Uzuki's Thoughts! His Thoughts?

Yakushi Taro... No, I should call him Uzuki.

Uzuki considered himself one of Root's senior members. Ever since Lord Danzo had founded Root, he had stayed by Lord Danzo's side, serving him with all his heart.

But lately, a treacherous little scoundrel had repeatedly provoked him, relying on nothing but his status as Lord Hokage's disciple. He'd even captured Uzuki's younger brother!

Enough was enough!

He would show that useless Orochimaru—who had nothing going for him except being tall, handsome, and fair-skinned—just how a sensory infiltration ninja contributed to Root, and how Uzuki had become one of Root's senior members!

Heh heh! Just you wait!

After receiving Danzo's approval, Uzuki's figure melted into the shadows beneath Konoha.

He didn't take the usual routes. Instead, he traveled directly along uncharted secret paths known only to Root's core members.

To him, the entire underground beneath Konoha was like an open map. Those secret bases were practically undefended.

Orochimaru's laboratory was easy to find.

The place constantly radiated all kinds of complex chakra signatures, standing out in the underground network like a lighthouse!

If he'd built the laboratory aboveground, Uzuki probably wouldn't have found it.

Uzuki sneered inwardly. Such an obvious setup was practically an insult to Root's sensory abilities. As expected, only he, Uzuki, was Lord Danzo's most capable aide.

Uzuki didn't approach the entrance. He stopped at a safe distance, lowered his chakra to a minimum, and slowly extended his senses toward it like a net.

It was delicate work. Who knew whether Orochimaru had set up any Barrier Ninjutsu around his laboratory?

That Orochimaru was useless, of course, but he was still a disciple of the Hokage line. The Hokage line in Konoha had inherited many sealing and barrier techniques.

However, Orochimaru didn't seem to care much about this base. There were practically no barriers at all, which put Uzuki at ease.

Soon, the laboratory's interior layout took shape clearly in his mind.

He sensed no patrol guards. All he sensed was a group of mediocre ninjas whose chakra didn't even measure up to Chunin level. They were no threat, and they were milling around a child.

What on earth had Orochimaru put a bunch of mediocre ninjas in the lab to do!?

Mediocre ninjas should be sent to the battlefield to die! Only powerful ninjas like them, who could reach the rank of Jonin, deserved to enjoy life!

Uzuki frowned and continued probing.

Soon, he sensed a sealed storeroom. Inside, it was like a black hole, without a trace of chakra. He had no idea what Orochimaru had sealed in there.

And then...

He sensed three chakra sources at the core, surrounded by all those mediocre ninjas.

One was cold and immense, coiled like an abyssal serpent. Without a doubt, that was Orochimaru.

Another was faint and chaotic, filled with fear. Uzuki's heart clenched. That was his younger brother, Jiro. He knew his brother's chakra all too well! Jiro was just a weak, helpless medical ninja!

What could a medical ninja even do!? The despicable Orochimaru had actually arrested him on charges of treason!

He must be trying to frame Uzuki!

And the third... was utterly ordinary.

Steady and weak, like a newly graduated Genin. There was nothing remarkable about it.

Uzuki immediately matched this chakra to "Sawada Hiroki" in the intelligence reports.

He almost laughed aloud.

That was it? This was the genius with a special Kekkei Genkai whom Orochimaru had praised to Lord Danzo?

As expected, you couldn't trust the rumors around the village. One person taking down a Cloud Ninja squad? How was that even possible? His chakra was barely enough for one or two small-scale jutsu! Did they expect him to kill three Cloud Ninjas with a single technique?

Were those Cloud Ninjas fools, just standing there like targets while a child formed Hand Seals right in front of them?

It was probably just another fake story concocted by the publicity department!

As for Lord Danzo, he was probably getting old and going blind, fooled by Orochimaru's sweet talk.

Besides, what kind of Kekkei Genkai could both communicate and copy ninjutsu?

As a spy who'd gathered intelligence across the Shinobi World for decades, Uzuki had never heard of a Kekkei Genkai that could copy ninjutsu and enable mental communication. How could anyone else know of one?

Just as he was about to focus all his attention on his younger brother, he sensed the child named Hiroki pause for a moment.

Hm?

Was that child looking around?

Had he noticed Uzuki?

Uzuki didn't give it a second thought.

As far as he was concerned, the child had merely sensed the laboratory's chilly atmosphere and shivered instinctively. The idea that he could detect Uzuki was utterly ridiculous. After all, Uzuki was the best sensory ninja under Lord Danzo!

Only one thought crossed his mind: should he encrypt and protect his thoughts?

What if the rumors were true, after all?

Impossible! They couldn't be true!

The next moment, Uzuki firmly rejected the thought.

How could they be!? He was the best sensory ninja under Lord Danzo!

?

Something seemed off.

Uzuki shook his head. What did being a sensory ninja have to do with protecting his thoughts?

There was no need! He was the best sensory ninja under Lord Danzo! How could a sensory ninja's senses possibly be wrong!?

That brat's chakra looked utterly ordinary, and it wasn't fluctuating at all. How could he possibly detect Uzuki's senses?

Besides, how could a spy who moved through Root possibly have his mind read by a child?

--What an absurd thought.

Uzuki had a vague feeling that there was something wrong with his train of thought.

But the next moment, he felt there was nothing wrong with it after all.

Damn it...

Was his younger brother making him lose focus?

That was what Uzuki thought.

Images of his daily life with his younger brother began to surface in his mind...

Hm?

What was he doing?

Uzuki's eyes widened the next instant. He saw Hiroki place his hand on Jiro's shoulder.

It looked perfectly ordinary.

No! He was going to read his younger brother's memories and copy his ninjutsu!

The intelligence about Root flashed through Uzuki's mind.

In an instant, Uzuki remembered the information about Hiroki's Kekkei Genkai.

Vaguely, Uzuki felt that something wasn't quite right. His younger brother had already been read once when he was captured, so there shouldn't be anything important left in those memories or ninjutsu.

But the next moment, Uzuki rejected that thought!

That was his own younger brother!!!

How could Hiroki treat his own younger brother like that!?!?

Uzuki flew into a rage and immediately rushed out.

But in the instant he charged forward... one last thought flashed through Uzuki's mind.

--Ever since he sensed that brat... hadn't he been having a few too many thoughts?

It was probably... just his imagination.