"Pah…"
The scroll smacked hard against Sarutobi Hiruzen's face.
Already bearing the imprint of Byakuya's earlier slap on his left cheek, Hiruzen now had a fresh red mark on his right. The contrast made his expression particularly comical, though no one dared to laugh.
"Byakuya, you—"
The fire in Hiruzen's eyes flared as the sting burned deeper into his pride than his skin. The smile he'd forced moments ago vanished completely, replaced by fury. He had no doubt the scroll was thrown at him intentionally.
But Byakuya, standing tall and calm, met his glare with indifference.
"Hokage-sama, weren't you demanding evidence?"
"Here it is. What are you waiting for?"
His words were sharp, laced with unmistakable mockery.
Faced with Byakuya's cold stare and overwhelming presence, Sarutobi Hiruzen suppressed his rage and slowly unrolled the scroll.
The more he read, the grimmer his face became.
"Danzo… you fool…" he muttered internally.
"How could you leave behind this kind of trail…"
The scroll contained detailed records—names, missions, orders—all of it undeniable. Some operations were personally approved by Danzo, others only possible with tacit approval from higher up... from him.
He had always trusted Danzo to be ruthless but clean. This level of sloppiness—leaving behind documented evidence—was unthinkable.
This wasn't something that could be covered up.
Not anymore.
If the village followed protocol, Danzo would be executed as a traitor.
And if Danzo went down... Sarutobi Hiruzen himself would be next.
His fingers twitched. His eyes flicked to a burning lantern nearby.
He could still destroy the scroll...
"Hokage-sama…" Byakuya's voice rang out again, louder this time.
"What's with the hesitation?"
"Surely you're not thinking of destroying the only copy, are you?"
He smirked.
"Don't worry. I've already made backups."
Sarutobi froze mid-motion.
His palm slowly lowered, trembling in quiet rage.
"Uchiha Byakuya… you bastard…"
With no other choice, he shifted tactics.
"Danzo!" he shouted, suddenly turning.
"How could you betray the village like this!?"
Danzo's eyes widened in shock.
"Sarutobi!? What are you talking about?"
Hiruzen hurled the scroll at Danzo's feet.
"Look at it yourself. What have you done!?"
Danzo glanced down, and as his eyes scanned the damning records, his heart sank.
"How… How did this fall into Byakuya's hands…"
He recognized every detail—every operation, every clandestine experiment, even the use of orphan children for Root recruitment.
It was all there.
Undeniable.
Sweat broke out across his forehead.
"Byakuya, thank you for uncovering this…" Hiruzen said, putting on the mask of the righteous leader.
"I never imagined Danzo would go this far."
He raised his hand.
"Anbu! Arrest Danzo Shimura immediately!"
Two masked Anbu appeared, stepping forward.
But before they could move—
"No need," Byakuya interrupted coldly.
"There's no place in the world for traitors like him."
He turned to Uchiha En.
"Execute Danzo. Now."
"Yes, Lord Byakuya."
Without hesitation, Uchiha En stepped forward and drew his blade.
"Wait! What are you doing!? I'm an elder of Konoha!" Danzo shouted, panic setting in.
He struggled backward, eyes wide.
But no one moved to protect him.
Not the Anbu.
Not Hiruzen.
Not even fate.
Danzo Shimura had always craved one thing—the Hokage seat.
"How can I die before I even become Hokage...?" he muttered through clenched teeth, struggling against the pressure holding him down.
"You still dare talk about being a Konoha elder?"
Uchiha En's eyes were cold as ice.
"You're a traitor now. A criminal. And traitors who resist..."
"Go to hell!"
With a thunderous kick to Danzo's back, Uchiha En sent him crashing face-first into the dirt. The once-proud elder now lay in a dog-eating-shit posture—humiliated, broken.
Without hesitation, En raised his blade, aiming directly for Danzo's neck.
"Stop… stop it, right now!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice cracked in panic.
He stepped forward instinctively, dread tightening in his chest. But Uchiha En didn't spare him a glance. He obeyed only one person—Byakuya.
"Anbu! Intervene—stop him!"
Hiruzen's command rang out, and two masked Anbu operatives rushed forward, blades drawn, intercepting En's strike just in time with a resounding clang of metal.
"What are you doing!?" En growled.
"Are you siding with this traitor Danzo?!"
Byakuya's voice sliced through the tense air like a kunai.
"Capture them."
No hesitation.
The Uchiha clan, fully mobilized and burning with loyalty, moved in.
Bang! Bang!
Two sharp blows, and the Anbu were on the ground—disarmed and restrained, shame staining their masks.
"Uchiha Byakuya! How dare you attack the Anbu!?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice trembled, half with anger, half with fear.
"Anbu?" Byakuya scoffed.
"Are you referring to the rebels who tried to protect a traitor?"
He took a step forward, his Sharingan glowing ominously.
"If you, Hokage-sama, stand in our way… are you not a rebel as well?"
The words landed like hammer blows.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's breath caught. Byakuya wasn't bluffing—he was looking for an excuse to crush him.
"B-Byakuya… even if the scroll contains damning information…"
He grasped desperately for control.
"Who's to say the evidence is authentic? Anyone can fabricate—"
"Enough."
Byakuya's killing intent surged.
"You had your chance to act on truth. Now all you seek are excuses to protect the filth in your circle. Your so-called 'judgment' has long rotted, Hiruzen."
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