Danzo's Attention

Konoha, the Hokage's office building.

Hiruzen Sarutobi held his pipe for a long while, yet never took a puff.

Standing before him was Konoha's second-in-command, Shimura Danzō.

Hiruzen's face showed neither sorrow nor joy; he merely narrowed his eyes slightly. Everyone familiar with him knew that this meant the "Shinobi Hero of Konoha" was furious.

"Danzo."

"What is it, Third?"

Danzo remained perfectly composed. His wrinkled face seemed incapable of changing expression, just as always, as though nothing had happened. The only difference was that, for some reason, he had replaced his usual "Hiruzen" with "Third."

Clink, clink. Hiruzen knocked the ash out of his pipe, then casually tossed the beloved pipe aside.

"Go on, try to talk your way out of this, Danzo."

"I did this for Konoha!" Offering no defense and needing none, Danzo delivered his usual line with a clear conscience.

"Stop using that catchphrase to fob me off!" Hiruzen bellowed.

The Hokage's wrath was terrifying!

In years past, the man whose might had shaken the Shinobi World and who had led Konoha to the top of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and-

Shimura Danzō, the root of Konoha.

Whether the leaves bathed in sunlight or the roots buried deep underground, neither could be dispensed with.

Danzo had never feared the Hokage's wrath, and the Hokage would never truly glare at him in anger!

Danzo smiled with pleasure.

Hiruzen continued to glare at him, and then that was that.

Hiruzen sighed helplessly and said in a deep voice, "Danzo, you went a little too far this time."

A little too far...

Only a little, that was all.

Danzo was disdainful inwardly, but deliberately put on a surprised expression. "Haven't we always done things this way?" he said mildly.

"Times have changed! We're not at war now!" Hiruzen snapped.

"Aren't we preparing to fight the next great war in the Shinobi World?" Danzo sneered. "In the world of shinobi, there are only two times: war and preparation for war! True peace simply doesn't exist, unless... only one shinobi village remains under heaven! Hiruzen, do you still remember our dream back then? To make the four great shinobi villages of Cloud, Stone, Mist, and Sand submit to Konoha, and then..."

"Just the idle talk of headstrong youth." Hiruzen shook his head. As he grew older, the once high-spirited Shinobi Hero had gradually begun to sheathe his edge, though no one knew when. He was always smiling in the village and had become a kindly elder in everyone's eyes.

Danzo's hand, hidden inside his sleeve, involuntarily clenched tight. His eyes were filled with indescribably mixed emotions as he looked at Hiruzen. His gaze finally settled on the Hokage hood atop Hiruzen's head, and he could not help roaring inwardly, If you don't want to be the "Shinobi Hero," then step down and let me take your place!

Seemingly noticing something unusual about Danzo, Hiruzen's gaze paused for a moment before he said, "Let's set that subject aside for now... Have you cleaned up everything that followed?"

Although Hiruzen was deeply unwilling to accept Danzo's methods, he could not reject them. Besides, things had already come to this, and there was no point in saying anything more.

Hmph! I knew you'd give in! Danzo snorted inwardly.

"Don't worry, the Uchiha are all dead," Danzo said mildly. "All thirty-five people on the list, including Uchiha Fushan, were wiped out without a single exception. Unfortunately, the Uchiha were all hard bones, and we couldn't recover a single Sharingan. Oh, right, as planned, one survivor was left alive. Her name is Uchiha Hezi. She's just a woman of impure blood. Before she lost her eyes, she saw Sand Ninja... Heh heh. After this battle, given how the Uchiha repay the slightest grudge,

they'll certainly hate the Sand Ninja. Once war breaks out, the Uchiha will also throw themselves into the fighting. It would be best to let them fight the Sand Ninja to the bitter end, which would also ease the pressure on our western flank!" "Don't say that. The Uchiha are our comrades too..." Hiruzen's face twitched as he spoke. Even he didn't believe what he was saying!

"Yes, yes, the Uchiha are people of Konoha too." Danzo smiled strangely. "Then, since they're members of Konoha, there's nothing wrong with them giving their lives for the village, is there?"

Hiruzen was left speechless. Thinking of his dear friend Kagami Uchiha, he could not help feeling a pang of shame. Then he said listlessly, "What about your other plan? After the baptism of blood, how many children are worth Konoha's special attention and training?"

"One hundred and thirty-six can be trained into high-grade cannon fodder for the battlefield, thirty-nine into second-rate shinobi, and ten into Jonin," Danzo said slowly.

"Give me the names of those ten children."

"Asuma Sarutobi, Might Guy, Rin Nohara, Obito Uchiha, Kurenai Yuhi, Shizune Kato, Hyuga Third Seat, Yamanaka Guren, Akimichi Ton, Nara Sōsa." As Danzo recited the names one by one, an unreadable look flashed through his eyes.

Hiruzen nodded. Almost all the names were children of well-known prominent families. That they had been placed on the list of seeds was entirely within his expectations.

"As for Obito, we could tamper with him a little, so we don't raise a tiger that comes back to harm us..." Danzo added.

"Don't go too far." Hiruzen shook his head. "If there's no place for the Uchiha on the new generation's seed list, they'll never accept it. Better to channel the flow than dam it."

Danzo naturally knew that! How could Obito be the only exceptionally gifted Uchiha of this generation? The other Uchiha with outstanding talent had merely been killed on Danzo's special orders. Leaving Obito alone was only to keep the Uchiha from leaping over the wall like cornered dogs. And there was something else Danzo was trying to conceal.

"By the way, what about that child, Shunren?" Hiruzen suddenly asked.

Danzo's heart tightened, but he kept his emotions in check and said mildly, "I think he was among those thirty-nine? That's what my subordinate reported. Hmph! He's just a brat with impure Uchiha blood."

"Oh? Is that so?" Hiruzen watched Danzo for quite a while, then said leisurely, "I remember that child defeated Asuma in a mock battle at school, didn't he?"

Danzo cursed inwardly. He had nearly forgotten the special ninja tool Hiruzen had developed and created on his own: a crystal ball that could observe every corner of Konoha!

"I don't know. In any case, he's just a small fry, not worth my attention." Danzo deliberately put on a look of disinterest and contempt.

In fact, based on the intelligence reported by his subordinates, Danzo had already taken a great interest in Shunren and had immediately covered up his performance in this survival exercise, lest Hiruzen take a liking to him and snatch him away first!

Hiruzen thought for a moment, then paid Shunren no particular attention either.