Time rewound to a few minutes ago.
Following the spores attached to the three targets, Minato arrived at the Eastern Forest in a few flashes of light. However, he did not follow them into their hideout immediately. He waited until the three signals stopped moving before he fired a Laser, blasting open the hidden underground entrance that led to the Root Base.
The violent explosion echoed through the quiet night sky. Minato moved like a stream of light, passing through the long stone corridors to arrive beneath a massive atrium. Scanning the surroundings, he found that the architecture was almost identical to the Root Base he remembered from the anime.
"Enemy attack!"
A dozen figures emerged quietly from the darkness, surrounding Minato like agile cats. They did not lower their guard despite Minato's young age. Anyone capable of breaking into the Root Base was clearly not a simple character.
"Intruder, eliminate!" The lead Anbu's voice was cold and hard, sounding like solid ice.
"Wait a moment." From the darkness at the end of the corridor, Danzo walked forward with steady steps. He appeared before everyone, his gaze falling upon Minato. A complex mix of emotions flashed in his eyes, including amazement, envy, appreciation, and jealousy. After several seconds of silence, Danzo finally spoke indifferently. "It seems you left some means on Yamaki and the others."
Minato's expression remained perfectly calm. "Are you the mastermind?"
Danzo did not answer. He simply raised his hand slowly to signal the surrounding Ninjas to step back. He stared at Minato, a meaningful smile appearing at the corners of his mouth. His voice carried a faint hint of manipulation. "To dare break into Root alone at such an age—though reckless, I must say your courage is indeed astonishing."
"Why did you move against Kushina?" Minato did not take the bait. He simply asked the question indifferently.
"Uzumaki Kushina... Though you may not believe it, I truly did it to help you," Danzo replied softly. "Do you understand that girl? Do you know her origin, her mission, or her purpose for appearing by your side? There exist creatures in this world called Tailed Beasts, beings with the power to move mountains and fill seas. Long ago, the First Hokage captured nine Tailed Beasts and distributed them among the Five Great Ninja Villages. Since then, the power of the Tailed Beasts has become the greatest strength of each Village. Our Konoha's Tailed Beast is the Nine-Tailed, acclaimed as the strongest of them all. However, the power of a Tailed Beast is too great and difficult to control. Therefore, the wife of the First Hokage, Uzumaki Mito, used herself as a vessel to Seal the Nine-Tailed inside her body. Other nations followed suit, and those who have a Tailed Beast sealed within them are known as Jinchuriki. Saying this much, I think you should already understand. That's right... Uzumaki Kushina is the next generation's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki!"
As Danzo spoke, he couldn't help but sigh. "Wood Release has the power to suppress Tailed Beasts. This was the Third's purpose in arranging for her to be by your side. The Third hopes to bind Kushina to you, using your power to restrain the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, while simultaneously using the Nine-Tailed to restrain you. I believe no one wants their life to be manipulated. You shouldn't want to bind your life to a monster that people fear either. I have always felt that a Genius like you should not be buried by the Third. He is wary of your power and attempts to use emotions to bind you and control your life."
Danzo shook his head with a face full of pity, then looked at Minato earnestly. "You are a Genius, Minato. Join Root, and I will give you a true stage! Here, you can display your talents to your heart's content, unburdened by anything, and become an existence comparable to the First Hokage! You should be able to see that my target is not you; I only wish to remove the shackles the Third used to bind you."
"Yakushi Nonou should be one of yours, right?" Having confirmed his suspicion from Danzo's words, Minato spoke indifferently. "Your methods don't seem any different from the Third's."
Danzo shook his head. "That was merely a necessary measure under the Third's arbitrary administration."
"Using threats?"
"As long as it is for the Village, any means are worth it. Root is such a place. This world is not black and white; someone must handle the things that cannot see the light." Danzo did not deny it. Such easily exposed lies were meaningless to him. Furthermore, the moment Minato deduced Yakushi Nonou's identity, Danzo intended to abandon her. "I am being very sincere with you. Of course, you still have room for choice. Wood Release is extremely important to Konoha. Even if you disagree, I will only Seal your memories of tonight."
