To Repay Debts, Become Hokage!

Shimura Danzō returned to the Root base with a gloomy expression.

Behind him followed the Root ninja who had been defeated by Uchiha Chonhua, all of whom had been handed over to him by Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Thinking back to his experience in the Hokage office, Shimura Danzō felt his anger boiling over.

He sat heavily in his chair, his sinister gaze fixed upon the six Root ninja before him.

The Root ninja knelt on one knee, their expressions anxious as they awaited Shimura Danzō's words.

"Why were you controlled by a genjutsu? And why did you leak the details of the mission?" Shimura Danzō asked in a low voice, staring daggers at them.

The Root ninja stiffened, not knowing how to respond.

To be honest, they weren't entirely sure themselves how they had been controlled by Uchiha Chonhua's genjutsu, leading them to spill the mission details and the identity of the mastermind.

The confidentiality measures established by Lord Danzō had all lost their effectiveness.

Shimura Danzō stood up, ripped open the shirt of one of the Root ninja, and squinted at the seal upon his skin.

"The seal was not triggered; why did the Binding Curse lose its effect? And why did my name appear in that report?"

Shimura Danzō's face darkened; the memory of Sarutobi Hiruzen's distrustful gaze brought a sense of agitation to his heart.

He felt a bit aggrieved, and that feeling was quickly followed by a towering rage.

Who was he doing all this for? It was for Konoha, and for Sarutobi Hiruzen, who served as Hokage!

Now, because of some Uchiha brat, Hiruzen had developed distrust and wariness toward him. This made Shimura Danzō furious; he wanted to curse someone.

He found it increasingly difficult to understand Hiruzen. They used to complain together about how the Uchiha Clan was always causing trouble and annoying Teacher Tobirama, and they had stood up for their teacher by fiercely criticizing the Uchiha.

Now that Hiruzen had become Hokage, he had grown weak, compromising with the Uchiha Clan at every turn and even valuing a brat from that clan!

What happened to all those times you cursed the Uchiha? Have you forgotten?!

As expected, he was the most outstanding disciple of Teacher Tobirama, the one who truly inherited his ideology and was single-mindedly determined to wipe out the Uchiha.

How could someone as excellent as him not be the Hokage? Shimura Danzō thought gloomily; it was all because of his hesitation and retreat back then!

"Lord Danzō, this subordinate may have a hypothesis."

The words of the Passerby Face Root ninja made Shimura Danzō look over, signaling him to speak.

The Passerby Face took a deep breath, recalled the events of that day, and said, "No technique is perfect; perhaps the Binding Curse is the same. This subordinate remembers that Uchiha Chonhua often goes to the Senju Compound."

"The Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan have been on good terms for generations, and Lady Mito was once the princess of the Land of Whirlpools. As Tsunade's student, Uchiha Chonhua must see Lady Mito quite often."

"Lord Danzō, the Binding Curse on us is quite powerful, but compared to the sealing techniques of the Uzumaki Clan, it is still insignificant, so..."

The Passerby Face stopped there, leaving Shimura Danzō lost in thought.

Did the Passerby Face mean that during the years Uchiha Chonhua spent visiting the Senju Compound, he had learned knowledge related to sealing techniques from Mito Uzumaki?

Was that how he was able to see through the Binding Curse and find a way to bypass the restrictions?

This... was certainly a possibility.

Another possibility was that Uchiha Chonhua's genjutsu was simply too strong for the Binding Curse to resist.

However, he had conducted genjutsu tests on Three-Tomoe Sharingan users, and the Binding Curse had never been broken, let alone bypassed.

Unless Uchiha Chonhua had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.

Shimura Danzō shook his head; that was even more impossible.

How old was Uchiha Chonhua? Furthermore, judging by his history, he hadn't experienced any heart-wrenching tragedies; he hadn't even awakened his basic Sharingan yet.

By the end of the interrogation and discussion, Shimura Danzō and the six Root ninja still didn't know how Uchiha Chonhua had managed to ignore the Binding Curse.

But one thing was clear to Shimura Danzō.

The current Binding Curse was not perfect. If it could fail once, it could fail countless times; this version of the Binding Curse was no longer viable.

