"Target spotted!"
Not long after Akashō stepped away from the Uchiha squad, dozens—no, hundreds—of black-robed figures suddenly sprang up from the rooftops lining the street, surrounding him. These were ANBU who had rushed over after receiving the alert.
Yet Akashō merely glanced at them before continuing forward without even slowing down.
"Arrogant bastard!"
The ANBU ninjas snorted inwardly and were just about to move in and kill him when, at that moment, an equally large group of shadowy figures leapt out, forming a smaller encirclement that blocked all the ANBU on the outside.
Seeing these black-robed figures, also masked and radiating killing intent, the ANBU were all shocked.
"Root…"
On a distant rooftop, Danzō Shimura hid within the shadows of a taller building, his expression dark.
"Uzumaki Akashō… this is as much as I can do."
With Root's interference, the ANBU directly under Hiruzen Sarutobi were rendered useless. Akashō once again moved as if through empty space, crossing several streets.
Soon, another group of Konoha ninjas appeared before him—and this time, their numbers were even greater.
"Uzumaki Akashō, as someone from the Hidden Leaf Village, and a relative of the Fourth Hokage, you dare commit such acts that endanger the village? Aren't you afraid of punishment?!"
A Konoha jōnin stood before hundreds—no, thousands—of ninjas, glaring coldly as he shouted.
Akashō stopped and calmly looked at them. They were mostly civilian-born ninja—ordinary people who had risen through effort. Of course, not all were present; many were still out on missions.
Generally, they tended to remain neutral. But in a moment like this, they would unconditionally support Hiruzen Sarutobi and oppose him.
Of course—that only applied for now.
"Still not coming out?!"
Akashō barked coldly. Immediately, over a hundred white-clad figures leapt out from both sides of the street.
"My apologies, everyone. Could I trouble you to make way?"
Hyūga Hiashi stood with his hands behind his back, his pale eyes fixed coldly on the Konoha ninja across from him.
"I must be insane to have agreed to let you bring the Hyūga clan into something this treasonous."
Behind him, several Hyūga elders stared at his back, their faces filled with conflict and hesitation.
"…But at this point, there's nothing left to say."
They exhaled and straightened their backs, glaring fiercely at the opposing Konoha ninja.
"If we don't show our might, people really think the Hyūga clan is easy to bully!?"
"My god, how did the Hyūga clan get involved too?"
"More importantly—they're not helping Konoha, but that madman trying to harm the village!"
"This can't be real… I must be dreaming. Weren't the Hyūga always firm supporters of the Hokage's authority? How could this… how could this happen…"
"And even more importantly, it looks like the Uchiha are on Uzumaki Akashō's side too! Does that mean these two clans have actually set aside their long-standing hatred and joined forces?!"
The civilians trailing behind Akashō, eager for gossip, burst into shocked exclamations. And what they could understand, the Konoha ninja naturally understood as well.
"Hyūga Hiashi, do you even know what you're doing? Are you out of your mind?!"
The jōnin ground his teeth as he demanded.
"I've never been clearer."
Hiashi let out a cold laugh. Forming a hand seal with one hand, he activated the Byakugan. Veins bulged around his pale eyes, and his killing intent caused his long hair to move without wind.
"Today, anyone who dares block Uzumaki Akashō—I'll beat the hell out of them. Don't believe me? Come try it!!"
"Heh, nicely said, Hiashi-san. You've really mastered the art of talking."
Akashō stepped forward and patted Hiashi's back. "I'll leave this place to you."
"I just hope you don't mess this up. Don't let all our efforts go to waste and leave us completely at odds with Hiruzen Sarutobi."
Hiashi turned his head slightly and muttered.
"Hahaha, leave the rest to me."
Akashō laughed loudly, leaving the area to them. Changing direction, he continued forward without caring about the Hidden Cloud Village envoy leader who was nearly strangled to death.
Finally, a few minutes later, Akashō reached his destination—a wide open space in front of the Hokage building.
There, Hiruzen Sarutobi stood waiting with two Konoha advisors, while behind him were hundreds of ninja from small and medium clans, led by the Ino–Shika–Chō formation.
"Uzumaki Akashō, before I make a move, you'd better at least give me an explanation."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood with his hands behind his back, his aged eyes fixed coldly on Akashō. At the same time, he glanced at the growing crowd of Konoha civilians gathering behind him.
"Akashō!"
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out. Akashō turned around to see the crowd parting, forming a path. Fugaku Uchiha led a group of Uchiha ninja forward, stopping behind him.
"Did we make it in time?"
"Heh. Perfect timing."