Overwhelmed

In the Barbecue Restaurant, the two chatted about their recent lives, both marveling at each other's exciting mission experiences.

More than half an hour later, feeling that they had finished digesting their food, the two helped each other out of the Barbecue Restaurant.

They had barely stepped outside when they overheard a quiet conversation between two people in a nearby corner. "Have you heard? Lord Danzo is collecting Sharingan from the Uchiha Danzo."

"What's this? I've heard that many Uchiha ninjas have mysteriously disappeared after going on missions. Tell me—"

"How pitiful, the mighty number one clan in Konoha, actually—"

Taiichi and Kakashi exchanged a glance, both unconsciously smiling. It seemed the rumor was working well; people were already spontaneously discussing it so quickly.

Rumors, no matter what they are like at the beginning, will become increasingly distorted and exaggerated as they spread.

Moreover, Taiichi and Kakashi have spread all sorts of different kinds of rumors. Once these rumors have spread, who will care about Sakumo's original rumors anymore?

Moreover, only Taiichi knew that not all of these rumors were false; many of them were actually true.

Once Danzo learns of these rumors, he'll really have no time to care about Sakumo; he'll probably be busy cleaning up his own mess.

The two staggered towards the Training Ground. Their Chakra was almost used up for the day, and they couldn't waste the remaining time, so they decided to practice their swordsmanship.

That night, in a vast underground space in Konoha, the ninjas there were people who had abandoned everything—their names, emotions, and even their lives.

They accept all of this, whether willingly or unwillingly. Nourished by darkness, they transform themselves into tree roots, deeply rooted in the earth, supporting the lush trees under the sunlight.

This is the Root.

Of course, this was only the original intention behind the establishment of the Root, but whether the Root still adheres to the original idea as it has developed to this day is a matter of opinion.

At that moment, a ninja was reporting to Danzo what he had gathered that day.

At first, Danzo was quite satisfied with what he heard. His main task during this period was to spread and monitor rumors about Hatake Sakumo in the village.

The rumors had a significant effect; now, not everyone in the village, but the vast majority of villagers knew about them. As expected, Hatake Sakumo's reputation suffered a major blow as a result of these rumors.

In Konoha today, there are no longer any voices suggesting that Sakumo could become the Fourth Hokage.

Just as Danzo was Danzo in the glory of his own methods, the next words from the reporting ninja plunged him into an icy abyss.

"There are some rumors circulating in the village about you, sir. According to our investigation, they seem to have just started today."

"For example, human experimentation—abandoning comrades—murdering fellow village ninjas—"

"These are the records of rumors we've collected; please take a look, sir."

Danzo snatched the scroll from the ninja's hand, his trembling Teuchi the seal. The information recorded in the first column of the scroll made his pupils shrink sharply –Wood Style Human Experimentation.

After Danzo had finished reading through the contents of the scroll, cold sweat had soaked the back of his clothes.

This isn't a rumor; it's clearly a direct attack on his weak points. He's done almost every single one of these things.

Danzo slammed the scroll to the ground, his aged face contorted with rage. The veins on his hand, gripping his cane, bulged, and his voice, sharp and venomous like a poisoned dagger, rang out. "Investigate! Dig three feet into the ground and drag those rats out!"

The Root ninja kneeling on the ground had cold sweat beading on his forehead. "Sir, things happened suddenly. By the time we learned of these rumors, it was already evening, and the people spreading them had already left."

"Useless!" Danzo kicked the reporting ninja to the ground, a cold glint in his single eye. "Immediately mobilize all hidden agents and focus surveillance on densely populated areas such as taverns, hospitals, and markets."

He suddenly stopped, slamming his cane heavily on the ground. "Especially Hatake Sakumo, look at what he's been up to lately!"

Seeing that Danzo had no further instructions, the reporting ninja immediately nodded and said "Yes," then got up and quickly left to arrange the surveillance work for tomorrow.

Once the ninja had completely left, Danzo his hand, and three ninjas wearing bird-beak masks emerged from the shadows behind him.

"Son, take some men and disguise them as Civilian to infiltrate the market. See if you can find any clues."

"Chou, go to the archives and copy down the list of everyone who has had access to classified documents in the last three months."

"Yin, go and check who the Hokage has been in contact with recently."

"Go ahead and report back to me immediately after you've done it!"

