54 Chapter 54: A Surprising Retreat

The footsteps of Aburame Tatsuma were steady, stopping just outside the Uchiha clan's main gate. He stood a few meters away from Fugaku and the others, not taking another step forward.

Despite wearing his sunglasses late into the night, his gaze was sharp, immediately noticing Kakashi, who had been reduced to a prisoner among the crowd. This meant that Danzo's plan had failed.

At this moment, Fugaku spoke up, "What is the meaning of this, ANBU? Gathering outside our clan grounds so late at night? With this formation, are you planning to start a war with the Uchiha?"

Aburame Tatsuma responded without emotion, "Clan Head Fugaku, you misunderstand. We are merely carrying out our duty to protect the village, conducting a routine patrol. We have not stepped foot into Uchiha territory."

Hearing his words, Fugaku didn't waste time. He directly threw the signal scroll that had been found on Kakashi over to Tatsuma, demanding, "Then can you explain what this is, the one we found on Kakashi?"

"I'm not sure," Tatsuma shook his head, looking at Fugaku calmly. "Clan Head Fugaku, you should know that we are actually members of Root, under Danzo's command. Kakashi, on the other hand, is ANBU, acting under the orders of the Hokage."

Not only did he directly clear his side of any connection with Kakashi, but he also tried to guide the Uchiha to point their spears at the Third Hokage.

Fugaku's brow furrowed. Seeing Tatsuma's watertight response, he knew that he wouldn't be able to gain any advantage through words.

Fugaku turned to look at Dan, seeing that he had no reaction, he understood Dan's intentions. The Uchiha were not ready yet, it was not appropriate to break with the village.

With this in mind, Fugaku waved his hand at Tatsuma, issuing an order to leave, "Your Root division lingering here late at night was seen by our police force, it's easy to cause misunderstandings. So, please leave immediately."

"I'm sorry, but we cannot comply. We are merely carrying out our mission, we hope Clan Head Fugaku can understand," Tatsuma responded indifferently, showing no signs of backing down.

Fugaku, hearing this, finally lost his temper. The three tomoe in his eyes spun and transformed, revealing the Mangekyou Sharingan as he coldly stared at the opposition.

Not just him, but also the sixty-plus Uchiha ninjas behind him, all activated their Sharingan at once. Pairs of crimson eyes lit up in the darkness, like a bloodthirsty pack of wolves, all focused on Tatsuma.

Being locked onto by over sixty pairs of Sharingan, even the Third Hokage might not be able to withstand such pressure, let alone a mere Aburame Tatsuma.

As expected, his face changed dramatically, and his body exploded on the spot, turning into countless bugs that scattered in all directions on the street.

With Tatsuma's hasty retreat, the presence of the other Root ninjas quickly faded into the darkness, disappearing without a trace in an instant.

In truth, Danzo knew very well how difficult it would be for Root alone to wipe out the Uchiha clan.

Danzo's plan was to have Kakashi use the signal scroll to call for help, allowing Root to enter the Uchiha clan grounds and escalate the situation. At that point, as long as they used Kakashi as a pawn to involve the ANBU, they could force the Third Hokage to act against the Uchiha.

But now, with Kakashi captured and unable to activate the signal scroll, the Uchiha hadn't fallen for the trap, and Root had no reason or confidence to act.

Seeing Root retreat, Kakashi knew he had become a discarded piece. For the Uchiha clan, how to deal with this discarded piece was a problem. After all, as Tatsuma had said, Kakashi was sent by the Third Hokage.

"Dan, what do you think we should do?" Fugaku asked Dan for his opinion, handing the decision-making power to his brother-in-law.

Dan thought for a moment, patted Kakashi's shoulder, and said meaningfully, "Report everything you saw today to the Third Hokage exactly as it happened. And tell him, we Uchiha do not want to be enemies with the village, but... don't force us."

Was this a delaying tactic against Konoha? Fugaku and many of the clan members guessed the true intention behind Dan's words.

At the clan meeting that had just ended tonight, Shisui and Dan had a fierce fight. The former was seriously injured, and the latter must have consumed a lot of chakra and needed to recover.

Therefore, what the Uchiha clan needed to do most now was to temporarily endure and recover their strength. The recent retreat of the Root ninjas could be considered a victory for the Uchiha. It was time to quit while they were ahead.

Fugaku and the others guessed correctly. If the Uchiha were to hastily fight against Konoha tonight, it would undoubtedly result in a defeat without suspense.

If a real fight broke out, Dan wouldn't even be interested in watching. He would directly take his sister Mikoto and flee overnight.

So, he decided to release Kakashi, sending a temporary peace signal to the Third Hokage.

Kakashi was surprised. He hadn't expected the Uchiha to let him go so easily. But since Dan had spoken, he had to hurry and leave before they changed their minds.

However, the more he worried, the more likely it was to happen. Kakashi had just taken a step, not yet out of the Uchiha clan's gate, when Uchiha Shisui suddenly shouted from the crowd, "Wait!"

As soon as his words fell, Shana rushed out of the crowd and blocked Kakashi. "Elder Shana, what do you want to say?" Fugaku asked, puzzled.

Shisui first carefully glanced at Dan, seeing that Dan didn't show any obvious anger, he felt somewhat relieved. Then he reminded Fugaku of a past event, "Clan Head, you should remember. After the end of the Third Great Ninja War, our Uchiha clan wanted to take back Kakashi's Sharingan, but you said that Obito fought bravely on the battlefield, so we should respect Obito's will, and in the end, you didn't agree to it. Now, Kakashi is using the Sharingan that Obito gave him to monitor the Uchiha clan! This proves that your decision back then was wrong."

Shisui's gaze was intense as he publicly questioned Fugaku and expressed his opinion as an elder of the clan, "Kakashi can leave tonight, but his Sharingan must stay."

"That's right!" Hearing his words, the clan members felt it made sense and nodded in agreement. Letting Kakashi go was acceptable, but taking back his eye could also serve as a warning to the Third Hokage.

Fugaku fell into hesitation. Kakashi, seeing this, was prepared

in his heart. He didn't want to make Fugaku uncomfortable, so he simply said to the Uchiha clan members with a calm face, "I understand."

As soon as his words fell, he raised his right hand, ready to gouge out his left eye and return it to the Uchiha clan.

Obito, I'm sorry, Kakashi silently apologized in his heart.

Just then, Dan did something unexpected.

With a swift step forward, he firmly grabbed Kakashi's arm, stopping him in his tracks, much to Kakashi's surprise.