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Itachi informed Danzo that Kazuna would enter the Forest of Death the next day.

And sure enough, he vanished from surveillance the following day.

However, he did not enter the Death Forest.

It was not until the third night that Kazuna quietly entered the forest.

Danzo was invigorated upon receiving the news. He immediately ordered his men to prepare and enter the Death Forest to surround and kill Uchiha Kazuna.

"Could it be a trap?"

One of his subordinates hesitated. "This doesn't match Uchiha Itachi's intelligence."

"Wrong!" Danzo sneered coldly. "Precisely because it doesn't match, I'm certain this intelligence is genuine. Uchiha Kazuna never trusted Uchiha Itachi to begin with. Everything happened exactly as he said it would, and that only proves Uchiha Itachi is untrustworthy."

"Yes!"

The Root ninja had long been brainwashed. Hearing this, they said no more and immediately began preparing.

That night, Kazuna wandered aimlessly back and forth through the Death Forest.

The Root ninja, however, clung tightly to his trail, pursuing him all the way into the depths of the Death Forest.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Come out."

Kazuna looked around and said helplessly, "Danzo can be rather admirable sometimes. A nano-scale insect user from the Aburame Clan—someone so precious and utterly unique even within the Aburame Clan—and he managed to acquire one. Right, Aburame Shikuroo?"

A young ninja wearing sunglasses slowly stepped forward. "You know me?"

There was surprise in his voice.

Once one joined Root, one had to abandon every previous identity.

Within their original clan, they would not only be declared dead, but all records of them would be erased.

Moreover, Anbu identities were top secret. Root, which was even more secretive than the Anbu, should have had no one besides Danzo who knew their identities.

Kazuna was an Uchiha. How could he possibly know about Root?

A traitor?

Aburame Shikuroo's heart sank.

There was a traitor in Root with an extremely high position.

"It was because of you that Danzo could keep track of my movements, wasn't it?" Kazuna smiled faintly. "I... hmm?"

Whoosh!

Kazuna's expression shifted slightly. His figure flashed as he activated the Body Flicker Technique and vanished from where he stood.

In the pitch-black night, a shadow concealed itself as it silently approached Kazuna, like a venomous snake about to seize its prey.

In the end, the prey escaped, leaving only an Explosive Tag behind.

Boom!!!

A muffled groan rang out amid the explosion, marking the official start of the battle.

"A Nara clan member launching a sneak attack in the dark is indeed quite formidable. Unfortunately, it's useless against me!"

Kazuna appeared atop a large tree, staring coldly below.

"Then what about me?!"

A deep voice sounded. "Partial Expansion Jutsu!"

A massive palm came crashing down at Kazuna.

"Huh?"

Kazuna was surprised.

Root had actually recruited someone from the Akimichi clan?

Torifu Akimichi was still alive. How could he have agreed to this?

Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!

Crimson Flame surged toward the enlarged arm.

Bang!

The flames were crushed apart, but the owner of the giant arm also let out a muffled groan as his arm rapidly shrank back.

Buzz, buzz!

Countless insects swarmed toward Kazuna, blotting out the sky.

"Secret Technique: Insect Sphere!"

In the blink of an eye, the insects surrounded Kazuna and began tearing at his flesh and devouring his Chakra.

"Did we get him?"

Several Root ninja looked delighted.

"No, that isn't him!"

Aburame Shikuroo received a message from his insects and cried out, "Watch out!"

"Bang!"

The Kazuna who had been swallowed turned into a puff of smoke.

A clone?

"Is being careful any use?"

A low voice sounded behind a Root ninja. The next moment, Blood Flame surrounded him.

"Ahhh!!!"

The ninja let out a miserable scream, fell to the ground, and struggled wildly until he turned to ash.

"What I hate most are Secret Technique users, like this Yamanaka Clan Ninja!" Kazuna looked coldly at the ninja who had died by his hand, then raised his head to look at those surrounding him and smiled.

"Do you want to dance?"

The Root ninjas stared at him coldly.

Countless insects appeared in Aburame Shikuroo's hands.

The Akimichi clan ninja's body began to expand.

The Nara clan ninja's shadow began to shift.

"Shadow Clone Technique!"

Kazuna created four clones, each facing a different direction.

"Come, dance for me!"

Kazuna's eyes shone brightly, like starlight in the night.

"Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!"

Four pillars of Blood Flame surged outward in every direction.

The surrounding area was instantly engulfed in flames. Everything the fire passed through turned to ash.

"Whoosh!"

In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had been preparing to leave work and head home, frowned deeply at the Anbu who had suddenly appeared before him.

Something had happened?

Too many things had happened over the past two days, and he had grown irritable as well.

"Hokage-sama, a battle has broken out in the Death Forest. It is suspected to involve Blood Flame Kazuna!"

That blood-red fire was simply too conspicuous to conceal.

Its temperature was so high that Sensor Ninja several miles away could clearly detect it.

"Uchiha Kazuna..."

The Hokage's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately thought of Danzo.

With his hands clasped behind his back, he paced back and forth.

At last, he made up his mind!

"Gather the Anbu. Move!"

"Where to?"

A low, sinister voice rang out.

Danzo appeared in the Hokage's office, staring coldly at the Third Hokage.

"Danzo!" Hiruzen Sarutobi said coldly, "What did you do?"

"Cleaning out a malignant tumor for Konohagakure," Danzo replied indifferently. "Uchiha Kazuna is too dangerous. As long as he lives, Konohagakure could be engulfed in war at any time. Is that what you want to see?"

"I think you're trying to provoke a war between the village and the Uchiha."

The Third Hokage's voice was stern.

Uchiha Kazuna was now the representative put forward by the Uchiha Clan.

He was also the head of Konohagakure's Security Force and held an important position in the village.

If something happened to him, the Uchiha Clan would never let it go, if only to save face. Not to mention that Uchiha Kazuna had many followers.

Heh heh!

Danzo sneered inwardly.

He had already made his stance clear last time. Did the Third Hokage not know that?

And now he was putting on this act again!

Hypocrite!

Danzo felt sickened.

If he went to rescue Kazuna, could Danzo, alone, have forcibly stopped him?

Stopped the acting Hokage?

In the end, Hiruzen simply had not made up his mind, while also wanting Danzo to take the blame.

Fine. Since that was what he wanted, Danzo would carry it.

Danzo's gaze turned icy, his eyes filled with disdain.

He was a man destined to become Hokage. What could possibly stymie him?

The two faced each other coldly.

Knock, knock, knock!

A series of knocks sounded.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura entered.

"Hiruzen, this time, we stand with Danzo!"

"That's right. Uchiha Kazuna is far too dangerous."

"Not just Uchiha Kazuna—all Uchiha are evil." Utatane Koharu said maliciously, "Hiruzen, have you forgotten what our teacher said? The Uchiha are evil by nature."