Chapter 39: Burning Down the Hokage’s Office

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Throughout Konoha, explosions continued to thunder one after another.

Thick smoke rose into the sky as villagers flooded the streets in panic.

No one dared remain at home anymore.

Some, terrified that their homes would explode the very next second, even jumped straight out of their buildings.

Explosions mixed with screams, cries, and desperate calls for help, echoing from every corner of Konoha.

Some villagers who stumbled and fell were mercilessly trampled by those desperately trying to escape.

Others who failed to escape before the explosions went off were blown apart, leaving nothing behind but blood and debris.

Panic.

Fear.

Despair.

At one location, an apartment building beside a crowded street suddenly exploded.

BOOM!

The fleeing crowd was blasted into the air.

Those lucky enough to be farther away were still sent crashing into another residential building by the shockwave.

Before those who had suffered only minor injuries could even feel relieved, the building beside them suddenly exploded as well.

BOOM!

Scenes like this continued to unfold throughout Konoha.

The entire village descended into chaos.

...

Meanwhile...

Watching Konoha erupt in explosions one after another, Hiruzen Sarutobi’s face turned ashen.

He immediately issued an order.

"Guide the villagers toward areas where the explosions have already occurred!"

"Yes!"

The ANBU beside him quickly scattered.

Hiruzen then turned toward the few remaining ANBU.

"What have you ANBU been doing?! Someone planted this many explosive tags throughout the village, and you didn’t notice a thing!

"Investigate! Investigate everything!

"Every suspicious person must be thoroughly investigated! I want the culprit captured!"

Explosions had occurred throughout almost the entire village.

It was obvious that this attack had been planned for years.

Several minutes had already passed...

Yet the explosions still hadn’t stopped.

Konoha had been reduced to a shattered mess, with buildings destroyed and streets in complete disarray.

Hiruzen felt as though his heart were bleeding.

Fortunately, the Hokage Building hadn’t been attacked.

At least that was something to be grateful for...

Then, as though sensing something, his expression suddenly changed.

Hiruzen immediately used the Body Flicker Technique and rushed toward the Hokage Building.

...

Meanwhile.

A few minutes earlier.

After hearing the explosions erupt throughout Konoha, Naruto’s second shadow clone, hidden somewhere in the village, immediately activated Kagura’s Mind’s Eye and sensed the situation around the Hokage Building.

A moment later—

The ANBU and shinobi stationed at the Hokage Building have all left.

Explosions were occurring throughout Konoha, so the ANBU stationed at the Hokage Building and the other shinobi had all rushed out to rescue the villagers.

The Hokage Building was practically empty now.

Gennō probably hadn’t planted any explosive tags inside the Hokage Building either.

There were simply too many ANBU stationed there, making it far too easy for him to be discovered.

With that thought, the second shadow clone activated the Flying Thunder God Technique.

The scene before him shifted.

In an instant, he appeared inside the Hokage’s office.

Naruto had visited the Hokage’s office more than once over the years and had secretly left several Flying Thunder God markers there.

In fact, almost every place Naruto had visited over the years—and even many people he had come into contact with—had a Flying Thunder God marker hidden somewhere nearby.

It didn’t matter whether he needed them right now.

Whenever he had the opportunity, he would leave a marker behind first.

Someday, they would come in handy.

The second shadow clone didn’t waste any time.

As someone proficient in various sealing techniques and barriers, he immediately realized that he had triggered some kind of barrier.

Anyone who entered this barrier would be detected by its controller.

He quickly estimated Hiruzen’s current distance.

At most, the Third Hokage would be back within a minute.

The Ninja Academy was very close to the Hokage Building, separated by only a few streets. Using the Body Flicker Technique the entire way, Hiruzen wouldn’t need even thirty seconds.

The only reason it would take longer was because Hiruzen had left the Ninja Academy in a direction that had taken him farther away.

The second shadow clone quickly reached the Hokage’s desk.

He noticed that the drawer had been sealed.

He formed a one-handed seal.

"Release!"

When it came to sealing techniques in Konoha, no one could compare with Naruto.

He easily dispelled the seal on the drawer.

He immediately pulled it open.

A crystal ball was quietly lying inside.

Fortunately, there was no additional seal placed on the crystal ball itself.

Hiruzen probably couldn’t have imagined that someone would infiltrate the Hokage’s office just to steal a crystal ball.

There were so many classified documents here.

Weren’t they more important than a crystal ball?

But to Naruto, the crystal ball was crucial.

It was the key to Hiruzen’s Telescope Technique, which allowed the Third Hokage to monitor him.

The crystal ball contained a special formula that could work together with Konoha’s barrier system to transmit the image of a specific location into the crystal ball.

Hiruzen probably couldn’t create such an intricate surveillance tool himself.

It was highly likely that it had been left behind by the Second Hokage or Uzumaki Mito.

As long as Naruto took the crystal ball, he wouldn’t have to worry about Hiruzen suddenly monitoring him in the future.

He would be able to make plans much more freely.

He could even use the crystal ball to monitor Konoha’s movements in return.

As for the Scroll of Seals, Naruto had already asked Minato Namikaze about it.

The Scroll of Seals, along with various historical records, classified documents, important books, treasures, and other valuables, were all stored in a secret vault.

The vault was constructed from extremely sturdy steel.

Even after the seals were removed, a key was still required to open it.

Therefore, the Scroll of Seals wasn’t part of today’s objective.

Holding the crystal ball against his chest, the second shadow clone began planting explosive tags around the office while anxiously waiting.

Why isn’t he here yet?

Then—

An ANBU suddenly appeared inside the Hokage’s office, holding another crystal ball.

Seeing this, the second shadow clone, who had been waiting anxiously, finally relaxed.

Twenty seconds had already passed.

The first shadow clone quickly approached the desk, placed the fake crystal ball inside the drawer, and closed it.

The two shadow clones nodded at each other.

The second shadow clone held the real crystal ball and activated the Flying Thunder God Technique.

He vanished.

The first shadow clone leaped toward the window and formed a series of hand seals.

"Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"

A ferocious fire dragon burst from the first shadow clone’s mouth.

It swept across the entire Hokage’s office.

The desk, bookshelves, and every other wooden object inside the office quickly caught fire.

Paper documents and books were reduced to ashes in an instant.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

At the same time, the explosive tags scattered throughout the office detonated one after another.

The first shadow clone maintained his chakra output, sustaining the fire dragon for more than ten seconds.

Then—

Hiruzen’s furious roar suddenly came from behind him.

"Stop!"

The voice was still quite far away.

It would probably take several more seconds for Hiruzen to arrive.

The shadow clone remained completely calm.

There was no reason to panic.

Instead, he suddenly increased his chakra output.

The fire dragon grew even larger.

It surged through the doorway of the Hokage’s office and spread into the corridor beyond.

Why panic?

He was only a shadow clone, after all.