December had come, and the Land of Fire was in the grip of winter.
Though it hadn't snowed around Konoha, which lay in the mid-latitudes, the weather was already bitterly cold. The once lush, verdant forests had changed color.
In a wasteland outside the village, Shimura Danzō and Orochimaru stood side by side, quietly waiting for Uzumaki Kuming to arrive. Danzō knew the newly appointed Hokage would come.
Nonō's assassination attempt had failed, just as Danzō had expected. His original plan had been to lure Kuming into a room, then strike alongside Orochimaru and the Root operatives. But he hadn't expected Nonō to attack so boldly outside the orphanage—and to be subdued by Kuming in a single exchange.
As soon as he saw his first plan fail, Danzō put his backup plan into motion. He made no effort to conceal his tracks and fled swiftly outside the village. He had prepared a second battlefield here.
"Boom!"
A clap of thunder sounded in the sky. Before long, Uzumaki Kuming arrived, lightning crackling around his body. Seeing Danzō and Orochimaru standing in the distance, he smiled faintly and greeted them.
"Elder Danzō, Senior Orochimaru, did you bring me all the way out here to tell me something important?"
Danzō stared at Kuming with a cold expression and didn't answer. He simply raised a hand. From a depression some distance behind him emerged more than twenty Root shinobi, who hurled kunai bound with Explosive Tags at Kuming. In an instant, a violent blast swallowed him.
"Lord Danzō, is this really your plan?"
"If so, you're underestimating him."
Orochimaru licked his lips and murmured. At his words, Danzō shook his head slightly and replied, "Of course not. I know exactly what kind of man our opponent is."
"An attack of this caliber is just