The slap Ryosuke delivered to the ANBU had barely faded from memory when the crowd's unease began to churn into whispers.
"The Uchiha… they're acting up again."
"They've been quiet for a month. Guess that didn't last."
The atmosphere turned tense as Ryosuke stood tall among the villagers, stone-faced and unrelenting. The bloodied ANBU member still lay on the ground, and people were starting to realize just what that meant.
A member of the ANBU Black Ops—the secret police directly under the Hokage—had been struck down publicly.
And not just by anyone. By a Uchiha.
Only one person commanded the ANBU: The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
So what Ryosuke had just done wasn't just an act of personal rage—it was a statement. A declaration that the Uchiha no longer bowed their heads so easily.
The message was loud and clear:
The Uchiha still burn with fire.
Among the whispering crowd, suspicion brewed. Hiruzen had long forbidden anyone from speaking openly about the Nine-Tails. Yet now it became clear: the Hokage had assigned ANBU to protect the Jinchūriki.
It was ironic. The children who had attacked Naruto thought they were just throwing rocks at a demon.
But in reality… they had just attempted to assassinate one of the village's most important strategic assets.
Some among the crowd scoffed quietly.
"What's the fuss? It was just a few kids."
Others weren't so sure anymore.
Within moments, Ayame—the daughter of Ichiraku Teuchi—returned with backup. But not just any backup.
Leading the charge were four clan leaders—pillars of the Leaf Village:
Shikaku Nara
Choza Akimichi
Inoichi Yamanaka
Tsume Inuzuka
Each bore the symbols of their clan, and each had received the emergency summons after the Uchiha Police Force had been restructured. The newly established Police HQ—approved by Fugaku Uchiha himself—was already in full effect.
The civilians stepped back as these giants of Konoha made their presence known.
Their arrival shifted the balance. This was no longer just a street-side scuffle—it was officially a village crisis.
Ayame wasted no time pointing at Naruto's limp form, his blonde head resting in Teuchi's lap as medics attended to his injuries.
"That boy—Naruto—he was attacked with a rock," she said, voice firm. "A group of kids threw it at him. His head split open from the impact."
She wasn't shaken. She wasn't hesitant.
This was the same boy who slurped ramen at her shop every week, always cheerful, always alone. Whatever rumors the village whispered, she saw none of it in his eyes—just a lonely, hungry boy with a big appetite and bigger heart.
"The ones who did this need to be caught. And punished."
The four clan heads turned to Naruto. Their expressions shifted.
Shock.
Recognition.
Confusion.
"Isn't that…?" Inoichi began.
Shikaku narrowed his eyes.
"The Jinchūriki."
Unlike the masses, these men knew the truth. The boy before them wasn't some orphaned misfit. He was the Nine-Tails' host. One of the most carefully chosen seal bearers in history, his Uzumaki lineage giving him a body built to endure the beast's chakra.
And yet… he was lying here bloodied, humiliated, and vulnerable.
A living nuclear bomb.
And no one had protected him.
If he had died, the Nine-Tails seal might've broken, releasing devastation once more.
Shikaku let out a low whistle. "This… could've ended in a village-wide disaster."
Even the cool-headed strategist looked unsettled.
Ryosuke stepped forward.
"Don't look so surprised," he said grimly. "You all know what he is. So tell me—how is it that a child holding the Nine-Tails can get attacked in broad daylight?"
None of the clan heads had an answer.
Suddenly, Tsume Inuzuka's ears twitched. She raised her nose to the air, sniffing sharply.
"I can still track the brats," she growled. "They haven't gone far."
With that, she turned on her heel and dashed down the street, hot on their trail—even without her nin-dogs.
Choza Akimichi and Inoichi nodded and followed her, leaving Shikaku behind to mediate.
Meanwhile, Naruto had been moved to a stretcher, Konoha medical-nin working hastily to stop the bleeding. They dabbed alcohol across his wounds, then applied anti-inflammatory salves.
Ryosuke watched in silence, arms folded.
His expression tightened as one of the medics muttered, "This is a deep wound…"
He stepped forward.
"Will it scar?" he asked flatly.
The medic hesitated. "We'll do our best, but… honestly, it'll be difficult. A wound this size is likely to leave a mark."
Ryosuke clicked his tongue.
"Try harder."
But even as he said it, he knew the answer.
Naruto might carry the scar for life. Both on his face… and in his heart.
Just then, a silver-haired figure emerged from the crowd—his presence subtle, yet unmistakable.
Hatake Kakashi.
Ryosuke's eyes zeroed in instantly.
There you are.
The Copy Ninja looked toward the gathering, his brow furrowing at the sight of his ANBU subordinate lying unconscious.
"What happened here?" he asked, walking over.
But before he could get another word out—
"Kakashi!"
Ryosuke's voice rang out like a crack of thunder.
"You're just now showing up?!"
The crowd fell silent.
Even Shikaku tilted his head in mild surprise.
Ryosuke's face twisted with fury.
"Look what happened while you were gone!" He pointed at Naruto, the bandages barely covering the oozing wound on the boy's head. "Where were you when a CHILD was being stoned nearly to death?!"
Kakashi froze.
He looked at Naruto—and his eyes widened.
He hadn't seen the boy since that morning.
"I… I had to step away briefly," Kakashi murmured. "I didn't think anything would happen in that time. I—"
"Don't apologize to me," Ryosuke cut him off coldly. "Apologize to his parents."
Kakashi's breath caught in his throat.
He said nothing.
But his eye—his lone Sharingan eye—narrowed in guilt.
He remembered Minato.
He remembered Kushina.
Their smiles.
Their deaths.
And the promise.
His promise.
Protect Naruto.
And now, he'd failed.
The three rogue children were dragged back by the clan leaders shortly after—each sniveling in terror. Even their parents, caught in the sweep, looked confused and pale.
They hadn't expected the Uchiha to come knocking on their door.
Nor did they expect their kids to be charged by the new military police.
As Naruto's bandages were secured and he was taken to the hospital, Ryosuke stood before the three trembling boys.
His gaze darkened.
"You three…" he said softly, "are very lucky he survived."
The boys whimpered.
Behind him, Kakashi watched in silence, the shame still etched into his expression.
He had failed Minato's son.
And now the Uchiha had stepped in to do what the Hokage hadn't:
Protect Naruto Uzumaki.