Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 65 Establishment of Guiding Roots

Hiruzen Sarutobi ignored all advice, and Danzo angrily slammed the door shut as he stormed out. His subordinate, who had been waiting at the door, silently followed. After walking a distance and when no one was around, he whispered, "Hokage-sama, what should we do?"

"That guy is too soft-hearted; he actually disagrees with my opinion."

This subordinate was Danzo's confidant, so he knew Danzo's thoughts from the beginning.

The subordinate chimed in, "In my heart, Lord Danzo is the true candidate to become the Third Hokage."

Danzo scolded, "Don't say anything that's detrimental to the unity of the village, or I'll punish you."

Even so, Danzo's rebuke didn't sound particularly harsh, indicating that he actually agreed with the statement.

The subordinate nodded repeatedly, then sighed after a while: "The more a tree yearns for the sunlight above, the deeper its roots must extend into the dark earth. I truly hope the Third Hokage can understand this principle."

Upon hearing this, Danzo stopped in his tracks, carefully considering these words, his eyes narrowing slightly as if deep in thought.

The subordinate glanced at Danzo, who was deep in thought, without revealing his expression, a sly glint in his eyes.

That night, under the moon.

In a certain room, the retainers who had been gathered there were fast asleep when they were suddenly awakened by a loud noise. They opened their eyes and were shocked to find a man standing at the door with a bandage on his head, revealing a sharp single eye and a grim expression—it was Danzo.

The visitor appeared hostile, and the retainers, their faces filled with panic, shouted in a blustering but weak voice, "It's you!"

Without uttering a single word, Danzo waved his hand, seemingly issuing some kind of command. In a few swift movements, several shadows rushed into the room, brandishing their katana and reaping lives as easily as cutting melons and vegetables. The screams that rose and fell did not last long before falling silent.

The moonlight, like water, shone through the window and fell on these people. Wearing animal-patterned masks that gleamed with a cold light, these people were all members of the Dark Guard, specializing in handling some of the village's shady dealings.

After killing these retainers, they didn't forget to finish them off, and Danzo watched all of this coldly.

After all this was done, one of the members of the secret service reported the results.

Danzo remained silent, gave a slight nod in satisfaction, then gave a few brief instructions, grabbed the head of one of his retainers, stepped out the window, and leaped into the darkness, disappearing into the night.

The lights were still on in the Hokage's office.

Due to the sudden accident, even though it was the middle of the night, Hiruzen Sarutobi was still awake, pacing back and forth like an ant on a hot pan.

Suddenly, with a snap, the door was opened. Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped and looked in the direction of the sound. Suddenly, something the size of a soccer ball was thrown in. It rolled into the room with its head tilted to the side, its eyes wide open, looking like it had died with its eyes wide open.

Before Hiruzen Sarutobi, whose eyes were wide open, could speak, Danzo at the door said coldly, "I've already killed them all."

Danzo's overstepping of authority provoked strong opposition from Hiruzen Sarutobi, who unusually roared, "Danzo, do you even know what you're doing?"

Danzo ignored him, saying dismissively, "I did this for Konoha."

"Danzo, you're being foolish! If this continues, the misunderstanding between the village and the daimyo will never be resolved."

"It doesn't matter, I'll take action."

"???"

"I've already decided. I'll kill all these people and then frame other countries. As for which country, you don't need to worry about that; I've already chosen one for you. This way, I can shift the blame eastward, strengthen the village through plunder, and have something to show for it. It's killing three birds with one stone."

"Could it be that you...?"

"That's right. To prevent you from being indecisive, I sent someone to kill that idiot. He should be dead by now, and he won't have to go looking for shit to eat in the toilet anymore. In a way, he should thank me. Hmph..."

"Danzo, you should ask for my opinion."

"You are too indecisive. The village is now beset by internal and external troubles. We must act quickly to resolve the problem. As the saying goes, 'Hesitation leads to chaos, and indecisiveness will lead to future troubles.'"

