Upon hearing that his father was indeed going to take Akatsuki Organization, Kazashiro hurriedly spoke up to stop him, "I think this is inappropriate."
Seeing that his son was against him, Danzo was not angry. He remained seated and looked at his son with interest. "Tell me about it."
"Konoha is currently at war, and Amegakure, led by Hanzo, has not directly joined the war. Instead, they have allowed Iwagakure ninjas to pass through their territory, thus achieving their goal of using someone else to do their dirty work. This proves that neither side has completely trusted the other."
"In the short term, Hanzo won't truly cooperate with Akatsuki Organization. On the contrary, we can take advantage of this and contact them before Hanzo makes up his mind. We can see if we can get this organization to work for Konoha, or stabilize the situation in the Land of Rain by supporting them to control Amegakure."
"A peaceful and controlled Land of Rain is far more useful than a chaotic Land of Rain, isn't it?"
Unable to convey all his thoughts to Danzo in a short time, Kazashiro awkwardly tried to explain his general purpose to him.
"How can you guarantee that after Akatsuki Organization takes control of Amegakure, it will act as you envision, instead of becoming an enemy of Konoha like other major powers?"
Danzo spoke in a flat tone, making it impossible to discern his true thoughts.
Kazashiro was Danzo's question.
Right, what makes him so sure that Akatsuki Organization won't become an enemy of Konoha?
Wait, let me make this up...
As Feng Bai was pondering how to answer Danzo's question, a sudden Kazashiro struck him, and he blurted out, "The leader of Akatsuki Organization is very likely Jiraiya's disciple. That's what he told me before sending me on this mission."
"So that's how it is, relying on the meager bond of the master-disciple relationship?"
Danzo nodded, not surprised that Kazashiro had brought up Jiraiya.
"But you should know, and you can see, that in this so-called Shinobi World, personal relationships don't matter. Ninjas are driven by all sorts of reasons, whether it's for profit or for hatred. Most ninjas are very pragmatic. How can you be sure that this so-called Akatsuki Organization isn't like that?"
"Or perhaps, Jiraiya's disciples do harbor goodwill towards Konoha because of Jiraiya, what about the Rain Ninja who suffered attacks from Konoha Ninja? What about the civilians who lost their loved ones? Could they, through the voice of the masses, force Jiraiya's disciples to change their ways?"
Danzo's voice was unhurried and calm, recounting all the possibilities.
Kazashiro fell silent.
Danzo's words were very realistic; everything he said was indeed possible, while Kazashiro relied solely on his understanding of the plot from his previous life.
He didn't really have a good reason to refute Danzo's idea.
Seeing that Kazashiro had stopped speaking, Danzo did not urge him on, but instead looked at his son, seemingly lost in thought.
My father seems to be waiting for something...
Seeing Danzo remain silent, Kazashiro realized something. He had a feeling that this conversation was deliberately arranged by his father, who wanted to get something out of him.
Oh no, my head is so itchy, I need to grow a brain.
Kazashiro, who was too lazy to even engage in strategic maneuvering during battle, naturally couldn't understand Danzo's purpose. He could only frantically rack his brains to think of the next course of action.
"Because I believe in Jiraiya, and Jiraiya believes in his disciples, and you believe in me, I hope you will refrain from taking action for the time being and allow me to make contact with them."
After holding it in for a long time, Kazashiro, whose whole body was flushed, finally managed to squeeze out this sentence.
Seeing his son's face flushed from overload, Danzo almost couldn't resist slapping him.
If someone else had given him such an idealistic answer, Danzo would have definitely sent them to his specially made little dark room to stay for a few days.
[Sigh, so he's got the strength, but his intelligence hasn't kept up? Or maybe he's been around Hiruzen for too long and caught that indecisive trait?]
Rubbing his temples with a slight headache, Danzo increasingly regretted entrusting his son to Hiruzen's tutelage.
Remembering that Hiruzen had once told him to trust everyone in the village, Danzo ultimately rejected his own guess that his son was not intelligent enough and placed all the blame on Hiruzen alone.
Hiruzen: I always feel a bit heavy on my back.
But the power of belief...
Anyway, if any problems arise, I, as his father, will cover for him, so let him be.
Danzo decided to trust his son this once and let him make contact with the Akatsuki Organization members.
"Then let's go."
"Um?"
Kazashiro, who had expected to get slapped for saying those words, was prepared to take a beating, but Danzo's calm voice made him subconsciously raise his head.
What did my dad just say?
"I said, since you've decided to trust them, then go and make contact with them."
Danzo said irritably, "Why does my stupid son seem to lack intelligence?"
"Dad..."
Completely unexpectedly, his clumsy answer actually won Danzo's approval, and Kazashiro was at a loss for words.
Did this father really love him?
Removing the Danzo presented in the original work, Kazashiro believed that he had felt some fatherly love from Danzo.
Rushing to Danzo, Kazashiro pressed his head down, gave him a big hug, and said happily, "Thank you, Dad!"
After saying that, before Danzo could react, Kazashiro immediately released him and skipped away from the cave.
"Hmph, with no upright character, how will he amount to anything in the future?"
As Kazashiro ran off into the distance, Danzo up seemingly disgustedly, patting himself off, but the slight upturn at the corner of his mouth betrayed his true feelings.
Controlling his expression, and making sure Kazashiro was far away, Danzo summoned Ding San from the cave entrance and solemnly instructed him, "Suspend contact with Hanzo, and cease all contact with the Stone Ninja. You and your squad follow Kazashiro. If the Akatsuki Organization dares to attack Kazashiro, you must immediately notify me, understand?"
"Yes!"
Ding San accepted the order without any objection, and seeing that Danzo had no other arrangements, he Body Flicker Technique left.
"The Akatsuki Organization..."
Turning around and staring intently at the Akatsuki Organization's territory on the map, Danzo drew his Ninja Blade from his back and stabbed it down hard, the tip sinking into the solid stone table. "I hope you cherish this opportunity, otherwise..."
"How are you, Kazashiro? Are you alright?"
Outside the cave, Kakashi and the others, who were under close surveillance by the Root ninjas, finally spotted Kazashiro and rushed forward to surround him.
"It's nothing. The Anbu is on a mission. Don't ask any more questions. Let's continue with the mission."
Smiling and telling everyone he was alright, Kazashiro didn't explain in detail why the Root ninjas had gathered there, but instead led the others to continue their mission.