Are We Not Done Yet?!

"Hiruzen, the situation at the time truly demanded intelligence. Danzō had no other choice, so please, do not hold him accountable." Seeing the atmosphere turn sour, Utatane Koharu quickly spoke up to intercede.

Mitokado Homura nodded in agreement with this sentiment.

Seeing his two old friends speaking on his behalf, Shimura Danzō felt a slight sense of relief.

Having just been rebuked by Sarutobi Hiruzen, he had felt somewhat aggrieved.

Fortunately, there were still those who understood and appreciated his methods.

Hiruzen, you have actually begun to compromise with that brat, the Fourth Hokage; you truly have grown old.

Looking at the familiar face of Sarutobi Hiruzen, now etched with deep wrinkles, Shimura Danzō felt an inexplicable surge of emotion.

"Enough, the two of you stop speaking for him. Do I not know what kind of man Danzō is?" Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted their pleas, his tone sharp.

"Back when I was Hokage, you could run wild and I would say nothing, but Minato Namikaze is the Hokage now. From here on out, restrain yourselves and do not get yourselves caught."

"I only wish to retire in peace now; do not keep trying to stir up major incidents to provoke me."

For a moment, the group looked at one another, all clearly understanding the meaning behind Sarutobi Hiruzen's words.

First, he was genuinely telling them to rein it in.

Second, he was telling them to clean up their own messes.

Finally, he was declaring that he wanted to play the innocent party, so they should not drag him into their affairs.

However, having held immense power for so many years, they could not simply let go.

Moreover, they had planted so many of their own people throughout Konoha that they could not retreat even if they wanted to.

They were not like Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was retired in name only, while Minato Namikaze still had to consult him on every other matter.

After all, the current Hokage was his grand-student; with that bond in place, Sarutobi Hiruzen remained as steady as Mount Tai.

Therefore, these heartfelt words from Sarutobi Hiruzen were destined to fall on deaf ears.

"If there is nothing else, you may leave. I still need to have a proper chat with Biwako."

Seeing that Sarutobi Hiruzen was dismissing them, the group took the hint and departed.

Just as Shimura Danzō prepared to leave, he was called back by Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Danzō, are you certain you have disclosed everything?"

"Believe what you will; I have said all that I have to say," Shimura Danzō replied, feigning impatience.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze followed Shimura Danzō until he had completely disappeared.

He knew his old classmate too well, and he feared that Danzō would end up 'dropping a massive bomb' on everyone later.

If everyone got dragged into it, the situation would be impossible to salvage.

Elsewhere, Shimura Danzō was deep in thought: the traces and data from his Wood Release experiments had to be destroyed immediately.

He also needed to send word to Orochimaru to keep his mouth shut.

If Minato Namikaze were to discover anything, he would not show him any leniency.

Furthermore, judging by Hiruzen's earlier demeanor, he no longer trusted him, so he had to take precautions.

With this in mind, Shimura Danzō gestured.

The Root members secretly guarding him flashed into existence before him, and he immediately began issuing orders.

"Ox Horn Squad, go at once and destroy all data and traces of the Wood Release experiments."

"Yamanaka Fu, depart now and find Orochimaru. Tell him that whether it is Hiruzen or Minato Namikaze who comes to question him about me..."

"Tell him not to say anything he shouldn't. If my reputation is ruined, he will fare no better."

"Yes!" X2

With the mission assigned, the tension that had gripped Shimura Danzō finally eased.

"The rest of you, follow me back to the Root base."

Root base

Shimura Danzō, who was contemplating how to alter the defensive protocols for the Root base and the laboratory, had his thoughts interrupted by a Root member appearing before him.

"Lord Danzō, this is bad. The entire laboratory has been ransacked, and all the data has been destroyed."

"What!"

The sudden news caught Shimura Danzō completely off guard, and before he could even ask for details, the Root member spoke again in a rapid-fire tone:

"Including the experimental data on the Sharingan."

"All Root members stationed there have been killed."

For a moment, Shimura Danzō was both shocked and enraged, feeling as though this scene was all too familiar.

That was right; he had felt the exact same way when Kinoe was abducted.

It was just another incident of the same nature; having developed a resistance over a short period, he could barely keep his emotions in check.

"Has Root become a public restroom?"

"People can just come and go as they please?"

"Is there no end to this?!"

"What are you people even good for?"

"Why didn't you send a signal when you were attacked!"

Shimura Danzō's roar echoed throughout the entire space.

The Anbu member reporting the situation didn't know what to say for a moment, so he had no choice but to continue:

"After discovering the laboratory had been destroyed, I immediately set out to report it, leaving the others to conduct an on-site investigation. I believe they should have results by now."

"Hmph, you bunch of trash!" Shimura Danzō's eyes were bloodshot, and his chest heaved with rage.

"Even the dogs of the Inuzuka clan know how to howl before they die; you are not even as good as dogs!"

"First, I lost Kinoe, which cost me a Wood Release ninja, and now you've let the experimental data be leaked. What else are you planning to make me lose!"

"Do you want my life!"

"Aside from killing, do you useless people have no other skills!"

Shimura Danzō cursed and raved, growing angrier the more he spoke, his mouth spewing endless profanities; he had been driven to madness by his fury.

It was mainly because the two events that occurred today were such heavy blows; his emotions, which he had initially been able to control, finally erupted.

The Root members below knew the situation today, so they could only lower their heads and honestly endure the scolding, even though it had little to do with them.

"Hoo."

After venting his emotions for a while, Shimura Danzō's reason gradually returned.

"Someone."

The Root members guarding in the shadows immediately appeared before Shimura Danzō.

"Call back every Root member who was stationed at that laboratory to the base."

"Yes." The guarding Root member immediately went to find the others.

He then turned to the Root member who had just reported and said, "As for you, lead the way immediately. I want to see the laboratory and just how badly it has been destroyed."

"Finally back in Konoha. Traveling for so long is truly exhausting."

"Let's head home to rest first and regroup tomorrow."

After several days of travel, Masaki Uchiha and his group finally returned to the village.

Naturally, just as they had left the village quietly, they had to return quietly as well.

If people found out they had left the village without the Hokage's permission, they would likely face another round of criticism.

Upon returning to the village, Masaki Uchiha did not head home, but instead went to the Konoha Police Force.

"Have Uchiha Ichiro and Uchiha Shun come here." Having just sat down, Masaki Uchiha immediately sent someone to find the two brothers to get an update on the situation.

Before long, the two brothers arrived at the Police Force captain's office.

"How did the tasks I arranged for you go?"

"Please rest assured, Clan Leader, both missions were completed perfectly," Uchiha Shun said with a grin.

"It was all thanks to the intelligence provided by the Clan Leader; otherwise, we wouldn't have finished so quickly," Uchiha Ichiro added, his face beaming with a smile.