Habara had been playing with metal, completely unconcerned with the shifting political landscape of the village and the sudden crisis facing the Uchiha clan. Or rather, compared to what he was currently busy with, the Uchiha clan's troubles were truly insignificant.
So, when a dozen or so Uchiha ninja blocked the entrance to the "Little Earth Tower," loudly accusing Konoha's leadership of manipulating Uchiha Shisui and employing despicable tactics to divide the clan, Habara found it…entertaining. After all, watching a group of people throw a public tantrum was quite an amusing spectacle for an uninvolved bystander. Habara was just a popcorn-munching member of the audience.
He did, however, appreciate Shisui's attempt at self-preservation. Rebellion really had no future. Even if, hypothetically, the Uchiha succeeded in their revolt and somehow dealt with the Third Hokage and the rest of Konoha's leadership, what then? Stay in Konoha? Impossible. The other ninja wouldn't submit to the Uchiha; they'd have to slaughter the entire village to maintain control.
Flee Konoha? Where could a single clan run to? What kind of future would that be?
The Uchiha were accusing Konoha's leadership of trying to divide them, and that much was true. But the person who suggested that strategy was Uchiha Shisui himself. Even if you traced it further back, the furthest you'd get was a certain instance of "shock therapy" – which had absolutely nothing to do with Konoha's leadership.
At this moment, Habara was engaged in a scholarly discussion with Uzumaki Kushina about chakra transfer techniques. He was hoping to find some answers through the study of sealing jutsu. Then, suddenly, this whole "door-blocking incident" erupted.
It should be said that the Uchiha clan did have some forethought. Their current actions, while seemingly arrogant, were clearly a form of probing… The Little Earth Tower was right next to the Hokage's office building. The fact that they chose to cause a scene in front of the Little Earth Tower instead of the Hokage's office showed that, despite their loud clamoring, they were still wary of consequences.
Kushina, overhearing the accusations of the Uchiha ninja outside, wasn't particularly angry. In fact, she was a little excited. "Wow," she said, "I haven't had a proper one-on-one fight with a fellow village ninja since I graduated from the Academy! I didn't think I'd get the chance."
One-on-one? After Kushina became the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, who would be stupid enough to challenge her to a duel? That was just asking for trouble.
Habara quickly stopped Kushina, who clearly didn't mind escalating things. "Kushina-sama, this is a trivial matter. You don't need to get involved. We just need to hold them off and let the Security Force…the new Security Force, take them away."
Seriously, Kushina-sama, why would you even bother? It's beneath you.
When faced with troublemakers, the obvious solution was to call the police. This kind of thing wasn't under the Anbu's jurisdiction; it was perfectly within the purview of the new Security Force.
After saying this, Habara tapped his forehead protector with his index finger in a rhythmic pattern. Then, he walked to the window to observe the situation outside.
Why weren't the Uchiha ninja simply charging into the building? Well, they couldn't. Doing so would be considered an "attack," and would signify the actual start of a rebellion.
A figure emerged from the Little Earth Tower. It was Daigo, carrying the Red Gourd on her back – or, more accurately, the Red Gourd with Daigo as its mount.
"Uchiha ninja," Daigo said, addressing the group. "Please disperse. You're blocking the entrance and interfering with our work."
To be honest, she seemed a little timid. She was never the type for direct combat, and facing a dozen or so hostile ninja on her own was a rare, and frankly, daunting experience. She wasn't sure she could handle it.
"Konoha's leadership is sowing discord within the Uchiha clan!" the leading Uchiha ninja shouted. "If you dare to do such a thing, why don't you dare to face us? Send out the leadership!"
He kept shouting about "Konoha's leadership" without naming anyone specifically. He was lucky he didn't name anyone, because if someone actually did come out to challenge them, what then? That one person could probably take on their whole group.
Daigo felt even more uncertain, but she had to fulfill her duties as the "front desk girl." "If you refuse to leave or be quiet," she said, "I'll have to use force to remove you…"
Internally, she meant this as a well-intentioned warning. However, it had the opposite effect… her words only served to further infuriate the Uchiha.
"You? A mere Genin? Remove us?" The Uchiha ninja seemed to have heard a joke.
And, in truth, it was a bit of a joke. When Daigo was alive, she was only a sensory ninja. Ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu… she wasn't particularly skilled in any of them.
Daigo's expression remained blank – because, well, she could only maintain a blank expression.
