Naruto: I, Shikotsumyaku, Byakugan Princess

Chapter 238 Echoes of Fate
hiss... hiss...

rustle……

The snakes resembled a tangled ball of yarn. Their severed and charred bodies were already dead, but under the influence of their nerves, they twisted and writh wildly, rubbing and hissing together, a sound that sent chills down one's spine.

Standing at opposite ends of the twisted snake swarm, Sasuke, Anko, and the other two silently gazed at each other, waiting for the other to open the gate to the Root base.

Time passed by minute by minute.

The crowd's gazes gradually shifted from anticipation and impatience to visibly growing doubt.

Why don't you open the door?

The Root ninjas are quite strong, but their efficiency is just too low!

Sasuke, Anko, and the other two shared a rare consensus, but before they could speak, three ninjas in ANBU uniforms and various patterned masks leaped rapidly through the forest in the distance.

Whizzing!

Their figures flashed through the forest, leaving afterimages. Without any escape techniques, the three of them, relying solely on their taijutsu, were as fast as Sasuke with lightning release.

There are experts too!

Everyone's hearts trembled.

Swish!
The three landed simultaneously, making only a very faint sound. This unintentional tacit understanding immediately caught Ibiki Morino's eye.

The composition of a ninja squad is very particular.

A standard ninja squad consists of three to four people because three well-coordinated ninjas with complementary abilities can contend with ninjas of a higher rank.

In other words, three genin can be considered as one chunin, and three chunin can be considered as one special jo.

Judging from their movement speed and teamwork alone, this is clearly a standard Jonin three-person team, with combat strength comparable to powerful elite Jonin.

Although he, Anko, and Genma all possess the strength of Jonin, they are not members of a team, and their abilities do not complement each other, making them far inferior to this highly coordinated ninja team.

If he had chosen to help Anko attack that Uchiha, he probably would have been beaten to his knees by the Root team that came to reinforce him.

fortunately.

Ibiki Morino secretly rejoiced, as his regard for the Root ninjas rose once again.

"Sasuke Uchiha……"

As they approached the group, the leading ninja spoke first.

The man wore a bear-face mask and was even more robust than the towering Morino Ibiki. His deep voice was as rough as the grinding of sand. He was none other than the iron-blooded instructor in charge of the training department—Iwakuma.

behind him.

Butterfly, wearing a purple mask, was positioned to the right rear, while Arashi, carrying a short sword, stood slightly forward on the left wing. The three formed a somewhat irregular triangular formation.

"Any advice?"

With his hand on the slightly burning katana at his waist, Sasuke looked at the three mysterious ninjas with some caution.

His Sharingan was never turned off, and the chakra light emanating from these three people was extremely dazzling. They were clearly three Jonin. It seems that Jonin from Root are really as common as cabbages.

It seems his guess was correct; Jonin are indeed only mid-level in Root. The female ninja he just defeated was indeed not a formidable opponent!

Sasuke's fleeting pride vanished as he mentally belittled Anko.

"I am here on the orders of the master to bring you into the root. It is best not to use your pupil technique at the root, or you will die!"

"Lower your eyes to avoid meeting the Sharingan's gaze," Iwakuma warned in a low voice.

From its inception, Root's primary target has been the Uchiha clan, and its methods for dealing with the Sharingan are ingrained in its very being.

Furthermore, Danzo's Kotoamatsukami is already an open secret, and Sasuke has been using the Sharingan all along, which would subconsciously put most Root ninjas on edge.

The mental state of Root ninjas is already extremely unstable, and if something bad happens, they will be unable to explain it to their superiors.

The three tomoe slowly rotated. Sasuke looked at the positions of the three Root members in front of him, which were clearly distinct from Anko and the others. Obviously, the two groups were not together. He nodded and listened to the advice, closing his Sharingan and his eyes returned to black.

The other end.

The three, including Hongdou, were even more confused.

They did hear that the other party was a ninja sent by Yamato, but why did they act as if they didn't know these three Root ninjas?
"Everyone, we have been assigned by the Hokage to come and discuss the Chunin Exams with Lord Yamato."

Unable to understand the reason, Ibiki Morino dared not let Anko, that troublemaker, talk nonsense again, so he stepped forward and explained the purpose of his trip.

So they weren't Root ninjas after all; they just mistook me for one.

At this moment, Sasuke finally learned the origin of this group of people. Thinking about what had just happened, he was speechless.

Night crossing...

The three of them, Pan Xiong and his companions, were stunned for a second. Hui Li had just put on an owl-face mask during the meeting and had instructed that if any outsiders were present, they should call her Ye Du.

They were quite puzzled at the time, only to find out it was because of the Chunin Exams.

"Lan, Die, the usual rules."

