Tobirama had given countless warnings and instructions: once war broke out, the strategic reserve warehouse would be Konoha's greatest guarantee of victory, it absolutely could not be compromised. Yet only nine years after his death, substandard supplies had appeared in the strategic reserve warehouse.
How could this be tolerated?
Homura's eyelid twitched violently. He rushed forward, picked up a military ration pill, and examined it carefully. He would have rather not looked, because the more he inspected it, the more his heart pounded.
It really was a defective product, and the difference was obvious at a glance.
Because the Medical Department's supplies and materials were all provided by the Logistics Department, he had a deep understanding of how things worked there.
When the military ration pills were first developed, he had personally inspected them. In fact, he and Koharu had together defined the standard for qualified products at that time.
So there was no way he could be mistaken.
He had indeed helped Koharu replenish the depleted inventory of the strategic reserve warehouse, but he could guarantee that what he had delivered at that time was all top-grade.
Which meant... the problem had already existed before this incident?
Did Hiruzen know about this?
No, he definitely didn't!
Homura immediately came to that conclusion.
But how could Koharu have done this?
No, she absolutely did not have the guts, because the earlier shortage in the strategic reserve warehouse had been caused by her.
At this thought, his vision went black, and he nearly fainted.
A shortage in the strategic reserves could still be explained away as a rotation of stock. After all, for time-sensitive materials, replacing them regularly was normal.
Even if supplies taken from the warehouse were close to expiring, they were still considered valuable.
If resupply was delayed, it was a serious issue, but as long as the shortfall was discovered and quickly replenished, there was still room to recover. But passing off inferior goods as quality, and being caught doing it, that was a much more serious matter.
He was not like Koharu or Danzō. He didn't have great ambition, nor was he truly greedy. But if he weren't greedy, he would have ended up like Torifu, excluded, sidelined, and left to rot at home. After all, if he didn't take his share, how could Hiruzen take his?
And if Hiruzen didn't take any, how could the others?
But that didn't mean Homura had no bottom line. In fact, he had reminded Koharu that the strategic reserve warehouse was not something to be played with. He truly hadn't expected that, despite her promises, she would allow such a grave oversight.
"Are these really defective products?" Ryohei asked urgently from the side.
Homura wanted to lie and say they weren't, but with so many people watching, and with experts from the Pharmaceuticals Department present, he didn't even have the chance to lie. He could only sigh deeply and give a heavy nod.
The moment he did, everyone erupted in shock.
Anyone who could be present at this site was no ordinary person, they all clearly understood the importance of the strategic reserve warehouse.
Everyone felt like this couldn't possibly be real.
It was outrageous.
But Tsunade didn't give them time to dwell on it. She immediately ordered: "Split into pairs, one opens the boxes for inspection, the other records the results. There must not be a single mistake."
"Yes!"
Upon receiving the order, everyone sprang into action and began thoroughly inspecting all the supplies.
This was destined to be a massive undertaking, but it had to be done.
At the entrance of the warehouse, all the tents had already been removed, but the crowding hadn't eased. Countless people had gathered here, all waiting anxiously for the inspection results of the strategic reserve warehouse.
During the wait, Hiruzen had already prepared a speech in his mind, thinking about what he would say when the time came. But as time dragged on, he began to grow irritated.
As the Hokage, this wasn't his first time here. He was very familiar with the quantity of supplies inside. The strategic reserve warehouse was indeed large, but if it was just about verifying inventory, it shouldn't have taken this long.
Yet no word had come from the people who had gone inside.
"Can't wait any longer, Hokage-sama?" Shin smiled at the sight, then said, "Don't be impatient."
"Did you do something?" Hiruzen's heart sank as he saw how calm Shin remained from beginning to end. He questioned him.
"Are you joking?" Shin replied mockingly. "Are you panicking so much that you're making baseless accusations now?"
Just as Hiruzen was about to respond, a figure suddenly dashed out from the warehouse, came up to him, and bowed.
"Hokage-sama!"
Hiruzen quickly asked, "What's the situation inside? Do the numbers match?"
The messenger hesitated for a moment, but still replied truthfully, "All quantities of materials in the warehouse match the records. No discrepancies found."
As soon as these words landed, the surrounding crowd erupted in surprise, and Hiruzen finally let out a long sigh of relief. With his worries lifted, he even felt an urge to burst into triumphant laughter.
But he only enjoyed three seconds of excitement before the messenger continued, "However, we've discovered that many of the supplies are low-quality knockoffs passed off as high-grade goods. Lady Tsunade is leading the inspection personally, but there's too much to go through, and it's difficult to verify everything. She sent me to request more people from you."
Boom!
Hiruzen's mind went completely blank, like he'd been hit by one of Deidara's explosions. He stood frozen on the spot, utterly stunned.
He had predicted the beginning, but never the ending.
Fake goods? Inferior supplies?
Impossible! How could that be?!
He screamed in his heart, completely deaf to the messenger's repeated calls.
At that moment, Shin spoke again, "Repeat what you just said, and louder this time. The Hokage didn't quite catch it."
The messenger exhaled slowly, then raised his voice and shouted, "Many of the materials in the strategic reserve warehouse have been discovered to be inferior goods passed off as quality supplies! Lady Tsunade is leading the inspection personally, but due to the overwhelming quantity, verification is difficult. She sent me to request additional personnel from you!"
Boom!
Another mental explosion, but this time, it jolted Hiruzen awake. He instantly roared, "That's impossible!"
His furious shout startled the messenger badly.
Meanwhile, Shin calmly added, "Maybe it would be best if you went inside and took a look for yourself?"
Though he didn't speak loudly, he used a special technique to ensure everyone could hear him clearly.
Do you think I need you to tell me that?!
Hiruzen glared at Shin with a look like he was ready to eat him alive.
Seeing the mocking expression on the latter's face, Hiruzen almost spat out blood.
But then, in the very next second, realization dawned on him.
A conspiracy. This was all a conspiracy, and that man in front of him was the one behind it!
But Shin, as if he had read Hiruzen's thoughts, continued speaking in a voice loud enough for all to hear, "Don't worry. Maybe this was just Koharu acting on her own. Perhaps it really has nothing to do with you?"
Pfft!
Hearing such a soul-piercing remark, Hiruzen's vision went black, and he actually spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed on the spot, fainting dead away.
The surrounding onlookers were instantly thrown into a panic.