Naka River
Shimura Danzo leaned on his cane and gazed out over Konoha. The sun was setting, its light spilling across the village.
"Beautiful." Shimura Danzo couldn't help but sigh. From this high vantage point, Konoha seemed to lie right beneath his feet. He could reach out and seize it with a single grasp. But he knew that the time to take Konoha had not yet come.
"Lord Danzo, Uchiha Shisui has reached the foot of the mountain and is heading up," reported Root ninja Yamanaka Fu, kneeling on one knee with his head bowed.
He had an orange-blond ponytail and a slender build. Still, his talent ranked among the top five in the Yamanaka Clan.
"Mm, I know. Have the others stay hidden and don't act rashly. Wait for my signal. We must keep Uchiha Shisui here at Naka River." Shimura Danzo closed his eyes and murmured.
"Yes!" Yamanaka Fu vanished, using his mind-reading technique to pass the message to his teammates.
Uchiha Izuna and Hyuga Hiashi had used the Transformation Technique to disguise themselves as two pieces of loose rock on the cliff's edge, looking down at Shimura Danzo from above.
Hyuga Hiashi had kept his Byakugan active, so he saw green chakra burning around Shimura Danzo's right eye.
It was clearly different from Danzo's own pale-white chakra, and Hiashi couldn't help but pause in surprise.
He deactivated his Byakugan and kept watching. He couldn't speak now, or he would give himself away.
Shimura Danzo suddenly sensed that someone was watching him, so he turned around. Just as he was about to look up, Uchiha Shisui's voice rang out.
"Lord Danzo, Uchiha Shisui has come as agreed." His voice drew all of Shimura Danzo's attention.
Shimura Danzo turned to look at Shisui, his mind in turmoil even as he suppressed his excitement. He nodded. "Shisui, you say you can prevent the Uchiha Clan from staging a coup d'état?"
"Can I trust you?" Shimura Danzo asked coolly.
"Lord Danzo, I give you my word. If the Uchiha stage a coup, I'll use these eyes to change their minds and plant a seed deep in their hearts: a desire to live in peace with Konoha." As he spoke, the three tomoe in Uchiha Shisui's eyes transformed into a four-tomoe pattern.
Shimura Danzo's heart tightened. "Oh? Plant a seed? So I can take that to mean you can change other people's minds?" Having picked up on the key point, he questioned Uchiha Shisui.
Uchiha Shisui nodded, keeping a wary eye on Shimura Danzo. Danzo fell silent for a moment before asking, "Is the ability of your Mangekyō Sharingan really effective?"
Uchiha Shisui smiled. "Of course." He sounded proud. "It just has a long cooldown—more than ten years."
Shimura Danzo nodded. "All right, Shisui. Remember what you said. Use this power wisely, and protect Konoha." As he spoke, he reached out to pat Uchiha Shisui on the shoulder.
But Uchiha Shisui was watching the muscles in his arm. The next instant, Shimura Danzo twisted his arm and thrust his fingers toward Shisui's eye socket.
"How am I supposed to know you won't use this power to manipulate the Konoha High Command and facilitate your coup d'état? This power would be better in my hands..." Before he could finish, Uchiha Shisui activated Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!
The Shackling Stakes Technique, also known as the Binding Illusion, instantly dragged the enemy's mind into an illusionary space.
While trapped in the illusion, the victim was completely unaware of what was happening in the real world, allowing the caster to seize the chance to kill them.
A victim caught in the Binding Illusion knew perfectly well that they were under genjutsu and could even perceive what was happening in reality. They simply couldn't move, much like someone suffering from sleep paralysis.
Uchiha Shisui looked at Shimura Danzo with mixed feelings. He hadn't expected Danzo to attack him. Izuna had been right after all. But not wanting to make an enemy of Konoha beyond repair, Shisui immediately turned to leave. The next moment, he sensed a chill of chakra.
He realized at once: Izanagi. Shimura Danzo really did have a Sharingan from the Uchiha Clan!
Damn it!
"I'll take your eye." Shimura Danzo's body jerked upright as his left hand reached for Uchiha Shisui's eye socket.
Just then, a voice rang out.
"Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!" (Katon, Gōka Mekkyaku!) Uchiha Izuna formed the Snake hand seal, took a deep breath, and leaned back.
Chakra surged in his mouth, rapidly shifting to fire nature. Uchiha Izuna unleashed the flames, which spread at once and swept toward Shimura Danzo.
Shimura Danzo's pupils contracted. He now faced two choices. He could pluck out Uchiha Shisui's Kotoamatsukami—this was his best chance—but the fire-style ninjutsu would burn him to death.
Or he could retreat and dodge. He would save his life, but taking Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan next time would be far from easy.
Shimura Danzo thought for half a second and chose the latter without hesitation. I can't die yet. Not here. Not in a place like this.
I haven't become Hokage yet. I can't die here. I have to prove to my teacher that the timid Hiruzen doesn't deserve to be Hokage. I, Shimura Danzo, am the only worthy successor!
Then Shimura Danzo blasted a Vacuum Great Sphere toward the oncoming Majestic Destroyer Flame! (What a glorious sun!)
Using the recoil from the Vacuum Great Sphere, he shot backward at high speed.
Although the Vacuum Great Sphere was a wind-style ninjutsu, Shimura Danzo wielded it well enough to hold back the Majestic Destroyer Flame for a full second without it breaking apart.
That second was all he needed to escape the battlefield!
Uchiha Shisui came to his senses, leaped down toward the river, and splashed into the water.
Uchiha Itachi had been waiting nearby. The moment he saw Uchiha Shisui fall into the river, he jumped in to pull him out.
Soon, Uchiha Itachi helped Uchiha Shisui ashore. "I can't believe Izuna was right," Uchiha Itachi said slowly. He looked up at the flames engulfing the entire Naka River mountain range.
Uchiha Shisui nodded. "If Izuna hadn't stepped in when he did, I might have lost this eye—and my life."
Screams echoed across the mountainside. One after another, bodies burned to ash and fell like dumplings tumbling into a pot.
The sight made Hyuga Hiashi swallow nervously as he stared at Uchiha Izuna in disbelief.
How could a ten-year-old's Fire Release have such range and destructive power? And these were all elite Root operatives. More than seventy percent were Jonin, while the rest were among the best Chunin.
That single burst of flame had killed nearly sixty percent of the Root ninja. The remaining forty percent had burns of varying severity.
When Shimura Danzo received the news, he immediately ordered Root to withdraw! Damn it, one ninjutsu had done all this! He'd brought nearly a hundred ninja!
Staying any longer would only mean more casualties and a greater risk of dying himself.
As long as the mountains remained, there would be no shortage of firewood!
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