Night had fallen. Although mobile phones had begun to catch on in the shinobi world, Konoha refused to allow them in, so its ninja and villagers, lacking entertainment, went to bed early.
But while some slept, others remained awake.
Root and ANBU had surrounded the entire Uchiha Clan.
Tonight was destined to be a night of bloodshed and sacrifice.
Four figures appeared outside the Uchiha Clan Compound. They stood out in the open on high ground, yet no one noticed them.
This was the latest genjutsu Tobirama Senju had developed, intended to let them return to Konoha whenever they pleased. Its most interesting feature was that it combined Tobirama Senju's ingenuity with the power of the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan.
As long as they did nothing too conspicuous, even masters of genjutsu or those with bloodline abilities granting them special dōjutsu would find them extremely difficult to detect.
"Those are all ANBU, aren't they?"
As Konoha's Second and the founder of ANBU, Tobirama Senju recognized the Anbu Ninja surrounding the Uchiha Clan Compound at a glance.
"But those others are dressed similarly to ANBU, with some obvious differences. Are they part of a new organization Monkey founded?"
"No, those are members of Root."
Tetsuya cleared up Tobirama's confusion.
"We arrived too late last time, so you didn't get to see them. Shisui, they were the ones hunting you back then, weren't they?"
Shisui nodded beside him, then said,
"These members of Root are ninja Shimura Danzō demanded from the various clans. After Root's training, they forget themselves, their clans, and even the village. Everything they do revolves around Shimura Danzō. They also have the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal engraved on their tongues. If they betray Danzo, he'll kill them."
"What? Forget themselves, their clans, and even the village?! How could Danzo