"Lord Hokage, Uchiha Dohan is heading toward the Shimura clan compound with a team from the Konoha Military Police Force."
"What?" Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyelid twitched. He couldn't immediately determine what Uchiha Dohan was planning.
"Lord Hokage, allow me to go. I'll try to stop him." At that moment, Uchiha Itachi, who was on duty today, stepped out from the shadows and knelt on one knee, requesting permission.
Hiruzen stared at Itachi for a long moment before letting out a long sigh. "I'm counting on you, Itachi. The village can't afford internal strife right now."
Receiving the order, Itachi disappeared in a blur, racing across the rooftops of Konoha. It didn't take long for him to reach the outskirts of the Shimura compound—just as Dohan's group was arriving at a casual, deliberate pace.
The entire Shimura compound was draped in mourning white. Somber funeral music drifted faintly through the air.
Standing in the group's path, Itachi wore a mask, but with his slim figure and short stature, it wasn't hard for any shinobi in the village to guess who he was—currently the only underage member of the Anbu.
"Itachi, we're here to summon several suspects from the Shimura clan back to the Military Police Department for questioning. Were you sent by Lord Hokage to assist us?" Uchiha Dohan asked.
Seeing that his identity had been exposed, Itachi made no attempt to deny it. He simply removed his mask.
"Dohan-niisan, please turn back. The village can't survive another civil conflict," said Itachi quietly.
"So, you're here to stop me?" Dohan's eyes turned cold. "Is that your own decision or an order from the Hokage?"
Dohan had intentionally led his team through the heart of the village at a relaxed pace, and now that strategy was bearing fruit. The Shimura compound sat in one of the busier districts of the village, and their show of force had attracted a growing crowd of curious onlookers.
"Shimura Danzo defiled the First Hokage's remains and attacked fellow shinobi. The evidence is irrefutable. The Shimura clan had close ties to him, so we're merely here to bring in a few individuals for questioning. Yet here you are, standing in our way—what are your intentions?" Dohan spoke again, now that the surrounding crowd had grown large enough.
"...Dohan-niisan..." Itachi glanced at the onlookers and felt increasingly uneasy under their stares.
"Use proper titles while on duty!" Dohan snapped, cutting him off sharply. "If this is an order from Lord Hokage, I'll turn back right now."
Itachi turned to look at the growing crowd—eager, necks craning to catch every word. Could he really say it was the Hokage's order?
Yesterday's events at the village gates had already spread like wildfire overnight. Everyone knew what had happened.
"...Captain..." Itachi could only bow his head under the judgmental gazes around him.
Without another word, Dohan and his team walked right past him.
Inside the compound, the Shimura clan had already heard about the disturbance at their gate. The current clan head, Shimura Hiro, soon appeared with several members to block Dohan's path.
"My apologies, but the Shimura clan is not accepting visitors at this time," said Hiro coldly, dressed in a pure black kimono.
"Then I suppose our timing is unfortunate," Dohan nodded. "It seems the clan is holding a funeral?"
"You Uchiha still have the nerve to show your faces here?!" a young, furious Shimura shinobi suddenly charged at Dohan. The police force behind Dohan made to intervene, but he raised a hand to stop them.
The enraged young man was quickly restrained by his fellow clan members.
"My apologies. The younger ones sometimes forget their manners," Hiro said.
"I understand," Dohan replied with a thin smile. "But I'm not here to pay respects."
His expression hardened. "I'm here to bring Shimura Retto, Shimura Ran, Shimura Yusuke, and several others back with us to assist in our investigation."
The officers behind him, already simmering with frustration, immediately prepared to move, while the Shimura shinobi bristled in response.
"Isn't this a bit inappropriate?" Hiro said in a low voice.
"It's just a routine investigation," Dohan replied calmly. "After all, the ledgers we found in Root's headquarters show significant financial ties between your clan and Root. Personally, I still believe in your innocence."
As he spoke, he pulled a half-burned account book from a sealing scroll at his waist.
"Clan Head, what more is there to say?! The Uchiha are wolves in sheep's clothing! Danzo-sama died at their hands! We must avenge him!" shouted the same restrained young shinobi.
"It seems the Shimura clan really was colluding with Danzo... You intend to rebel, don't you?" Dohan's voice turned icy as the tomoe in his eyes spun, transforming into the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Shimura Hiro looked like he was about to explode, but when he saw the Mangekyō in Dohan's eyes, he forced down the fury. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Enough! I'll allow them to go with you."
As Danzo's cousin, Hiro had once witnessed the battle between Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha. He understood well the destructive power of the Mangekyō Sharingan. That wasteland now known as the Valley of the End was proof enough. If Dohan went all-out here, there was no telling how much damage he could do—but one thing was certain: not a single member of the Shimura clan would make it out alive.
Moreover, Dohan came under the banner of law and order. If things escalated, the Shimura clan would be branded traitors—and no amount of explanation would clear their name.
"Would've been easier if you'd just cooperated from the start," Dohan said lightly, waving a hand to signal Uchiha En'u to make the arrests.
"Clan Head!" the younger Shimura members cried out in protest. They were used to throwing their weight around the village—this was a humiliation they couldn't stomach.
"Please don't make this harder for me," Dohan stepped close to Hiro, speaking quietly into his ear.
Hiro's lips twitched, but in the end, he said nothing. He merely signaled to his people to stand down.
The arrests didn't take long. The individuals Dohan had named were all present. Uchiha En'u cuffed them and reported back.
"Thank you for your cooperation, Clan Head Hiro," Dohan said with a slight smile. "But I'd advise you—holding a funeral for a confirmed traitor at a time like this... might not be the best idea."