The Grand Elder watched Shisui leave.
Slow steps.
Heavy shoulders.
Setsuna turned toward Toyoma.
"Son," he said quietly, "don't always treat Shisui like that. He's still a child."
The words lingered longer than he meant them to. Shisui had been carrying too much for too long, and Setsuna felt it settle, familiar and uncomfortable, in his chest.
Toyoma glanced at him.
Said nothing.
Footsteps broke the silence—fast, uneven.
A Uchiha genin burst into the corridor, face pale, breath ragged.
"Out of my way!"
He shoved past Shisui and Suki, nearly stumbling before stopping in front of Setsuna.
"Grand Elder—trouble! ANBU attacked Uncle Uzuku's son Inochi."
The hall went still.
Setsuna's voice cut through it.
"Where is that bastard?"
He turned.
Toyoma was gone.
Setsuna's jaw tightened.
Of course.
Toyoma's past flashed through his mind.
His bond with the Uzuku family.
Together, they meant only one thing.
"Suki," Setsuna said sharply. "Call every remaining jōnin. Now. And bring Elder Kazuto—immediately."
Shisui stepped forward.
His chest felt tight, but he forced himself to speak.
"Grand Elder, please. There may be a misunderstanding. Let me talk to Hokage-sama first."
Setsuna's gaze snapped to him.
Red flooded the corridor as the three-tomoe Sharingan spun to life.
The pressure hit like a wall.
"Get lost," Setsuna said. "Or I'll forget you're a Uchiha child."
Shisui froze.
His breath refused to move.
Only when Setsuna and the guards stormed past did his lungs remember how to work.
No.
If this keeps going… this becomes war.
Chakra surged.
The world blurred as he vanished, sprinting toward the Hokage Tower.
"Faster… faster…"
Setsuna didn't look back.
He was already moving toward the Uzuku residence, guards at his side.
He knew Toyoma.
And if anything had happened to the Uzuku children—
There would be nothing left to stop him.
Space folded.
Toyoma blinked—his position tearing apart and reforming in the same breath.
He stood before the Uzuku residence.
Masked figures froze mid-motion.
ANBU.
His subordinates.
The aftermath of a fight that should never have happened.
Toyoma's gaze shifted.
To the side—
Aunt Miyomi clutched Inochi to her chest.
The boy was unconscious.
Blood darkened his clothes.
Something inside Toyoma shut down.
Cold.
Flat.
Final.
One of the masked ninja turned toward Kenshin, voice rushed, hands half-raised.
"This is a misunderstanding. We were investigating something. The boy appeared suddenly—we thought he was an enemy."
Another stepped forward, chin lifted, arrogance barely hiding his unease.
"It's a misunderstanding," he said. "We are ANBU. Bad intel. Letting this go would be wiser."
Kenshin stared at him.
"Do you really think," he said quietly, "you can walk away after hurting a Uchiha child?"
The ANBU scoffed.
"It would be better for the Uchiha not to—"
Toyoma appeared.
No sound.
No warning.
The kunai punched through the man's neck.
Splurt.
Blood burst free as confusion flickered across his eyes.
He collapsed before fear could catch up.
The ANBU leader froze.
Too slow.
Space bent.
The second ANBU dropped, throat opened just as cleanly.
Panic finally broke through discipline.
"Attack!" the leader shouted.
The fight erupted.
Toyoma moved first.
He always did.
Kenshin, Kaede, and Masato shifted without a word, snapping into formation as space warped again and again.
Two ANBU fell almost immediately—cut down before they could adapt, before orders could form.
Then—
Silence.
Only the leader and one remaining ninja stood, backs nearly touching, breaths ragged.
Desperation seeped through the cracks in their masks.
"Wait," the leader said, voice strained. "Do you even know what you're doing?"
Toyoma raised a single hand and formed a brief sign.
Kenshin and Kaede understood instantly.
Space collapsed.
Toyoma blinked—switching places with the ANBU leader in the same heartbeat.
The remaining masked ninja didn't even realise what had happened.
Toyoma was already behind him.
A flash of steel.
The last mask fell to the ground, its owner collapsing beside it.
By the time the ANBU leader realised where he was, strong hands seized his arms.
Kenshin and Kaede locked him in place, blades at his throat.
The fight was over.
Toyoma moved to Inochi's side and knelt.
He checked the boy quickly.
A genjutsu.
Not deep—just enough to knock him unconscious.
There was also a shallow cut on his arm.
Toyoma reached into his pocket and took out a small pill.
He crushed it between his fingers and pressed the powder onto the wound.
The bleeding slowed almost immediately.
After bandaging it, Inochi's tense expression finally relaxed.
Toyoma stood and looked at Kaede.
"What happened here?"
Kaede met his gaze and took a breath before answering.
"We were practising sword forms," she said.
"Inochi went outside—said he needed the toilet. After a while, he saw someone inside your house."