"But even if you do that, aren't you afraid that the village spies will leak it to Prince Huang Ren?"

Upon hearing this, Danzo smirked: "Don't worry, I've already thought this through for you. I'll annihilate that country with lightning speed. Once Prince Huang Ren witnesses Konoha's strength, he'll have to weigh whether his son or the safety of the Land of Fire is more important. Without our protection, the Land of Fire's borders are practically nonexistent. In that case, whether he can hold onto his position is another matter. In other words, this is a form of military deterrence."

"Danzo...you..."

"Hiruzen, do you know? The taller a tree is, the deeper its roots run into the dark earth. And Konoha is that tree. For such a big tree as Konoha to grow tall and strong, it must have roots buried deep in the earth."

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned deeply: "What exactly do you want?"

"I've already made up my mind. I'm going to create an organization that will be the root of Konoha. This organization will be even more deeply hidden than the Anbu, specializing in things that the village can't easily do in public."

Hiruzen Sarutobi roared, "Danzo, I am the Hokage!"

"I'm not asking for your opinion, I'm just informing you," Danzo said coldly.

After saying that, he turned and left without looking back, his hands clenched into fists, his eyes like an eagle's, fearless and unstoppable.

Tobirama-sensei, I will prove it to you!

Compared to the indecisive Hiruzen, I, Danzo Shimura, am the one who is truly suited to be Hokage.

For this, I can give up everything, bear the darkness of Konoha, and become the enveloping underworld and the netherworld.

Watching Danzo leave, Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed deeply and gave a bitter smile. At least he should have taken Danzo's head with him...

Shortly after Danzo left, a man entered the room. If you looked closely at his face, you would find that he was one of Danzo's confidants.

He knelt on one knee, his head bowed and staring down.

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't seem too surprised by his appearance, and said calmly, "Thank you for your hard work..."

By deliberately feigning weakness and then provoking Danzo's competitive spirit, making him willingly shoulder the village's darkness, Hiruzen Sarutobi had everything under his control.

Of course, he couldn't agree immediately, lest it arouse the other party's suspicion, so he had to be reserved just now.

After Danzo had already taken the initiative and established the Root organization, he made a reluctant compromise.

Danzo's confidant gave a low groan in response, but he did not leave immediately, as if he was waiting for something.

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled slightly: "Don't worry, you'll get your share of the benefits."

Danzo's confidant, beaming with joy, barely suppressed the wild grin spreading across his face, and declared righteously, "It's all for the village; it's nothing to boast about."

"That won't do. You don't have to think that way, but as the Hokage, I have to think about your future."

These words were very well said, and Danzo's "confidant" was very pleased. He immediately expressed his willingness to sacrifice his life, go through fire and water, and pursue the truth to the death.

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled with satisfaction, slightly raising his chin and pointing at something with his eyes.

The subordinate understood immediately and replied, "Yes."

"I've had a long day, it's time to go home and be with my wife. I'll leave things here to you."

Hiruzen Sarutobi stretched and patted his shoulder.

After speaking, he left his subordinates in the office to clean up the heads and bloodstains, while he left. Soon after, he walked out of the Hokage's office building, looked up at the crescent moon hanging in the night, and murmured to himself:

"Danzo, please don't blame me, I did all this for the village..."

…………

…………

A few days later, in the village.

BBQ shop.

Aokiji, Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade sat around a square table with a round barbecue grill in the center for serving various meats and vegetables.

While eating and drinking, it's easy to feel like chatting.

Jiraiya asked curiously, "By the way, by the way, what happened to that shameless guy? Did he go back to his territory?"

Tsunade glanced around and whispered, "Well... it seems like that guy had a little accident."

"A minor mishap?"

"Uh, it seems like he suddenly turned into an idiot."

Upon hearing this, Aokiji, who was engrossed in eating, thought of a certain possibility. The grilled meat hanging in his mouth suddenly lost its appeal, and he smacked it off on the table.

(End of this chapter)