After Naraku left, Danzo turned to Sarutobi Hiruzen and said coolly,
"The Uchiha are a naturally evil clan. This Uchiha Naraku is especially disrespectful to his elders, arrogant, and haughty. He even dared to come here and cause trouble. Hiruzen, you're far too lenient. Let me teach the Uchiha a harsh lesson."
The Third took his pipe from his mouth, slowly blew out a smoke ring, and said gravely,
"The one who needs a lesson is Uchiha Naraku. You shouldn't drag the village's other young people into this. Why did you seize Uchiha shinobi?"
"Do I need a reason to teach the Uchiha Clan a lesson? After all these years, the Uchiha have actually chosen a clan leader. Heh. Can't you see that Uchiha Naraku has sinister ambitions?"
"Besides, Uchiha Naraku is exceptionally talented. Hiruzen, do you want to watch this young man become another Uchiha Madara?"
Danzo didn't deny capturing the Uchiha shinobi. Instead, he sneered.
At the time, Third Sarutobi Hiruzen's rule was firmly established. Victory in the Second Shinobi World War had raised his prestige to a historic high.
In particular, the Konoha Sannin whom Sarutobi had trained, along with the White Fang of Konoha from the same generation, were powerful allies for Sarutobi Hiruzen. Thus, the Third still had the interests of Konoha at heart, and cared for all the villagers, including the Uchiha.
"Uchiha Naraku is indeed talented, but he's still a long way from Uchiha Madara. Release everyone you captured."
The Third took a puff from his pipe and spoke softly. The two men weren't referring to Uchiha Madara's strength; his name stood for his rebellion.
"Where the leaves dance, the fire burns. I don't want this to happen again."
Sarutobi Hiruzen reiterated the Will of Fire, then warned Danzo with a stern expression.
As for Shimura Danzo, the so-called Hokage advisor, and Root, Sarutobi Hiruzen had always made good use of them, while keeping them in check from time to time.
"Hiruzen!"
Seeing the Third show such leniency toward the Uchiha, Danzo couldn't help but grow furious.
"Go back and release everyone! Remember, I'm the Hokage!"
The Third raised his voice and repeated himself.
"You! Hmph!"
Danzo snorted and stormed out.
Sarutobi Hiruzen took a hard puff from his pipe, narrowed his eyes, and slowly exhaled a cloud of smoke. He thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of having power in his hands.
An underground base somewhere in Konoha
"Release all the Uchiha we captured a few days ago," Shimura Danzo said coolly to the masked shinobi below.
"Understood!" The masked shinobi acknowledged the order and left with the Body Flicker Technique.
As Hokage advisor, Danzo didn't dare disobey the Third's order just then. It wasn't only because his authority came from the Third.
More importantly, Danzo was secretly conducting the Wood Release experiments that the Third had already ordered him to stop.
If the Third found out that he had secretly restarted the forbidden Wood Release experiments, then he would really be in trouble.
Danzo normally wouldn't capture people from the village. But the Wood Release experiments had reached a critical stage, and he was desperately short of test subjects, so he had taken some from nearby.
On top of that, Danzo disliked the Uchiha. When he saw Uchiha passing by, he sent Root shinobi disguised as Anbu to tell them the Hokage had summoned them, then tricked them into coming along.
The Uchiha Chunin and Genin were wary of the Anbu, but they didn't dare ignore a summons from the Hokage, so they had no choice but to comply.
They hadn't expected that following shinobi dressed in Anbu uniforms would lead them through the entrance to Root.
It was no different from walking through the gates of the underworld. Their lives had fallen completely into Danzo's hands.
At first, Danzo had wanted to inject them with First Hokage Cells and test Wood Release. But then he remembered they were all Uchiha and felt they weren't worthy of the First Hokage's cells, so he hesitated.
Besides, he had already captured quite a few civilian shinobi with no powerful backing, solving his immediate shortage. So he locked the Uchiha he'd captured away, intending to think carefully about how to use them.
He hadn't expected the Third to personally inquire about the missing people. Since the Third had ordered him to release them, Danzo had no choice but to comply.
He didn't want to displease the Third and risk having his Wood Release experiments exposed. That would be a real disaster.
What annoyed Danzo was that he had captured only fifteen Chunin and Genin, fewer than ten of them Uchiha, but more than twenty people had gone missing in Konoha.
Uchiha Naraku had even claimed that fifteen of the missing were Chunin and Genin. Clearly, the Uchiha were exaggerating.
Danzo narrowed his eyes, then shook his head. He stopped thinking about it, got up, and headed for the laboratory where the Wood Release experiments were underway.
"Captain, we've found a lead! In the woods ten kilometers from Konoha, I picked up traces of chakra. Someone used an Earth Style technique here, then restored the area afterward."
Uchiha Saburo, a criminal investigation specialist in the First Company of the Military Police Force's First Squadron, reported to Naraku.
"An Earth Style technique? There are far too many shinobi who specialize in Earth Style. Are there any clues like a bloodline trait or ninja tools?" Naraku asked.
"No, but we can tell that this shinobi's Earth Style is exceptionally skilled. Anyone capable of this has to be a Jonin. If we narrow the search to Konoha's Jonin who are proficient in Earth Style, we'll have a lead."
Uchiha Saburo analyzed.
"Hmm, that makes sense. Take me to the scene."
"Understood!"
Naraku and his guards followed Uchiha Saburo to the site outside the village. Normally, all Konoha shinobi needed a mission document from the Hokage Building to leave the village.
In principle, the Military Police Force needed one too. But apart from the guards at Konoha Gate, who were directly under Konoha's command, Uchiha shinobi guarded the other, less-used exits.
Before Naraku adjusted the First Squadron's duties, the so-called Police Force mostly did security and village patrol work. It was a job that earned them resentment but little respect.
Their relationship with the villagers wasn't yet as bad as it would become later, but the signs were already there.
If the Police Force hadn't held important powers over public order, the prison, and the arrest of shinobi, the villagers of Konoha would have long since despised them.
Of course, that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was that many Uchiha eagerly sought out these thankless jobs.
Naraku and his group quickly crossed the streets and reached the edge of Konoha. Two shinobi were standing guard on the tall wall there.
"Stop! Show your travel passes!" The two Uchiha members of the Police Force on duty were diligent. Without even checking who was approaching, they called out the standard line.
Naraku's guard, Uchiha Akabi, scolded them. "You two idiots! Look who it is!"
"Clan leader!"
"Clan leader!"
The two guards recognized the newcomers: Naraku with his four guards, along with Uchiha Saburo from the Police Force's First Squadron.
"Do your jobs properly! And remember to keep this confidential." Naraku nodded. Rather than criticize them for failing to recognize him, he encouraged them.
Standing atop the tall wall, Naraku formed several hand seals. Blue chakra gathered in his palms as he reached forward, as if touching a wall. The ordinary scenery rippled.
A faint white glow appeared over an area several meters wide: one corner of Konoha's barrier.
Naraku placed both hands against the white light and pushed them apart. The glow split, revealing the real scenery outside the village.
"That's it. We're leaving." Naraku used the Body Flicker Technique to leave the village, and the others followed.
Konoha's tall wall wasn't merely high; it was also protected by the village's barrier ninjutsu.
Through his ties to Uzumaki Nao and the Police Force's regular rotation of guards, Naraku had questioned people from every direction and long since learned the barrier's operating pattern and hand seals. With a few deft movements, he crossed the wall with ease.
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