After Chiya left, the courtyard of the Hatake residence fell into a brief silence.
Kakashi stood in the corridor, his small hand gripping the corner of his father's robe, looking up at this man who had once been so full of spirit but now appeared utterly broken.
He had never seen his father like this before.
Like a sword that had been snapped in two, all its sharpness gone.
"Dad..."
Kakashi spoke softly, his voice carrying a trace of unease.
Hatake Sakumo lowered his head and looked at his son. The worry hidden in those dead, lifeless eyes made his chest tighten.
He slowly crouched down. His rough palm rested on Kakashi's silver hair, and he said quietly.
"Are you scared?"
Kakashi shook his head and stared at him stubbornly.
"No!"
Sakumo smiled. That smile carried a sharpness that had been missing for a long time.
"Good."
He stood up. His fingers lightly brushed over White Fang. As his chakra flowed through it, the blade gave off a cold and piercing gleam.
"Today, I will teach you something."
He pushed open the courtyard gate. Sunlight poured in, lighting up his upright figure.
"A true shinobi is never brought down by rumors."
When Hatake Sakumo appeared on the street with Kakashi, the noisy crowd went instantly silent.
The shouting villagers and ninja, in that moment, looked as though someone had grabbed them by the throat.
One by one they froze in place, even their breathing becoming careful.
Sakumo's gaze swept slowly across the crowd. His expression was calm but carried an invisible pressure.
He said nothing. He simply held Kakashi's hand and walked forward, one step at a time.
The crowd parted on its own to make way.
Someone tried to speak, but when their eyes met that sharp gaze, the words caught in their throat and they swallowed them back down.
People farther away witnessed the scene.
"Is that... Hatake Sakumo?"
A Chunin murmured quietly.
"Isn't he already..."
"Shut up!"
The person beside him yanked him back hard, cold sweat appearing on their forehead.
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Sakumo's footsteps did not slow, but the corner of his mouth curled into a faint, contemptuous smile.
These people were nothing more than pawns being used by someone else.
Sakumo brought Kakashi to a secluded courtyard.
The one who opened the door was a middle-aged ninja with a scar across his face. The moment he saw Sakumo, his pupils shrank sharply.
"C, Captain?!"
"Yamashiro, it has been a while."
Sakumo's tone was calm, but it made the ninja called Yamashiro tremble from head to toe.
"How did you..."
Yamashiro instinctively glanced around and lowered his voice.
"The mood in the village right now is against you. You should not be..."
"Should not be what?"
Sakumo cut him off. His eyes were as sharp as a blade.
"Should not come and ask why members of my former unit suddenly came forward to accuse me of desertion?"
Yamashiro's face went pale in an instant.
Kakashi stood behind his father. His small hand tightened without thinking.
Though he was still young, he could already feel the tension filling the air.
"Captain, I..."
Yamashiro's voice was shaking.
"I was forced! Danzo came to me. They said if I did not comply..."
Sakumo closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, the cold within them was even deeper.
"And the others?"
"All, all the same..."
Yamashiro sank to the ground on his knees and slammed his fist hard against the floor.
"We had no choice! You know what Danzo is capable of. He..."
"Enough."
Sakumo raised a hand to stop him. His voice was low and heavy.
"Take me to see them."
Yamashiro's head snapped up.
"Captain, you want to..."
"Take back the honor that belongs to us."
...
At the same time.
A patrolling Uchiha ninja witnessed Hatake Sakumo's movements and quickly turned to leave.
Moments later, inside Uchiha headquarters.
"Clan head, Hatake Sakumo has made his move."
The Uchiha who had just been on patrol reported in a low voice.
Chiya was reviewing recent Uchiha documents. Upon hearing this, she paused, and the corner of her mouth curved into a slight smile.
"Oh? He went to find those former unit members?"
"Yes."
"It looks like he is ready to fight back."
Chiya let out a soft laugh and set the documents down on the desk.
"Then we should add some fuel to the fire as well."
"Notify the intelligence division. Have them compile everything Danzo has done over the years. Tomorrow, I want all of Konoha to see it."
"Yes!"
A full day passed quietly.
The next day.
The winds in Konoha had shifted completely.
Izakayas, ninja tool shops, the mission hall...
