Danzo

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Shimura Danzo (团藏) 55 67
Alias(es)	Darkness of the Shinobi World 67 78
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Konoha; Root; Shimura Clan. Expelled from Konoha and stripped of all positions 37 274
Occupation/Role	Former Hokage’s advisor and Root leader; later Nioi’s political ally and guard 219 274 277 279
Status	Alive and fleeing after the Capital of Fire confrontation; the Shimura Clan is ordered exterminated 281
First Appearance	Chapter 1: “Uchiha Clan Spy” 1

Background / History

Second Hokage’s Disciple

Danzo was a disciple of Senju Tobirama and a contemporary of Sarutobi Hiruzen. When Tobirama chose to remain behind to cover his students’ retreat, Danzo intended to volunteer but hesitated longer than Hiruzen. He later regarded that delay as the moment he lost his opportunity to become Hokage 88 275 280.

After the Fourth Hokage’s death, Danzo again failed to act before Hiruzen reclaimed the position. His resentment centered on repeatedly being “half a beat too slow” 280.

Root and Experimental Research

Under Danzo, Root became an intelligence network and effectively a private militia. Its recruits included orphans and shinobi drawn into clandestine service; members abandoned their names for codenames and developed a dependency-like reverence for him 37.

Danzo partnered with Orochimaru in research involving Hashirama’s cells and Wood Release. He secretly retained and trained a surviving test subject, codenamed A, without informing Orochimaru. Their experimental correspondence continued even after their contact became less frequent 68.

His facilities also held stolen techniques, human-experiment records, living subjects, and preserved Sharingan. Akashi eventually found no fewer than ten pairs of eyes, most with three tomoe 102 103.

Uchiha Relocation and Akashi’s Recruitment

Following the Nine-Tails Incident, Danzo proposed relocating the Uchiha district despite the investigation finding no perpetrator within the village. He favored forceful implementation over Hiruzen’s approach of appeasement and questioned whether the Uchiha informant Akashi could be trusted 1 2.

Danzo later compelled Akashi to enter Root, claiming the arrangement had been agreed upon with Hiruzen. He assigned him the codename Yaksha, staged an initiation attack, and imposed the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal and other seals to secure obedience 37 38.

His distrust never disappeared. After several Root casualties involving Akashi’s missions, Danzo considered him expendable and selected him to impersonate Danzo as a decoy during the Land of Rain operation 73.

Bounty Crisis and the Land of Rain

A growing black-market bounty exposed Danzo’s normally secretive activities. He initially suspected Hiruzen, then turned toward Orochimaru because of their shared experimental secrets. Akashi was ordered to investigate his former teacher 67 68.

Danzo also ordered Root to sabotage Konoha–Iwagakure negotiations by posing as enemy ninja. His objective was to prevent Hiruzen from gaining political strength through an alliance against Kumogakure 69.

After Akatsuki disrupted his plans, Danzo approached Hanzo to arrange its destruction. He promised territorial gains for the Land of Rain if he became Hokage. When Hanzo ended their cooperation following a failed operation against Konan, Danzo expanded his scheme to include Hanzo’s assassination and Amegakure’s destruction 72 78.

The resulting Four-Way Peace Talks concealed coordinated attacks involving Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure. During the fighting, Rain ninja identified and pursued Danzo despite his attempts to change masks 79 82.

His retreat was then repeatedly ambushed by bounty hunters. Near the Land of Fire border, Kakuzu attacked his exhausted escort, forcing Danzo to escape with Izanagi 88.

Destruction and Recovery of Root

Akashi subsequently attacked Root headquarters and plundered its research, Sharingan collection, and experimental materials. Danzo returned to find the laboratories ruined and the secret storage emptied 101 102 103 104.

Unable to identify the attacker, Danzo accused Hiruzen and recalled his operatives for protection. Root’s disrupted communications left some spies, including Kabuto, without instructions 104 128.

The Shimura Clan’s private resources helped Danzo rebuild after Root’s destruction. By the later Kumogakure war, he was again using Root and clan agents to pursue his ambitions 255 275.

Kumogakure War and Renewed Uchiha Conflict

Danzo welcomed the diplomatic damage caused by the death of Kumogakure envoy Guluo, privately admiring how the incident trapped Hiruzen between foreign demands and clan opposition 203.

During the ensuing war, he bypassed the Hokage and remotely directed Shimura Kaichiro through hawk-delivered orders. His plan was to let other clans suffer the fighting while the Shimura Clan claimed military credit and collected Sharingan from Uchiha casualties. His impractical deployments instead created a gap exploited by Kumogakure 219.

