The domineering Uchiha drove the Third Hokage mad!

Chapter 554 The Mastermind Behind the War

Mitokado Yan looked at the argument below, at those angry faces, and his emotions became increasingly agitated.

"We did nothing wrong! As the clan leaders, our duty is to protect our people and defend our clan! We don't want to send our clansmen to their deaths, we don't want to see our loved ones and our clansmen perish on the battlefield!"

"If you have someone to blame, blame those high-ranking daimyo. They started the war, they forced the village to fight back, they forced us to make a choice. We are victims too!"

"quiet!"

Uchiha Mitsunori's voice suddenly rose, carrying a strong chakra fluctuation, exploding in the square like a thunderclap, instantly drowning out all the arguments and curses, and the square returned to deathly silence.

His cold gaze swept over Mitokado Yanagi, and the pressure emanating from his Sharingan grew even stronger.

Mitokado Homura froze, his aura waning, and he could only lower his head in resentment. His shoulders trembled slightly, but he still gritted his teeth, his face full of defiance.

Uchiha Mitsunori's eyes were icy cold: "Mitokado Homura, stop making excuses. Your excuses are worthless in front of those ninjas and children who died in battle."

"Since you're trying to evade the issue, then tell me, why were the ninja academy students allowed to graduate early? Why did those innocent children become victims of war?"

Mitokado Homura's body trembled slightly, and he dared not meet Uchiha Mitsunori's gaze, burying his head even lower.

After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "The Hidden Mist Village first experienced the coup of the Fourth Mizukage, which led to infighting and the loss of most of its top combatants, greatly reducing its strength and making it no longer as glorious as it once was."

"Later, Sunagakure took the opportunity to attack Kirigakure, causing Kirigakure to lose a number of ninjas and suffer another setback. We all thought that Kirigakure was now severely weakened and no longer a threat to Konoha."

He swallowed hard and continued, "In addition, at that time, the Hidden Cloud Village, the Hidden Stone Village, and the Hidden Sun Village joined forces to besiege Konoha. Konoha's military strength was extremely strained, and the frontline battle was intense. We simply couldn't spare any manpower to defend against the Hidden Mist Village."

"We had no choice but to have the Ninja Academy students graduate early and send them to the Hidden Mist battlefield to guard Konoha's borders and prevent the Hidden Mist Village from launching a surprise attack. We had no other option!"

"quibble!"

Uchiha Mitsunaka slammed his hand on the armrest of the platform, his eyes sharp as knives, and his angry rebuke resounded like thunder throughout the entire plaza.

"Most of the students who graduated early were still just children, the oldest being no more than thirteen years old, and the youngest only eight. Many of them hadn't even mastered the most basic ninjutsu, and some didn't even have the strength of a genin!"

"They can't even protect themselves. What's the difference between sending them to the battlefield and sending them to their deaths?"

Uchiha Mitsumine's voice was filled with grief and indignation, his eyes piercingly cold: "The Sarutobi, Shimura, Utatane, and Mito clans together have over 3600 ninja, hundreds of whom are Jonin and Chunin—enough to hold up the battlefield in Kirigakure!"

"If you were willing to send 3000 men to the Hidden Mist battlefield, with the combined strength of your four clans, the Hidden Mist Village wouldn't have been able to cause any trouble, and the subsequent tragedy wouldn't have occurred. Those innocent children wouldn't have had to die in vain!"

Upon hearing this, the surrounding villagers' faces immediately turned furious.

Uchiha Mitsunori continued his rebuke: "It's precisely because of your selfishness! You can't bear to send your own clansmen to the battlefield, you can't bear to harm the interests of your own ninja clan, so you push those innocent children onto the battlefield, using them as pawns to protect your own interests, as sacrifices for your compromises and concessions!"

"It is because of your selfishness and indifference that more than 2200 students died on the battlefield, and more than 500 students were seriously injured and disabled, living in pain for the rest of their lives! Is this what you call 'helplessness'? Is this what you call 'being unable to control one's own destiny'? Don't your consciences hurt?"

"No...that's not how it is..."

Mitomon Yan was trembling all over, his face as pale as paper, without a trace of blood.

He shook his head, his voice trembling with tears: "It was just a mistake, we didn't want this to happen!"

"We never expected Kirigakure to be able to organize a sneak attack. We never expected the children to suffer such heavy casualties. We really never expected this... It really was just a mistake! It wasn't our fault, it wasn't..."

Uchiha Mitsunori gave him a cold look, without the slightest pity in his eyes.

He slowly turned his gaze and it fell on Shimura Danzo, who had been keeping his eyes closed and remaining silent.

Danzo Shimura, known as the Dark Lord of the Ninja World, was the leader of Konoha's Root organization. His hands were stained with blood, and he knew far more about the dark side of Konoha than the two of them, and his knowledge of it was far more sordid.

"Awaken Shimura Danzo! I want to interrogate him personally, and I want him to reveal all the dark secrets of Konoha!"

"Yes, Lord Mitsumine!"

Uchiha Tetsuka flashed and appeared in front of Shimura Danzo.

He quickly formed hand seals: "Water Release: Water Prison Technique!"

A large number of water droplets condensed from the surrounding air and quickly gathered together, trapping Shimura Danzo inside.

Inside the water prison, the water swirled wildly, and the immense water pressure relentlessly squeezed Shimura Danzo's body.

The icy water rushed into his mouth, nose, and ears, choking him and causing him to convulse. His eyes, which had been tightly closed, slowly opened under the intense stimulation of the water pressure.

Upon seeing Shimura Danzo awaken, Uchiha Tetsuka no longer hesitated and released the ninjutsu.

Danzo Shimura was soaked in sweat and coughing violently, as if he were coughing up his lungs.

He struggled to open his right eye, his sinister gaze slowly sweeping over the surroundings.

When they saw the Sharingan radiating crimson light on the high platform, and the cold, handsome face of Uchiha Mitsuru, they were instantly startled.

"Genjutsu: Sharingan"

Uchiha Mitsunaga did not give Shimura Danzo a chance to react, and activated the genjutsu again.

The crimson Sharingan suddenly lit up, instantly breaking through Shimura Danzo's mental defenses and invading his consciousness.