Three figures came silently and left without a sound, without uttering a single word, as if they were born merely tools to carry out a mission.

Once all his subordinates had disappeared, Danzo abruptly overturned his desk. The porcelain cup shattered against the stone wall, just like Danzo's shattered reason at that moment.

These rumors are so accurate that they even mention things he himself had almost forgotten.

(Actually, this was completely accidental. Danzo so many bad things that Taiichi's fabricated rumors actually came true.)

After much thought, Danzo concluded that the only person who knew all this was Hiruzen Sarutobi. After all, aside from the extremely private matters, all of these actions were carried out under the Hokage's orders.

"Hiruzen— " Danzo gazed towards the Hokage Tower, as if he could see the Hokage reviewing documents through the walls. "You think you can stop me with this kind of method? I'm not Hatake Sakumo!"

Clearly, Danzo had identified the Third Hokage as the instigator of the rumors. Although he sent people to investigate the leak of information, in his view, the only one with a motive to do so was Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The next day, Taiichi and Kakashi did not meet up; instead, they went their separate ways as agreed the day before.

But today, shortly after Taiichi separated into the third group, a memory suddenly appeared in Taiichi's mind.

Rewind one hour, Taiichi, the Shadow Clone, is chatting with an older man in the market.

The two chatted enthusiastically, like old friends despite their age difference, but the topic gradually veered towards the recent rumors circulating in the village, guided by Taiichi.

"It's such a pity about Lord Sakumo. What ninja doesn't fail? He even gave up a mission for his comrades. I've seen many people say he doesn't deserve to be a ninja."

"Who can argue with that? I burn my hands even when I cook every day, let alone a ninja mission. I think they're just targeting me."

"I heard there's been some gossip about Elder Danzo lately?"

"Danzo? I don't know him."

"You're so ignorant, aren't you? Let me tell you—human experimentation—abandoning your companions—"

As the clone Taiichi recounted the story, the uncle's mouth opened wider and wider, his eyes revealing the excited gleam of someone who knew the gossip of the higher-ups. This attracted many other listeners from the surrounding area.

Just as Taiichi was getting more and more into his speech, a veiled gaze swept over him from a corner not far away, startling Taiichi out of his reverie.

It seemed he had been noticed. Taiichi glanced discreetly at the corner but didn't see anyone noteworthy. Knowing he shouldn't linger, he made an excuse and left the crowd despite everyone's attempts to stop him.

With his Chakra Perception activated, Taiichi hadn't gone far when he noticed someone following him.

With a nonchalant smile, Taiichi 'Shadow Clone twisted and turned until it reached a corner. Seeing that the person following him had not yet caught up, it immediately dispelled the clone.

When the stalker turned into this corner, he found the alleyway deserted. Only then did he realize that he had been discovered all along. All his caution and attempts to play the long game had backfired; he had only himself to Clown.

Over here, Taiichi finished processing the memories transmitted back by his clone and realized that the rumors had indeed alerted Danzo. He just hadn't expected it to happen so quickly, so he would have to be even more careful in his future actions.

Taichi then created two more Shadow Clone, instructing them to inform Kakashi of the situation if they found him, Taiichi continuing his journey.

On the other hand, Kakashi's schedule was even more unsuccessful today. He had just stepped out when he keenly sensed a gaze subtly sweeping over him from behind.

"We've been targeted so quickly?" Kakashi thought to himself, but his steps remained steady.

He deliberately slowed down and stopped in front of a Dumpling Shop. Under the guise of buying meatballs, he glimpsed a villager wearing a straw hat not far behind him, pretending to select vegetables, by the reflection in the shop window. However, the occasional glances that drifted towards him gave away his presence.

Kakashi bit into the dumpling in his mouth, the sweet taste melting on his tongue, but he couldn't suppress the chill rising in his heart.

He turned and went to a narrow alley. Before the people who had followed him arrived, he quickly created two Shadow Clones, which then immediately transformed into other people.

When the pursuers caught up, they saw Kakashi passing by two strangers. Seeing that Kakashi was about to walk out of the narrow alley, the pursuers paid no attention to the two strangers and went straight after Kakashi.

In this way, Kakashi would always take advantage of the gaps in the turns to quietly create Shadow Clone.

After creating enough clones, he "coincidentally" ran into Taiichi was also there to train, at Training Ground 7, as planned.

