The wind howls through the tower, heralding the coming storm. Dark clouds press down on the city, threatening to crush it.
An unnatural quiet had fallen over Konoha, a heavy silence pregnant with a violence capable of tearing everything apart. The Uchiha clan was the eye of this storm. By now, nearly all of Konoha's elite ANBU shinobi had converged around the Uchiha Compound.
They surrounded it like an iron fortress. A single command from the Hokage, and this massive hammer would pulverize everything within its grasp.
Once, the Uchiha had been formidable, as had Konoha. It wouldn't have been an exaggeration to say they stood as rivals on equal footing. But that was decades ago. The Uchiha had declined. In terms of top-tier power, Konoha too was not what it once was, yet this didn't mean they were still equals. Konoha was far stronger than the Uchiha clan, possessing the power to utterly destroy them. That was the reality.
For the besieged Uchiha, it was as if a knife was already pressed against their necks.
Murdering a high-ranking Konoha official – this was tantamount to rebellion. That was the consensus.
However, the Third Hokage had yet to officially rule on the matter. As the leader of a nation's military forces, he had to maintain rationality, no matter the circumstances. He had to consider the political consequences. Any judgment he made had to follow procedure: investigation first, then decision, then punishment. None of these could be done instantaneously.
One couldn't demand perfection from him at a time like this; he wasn't some bandit chief who could act with impunity. Konoha operated under a centralized system, but it wasn't absolute authoritarianism.
Amidst this eerie, almost deathly quiet, on a high point unnoticed in the distance, two figures stood watching – Orochimaru and Tobi. This time, they weren't wearing the flamboyant Akatsuki cloaks, making them far less conspicuous.
Look at this coincidence. At such a critical moment, two of Konoha's most notorious missing-nin had returned together.
"Well now, Mister Orochimaru, our timing seems a bit off, haha! Konoha looks like it's under total lockdown. Wonder what happened… Honestly, what's wrong with Konoha? A legendary Sannin returns, and they don't even arrange a little welcoming ceremony!" Tobi chirped.
What exactly had transpired in Konoha? How would a cheerful outsider like him know? He was just Tobi, after all, interested only in mundane things like how humans poop.
"An unplanned development, heheh," Orochimaru chuckled softly. Though not typically one to revel in chaos just for fun, he did appreciate such unexpected turns. "It seems someone has already made their move."
He assumed Danzo Shimura must have had other plans in motion, and Konoha's current state was the result. He could practically smell the tension in the air, even from this distance. How could Orochimaru possibly know that the true instigator of it all was right beside him – this ninja who seemed utterly unreliable?
Uchiha Obito's independent actions were a masterclass in doing "good deeds" anonymously. Without a sound, he had provided a massive boost to Orochimaru, Danzo Shimura, and even those Uchiha constantly dreaming of rebellion. Truly killing three birds with one stone. A win-win-win situation, you could say. Everyone came out ahead.
"But how are we supposed to get into Konoha like this? Look at all those barrier seals, layer after layer!" Tobi asked, scratching his head.
"Tobi, entering Konoha is my own business," Orochimaru said smoothly. "And the current situation has nothing to do with the organization. It's merely a small, private matter between myself and Konoha. There's no need for you to accompany me." Truthfully, he had no desire to have this boisterous buffoon tagging along.
"Mister Orochimaru, do you think I want to follow you here? This is Konoha! For a little ninja like me with no real strength, this place is terrifying! Actually, I feel like I need to pee right now… It was the Leader who ordered me to stick with you. Otherwise, who knows what little schemes you might cook up? You are one of the famous Sannin, after all."
Since he was one of the famous Sannin, how could his schemes possibly be "little"? Tobi's words clearly carried a hidden barb.
Fortunately, Orochimaru had always possessed excellent composure and self-control. He naturally wouldn't react to a few pointless remarks from a chatterbox. He understood why the organization's leader would send someone to tail him. He was, after all, a ninja with ties to Konoha. Returning now would certainly arouse suspicion.
Putting himself in the leader's shoes, if Orochimaru had a subordinate like Orochimaru, he too would be suspicious.
