Danzo's biological son?

Konohagakure, Hokage's Office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's mouth hung slightly open, disbelief clouding his eyes.

Standing opposite him was a ninja dressed in Anbu attire, holding a small child by the hand.

The reason for the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, a man of vast experience, to show such an expression was none other than the child before him.

The child appeared to be around three or four years old, not tall, with thin arms exposed from his sleeves. His black hair was messy, falling over his shoulders, and his dark eyes were hidden beneath his bangs, making it impossible to discern their depth.

Under normal circumstances, a child like this, who could easily be found anywhere in the ninja world, shouldn't have caused such a stir to a prominent figure like the Hokage.

Yet, the reality was that not only had he alarmed the Hokage, but he had also drawn the attention of another individual whose status was second only to the Hokage.

"Bang."

With a dull thud, the door to the Hokage's Office was roughly pushed open, followed by a somber voice:

"Hiruzen, what's so urgent? Don't you know I--"

The voice abruptly stopped as Danzo Shimura squinted his single eye, scrutinizing the Anbu ninja.

"Douhu? Weren't you on a mission in Kirigakure? How did you return so quickly?"

As the leader of the Anbu training department, Danzo naturally recognized the ninja before him, even though the latter belonged to the Hokage's division.

"Lord Danzo." Douhu nodded respectfully, then shifted his gaze towards Hiruzen.

"Mhm, tell him, Douhu." The moment Danzo pushed open the door, Hiruzen's expression had returned to its usual professional demeanor. As Douhu looked at him, Hiruzen even took out his pipe.

"Yes, Lord Hokage. Actually, it's like this, Lord Danzo..."

With Hiruzen Sarutobi's permission, Douhu began to recount his experiences in Kirigakure in full.

However, the events he described were truly horrifying.

"What did you say?!" Danzo was completely stunned after hearing Douhu's account.

"You're saying this little brat is my son?!" Danzo, losing his usual composed demeanor, extended his bandaged right arm and pointed at the child Douhu was holding, his expression one of utter shock.

"Y-yes, that's right..." Douhu said, bracing himself.

"You're spouting nonsense! When was I-- " Danzo, no longer concerned with his image, even let out a curse, determined to defend his honor.

However, before he could finish, he abruptly stopped himself.

Then, everyone present watched as Danzo retracted his arm, fixed his gaze on the child who had shrunk behind Douhu's legs in fear, his expression shifting rapidly.

"Hoo." Just as everyone was unsure of what to do next, Danzo let out a long sigh, his eyes softening. His tone was no longer as firm. "Where is that thing?"

Danzo's words were initially baffling, but Douhu seemed prepared. He immediately took a kunai from his waist and handed it to Danzo.

"This is something the child has been carrying with him at all times, so..." Douhu explained the origin of the kunai as he handed it over.

"Mhm..." Danzo merely responded with a soft hum, then stared at the kunai in silence.

"Ahem, you two can go now. Douhu, take the child for a walk around the village. Oh, and take off your gear first." Hiruzen Sarutobi reminded him, as it would be too conspicuous for an Anbu member to wander around the village with a child.

"Yes." Douhu acknowledged, then, holding the child's hand, left the Hokage's Office.

They navigated through the corridors, eventually arriving at a locker room-like area where several Anbu members were changing their gear.

"Ah, senpai, you're back! Long time no see." Several Anbu members greeted Douhu familiarly.

"Mhm, yes." Douhu responded to each of them, then led the child to a corridor with several benches.

"Kazashiro, wait for me here. I'll be right back after I change." After settling the boy on a bench and receiving his reply, Douhu hurried into the changing room.

"Phew, damn, that scared me to death." Once Douhu was inside and there were no other people around, at least not openly, the boy named Kazashiro let out a sigh of relief, his face filled with lingering fear.

Kazashiro was not a native of the ninja world in the traditional sense. His soul came from Earth. Whether it was sheer luck or not, he didn't know, but one moment he closed his eyes, and the next, he found himself in a new world, reborn as a newborn infant.

As time passed and he gradually understood the world around him, he was astonished to discover that he had been reborn into the world of Naruto.

This was a real pickle!

Assessing his meager resources, he had a leaky house, a sickly mother, and a father whose whereabouts were unknown. Kazashiro felt utterly overwhelmed.

Naruto, the premise was that you had to be a ninja! In his current situation, he was practically a civilian in the Naruto world!

Moreover, Naruto had ended many years ago. Besides remembering that the finale involved Naruto successfully bringing Sasuke back and sealing Kaguya, he could only recall the general plot points.

System, where's the system? Come out and save me?!

Regrettably, no matter how much Kazashiro tried, he couldn't summon a system.

It seemed he could only accept this reality and live out his days as a civilian until old age. Fortunately, he had been reborn in the Land of Water. If he wasn't going to be a ninja, then no matter how the Bloody Mist Village caused trouble, it wouldn't affect him.

That's what Kazashiro had thought at the time.

That was until his mother, on the verge of death due to overwork when he was three years old, told him two things:

The first was that his mother was from the Ice Release clan, and she had been living in hiding under an assumed name for well-known reasons.

The second was that his father wasn't dead. He was a ninja from Konoha named Danzo, and he still had a token from him.

"Mom, you--" After hearing all this, Kazashiro was speechless.

Good heavens, with this kind of background, either one of these revelations alone would make it impossible for him to survive in the Land of Water, let alone both!

It's over, it's over! This little mouse is really screwed this time~

Looking at the kunai and training scrolls his mother had given him, Kazashiro felt a pang of sadness.

It was for his mother, and for himself.

"Have you been waiting long?" A familiar voice broke Kazashiro's reverie. He looked up to see a somewhat familiar face before him.

"Mm, not really." Kazashiro looked at the other person's silver hair, feeling like he had overlooked something crucial.

"That's good, let's go." Douhu offered a gentle smile and reached out, skillfully taking Kazashiro's hand.

"Oh, right. Don't call me by my codename in the village. Just call me Uncle Sakumo. My son is about your age anyway." Douhu said as they walked, instructing Kazashiro.

"Okay, Uncle Sakumo." Kazashiro nodded obediently.