At the end of that long and suffocating meeting, Koharu Utatane's hoarse voice slowly rose. She spoke with grave seriousness, "The last and most crucial matter to address at this gathering concerns the unforgivable dereliction of duty committed by Inuzuka Rō, the commander stationed at the front lines.
"The Hokage entrusted him with guarding our borders, yet he utterly violated the Hokage's deep trust and the immense responsibility bestowed upon him. His actions are truly heart-wrenching. From beginning to end, he not only failed to successfully stop those ruthless Sand-nin invaders, but instead boldly chose to retreat on his own initiative.
"As a result, our great Land of Fire's border territories were left completely defenseless before the ferocious claws of the Sand forces. His offenses run so deep they cannot be recorded fully; his crimes are utterly monstrous! Given such a dire situation, I hereby propose the following severe disciplinary actions:
"First, immediately strip him of his position as deserved punishment for such serious misconduct;
"Second, thoroughly erase all previously recognized merits and accomplishments he once received, so he cannot use false past honors to evade responsibility today;
"Third, he must be transferred to the most dangerous frontline suicide unit, where he may only redeem himself through risking his life in battle to atone for his tremendous past mistakes."
Shiyu Uchiha naturally understood perfectly—how could he not? The Third and others here had obviously conspired to twist facts entirely upside down just to pass this heavy black pot onto his lap! Anger burned fiercely within him. He knew if he didn't intervene now and prevent them from achieving their goal smoothly, then next time someone would likely try to make the Uchiha take the fall.
Therefore, no longer hesitating about other considerations, he quickly rose to his feet and loudly interrupted, shouting, "I absolutely oppose this! The account regarding Inuzuka Rō's insufficient capability as frontline commander which led to the collapse there—the entire claim recently made by Advisor Koharu—I believe is nothing but sheer absurd nonsense!
"I know Inuzuka Rō personally. He has always been renowned at the front line for his dauntless courage and skillful command abilities. Throughout previous battles, he consistently displayed outstanding leadership talent and an unyielding willpower.
"This so-called 'defeat' was certainly caused by numerous complex and unpredictable factors working together—it cannot possibly be blamed solely upon one individual. We should maintain an impartial and objective attitude, thoroughly investigate the actual truth behind matters rather than recklessly accusing and punishing him without distinguishing right from wrong here today.
"What's more, let's talk about something else properly too. It was precisely two years ago that I clearly warned this war—the Third Great Ninja War—would inevitably erupt in the coming years. In fact, the timing of its outbreak nearly matched my original estimation exactly. If you all had taken my suggestions seriously earlier and implemented appropriate preventive measures ahead of time, how could things have reached such a terrible state today?
"Regarding Commander Inuzuka Rō specifically, in my opinion, he has already exerted his capabilities to the utmost extent possible—he did everything humanly feasible to deal with this crisis."
The reason for his tactical retreat was simply due to limited manpower and scarce resources. It was precisely because he made such a wise and correct decision—to retreat in time, leave no supplies for the enemy, and inflict heavy losses on them—that we were able to more effectively establish a second solid line of defense.
Therefore, even if he didn't earn any major credit, at the very least, he did his duty diligently. In my opinion, instead of punishing him, we should actually give him some kind of reward.
As for responsibility, I believe it should fall upon you all. Isn't that intelligence network controlled by Root and Anbu completely crippled? They couldn't even detect such a major movement as the Sand-nin's main forces! They're just useless slackers who only stir up trouble without achieving a thing!
I believe those people truly deserve punishment—they're merely occupying positions without fulfilling their duties.
Also, Advisor Utatane, next time when you speak words like this, you should carefully recall certain people's so-called "excellent performance" during the Second Ninja War. Even they weren't punished—so what grounds do you have to punish others?
Everyone present was struck as if by a thunderclap upon hearing Shiyu Uchiha's words. The intense impact rapidly coursed through their bodies; their minds churned with waves of thoughts like surging tides. A flash of shock flickered across their eyes. Everyone seemed frozen in place, trapped in an oppressive silence, as if time itself had stopped at that moment.
Though the longstanding tensions between the Uchiha Clan and the village leadership had long been an open secret, everyone in the room understood this only too well. It was like a dark current beneath the surface, always threatening to explode into chaos at any moment.
And that brief clash just now had merely been a single spark atop an about-to-erupt volcano. They were used to these conflicts in daily life, but seeing such raw intensity up close still left them shaken.
At this moment, the Third Hokage's face darkened like a sky full of storm clouds, his expression extremely grim. He fully understood both the power and influence of the Uchiha Clan, and how disastrous the consequences could be if mishandled.
Fortunately, Shiyu Uchiha seemed to leave him a sliver of breathing room, not directly pointing the finger at him, stopping short only at blaming Anbu and Root.
Even so, his heart still pounded violently—because currently, Root's leader was his old friend Danzo, and Anbu's acting director was none other than his own son, Sarutobi Shin'nosuke. These were people he trusted most, key pillars of his power within Konoha Village.
This situation now stood on the razor's edge of formal conflict. A single misstep could easily trigger an irreversible catastrophe.
With the Third Great Ninja War on the horizon, Hiruzen Sarutobi knew he had to think long-term and avoid any rash moves.
He took a deep breath, trying to tamp down the rising anger inside and force himself to stay calm.
Koharu Utatane was in a similar situation to Hiruzen Sarutobi—she had just started speaking but hadn't finished her sentence before being cut off by Shiyu Uchiha. She hadn't even had the chance to argue against Shiyu Uchiha's words when shock flashed across her previously calm face upon hearing his statement.
Her eyes widened, and her finger trembled as she pointed toward Shiyu Uchiha, as though she had just seen something utterly inconceivable. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, yet no words came out. Eventually, she could only choke out the word "outrageous," her voice filled with frustration and fury.
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