Uchiha Fugaku and Yashiro exchanged glances, both filled with confusion.
They leaned closer to examine the ordinary corpse, only noting that its attire was somewhat familiar.
Following the body upwards, they saw it – the head was missing! How tragic!
Their final gaze fell upon the head lying askew to the side. Danzo!?
Damn it, good riddance!
In mere moments, the hearts of the two Uchiha surged with emotion, transitioning from initial bewilderment to overwhelming joy, nearly causing them to burst out laughing.
This scoundrel was actually dead!
Ever since the Second Hokage had the Uchiha clan restricted by the Konoha Military Police Force, Shimura Danzo had acted as if he possessed a divine decree, frequently meddling in the Uchiha clan's missions whenever possible, and simultaneously tarnishing their reputation.
During his years as a Konoha elder, the Uchiha clan, already losing favor due to Madara's defection, saw their standing in the village plummet further due to Danzo's interference.
Now, whenever a member of the Konoha Military Police Force clad in Uchiha attire appeared on the streets of Konoha, even if they had done nothing wrong, the villagers who saw them would react as if they were facing monstrous beasts, desperately trying to avoid them.
Fugaku had been clan head for some time, and this situation occurred almost daily. He had tried everything he could but had failed to resolve the growing anxiety among his clan members. Some more radical individuals, like Yashiro beside him, had even begun to harbor dangerous thoughts.
Under such circumstances, seeing Danzo's corpse, the joy felt by Fugaku and Yashiro was understandable.
Damn it, this menace was finally dead!
Which brave hero had acted? The Uchiha clan would immediately send you a congratulatory banner!
Fugaku had even thought of what the banner would say!
"Punishing the wicked, bringing great joy to the people!"
Yes! He would arrange it upon their return!
Fugaku nodded heavily in his mind, making a rather immature decision.
"Sigh!"
"To think that Lord Danzo, a Konoha elder with great authority, would also meet his end!"
"This is truly..."
"Poignant!"
Uchiha Yashiro sighed with feigned melancholy, nearly letting the word "happiness" slip from his lips. However, the twitching muscles around his mouth betrayed his true feelings.
The two elder advisors almost rolled their eyes in frustration.
So, Danzo was dead, and everyone in this room, except for the two of them, was genuinely happy, wasn't that right?
Danzo, Danzo, what terrible deeds had you committed in your life?
To be mocked with "good riddance" even in death?
Putting aside the two advisors who were questioning their very existence, Fugaku leaned in to observe the corpse, then looked up at Orochimaru with a hint of confusion.
"Senior Orochimaru, I naturally recognize Elder Danzo."
"Although I feel profoundly... regretful about his demise!"
"However, I fail to see any connection between this corpse and Senior Kagami!"
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow, then pointed two fingers at his own eyes, and then back at Fugaku's.
"Fugaku, as the Uchiha clan head, you are not even as sensitive to the power of the Sharingan as an outsider like myself. This truly surprises me!"
Fugaku's expression changed. He suddenly remembered something he had overlooked while examining Danzo's corpse.
His right eye!
The right eye with subtle stitch marks on its eyelid!
Fugaku's breathing quickened slightly. Disregarding the dirt, he reached out and pried open Danzo's tightly shut right eye, revealing the abnormal, dull gray eyeball.
"This..."
"How is this possible?"
Fugaku gasped, shaking his head in disbelief. The three-tomoe Sharingan in his eyes instantly appeared, and his ocular power surged as he probed Danzo's right eye.
"Izanagi..."
Moments later, after sensing the familiar, more concentrated Yin release chakra fluctuation than his own, Fugaku grimly withdrew his hand. He glanced at Orochimaru, then turned his three-tomoe Sharingan, filled with anger and accusation, towards Sarutobi Hiruzen, who sat with his eyes closed in feigned slumber.
"Hokage-sama, the Uchiha clan requires an explanation!"
Hiruzen tugged at the brim of his hat, burying himself deeper into his chair, feigning ignorance.
"Fugaku, is this explanation not enough?"
Orochimaru moved in front of Fugaku, blocking his gaze towards Hiruzen. He pointed at Danzo's severed corpse on the ground and said with a smile:
"This is the sincerity of Teacher and... myself, towards the Uchiha clan!"
"The life of a rogue ninja who murdered his comrade and stole the Uchiha clan's kekkei genkai!"
"What do you think, Fugaku?"
Fugaku's angry expression faltered as he finally understood. He looked deeply at Orochimaru and nodded slightly.
"The Uchiha clan wishes to reclaim this errant eye!"
Orochimaru nodded, accepting the matter on Hiruzen's behalf.
"Agreed!"
Fugaku instinctively glanced at the unresponsive Hiruzen, took a deep breath, and continued with a serious expression:
"Senior Orochimaru, if you have the time, feel free to visit the Uchiha clan often."
"The Uchiha clan... requires the Hokage-sama to restore our previous honor!"
Orochimaru was slightly taken aback and looked towards Hiruzen.
Hiruzen, sensing his disciple's hesitation, opened his eyes from his feigned slumber, smiled at Fugaku, and softly made a promise on Orochimaru's behalf.
"I promise!"
"I will personally vouch. If the Uchiha clan has promising young children, and Clan Head Fugaku trusts me, you may bring them to meet him when Orochimaru visits!"
With a meaningful remark, Hiruzen leisurely closed his eyes and drifted off again, adopting the demeanor of a hands-off manager.
Fugaku finally understood Orochimaru's current standing within Konoha's leadership. He nodded solemnly.
"Fugaku understands!"
"Senior Orochimaru, I bid farewell!"
Orochimaru smiled and nodded his head.
Fugaku turned, not even glancing at the increasingly displeased two advisors. He bent down, reached out, and gouged out Danzo's sightless Mangekyo Sharingan from his right eye.
He nodded to Tsunade and Hatake Sakumo, who had been acting as silent observers, and returned to the clan compound with Uchiha Yashiro.
...
"Hiruzen, have you lost your mind?"
Koharu Utatane, seeing the outsiders leave, angrily slapped the armrest of her chair.
"It's understandable for Orochimaru to act impulsively at his age, but why are you indulging him?"
"Teacher Tobirama explicitly stated that the Uchiha clan is an evil race and utterly untrustworthy!"
"What are you trying to achieve by presenting yourself as someone who wants to re-employ the Uchiha clan?"
Homura Mitokado, sitting beside her, adjusted his glasses and voiced his long-held concerns.
"That's right!"
"Hiruzen, you were too reckless!"
"Executing Danzo privately without notifying us two is difficult to explain to the village!"
"Even if he made grave mistakes, as long as it didn't jeopardize the foundation of the village, we could have discussed it before taking action!"
Seeing Hiruzen remain silent, Homura felt his words had an effect and pressed on:
"Furthermore, the Uchiha clan cannot be trusted!"
"We are all here, and we can see that you want to pave the way for Orochimaru."
"We have all witnessed Orochimaru's recent performance. We have no objections to entrusting the future of the village to him."
"However, we both unanimously believe that your approach of using the Uchiha clan is not advisable!"
"Didn't you see it earlier? That Uchiha Fugaku's insolent demeanor towards us was simply..."
Before the two could finish speaking, Hiruzen's eyes widened, and he snorted angrily.
"Enough!"