Her jaw tightened.
"When he went closer, the ANBU were searching the rooms.
He shouted.
Kenshin and I arrived right after."
Toyoma turned his attention to the captured ANBU leader.
"So," he said calmly, "why did you attack a Uchiha child? And why were you inside my house?"
The ANBU leader glared back at him.
"We were following the Hokage's orders."
Toyoma's eyes narrowed slightly.
"So the Hokage now attacks Uchiha children," he said, "after sending our clan's shinobi to fight in the war."
The ANBU leader stiffened, clearly shaken by the way Toyoma twisted the words.
Toyoma studied the man's mask.
"Tell me something," he said. "Why is your mask different from standard ANBU?"
The masked man hesitated.
Fear crept into his eyes as he looked at Toyoma.
He stayed silent.
Toyoma nodded once.
"I see," he said. "So you're one of that bastard Danzo's dogs."
The ANBU leader snapped, anger flashing through his fear.
"How dare you insult Danzo-sama!"
Elder Setsuna arrived with a group of jōnin, drawn by the raised voices.
His gaze swept across the courtyard—
Six masked bodies lay motionless on the ground.
Setsuna's expression hardened as he turned to Toyoma, whose face was now completely blank.
"Toyoma," the Grand Elder asked, his voice low, "is Inochi alive?"
"He's inside with Aunt Miyomi," Toyoma replied. "ROOT attacked him. They were searching my house."
Setsuna's jaw tightened.
Moments later, Elder Kazuto arrived with another group of shinobi.
He slowed as he took in the scene—the bodies, the restrained ANBU leader, the tension hanging thick in the air.
Toyoma looked at both elders.
"Grand Elder. Elder Kazuto," he said calmly.
"What do you think now—when someone enters our home and attacks a clan child, believing the clan's forces are away at war?"
Kazuto frowned.
"Toyoma, we should speak with the Hokage first," he said. "There may be a misunderstanding. We need to know why such an order was given."
Toyoma smiled.
He said nothing.
The smile made Kazuto uneasy.
"Grand Elder," Toyoma continued, turning back to Setsuna, "didn't this happen during the Warring States period? When clan jōnin were away fighting—and enemy forces struck their families instead?"
Silence followed.
Setsuna's eyes darkened.
Kazuto knew the answer as well as he did.
In those days, retaliation was absolute.
Entire clans were erased.
Kazuto's voice rose, anger flashing across his face.
"What are you implying? Should we attack Konoha? Have you lost your mind?"
Toyoma turned to him slowly.
"Of course you'd say that," he replied evenly. "Inochi doesn't belong to your faction. He isn't your blood."
His smile vanished.
"Why would you think about revenge for him?"
Toyoma looked away.
"Don't worry," he said coldly. "I never expected your support—for a Uchiha child who has nothing to do with you."
Elder Kazuto bristled, anger flaring across his face.
"What do you mean?" he snapped. "I don't care about factions—I'm thinking ahead, you—"
A firm hand settled on his shoulder.
Kazuto stopped.
Grand Elder Setsuna shook his head slightly, then looked at Toyoma.
"Toyoma," he said calmly, "Kazuto is right about one thing. We cannot act openly right now. Our strength does not allow it."
Toyoma met his gaze.
"Grandpa," he said quietly, "who said anything about attacking Konoha? Or the Hokage?"
He turned and pointed toward the masked bodies on the ground—and the one still restrained by Kenshin.
"These people are not ANBU," Toyoma continued. "They're ROOT of Danzo's."
His voice didn't rise.
That made it worse.
"Even if we complain," Toyoma said, "that bastard Sarutobi Hiruzen will call it a 'mistake.' At most, Danzo will be 'grounded' for a while."
Silence followed.
Setsuna and Kazuto exchanged a look.
They both knew he was right.
This was exactly how it would end.
Elder Kazuto exhaled slowly.
He understood Toyoma's concern—he knew the depth of his bond with the Uzuku family.
More than that, he knew the truth they were all avoiding.
Danzo would not be punished easily.
Kazuto forced his anger down and spoke again, his tone steadier.
"Toyoma," he said, "don't think I'll let this pass."
He met Toyoma's eyes directly.
"I won't make things easy for Danzo Shimura. We will put pressure on the Hokage—real pressure. This won't be forgotten."
His fists clenched at his sides.
Even now, the thought of ANBU laying hands on a Uchiha child made his blood burn.
"I'm angry too," Kazuto added quietly. "More than you think."
Toyoma didn't answer him.
Instead, he looked at the Grand Elder… then at Kazuto.
"Don't worry," Toyoma said calmly.
His voice never rose.
"I'll make Konoha remember what happened today."
He turned slightly, his gaze drifting toward the bodies on the ground.
"After this," he continued, "they'll think twice—before laying a hand on an Uchiha child. Or an Uchiha family."