Naruto: Zoro of Uchiha Chapter 54 54 — It’s Time to Collect Some Interest

At the entrance of Konoha Village, the outbreak of the Great Ninja War had pushed security to an unprecedented level.

Just the outer gate alone was guarded by two full patrol squads constantly rotating shifts without pause.

The atmosphere was tense and oppressive.

Every shinobi entering or leaving the village was subjected to strict inspection, and hidden observers were stationed throughout the surrounding area.

It could honestly be said that not even a mosquito should have been able to slip inside unnoticed.

"Who are you? Stop right there. Konoha isn't allowing outsiders to enter during this period."

A stern voice rang out from the gate.

Zoro stood beneath the shade of a black hooded cloak, his appearance and figure almost completely concealed by darkness.

The patrol squad imdiately beca alert.

Hands quietly moved toward kunai pouches.

So of the shinobi had already begun circulating chakra through their bodies, prepared to attack at any mont if the stranger made the slightest suspicious movent.

"It's ."

Zoro calmly raised a hand and removed the hood covering his face.

The mont his appearance was revealed—

The Uchiha clan mbers stationed at the gate instantly widened their eyes.

"It's Young Master Zoro!! You're alive?!"

The Konoha Military Police guards, all mbers of the Uchiha Clan, imdiately revealed expressions of shock and excitent after recognizing the familiar face standing before them.

The atmosphere instantly erupted into commotion.

"What 'Young Master'? You should be calling him the Second Elder now."

The teammate beside him quickly smacked the excited clan mber on the shoulder and corrected him in a low voice.

"O-Oh, right!"

The young Uchiha imdiately straightened himself.

"Sorry, Second Elder. I got carried away. Please return to the clan grounds quickly. Once the Clan Head and the others learn that you're safe, they'll definitely be overjoyed."

For the past six months, nearly everyone within the Uchiha Clan had believed Zoro was already dead.

After all, even the ANBU search teams had failed to find any trace of him.

Combined with the death of his grandfather, most people had long since given up hope.

Yet now—

The man himself had suddenly appeared alive at the gates of Konoha.

...

Zoro slowly raised his hand, stopping the excited Uchiha before him.

"Calm down."

His voice was flat and emotionless.

"I forbid all of you from telling anyone you saw today. Anyone who disobeys will be punished according to clan law."

"Huh?"

The surrounding clan mbers froze.

Their expressions imdiately turned confused after hearing Zoro's cold command.

They had originally assud he would imdiately return to the clan grounds after surviving such a long disappearance.

No one expected him to issue an order like this instead.

"I have my own plans," Zoro said calmly. "For now, nobody is allowed to spread word of my return."

"Yes, Second Elder."

Seeing the unquestionable resolve in Zoro's gaze, the Uchiha guards could only lower their heads and obey despite their confusion.

None of them understood what exactly Zoro intended to do.

But one thing was certain—

The current Zoro felt completely different from before.

The pressure he emitted alone was enough to make people instinctively tense.

anwhile, shortly after Zoro entered the village—

Several ANBU agents hidden near the gate slowly climbed up from the ground with confused expressions.

"H-Hey… wake up. I think we were attacked by sothing."

An ANBU mber wearing a cat-faced mask crouched down and shook the unconscious teammate beside him.

"What happened?"

The other ANBU abruptly sat up.

"Why did I suddenly black out?"

The mont they regained consciousness, the expressions beneath their masks imdiately beca serious.

All of them had lost consciousness simultaneously without even realizing what had happened.

That alone was terrifying.

After realizing the severity of the situation, several ANBU imdiately used the Body Flicker Technique and appeared in front of the Konoha Military Police stationed at the gate.

"You lot," one ANBU asked coldly, "did you notice any suspicious individuals entering the village?"

Hearing the question, the captain of the Military Police squad calmly crossed his arms.

The green uniform of the Konoha Military Police made his Uchiha crest especially noticeable beneath the gate lights.

"If even ANBU didn't notice anything," he replied indifferently, "why would we?"

The sarcasm in his tone was impossible to miss.

The atmosphere instantly turned unpleasant.

Hearing the Uchiha's response, the ANBU mber's gaze grew colder beneath his mask.

Could soone truly have infiltrated Konoha?

But that should have been impossible.

The Military Police guarding the gate clearly showed no signs of battle or alarm either.

Yet if that were true…

Then why had every single one of them suddenly lost consciousness at the sa ti?

The more they thought about it, the more unsettling the situation beca.

No.

This matter absolutely had to be reported to the Hokage imdiately.

The ANBU exchanged glances with one another before instantly vanishing from the gate area using Body Flicker Technique.

Monts later, they arrived outside the Hokage's office.

But before they could even enter—

They suddenly heard Hiruzen Sarutobi speaking with soone inside.

"Shisui, regarding your recent mission…"

***

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