Orochimaru knew his motives for joining the Akatsuki were far from pure. Coincidentally, the Akatsuki's leader knew this as well.
As the two observed the situation, a violent surge of chakra suddenly erupted from the center of Konoha. Moments later, a figure stumbled into view at the epicenter of the fluctuation.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "He's back. Quick work indeed."
This, too, deviated slightly from what was discussed, but it didn't matter. Orochimaru had never expected Danzo Shimura's plans to be executed with perfect precision anyway.
"Such a strong chakra signature! Who? Who's back, Mister Orochimaru? Feels like I'll get to see a lot of legendary ninja here. This trip is totally worth it!" Tobi exclaimed.
"A Konoha Jonin. I wonder if you've heard of him? The one named 'Habara'," Orochimaru explained, despite finding his companion grating.
"Ah! Is that the Jonin Habara rumored to have eliminated the Fourth Kazekage?" Tobi first craned his neck, pretending to peer down curiously, then quickly retracted his gaze, adopting a timid posture. "I don't want to run into a ninja like that! Too scary! I can't afford to lose my life in a place like this!"
Orochimaru merely smiled faintly. He knew Habara best.
"Rest assured. Soon, he'll have his hands full just dealing with his own problems."
Using Daigo's immense chakra reserves and the Flying Thunder God Technique to tear open a spatial passage, Habara teleported directly onto the rooftop of the Archive building.
The visible chakra disturbance caused by his arrival, especially at such a tense time and sensitive location, immediately drew several ANBU shinobi into his line of sight.
Habara raised his left forearm levelly. Upon seeing him, the ANBU immediately halted.
"False alarm… It's Jonin Habara. He's returned to the village."
"Understood, Captain."
Having confirmed Habara's identity, the shinobi melted back into their hidden positions. Although Habara had rarely undertaken ANBU missions in the past two years, operating more often under his own Jonin title, it shouldn't be forgotten that he was still officially registered as an ANBU member – one of their own.
Habara leaped down from the roof and quickly spotted Kushina Uzumaki, her expression grim.
"Habara, you've heard the general situation, I assume?" Kushina didn't waste time on pleasantries. With the village on high alert, everyone needed to move quickly.
"I have," Habara nodded.
The tension in the village was palpable. Even Kushina was making serious preparations here. All the organization's available combat personnel were gathered around her; the Archive had clearly been fortified into a stronghold.
"Where are Kakashi and the others?"
"Kakashi should be back in the village soon. As for Tenzo, he's continuing that important mission."
Kushina nodded, then got straight to the point. "Habara, I have a mission for you. Retrieve Sarutobi Shinnosuke's body. Can you do it?"
Habara nodded again. Tasks like this were well within his capabilities. Besides, there weren't many shinobi left in Konoha right now who had both the ability and the confidence to enter and exit the Uchiha grounds.
He even had the composure to ask, casually, "However… how exactly should I bring it out?"
Kushina blinked, momentarily confused by his meaning.
"What I mean is," Habara clarified, "should I bring it out quietly, or… make a bit more noise?"
Making noise wasn't about Habara wanting to cause trouble; he wanted to know if the village leadership had any political motivation to use this incident as a pretext.
Kushina rubbed her temples, looking exasperated. As if things weren't complicated enough? "Don't cause unnecessary trouble."
"Understood."
Should have just said that from the start. Clearly, Habara had been overthinking, assuming Konoha might need a justifiable reason for war… No, more accurately, a reason for a "purge."
"Yamashiro, Shiranui, you two come with me."
"Right."
Habara called over Aoba Yamashiro and Genma Shiranui. The trio quickly departed, heading straight for the Uchiha Compound.
By now, the Uchiha district was completely sealed off by Konoha ANBU. Ordinary passage was impossible.
"Yamashiro, give me the details. What exactly happened?" Habara asked as they moved towards the Uchiha territory.
Aoba Yamashiro briefly explained the sequence of events.
