White Zetsu Is Dumbfounded

"Let me make one thing clear: once we get there, stay quiet!"

Uzumaki Reikawa: "..."

"Hmm?"

"Mm-hmm!" Uzumaki Reikawa hurriedly straightened up his attitude.

Kakashi had a feeling this kid was strange. He had seemed quite polite before, but after meeting Naruto, he had turned into this. Was it because birds of a feather flocked together?

"Kakashi-sensei, over here, over here!" Naruto waved excitedly. Hehe, Kakashi-sensei was treating them today—and it was barbecue. He had to eat his fill.

Sasuke remained as calm as ever, while Sakura stood up and greeted them. "Kakashi-sensei, Reikawa, your seats are here."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes with a smile. "All right."

When Naruto saw Reikawa, he instinctively opened his mouth to ask about his parents. But then he remembered what Kakashi had said before: Uzumaki Reikawa's parents were no longer alive either, and he had only just managed to return to Konoha.

Reikawa only knew that one of Naruto's parents had belonged to the Uzumaki Clan. He probably did not know anything else, either. Better not bring up unpleasant things.

Meanwhile, Tsunade finally remembered where she had seen that face before. She called Jiraiya over and showed him the photograph. "Doesn't this kid look like one of the three you taught back then?"

"Three kids?"

Jiraiya took the photo in confusion. Then he saw the red hair and froze in shock. "Nagato?!"

Tsunade asked, "Is it him?"

If so, they had to consider why he had changed his name and come to Konoha.

"No, he isn't Nagato."

After his initial shock faded, Jiraiya studied the photo carefully and told Tsunade, "They look very alike, but Nagato was... how should I put it? More calm and withdrawn. Besides, Reikawa's eyes are just ordinary eyes."

"Is that so? Then could they be brothers or something?" Tsunade guessed.

Jiraiya did not know, either. He had no idea whether those three war orphans had any siblings. "I'm not sure. I'll go ask him later."

Tsunade nodded. "If we can confirm that everything Uzumaki Reikawa said is true, then his joining Konoha will be a great asset."

"Oh?" Jiraiya was somewhat surprised. That was an extremely high evaluation.

Tsunade explained, "Uzumaki Reikawa is very likely from the main family line. He managed to learn Adamantine Sealing Chains and the Four Symbols Seal on his own with almost no guidance. Before learning those two jutsu, he apparently did not even know the Three Basic Jutsu."

Jiraiya nodded. "I understand."

"Also, keep an eye on Danzo's movements. Earlier, he wanted me to hand Uzumaki Reikawa over to him. He claimed Reikawa must still resent Konoha and wanted to carve some kind of Curse Mark onto him, turning him into a puppet." Tsunade grew angry as she spoke.

They had once been Konoha's most loyal allies, yet they had been reduced to this. There might only be one or two people left from that branch, and Danzo still wanted to do such a thing. What did he think human lives were?!

Even more frustrating, Tsunade could not shake his position. Danzo was, after all, one of Konoha's elders, and the other two advisors would not simply let her do as she pleased...

Just as she thought this, an Anbu suddenly burst in and whispered something to Tsunade. Her expression changed, instantly turning grave. "Jiraiya, put off seeing Uzumaki Reikawa for now. We'll discuss it another time. We need to go to Root."

Seeing Tsunade's expression, Jiraiya became serious as well. "What happened?"

"Danzo is dead!"

"?!!"

Tsunade was in a foul mood. Though she had indeed wanted Danzo to step down just moments ago, and had even thought his death came at a convenient time.

That did not mean she wanted Danzo to die like this. No matter what, Danzo was a man of Konoha, yet he had died inexplicably within Konoha. It was practically a slap across Konoha's face.

Moreover, the person who killed Danzo had infiltrated Konoha without anyone noticing and found Root. Did that mean the person could also break into the Hokage Building just as easily?

More absurdly, if Danzo had not died, Tsunade would not even have known Root's exact location. Who exactly was this person? What was his objective? Did they pose a threat to Konoha? These were all matters Tsunade had to consider as Hokage.

Yet when Tsunade arrived at the scene and saw the towering tree that had inexplicably grown there, the anger in her heart surged uncontrollably. This time, however, her fury was not directed at the person who had killed Danzo.

Danzo's research into the First Hokage Cells had never stopped? Damn it! Damn it!!

Seeing Tsunade's emotions growing unstable, Jiraiya gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "Tsunade, calm down. Let's search the area for clues first. We need to find out what exactly killed Danzo."

Tsunade forcibly suppressed her anger and slapped Jiraiya's hand away. "I know. I'm the Hokage. I know what matters most!"

After taking a few steps forward, Tsunade crouched down and looked at the blood on the ground. She had a feeling that today, she would uncover many shocking secrets.

At that thought, Tsunade suddenly frowned and said to Jiraiya, "Help notify every department. Seal this place off. No one but you and me is allowed inside!"

Elsewhere, upon learning of Danzo's death, Aburame Torune and Yamanaka Fu—two of Danzo's most fanatical loyalists—both wore expressions of utter disbelief.

In their shock and rage, they displayed enormous killing intent toward the Root ninja who had lost the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal and leaked news of Danzo's death. How could Lord Danzo possibly be dead?!

You leaked the news, didn't you? It was all lies!! Traitors should die!

Out of sight, Aburame Torune and Yamanaka Fu carried out a slaughter of those wavering Root ninja. After venting their fury, they began planning to avenge Danzo...

White Zetsu was on his usual patrol when he suddenly noticed that Konoha's ninja movements seemed off. Especially around one particular area—the search there was so thorough that even he did not dare approach carelessly.

Was Konoha having internal strife? White Zetsu wondered. He used the Mayfly Technique and headed closer, intending to see whether he could gather any intelligence. On the way, he suddenly spotted a red-haired person talking to the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

Nothing else—mainly because that hair color was simply too eye-catching.

Once he saw the figure clearly, White Zetsu's heart jolted. That's—Nagato?! No, that was not right. Nagato's hair was not this long, and he did not have the Rinnegan.

With that thought, White Zetsu quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

"You want to learn that jutsu from earlier?"

Naruto cleared his throat a few times. "I charge tuition, you know."

"Ten bowls of Ichiraku ramen!"

Naruto's eyes immediately lit up.

"Deal! Let's head over there first." Naruto pointed toward the distant training field.

"Watch closely! Sexy Technique!"

With a muffled poof, smoke billowed out. A curvaceous blonde girl with twin ponytails appeared.

"Reikawa, am I pretty~?" Naruto leaned against Reikawa's shoulder and struck an affected pose.

"..." Uzumaki Reikawa curled his middle finger against his thumb and flicked Naruto directly on the forehead.

With a bang, Naruto changed back.

"Hiss~ That hurt, you know?" Naruto clutched his head and protested.

"I think I've learned it."

"Huh?" Naruto froze.

Uzumaki Reikawa formed hand seals. "Sexy Technique!"

As the smoke cleared, Reikawa had truly turned into a female version of Nagato. His overly long red hair draped casually down his back, and he wore an elegant black dress.

After transforming, Reikawa thought for a moment and immediately applied the concept further, changing into a handsome short-haired young man, then an adult man. However, they all shared one trait: red hair.

White Zetsu: "..."

They actually looked pretty good. Come to think of it, what did Nagato look like again...?