Konoha At the Village Entrance
A group of people arrived on horseback, dusty and exhausted. At the forefront was a richly dressed woman in her twenties.
Though her appearance was quite attractive, her face was visibly weary and anxious. Her hair was slightly disheveled from the ride.
When the woman reached the entrance to Konoha, she saw a group of Uchiha clan mbers on duty, identifiable by the clan's crest on their uniforms.
She imdiately jogged over and said anxiously:
"Sir, I'm from the Taiwa rchant Guild. I have urgent matters and request to see Clan Head Fugaku!"
"Stop! Do not approach!"
One of the Uchiha on duty instinctively raised his guard when he saw soone rushing toward him.
Only after activating his Sharingan and confirming that there was no chakra fluctuation from the woman did he lower his guard.
Among the Uchiha present, a middle-aged woman stepped forward. Her na was Uchiha Asami, the captain of the guard team on duty.
"Are you Lady Keiko?"
Uchiha Asami recognized the woman—Taiwa Keiko, daughter of Taiwa Yōshi, president of the Taiwa rchant Guild. Known for her sharp business mind, she had visited Konoha a few tis before with the rchant convoys.
Because of the Taiwa Guild's close relationship with the Uchiha Clan, Asami had seen her before.
"Yes, I am Taiwa Keiko. Please, I must et with Clan Head Fugaku urgently!"
Relieved that soone recognized her, Keiko quickly explained, her voice still filled with urgency.
"What happened?"
Asami asked gently.
"Not long ago, I received word from the rchant convoy—our caravan was attacked by bandits. The six Uchiha clan mbers assigned as guards were all killed, and my father, Taiwa Yōshi, was kidnapped!"
Keiko said this all in one breath, panting heavily, struggling to catch her breath.
"Six Uchiha guards were killed, and the guild president was kidnapped?"
Asami's expression changed slightly, realizing the severity of the situation.
"Co. I'll take you to the clan head right away!"
Soon, Keiko was seated in a guest room of the Uchiha Clan used for receiving honored visitors.
Uchiha Fugaku, along with the three clan elders, entered shortly thereafter.
"Keiko, please tell us everything you know—clearly and in detail,"
the second elder, Uchiha Mamoru, said gravely.
He not only knew Keiko, but also had a good relationship with her and her father.
"Last night, we received a ssage from a carrier pigeon sent by the rchant convoy. It said that the convoy had been attacked by bandits. The six Uchiha clan mbers assigned as guards were all killed, and my father was kidnapped."
"The attackers demanded a ransom of 300 million ryō to be delivered within five days to a place called Shōden Town in the Land of Fields. But… there's no way we can gather that much money in such a short ti…"
Keiko's face was filled with anxiety.
Although the Taiwa rchant Guild was the largest in the Land of Fire and had considerable wealth, most of its assets were in fixed properties such as stores and real estate. These couldn't be sold off and converted to cash in just a few days.
Realizing that ti was running out—less than four days remained—Keiko had ridden through the night to Konoha to seek help from the Uchiha Clan, hoping their longstanding ties with the rchant guild would prompt them to act.
"Outrageous! Truly outrageous!"
The First Elder Uchiha Setsuna's face darkened.
He was so angry that even his eyebrows nearly stood on end.
Killing six Uchiha—including two jōnin—and kidnapping a prominent rchant guild leader for ransom? This was a blatant provocation of the Uchiha Clan.
"Lady Keiko, where did the attack take place?"
Fugaku asked, visibly angry but trying to remain composed.
"In the central region of the Land of Fields, near Mount Aoki… Clan Head Fugaku, please, I beg you to save my father."
Saying this, Keiko stood and gave a deep bow in a formal plea.
"Please don't worry. Given the relationship between the Uchiha Clan and the Taiwa rchant Guild, we will absolutely intervene,"
Fugaku replied firmly, his eyes flashing with killing intent.
"Moreover, those who killed six of our clansn… will not be forgiven."
"Thank you… Thank you…"
Keiko repeatedly bowed in gratitude.
"Keiko, how many attackers were there in total?"
the second elder, Uchiha Mamoru, asked after a mont of thought.
"There were over ten of them. According to the ssage, at least one of them was even stronger than the Uchiha jōnin leading the escort."
"An elite jōnin…"
the third elder, Uchiha Shi, said coldly.
The jōnin leading the escort were not just regular jōnin they were above average in strength. If soone was stronger than them, that attacker had to be an elite jōnin.
"Elite jōnin?"
A flash of strange light passed through Fugaku's eyes as he turned to Keiko.
"Lady Keiko, I've already ordered accommodations to be prepared for you. Please rest for now—we will begin rescue operations as soon as possible."
"Thank you…"
Keiko bowed once more and left with a servant of the Uchiha Clan.
Once Keiko had left, only Fugaku and the three elders remained in the room.
"There's sothing suspicious about this matter,"
Fugaku said seriously, glancing at the elders.
"Indeed, very suspicious,"
Elder Mamoru agreed.
While rogue ninja and missing-nin often appeared among bandit groups, it was extrely rare to find elite jōnin among them.
Elite jōnin were top-tier forces in any ninja village. Even if one went rogue, they would never join a bandit group.
The reason was simple: operating with bandits made them easy targets and brought unwanted attention, possibly resulting in pursuit from their forr village.
Besides, elite jōnin had many more discreet and profitable avenues—like working as private bodyguards for wealthy individuals or taking high-level bounties on the black market.
"Could it be ninja from a small village in disguise?"
Uchiha Shi speculated.
So small villages took on official missions publicly but secretly carried out bandit-style attacks on rchant convoys.
He suspected that this attack was done by such a disguised group.
"It's possible,"
Elder Setsuna said.
While elite jōnin were not rare in the five great villages, their presence among bandits was virtually unheard of.
He also believed the attackers could be ninja from a minor village posing as bandits.
"Yes, that's certainly one possibility,"
Fugaku agreed after a mont of thought.
"However, I believe there's an even greater possibility these attackers may be Shimura Danzō's people in disguise, and their goal is to lure out of Konoha."
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