The Daimyo's inner palace, where the daimyo, his wife, and his children lived, was protected by many soldiers and ninjas who supported the daimyo.
Among the ninjas responsible for protecting the daimyo, the most powerful were the Twelve Guardian Ninja.
This was a guard team composed of twelve elite jonin, and Sarutobi Asuma was one of them.
Uchiha Fugaku remembered that there would be a civil war among the Twelve Guardian Ninja, and only three of the twelve would survive.
From then on, the Twelve Guardian Ninja would fall apart.
But now, the Twelve Guardian Ninja were still intact.
Swoosh—
With the help of the Mayfly Technique, Uchiha Fugaku avoided soldiers and ordinary ninjas and sneaked into the daimyo's palace.
The inner palace consisted of a huge palace complex surrounded by high walls.
Magnificent and grand.
Even though it was already night, it was still as bright as day, and many servants walked around, serving the daimyo and his many wives and children.
It was easy to see that the daimyo lived a luxurious life.
"The most majestic palace in the middle should be where the daimyo lives!"
On the surface of a huge stone pillar, Uchiha Fugaku, who was hiding using the Mayfly Technique, revealed his eyes.
His gaze first fell on the most magnificent palace in the center, and he guessed that was where the daimyo resided.
"But my target this time is not the daimyo, but Sarutobi Asuma!"
Uchiha Fugaku used the Yamanaka clan's perception ability to scan the surroundings, and suddenly a large area around him was included in his perception range.
He sensed that in the most majestic palace in the center, there were several faint chakra presences.
He guessed that it was not that the owners of these chakra signatures were weak, but that they were deliberately suppressing their chakra so that enemies wouldn't notice them.
However, this could not escape his perception, so in his vision, they appeared as faint chakra sources.
"There are several strong chakra sources in this direction. It should be the place where the Twelve Guardian Ninja reside!"
His eyes shifted to another direction.
It was a building next to the most majestic palace in the center. In this building, he sensed several powerful chakra sources.
The chakra signatures had reached the elite jonin level.
It was easy to guess that this was where the Twelve Guardian Ninja lived.
The members of the Twelve Guardian Ninja who had no guarding duties at the moment should be resting here.
If an attack occurred near the palace, they could immediately respond.
"I don't know if Sarutobi Asuma is on duty right now. Let's check the Twelve Guardian Ninja's quarters first."
Uchiha Fugaku sank underground and stealthily approached the quarters where the Twelve Guardian Ninja were suspected to live.
Soon, he arrived at the Twelve Guardian Ninja's residence.
He sensed that everyone inside was gathered in one room.
Following the chakra signatures, he quietly infiltrated the basement of the room and revealed only his eyes.
"This is perfect!"
There were four people inside the room.
One was a bald monk wearing a white robe.
One was a man with a short stubble beard.
One was a man with no beard and slightly long hair.
The last one was a woman.
Uchiha Fugaku's gaze fell on the man with the short stubble beard. This man was Sarutobi Asuma.
At this moment, Sarutobi Asuma did not have a full beard yet. Although he had some facial hair, it was just a light stubble.
"Chiriku, what's going on? Why are there twice as many guards tonight?"
The woman, named Fujika, was the only female among the Twelve Guardian Ninja and one of the Four Lightning Style Ninja.
She looked at the bald monk and asked.
The bald monk was Chiriku, a monk from the Fire Temple.
Hearing Fujika's question, Chiriku answered with a serious expression.
"We received news that a dangerous person has entered the daimyo's mansion. We suspect that they are here to harm the daimyo, so we increased security."
"Dangerous person? What kind of dangerous person?"
The man with slightly long hair and no beard asked in surprise.
His name was Kitane, and like Fujika, he was also one of the Four Lightning Style Ninja.
As members of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, they were not ordinary ninjas. Each of them possessed the strength of an elite jonin.
Having trained together for a long time, they worked in perfect synchronization.
If four members joined forces, they could temporarily fight against a Kage-level opponent.
If eight members fought together, they could even overwhelm a Kage.
Kitane was curious about what kind of dangerous person would require eight members to guard the daimyo.
"This person's name is Uchiha Fugaku."
Chiriku said seriously.
"Uchiha Fugaku? I've heard of him, the famous head of the Uchiha clan."
"Although this man is strong, he is nothing like Uchiha Madara. Wouldn't it be overkill to have eight of us watching for him?"
Fujika's voice carried doubt "In fact, the Uchiha clan has a genius named Uchiha Shisui, whose talent is comparable to Uchiha Madara. He is the real dangerous one."
Kitane added "Don't underestimate this man."
Asuma Sarutobi, who had been silent, finally spoke. His tone was grave.
"According to the latest intel from Konoha, Uchiha Fugaku may have already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan and has been hiding his strength for years."
"He has already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan and has been hiding his power all this time?"
Fujika and Kitane's expressions turned solemn.
As elite jonin, they had heard about the Mangekyō Sharingan and knew how dangerous it was.
It was because of these cursed eyes that Uchiha Madara once dominated the ninja world.
After a moment of silence, Fujika asked doubtfully.
"He's such a dangerous person, but are we sure he intends to harm the daimyo? How reliable is this information?"
"This information comes directly from the Third Hokage, so it should be trustworthy."
Chiriku replied.
"Originally, facing such a powerful person, the Twelve Guardian Ninja should be fully deployed. However, we need to keep some members for daytime protection, so only eight of us are on duty."
"Everyone, get some rest while you can. The four of us will take the day shift tomorrow."
"Understood."
The other three nodded, stood up, and headed toward their rooms.
Sarutobi Asuma returned to his chamber, blew out the candlelight, and lay on the tatami mat.
To stay alert, he kept his clothes on and placed his trench knives under his pillow.
He did not notice that in the darkness of the room, a shadow was emerging from the ground without making a single sound.
In the darkness, a pair of sinister blood-red eyes flickered ominously.
(End of this chapter)