Konoha: Offer your heart to the Hokage!

Hiruzen Sarutobi has volunteered to be transferred to the Anbu for training, but his application has not yet been approved. At present, he is contributing to Konoha in his own way by patrolling around the village.

By a twist of fate, they ran right into Danzo, who had escaped from prison.

Upon seeing who it was, Hiruzen Sarutobi was initially overjoyed, but then immediately sensed something was amiss. He had been prevented from visiting Danzo during the day; Danzo couldn't have been released normally. There must be something wrong.

A thought flashed through his mind, and he suddenly changed color: "Danzo, what have you done?!"

He had never believed that Danzo would send someone to assassinate the Third Hokage and his wife, but the facts before him told him... Danzo might have actually done it.

"It seems you already guessed it, Hiruzen."

"Danzo, why did you do such a thing!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was filled with sorrow for their misfortune and anger at their lack of ambition. Wearing ninja armor, he immediately summoned the Monkey God, who stood guard at the small door, wielding the Golden Cudgel.

What a terrible friend!

If we don't run away, are we just going to wait to die?

Danzo would never say that, but instead feigned melancholy and said, "Hiruzen, you don't understand. I have a more important mission on my shoulders."

After escaping Konoha, he will protect Konoha in his own way, the first step of which is to find out who obtained Wood Release.

Then, he lay low and accumulated strength outside of Konoha, and finally returned to Konoha to set things right, driving Zenjiro, the Hokage thief, out of the Hokage Building and letting him taste the humiliation he had suffered.

In this way, inheriting the teacher's will does not count as betraying Konoha.

"Trust me, Hiruzen. Don't you know my character? I would never do anything that would harm the interests of Konoha."

"Please, Hiruzen, this is my lifelong request."

“You…” Hiruzen hesitated.

The moment he hesitated, Danzo had already rushed out.

"Hiruzen, your golden cudgel is not fast enough, nor is it ruthless enough."

"Pfft, cough..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi clutched his abdomen, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, and knelt on one knee.

Yes, he eventually softened.

Having served as a Hokage's disciple for half his life and devoted himself to the Will of Fire, he softened his heart towards his best friend when he should have upheld the Will of Fire the most.

Danzo would never be his match.

At that moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi recalled his past with Danzo...

Back then, the two of them were still green teenagers. They trained together under their teacher and secretly watched the women's bathhouse together.

Danzo's ninjutsu talent was so great that even his teacher admired it.

Now, Teacher and Xiaochun are gone, Yan has gone mad, and only Danzo is left to occasionally have tea and talk with him... They are not brothers, but they are better than blood brothers.

Humans aren't plants or trees, how can they be without feelings? Making a choice between the Will of Fire and this bond of deep friendship is still too cruel.

In the brief moment of his hesitation, Danzo struck first, knocking Hiruzen to the ground.

However, Danzo did not continue to kill him. Firstly, Hiruzen still had fighting ability, and secondly... he did not intend to kill Hiruzen. He just wanted to leave some "work traces" on him to avoid being held accountable later.

With his back to Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo coldly said:

"Hiruzen, I will prove my worth."

"There's no point in staying in Konoha any longer."

"When I, Danzo, return, I will show you my ninja way in Konoha."

After uttering such a harsh remark, Danzo lowered his upper body, leaned back with his hands, and retreated from Konoha in a ninja running posture.

"Cough... Danzo, come back here!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at Danzo, who had turned into a tiny black dot at the edge of his vision, his eyes filled with resentment.

Konoha... the Will of Fire... what happened to him?

He was so willing to go to such lengths to defect from Konoha.

...

Danzo did not stop to rest for a moment after escaping from prison.

His style of doing things is known for its ruthlessness and decisiveness. From the moment he broke free from the cage, he had already planned his escape route. His resolute gaze was fixed on the north: heading north to Akatsuki Village.

The most dangerous place is the safest place.

Cunning Rabbit Three Caves.

When Danzo was building an intelligence network among the nations of the Arc of Peace, he prepared many safe houses for himself.

Furthermore, intelligence gathering among the ninja villages was always intertwined. Danzo made deals with certain individuals in the Akatsuki village, using mutual benefits to ensure he wouldn't be betrayed.

He was confident that he could thrive in Akatsuki Village.

Chapter 190 Naruto's Winning Techniques: Possession and Enticement! (6K4)

It was in the early hours of the morning.

The urgent knocking attracted Shen'er, who was practicing the art of spiritual transformation.

After opening the door, Yuki Yamanaka knelt on one knee and bowed her head to report: "Lord Hokage, Danzo has escaped from prison."

"Ran away?"

Shen Er frowned, realizing that things were not so simple.

