Sarutobi Hiruzen immediately thought of Danzo, and it wasn't a baseless accusation.
After all, Danzo had indeed conducted Wood Release experiments, and there was even a survivor named Yamato—currently Anbu's Tenzo.
If there was one survivor, there could be a second.
Given Danzo's personality, he was certainly capable of such a thing. He might even have thrown Tenzo out to mislead him, to hide the second survivor.
Sharingan plus Wood Release—two Bloodline Limits combined in one person—Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't even imagine how powerful that would be.
Goodness! Danzo, you've hidden so much from me! Sarutobi Hiruzen now wished he could rush to the Shimura Clan's compound, seize Danzo, and interrogate him thoroughly.
But with Kitazawa and Kakashi in front of him, he temporarily suppressed the impulse in his heart.
"Tell me in detail about the battle process," Sarutobi Hiruzen said after sitting down again.
"Yes." Kakashi began with his and Kitazawa's swordsmanship, up to the point where they severed one of Uchiha Obito's arms, allowing him to escape.
"You did very well." Hiruzen couldn't help but praise them after listening. "Especially Kitazawa, for finding his weakness in such a short time."
With one arm severed and severely wounded, it would be much easier to find him. As long as he was in Konoha Village, no matter how Danzo hid him, he couldn't escape his eyes.
"You've worked hard today; do not speak of this matter to anyone." Hiruzen waved his hand and said, "I will immediately send people to investigate this mysterious masked man."
He currently had no intelligence so he couldn't say much to Kakashi and Kitazawa.
"Hokage-sama, if there are any results, I hope you can inform me," Kakashi hesitated and said. "This person gave me a familiar feeling; perhaps I've seen him before."
"You've seen him? That's a useful clue." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded. "I will inform you when there are results."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama."
Kakashi bowed slightly and left the Hokage Office with Kitazawa.
"Haru," Sarutobi Hiruzen immediately called out.
"Hokage-sama." An Anbu Ninja, Haru, pushed the door open and walked in.
"Where is Danzo now?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked.
"Still at the Shimura Clan compound," Haru replied.
"Take the Anbu and come with me to the Shimura Clan compound." Sarutobi Hiruzen stood up, then suddenly paused and said, "Don't bring Itachi."
"Yes, Hokage-sama." Haru turned and left.
After waiting a few minutes, Sarutobi Hiruzen walked towards the Shimura Clan's compound. Soon, he arrived at his destination.
"Hiruzen."
Danzo had already received the news in advance and was waiting at the entrance. Upon seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen, he quickly went to greet him.
At this moment, Danzo had only one thought: his old friend hadn't forgotten him, and after only a few days, he couldn't resist coming to find him.
He naturally assumed that Hiruzen had come to reinstate him. After all, he hadn't made any mistakes during this time, so it couldn't be a special visit to cause trouble.
"All of you, stand down." Hiruzen waved his hand. "I need to talk to Danzo alone."
The other Shimura Clan Ninja immediately left upon hearing this.
"Hiruzen, what's the matter?" Danzo asked very casually.
"I ask you." Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression became extremely serious. "Besides Tenzo, are there any other Wood Release experiment survivors?"
"...?" Danzo was completely stunned.
What's going on? Why is he asking about the Wood Release experiments again? Did Tsunade discover something?
"To my knowledge, Tenzo is the only survivor," Danzo said with certainty.
"Danzo!" Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly raised his voice. "I'm not joking with you! Tell me honestly!"
Why are you shouting so loudly? Danzo was startled.
But when he came to his senses, he felt his scalp tingle. He understood Sarutobi Hiruzen and knew he wouldn't ask such questions without reason. Then there was only one truth.
"Hiruzen, have you seen a second Wood Release Ninja?" Danzo couldn't help but ask.
"Indeed," Sarutobi Hiruzen admitted.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Danzo quickly denied. "When I arrived at Orochimaru's laboratory back then, only Tenzo was alive!"
"Could Orochimaru have secretly kept a second Wood Release survivor?" Sarutobi Hiruzen's face suddenly darkened as he asked.