The moment the two met, Taiichi realized from Kakashi's expression that he was being followed.

As expected, Danzo was no pushover either. In just one day, he had already arranged the necessary manpower both in the village and in Kakashi's area.

The two exchanged pleasantries on the surface, but secretly they were exchanging information.

"I was discovered this morning when I used a Shadow Clone to spread rumors. Later, I found out that there were people watching me everywhere in the village, especially in crowded areas."

"I was followed as soon as I stepped out of the house. It seems Danzo also suspects that we are spreading rumors." Kakashi suddenly paused halfway through his sentence.

"What's wrong?"

"Sorry, one of my Shadow Clone got destroyed. Now they know what we're capable of."

"It seems we can't continue tomorrow. The hype has already built up, and if we keep jumping around, it'll be easy for them to find fault with us."

"Um!"

After the two finished their discussion, Taiichi stood up and took the initiative to ask Kakashi to spar with him, to which Kakashi readily agreed.

Under the watchful eyes of their pursuers, the two began to spar as if no one else was around. A flurry of flashing blades and crisscrossing sword energy left the watchers speechless with astonishment.

Meanwhile, thanks to the efforts of Taiichi and Kakashi, the rumors about Danzo spread rapidly in Konoha, and as time went on, they became increasingly outrageous through word of mouth.

The most outrageous claim has even become that Danzo wanted to seize the position of Fourth Hokage through a coup.

Although the rumors spread far and wide, one cannot help but admire Root's efforts. By noon, all the Shadow Clone created by Taiichi and Kakashi had dissipated. To find so many Shadow Clones in the vast sea of people in Konoha, one can only imagine the immense price Root paid.

However, the die is cast, and at least today the two no longer need to actively spread the rumors; the villagers have already begun to spread them spontaneously.

In the afternoon, when Danzo learned of the latest report, he could no longer suppress his anger. The gloomy Danzo once again transformed into a master of desktop cleanup, sweeping away all the items in front of him. His roar echoed throughout the Root Headquarters for a long time.

"Useless! Useless! What's the use of the village spending so much money to train you? You can't even do this simple thing right, you're all useless!"

After venting his anger, Danzo calmed down once more and stared intently at the ninja who had given the report, his voice icy cold as he asked the question.

"What about Hatake Sakumo?"

"Everything is normal. Hatake Sakumo didn't leave the house all day. His son, Hatake Kakashi, did go out and wandered around the village. He ran into Taichi Matsushita along the way, and the two sparred together for a while."

"Has the person who spread the rumors been caught?"

The ninja reporting the news began to tremble again. He had never seen Danzo so angry before, but he could only grit his teeth and say, "The people spreading the rumors are very cautious. They all use Shadow Clone to do their work. When we tried to capture them, they all disappeared on their own."

"Click"

A clear cracking sound reached the ears of the reporting ninja, who glanced up and saw it was the sound of Danzo's water cup being crushed in his hand.

"Get out!" A voice suppressing anger rang out. The reporting ninja felt as if he had been granted a pardon and immediately got up and left, fearing that if he was even a moment late, Danzo would use him to Danzo his anger.

In the quiet, dark room, only Danzo. Thinking about the reports that Zi, Chou, and Yin had sent earlier, and how no one had recently looked through the classified files, and how the people Hiruzen Sarutobi had seen were all very ordinary, Danzo's feeling of being out of control became increasingly obvious.

Those who do things meticulously and spread rumors are also masters of Shadow Clone. At this time, Danzo Konoha only think of two people with such ability and motive: Hatake Sakumo and Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hatake Sakumo wanted to do it, he should have done it long ago; there was no need to wait until his own rumors had been circulating for so long. Besides, he didn't even know who spread his rumors; he had no target at all.

If we eliminate all the impossibilities, the only remaining answer is the correct one.

"Hiruzen! You're starting to use any means necessary to hurt me now!" Danzo muttered to himself. "Since you're so ruthless, then don't blame me for being heartless too."

"Son."

"Here." A calm, even indifferent voice rang out, and a figure slowly emerged from the shadows.

"Take a few men and immediately go to the village to spread the new news—"

Listening to Danzo's instructions, even the usually indifferent Konoha had a strange glint in his eyes.

With the Root members, led by the son, setting out, what kind of storm will Konoha, already in turmoil, be stirred up next?