A curious sight appeared on the streets early that morning.
A six-year-old child was slowly dragging a shinobi along like a dead dog. The man was bound tightly in a Kikko-bind.
They understood even less who would be shameless enough to tie someone up with a Kikko-bind.
Some of the younger people didn't really understand the binding. They were simply curious.
But the older ones felt differently. Their faces flushed with embarrassment, and they were utterly mortified.
Of course, some bold onlookers began making casual remarks:
"No one wears clothes while tying someone up like that. What's the point?"
"Point? He's a man!"
"Oh? A man, you say... Now that you mention it, I'm interested!"
Sen ignored the chatter around him and headed straight for the entrance to the Uchiha compound.
He tossed the unconscious shinobi's mask to the dumbfounded clan member on guard and gave a brief order:
"Notify the Clan Leader and all the elders. Tell them Anbu attacked me! He said he worked for Danzo! And make sure the Great Elder is there!"
When the guard hesitated, Sen immediately showed him Uchiha Setsuna's token.
The guard's expression changed. Realizing the matter was serious, he took off at a run.
As he waited, Sen looked at the rewards on the panel. His first fight of the day had already paid off:
[Defeated an enemy from Root. Choose a trait to absorb: Chakra +1, Mastery of Sleeping Drugs, Mastery of Ninja World Traps]
He ignored the first option. As for the sleeping drugs, he was a righteous person, so they were no use to him.
It seemed only the last option, Mastery of Ninja World Traps, would be useful. The Second Shinobi World War would begin in a few years, after all, and he could put this mastery to use then.
A flood of knowledge about traps poured into his mind. Before he could fully absorb it, Uchiha Sōgaku and several elders hurried over with a group of people.
"Sen, what happened?! Explain yourself! Who dared attack one of our Uchiha clan members?" Clan Leader Uchiha Sōgaku demanded furiously.
Sen nodded. It seemed Uchiha Sōgaku still cared about his clan members at this point.
He briefly explained what had happened. As for how he'd won, he said the enemy had underestimated him and fallen for a surprise attack with the Illusion Technique he'd just mastered.
Then he began embellishing the story, pointing at the shinobi on the ground and speaking with righteous indignation:
"He even said they'd kill every one of our younger generation sooner or later!"
After saying that, he put on a heartbroken expression and patted the head of the Second Elder's granddaughter beside him.
The little girl was only five. At his words, the Second Elder's face turned black.
The Great Elder, Uchiha Setsuna, demanded sternly, "Are you certain every word he said was true?"
Sen nodded vigorously.
"Outrageous!" The Second Elder exploded on the spot. "I can't take this anymore! I'm going to get an explanation from Sarutobi Hiruzen right now!"
He might belong to the peace faction, but he would never tolerate someone putting a knife to his family's throats!
He turned to Uchiha Setsuna and Clan Leader Uchiha Sōgaku and demanded, "What, you two still want to endure this? Uchiha Sōgaku! Don't forget you have Fugaku! You'll have grandchildren someday, too!"
"Let's go! To the Hokage's office!" Uchiha Sōgaku's anger had been roused as well.
"Stop!"
Uchiha Setsuna struck the ground hard with his cane, blocking the group.
Everyone turned around and stared at Uchiha Setsuna in disbelief.
Was the leader of the hardliners getting old, or had he grown afraid?
Where was the courage he'd had when he tried to assassinate the Second Hokage?
Under the scornful gazes of the crowd, Uchiha Setsuna remained expressionless. He spoke slowly, his voice quiet but filled with unquestionable authority:
"What good will a handful of you do?"
He swept his gaze over the crowd and issued his order, each word deliberate:
"Bring me every clan member with Two Tomoe or more.
Bring weapons!
I said every one of them!"
A little over ten minutes later, more than three hundred Uchiha elites stood densely gathered outside the compound, weapons in hand and cold determination in their eyes.
The air was thick with killing intent.
Looking at the scene, Sen marveled to himself: Damn... did I take this joke a little too far?
Uchiha Setsuna stepped to the front of the crowd and raised the Root shinobi's mask, his voice booming:
"Today, will you come with me to demand justice from Konoha?
You aren't an old man like me with no descendants. You'll have children someday, even grandchildren. Are you going to stand with me today and demand an explanation from Konoha, or will you keep swallowing this humiliation and live on in disgrace?!"
The Uchiha Clan had always been warlike. His words were like a bucket of boiling oil poured straight onto a raging fire!
"Fight!"
"Fight!"
"Fight!"
All three hundred shouted as one, their killing intent soaring!
Seeing this, Uchiha Sōgaku hurried forward to calm them down. "Everyone, stay calm! We're there to demand an explanation, not start a war!
"We're doing this so the village gives us the respect we deserve and we can live together in peace!"
He glanced furtively at Uchiha Setsuna. Seeing no objection, he breathed a sigh of relief and continued issuing orders. "Uchiha Yakumi, notify the Hyuga, Nara, and other major clans at once. Ask them to come and bear witness!"
Then the group set off in a massive procession toward the Hokage's office.
Wherever they went, the villagers recoiled in alarm.
By the time they reached the Hokage's building, more than a thousand shinobi from various clans and civilians who'd heard the news had gathered around them.
The Root shinobi was hurled onto the ground. A wad of cloth had been stuffed in his mouth, and he struggled in vain.
Uchiha Sōgaku looked up and shouted at the Hokage's building, "We demand that Lord Hokage come out and explain this to the Uchiha!"
With so many clans watching, he had to establish that they were in the right.
Inside the building, Sarutobi Hiruzen had already received the report. He had put on his combat uniform beneath his Hokage cloak.
Without hesitation, Sarutobi Hiruzen led dozens of Anbu down from above, landing squarely in front of Uchiha Sōgaku.
"Sōgaku, what exactly happened?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked gravely.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was not yet forty. He was at the peak of his experience and physical strength—not some indecisive old man!
"Lord Hokage!" Uchiha Sōgaku shot back. "You should be asking your Anbu what they did to a young member of our clan!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at the man on the ground and quietly asked the Anbu beside him, "Is he one of ours?"
"No, Lord Hokage. The mask and uniform are wrong. Could he be a spy from another village?"
"He said he worked for Danzo," Sen added from the side, delivering the final blow in an offhand tone.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes instantly filled with anger and helplessness. He quietly ordered the Anbu:
"Go get Danzo!"
The Anbu replied, "But... they only returned from a mission this morning. They should be resting at home now."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened. "Go get him. If he's alive, bring him here! This matter needs to be dealt with!"
He glanced at Sen and cursed Danzo a thousand times over in his heart.
Damn it, it must be about what happened that day! Everyone knows Danzo is my adviser now. Couldn't he have made sure they were more thorough and killed the target outright?!
How could he send such an idiot to handle the job?!
Before you continue