Chapter 292: Assassination of the Third Hokage

Chapter 292: Chapter 292: Assassination of the Third Hokage

The shrill blast of the signal flare was especially piercing in the stillness of the night!

Danzo, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado, the three council elders, immediately rose to their feet and hurried over to the window.

As they stared at the brilliant, conspicuous signal flare illuminating the night sky, their expressions turned grim.

According to the village’s regulations, unless the situation was extraordinarily urgent, no one was permitted to casually launch a signal flare within the village. Otherwise, if people fired off signal flares whenever anything happened, wouldn’t the entire village be thrown into chaos?

Therefore, once a signal flare was launched within the village, it meant that something serious had undoubtedly happened!

At that moment, an ANBU entered the Hokage’s office, saluted the Third Hokage, and reported, "Lord Hokage, the signal flare outside is the exclusive signal of ANBU Team 11."

Upon hearing this, the Third’s expression grew even darker.

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado were immediately shocked. As members of Konoha’s upper echelon, the two of them naturally knew that ANBU Team 11’s mission was to protect the Nine-Tails’ jinchūriki, Naruto Uzumaki.

For Team 11 to suddenly launch a signal flare in the dead of night could only mean one thing—

Something had happened to Naruto Uzumaki.

A short while later, Guy arrived at the Hokage’s office under the guidance of an ANBU.

After listening to Guy’s report, a sharp gleam flashed through Danzo’s eyes. Stepping forward, he said to the Third Hokage, "Hiruzen, nothing can be allowed to happen to the Nine-Tails again. Let me handle this!"

"Very well. Make absolutely certain Naruto is safe!"

With the Nine-Tails involved, the Third had originally intended to personally take action. However, considering the anonymous letter on his desk accusing the Uchiha clan of plotting a rebellion, he had no choice but to remain at the Hokage Building in case anything happened.

Thus, the Third could only agree to Danzo’s request.

After receiving the Third’s approval, Danzo immediately led a large contingent of Root ninja, along with a number of ANBU members including Guy, and swiftly departed the Hokage Building.

Standing by the window, the Third watched as group after group of Root and ANBU shinobi rapidly vanished into the darkness of the night. He let out a long sigh.

The sight couldn’t help but remind him of that night several years ago—

the night of the Nine-Tails’ attack.

With Danzo’s departure, only the Third, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado remained in the Hokage’s office.

Koharu said, "Hiruzen, the timing of Naruto Uzumaki being attacked is far too coincidental—and far too suspicious. We need to be prepared. If it really is the Uchiha..."

Whoosh...

Before Koharu could finish speaking, a figure suddenly burst into the Hokage’s office.

The newcomer was extraordinarily fast. Almost the instant everyone in the room noticed him, he had already closed the distance to the completely unprepared Homura Mitokado, thrusting straight for his throat!

"You are...!?"

Homura was both shocked and furious, but his opponent was simply too fast. With no time to dodge, he could only lean backward, barely avoiding a fatal strike to the throat.

Slash...

The cold gleam of a kunai flashed past, spraying blood through the air!

Homura rapidly retreated while clutching his left shoulder, which had been slashed open by the kunai.

During that brief exchange, the two had been extremely close. Although the attacker wore a mask, the experienced Homura had still caught sight of the scarlet eyes within the mask’s eyeholes.

His expression immediately turned grave as he hurriedly warned the Third and Koharu nearby, "Be careful! He has the Sharingan!"

The black-robed, masked attacker had no intention of stopping. Once again, he lunged toward the wounded Homura with terrifying, almost ghostlike speed.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The Third immediately hurled several shuriken, sealing off every possible route the attacker could take to reach Homura.

Hearing the sharp whistles tearing through the air, the attacker’s movements abruptly halted. He decisively abandoned his assault on Homura and, with astonishing speed, evaded every shuriken thrown by the Third.

Taking advantage of the opening, Homura flickered away and took position beside the Third and Koharu.

The Third coldly scrutinized the attacker and demanded, "Who are you? What is your purpose?"

Koharu remained on guard as she said, "That height and build, that ghostlike speed, and the Sharingan... Could you be Uchiha Shisui!?"

Although the Uchiha clan had no shortage of powerful shinobi, there were only a handful capable of injuring a council elder like Homura Mitokado in a single exchange.

After all, Homura Mitokado had once been a candidate for Hokage himself.

Back then, during a moment of crisis, the Second Hokage had tested his students by asking who would volunteer for a rear-guard mission from which death was almost certain. Had Homura been the first to step forward at that time, the position of Third Hokage would, in all likelihood, have been his.

Thus, although his strength was inferior to Hiruzen Sarutobi’s, he was still a formidable shinobi whose strength approached Kage-level.

In Koharu’s mind, among the Uchiha clan, there was only one person who could injure Homura in a single exchange while also matching the attacker’s height, build, and speed—

Uchiha Shisui, the man who had earned the name Shisui of the Body Flicker.

The moment Homura shouted that the attacker possessed the Sharingan, the Third had already considered that possibility.

He simply refused to believe that Shisui would betray him—

that Shisui would betray Konoha.

But the attacker’s movements were simply too fast. Aside from Shisui, who had developed his own unique Body Flicker Technique, there truly wasn’t another Uchiha who fit all of these characteristics.

With the Hokage under attack, alarm bells immediately began ringing throughout the Hokage Building!

A squad of ANBU rushed into the Hokage’s office and positioned themselves in front of the Third and the two council elders. Several other ANBU squads spread out through the corridors, outside the windows, and across the rooftop, surrounding the attacker from every direction.

The Third said, "Take off your mask. There’s nowhere left for you to escape."

The black-robed attacker remained silent.

He swept his gaze around the room, seemingly searching for a way out.

Yet just when everyone thought he was about to attempt a breakout, he suddenly erupted with astonishing speed!

His figure transformed into a ghostly afterimage—

and shot straight toward the Third Hokage!

Watching the attacker charge straight toward him, his gaze fixed on the three-tomoe Sharingan in the man’s eyes, the Third Hokage’s expression darkened.

In a mere instant, before anyone could even react, the attacker slipped past the ANBU in the front line and plunged his kunai into the Third Hokage’s chest.

"What...!?"

Everyone in the room was stunned.

But just as the attacker thought he had succeeded, the Third whose chest had been pierced suddenly collapsed into a mass of mud!

The mud immediately flowed up along the attacker’s outstretched arm, wrapping around his body and trapping him in place.

At that moment, the Third emerged from the other side of the room, his hands forming a hand seal. He said coldly, "Since you refuse to take off your mask yourself, I’ll remove it personally and see exactly who you are!"

Seeing the Third Hokage reverse the situation in an instant, everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief while simultaneously feeling a surge of excitement.

The ANBU couldn’t help but marvel inwardly,

"As expected of Lord Hokage!"