Everywhere people gathered, the same topic was being discussed.
"Have you heard? Lord Hatake Sakumo was framed!"
"It was all Danzo's doing. That man was apparently planning to steal children from the major clans for human experimentation. Good thing the Uchiha Military Police found out. If it were not for the police, who knows how many children this village would have lost!"
"I have a friend in the Anbu who said the mission Hatake Sakumo was sent on to the Land of Fire was a trap from the very beginning. It was all set up to get rid of him!"
"..."
The explosive topic spread like wildfire and swept through the entire village in an instant.
Even more alarming was the fact that none of this was baseless.
Someone had anonymously distributed a large amount of evidence, including location maps of Root's bases, records of experiments, and even lists of imprisoned children.
The major clans could no longer sit still.
Some of what Danzo had done involved the bloodlines of their own families.
They had all known, more or less, about the earlier Uchiha investigation into the disappearing children.
Many clans sent representatives to the Hokage Building.
They sought out Hiruzen Sarutobi and other senior figures to verify whether these reports were true.
Outside the Hokage Building, the crowd of protesting ninja and civilians grew larger and larger.
"Danzo, get out of Konoha!"
"Restore Hatake Sakumo's honor!"
"..."
Wave after wave of voices rose higher than the last.
The Anbu ninja stationed nearby watched with cold eyes, showing no reaction at all.
Even in the dim underground chamber of Root, the voices could faintly be heard.
Root ninja reported the situation outside.
Danzo's face had turned an iron gray. He smashed the teacup in his hand.
"Useless! You are all useless!"
He roared.
"Did I not tell you to clean everything up?! How did this information get out?!"
The Root ninja kneeling on the ground trembled.
"We, we do not know! All the experimental bases were destroyed following your orders..."
"The Uchiha. It must be those damned Uchiha!"
He suddenly understood, and his expression darkened like ink.
"Has the Anbu done anything?"
"Nothing..."
"Good. Very good."
He ground his teeth.
"So Hiruzen Sarutobi wants to watch me walk into the fire, does he!"
Danzo knew that after this, there was no longer any hope of ever becoming Hokage.
This had completely cut off his path.
He had such exceptional ability. How had it come to this?!
'Sakumo, Uchiha, I will repay this humiliation a hundredfold one day...'
As Danzo listened to the commotion outside, his twisted expression gradually grew still.
"Issue a ban. Starting today, no one is to mention anything related to Root. Anyone caught discussing Root is to be arrested and confined."
"Yes!"
After giving the order, Danzo gripped his cane and left Root quickly, heading toward the Hokage Building.
His guards followed close behind.
At that moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi stood at the window, looking down at the crowd of protestors below. The pipe in his hand had long gone cold.
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado stood behind him.
"Hiruzen, if this keeps up, Danzo cannot be saved."
Koharu said quietly.
Hiruzen was silent for a long time. Finally he let out a sigh.
"Save him? How would we save him?"
He turned around. His gaze was sharp as he looked at the two advisors.
"Stealing bloodline secrets from the major clans, conducting unauthorized human experiments, killing fellow shinobi of the village, forging mission orders to frame an Anbu captain. Which of these charges is not enough to have him executed ten times over?"
The two advisors exchanged a glance. They could both see the confusion in each other's eyes.
By rights, Hiruzen should have known about today's events long before they reached this point. He should never have let things develop this far.
Yet today, he seemed to have no intention of intervening at all.
Was he trying to teach Danzo a lesson as well?
Just then, the office door swung open.
Danzo walked in with a composed expression, his strides wide and firm.
"Hiruzen, things have already come this far and you still have not thought to issue a ban. Do you want to watch Konoha fall into chaos?!"
Upon hearing Danzo's words, Hiruzen's eyes flickered.
As though he had already anticipated this.
He cleared his throat and then spoke.
"Summon the representatives of all major clans. We are holding a meeting."
Danzo's expression instantly darkened. He looked at Hiruzen with a long, deep stare.
'He wants to publicly sentence me?'
In the past when he was needed, Hiruzen had given him authority, given him hints...
Now that trouble had arrived, he was pushing all of it onto Danzo alone...
'Hiruzen, you truly have no honor.'