Just as Yuto finished dealing with all the White Zetsu monitoring Kirigakure.
In Konoha, the same thing was being done.
On the Hokage Monument.
Hashirama Senju stood with his arms crossed, quietly atop the head of his own stone statue.
At his feet lay a White Zetsu, dead and silent.
"Truly peculiar life forms, somewhat similar to my Wood Release."
Hashirama Senju glanced at the White Zetsu at his feet, a strange look flashing in his eyes.
Originally, Hashirama Senju hadn't paid much mind to anyone monitoring Konoha.
Of course, it was also possible that he simply didn't care.
But the matter of Hyūga Neji and Uchiha Sasuke's defections had made him a little more vigilant.
Hyūga Neji was one thing. Based on the intelligence provided by the Hyūga clan, Hashirama Senju could largely deduce that before his revival, that man Yuto must have already made contact with him.
As for Uchiha Sasuke, someone must have secretly infiltrated Konoha to contact him in secret.
It was precisely this matter that made Hashirama Senju a little more vigilant.
He didn't expect that upon investigating, he would find several individuals hidden very deeply.
And the White Zetsu at his feet was just one of them.
"Madara?"
Hashirama Senju retracted his gaze from the dead White Zetsu, a thoughtful expression flashing in his eyes.
Currently, the shinobi world maintained this inexplicable balance precisely because of the three of them.
Hashirama Senju knew this situation wouldn't last long. Sooner or later, one person would actively break the current stalemate.
And once that situation arose, it would be a complete and total change.
Hashirama Senju lifted his head to look in the direction outside Konoha, a sharp glint in his eyes.
In a dark underground chamber in Konoha.
This place had once been a location specifically for Root to train its shinobi.
However, it was now long deserted. All Root shinobi had withdrawn from these secret locations established by Danzō after Jiraiya took over.
Given Jiraiya's personality, while he disapproved of the underhanded methods, he certainly wouldn't have allowed Root shinobi to continue training in the places Danzō had used.
Overnight, all the forces Danzō had established were purged.
After all, this was Hashirama Senju's command, and moreover, Jiraiya was not a man to be trifled with.
So, Danzō not only didn't resort to any petty tricks but proactively assisted Jiraiya in taking over Root.
This, in turn, left Jiraiya, who had already prepared for this, momentarily unable to adapt.
Of course, Danzō hadn't left himself without a backup plan.
Although his training methods were cruel, a large portion of Root shinobi remained absolutely loyal to him.
As for the less stable individuals, Danzō had already placed specialized sealing jutsu on them.
Although Jiraiya had taken over Root, it was fundamentally impossible to completely subdue all of Root's shinobi in a short time, so Danzō was not in a hurry.
As long as his plan succeeded, Root would return to his hands, and it would be no loss to Danzō.
This was why Danzō had proactively assisted Jiraiya in taking over Root.
Click!
A soft sound of a door opening echoed in the empty environment.
The originally flat wall suddenly retracted, revealing a doorway.
Danzō walked in through the doorway with a grim expression.
On his shoulder, he carried a figure.
With a slight shake of his shoulder, the figure he was carrying was casually thrown to the ground.
The unconscious shinobi was none other than Anko Mitarashi.
Danzō glanced at Anko Mitarashi and stood still, waiting quietly.
If he had any subordinates right now, dealing with Anko Mitarashi wouldn't require him to act personally.
In his current situation, if he were discovered by Konoha shinobi, his position would be very dangerous.
Time passed second by second, and as time went on, Danzō's forehead couldn't help but furrow slightly.
"Hnnn..."
Just then, Anko Mitarashi suddenly let out a pained groan.
Seeing this, a cold glint flashed in Danzō's eyes. He raised his cane and gave it a slight flick.
In an instant, the afterimage of the cane struck the back of Anko Mitarashi's neck.
Anko Mitarashi, who had just shown signs of waking, fainted again.
"As expected of Danzō-sama."
A voice laced with flattery sounded from the doorway Danzō had emerged from.
Kabuto Yakushi glanced in Anko Mitarashi's direction, pushing up his glasses.
"You're late. I hope Orochimaru can truly be revived, and it's best if he can offer a reward that satisfies me, otherwise..."
Danzō looked at Kabuto Yakushi with an icy gaze, his eyes brimming with undisguised killing intent.
"I will definitely not disappoint you, Danzō-sama."
Kabuto Yakushi's expression remained unchanged, still maintaining a gentle demeanor as he spoke softly.
Danzō stared deeply at Kabuto Yakushi, then took out a scroll from his robes and tossed it over.
Kabuto Yakushi caught the scroll without hesitation, quickly forming hand seals and pressing them onto it.
As a puff of white smoke dispersed, a piece of pale, slightly writhing flesh appeared before Kabuto Yakushi.
Feeling the life force emanating from this piece of flesh, Kabuto Yakushi's eyes lit up.
This was a piece of flesh cultivated from Hashirama Senju's cells.
Such things were not lacking in Orochimaru's secret bases. But now, Kabuto Yakushi, being within Konoha, had no way of obtaining it, so he could only ask Danzō for help.
After confirming there were no issues, Kabuto Yakushi picked up the piece of flesh and walked directly towards Anko Mitarashi.
He placed the flesh on Anko Mitarashi's neck, at the location of her Curse Mark.
Next, Kabuto Yakushi also took out a scroll from his robes, unfurling it and pressing it onto the slightly writhing piece of flesh.
This scroll contained Orochimaru's own chakra.
After finishing all this, Kabuto Yakushi's expression turned serious, and his hands began to form seals at a rapid pace.
"Release!"
As the final hand seal was completed, Kabuto Yakushi slammed his hand on the ground, letting out a low shout.
Black lines rapidly enveloped Anko Mitarashi.
The next moment.
The area on Anko Mitarashi's neck where the Curse Mark was suddenly began to tremble.
Whoosh!!
A white bud suddenly burst from the Curse Mark, instantly transforming into the shape of a white snake, which then burrowed into the specially prepared piece of flesh.
That piece of flesh expanded at a visible speed, before Danzō's somewhat astonished gaze.
Orochimaru, with a faint smile on his lips, appeared before the two of them.
If you're enjoying this story, consider supporting on Patreon. You'll get 30 advance chapters immediately, plus monthly updates and bonus content. Every subscription keeps the chapters coming.
Patreon: patreon.com/anish_44
Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/anish_44