Warning

"You've been overreaching lately!!!"

Completely Danzo Danzo's appalling attitude, Hiruzen nonchalantly held his pipe, puffing away in the dark room.

"Uzumaki Katsuki is Sakumo's apprentice, don't let your guard down and have any improper thoughts."

He slowly exhaled a beautiful smoke ring. The Third Hokage's eyes were as deep and unfathomable as an abyss, as calm as a cold pool. Looking into his eyes, one felt as if their heart would freeze and stop beating. He was imposing and majestic, like a mountain, and his slender body contained terrifying power.

Such pressure might have crushed someone else, but unfortunately it wasn't very effective against a seasoned veteran like Danzo.

"Hmph, do you really think I'm a fool? Hiruzen, have you given up thinking since you became Hokage? Those who join Root are people who follow the same ideals. No matter how talented the Uzumaki Clan kid is, if he doesn't share the same beliefs and aspirations, Root won't accept him."

Danzo retorted, "He's going head-to-head with the Third Hokage and refuses to back down in the slightest."

"Did you preach your radical theories to him?"

The Third Hokage narrowed his eyes, his gaze sharp and terrifying.

Danzo's implication was clear: he would not use force to compel Katsuki to join Root, but he would not refuse if Katsuki voluntarily requested to join Root.

"You've got a good idea..." The Third Hokage stared coldly at Danzo for several seconds, his heavy aura filling the room until Danzo's forehead was slightly sweaty. Then he suddenly relaxed. "I'll let it go this time, but don't let it happen again, or Root... will have no reason to exist."

"······"

Danzo didn't refute this time. He knew Hiruzen well and understood that these words were not just empty talk. Although he spoke of Hiruzen's weakness, he knew better than anyone Hiruzen's ruthlessness, a terrifying force that even he was unwilling to confront head-on.

"Instead of wasting time fooling around with those kids, you should keep a close eye on the Uchiha. I'm curious to know just how many Jonin they have. This time, four Jonin suddenly appeared; next time, it might be eight, twelve... Do your job properly. I expect Root to give me a satisfactory answer."

The sound still echoed as the figures of the Third Hokage disappeared from the room.

Danzo's face was as black as the bottom of a pot. He remained silent for a long time before slamming his hand on the table. In an instant, a whirlwind of wind swept through the air, slicing the large wooden table into a pile of wood chips. The documents on the table were torn into pieces of scrap paper that fluttered like butterflies, and even the oil lamp was not spared.

The lamp oil spilled out, and the tiny flames instantly spread, igniting the scraps of paper and wood, and the roaring flames shot up half a meter high.

"Hiruzen!!!!"

Unable to suppress his pent-up anger, Danzo let out a beast-like roar. With a flick of his sleeve, he instantly sucked all the air away from the flames in front of him, extinguishing the raging fire and leaving only a pile of charred trash emitting black smoke.

"Danzo, what has happened?"

The commotion inside the room alerted the guards outside.

"Someone come in and clean the room."

After his roar, Danzo quickly regained his dark expression.

The Anbu pushed open the door and saw the burnt remains on the ground. Without a word, he quickly began to clean them up. In just over ten seconds, he had finished. He then instructed his men to bring in a new table and place a new oil lamp on it, which began to emit its dim light.

"Damn the Uchiha, they're a bunch of cancerous growths."

All that anger was directed at the Uchiha Clan. Danzo, in his underground base, began to greet the Uchiha Clan intimately, his roars echoing like thunder through the long corridor.

"This is good stuff!"

Sitting on a thick branch of a cherry blossom tree, with her back against the straight trunk, Katsuki opened the scroll and was immediately captivated by it.

The cherry blossoms have long since faded, leaving only the lush green leaves in full bloom. Layer upon layer of thick foliage overlap like an open parasol, tightly blocking out the glaring sunlight. With each gentle breeze, the air is so comfortable that one almost groans out loud.

"This is... Oh, controlling the frequency of the electric current, stimulating neuromuscular contraction, strengthening every muscle, maintaining muscle elasticity, and increasing muscle tension... Wow, these Cloud Ninja really know how to play... Good stuff, really good stuff."

The scroll contained everything useful extracted from Araki's mind, including some Lightning Release Technique, such as the Electric Snake he had used, as well as his insights into Lightning Release training. One has to admire the power of the Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique. Looking at this detailed information, he even wondered if Araki had written it down on his own initiative.

Compared to the Lightning Release Technique recorded above, Katsuki was more interested in Araki's insights into Lightning Release training.

He was not lacking in Ninjutsu. The vast legacy accumulated by the Uzumaki Clan was not completely destroyed with the invasion of the Mist Ninja. The most essential part of it had been handed over to Sakumo the Great Elder when they met, a move that was extremely audacious.

But there is some truth to the saying that old people are wise. The Great Elder had a keen eye for people. After Sakumo brought the siblings back to Konoha, once they were settled, he returned everything the Great Elder had given him to them untouched.

A large box of sealed scrolls.

It contains the most precious treasures of the Uzumaki Clan, such as the Uzumaki Clan's Fuinjutsu, the cultivation experience of Fuinjutsu by the elders of each generation, and some powerful high-ranking Ninjutsu, covering all Five Great Nature Transformations. In addition, there are also the Shinigami masks from the Uzumaki Clan's Namen Hall. They were all brought over without exception.

With so many good things, anyone would be envious, but Sakumo never opened or looked at them even once, which shows his trustworthiness.

Furthermore, after arriving in Konoha, the siblings received preferential treatment from the Mito Senju Clan. Mito, an elder, alone gave them many gifts, including the house they now live in.

Therefore, the siblings are quite wealthy.

However, this also made the siblings' standards very high. Araki was, after all, a Jonin, but what interested Katsuki was only his insights into Lightning Release Technique, his own reflections, Sakumo's teachings, and the wisdom and experiences of the clan's elders—

It has a unique flavor.

As she watched, captivated by the sight, strands of silvery-white electricity flickered like snakes on Katsuki's left hand, and she couldn't help but demonstrate it.

The scroll wasn't long, and even with the Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique, it was impossible to completely extract all the memories from a person's brain; only a portion was available. However, even with just this portion, Katsuki felt she had benefited greatly. Kumogakure truly lived up to its reputation as the village most skilled in Lightning Release Technique.

That lingering feeling quickly transformed into greed, a desire to slaughter more Cloud Ninja and acquire more similar treasures.