He needed to find a more powerful curse, Shimura Danzō thought. Perhaps he could consider cooperating with the Hyuga Branch House; their Caged Bird Seal was incredibly potent. He could study it and improve his own Binding Curse.

Chapter 44: The Attention of Interested Parties

Shimura Danzō dismissed the six Root ninja.

No, they were Anbu ninja now.

The incident of using the Hokage's name to send Root ninja to cause trouble for Uchiha Chonhua had been turned over, but it still left ripples.

Shimura Danzō had been stripped of his position as Hokage Assistant, and his role as the head of Anbu training had been removed as well.

His private armed force, Root, had been ordered to disband and be absorbed into the Anbu.

Thinking of this, another wave of nameless anger rose in Shimura Danzō.

Before leaving, Hiruzen had warned him not to lay a hand on the village's ninja, frequently glancing at those six Root ninja while speaking; the implication was obvious.

He was afraid that Danzō would carry out a private execution to dispose of the six Root ninja.

Was he that kind of person? ...Well, Shimura Danzō was indeed that kind of person.

Shimura Danzō had originally intended to kill these six Root ninja immediately after the interrogation; ninja who could not keep secrets were already useless trash.

Since Sarutobi Hiruzen had specifically called them out, it was naturally difficult to take action.

Thus, Shimura Danzō was forced to show a rare moment of magnanimity and let these people go, which actually moved them to tears, each one stepping forward to pledge their loyalty.

Body in the Anbu, heart in the Root!

With no official position for the time being, Shimura Danzō felt light and unburdened; he had no intention of retiring, nor was he worried.

Shimura Danzō let out a cold laugh.

"Hiruzen, there are some things that simply cannot be done without me."

His gaze suddenly shifted toward the west, the direction of the Land of Rain.

Sarutobi Hiruzen wore an apologetic expression, his face full of guilt as he said, "Chonhua, I am sorry. This is my fault."

He looked at the Hokage's seal resting on the desk. "I never expected Danzō to steal the Hokage's seal to forge a mission order, nor that he would send Root ninja to harm you."

Sarutobi Hiruzen stood up and bowed solemnly to Uchiha Chonhua in apology.

"I am sorry, Chonhua. It was my negligence that allowed you to be placed in such danger."

Uchiha Chonhua, who had been feigning dissatisfaction, was moved by Sarutobi Hiruzen's actions and immediately stepped forward to help him up.

"This is not the Hokage-sama's fault. Please, rise. These are the transgressions of others; what does it have to do with the Hokage-sama?"

Uchiha Chonhua spoke with deep sincerity, though he was silently mocking him in his heart.

Stealing the Hokage's seal? He would bet his life that Shimura Danzō had simply walked into the office, mimicked Sarutobi Hiruzen's handwriting to write the mission order, casually picked up the seal to stamp it, and then left as if he had done nothing more than a trivial chore—all in one fluid motion.

Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't care, and Shimura Danzō cared even less.

"I have already stripped Danzō of his position, and his Root subordinates have been disbanded and integrated into the Anbu."

Sarutobi Hiruzen stood up and pulled a scroll from his sleeve to hand to Uchiha Chonhua. "I know of your accomplishments in genjutsu. This is a genjutsu technique; please accept it as my apology."

Oh?

Uchiha Chonhua took it. This was an unexpected gain. A genjutsu? He wondered which one it was.

Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed. "Sigh, Chonhua, rest assured, such a thing will never happen again."

"You are Tsunade's disciple, which makes you my grand-disciple. If you ever face any difficulties, do not hesitate to come to me. As Hokage, I still have the ability to help my grand-disciple resolve his troubles."

[Host, try asking him for the position of Hokage.]

Uchiha Chonhua gave the system a mental "Heh."

After some conversation, he walked out of the Hokage Building with the genjutsu scroll in hand. Looking back, he could see Sarutobi Hiruzen watching him from the window.

Uchiha Chonhua smiled and waved, and upon seeing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen offered a faint smile and waved back.

In the end, Shimura Danzō would naturally not face any serious punishment, merely the loss of his position and the disbanding of the Root.

This was a grave crime involving the harm of a fellow village ninja; if it were any ordinary ninja, they would have been branded a traitor and executed on the spot.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was a Hokage with a human touch, but he was far too sentimental, to the point where he would openly engage in favoritism and harbor evil right before everyone's eyes.