After Konoha’s victory, Danzo berated his clansmen for gaining neither prestige nor Sharingan. Reports of Naruto meeting Akashi supplied a new avenue for accusations against the Uchiha and Hiruzen 255.

When Akashi defeated Root operatives who had attacked Naruto and Sasuke, Danzo demanded his arrest. Hiruzen refused to act without evidence and restrained Danzo’s call for immediate suppression 264.

Shisui Ambush and Exile

Danzo proposed taking ordinary Uchiha—including children and the elderly—as hostages. He then targeted Shisui’s Kotoamatsukami, intending to use one eye against the Uchiha and the other against the Hokage 265 270.

At the upper reaches of the Konoha River, he first asked Shisui to alter Akashi’s and Fugaku’s wills. After Shisui refused, Danzo’s prepared ambush used clones, Root squads, poison, and the Dream Baku to wear him down. A false Akashi exploited Shisui’s trust; the real Akashi arrived before Danzo could seize his eyes 270 271.

Akashi revealed that Danzo’s controlling seals had been removed and prevented the eye theft. Danzo escaped through Izanagi, but the surviving witnesses and battlefield evidence exposed his attack 272 273.

Under mounting pressure, Hiruzen dissolved Root, transferred its members to Anbu command, stripped Danzo of his positions, and expelled him to the Capital of Fire. Danzo accepted the move as a possible route back to power and insisted that Root’s loyalty would remain his 274.

Capital of Fire Downfall

Danzo sought the daimyo’s authority to eliminate the Uchiha. When the Shimura elder hesitated, he independently approached the daimyo’s second son, Nioi, offering military and political support in exchange for the Uchiha Clan’s destruction 275 276 277.

Akashi countered through an alliance with Kaoru. At the succession meeting, the genjutsu-controlled daimyo announced Kaoru as heir, then approached Danzo in a staged encounter that left a kunai in his abdomen and blood on Danzo’s hands. The assembled officials accepted the accusation that Danzo had murdered the daimyo 278 279.

During Danzo’s flight, Akashi revealed responsibility for both Root’s plundering and the bounty campaign. He overwhelmed Danzo physically and taunted him with the impending destruction of the Shimura Clan 280.

Danzo sacrificed another Sharingan to escape with Izanagi. Akashi deliberately allowed him to flee, intending to leave his eventual killing to Kakashi. Danzo’s death is not shown; Kaoru subsequently ordered the Shimura Clan’s extermination 281.

Appearance

• Aged appearance: Can present himself as feeble, but demonstrates sharp movement and substantial vitality when attacking Shisui 270.
• Eyes: Only his left eye is ordinarily exposed; his right eye contains a transplanted Sharingan 68 88.
• Battle attire: Wears iron armor beneath a raincoat and carries a ninja blade on his back during his meeting with Hanzo 74.
• Disguises: Uses animal masks during the Land of Rain operation, changing masks when identified before abandoning concealment altogether 82.

Personality

Danzo combines institutional authority with deeply personal ambition. He undermines negotiations that would strengthen Hiruzen, attempts to appropriate wartime achievements, and plans to use Kotoamatsukami against the Hokage himself 69 219 270.

His hostility toward the Uchiha coexists with his dependence on their eyes. He treats Akashi as a disposable asset, harvests Sharingan through Root, and considers civilian hostages acceptable leverage against the clan 53 73 265.

Danzo demands obedience but rarely trusts others’ judgment. Even Shimura Kaichiro, one of his more capable clansmen, receives detailed remote instructions because Danzo believes no subordinate compares to himself 37 219.

Repeated setbacks intensify his paranoia and rage. He suspects old collaborators, struggles to identify enemies because he has accumulated so many, and blames the Uchiha for his humiliation. After the Shisui ambush, he regrets inadequate preparation rather than the attack itself 68 104 274 276.

Abilities & Skills

Transplanted Sharingan and Izanagi

Danzo uses stolen Sharingan primarily to survive otherwise fatal encounters 88 281.

• His right eye is explicitly shown as a three-tomoe Sharingan during Kakuzu’s attack 88.
• Izanagi rewrites the outcome of an attack at the cost of a Sharingan; documented escapes occur against Kakuzu and during both confrontations with Akashi 88 272 281.
• He replenishes his transplanted right eye after earlier losses 94 280.
• His research covers Sharingan awakening, Mangekyō abilities, and Izanagi, but he underestimates Shisui’s Susanoo in practice 102 107 271.
• Kotoamatsukami remains a coveted power, not an acquired ability: Akashi prevents him from taking Shisui’s eyes 270 272.

