When the two appeared, Yechen looked them over carefully. He was not very familiar with the Anbu Ninja, so he could not tell who they were.
Besides, only two Anbu Ninja had come. Clearly, they were not here to hold him accountable.
The worst-case scenario had not materialized. Now all that remained was to play it by ear.
"Need something?" Yechen asked casually.
"Captain Yechen, the Third Hokage wishes to see you. Please come with us."
One of them replied.
Yechen neither agreed nor refused. Instead, he asked a question of his own.
"Where's the written order?"
Sensing the change in Yechen's tone, even these Anbu Ninja could not help feeling a flicker of unease.
Only then did they remember that something like this did indeed require an order written personally by the Hokage.
After all, people could hardly be expected to obey anyone who wore an Anbu uniform.
If ninja from an enemy village impersonated them, wouldn't that cause serious trouble?
That was why an extra safeguard was sometimes necessary: a written order from the Hokage himself.
It also served as a check on the Anbu's authority.
In the past, however, their presence within the village had practically represented the Hokage's will, so no one had bothered to quibble over such details.
Unless special circumstances were involved. For instance, when Kakashi asked Hiruzen Sarutobi to save Yamato, Hiruzen Sarutobi had specifically written an order for him to deliver to Danzo.
Once that order was received, it represented the Hokage's will. Even Danzo, for all his standing as a Konoha elder, had to comply.
That was the Hokage's authority, and it was also why so many ambitious people coveted the position.
Now, Yechen had seized upon that very point and left the two unable to answer.
When neither produced an