The moment Danzō saw Root completely surrounded by ANBU, he genuinely felt his blood go cold.
Of course he knew—between himself and that old friend of his, there were countless contradictions and grudges.
Especially considering he had once tried to assassinate him.
For a brief, terrifying moment, Danzō truly wondered—
Is he using this incident as an excuse to finally kill me?
"Danzō," Hiruzen said, not bothering to descend. He remained above, looking down at him with that calm, suffocating authority.
"I know you hate Kakashi—but you've gone too far."
"I don't want shinobi of the same village killing each other," he continued evenly.
"You understand that."
The hell you mean "righteous" like that? Do you even remember what Root exists for?
Danzō swallowed the curse in his throat.
He knew he couldn't say it.
And he absolutely couldn't admit to anything Hiruzen was implying.
"What are you talking about, Hiruzen?" Danzō snapped instead. "I have no prejudice against Kakashi. He is the one who trespassed into Root's base!"
"Trespassed?" Hiruzen shook his head. His voice dropped—quiet, but heavy enough to crush.
"I issued an order summoning you. I've heard you pretended you weren't here, so he entered to find you. Is that correct?"
Danzō didn't answer.
He couldn't figure out what Hiruzen was trying to do by pressing him this hard.
But then his eyes flicked to Kinoe, standing there—
and to Ren, positioned in front of Kakashi's group.
A thought suddenly surfaced.
Is this deliberate? Is he forcing me to hand Kinoe over… while making sure Ren sees me submit to the Hokage?
That brat's performance in Sunagakure had been too outstanding.
"…Then the message must have been delivered incorrectly," Danzō said stiffly. "This is the first I'm hearing of it."
He lifted his chin.
"In that case, the Kakashi matter ends here."
"I summoned you," Hiruzen said, refusing to let Danzō wriggle out so easily, "for what I'm about to say next."
He paused for a moment, then continued.
"You know Wood Release is a power the village has long dreamed of. We once conducted high-risk experiments to obtain it."
His gaze sharpened.
"Yet you hid this power inside Root. Tell me why."
Danzō's heart sank.
So it really is about that.
He couldn't keep up a calm façade anymore.
"I did it to protect and cultivate him," Danzō said quickly. "I never meant to conceal anything. And this doesn't require reporting, does it?"
"But Danzō…"
Hiruzen adjusted the brim of his hat, calm in a way that left no opening to strike back.
"The jinchūriki will be entering the Academy soon. Wood Release sealing techniques are becoming more and more important to the village."
Danzō went silent.
Because once the topic became the jinchūriki, everything changed.
If they were weighing what mattered most—
What could possibly outweigh that?
But without Kinoe's Wood Release…
How would Danzō ever control the jinchūriki in the future?
In that instant, Danzō's fury crystallized into something bitter.
So it was all arranged.
They used this incident to force me to bend, let Ren see it… and then take Kinoe away.
Danzō's fist tightened until it hurt.
All of this—
all of this humiliation—
was because he was not Hokage.
If he were Hokage…
Who would dare pull something like this on him?
"So, Danzō," Hiruzen said calmly, "I will place him into ANBU. Root was originally meant to be ANBU's training center, wasn't it?"
Hiruzen didn't know—or didn't care—about the storm inside Danzō's mind. He simply continued, voice steady.
"You have already provided ANBU with many excellent talents."
His gaze drifted—briefly—toward Ren.
"For example, Ren."
"So I hope you can be magnanimous this time as well."
He paused, then added:
"To thank you for your contribution, I can write everything off. And as for that previous matter… I can agree to your request."
That previous matter…
Danzō understood immediately.
Ren's contact with Naruto.
But Danzō's anger surged again.
You're taking Kinoe from me and still acting generous?
Danzō raised his head, eyes burning at Hiruzen.
"…Fine."
His voice was low and tight.
"Do it."
In the end, Danzō still backed down.
With ANBU fully encircling Root, who knew what other forces were waiting outside?
He truly feared Hiruzen would take this chance to abolish Root entirely.
"But I want to speak to him alone," Danzō added, pointing directly at Ren.
