Chapter 352: Third Hokage, Two Elders, the Hokage Requests Your Presence!

"Move! Capture them alive if possible!"

Namikaze Minato made his decision without hesitation and immediately issued the order.

And because he wanted to obtain as much information as possible, Minato specifically ordered his men to take the attackers alive.

"Everyone, the time has come to give our lives for that lord! We absolutely cannot leave any trouble behind for him!"

Knowing that they had no chance against Namikaze Minato, the Root leader shouted loudly. He pulled an explosive tag from his ninja pouch, slapped it onto his forehead, and prepared to detonate it.

There were countless ways for shinobi to extract information. Even a corpse could contain a great deal of intelligence. The only way to eliminate the possibility of their secrets being extracted was to destroy their heads!

Those who could participate in an operation like this were essentially all trained as suicide operatives. Therefore, after hearing the Root leader's order, the other Root shinobi did not hesitate either. They each pulled out explosive tags and pressed them against their foreheads!

At that moment, a sharp whoosh rang through the air.

One of the ANBU shinobi standing beside Minato raised a strange device and fired a palm-sized cone-shaped projectile toward the group of Root shinobi.

The Root shinobi were all prepared to die, so they did not even bother trying to dodge whatever weapon was coming toward them.

With a sharp bang, the cone-shaped object exploded in midair. It emitted a fluorescent glow while simultaneously casting a shadow over the group, enveloping every Root shinobi within it!

The movements of all the Root shinobi abruptly froze. Without warning, they became completely immobilized.

"Shadow Imitation Technique? How is that possible?!"

The Root leader's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Take them down!"

Minato waved his hand and ordered the ANBU into action. He had no intention of fighting personally.

After all, he was the Fourth Hokage now. If he had to personally deal with such a minor matter, wouldn't that be somewhat beneath his dignity?

Very quickly, the ANBU moved in and captured all the Root shinobi without giving them any opportunity to resist.

A short while later, the Shadow Imitation Technique was released, and Shimura Danzō cooperatively allowed himself to be shackled again.

"Yondaime, Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others won't be easy to deal with. If you intend to do something, you'd better act quickly!"

Before being taken away, Danzō reminded Minato.

Minato did not respond. He merely stared at Danzō with a complicated expression.

The trap tonight had originally been set for the remnants of Root under Danzō's command, yet somehow, they had inadvertently caught even bigger fish!

Had Shimura Danzō really changed?

Minato couldn't help wondering.

But he quickly shook his head.

Regardless of whether Danzō had changed, the crimes he had committed in the past were real!

If simply putting down the butcher's knife could allow someone to become a Buddha and wipe away all their crimes, then where would that leave justice?

Shimura Danzō had to be judged!

And, frankly, the only good Danzō was a dead Danzō. As long as Shimura Danzō remained alive, there were many people in Konoha who wouldn't be able to sleep peacefully.

Once the Root shinobi and Danzō had all been taken away and placed under guard, Minato put aside his distracting thoughts.

"Go to the Military Police Force and bring the head of the Analysis Division, Inoichi Yamanaka, here. Have Captain Yamanaka extract the intelligence from their minds as quickly as possible!"

"Yes, sir!"

An ANBU shinobi acknowledged the order before vanishing in a flash.

Minato had never intended to rely on interrogation to make the Root shinobi talk.

He knew that even if these suicide operatives eventually broke under torture, forcing information out of them would require a great deal of time and effort.

But, as Danzō had said, if Minato wanted to use this incident to make a move against his opponents, the sooner he acted, the better. Ideally, he couldn't give Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others any time to react.

With that thought, Minato spoke again.

"Kakashi, take some men and invite the Third Hokage, Elder Utatane, Elder Mitokado, Elder Hyūga, and Captain Nara to the Hokage Tower!"

"Remember, no matter what, make sure the Third Hokage, Elder Utatane, and Elder Mitokado all come!"

"Yes, sir!"

Among the ANBU, a conspicuous silver-haired figure stepped forward, acknowledged the order, and vanished in a flash.

That's right.

The man was none other than Namikaze Minato's direct disciple, Hatake Kakashi.

After the ANBU reorganization, Minato had transferred Hatake Kakashi—who had been listless and aimless for a long time—into the ANBU, where he was appointed as a squad captain.

Now that Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin had both returned, it was time for Hatake Kakashi to pull himself together and start doing some work!

At the same time, within the Sarutobi Clan Compound, inside Sarutobi Hiruzen's residence, Hiruzen, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado sat facing one another as they waited for news.

"Judging by the time, the operation at the Uchiha Clan Compound should be over by now, shouldn't it?"

Homura Mitokado looked toward the village, which had already fallen silent again, and spoke with some concern.

Their original plan had been to create chaos throughout the village, buying as much time as possible for the people infiltrating the Uchiha Clan Compound.

However, after the restructuring of the Konoha Military Police Force, the new force had brought in reconnaissance shinobi from the Hyūga, Inuzuka, and Aburame clans.

They had identified the culprits behind the disturbance almost immediately after it began and resolved the chaos in very little time.

Without that cover, the operation at the Uchiha Clan Compound had developed a flaw.

But what worried Sarutobi Hiruzen, Homura Mitokado, and Koharu Utatane most was that even the Uchiha Clan Compound had now fallen completely silent.

The silence was terrifying.

Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly exhaled a plume of smoke and spoke in a deep voice.

"The restructuring of the Konoha Military Police Force really does have some substance. Bringing in various specialized divisions has eliminated many of their previous weaknesses. We were indeed careless this time."

"The people at the Uchiha Clan Compound are probably in trouble."

Koharu Utatane said worriedly, "Hiruzen, are you saying that Danzō might not be rescued?"

Hiruzen nodded.

"Tonight is the final night before Danzō's execution. Uchiha Ren and the others will certainly have increased the security around Shimura Danzō."

"The people we sent to the Uchiha Clan Compound may have been able to force their way inside and rescue Danzō, but they won't be able to escape the new Military Police Force's pursuit."

"So it's better not to place too much hope in this operation."

Homura Mitokado frowned.

"Whether Danzō can be rescued is one thing. Hiruzen, what about the people you sent? They won't cause any problems, will they? If they end up implicating us in this affair, we'll be in serious trouble!"

"Don't worry."

Hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke with complete confidence.

"They are all suicide operatives personally trained by the Sarutobi clan. If the situation becomes untenable, they will immediately take their own lives."

"They are elite shinobi. They have enough ability to do that."

"Moreover, special cursed seals have been implanted in their brains. Even Inoichi Yamanaka won't be able to examine their memories in a short period of time."

"Even if something goes wrong, we'll still have a chance to deal with the aftermath."

Before Hiruzen could finish speaking, a knock suddenly came from outside.

"Third Hokage, Elders, the Hokage requests your presence!"