Sharingan and Wood Style

"Kakashi, why have you appeared here?"

Stepping forward one pace at a time, Danzo looked at Kakashi, his tone somewhat cold and indifferent.

Meeting Danzo's gaze, Kakashi maintained an attitude that was neither servile nor overbearing.

Kakashi's expression remained calm, not avoiding the gaze that seemed to pierce through to his heart, and he replied in a steady tone: "Sasuke Uchiha has gone missing, and the Third Hokage suspects the Akatsuki organization is responsible."

Upon hearing the name Sasuke, a cold glint flashed in Danzo's eyes.

After a moment of silence, he let out a cold, inscrutable sneer: "So the last survivor of the Uchiha Clan has been abducted as well? Hmph... Hiruzen is truly no longer fit to continue serving as Hokage."

This sentence was filled with sarcasm and criticism, yet it left Kakashi unable to refute it... and he even...

He found himself feeling that Danzo's words were not entirely without merit.

The current situation was turbulent, with even the crisis of a world-ending Disaster Planet colliding with the Shinobi World looming over them.

Yet, all of Konoha remained sluggish and inefficient, busy only with arranging the relocation and protection of the noble class, while remaining almost entirely indifferent to the safety of the common people.

That top-down coldness and lethargy made Kakashi begin to feel a sense of powerlessness and doubt within his own heart.

He remained silent, and Danzo, having already sensed his wavering, tapped his cane against the ground with a dull thud, his tone chilling as he said: "Since that is the case, have you come to warn Jiraiya?"

"Yes."

The two remained silent for a moment, the fine rain piercing into their marrow like needles in the stillness.

A moment later, Kakashi looked up: "Lord Danzo, your arrival in Amegakure... what exactly are you planning to do?"

Danzo smiled slightly, though there was not a hint of warmth in it: "I intend to meet the master of the Rinnegan."

Kakashi knew very well that the Rinnegan was, in all likelihood, Danzo's target.

"The Shinobi World is currently in turmoil; the Five Great Nations will sooner or later have to cooperate with these powerful mercenary organizations. If we do not demonstrate sufficient strength, how can we expect them to submit to Konoha with peace of mind?"

The words sounded high-minded, yet Kakashi felt that something was fundamentally wrong.

He sensed vaguely that while Danzo's words held some logic, the display of power was likely not limited to mere deterrence, but was also driven by the intent to seize and control.

Danzo watched Kakashi coldly, but seeing that he remained silent, he said no more, merely raising his hand to make a gesture.

The Root members behind him immediately stepped aside in unison, carving a straight path through the shadows.

Kakashi gazed at that pitch-black passage, standing quietly for a moment before finally stepping forward to leave.

But just as his figure was about to be swallowed by the darkness, Danzo suddenly spoke again: "Kakashi, I have heard... that your dream is also to become Hokage?"

Kakashi's footsteps faltered, his back stiffening slightly in the curtain of rain.

He did not respond immediately, instead asking in a somewhat flat tone: "Lord Danzo... and what of your dream? Is it also to become Hokage?"

The question was posed with extreme lightness...

Danzo's expression darkened immediately, his gaze turning frigid and his tone stiffening: "What, do you wish to mock me as well?"

Only then did Kakashi turn around, facing Danzo's gaze with a tone that remained steady and sincere.

"I have never thought to mock anyone. As long as it is beneficial to the future development of Konoha, who serves as Hokage is, in truth, not important... even if that person is you, Lord Danzo."

These words contained no sarcasm or deliberate flattery, which instead left Danzo slightly stunned.

He had not expected that the usually taciturn and composed Kakashi would respond to him with such frank and sharp language.

Danzo stared at Kakashi's back, a complex light emerging in his eyes.

Kakashi's stance was ambiguous, yet it was precisely for this reason that he found him all the more difficult to fathom.

"The Shinobi World is about to face a destructive catastrophe, and in the midst of such peril..."

"If there is someone truly powerful who can lead Konoha out of this chaos, then I will support them with all my strength."

Danzo laughed: "Kakashi, those are dangerous words. If Hiruzen hears them, you will have trouble."

Kakashi shook his head: "I am merely expressing my true opinion; the Hokage will not blame me."

Having said this, Kakashi turned away with a calm demeanor.

Watching Kakashi's figure gradually disappear into the curtain of rain, Danzo remained silent for a long time.

Those frank and unadorned words had left him unable to collect his thoughts for a moment.

He had originally assumed Kakashi was merely a fellow who was outwardly compliant but inwardly reserved.

He had not expected that those words would hide such sharp edges and implications.

As long as it is beneficial to Konoha, it doesn't matter who is Hokage...

Even if it is me...

The sentence, seemingly tossed off lightly, had struck straight to the heart.

Danzo narrowed his eyes slightly, then turned slowly.

At this moment, his right eye suddenly opened, the crimson Sharingan instantly activating, its three tomoe rotating like water ripples and emitting a chilling, sinister intent.

The Root members remained standing silently in place, like cold, lifeless statues.

As the power of the Sharingan spread, the body of one of the members suddenly trembled slightly, their movements exhibiting an extremely subtle lack of coordination.

Danzo's gaze locked onto the target instantly.

Although he enforced strict mental and behavioral control over Root, he was never naive enough to believe that Root was entirely free from the infiltration of external forces.

It seemed a rat had indeed managed to slip in.

The targeted Root member sensed the anomaly and took a slight step back, realizing he had been exposed.

Kakashi's words just now carried significant weight.

They not only indicated Kakashi's underlying skepticism toward the Third Hokage's leadership style but also faintly hinted at a certain inclination toward a shift in power.

Information of this nature had a profound impact on the future direction of the village and had to be delivered to the Hokage as quickly as possible.

Although Danzo possessed various curse seal control methods, his special bloodline limit allowed him to transmit intelligence to the Third.

As a deep-cover agent, he had been lurking by Danzo's side all this time...

Therefore...

It must be reported to Lord Third!

The moment he moved, a strange power suddenly closed in from behind him.

On Danzo's arm, the Wood Release Cells activated instantly; gray-brown ripples surged across the surface of his skin, and withered wooden roots grew wildly from within his body like veins.

In the blink of an eye, those dead woods twisted and wove together in his hand, condensing into a distorted wooden blade.

The form of the blade was extremely bizarre, its body as black as ink, with textures resembling human blood vessels...

At the hilt, several wooden vessels connected directly to Danzo's arm, as if the weapon were an extension of his own body.

The Fugaku Sharingan in Danzo's palm opened, glowing with a scarlet light that resonated continuously with the wooden blade...

Without a word, Danzo flashed forward, his movements as agile as they had been in his youth...

"Danzo..."

The ninja exclaimed, but before he could finish his sentence, a flash of a blade cut through the air.

The sound of rain continued...

Yet at that moment...

The sound of the rain was instantly torn apart.

The wooden blade sank into flesh without a sound, and a moment later, bright red blood quietly splattered into the air.

The ninja's eyes widened as if he wanted to say something, but he could no longer make a sound.

He slowly collapsed to his knees, the light in his eyes gradually fading away.

Danzo stood before him, his expression cold and his gaze indifferent.

As the wooden blade was slowly retracted, dripping blood slid down the length of the steel, hitting the ground to mix with the rainwater, staining it deep crimson.

He flicked the blood off the blade with a light motion and turned away coldly.

As his voice fell, the corpse was rapidly enveloped and consumed by wooden roots, leaving not a single trace behind.

Danzo turned around, slowly closing his Sharingan, and the shadows once again shrouded his face.

"Continue with the original mission."

"Yes."

The remaining Root members bowed their heads in response, their voices uniform and cold.