Sarutobi Hiruzen needed Shimura Danzō to do his dirty work, and Shimura Danzō needed Sarutobi Hiruzen to clean up his messes.

Truly a match made in heaven, those two "good partners."

Uchiha Chonhua shook his head with a smile, tossing the genjutsu scroll as he walked toward the Senju Compound.

With the Hokage's protection, Shimura Danzō was wrapped in a protective shell.

He was currently a man of little influence; he could stir up small troubles, but he couldn't change the big picture. Making the Hokage bow and apologize was the limit of what he could achieve for now.

However...

Uchiha Chonhua's gaze turned toward the west. The coming chaos would be the ladder for his ascent.

He would eventually gain the power to do big things!

"Chonhua is not of one mind with us."

Uchiha Ryutai replied calmly to the clan head, Uchiha Shohei, "Isn't that something we've known for a long time? He is even closer to them than we are, and we are already the ones closest to Konoha."

"Tsk tsk, just a personal apology from Sarutobi Hiruzen and he earns Chonhua's forgiveness." Uchiha Shohei drank a cup of clear sake and said with a mocking smile, "He is truly obedient. This was an excellent opportunity to make a scene, yet Chonhua simply gave it up."

After all, the central protagonist of the incident was Uchiha Chonhua; if he turned the page, what else could anyone else say?

They had wanted to use the incident to their advantage, but with the issue resolved, any further action would just be seen as causing trouble for no reason.

Uchiha Ryutai poured wine for the clan head and laughed, "It seems Chonhua's tact has only brought him closer to Sarutobi Hiruzen."

"He is constantly saying now that Chonhua is his most outstanding grand-disciple, treating him as one of his own."

Uchiha Shohei sneered, "Chonhua is talented and leans toward him; everyone wants such a talent, and Sarutobi Hiruzen is no exception. How could he let a rift form over the Shimura Danzō affair?"

"It's all thanks to Chonhua's loyalty and his consideration for the Hokage's troubles. Isn't he happy in his heart?"

Uchiha Ryutai pointed out the main reason.

"Haven't we been in contact with Chonhua longer than Sarutobi Hiruzen? Why doesn't he show us such loyalty and consideration?"

Uchiha Shohei set down his cup, his tone laced with dissatisfaction: "Does he have any regard for the clan left in his eyes!"

"I've heard it myself—he defeated those six Root ninja all on his own. Ryutai, six Root ninja! Chonhua's strength is already on par with our own, not far off at all."

"He's only ten years old! Such talent, such talent..."

Uchiha Shohei fumed indignantly: "Why is he so dead-set on cozying up to Sarutobi Hiruzen? He can even forgive something that threatened his life—is Sarutobi Hiruzen his father? Does he not feel a shred of resentment in his heart? Can he really just let it go like that?"

With these three consecutive questions, Uchiha Shohei downed his cup of wine in one gulp.

The speaker spoke without intent, but the listener took it to heart.

Uchiha Ryutai's heart stirred.

If one were to ask which high-ranking member of the Uchiha clan had the most contact with Uchiha Chonhua, Uchiha Ryutai would be the undisputed answer; therefore, he knew that Uchiha Chonhua was a clever man.

His repeated attempts to recruit him had all been deflected by Uchiha Chonhua, and the relationship between them remained distant yet close, intimate yet detached.

Uchiha Ryutai had shown sufficient patience toward someone so exceptional, but now, the clan leader's words had awakened him from his stupor.

His recruitment efforts were met with restraint and composure, yet toward Sarutobi Hiruzen, he showed a fanatical devotion, acting as if he were at his beck and call.

In the past, he had seen no issue with this, as Uchiha Chonhua's dream was to become a Hokage like Sarutobi Hiruzen.

It was only natural to be passionate about Sarutobi Hiruzen.

However, a single bow of apology from Sarutobi Hiruzen had been enough for Uchiha Chonhua to forgive the fact that Shimura Danzō had attempted to assassinate him.

Such behavior was completely unlike the Uchiha Chonhua he knew.

It was too obedient, and frankly... too mindless.

Uchiha Ryutai raised his cup and took a sip, lost in thought.

Could this be... something Uchiha Chonhua was doing on purpose?

Chapter 45: The Chunin Exams, Begin!