Danzo! This is my binding!

Two Anbu knelt on one knee before the desk of Hiruzen Sarutobi, one of them drawing a scroll from their robes and offering it with both hands.

"Third Hokage, the investigation into the Land of Waves is complete."

Hiruzen took the scroll and unfurled it, his gaze sweeping over the text.

"Gato has indeed hired rogue ninjas from the Mist." Hiruzen placed the scroll on the desk, his finger pointing to a line of information.

"Has this intelligence been confirmed?"

"Confirmed. We staked out the Land of Waves for three days and personally witnessed two ninjas wearing the Mist Village Headband enter Gato's mansion."

"One of them had bandages wrapped around his face, and his chakra fluctuations were near the level of a Jonin."

"Two Mist rogue ninjas." Hiruzen rubbed his temples. "A B-rank or even an A-rank mission."

"Yes." The Anbu captain kept his head bowed. "The original C-rank mission must be upgraded to B-rank."

The door was pushed open from the outside, and Anko strode in, coming to a halt before the desk.

"Third Hokage, the Land of Waves mission has been upgraded?" Anko glanced at the kneeling Anbu. "Then just send a B-rank squad."

Hiruzen pushed the scroll toward her.

"Take a look at the mission schedule."

Anko took the scroll and flipped to the mission schedule page, her brows knitting together.

All three Jonin-led squads were currently out on long-term A-rank missions, and the remaining Chunin squads were either just out of the village or in a rest period.

The B-rank mission queue was already booked for two weeks, and Tazuna from the Land of Waves clearly could not wait that long.

"So there's no one left to send... This mission was originally intended for Team Kakashi, wasn't it?"

"Didn't Jiraiya say that those three have the strength of Chunin?"

"Having strength doesn't mean having experience." Hiruzen picked up his pipe again, biting down on it and taking a puff.

"Facing real rogue ninjas—Sasuke and the others lack the combat experience."

"Especially when dealing with people from the Mist; Anko, you know how they select their Genin, don't you?"

Anko knew the Third was right.

Kakashi was indeed the elite of the elite, but taking three Genin fresh out of the academy to confront Mist rogue ninjas—even he couldn't guarantee their safety.

"Then just leave it for now." Anko leaned against the edge of the desk.

"Tazuna and the Land of Waves can't afford the pay for a B-rank mission anyway; let him wait in Konoha for two weeks."

"We have no choice but to wait." Hiruzen exhaled a cloud of smoke.

Just then, a chaotic sound of footsteps echoed from the hallway outside.

Naruto's loud voice was clearly audible even through the wooden door.

"You promised us a C-rank mission! We finished the pest control in the forest and the herb collection perfectly!"

The door was pushed open, Kakashi walking in at the front, his exposed right eye looking lazy.

Naruto followed closely behind him, the sleeves of his orange jacket rolled up to his elbows, still muttering about the mission.

Sasuke walked in last, clutching that Paulownia Wood Case in his hand. After entering, he leaned against the doorframe, his gaze sweeping around the office before finally landing on the open scroll on the Third's desk.

Sakura stood beside Naruto, her ponytail a bit longer than it had been a month ago, holding the mission record book in her hand.

"Old Man Third! We've been here for a month! Where's our C-rank mission!"

Naruto braced his hands on the desk, his neck stretched out long, his eyes fixed intently on the pile of mission scrolls on the Third's desk.

"We agreed that after we finished the forest mission, we'd get a C-rank!"

Hiruzen set his pipe on the edge of the ashtray, crossing his hands beneath his chin.

"The C-rank mission originally intended for you has been upgraded to a B-rank; you'll have to wait a while longer."

Naruto looked as if his strength had been drained, slumping over the edge of the desk like a deflated balloon.

"Wait again?"

Sakura's brows also furrowed.

She flipped open the mission record book, which was densely packed with entries for D-rank missions.

Although she didn't say it out loud, she truly felt it was time to take on some serious work.

Anko walked over, crouched down, and patted Naruto on the head. "Alright, alright, you won't die from waiting a few days."

Just then, the office door was pushed open once more.

The sound of a cane striking the wooden floor—it could only be Danzo.

He was followed by two members of Root, both wearing standard black short-sleeved uniforms and animal masks.

