The Konoha Administrative Building stood directly across from Kage Rock.
On the surface, it housed the Hokage Office, the Advisor's Office, and the offices of various Konoha High Command administrators.
But in reality, the Hokage's Anbu were stationed throughout the building.
And beneath it, an intricate network of tunnels housed Konoha's darkest force: Root.
Root answered to Danzo alone and took orders from no one else.
Any ninja who joined Root would be subjected to brainwashing.
The Anbu, by comparison, were much better.
In the original story, Kakashi, Uchiha Itachi, and even Uchiha Shisui had all served in the Anbu.
One could say that those who joined the Anbu were the ninjas trusted most by the Hokage of their time!
At that moment, Konoha's highest-ranking leader, the Third, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat in the Hokage Office, carefully reviewing someone's personal file.
"Gong Yi. During a small-scale conflict, Chunin Kinoshita Ryota brought him back from Kusagakure."
"A war orphan. He grew up in an Orphanage, then entered the Ninja Academy to learn about being a ninja."
"During his time at the Academy, he performed exceptionally well. Apart from Kakashi, no one could beat him."
"He trains diligently and is quiet by nature. Other than a few girls, he has no friends at the Academy."
"All of his instructors gave Gong Yi the highest marks. He is humble, eager to learn, and respectful toward his elders."
Huff!
Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a cloud of smoke. The cloudiness in his eyes showed that the man was gradually entering old age.
The first time he had noticed this child was during Asuma's combat training class.
Even then, Gong Yi had displayed outstanding talent, easily defeating his own youngest son.
After that, Hiruzen had people keep a discreet eye on the boy, and he was deeply astonished by the intensity of his training.
Perhaps he had suffered and lived through war, and so understood how important strength was to him!
Hiruzen Sarutobi paused. He had originally planned to assign Gong Yi to the Anbu.
Once Gong Yi grew stronger, he would be able to better support the next Hokage.
But Gong Yi's fervent pursuit of strength made Hiruzen hesitate.
Would someone who devoted himself entirely to becoming stronger care about his ties to the village?
Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't decide, so he hesitated.
Knock!
The door swung open, and an old, familiar friend came in, leaning on a cane.
The Third smiled. "Danzo, shouldn't you be resting and recovering? What brings you here?"
During the Second Shinobi World War, Danzo had sustained severe injuries while escaping from a mission. He rarely appeared in the village these days.
In fact, many villagers didn't even know that Danzo was part of Konoha High Command.
Shimura Danzo tapped his cane and got straight to the point. "I heard that a genius from this year's Ninja Academy graduated early. I had no intention of getting involved, but that boy named Gong Yi defeated a Chunin and passed the graduation exam. On top of that, he's a war orphan."
Shimura Danzo paused.
"I believe that an unstable element like him needs to undergo training with Root."
The Third furrowed his brows. "Training with Root? Brainwashing?"
Danzo answered bluntly. "That's right!"
The Third's brow furrowed even more, deep creases appearing across his forehead.
"Every genius who graduates from the Ninja Academy is hope for the village. Root's brainwashing would destroy a genius's potential. I won't allow it."
Danzo's expression darkened at once. He had never been good at hiding his feelings.
After being injured, he had become even more obsessive.
"Hiruzen! You're stopping me from recruiting Gong Yi. Is it because you want to put him in your Anbu?"
The Third shook his head. "No. I think he should join a regular mission squad and build friendships and bonds with his fellow villagers."
In that moment, the Third made his decision.
Gong Yi's attitude toward the village still needed to be observed. He wasn't suited to the Anbu, where he would be exposed to too many of the village's secrets.
But he couldn't let him become one of Danzo's subordinates, either.
Root was already powerful enough. If it gained a few more geniuses, the Anbu would no longer be able to keep it in check.
Shimura Danzo snorted and turned to leave.
He was a proud man; even in front of his old friend, the Third, he would never ask twice.
As he left the Hokage Office, Danzo narrowed his eyes.
"Gong Yi? A war orphan who doesn't even have a surname—what makes him worthy of becoming the village's hope? I, Shimura Danzo, am the village's hope! Hiruzen, you're old. Once you step down, I'll become Hokage, and then Gong Yi will naturally become my subordinate!"
Watching Danzo hobble away, the Third sighed.
His gaze fell on Gong Yi's file again.
"He specializes in Earth Style?"
He pressed the electric bell on his desk, and soon a man came in.
"Kawaji, you've been out of the Anbu for a while now. Would you be interested in leading a squad on missions?"
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