"Captain Kakashi?!"
Itachi was the first to speak, shocked that the intruder was none other than Hatake Kakashi.
The other Uchiha also recognized him. Even without his Anbu gear, that trademark silver hair, mask, and visible Sharingan eye gave him away instantly.
Normally, once a Konoha ninja joins Anbu, their identity becomes hidden behind masks and codenames. But Kakashi was different. His Sharingan eye—gifted by Obito Uchiha—was unique in all of Anbu. With it, he earned his reputation as the "Copy Ninja."
Everyone in the shinobi world knew: Konoha's Anbu had a Sharingan Kakashi.
So tonight, even without armor or mask, his identity could not be concealed from Uchiha eyes.
Within moments, dozens of Uchiha shinobi surrounded him, forming a tightening circle.
"Hatake Kakashi, why sneak into our district without permission?" Patriarch Uchiha Fugaku stepped forward, frowning as his voice carried authority and sharpness.
The answer was obvious. No one needed to ask. Anbu here meant only one thing: Konoha's leadership was monitoring Uchiha movements.
Kakashi remained silent, his single visible eye calm but unreadable. His silence only made Fugaku's anger rise.
"You should know," Fugaku said coldly, "that even if you say nothing, the mere act of trespassing in Uchiha territory gives our Police Force every right to detain you."
In Konoha, Anbu generally meant freedom of movement. Their missions reported directly to the Hokage—beyond the jurisdiction of most. But there was one exception: the Uchiha district. Uchiha land was autonomous, guarded jealously by the Police Force. Even Anbu could not walk in freely.
Kakashi's hand brushed the signal scroll at his hip. If he pulled it, Root operatives lying in ambush outside would storm the district immediately.
But he hesitated. Against this many Sharingan—three pairs of Mangekyō among them—even Danzo's Root forces would likely face annihilation. Kakashi loosened his grip on the scroll.
At that moment, Uchiha Duan stepped forward, extending a broad hand toward Kakashi.
"Give it to me."
Kakashi paused, then slowly handed the scroll over.
Duan tossed it to Fugaku. The patriarch opened it, his eyes narrowing. "A signal scroll. He isn't alone—other Konoha forces are nearby."
Fugaku turned his gaze outward toward the dimly lit rooftops at the village's edge, where surveillance posts were often hidden. The clan's secret meetings had always been held underground. But tonight's clash between Duan and Shisui—complete with Susanoo—had shaken the night sky. Surveillance had surely caught everything.
"The secret of our three Mangekyō… exposed so soon?" murmured several clansmen, their faces darkening.
"What now?" Setsuna Uchiha, old but still sharp, looked to Duan instinctively for guidance. To him, Duan was already the second coming of Madara—strong enough to lead them.
Many others shared the same thought. Uchiha revered power. Fugaku, even as patriarch, paled in comparison to Duan's overwhelming presence.
Even Fugaku himself felt it. Yet when Duan finally spoke, it wasn't to seize power. He only glanced at Fugaku and said:
"I follow the patriarch's will."
Fugaku's heart stirred. His brother-in-law had given him face before all the clan. To falter now would mean shame and lost authority.
So Fugaku raised his hand decisively. "Then we go meet our guests."
Duan placed a heavy hand on Kakashi's shoulder. The pressure alone made Kakashi wince in pain, though he uttered no sound. The meaning was clear—one wrong move, and he would be crushed instantly.
With that, more than fifty Uchiha shinobi marched together under the pale moonlight, a tide of killing intent. Shops were dark, homes silent, but their eyes glowed red in the night like embers.
When they passed the Police Force building, Fugaku gave further orders:
"Mikoto, take Shisui and Itachi to the infirmary. They are injured. Do not allow them outside the compound until they have fully recovered."
His reasoning was cold. Shisui's loyalty was to the Hokage, and Itachi, though his son, was an Anbu operative as well. Until this crisis resolved, neither could be trusted beyond clan grounds.
"I'm injured too!" Yashiro moaned from his stretcher, but he was ignored.
With reinforcements from the Police Force, Uchiha numbers swelled beyond sixty.
Finally, they reached the clan's main gate.
The district around them was silent—eerily so. No wind, no insects, no distant chatter. Only darkness.
Then—
A lone figure appeared at the far end of the street, walking toward the gate with steady steps. His black cloak stirred with each movement.
At the same time, a sinister presence flared all around. Shapes emerged from rooftops, walls, and trees.
The Root had arrived. At their head: Aburame Ryoma.
And as if by omen, the moon slipped behind thick clouds, plunging the street into deeper darkness.
Root—Konoha's hidden embodiment of the shadows—had finally revealed itself.
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