A fragment of the Four Souls Jewel had fallen into Shimura Danzo's hands.
And Shimura Danzo was precisely the fifth holder of a Four Souls Jewel fragment chosen by Naraku.
Moreover, all of this was part of Naraku's plan. He had calculated Shimura Danzo's personality and knew that if he handed the item directly to him, Shimura Danzo would surely grow suspicious and refuse to use it.
Thus, Naraku merely leaked information about the Four Souls Jewel, allowing Shimura Danzo to send people to seek it out. He also made Danzo's subordinates pay a certain price to obtain it—after all, if Shimura Danzo got it too easily, he would still be suspicious.
That was simply the kind of paranoid man he was. Since he himself was so insidious, he liked to assume that everyone else was equally cunning and treacherous.
The Light Screen footage even "thoughtfully" showed several scenes: Naraku had arranged for some demons to guard a fragment of the Four Souls Jewel, and only after suffering more than twenty casualties did the Root ninja acquire it at tremendous cost.
It was precisely because of those heavy losses that Shimura Danzo had been so assured of the fragment's origins and had truly been willing to accept and use it.
So even if Shimura Danzo was as crafty as a fox, he still got thoroughly played by Naraku.
In a clash between veteran schemers, Naraku won!
Still, that was hardly surprising. From the current situation, Shimura Danzo's abilities could only be called decent. As a veteran schemer, he was actually unqualified, and the most likely reason for that was that he had spent too long in his "comfort zone."
After all, with the sentimental Third Hokage as his superior, indulging him out of old affection, someone lacking a sense of