Uchiha Haruna paid no heed to whether the people around him would get caught in the attack and aimed his ninjutsu straight at the enemy on the rooftop.
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
Hiss...
The instant fire and water met in midair, a deafening roar erupted, followed by a tremendous shock wave that spread outward from the point of impact.
The searing flames were forcibly suppressed by the torrent. Water vapor rose rapidly in the intense heat, forming a thick white fog that enveloped everything around them.
The dense fog did nothing to obstruct Uchiha Haruna's vision, his gaze fixed firmly on the enemy.
Just as he was about to move, several masked ninja in Anbu uniforms blocked his path.
Their leader even drew his short sword without ceremony and pointed it at him.
"Uchiha Haruna, you used ninjutsu inside the village. Come with us to the Anbu!"
"Heh..."
A faint sneer curled Uchiha Haruna's lips, filled with contempt and mockery.
"What? Is Root too ashamed to show its face, so it has to borrow the Anbu's name?
Look behind you. Did you really think you could save that man from the Uchiha?"
The Root ninja whipped their heads toward the rooftop. Uchiha Fugaku had appeared there at some point, with the very man they wanted to save pinned beneath his foot.
"You..."
"Rats in the gutter, daring to cause trouble in front of the Uchiha. Do you really think the Sharingan is just for show?"
Tap, tap, tap...
The sound of a cane striking the ground came from behind the crowd. At the sight of the newcomer, the crowd parted on its own to make a path.
Uchiha Fugaku grabbed the enemy and jumped down from the rooftop, landing in front of the Uchiha.
"Lord Danzo, what brings you here?"
"Uchiha Fugaku, interrogating spies is Root's responsibility. Hand him over and go attend the funeral."
"I'm afraid not!"
Uchiha Fugaku refused outright. He knew perfectly well that once he handed this man to Danzo, not only would he be unable to dispel the rumors, but Danzo might even turn the accusations back on him.
"Lord Danzo, this man has been spreading rumors in Konoha. He must be handed over to the Hokage Building for a public interrogation to boost morale and show the other shinobi villages that Konoha stands united.
That will make them understand that starting a war benefits no one."
"Uchiha Fugaku, this is not a discussion. Hand him over!
And Uchiha Yan, too. I suspect he is connected to the spy. Hand him over as well."
"Bastard! Say that again if you dare!"
Uchiha Haruna jumped to Uchiha Fugaku's side and pointed at Danzo, cursing furiously.
"A child who's never even left the village, and you're calling him a spy? Have you no shame?
You old scoundrel, Danzo, let me make this clear today. Lay a hand on Yan, and see if I don't kill you."
"Insolence! Who put you up to speaking to a distinguished servant of Konoha like that? Do you intend to betray the village?"
"Betray... mmmph..."
Before he could get the words out, Uchiha Yan jumped behind him, reached his right arm around his neck, and covered his mouth.
"Sir, you can't just say things like that. It'll cause trouble."
Disappointment flickered across Danzo's face. He had genuinely hoped Uchiha Haruna would say the word "rebellion," giving him free rein to act.
Forget it! I'll save the man first and deal with the rest later. Training a jonin isn't easy.
With that thought, Danzo beckoned behind him. Before long, twenty or thirty Root ninja suddenly appeared around them.
"Fugaku, don't force me to act personally. That won't be good for anyone."
A conflicted look crossed Uchiha Fugaku's face. He truly did not want a conflict with Root.
In his view, the Third Hokage and Danzo were good friends, and clashing with Danzo would be bad for the Uchiha.
But if he simply handed the man over to Danzo, how could he lead the Uchiha afterward? What would the Uchiha clan members think of him?
Uchiha Yan could see Fugaku's indecision, too, and silently railed at him. Seriously, man! You're thinking of backing down now? Just how sick are you? Do you actually want to hand me over?
I can't believe I'm stuck with a clan leader like this. No, I can't leave my life in his hands.
Uchiha Yan stepped in front of Fugaku, his eyes red-rimmed as he spoke in a choked voice.
"Clan leader, Lord Danzo wants to know what the Fourth Hokage told me before he died. You should just hand me over!
Waaah... I've let the Fourth Hokage down! I could have gone to the battlefield and found another ninja to deliver the intelligence to the Third Hokage, but I insisted on going to the Hokage Building myself.
If someone else had delivered the intelligence to the Hokage Building, Lord Danzo certainly wouldn't have arrested them as a spy. Then we wouldn't have lost time and caused the Fourth Hokage's death.
Boohoo... I'm guilty! If I hadn't been late delivering the intelligence, Lord Danzo wouldn't have stayed away from the fighting to guard against spies inside Konoha.
I deserve to die ten thousand times over! If I hadn't been late delivering the intelligence, those villagers wouldn't have died because of the Nine-Tails.
I'm a sinner against Konoha, and against the Uchiha, too. If I hadn't been late delivering the intelligence, the Uchiha wouldn't have been falsely accused.
The moment the Nine-Tails appeared, the Uchiha Clan desperately tried to control him with their Sharingan, yet people still accused them of releasing him.
Boohoo... That was the Nine-Tails! Without a Mangekyō Sharingan, how could a Three-Tomoe Sharingan possibly control a tailed beast?
Boohoo... Fourth Hokage, I've let you down..."
Uchiha Yan's wails shook the air as he recounted the whole sequence of events through his tears.
Watching Uchiha Yan kneel on the ground and sob, Danzo vaguely sensed something was wrong, but could not work out what.
Not until murmurs rose from the surrounding crowd.
"What? The Fourth Hokage had this child take intelligence to the Hokage Building, but Lord Danzo arrested him as a spy?"
"Of course! Look how little he is. He's cried his eyes red. It must be true."
"Ugh! What a mess. How could a little child be a spy?"
"But the three tomoe in the Nine-Tails' eyes couldn't be fake!"
"Are you crazy? That was the Nine-Tails, the strongest tailed beast in the Shinobi World. Even the Third Hokage might not be able to beat him. If the Uchiha's Three-Tomoe Sharingan were that powerful, they'd have become Hokage long ago."
"Exactly! The Uchiha are always dreaming of becoming Hokage. If they really were that strong, the Fourth Hokage would have been an Uchiha."
"So this child wasn't lying? Lord Danzo never helped with the fighting and stayed in the Hokage Building the whole time?"
"Shh..."
Danzo's expression visibly changed, turning dark, his murderous gaze fixed on Uchiha Yan.
Every word out of this brat's mouth was a confession of guilt, yet he had pushed all the blame onto Danzo. Utterly despicable.
Uchiha Yan stole a glance at Danzo's expression and immediately felt much better. Sakura, a fake-innocent bitch? What does she know? I'm the founding ancestor of fake innocence.
Hahaha, let's see you arrest me now. Even if you want to, the Uchiha clan members won't let you.
Just as Uchiha Yan had expected, his tearful account sent the Uchiha clan members into an uproar.
"Danzo, Yan is right here. Dare to lay a finger on him, and I won't rest until one of us is dead!"
"Exactly! This child is innocent and kind. If he's a spy, then everyone in Konoha is a spy.
If Root dares to act, the Uchiha Clan will turn Root upside down."
"Clan leader, stop wasting words on Danzo. Someone like him isn't fit to speak to the Uchiha. Take the spy to the Hokage Building and see the Third Hokage."
"..."
Danzo was so furious that he raised his cane and pointed it at the Uchiha Clan. Since becoming the Second Hokage's disciple, no one had ever dared speak to him this way.
"Very good! Men, the Uchiha Clan is rebelling. Kill them all!"
Before you continue