"Very likely!" Danzo's eyes lit up. "The Wood Release experiments were led by Orochimaru; I mainly provided materials and funds!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help but frown deeply. He stood still, lost in thought. Judging by Danzo's reaction, he seemed to be telling the truth.
So, was it really Orochimaru? But if it was Orochimaru, why would he send this Wood Release Ninja to attack Kakashi and Kitazawa? Does he have a grudge against Kakashi?
"That bastard Orochimaru actually tricked me!" Danzo said with great displeasure.
"It's still too early to say if it's Orochimaru." Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at him. "But there are some ways to find out the identity of the second Wood Release Ninja."
"Hiruzen, do you have any clues?" Danzo offered. "This matter can be entrusted to me; you just need to let me mobilize the former Root Ninja."
"No need." Sarutobi Hiruzen refused him without hesitation. "But there is one thing I do need your help with."
"What is it?" Danzo settled for the next best thing and asked.
Restoring the Root all at once was clearly not very possible. He just mentioned it. But as long as Sarutobi Hiruzen needed him to do something, one day, he and his Root would return again.
"Do you have any Sharingan there?" Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly asked.
"Hiruzen, what do you mean?" Danzo shivered and asked.
"You know what I mean." Sarutobi Hiruzen snorted coldly. "I'm not being explicit to save your face."
"Although I don't like the Uchiha, I would never attack them to seize their Sharingan!" Danzo said righteously.
Regarding the Sharingan, he would absolutely not hand them over. He himself didn't have many Sharingan; they were the result of many years of accumulation.
In the original work, he had a handful of Sharingan, which he collected during the Uchiha Clan massacre night.
"Really not going to tell?" Sarutobi Hiruzen's face darkened.
"Hiruzen, do you have to push me to this point?" Danzo's heart trembled as he spoke with great indignation.
"Take care of yourself."
Sarutobi Hiruzen was silent for two seconds before turning and leaving. He ultimately couldn't bring himself to kill his old friend of several decades.
Originally, his plan had been to investigate the whereabouts of the Sharingan to determine the identity of the second Wood Release ninja.
Sarutobi Hiruzen assumed this Wood Release ninja had transplanted Sharingan rather than being born with them.
After all, given the relationship between Danzo and the Uchiha Clan, it was hard to imagine them cooperating.
But with Danzo uncooperative, the investigation became much more difficult. For now, his immediate plan was to search Konoha Village and the surrounding areas to see if he could find any trace of this Wood Release ninja.
"Hiruzen, you'll regret this!" Danzo stood rooted to the spot, trembling all over as he spoke angrily.
He already felt the bond between him and Sarutobi Hiruzen had completely severed.
"It seems I'll have to use Kotoamatsukami then!" A ruthless glint flashed in Danzo's eyes.
He had originally intended to use it on Sarutobi Hiruzen, but feared Hiruzen was too strong and might resist Kotoamatsukami. Therefore, he ultimately set his sights on Tsunade.
However, it was not yet the right time. To avoid being detected by the Uchiha Clan, he would have to wait until the day the Fifth Hokage was truly decided.
---
Ninja Academy.
"Kitazawa, thank you for today." Kakashi slowly exhaled as he spoke.
"What's there to thank?" Kitazawa replied indifferently. "We're all Konoha ninja. We should naturally fight together against enemies."
"Not just that mysterious masked man," Kakashi added, "but also this sword you gave me."
The sword—reforged from the Lightning Blade: Kiba and possessing lightning-attracting effects—was not inferior in value to a chakra sword. He owed Kitazawa a great favor.
Logically, he shouldn't have accepted it, but he truly liked this ninja blade. Since he had already accepted it, he wouldn't be overly sentimental. He would repay Kitazawa when the chance came.
"It's nothing," Kitazawa waved his hand. "Anyway, it was just picked up for free."
Perhaps because Lightning Blade: Kiba was acquired too easily, he didn't care much about the sword.
Besides, ninja blades weren't particularly useful in front of true powerhouses. No matter how precious, it was still just a blade.
