see what exactly occurred. By the time I realized, it was already too late. My best guess is some kind of binding genjutsu."
Sarutobi Hiruzen was dead.
Kakashi’s hope of personally avenging his father was gone.
The drive that had pushed him forward disappeared. He had no plans to defect and become a rogue ninja. If he was going to die, he would do so as a shinobi of Konoha. So he surrendered without resistance, letting the ANBU restrain him.
"Binding genjutsu? But to restrain Sarutobi... a normal one wouldn’t be enough," Torifu murmured, staring at Jūzō’s empty eye socket.
A technique that required sacrificing an eye?
Or some unknown forbidden jutsu?
The shinobi world was full of strange and ancient techniques—some inherited, others created by modern geniuses. Figuring out what Jūzō had used wouldn’t be easy.
"Haichi, investigate. See if you can find anything."
The Yamanaka clan’s mental techniques were highly versatile—capable of attack, sensing, transmitting information, and even reading memories from both the living and the dead. Their ability to retrieve memory from the deceased was unrivaled.
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
Yamanaka Inoichi responded respectfully.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, he stepped forward, knelt, and placed a hand atop Jūzō’s head, closing his eyes as he attempted to read the memories stored in the corpse.
As clan head and strongest member of the Yamanaka clan, Inoichi was revered among intelligence operatives across the shinobi world—many of whom weren’t even from Konoha.
His skill was undisputed.
And indeed, Inoichi did not disappoint.
After only five minutes, he opened his eyes and withdrew his hand from Jūzō’s head.
"What did you find?"
Torifu pressed.
"According to what I read, Biwa Jūzō acted alone. He wasn’t instructed or aided by anyone. On the contrary, he planned to frame the Uchiha clan, provoking internal conflict within Konoha to give the Mist the upper hand in the coming war."
Inoichi’s expression was complicated as he said this. Was Konoha’s internal strife really so well-known in the shinobi world?
And it was always the Uchiha who were targeted.
He glanced at Uchiha Rēn, only to find the young clan head already looking back at him. Their eyes met for a brief moment, startling Inoichi into lowering his gaze instinctively—then realizing he had probably overreacted.
Uchiha Rēn hadn’t even activated his Sharingan.
Still, Inoichi didn’t dare meet his eyes again. He continued, "As for the technique Jūzō used to paralyze the Third, I couldn’t find it. His memories have unnatural gaps—it seems he erased them before acting. I can’t recover what’s been deliberately removed."
"Oh, and one more thing—Jūzō is a rogue ninja. Disillusioned with the Fourth Mizukage’s policies, he attempted a coup to change Kirigakure, but failed and fled the village."
There was more information in Jūzō’s brain.
But even Inoichi needed time to organize such a vast amount of intelligence. For now, he only shared what was immediately relevant.
"He’s a rogue ninja, yet still thinking about his village?" Torifu scoffed, annoyed, and waved a hand. "Inoichi, thank you."
"This is my duty."
The honest and reserved Inoichi stepped back. After hesitating for a moment, Torifu turned to Rēn.
"Rēn-kun, it seems we’ll need to initiate conflict with the Mist very soon."
"That’s what I believe as well."
Rēn grinned.
His pale teeth glinted with a bloodthirsty shine.
With Shimura Danzō dead and Sarutobi Hiruzen gone, the relationship between his clan and the village had yet to improve, but honestly, his heart was far more at ease. For now, he had no further burdens—he could focus entirely on preparing for war against the Mist.
Then, let the Mist’s blood be the Uchiha clan’s liberation.
Let it be their celebration!