Okay, in reality, her emotions were in turmoil. She had no idea if she could actually drive these people away, but this was her "mission." The Third Hokage had acknowledged her as a ninja, so she had to act like one.
She reached behind her back and pulled out a rather large fan.
She'd heard it was a powerful ninja tool, but Daigo wasn't sure of its true power. She looked at the Uchiha ninja again… To be safe, since there were more than ten of them, she decided to fan it ten times, just to be sure.
So, Daigo began to wave the fan: left, right, left… and then she realized… she didn't need ten swings. After just three, the entire world was quiet.
It was just a little hot.
The Bashosen, one of the Six Paths Sage's treasured tools, could unleash large-scale, high-intensity ninjutsu of all five elemental natures, regardless of the user's own chakra nature. Its power was astonishing, but it consumed a tremendous amount of chakra.
The thing is, Daigo didn't lack chakra.
Because Daigo didn't understand ninjutsu, she didn't consciously control the fan. But her luck seemed to be pretty good… The first swing of the fan released a wide-area Fire Release; the second, a wide-area Wind Release; and the third, another Fire Release.
Fire – Wind – Fire. And just like that, a fiery tornado, forty to fifty meters high, abruptly appeared on the streets of Konoha… It was like a scene out of a disaster movie.
And because the troublemaking Uchiha ninja had stood close together to make their presence more intimidating, they were particularly unlucky.
Habara, witnessing this scene, couldn't help but twitch. He immediately shouted, "Where's Kakashi-senpai? Anyone know Water Release? Quick, go save them!"
This thing was far more powerful than he'd anticipated.
If even Habara misjudged the Bashosen's power, it was no wonder Daigo did too. After creating that enormous fire tornado, she just stood there, dumbfounded, warming herself by the blaze.
Kakashi immediately rushed out of the building to extinguish the flames. He was working hard, pouring water on the inferno, but by the time the fire tornado was quenched, who knew what degree of "doneness" those Uchiha ninja had reached?
The kind-hearted Kakashi, after rescuing the Uchiha, even heard someone muttering…
"Wh…y… no… hand… seals…"
The resentment was practically palpable, but it wasn't hard to understand. Releasing ninjutsu – that kind of large-scale ninjutsu – without hand seals was just plain unethical.
Such an intense battle erupting near the Hokage's office building naturally attracted the attention of the Anbu. However, by the time they arrived, the fighting was already over. Dealing with troublemakers wasn't the Anbu's job, so they just took a quick look around and left.
Kakashi was about to call 911, but now he didn't need to. He needed to call the paramedics.
By the time Uchiha Shisui arrived with the new Security Force, only scorched marks and lingering heat remained. Kakashi noticed that of the three ninja Shisui led, only one was from the Uchiha clan; the other two were regular Konoha ninja.
To be honest, Kakashi also felt that the newly established Security Force was more likely to ensure fair law enforcement. Relying solely on the Uchiha clan to manage public security made it too easy for people to suspect them of abusing their power.
The Uchiha ninja's ruckus had naturally attracted a lot of onlookers. But nobody expected them to be taken down in one move by a girl who looked to be twelve or thirteen years old, and using the Uchiha clan's signature Fire Release, no less! It was incredible… Were the Uchiha all show and no substance? Why were they so arrogant? The onlookers began to whisper amongst themselves.
Daigo had silently returned to the Little Earth Tower. She stared at the seemingly ordinary fan in her hand, lost in thought… This thing was actually a legendary artifact.
Legendary artifact or not, this weapon was perfect for someone with an enormous chakra pool. With this in hand, the previously powerless Daigo had instantly evolved into an artillery mage.
Upstairs, Uzumaki Kushina had watched the entire farce. She was no longer looking forward to any one-on-one fights. Instead, she fell into silent contemplation… Could the Uchiha issue truly be resolved peacefully? She wasn't sure.
Fortunately, it wasn't something to be overly worried about. Even if the Uchiha clan did something reckless, the village's current strength could easily suppress them… if Konoha could maintain its current power.
When Kakashi had dealt with the situation outside and returned to the building, Kushina snapped out of her thoughts. She immediately said to Kakashi, "Kakashi, you're going to join the Meibu, understand? This is in support of the Third Hokage's new policy and to help salvage those Uchiha ninja who can still be saved."
Kakashi: "…"
I put out the fire, I'm the police… Why am I always the one getting assigned all the work?
Well, was there even any need to ask?
This was clearly the heavens bestowing a great responsibility upon him.
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