Wind Release

Danzo uses Wind Release in direct attacks and through weapons 271 272.

• Launches a surprise Wind Release strike after deceiving Shisui with a clone 271.
• Attacks Akashi with Wind Style Shuriken 272.
• His wind-infused blade technique gives individual swings destructive force comparable to B-rank Wind Release; a Root defender uses it during Akashi’s raid 101.

Sealing and Cursed Seals

Danzo uses seals as instruments of control as well as combat 38 272.

• Imposes the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal and additional seals on Akashi 38.
• Attempts to reassert authority because he believes Akashi remains sealed 94.
• Tries to seal Akashi during their confrontation, but Akashi evades and reveals that the controlling seals are gone 272.

Summoning: Dream Baku

The Dream Baku supports Danzo’s attempt to capture Shisui 271.

• Produces a massive wind blast that develops into cutting blades across the battlefield 271.
• Its attack forces Shisui to activate Susanoo, which dissipates the wind 271.

Defensive and Deceptive Techniques

• Water Release: Creates a powerful water-wall defense against Kakuzu’s combined wind-and-fire attack; Kakuzu follows with Lightning Release 88.
• Clones and impersonation: Uses a clone to exploit Shisui’s reluctance to kill and a false Akashi to lower his guard 271.
• Poison: Throws a poison-filled smoke bomb that progressively weakens Shisui even after the Root attackers are defeated 271.
• Genjutsu-assisted escape: Attempts to flee the succession hall through an illusion, but Akashi sees through it and pursues 280.

Intelligence and Political Operations

• Commands a covert network whose intelligence can exceed the Hokage’s Anbu 37.
• Arranges sabotage, decoy operations, concealed alliances, and assassination attempts 69 73 79.
• Directs battlefield deployments through hawk messengers, although his distance from the front produces impractical orders 219.
• Uses the Shimura Clan’s commercial, political, and private military resources to rebuild his influence 275 276.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Ninja blade and iron armor — Carried during the Hanzo negotiations 74.
• Shuriken — Used for Wind Release attacks against Akashi 272.
• Poison smoke bomb — Central to exhausting Shisui during the ambush 271.
• Replacement Sharingan — Maintains access to additional transplanted eyes after using Izanagi 94 280.
• Sharingan archive — At least ten preserved pairs, mostly three-tomoe, stolen by Akashi during the Root raid 103.
• Forbidden books and research records — Includes Uchiha techniques, Sharingan studies, and human-experiment materials; the collection is plundered with Root’s laboratory 102 103 104.

Relationships

• Sarutobi Hiruzen — Old friend, political rival, and recurring protector. Hiruzen opposes Danzo’s excesses but also relies on him for clandestine work; their conflict culminates in Danzo’s expulsion 1 69 274.
• Senju Tobirama — Teacher whose choice of Hiruzen as Hokage becomes a lasting source of regret 275 280.
• Uchiha Akashi — Coerced Root recruit turned principal enemy. Akashi removes his seals, dismantles his resources, defeats his schemes, and engineers his disgrace in the capital 38 272 279 280.
• Uchiha Shisui — Targeted for Kotoamatsukami. Danzo exploits his mercy and trust but fails to steal his eyes 270 271 272.
• Orochimaru — Former Root associate and research partner. Their shared secrets make him a suspect in Danzo’s bounty investigation 68.
• Hanzo — Brief ally against Akatsuki, then assassination target after rejecting further cooperation 78 79.
• Shimura Kaichiro — Loyal battlefield proxy who follows Danzo’s remote orders without question 219.
• Shimura Clan — Source of wealth, private forces, and recovery after Root’s destruction; Danzo’s failed capital scheme precedes its ordered annihilation 275 276 281.
• Nioi — Succession ally who accepts Danzo’s support in exchange for action against the Uchiha 277 279.
• Kaoru — Rival claimant whose alliance with Akashi defeats Danzo’s plan; she orders the Shimura Clan’s extermination after becoming daimyo 278 281.

Bounty

Amount	Chapter	Circumstances
35 million ryō	67	Danzo becomes a public bounty target; Akashi circulates information about his abilities.
80 million ryō	68	Danzo confronts Hiruzen over the bounty and widespread rumors.
100 million ryō	88	Kakuzu attempts to collect the bounty at the Land of Fire border.
180 million ryō	274	Latest reported price when Hiruzen orders Danzo to leave Konoha.

Notable Quotes

“You have no room to refuse; for you, this is a notification, not a request for your opinion.” 37

“Hiruzen, you will regret this.” 1

“If you inherit the position of daimyo, I hope you will fully support the Shimura Clan in destroying the Uchiha Clan!” 277