"Yes!"*2
Butterfly took a small step back, clasped her hands together, and began to channel her chakra. Arashi, meanwhile, pulled several rolls of bandages from her sleeve and tossed them to the four of them.

"The location of the base is top secret and cannot be disclosed. Everyone, please blindfold yourselves and tie it securely to avoid us causing any trouble if we are too rough."

"The rules of the Root are really..."

Anko wanted to say something, but having already suffered a great loss at Sasuke's hands, she dared not be presumptuous in the face of the three who were clearly more powerful. She obediently untied the bandages and blindfolded herself.

The troublemakers had already given in, and the others were even more cooperative.

While saying he understood, Ibiki Morino wrapped the bandage around his eyes twice, and Genma Shiranui untied it without saying a word.

When it was Sasuke's turn, he hesitated for a moment while holding the bandage.

He naturally trusted Gray Glass implicitly, but it was indeed difficult for him to let down his guard in the face of this mysterious and powerful Root organization.

"The adults told you not to tie me up."

Seeing through Sasuke's thoughts, Iwakuma raised his chin, indicating that he didn't need to worry about it.

Sasuke naturally accepted the privilege he received through back channels.

It seems that Hui Li still holds some status in Root. With her as his backer, it will be much easier for him to act within Root in the future.

He casually stuffed the remaining bandages into his pocket.

Since he started training in swordsmanship under Kakashi Hatake, this former top rich kid in Konoha has experienced what poverty feels like.

Chakra metal, which is priceless and hard to find, the daily maintenance and repair of his blade, meat for nourishment, medicine to relieve fatigue and external injuries, etc., all require a lot of money to support, which makes him very frugal in his daily life.

Lan checked the eye bandages of Hongdou and the other two in turn, and gave them an OK sign after confirming that everything was in order.

Butterfly, with her hands clasped together, suddenly released chakra from her entire body: "Don't resist, I will take you into the Root base through genjutsu."

As soon as Butterfly finished speaking, Sasuke saw Anko and the other two start running into the depths of the forest.

Although their eyes were blindfolded, the three of them moved as if on flat ground on the rugged road, and their speed was extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, they disappeared into the forest.

"Let's go, Uchiha..."

Thinking of the girl radiating lightning who had once been received here, Iwakuma gave Sasuke a deep look, then quickly led Cho and Arashi to chase after Anko and the others.

Zizi!

Lightning surged on his legs, and Sasuke quickly followed. In the blink of an eye, only a swarm of twisted snakes remained in the forest.

...The root base has three underground levels.

The corridor was narrow and oppressive, the walls, engraved with countless curse patterns, were rough and cold, and the orange wall lamps embedded at equal intervals reflected the firelight, barely illuminating the way ahead.

At the end of the corridor was a large vermilion door.

At this moment, Anko and the others were still blindfolded and immersed in the genjutsu, while Sasuke observed the mysterious Root base and gained a new understanding of its secrecy.

No wonder he had never even heard of this mysterious organization.

The base entrance was hidden by a barrier, disguised as a small mound covered with fallen leaves. If Butterfly hadn't broken the seal, he wouldn't have been able to find the base entrance even if he had searched the entire forest.

"There will be plenty of time to watch it later; the adults are still waiting for you."

Lan, who was leading the way, glanced back at Sasuke with a strange look in her eyes.

He previously had no goodwill towards the Uchiha clan, who were often rebellious, and even harbored a great deal of hatred towards them. However, Danzo's instigation of the relationship between the Uchiha and the village was an indisputable fact, and at this time he had become Root's number one wanted criminal.

All three of them participated in the massacre of the Uchiha clan, but due to being brainwashed by Danzo, they felt nothing about it.

After the truth came to light, his feelings towards the victim were somewhat complicated, and even his tone and attitude were not as cold and hard as usual.

"Ah."

Sasuke, unaware of the inside story, assumed that the friendliness of the three members of the Iwakuma group was because they knew Hairi. In order not to cause them any trouble, he also behaved very honestly.

"untie!"

Butterfly, who had been maintaining the genjutsu, had sweat beading on his forehead. Although he had been prepared beforehand, controlling three Jonin-level experts at the same time was still quite strenuous for him.

"Well!"

"This is……"

The three of them, who had been in a daze, shuddered, their eyes covered by bandages, and they looked somewhat flustered.

"You can remove the bandages now."

Pan Xiong's voice was like an iron file, polishing the three people's memories until they were shiny, and they immediately realized that they were no longer panicked.

The bandages were removed.

Red Bean squinted as she observed the mysterious Root base, her posture of looking left and right mirroring Sasuke's.

"You've come at the wrong time. Root is holding an important meeting right now. So once you enter the meeting room, don't look around, don't speak, and absolutely do not act recklessly..."

