Ransacking the Root Base

Shimura Danzō's death had been exceedingly humiliating. If he had not used Izanagi and had coordinated with the many Root ninja, he would still have had a chance to escape.

Yet he had used it before Minagawa Uchiha, whose Mangekyo Sharingan techniques, Izanagi and Izanami, perfectly complemented each other. Naturally, he had been completely suppressed.

It was like Obito Uchiha's pair of Kamui. On their own, they could only open and close his own Kamui Dimension. Even Kakashi's Mangekyō Sharingan could only open and close his own Kamui Dimension on an enemy's body.

But once the two eyes complemented each other, they could open other spaces within Kaguya Otsutsuki's Amenominaka and jump between them.

After Minagawa Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan became a unified pair, the same principle applied. It could suppress ninjutsu that relied on Izanagi to reset oneself, so Shimura Danzō naturally met a miserable end.

As for the Reverse Four Symbols Seal carved onto his body, Minagawa Uchiha, who had read the Original Work of Naruto, had naturally been wary of it. When he used the Dojutsu Power of Interchange of Reality and Illusion to suppress his opponent's Izanagi, he quietly erased part of the sealing formula. Naturally, the Reverse Four Symbols Seal on Shimura Danzō's body was rendered ineffective as well.

Seeing the surrounding Uchiha Clan members all looking at him, Minagawa Uchiha still felt somewhat uncomfortable. After all, killing someone and then piercing their heart like this was a little dishonorable.

However, now was not the time to celebrate victory. The Third Hokage could arrive at any moment, and there were still plenty of good things within this Root Base.

For example, basic ninjutsu knowledge. After obtaining the Scroll of Seals, Minagawa Uchiha had discovered that many ninjutsu required an extremely rich foundation of knowledge in order to be successfully cultivated.

The Flying Thunder God Technique, for instance, required considerable mastery of Fuinjutsu before one could cultivate it to an advanced level. The Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder, which diverted a Tailed Beast Ball, had clearly made use of Fuinjutsu.

When Minagawa Uchiha had come here last time, his main goals had been the Hashirama Cells and driving a wedge between Obito Uchiha and Konoha. Thus, he had not had time to gather these fundamental materials.

Now was the perfect time. Not only did they need to take away this precious foundational knowledge, they also had to take all of Root's valuables. They could not leave them for the Third Hokage and his Sarutobi Clan.

Thus, Minagawa Uchiha gave the surrounding Uchiha Clan members an order:

"Leave behind the seriously wounded clan members. Treat each other's injuries and collect the bodies of the fallen. Everyone else who still has Combat Power, follow Itachi and me in separate teams to search the entire Root Base. Take anything of value. This base should have no shortage of Sealing Scrolls.

"There should still be some Root members inside. Kill anyone you encounter without exception. Even if they did not participate in the evil deeds outside, they must have committed plenty of atrocities such as human experimentation. They are all people without moral limits, so show no mercy.

"Focus on collecting Shimura Danzō's evidence of wrongdoing and all kinds of basic ninjutsu materials."

After explaining what they needed to prioritize, he took the lead and brought part of the clan members deeper into the base.

While Minagawa Uchiha and the others were searching the Root Base for supplies after killing Shimura Danzō, Sarutobi Hiruzen and the group of Konoha Ninja he led finally arrived at the entrance to the Root Base, where they saw Uchiha Fugaku standing guard.

"Stop, Clan Head Fugaku. Have your Uchiha Clan members immediately cease their invasion of the Anbu Training Ground. No matter what happened, you have no right to forcibly break into the Anbu Training Ground. This is an important secret location of the village."

Sarutobi Hiruzen took the lead. The moment he spotted Uchiha Fugaku in the distance, he loudly declared his stance, intending to intimidate the Uchiha Clan's reckless actions while secretly pinning a crime upon them.

After all, ever since the Second Hokage established the Anbu, it had been a center of authority directly under the Hokage and could not be encroached upon by others. On the surface, Root still belonged to the Anbu's training department, so the Uchiha Clan's actions were naturally an overreach of their authority.

As soon as he finished speaking, Sarutobi Hiruzen used the Body Flicker Technique and instantly appeared not far from Uchiha Fugaku. Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, who followed close behind, also arrogantly rebuked him:

"Uchiha Clan, what are you doing? You dare attack the Hokage's directly subordinate Anbu? Are you trying to betray the village?"

Hearing the Konoha High Command immediately slap such a charge onto them, Uchiha Fugaku's face showed a trace of solemnity. But recalling Minagawa Uchiha's words, his expression changed into one of righteous resolve.

"Heh, betraying the village? What a huge accusation!

"Konoha was founded by our Uchiha Clan and the Senju Clan, leading many other clans together. Betraying the village? Why not say that you are the traitors instead?"

The moment he spoke those rebutting words, Uchiha Fugaku directly activated his Mangekyō Sharingan. Powerful chakra and Dojutsu Power erupted as he fixed Utatane Koharu, that vicious woman spouting nonsense, with an unyielding glare.

The surrounding Uchiha Clan members also instantly moved behind their Clan Head, activating their Sharingan and staring directly at Sarutobi Hiruzen's group.

Faced with so many Sharingan giving her a "death stare," including a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan, Utatane Koharu predictably lost her nerve and silently retreated behind Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Hokage.

Yet Sarutobi Hiruzen paid no attention to anything else. His eyes were locked on Uchiha Fugaku's Mangekyō Sharingan, and the rage he had felt on his way here instantly vanished.

Uchiha Fugaku had hidden himself too well. When exactly had he awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?

Adding Uchiha Itachi, who had almost certainly defected now, and that Masked Man who attacked Root and the Hokage Building, the Uchiha Clan now possessed three pairs of Mangekyō Sharingan.

How am I, the Hokage, supposed to incite other ninja to destroy your clan now? Isn't this making things difficult for an old man like me?

Having recognized the current situation, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt powerless and could only choose to back down. He turned and glared at Utatane Koharu, who could not read the situation, and his tone softened completely.

"Clan Head Fugaku, is there some misunderstanding between the Uchiha Clan and Advisor Danzō? Why have you brought people to surround the base he is in charge of?

"If there is any problem, you can discuss it with me, the Hokage. The Anbu Training Ground is, after all, directly under the Hokage. Isn't it somewhat inappropriate for you to bring people here to kill?

"Your actions will only escalate the conflict. If your Military Police Force has uncovered any clues, you can report them directly to me, your immediate superior. I will certainly give the village a satisfactory explanation."

Seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen's attitude of offering him a way out, Uchiha Fugaku had no choice but to admit that he had indeed been too weak in the past. Blindly yielding would never have earned him Sarutobi Hiruzen's current attitude.

Instead, Minagawa Uchiha had been right. Only by seeking peace through struggle could peace truly arrive.