"Master Danzo wants to kill me!"
Sakazaki En let out a heart-wrenching cry and dropped to his knees in front of Yukika.
"This isn't a trivial matter."
Yukika's expression turned grave. "And our Lord Danzo is definitely not the kind of man who stabs people in the back!"
Pfft!
Not far off, Orochimaru nearly burst out laughing.
Sorry.
I just can't.
Absolutely not.
Stab people in the back?
That's practically Danzo's whole career!
And Root was created exactly for this kind of shady business. Orochimaru had done his fair share of backdoor operations since he joined Danzo.
But now, Yukika was publicly defending Danzo with all his might, and he couldn't help but feel a twisted sort of joy.
"I don't want to believe Lord Danzo would do something like this, but the facts don't lie!"
Sakazaki began to sob loudly.
"Today, Lord Danzo ordered me to inspect the northern base," he cried. "But shortly after I left camp, I sensed I was being followed. I thought it was the enemy… but when I struck back, I saw them clearly."
"They were wearing Root masks!"
The surrounding shinobi erupted in whispers. No one understood what kind of twisted drama this was.
Danzo sent Sakazaki to investigate… and then tried to have him killed?
Why?
"How do you even know what Root looks like? You've never been there," Yukika asked, not hesitating. He knew others were wondering the same thing.
Sakazaki was just a mid-ranking Konoha ninja. How could he possibly know anything about the secretive Root division?
"I was invited to join Root once, but I turned it down. Lord Danzo even had a Root operative deliver me lunch!"
"I saw the masks up close. The carvings were deeper and darker than standard ANBU masks."
"And 923—he's not some made-up name. That's the mask-wearing ninja who used to follow Danzo around when he was Supreme Commander!"
The accusations flowed fast and loud, but Yukika remained unmoved.
"That's just your side of the story. I can't condemn Lord Danzo based on your words alone."
"After all, he's given everything for the village. We can't let baseless rumors destroy his reputation."
Yukika sighed. "Sakazaki En, we're at war. Lord Danzo is still our commanding officer."
"We all still hope to win this war under his wise leadership."
Wise leadership?
That was the last straw for some of the surrounding shinobi.
After a month of failure, you still call that wise?
"Maybe Master Yukika has lost perspective?"
"Isn't it the Senju Clan's campaigns that have kept Konoha going this whole time?"
One shinobi finally spoke up.
"Hey, that's not fair," Yukika said humbly. "Lord Danzo deserves the credit. Didn't you read the commendations from Lord Naruto? He gave all the praise to Danzo. Didn't even mention me."
But that humility… was downright pitiful.
He'd sold out the Hokage just like that.
Yes.
Over the past month, news from the Hokage had trickled in from the front lines.
But all the victories Yukika brought back were twisted into proof of Danzo's great leadership. Not once did anyone mention the Senju Clan. Or Yukika himself.
It was a clear message: The Hokage favors Danzo.
Orochimaru suddenly understood.
"I know you don't believe me," Sakazaki cried, "but my comrades have proof!"
"These wounds—they were caused by Root!"
"If White Fang hadn't passed by by pure chance, I'd be dead already!"
Sakazaki raised his voice, this time armed with evidence.
"What proof, beyond your injuries?" Yukika narrowed his eyes.
"Please, Lord Yukika, give me a moment."
Sakazaki, dragging his battered body, waved to the comrades behind him.
Three corpses were brought forward.
"This… this is unmistakably Root craftsmanship. I saw those exact weapons beside Lord Danzo once!"
A nearby shinobi blanched and admitted what he'd seen.
"If you still don't believe me, let Lord Orochimaru inspect them. He's studied Root. He'll know for sure."
The trap was set.
Yukika nodded with satisfaction.
The scene had been perfectly staged—every gap filled, every piece in place.
What no one else knew: every speaker so far had been actors Yukika invited.
Now it was time for Orochimaru's part.
The Snake Sage coughed once and approached the corpses.
"What's all this noise? Ridiculous!"
Finally, someone couldn't sit still any longer.
To be fair, Danzo had only gotten away with this for so long because people's focus was always on the front lines. No one had the time or power to dig deeper.
But Yukika had noticed Danzo's arrival.
He was waiting for this moment—for that old snake to finally show his face.
"Lord Danzo has arrived."
Yukika, wearing a gentle smile, turned toward the real star of the show.