"...In short, at 0200 hours last night, someone infiltrated ANBU headquarters. ANBU shinobi immediately began pursuit, including Captain Hyosube's squad. Around 0300 hours, the intruder and the squad entered the Uchiha Compound. After that, it was like they were swallowed whole; not another sound was heard. At 0400, some ANBU attempted to enter the Uchiha grounds to investigate. By 0430, ANBU operatives discovered the bodies of Hyosube and his entire squad…"
Habara recalled hearing about the ANBU infiltration upon his return. At the time, influenced by past events, he'd assumed Danzo was behind it, remembering Danzo's penchant for stealing ANBU files. Now, it was clear that wasn't the case; there were things Danzo simply couldn't do.
"So, someone silently eliminated an entire ANBU squad within the Uchiha Compound, and the squad leader was the ANBU Commander himself? Keep in mind, Captain Hyosube was proficient in all five nature transformations, stronger than the average elite jonin. I'm not saying no one could defeat him, but defeating him silently, while he had his squad with him… Honestly, it's unbelievable," Habara mused aloud.
Even Habara himself couldn't guarantee success if tasked with such a feat. He was strong, yes, but he didn't underestimate others to the point of idiocy. Defeating or even annihilating them was possible, but preventing them from making even a single sound before death? That was too much…
So much so that Habara almost instantly locked onto the likely culprit. Silent killing like that usually meant space-time ninjutsu.
In Habara's knowledge of the Uchiha Massacre event from his past life, Uchiha Obito had indeed played an active, shadowy role.
"Precisely because Captain Hyosube was so exceptionally skilled, the village is now almost certain that only elite Uchiha shinobi could have caused this incident… Within the Uchiha Compound, only they could accomplish such a thing," Aoba stated.
Right. If someone else had carried out a massacre on Uchiha turf, could the Uchiha really remain completely unaware? And if they were aware, would they just let themselves be framed? The logic was circular, self-contained: they must have done it.
"Regardless, let's retrieve the Captain's remains first," Habara decided.
As Habara's group neared the Uchiha district, more and more shinobi appeared – some ANBU, others regular shinobi.
"Habara." "Jonin Habara." "Lord Habara."
People greeted him along the way. After exchanging greetings, they silently fell in behind Habara's group. After a few more minutes of walking, he had to stop.
"Everyone, my current mission is simply to retrieve the bodies of the ANBU shinobi who tragically lost their lives. What we do next depends entirely on the Hokage's orders. So please, disperse for now."
He felt a mix of amusement and exasperation. What was this, a rally? He was just going to transport bodies, not lead an assault on the Uchiha. Why the massive entourage?
Bringing such a large group into the Uchiha Compound would instantly provoke a rebellion on the spot.
Hearing his explanation, the gathered shinobi halted. But people are like that; the closer the storm, the more they cluster around those they trust.
Habara had considerable renown, especially among shinobi from non-clan backgrounds.
His team proceeded unhindered, walking straight into the Uchiha district.
This area, too, was exceptionally quiet, prompting Habara to ask, "Where are the Uchiha shinobi? Where did they go?"
He then received Aoba Yamashiro's rather blunt, almost anticlimactic answer: "They're having a meeting. Hiding in the shrine's basement."
Habara: "..."
They reached the crime scene. Two Uchiha shinobi stood guard. Upon seeing Habara's group, they didn't bother with any handover; they simply retreated quickly. These two Uchiha probably felt there was nothing left to say at this point.
Habara approached the four bodies. After a brief examination, he had to confirm, "It really is Captain Hyosube."
He glanced around. There were no obvious signs of a struggle, further strengthening his suspicion. The opponent was skilled in both genjutsu and sneak attacks.
"Take them. Let's head straight to the Intelligence Division."
Aoba and Genma took out four specialized sealing scrolls and quickly sealed the four bodies within them.
"Let's hope we can find traces of the real killer in their memories," Habara sighed, "and that those traces have nothing to do with the Uchiha clan."
He knew it was wishful thinking. When Konoha's Intelligence Division probed the victims' memories, they would most likely see a crimson Sharingan eye staring back… Framing, sowing discord – Tobi was a professional when it came to these things.