Who Dares Stop the Security Force from Doing Its Job?

Byakuya had to admire Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Although Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't much of a fighter, he was exceptionally good at ruining people.

He'd managed to turn a powerful man like Hatake Sakumo into this.

The living Konoha White Fang had become the Konoha Idiot.

"What did you say?!"

Hearing Byakuya's contemptuous words, Hatake Sakumo flew into a rage.

All the dejection vanished from him. Like a sharp dagger, he glared at Byakuya.

[ Ding! Hatake Sakumo's anger detected. +100 Negative Energy, Taijutsu +2...]

"Now that's more like the Konoha White Fang!"

"So, what do you say? Want to join our Security Force?"

Byakuya looked at Hatake Sakumo, who seemed like a different person, and asked.

"Join the Security Force?! How could that be?!"

"I'm the captain of Konoha's Anbu... There's no way I can join the Security Force..."

Hearing Byakuya's offer, Hatake Sakumo rejected it without hesitation.

He'd heard about the trouble Byakuya had been causing lately.

Especially his declaration about the Security Force.

Whatever the Hokage didn't dare handle, the Security Force would...

That had shocked him even more.

He couldn't believe the Uchiha Clan had become so bold that they didn't even take the Hokage seriously.

Even so, Hatake Sakumo still had no intention of joining the Security Force.

He was the captain of the Anbu, one of the Hokage's men. How could he join the Security Force?

"Heh. I called you an idiot, and you really are one..."

"You've been blindly following that Hiruzen Sarutobi, but that old man doesn't consider you one of his own..."

"Otherwise, he wouldn't be targeting you..."

Byakuya looked at Hatake Sakumo with disdain.

"Targeting me?! What are you talking about?!"

"Why would Lord Hokage target me?"

"Leave at once, or I won't be responsible for what happens!"

Hatake Sakumo said furiously.

Though rumors about him were spreading all over Konoha, he was still fiercely loyal to the village and the Hokage.

"Heh... You won't be responsible? I'd like to see what you, you idiot, can do to me..."

Byakuya replied without fear.

Just as the two of them stood at a breaking point, a little boy walked in.

"Father..."

"Kakashi, come here..."

When he saw the boy, Hatake Sakumo hurriedly pulled him behind himself.

"This is your son, Hatake Kakashi, right? He's a fine boy..."

"You wouldn't want your son to be in danger someday, would you?"

Byakuya looked at Hatake Kakashi with ill intent.

"You... What are you going to do?!"

"If you lay a hand on Hatake Kakashi, I'll never forgive you!"

Hearing Byakuya threaten him with Hatake Kakashi, Hatake Sakumo flew into a rage.

[ Ding! Hatake Sakumo's anger detected. +500 Negative Energy, Taijutsu +30...]

"Haha, you'd better worry about yourself..."

Byakuya didn't seem the least bit bothered by Hatake Sakumo's words.

"En, how did the investigation go?"

"Lord Byakuya, we've got it all figured out. They're all members of the Sarutobi Clan..."

"Excellent. What are we waiting for? Arrest them at once..."

Byakuya gave the order.

Before coming to see Hatake Sakumo, Byakuya had sent members of the Security Force to investigate who was spreading the rumors.

As it turned out, the more he looked into it, the more shocking it became.

Everyone spreading the rumors belonged to the Sarutobi Clan.

"Yes... You three, come with me!"

At Byakuya's words, Uchiha En immediately left with several members of the Uchiha Clan.

"What? Aren't you going to tidy up your room?"

"A lot of people will be coming soon..."

Looking at the mess in the room, Byakuya remarked to Hatake Sakumo.

"Uchiha Byakuya, what exactly are you trying to do?!"

Hatake Sakumo frowned at Byakuya.

"Hatake Sakumo, I think you're a decent man..."

"I don't want you to die because of some conspiracy..."

Byakuya looked at Hatake Sakumo and said.

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

Hearing Byakuya's words, Hatake Sakumo was still confused.

He had indeed thought about killing himself just moments ago.

But what did that have to do with a conspiracy?

"You'll find out soon enough..."

Byakuya looked at Hatake Sakumo and said.

Uchiha En led the Security Force straight into the Sarutobi Clan's compound and found the targets.

"You're Sarutobi Otake, Sarutobi Kawaizu, and Sarutobi Ōmō, right?"

Uchiha En asked the three Sarutobi Clan shinobi in front of him.

"That's right, that's us..."

"What do you want?"

The three asked in confusion when they saw Uchiha En and the others.

"Excellent. You're exactly who we're looking for..."

"Take them away!"

Uchiha En waved his hand, and members of the Security Force rushed forward and seized the three.

"Damn it! Who are you people? How dare you cause trouble in the Sarutobi Clan's compound?!"

"Stop them! Don't let them leave!"

"You Security Force members are too brazen! You actually dare come to the Sarutobi Clan to arrest people..."

"..."

Naturally, the Sarutobi Clan members weren't going to stand by and let Uchiha En take their people away.

One after another, Sarutobi Clan shinobi blocked Uchiha En's path.

"Hmph! The Security Force is on duty. Anyone who dares interfere will be killed without mercy!"

At Uchiha En's command, every member of the Security Force drew their Ninja Swords and pointed them at the Sarutobi Clan shinobi blocking the way.

"Uh..."

Seeing Uchiha En and the others draw their Ninja Swords without hesitation, ready to fight at any moment, the Sarutobi Clan shinobi blocking the way began to lose their nerve.

The Security Force had been acting outrageously lately.

They'd even dared attack Konoha elder Shimura Danzō, let alone ordinary shinobi like them.

They had no doubt that if they kept interfering, the Security Force would attack them without hesitation.

"Let's go..."

Seeing that the Sarutobi Clan shinobi had been cowed, Uchiha En seized the prisoners and left the Sarutobi Clan compound in a very public manner.

The Sarutobi Clan shinobi watched the Security Force leave, exchanging glances. Not one of them dared to stop them.

"What should we do now?"

"Report this to Lord Third at once..."

"The Security Force came to the Sarutobi Clan compound and arrested people..."

"..."

With no other choice, the Sarutobi Clan shinobi could only report what had happened to the Hokage.

"What?! What did you say?!"

"The Security Force arrested members of our Sarutobi Clan..."

Hearing that members of his clan had been arrested, Hiruzen Sarutobi was furious.

"Yes, Lord Third..."

"The Security Force arrested Sarutobi Otake, Sarutobi Kawaizu, and Sarutobi Ōmō..."

A member of the Sarutobi Clan reported at once.

"Wait! Those three?!"

Hearing their names, Hiruzen Sarutobi was shocked.

Other people might not have known what those three had been doing, but as Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi knew very well.

They were the ones he'd secretly ordered to spread rumors about Hatake Sakumo.

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't know why the Security Force had arrested them.

But it certainly couldn't be for anything good.

"Anbu squad, follow me at once!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately led an Anbu squad in pursuit.