Smearing someone's reputation was an easy task for Danzo.
Even though Root had been disbanded and its members were in custody, Danzo still had allies hidden within other Konoha departments.
Take the Anbu, for example, which had been completely infiltrated.
"Yes, sir."
The Anbu ninja left obediently.
Looking at the setting sun on the horizon, Danzo spoke in a chilling tone:
"The war has lasted almost two months now, it's time to start the plan."
The next morning, rumors about Hatake Sakumo began circulating in the village.
The gist of the rumors was that he had taken it upon himself to assassinate the Third Mizukage, resulting in war between Konoha and Kirigakure. The village suffered great losses, countless ninja died in battle, and many families were torn apart.
Why had Kirigakure gone to war with Konoha? The villagers knew it had something to do with Hatake Sakumo.
As for the details, they knew nothing.
Danzo had ordered his people to spread the information and even added some extra details to fuel the fire.
The public was directed towards those whose families had been shattered by the war.
Grieving villagers who had lost loved ones began to spread the rumors, which quickly took root.
With intentional guidance, Hatake Sakumo soon became the scapegoat, the one responsible for starting the war.
"No way, why would Lord Hatake Sakumo do such a thing?"
"It's true. I heard his mission was to gather intelligence, but during that mission, he also infiltrated the Mizukage's office and tried to assassinate the Third Mizukage, which led to the outbreak of the war."
"No wonder Kirigakure refused to back down and demanded that Sakumo be handed over."
"If the Hokage were targeted for assassination, we'd be furious too."
The villagers began talking, and as time passed, public opinion shifted.
People began to blame Hatake Sakumo, believing it was all his fault. If he hadn't taken it upon himself to try to assassinate the Third Mizukage, the war wouldn't have happened.
Sakumo should be held accountable.
Families who had lost loved ones, driven by the rumors, lost their rationality and began condemning Sakumo.
It even escalated to the point where some went to the Hatake clan grounds to protest.
"Father, these people are slandering you!"
Kakashi was furious. He never imagined that his father, whom he admired as a hero, would one day be smeared as a traitor.
"Kakashi, you mustn't speak carelessly."
Sakumo forced a smile, comforting his angry son. He feared Kakashi might do something rash because of the rumors, which would make things even harder to control.
For something that had happened so long ago to suddenly resurface and in such a slanderous direction—this was something Sakumo hadn't anticipated.
Fortunately, he had no extreme thoughts.
Because he knew he hadn't attempted to assassinate the Third Mizukage.
He was just gathering intelligence and had accidentally encountered the Mizukage in the bathroom.
Drawing his sword had been to secure his escape, not to kill the Mizukage.
"Be good, go train. Soon you'll be starting at the ninja academy, and you can't let your father down."
Because he had a clear conscience, Sakumo wasn't consumed by extreme thoughts.
Furthermore, the rejection he'd recently faced made it clear to him that someone was intentionally bringing up old stories to tarnish his name and eliminate his candidacy for Hokage.
"Was it Orochimaru or Danzo?"
Looking at the half-length Hokage robe he considered an honor, Sakumo let out a bitter laugh.
He felt tired and disheartened.
He used to not understand why Takuya had such a poor relationship with the higher-ups.
Why he wouldn't go to the Hokage office to receive or hand in missions.
Why he preferred to queue up at the mission desk, and why he wouldn't even bow when he saw the leaders.
"Maybe I really should take a break?"
Recalling Takuya's experiences growing up, Sakumo felt that perhaps retirement wouldn't be so bad.
Looking at his son, who was training angrily with clenched teeth, Sakumo suddenly thought that retirement might actually be a good choice.
At least he would have plenty of time to be with Kakashi as he grew up.
"Where did the rumors originate?"
When the Third Hokage heard about the situation, he was baffled.
Was this an enemy's smokescreen?
That couldn't be right. If the enemy were capable of manipulating Konoha's public opinion to this extent, why would they need to wage war?
"We haven't found the source of the rumors. It only took one morning for the entire village to know about it, so someone must be behind it."
The Anbu were also perplexed. Who was behind this?
It was such a despicable act.
The village was at war, and now these rumors were spreading.
If things got out of hand, the consequences could be severe, potentially affecting morale and impacting the battlefield.
Could it be Danzo?
The Third Hokage's eyelids twitched.
It was unlikely to be enemy agents, especially since even the Anbu couldn't find anything wrong.
And considering who might be targeting Sakumo, it didn't take long for the Third Hokage to narrow it down to Danzo and Orochimaru.
Orochimaru was currently commanding operations on the frontlines, making it unlikely that he was responsible, despite having a strong motive.
The Third Hokage believed Orochimaru wouldn't resort to such actions; he considered himself to know his student well, thus eliminating Orochimaru from suspicion.
With Orochimaru ruled out, that left Danzo.
If it was Danzo, how had he managed to do it?
Root's members were imprisoned, and the Shimura clan wouldn't dare approach Danzo easily.
So the question remained, who was helping Danzo?
The mere thought that Danzo might have hidden accomplices made the Third Hokage's face darken.
"Keep investigating, and also notify Danzo that during wartime, he should refrain from stirring up unnecessary trouble."
This was already a warning.
The Third Hokage believed Danzo would understand his meaning.
"Should we control the rumors?"
The Anbu member asked cautiously.
"No need."
The Third Hokage's face remained grim as he said:
"I have many other matters to handle. As long as no one fans the flames, this matter will soon blow over."
He was indeed busy, and he also needed to give Danzo a warning while subtly cautioning Sakumo.
As long as no one continued to stir things up, this would pass soon enough.
After all, the war was still ongoing, and people's attention would quickly shift.
If need be, they could release an announcement and spread some good news to bury the story about Sakumo.
But what the Third Hokage didn't realize was that while the matter might pass, hearts would not heal so easily.
Once someone's heart is hurt, it is incredibly difficult to mend it and return to how things were.
"That shameless old man!"
In the logistics department, Tsunade, who was busy with her work, couldn't help but curse when she heard her subordinates talking about the rumors.
She didn't need to think hard to figure out who was behind it—it was either Orochimaru or Danzo.
Orochimaru seemed unlikely, so it must have been that old bastard Danzo stirring things up.
And why would Danzo go to such lengths to do something like this? The answer was obvious—to pave the way for Orochimaru.
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(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read up to chapter 400+ at Patreon com/ Emik01.
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The next goal is 1500 for 2 chapters
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