After Naraku left, Danzō looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen and said calmly:
"The Uchiha are a naturally evil clan. This Uchiha Naraku is even more disrespectful and arrogant. He dared to act wildly here. Hiruzen, you are too tolerant. Let me teach the Uchiha a proper lesson for you."
The Third Hokage took down his pipe, slowly blew out a smoke ring, and said in a deep voice:
"It is Uchiha Naraku who needs discipline. The other young Uchiha should not be implicated. Why are you capturing Uchiha shinobi?"
"Do we need a reason to act against the Uchiha clan? After so many years, they've finally elected a new clan head. Hah, can't you see the ulterior motives behind Uchiha Naraku?"
"And Uchiha Naraku is extremely talented. Hiruzen, do you really want to see another Uchiha Madara rise?"
Danzō did not deny capturing the Uchiha shinobi, instead sneering coldly.
At this time, Sarutobi Hiruzen's rule was very stable. The victory in the Second Great Ninja War had elevated his prestige to an all-time high.
Especially with the rise of the Sannin he had personally trained, and the presence of powerful shinobi like the White Fang, Hiruzen still viewed all of Konoha's people—including the Uchiha—as part of the village.
"Uchiha Naraku does have talent, but he's far from being another Madara. Release everyone you've captured."
The Third Hokage took another puff of his pipe, his voice low. When he referred to Uchiha Madara, he was not talking about strength—but rebellion.
"Where the leaves dance, the fire will burn. I don't want that fire to consume the village again."
Sarutobi Hiruzen invoked the Will of Fire, his expression serious.
Although Shimura Danzō served as Hokage's advisor and held authority, Sarutobi always kept him in check.
"...Tch!"
Danzō scowled, clearly frustrated with Hiruzen's leniency toward the Uchiha.
"Go back and release everyone! Remember—I am the Hokage."
Hiruzen's voice deepened.
"You! Hmph..."
Danzō let out a cold snort and turned to leave.
Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep puff of his pipe, narrowed his eyes slightly, and slowly exhaled smoke. The feeling of controlling power... was one he deeply enjoyed.
---
Underground Base, Konohagakure
"Release all the Uchiha we detained in the last few days," Danzō ordered lightly to a masked Root operative.
"Yes, sir." The masked ninja bowed and disappeared with the Body Flicker Technique.
As Hokage's advisor, Danzō didn't dare to defy Hiruzen directly at this moment—not only because his authority came from the Third Hokage but also because of the secret Wood Style experiments he had resumed, which the Third had previously forbidden.
If Hiruzen discovered that Danzō had restarted the forbidden Mokuton experiments, the consequences would be dire.
Originally, Danzō hadn't planned to abduct villagers, but due to a shortage of test subjects in the Wood Release project, he had taken matters into his own hands.
Seeing a lone Uchiha passing by, he had Root operatives—disguised as Anbu—forge a Hokage summons, then abduct the shinobi.
The Uchiha Genin and Chūnin were suspicious but did not dare defy a direct order from the Hokage and followed willingly.
They didn't realize they were walking straight into the Root organization's grasp.
Once inside, they were at Danzō's mercy. He had planned to inject Hashirama Senju's cells into them but hesitated—feeling the Uchiha weren't worthy of Shodai's legacy.
Fortunately, a few civilian shinobi had also been captured, solving his immediate problem.
Still, the captured Uchiha remained detained as Danzō pondered how best to "use" them.
He hadn't expected the Third Hokage to investigate their disappearance personally. Since Hiruzen had ordered their release, Danzō had no choice.
If his experiments were discovered, it would truly be a disaster.
What annoyed him further was that he had only taken fifteen Genin and fewer than ten Uchiha, yet more than twenty people were reported missing. Uchiha Naraku even claimed a few Genin were among the abducted—clearly trying to inflate the situation.
Danzō narrowed his eyes but quickly shook his head and walked toward the secret lab where the Wood Release experiments were conducted.
---
On the Outskirts of Konoha
"Captain, I found a clue! I extracted residual chakra from a forest ten kilometres outside Konoha. Someone used Doton jutsu here and then tried to restore the environment," reported Uchiha Saburō, an elite investigator from the First Division of the Uchiha Police Force.
"Doton?" Naraku narrowed his eyes. "Many shinobi are skilled in Earth Release. Any signs of a bloodline trait or special tools?"
"No, but the Earth Release used was incredibly advanced. Only a high-level jōnin could pull this off. If we narrow the list to Konoha jōnin with mastery over Doton, we may find our suspect," Saburō suggested.
"Good thinking. Take me to the site."
"Yes, sir!"
With his guards, Naraku followed Saburō to the site beyond the village limits.
Normally, leaving the village required mission approval from the Hokage's office. But most of Konoha's secondary entrances were manned by the Uchiha Police Force themselves.
Before Naraku restructured the First Division's duties, most police work was relegated to mundane security jobs, roles considered beneath the talents of shinobi.
Though relations with the village weren't hostile yet, the seeds of discontent had been sown.
Still, many Uchiha willingly served in these positions, even if disrespected.
Naraku's group reached the village edge, where two Uchiha guards stood vigil.
"Halt! Present your clearance!" they called out, not yet recognizing who approached.
"Idiots! Look carefully!" barked Uchiha Chihuo, one of Naraku's guards.
"Patriarch Naraku!"
The two guards snapped to attention upon realizing who it was.
"Do your duty well. And keep this quiet," Naraku said with a nod, not blaming them further.
He stepped onto the high wall and formed several hand seals. Blue chakra surged in his palms as he pressed them forward. The air shimmered as he touched the invisible barrier—Konoha's perimeter protection.
A faint white glow revealed itself, spreading several meters.
Naraku placed both hands on the glowing section and pushed it aside, creating a small opening in the barrier.
"Let's move."
With that, he exited the village. His team followed without hesitation.
Konoha's wall wasn't just tall—it was woven with powerful barrier ninjutsu.
Thanks to intelligence from Uzumaki Naoki and rotation schedules of the barrier patrol, Naraku had already deciphered the pattern and hand seals used to bypass the defence.
With practised ease, he slipped through—into the shadows beyond the village.
---