It is narrated from Sayyiduna Imran bin Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sent out a military detachment and appointed Sayyiduna Ali bin Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) as its commander. Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) set out on that expedition and took a slave girl (from the spoils), which the Companions objected to, and four Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) made a pact among themselves: when we meet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), we will tell him about what Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) has done. Sayyiduna Imran (may Allah be pleased with him) says: It was the custom of the Muslims that when they returned from a journey, they would first present themselves before the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and greet him with salam, and then go to their lodgings. So when this detachment returned, they greeted the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) with salam. Then the first of those four stood up and said: O Messenger of Allah! Have you not seen that Ali did such and such? He (peace and blessings be upon him) turned away from him. Then the second stood up and said the same thing, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) turned away from him too. Then the third stood up and said the same thing, and he (peace and blessings be upon him) turned away from him too. Then when the fourth stood up and also said the same thing, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) turned towards him, with signs of anger on his (peace and blessings be upon him) blessed face, and said: "What do you people want from Ali? Indeed, Ali is from me and I am from him, and he is the wali (patron and friend) of every believer." This hadith is sahih (authentic) on the condition of Imam Muslim, but the two Shaykhs did not record it.