One wore a Fox Mask, the other a Badger Mask.

After entering, the two stood quietly on either side of the door, their hands hanging at their sides.

"Hiruzen." Danzo walked to the desk, leaning on his cane, not even glancing at Kakashi or Anko standing to the side.

"Is there no team in Konoha capable of taking the mission to the Land of Waves?"

Hiruzen took his pipe from his mouth and leaned slowly back into his chair.

"Is that what you've been eyeing? Yes, I just upgraded the mission to B-rank."

"Then let Root handle it," Danzo said, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.

"The mission is sitting there regardless; let Root accompany Team Kakashi to execute it. These two Root members, codenamed Tatsu and Mi, are both Chunin."

Tatsu was the one wearing the Fox Mask; he was lean and carried a short blade on his back.

Mi wore the Badger Mask and was sturdier, with a ninja tool pouch strapped to his waist.

Hiruzen stared at Danzo's narrowed eyes for a long time.

He knew his old partner's style all too well.

When someone offers a favor for no reason, there is definitely a problem.

But he also knew Tatsu and Mi; they were indeed at the Chunin level, possessing neither Kekkei Genkai nor secret techniques.

They were just two ordinary Root Chunin, so logically, there shouldn't be any issues.

Besides, Kakashi would be present.

Even if they tried anything, with the Copy Ninja Kakashi Hatake there, two Chunin wouldn't be able to stir up any trouble.

"Fine," Hiruzen nodded.

Sasuke had been staring at the two Root members ever since Danzo entered the room.

His gaze shifted from Tatsu's short blade to Mi's tool pouch, finally landing on Danzo's right arm, which was wrapped in bandages.

Everyone walked out of the office and exited the Hokage Building.

Naruto was still excited about finally being able to leave the village for a real mission, muttering about how he would show those rogue ninjas the true power of this great master.

Kakashi walked at the front, flipping through his book while listening to Naruto's chatter.

Sasuke and Danzo walked at the very back of the group.

There was about a person's distance between them, the sound of the cane hitting the ground alternating with Sasuke's footsteps on the stone path.

"Why do you keep monitoring me whenever I go on a mission?" Sasuke spoke first.

Danzo didn't stop walking, his single eye narrowing beneath the bandages.

"You are dangerous."

He turned his head, staring straight at Sasuke.

"If you don't join Root, I will continue to monitor you. I haven't interfered with your daily life, have I?"

Sasuke was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"If you were to monitor my daily life as well, then either you die, or I die."

Danzo snorted. "Hmph, haven't you also had that rabbit of yours keeping an eye on me?"

"Rest assured, I have no interest in your daily life; Sarutobi keeps a very firm watch on that bottom line."

Danzo didn't mention the threat of Itachi leaking Konoha's intelligence; he simply continued walking with his cane, the two Root members following silently behind him.

As the sound of the cane faded into the distance, Sasuke stood in place and chuckled softly.

Danzo would never know that Sasuke was currently more of a Jujutsu Sorcerer than a ninja.

He had dedicated almost all the energy he used to train chakra to extracting Cursed Energy instead.

A ninja's strength progresses slowly, but that was because his focus was never on chakra to begin with.

Both Jujutsu Sorcerers and ninjas share the trait that intelligence is of paramount importance.

However, a Jujutsu Sorcerer can choose to proactively give their intelligence to others, using it as a Binding Vow to exchange for a boost in combat capabilities.

Sasuke looked down at the shadow beneath his feet.

If Danzo really tried to make a move on him, he would just blow up with him.

For the current Sasuke, there were only two pieces of intelligence that absolutely could not be exposed.

The first was the Binding Vow; this was the underlying logic of a Jujutsu Sorcerer.

Although he had taught the extraction of Cursed Energy to Tsunade, Sakura, and Yakumo, he had not taught them about Binding Vows.

Ninjas have an instinct to protect intelligence, and it would be difficult for them to discover the nature of Binding Vows.

The second was Mahoraga; the existence of that thing was a strategic nuclear weapon, and the fewer people who knew about it, the better.

As for the rest—the Shikigami, Cursed Energy, and the Ten Shadows Technique—Danzo would find out about these sooner or later, and he couldn't hide them completely anyway.

If he wants to watch, let him watch.