Kakashi was speechless. You make it sound like Kurosuki Raiga threw away Lightning Blade: Kiba for no reason. He felt like complaining, but didn't know how.
"There's one more thing," Kakashi said after a few steps, suddenly remembering. "I plan to take a day off next Tuesday."
"Are you going on an outside mission?" Kitazawa asked, somewhat curious.
"No," Kakashi shook his head. "I'm going to the Memorial Stone."
Kitazawa's heart skipped a beat at this. The Memorial Stone—Konoha Village's public cemetery—is where all ninja who died in battle are honored.
Kakashi going there was most likely to pay respects to Rin Nohara.
Without a doubt, under normal circumstances, Obito would also go. Kitazawa suddenly understood why the Hidden Mist Village delegation had arrived so late.
It wasn't that they didn't care about Kurosuki Raiga and Lightning Blade: Kiba, but rather that Obito wanted to take this opportunity to pay respects to Rin.
But with Obito now severely injured, he definitely couldn't go to the Memorial Stone.
"The Genius Class training has already entered a regular schedule. Your absence for one day won't have any impact," Kitazawa replied.
"Mm." Kakashi paused, then said, "Thank you."
"Although the mysterious masked man is injured, he might return to Konoha for revenge once he recovers. You must be careful then." Kitazawa warned.
"I understand," Kakashi said seriously.
The mysterious masked man would definitely come for him first if he returned to Konoha—because he had not only cut off his arm but also driven a Lightning Release: Raikiri into his heart.
"Will he survive such severe injuries?" Kakashi pondered aloud.
"Hard to say," Kitazawa replied meaningfully. "Sharingan plus Wood Release—he might have a special way to preserve his life."
"Mm." Kakashi nodded.
The two returned to the training ground and took their respective students to class.
Kitazawa stood not far away, watching the training of Hinata, Ino, and others. Each student's progress varied.
After nearly a month of training, three individuals were ready for the next stage: Inuzuka Hana, Inuzuka Kiba, and Akimichi Choji.
Choji had been learning the Partial Multi-Size Technique and had nearly mastered it. The next stage of training wouldn't be much trouble; he just needed to continue practicing the Akimichi Clan's secret techniques, such as the Human Bullet Tank.
Inuzuka Hana and Kiba were both learning secret techniques modified by Kitazawa—Quadruple Fang Over Fang for Hana and Three-Headed Hellhound for Kiba.
Hana had her own ninja hounds and could also learn the Inuzuka Clan's secret techniques, just like Choji.
But Kiba was more troublesome. Should there be another Four-Headed Hellhound? That wouldn't make much sense—an increase in heads didn't necessarily mean an increase in strength.
Kitazawa stroked his chin.
From the current situation, he felt Kiba lacked offensive capabilities. Especially after transforming into a Three-Headed Hellhound, Kiba's usable offensive methods were still very primitive.
When testing the chakra natures of the Genius Class students earlier, Kitazawa remembered that Kiba's chakra nature was Earth.
So, should he teach him Earth Release? But Kitazawa found the Earth Release ninjutsu he possessed wasn't suitable for Kiba, because after transforming into a Three-Headed Hellhound, Kiba couldn't perform hand seals.
"Earth Release ninjutsu that doesn't require hand seals?" Kitazawa pondered for a moment but found no good ideas.
He suddenly thought of the Heavenly Foot of Pain.
The Three-Headed Hellhound was enormous; a single stomp with its front legs would surely create an effect similar to the Heavenly Foot of Pain — the ground cracking, debris flying everywhere.
But Kiba was still young, and with the Three-Headed Hellhound having only two front legs, learning the Heavenly Foot of Pain would be too difficult.
Moreover, the Heavenly Foot of Pain was an application of Chakra Enhanced strength. With Inuzuka Kiba's current talent, he would most likely be unable to master it.
That left only one method: modification.
Significantly reduce the difficulty based on the Heavenly Foot of Pain. Remove most of the complex techniques, keep the raw power, and simply output chakra with all his might.
"I feel like I'm really following in Senju Tobirama's footsteps." Kitazawa chuckled wryly. But it wasn't bad either.
