The Plan of Danzo, the Fall Guy

The Plan of Danzo, the Fall Guy

The Uchiha Clan's territory was far from Konoha's bustling central district, situated instead in a remote corner near Konoha Prison.

However, Shen Mo wasn't in any hurry to go there.

As he walked, he thought about what type of jar to recommend to Sasuke.

Meanwhile.

Shimura Danzō, his head and arm wrapped in white bandages, stood gloomily at the entrance to the Hokage's office.

He had already been standing there for several minutes.

Yet he hadn't pushed the door open.

Because he still hadn't received any information.

That was until a ninja with a deathly pale complexion came stumbling over, gasping for breath.

"Ippei." Danzo called out the man's name.

Although his voice was very soft, the Anbu ninja named Ippei began trembling uncontrollably, as though he had been stung by a poisonous scorpion.

He immediately fell to his knees.

"Lord Danzo, I—"

Creak—

The door to the Hokage's office suddenly opened.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, dressed in the Hokage's robes, stood with his back to them before the window.

"Come in."

His voice was old but forceful.

Danzo said nothing and strode inside, but Ippei's face grew even paler.

Nominally, he belonged to the Hokage's Anbu.

Yet he still obeyed Danzo, his former commander and the founder of Root.

"Danzō, you called me here in the middle of the night. What important matter is this?" Danzo asked, pretending not to know.

"Danzo, you should call me Lord Hokage." Hiruzen Sarutobi turned around. His eyes, which had been somewhat cloudy during the day, now gleamed with a blade-like sharpness. "Why did you give Ippei that order?"

Ippei's body trembled again.

He lowered his head deeply.

Tonight.

The Hokage's order had been for him to invite over the man who had been dining with Lady Tsunade.

But when he had set out.

Danzo had issued a new instruction, telling him to use the opportunity to test that man's strength. If he was weak, Ippei was to bring him directly before Danzo.

The result of that test was already plain to see.

"Why?" Danzo pursed his lips, seemingly mocking him, but the expression quickly vanished. "Let's be direct, Hiruzen. You sent Ippei to carry out the mission. Wasn't that an implicit—perhaps even deliberate—hope that I would give him such an order?"

Root had been disbanded by Hiruzen Sarutobi after the Uchiha Clan was wiped out.

However, many of its members still served in the Anbu while remaining loyal to Danzo.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew this perfectly well.

Under these circumstances.

What was the purpose of sending Ippei, a former member of Root, to invite the mysterious man who had appeared beside Tsunade? It was obvious.

He was prompting Danzo to give the order.

Ippei's cold sweat would not stop.

He had never expected that the purpose of the Hokage's sending him on this mission was actually to hint that Lord Danzo should intervene.

Then, now that the mission had failed—

Wouldn't the responsibility fall on Lord Danzo?

"Forget it. It has already happened." Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't continue discussing the order. He took a deep drag from his pipe, his tone softening somewhat. "You didn't see it, but Ippei should have experienced it firsthand. How strong was that merchant?"

"Yes!"

Ippei's body began trembling slightly.

It was not only because he had been caught between the Hokage and Danzo's struggle.

It was also because—

He recalled the terror he had just experienced.

"Subordinate... At the time, I only felt..." Ippei swallowed, his voice becoming somewhat disordered. "That he wasn't human at all. Even when I faced the Nine-Tails twelve years ago, I had never felt such terror. He didn't even do anything. He merely stood there, and I completely lost consciousness. My mind went blank..."

He didn't know what words to use to describe it.

In short.

He had felt that the man was incredibly powerful—so powerful that he couldn't summon even the slightest hope of resisting.

"Genjutsu? A dōjutsu?" Danzo's exposed eye narrowed.

He could naturally tell that Ippei had no injuries on his body whatsoever. He had merely suffered a nightmare-like shock to his mind.

Either genjutsu or a powerful dōjutsu could have produced such an effect.

"If I'm not yet too old to be useful." Hiruzen Sarutobi looked toward the desk in the office. "Then it should simply be an oppressive aura born of overwhelming strength. The First Hokage had it as well, but this man surpasses him."

Danzo followed Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze.

He saw the shattered crystal.

He also saw the deep wariness in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes.

This was the first time Danzo had ever seen such a look on Hiruzen Sarutobi's face.

Have you really grown old, Hiruzen?

"If you're worried, you can leave this matter to me." Danzo spoke slowly.

He wasn't being arrogant. He had merely felt a stir of motivation within him—a motivation to surpass Hiruzen Sarutobi.

What you can't accomplish, I can! I can even do it better than you!

Ever since the Uchiha Clan had been wiped out, Hiruzen Sarutobi had stripped Danzo of his position as Hokage Counselor and disbanded Root, causing the conflict and resentment between them to deepen by the day. At the same time, Danzo's desire to become Hokage and surpass Hiruzen Sarutobi had grown increasingly intense.

"No." Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly shook his head. He glanced at Danzo and said bluntly, "I want you to take responsibility for tonight's conflict."

"..."

Even Danzo's face flushed with an eerie redness.

He was furious.

I thought you called me here to discuss a plan. Instead, you want me to take the blame!

"That merchant is even more mysterious than I expected. At the very least, until we learn more, there is no need for Konoha to clash with him again." Hiruzen Sarutobi lowered his voice as though speaking to himself, seemingly oblivious to Danzo's fury. "More importantly, Tsunade has returned."

That final sentence was the key.

Tsunade had returned.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew very well that, as things stood, there was only one candidate for the Fifth Hokage: Tsunade.

Her prestige, character, and ability—

It would have been one thing if her Hemophobia had not been overcome. But now that it had been resolved, even if he refused to support her, she could still take the position of Fifth Hokage if she wished.

That was why he was worried that Tsunade might be deceived, and that she might even use Danzo's hand to conduct a test.

And the result of that test—

Not only had it failed to reassure him, it had made him even more cautious.

The purpose of calling Danzo here tonight was to warn him not to make any more unauthorized moves before they had more information, escalating the conflict—and to demand an explanation for what had happened tonight.

Danzo stared at Hiruzen Sarutobi with his one eye. In the end, he still shifted his gaze away.

"I'm not even a Hokage Counselor anymore. What can I do?"

He turned his back and walked alone toward the door, his figure filled with loneliness.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched his old friend leave step by step, a trace of reluctance rising in his heart.

But he didn't know that, the moment Danzo turned his back, suppressed fury filled his eyes.

Hiruzen Sarutobi thought he was being cautious.

What Danzo believed was that he was afraid!

When had Konoha reached the point where even the Hokage had to fear other people?

He began frantically making plans in his mind. Then, he thought of someone.

Itachi Uchiha!

Since Hiruzen Sarutobi believed Konoha had no need to clash with that so-called merchant, would the Akatsuki Organization be interested?