When facing Hongdou and the others, Lan's attitude was noticeably more casual, and her tone was as cold as the winter wind.

"you……"

Just as Anko was about to ask them to call out Yoru, Genma Shiranui behind her covered her mouth in advance, leaving only Ibiki Morino, who often dealt with Root, to negotiate.

"Is Lord Danzo also in a meeting?"

Ibiki Morino, who always had a cold expression, managed to force a smile.

When Root ninjas went to him to transport death row inmates, they usually wore masks, and he didn't recognize many of them. Only Shimura Danzo, the leader of Root, was someone he was somewhat familiar with.

He also noticed that these Root ninjas were not very friendly and wanted to use Danzo's name to gain some influence.

but--

brush!
All three of them turned their gazes toward Ibiki Morino, whose eyes seemed to radiate a unique coldness from the dark, empty holes in his mask.

"You... know Danzo?"

Pan Xiong's rough voice sounded like the grinding of an iron saw, a lingering effect from the severe burns to his throat he suffered twenty years ago when he shielded Danzo from a fire-style attack.

Danzo was too ruthless. He severely punished him and the entire training department simply because of the laughter of a few children. Years of loyal service were in vain. The excruciating pain in his throat and body, as well as the children who were ordered to be executed, finally made Iwakuma want to kill Danzo.

Lan and Die stared intently at Morino Ibiki, their undisguised killing intent like a slippery, venomous snake coiled around his neck, making the hairs on his body stand on end.

"I……"

Ibiki Morino, who is skilled at putting pressure on prisoners, felt unprecedented pressure at this moment, as if he would fall into an abyss if he said the wrong thing.

"A brief encounter!"

He keenly sensed the murderous intent in Iwakuma's words towards Danzo and dared not try to establish any further connections.

Call ~
A slight breeze stirred in the enclosed corridor, causing the lights on the walls to distort and flicker.

"Let me give you a piece of advice!"

Butterfly's voice echoed in the root corridor: "If any of you are close to Danzo, you'd better say so now, so as not to dirty the meeting room floor later."

"Well!"

Genma Shiranui suddenly felt a sharp pain in his palm and quickly let go. Anko, freed from her restraints, was able to ask the question that had been on her mind: "Isn't Danzo the leader of your Root clan?"

When she was imprisoned and interrogated by the root of the organization, the gloomy old man with a cane became a psychological shadow that haunted her for the rest of her life.

"He's not anymore!"

Lan's murderous intent was undeniable; the more he had once admired that dark hero who had sacrificed himself for righteousness in the war, the angrier he was now.

Iwakuma stepped over Arashi and Cho and walked up to Morino Ibiki. The firelight magnified his already large body, enveloping Anko and the other two in shadow.

"Danzo has betrayed Konoha by abusing his fellow villager and has been classified as an S-rank rogue ninja. A reward of 100,000 yen will be given to anyone who provides information leading to his capture, and a reward of 500,000 yen and an A-rank secret technique will be given to anyone who participates in his capture..."

Staring at Ibiki Morino's scarred face, Iwakuma leaned forward and whispered, "If anyone is found to have covered it up, they will be executed by slow slicing as a warning to others!"

"Irrelevant!"

Faced with Iwakuma's suspicious gaze, Morino Ibiki waved his hands repeatedly, indicating that he had no connection with Danzo.

Iwaguchi's gaze shifted to Anko, who was immediately terrified and shook her head frantically, her high ponytail whipping wildly and knocking Genma Shiranui's eyes shut.

"That's the best."

Having confirmed that the three had no connection with Danzo, Iwakuma shook his head in disappointment: "One last piece of advice for you: do not casually mention his name within Root!"

Morino, Ibiki, and the other two dared not mention Danzo again, nodding vigorously. Sasuke, who had witnessed the whole thing, also nodded in agreement, secretly memorizing the name Danzo.

Five hundred thousand plus an A-level secret technique—this person is really worth a lot of money!

Call ~
The eerie breeze in the enclosed corridor dissipated, and the trembling shadows on the walls returned to silence. Iwakuma glanced at the shadow in the corner, then looked towards the vermilion door at the end of the dimly lit corridor:

"Let's go, don't keep the adults waiting too long."

"Excuse me for asking...", Anko raised her right hand, just like a well-behaved student asking a question to a teacher at the ninja academy:

Who is the current leader of Root?

Da da da……

The three of them walked towards the vermilion gate at the end, their cold, hard steel heels making a crisp sound as they stepped on the ground.

"Lord Yamato dislikes waiting."

"Go faster!"

Hongdou and the others grinned, finally understanding who this mysterious Night Crossing really was.

No one noticed Sasuke's eyes suddenly widen!

(End of this chapter)