Not only could he develop new ninjutsu, but he could also trade them for techniques of the same level with Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Occasionally, the system even issued missions. Overall, the returns were very high.
Because the monthly exam was approaching, Kitazawa was not in a hurry to push Hana, Kiba, and Choji into the next stage of training.
He would wait until after the exam; in the meantime, he also needed to quickly create a Three-Headed Hellhound version of the Heavenly Foot of Pain.
After observing for a while, Kitazawa split off two shadow clones to stay at the training ground and guide the students. He himself went to a secluded corner of the school.
[Current Mission: Drive away Uchiha Obito.
Mission Reward: Three-Tomoe Sharingan.]
[The host has completed the mission. Reward issued.]
After ensuring he was alone, Kitazawa immediately activated the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
At once, he felt a surge in his eye power — or rather, his chakra — and everything in his vision became much clearer. This was the superior observational power of the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
Of course, this observational power was mostly used in battle. He could easily see an enemy's movements and even copy their ninjutsu on the spot.
Besides that, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan possessed the ability to cast and dispel genjutsu.
In other words, he didn't need to perform hand seals; a single glare was enough to trap an opponent in genjutsu — simple and terrifying. Without exaggeration, this glare alone put him at the pinnacle of ordinary genjutsu ninja.
After testing the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Kitazawa headed to the school's artificial lake. Although Obito wouldn't reappear for a while, he still felt the pressure. His strength was still a bit lacking.
With Senju Chakra Mode, he could temporarily suppress Obito. But Kamui's intangibility lasted five minutes, while Senju Chakra Mode lasted only three.
However, Kitazawa already had an idea for extending the duration of Senju Chakra Mode: simply put, the more chakra he used, the longer it would last.
In short, Kitazawa now needed to quickly learn more ninjutsu and complete more system missions.
Earth Release: Earth Replacement was almost mastered; today, he was learning Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu.
This technique allowed the user to dive underground to launch a surprise attack or evade enemy attacks. Overall, it was highly practical, allowing both offense and escape.
---
A cave somewhere in the Land of Fire.
"Kakashi!" Obito suddenly opened his eyes, letting out a heart-wrenching roar of anger. But what followed was pain from all over his body, causing his face to contort.
"The injuries you've sustained this time are comparable to those from the Kannabi Bridge battle." A familiar voice sounded from not far away.
Obito subconsciously turned his head and saw Zetsu. Zetsu's body was half white and half black, with a pitcher-plant-like structure on his head.
The words just spoken came from Black Zetsu, the ultimate mastermind in the original story. The other half, White Zetsu, was the main body of all the White Zetsu.
"If it weren't for Hashirama cells, you would have died on the spot." Black Zetsu shook his head. "Before the Eye of the Moon Plan begins, you mustn't go to Konoha again. Focus on recovering."
It was truly wary of Obito. He had gone to Konoha twice, and both times he'd come back with serious injuries.
It just wanted to calmly complete its plan and rescue its mother, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
"I won't die," Obito said with a frown.
He not only had the powerful regenerative abilities granted by Hashirama cells, but also a resurrection ninjutsu like Izanagi.
"Don't forget why Madara went to such great lengths to save you." Black Zetsu reminded him, "Once the Eye of the Moon Plan succeeds, a mere Konoha can be destroyed with a flick of a finger."
"But I—" Obito's face twisted with unwillingness.
He had originally thought that with his awakened Mangekyō Sharingan, Hashirama cells, and Wood Release, he could easily defeat Kakashi.
Who knew he would have his heart pierced — just like Rin.
"Once your injuries heal, go join the Akatsuki Organization and start the Eye of the Moon Plan as soon as possible," Black Zetsu said flatly.
"You've reminded me." Obito's expression shifted, then darkened with deep-seated hatred. "I'll make the Hidden Mist Village give Konoha a grand gift!"
Since he was joining the Akatsuki Organization, there was no need to keep controlling the Hidden Mist Village.
But before abandoning it, he wanted the Hidden Mist to fuel the flames of his anger — making them burn even brighter.