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Inside Kakashi's house.
After a frantic scramble, Kakashi finally managed to shove his copy of "Icha Icha Paradise" underneath his rear end.
However, whether it was due to his excessive haste or the sofa conspiring against him, as he stuffed the book under his bottom, he slipped and ended up sitting on the floor.
Fortunately, "Icha Icha Paradise" remained firmly pinned beneath him, completely hidden from view even after his undignified slide.
"Huh?" Seeing this, Goku scratched his head with a bewildered expression, not understanding why Kakashi was having such an extreme reaction.
"Phew~ Oh, it's you, Mr Goku." After getting a clear look at the figure before him, Kakashi let out a long breath.
He wasn't actually afraid of others knowing he read "Icha Icha Paradise," a fact made evident by his ability to read it with relish on the street in broad daylight.
But just now, he had been reading what was, in his opinion, the most explosive and stimulating passage he had ever encountered.
This, combined with Goku's sudden appearance, had left him no time to think, scaring him into his current state.
Now that he had his wits about him, he stopped trying to hide it. He nonchalantly pulled the book out from under his behind and tucked it into his pocket.
"Mr Goku, were you looking for me...?" He trailed off as his eyes fell upon the four motionless figures lying at Goku's feet.
Due to his earlier panic and the coffee table obstructing his view after he slid to the floor, he hadn't noticed them immediately.
Now that he had calmed down, the situation finally registered.
"What is this?!" His pupils constricted as he recognised their attire. They were Anbu Black Ops!
His first instinct was to demand an explanation from Goku. But just as he was about to speak, another thought struck him.
He moved in a flash, kneeling beside one of the figures. He pried open the man's mouth and pulled out his tongue.
'Just as I thought!' His gaze hardened. A single, ugly black mark was visible on the man's tongue.
It was the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, a cursed mark applied only to members of Root. This meant the man was not a regular Anbu, but a Root ninja!
He quickly checked the tongues of the other three and found the same cursed seal on each of them.
"Mr Goku, please tell me exactly what happened," he said, his expression grave as he looked at Goku.
The Root organisation was a special unit that operated outside of Konoha's official command structure, answering only to Danzo, not to the Hokage.
Their methods were even more ruthless and unforgiving than the Anbu's; they were a fearsome force that even he had to treat with extreme caution.
Why would such a force suddenly target Goku? Could that man have his eyes on him? At this thought, his heart grew heavier, and he stared intently at Goku.
"These four guys broke into my house just now, so I knocked them out," Goku said with a cheerful grin, his hands on his hips.
"..." A deep sense of exasperation washed over Kakashi.
"Mr Goku, could you please be a little more detailed?" He placed special emphasis on the word "detailed."
"More detailed?" Hearing the request, Goku scratched his face, stroked his chin in thought for a moment, and then said, "I was taking a nice, relaxing bath when these four guys suddenly broke in and attacked me. So, I knocked them out."
"Did they say anything?"
"Hmm... I think so, but I don't remember! Haha!" Goku said, scratching his head with an embarrassed laugh.
Kakashi rubbed his forehead. Although Goku's account was still lacking in detail, he could piece together the general course of events.
These four Root ninjas had received an order from that man and had attacked Goku in the middle of the night.
The most likely objective was to capture him; the less likely one was to kill him on the spot.
But they hadn't counted on Goku's immense strength, and he had ended up knocking them all out instead.
"Mr Goku, I will report this to Lord Hokage and get to the bottom of it," he said after a moment of thought.
"Now that these four have failed, it's unlikely anyone else will come for you tonight. If they do, please continue to knock them out. Of course, if necessary, you can kill them without any issue."
"So you'll take care of these four for me?" Goku asked with a simple-minded grin.
"Leave them to me."
"Then I'll be going." With that, before Kakashi could say another word, Goku's figure abruptly vanished.
"Sigh. Looks like I won't be getting a good night's sleep tonight," Kakashi muttered with a troubled expression, looking at the four unconscious bodies on his floor.
--In the Hokage's office--
Hiruzen Sarutobi set down the last of his paperwork, rubbing his sore lower back and letting out a weary sigh.
"I'm really getting old. Just a little bit of overtime and I'm already exhausted."
He shook his head with a sigh and was about to get up and go home for the night. But just then, someone delivered more work to him.
Kakashi suddenly leapt through the window, carrying four bodies, and said with a grim face, "Lord Hokage, there is an urgent matter to report!"
A few minutes later.
BAM!!
Hiruzen slammed his fist on the desk, his face contorted with rage. "How dare he! How could Danzo do such a thing!"
He couldn't believe it. Just because he hadn't told Danzo about Goku's origins, Danzo had sent men to attack him in the middle of the night.
Goku was an individual of considerable power, a fact made clear by his ability to incapacitate four Root ninja silently.
He came from a mysterious place; who knew how many others there were with strength equal to his?
If Konoha were to make an enemy of him, wouldn't they be needlessly provoking a group of enemies whose power was completely unknown?
The more he thought about it, the angrier Hiruzen became. He immediately summoned an Anbu guard. "Go and tell Danzo to come and see me. Right now!"
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
At that moment, in the same dark, underground chamber, Danzo was also in a furious rage.
"You're telling me we lost contact with Mu's team half an hour ago? Then why are you only telling me this now?"
Before him, a kneeling Root operative lowered his head and said fearfully, "Lord Danzo, I thought they had simply delayed their report due to the mission. So I decided to wait. But after half an hour, there was still no reply."
Danzo's face was dark as he kicked the man in the head.
"You thought? In this place, I am the only one who makes decisions! You are not required to think, only to follow my orders!"
The operative, ignoring the blood trickling from his forehead, prostrated himself on the ground. "Yes, Lord Danzo! I was wrong!"
Danzo closed his eyes, his thoughts unreadable.
After a moment, just as he was about to issue a new command, an Anbu member entered from outside and bowed respectfully. "Lord Danzo, Lord Hokage wishes to see you now."
Hearing this, Danzo's eyes narrowed. 'Hiruzen wants to see me now? Could it be...'
A short while later, in the Hokage's office.
"Danzo, who gave you permission to do this?"
This time, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression was anything but friendly. He pointed at the four unconscious Root ninja on the floor, his face dark with anger.
Danzo glanced at them, and understanding dawned on him instantly. It was just as he had suspected: Team Mu, the unit sent to capture Goku, had failed.
As for who had subdued them... he shot a look at the silent Kakashi standing nearby and sneered internally.
'Hmph, Hiruzen. I didn't expect you to assign Kakashi as a personal bodyguard. I was careless this time.'
Seeing Kakashi there, he immediately concluded that Team Mu had fallen at his hands.
"Hiruzen, who is this man that you would go to such lengths to protect him?" he asked, his tone icy.
Hearing Danzo indirectly admit his involvement, Hiruzen's anger paradoxically subsided into a cold calm.
"Danzo, that is not something you need to know. All you need to know is that you are not to touch him."
Danzo's eyes narrowed. Partly to save face and partly to test the waters, he replied, "And what if I insist on making a move?"
Hearing this, Hiruzen looked at him and said plainly, "Danzo, you need to remember. I am the Hokage!"
(T/N: Please give me some power stone, I hope it can at least reach the top 100)
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