"He came out of my Root."
"…Very well," Hiruzen said.
Then he emphasized, calmly but pointedly:
"We'll wait outside. Remember—he is now an ANBU shinobi."
With that, Hiruzen waved his hand and ordered all ANBU to withdraw, leaving only Danzō—standing there with a face like thunder.
This wasn't negotiation anymore.
This was a straight-up snatch.
"Ren…"
Yugao's voice was tight with worry. Seeing real high-level conflict up close for the first time left her shaken—she had no idea what Danzō intended to do to Ren.
"Relax," Ren said, patting her shoulder lightly. "Wait outside."
Then he walked straight up to Danzō without hesitation.
The instant everyone left—
Danzō finally snapped.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
His voice was furious, barely restrained.
"Are you betraying me like Kinoe? Don't forget your Director still needs funding!"
"And don't forget the cursed seal on your body—you can't remove it!"
Nice try, Ren mocked inwardly.
Nono is in Iwagakure, and my cursed seal has been gone for a long time.
But he knew he needed to act.
So he removed his mask and put on a heavy, solemn expression.
"Lord Danzō," Ren said, voice grave, "I haven't forgotten. What I did just now… was a test."
"A test?"
Danzō almost laughed from sheer rage.
Helping Kakashi take Kinoe away—that was a test?
"Yes. A test."
Ren nodded with complete seriousness.
"Lord Danzō becoming Hokage has always been my goal too. Otherwise, I wouldn't have created allies for you in Sunagakure—so you could gain control over Suna."
"…"
Danzō choked for a moment.
Because Ren's actions before did align with his interests.
And now Ren pushed deeper—
"But to become Hokage, you need qualified guards."
Ren looked up at Danzō earnestly, then swept his gaze across Root.
Especially those operatives who were still crawling out of the Swamp of the Underworld, filthy and battered.
Ren shook his head, voice quiet—almost disappointed.
"I'm… very disappointed."
"They couldn't even withstand me."
"If trouble comes in the future, how are they supposed to protect you, Lord Danzō?"
"What—?!"
Aburame Ryūma, standing to the side, nearly short-circuited.
If anyone else heard that, Ren wouldn't leave Root alive today.
Even Danzō was momentarily stunned.
Ren had injured his own comrades. He'd effectively allowed Kakashi and Kinoe to leave.
And yet—
he had an explanation like this?
But when Danzō actually thought about it…
It almost worked.
Ren wasn't some precious clan shinobi.
He was a civilian orphan—placed into ANBU as a sleeper.
And yet this same boy had just turned Root's proud formation into a mess.
Sure, it was a surprise attack.
Sure, he exploited their focus.
But results were results.
Root's performance today was embarrassingly poor.
And if Ren wasn't lying…
Then what did that mean?
This kid… is actually the most loyal one?
"…I understand," Danzō said at last, forcing his expression back into control.
He still held leverage.
Nono Yakushi—Ren's "Director"—was a chain he believed Ren could never break.
Just like Kabuto.
Danzō thought he had them both in his palm.
"It seems I misunderstood you," Danzō said, voice heavy. "You did well."
"And you're right. Root's current personnel are far from sufficient. They need higher intensity training."
Ren nodded dutifully.
Internally, he silently pitied the Root operatives.
If nothing else, Danzō was about to beat them into "spiritual elevation" the old-fashioned way.
But honestly?
That was fine.
Because one day, when Ren took Root over—
wouldn't it be nice to inherit a group of hardened, usable subordinates?
Ren wanted Danzō to leave him a nice legacy.
"Enough. Go," Danzō said coldly. "Don't keep them waiting outside."
Then his voice sharpened again.
"And don't forget who you are. Understood?"
Ren answered smoothly—so practiced it was almost automatic.
"Lord Danzō, I will always remember: I carry your will, and every action I take is for Konoha's Root."
That soothed Danzō slightly.
Today had been suffocatingly humiliating.
But—
High above them, in a certain dimensional space beyond sight—
a masked man watched everything in silence.
"This kid…" he murmured softly,
"is Shisui Uchiha's teammate?"
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