He personally designed the Anbu's detention mechanism, with an Anbu squad guarding them around the clock and prohibiting any outsiders from visiting. There was also the chakra sealing technique created by Mito; the quality of this sealing technique had been tested by him and was no worse than that of Hozuki Castle's.

Only he, Mito, and a very few trusted Senju clan members possessed the technique to unseal the seal; Danzo had no chance of doing so.

How did Danzo manage to escape under such tight security?

He then put on his outer robe and set off for the Dark Guard prison.

...

The area around the Dark Guard prison was completely sealed off. By the time Shin arrived, Mito had already arrived with his men.

Loyal to Senju, Yuki Yamanaka didn't care about Mito's identity. The moment she discovered the problem, she led her people to the Senju clan and asked them to accept the investigation.

Shen Er and Mito exchanged a glance, understanding the doubt in each other's eyes.

Danzo's escape is a minor matter; how he escaped is a major one.

This involves the issue of Konoha's sealing techniques; there had never been any previous reports of chakra sealing techniques failing. If the enemy were to decipher and use this technique against them, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Upon entering the prison, four corpses came into view.

Yuki Yamanaka reported from the side, "Lord Hokage, after the autopsy, all of these guards died from Wind Release."

"Ah."

Shen Er nodded; he could make that kind of judgment too.

After a careful inspection, Danzo found no signs of external intrusion into the prison. He then released the sealing jutsu inside his cell and used a Wind Release ninjutsu to break free.

Mito Uzumaki frowned and said, "Chakra sealing techniques are top secret. In the Senju clan, only I and three others know them. None of them left the clan territory tonight."

"Furthermore, I verified with them immediately after the incident that it was not them."

Shen Er naturally believed Mito.

With Kagura's Mind's Eye, Nine-Tails' Sensation, and a large-scale barrier covering the Senju clan's territory, Mito became a human radar. Nothing that happened within the clan's territory escaped her notice.

Without outside assistance or inside help, Danzo easily broke the seal, instantly killing three Chunin and one Jonin, preventing them from even sounding the alarm.

Was Danzo some kind of genius?

Shen Er had a good understanding of Danzo; this guy could indeed be called a genius, and later he was even able to solo Sasuke when he had activated Susanoo.

However, he shouldn't have had that kind of combat power at this time, and his understanding of sealing techniques should have been limited to "knowing how." He could use what the second generation passed down to him, but it was impossible for him to apply what he learned to other situations.

While everyone was completely bewildered, Shen Er suddenly had a flash of inspiration and thought of a possibility...

There are no signs of unauthorized intrusion. Is it possible that the intruder was not human?

For example

Black Zetsu.

If it were Black Zetsu, he would indeed have the ability to infiltrate Konoha undetected.

He can freely modify the inscriptions on the stone tablets left by Hagoromo Otsutsuki in the underground of the Naka Shrine, so conventional sealing techniques should not be difficult for him. Having lived for thousands of years, no one can say for sure what abilities Black Zetsu has mastered.

With Black Zetsu's assistance, Danzo's ability to instantly kill an entire ANBU squad is explained.

However, I still don't understand Black Zetsu's motives for doing this.

Just then, Hiruzen Sarutobi, his body wrapped in bandages, was brought over by the Anbu.

Even in his final moments, he probably still held onto old friendships, and instead of immediately informing the village, he went to the Gospel Hospital to treat his wounds, subconsciously wanting to give his close friend more chances to escape.

Jun Hinata, the head of the secret service stationed at Evangelismos Hospital, immediately noticed that something was wrong with his injuries. After quickly bandaging his wounds, he reported the incident and brought him to the scene for questioning.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knelt on one knee, bowing his head low: "Lord Hokage, I encountered the rogue ninja Shimura Danzo and tried to stop him, but I was no match for him and he escaped."

She glanced at him and asked, "Are you unable to beat him, or are you unwilling to stop him?"

"I... am no match for you."

Hiruzen clenched his fists and lowered his head even further.

The corpses on the ground were tearing at his conscience, but after experiencing so much, Hiruzen Sarutobi had become more and more mature.

He could not tell the truth, nor could he admit that he had deliberately let Danzo go.

As a Konoha ninja, having the ability to take action, yet ignoring a rogue ninja and allowing him to escape is a serious offense, with the worst possible outcome being execution.

He cannot die.

It wasn't that Hiruzen was afraid of death, but rather that he understood that living was more meaningful than dying. He would develop and simplify more ninjutsu to give back to Konoha, and spend the rest of his life making amends for his mistakes and repaying this debt.

Shen Er gave him a deep look.

Hiruzen Sarutobi is like this: despite having a very high potential and being a genuinely strong Kage, his indecisive personality makes him unsuitable for important positions. Letting Orochimaru go was one reason, and letting Danzo go was another…