"What are you talking about?" Minato burst out laughing. He had come here today specifically to frame the other party as a member of Kumogakure. "As a member of Konoha, how could I collude with someone from Kumogakure? Damnable Kumogakure, to think you'd dare disguise yourselves as Konoha Anbu! And even secretly develop so many people!"
"It seems we cannot reach an agreement... It really shouldn't be this way. Even if you possess two Bloodline Limits, you are still only $5$ years old." Danzo sighed with regret and waved his hand. "Go, do not take his life."
As the words fell, the surrounding Ninjas suddenly charged at Minato with incredible speed. However, Minato's movements were even faster. Two Lasers swept through the crowd in an instant. Explosions boomed, and more than half of the surrounding Root Ninjas were killed or injured in a heartbeat.
A Bloodline Limit... truly an enviable power. Seeing this scene, a trace of obsession flashed in Danzo's eyes. But before the obsession could fade, a foot had already appeared in front of him.
Bang!
With a snap kick from Minato, Danzo's figure was sent flying backward like a cannonball, smashing violently into the stone wall.
"Not good, protect Lord Danzo!" a Ninja shouted.
"Protect?" Minato chuckled, his figure suddenly appearing behind that Ninja. "Have you... ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Bang!
With another snap kick breaking the opponent's cervical spine, Minato raised his hand and fired a follow-up Laser toward Danzo's direction.
"No, this guy's speed is too fast!"
Danzo's figure emerged from the large crater in the wall, blood streaming down his face. He clumsily dodged the explosion caused by the Laser, looking toward Minato's direction with sinister eyes. "No need to hold back anymore, eliminate him directly!"
He raised his hand to form a Seal, but in the next instant, Minato's foot appeared before him once more. That terrifying speed was almost like instantaneous teleportation. It was so fast that Danzo didn't even have time to blink before Minato kicked him in the nose again.
"How can forming a Seal be faster than no Seal?" Minato's figure flashed continuously, a flashing short sword in his hand constantly harvesting the lives of the Root Ninjas.
Suddenly, his movements paused. A Ninja with a pineapple-head hairstyle formed the Hare Seal, using the shadow extending from his feet to freeze Minato in place.
"I've controlled him!"
"Well done, Shika!" Danzo's voice rallied. After taking two of Minato's kicks to the face, he felt like his head was about to explode. What followed was a heart full of terror. He had overestimated Minato's strength as much as possible, but he hadn't expected the boy to possess such terrifying speed. Unless one could predict it in advance, that kind of speed was simply not something a human could react to. This kid had actually been hiding his true strength. At this age... how did he manage to hold back?
Fortunately, it was all over now. No matter how fast one was, it was meaningless if they couldn't move.
"Damnable Kumogakure, you even stole the Nara Clan's Secret Technique!" Minato looked at that Ninja with a strange expression. Then, a dazzling light suddenly erupted from beneath his feet. Under the intense radiance, the shadow instantly dissipated.
Seeing this, Danzo turned and ran without hesitation. Minato gave a gentle smile and appeared in front of Danzo once again, though he didn't launch an attack. Danzo's footsteps screeched to a halt, and he hurriedly raised his hands. "I'm sorry, I was wrong! Can we settle this peacefully?"
Minato was stunned for a moment and subconsciously replied, "At this very moment? You must be joking."
Hearing this, Danzo suddenly pulled out a Kunai and stabbed it toward Minato. And just then, Tsunade and her group finally arrived at the battlefield.
"Not good! Danzo! Stop!" Seeing this scene, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes widened as he roared, and Tsunade's heart also tightened.
Pfft!
In the next instant, Danzo's head soared into the sky. A hint of disbelief still lingered in his eyes.
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