Danzo! The root hidden beneath Konoha

Seeing that the two were still trying to escape, Shinki immediately unleashed a set of 'Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique'!

A colossal, emerald-green dragon followed closely behind Kisame and Itachi!

At the crucial moment, Kisame turned around and quickly clapped his hands together.

"Water Release: Great Shark Bullet Technique!"

The water flow formed the shape of a shark, rushing towards the Wood Dragon in the sky!

After a barrage of attacks from the giant sharks, the Wood Dragon's flight speed noticeably slowed down.

Uchiha Itachi pressed his advantage, his Sharingan in his pupils.

"Amaterasu! (Amaterasu!)"

"Whoosh!"

Black flames roared atop the emerald green Wood Dragon!

The black flames were extremely sinister, seemingly inextinguishable, spreading throughout the Wood Dragon's entire body!

The Wood Dragon was subdued by the black flames. The unwilling Shinki flew up to catch up with them, but was stopped by Kakashi, who was lying on the ground.

"Don't chase them! The Akatsuki is very secretive; we don't know if they have anyone to meet them."

"A hasty pursuit might lead us into a trap."

After saying those two sentences, Kakashi, who had suffered a mental breakdown, closed his eyes and lost consciousness.

Shinki then gave up.

Afterwards, Guy carried Kakashi to the Ninja Hospital.

Shinki then used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport home.

Upon entering the house, Shinki discovered that Naruto's Chakra wasn't the only one present!

Shinki memorized the Chakra Breath of almost everyone in Konoha, but the Chakra of the Naruto was completely unfamiliar!

Has someone hacked into our system?!

Another Assassin Ninja?!

Shinki was startled, gripped the Kunai, and examined it carefully.

By Chakra Breath, he discovered that the unfamiliar Chakra Breath was very close to Naruto!

Soon, Shinki formulated a plan in his mind!

He had previously placed a Flying Thunder God Mark on Naruto's clothes.

You can use the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport to Naruto's side and launch a surprise attack.

Even if the surprise attack fails, they can still use the Flying Thunder God to quickly escape with Naruto!

Let's get started.

Shinki activated the Flying Thunder God Technique and quickly teleported to Naruto's side!

Looking down, he found that Naruto was fast asleep, probably under some kind of drug.

0.01 seconds later, Shinki thrust his sharp Kunai at the masked figure beside Naruto!

"When!"

As if he had anticipated Shinki's surprise attack, the man raised his hand to block Shinki's thrusting hand, while anxiously explaining, "Don't misunderstand, I'm not here to assassinate you!"

Because of his past experience fighting Yamato, Shinki learned his lesson this time.

He didn't rush to attack, but waited for the Masked Man to finish speaking.

After seeing Shinki stop, the masked Ninja continued, "I am a member of Konoha's 'Root' organization."

"'Root' is considered a direct training institution of Konoha's Anbu, but it is also an independent operational unit separate from Konoha's Anbu."

"It can be said that the missions carried out by 'Root' are sometimes more difficult than those of the Anbu. The Ninjas operating within 'Root' are all willing to take root underground and sacrifice themselves for the light of the village."

"So what's the point of all that you've said?"

Shinki looked at the Masked Man warily, his brows furrowed slightly.

"I hope you can join 'Roots,' join us, and fight for a bright future for the village."

The masked Ninja said fanatically.

Shinki didn't hesitate for a moment before decisively shaking his head in refusal.

"I'm not going!"

He didn't even want to join the Anbu, let alone the "Root," whose missions were even more difficult than those of the Anbu.

Shinki was a time traveler, a newcomer.

Although I have a close feeling towards this village, it is limited.

Clearly, it wasn't at the point where they had to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the village's future.

Have you thought it through?

Undeterred, the masked Ninja continued to ask.

Danzo has given instructions to bring this person into the "Root" without fail.

Judging from the talent this kid has shown, he has a bright future and is almost certain to become Hokage!

If such a genius cannot be controlled by the root, then there is only...

"I've made up my mind. I will not join any organization in Konoha," Shinki said firmly.

"You don't need to give an answer right now. Think about it carefully first. I'll come back to you in three days, and then you can give me a detailed reply."

"Also, you must not tell anyone about our meeting tonight."

"'Root' exists in the darkness of Konoha, extremely well hidden. Even if you don't join, it cannot be exposed."

The masked Ninja's voice carried a hint of helplessness.

After he finished speaking, his body disappeared.

Shinki looked at him strangely. He wouldn't join, not even if he were given three years!

The Land of Fire, Konoha.

Root Headquarters.

With one hand wrapped in bandages and the other hand planted on the ground with his Samurai Sword, Shimura Danzō awaited news from his subordinates.

Soon, the masked Ninja returned and knelt respectfully before Danzo.

"How did it go? Has that kid expressed any interest in joining?"

Danzo narrowed his eyes slightly.

He was already in his sixties or seventies, but the cold glint in his eyes still sent chills down the spines of the masked Ninja.

"Shinki refused very decisively. Although I gave him three days as you suggested, I estimate his answer three days from now will be the same as today's..."

"That's what the masked Ninja said."

"Is that so? I knew it would turn out this way. After all, he's a child raised by Hiruzen. He's never seen true darkness and is incredibly naive."

Danzo lightly tapped the ground with his Samurai Sword, producing a dull thud.

"What a pity, Konoha finally produced a super genius."

"So what do we do now?" the masked Ninja asked.

After a brief silence, Danzo replied, "Give him two more days. Hopefully, he can make the right choice."

The masked Ninja continued, "By the way, Leader, one of the members spotted the Third Hokage meeting with Jiraiya, and what they were discussing... was the selection of the Fifth Hokage."

"Jiraiya agreed to succeed me? Probably not. He's used to being carefree and undisciplined; he's not up to the task of Hokage." Danzo analyzed to himself after hearing his subordinate's report.

"Yes, but Jiraiya recommended another candidate to the Lord Hokage — Tsunade."

The masked Ninja said tremblingly.

"Oh? That's unexpected. She's the granddaughter of the First Hokage... What did the Third Hokage say? Did he agree to let that little girl Tsunade succeed Hokage?"

Danzo's expression turned noticeably cold, and the Samurai Sword in his hand Reflection a chilling light.

The masked Ninja said, "It seems he has agreed. Jiraiya will set off to find Princess Tsunade on a chosen day."

"Bang!"

Danzo's Samurai Sword was thrust straight into the ground.

"Hiruzen, you're getting more and more senile as you get older!"

The next day.

Jiraiya approached Kakashi, saying he wanted to train with Naruto and Shinki together.

At this moment, Kakashi was lying in a hospital bed due to the aftereffects of Tsukuyomi.

He asked, "Won't those two kids disturb your creative process?"

Jiraiya shook his head and said, "Of course not, it can even help me with my literary creation to some extent."

"That kid from Shinki has ideas and quite good writing skills. To be frank, the only thing he lacks compared to me is his social experience... I really don't know where he learned all that."

"To put it simply, given time, if he's willing to pursue a career in literature, he'll definitely achieve more than I have in the future."