Biodata
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Danzo (团藏) |
| Gender | Male |
| Affiliation | Konoha; Root 3 4 |
| Occupation/Role | Root leader, Konoha elder, and Hokage advisor; formerly Hiruzen Sarutobi’s trusted partner and founder of the Anbu 4 22 |
| Status | Deceased following his final confrontation with Uchiha Xingye 24 25 |
| First Appearance | Mentioned in Chapter 1; receives his subordinates’ report in Chapter 3 1 3 |
Background / History
Conflict with the Uchiha
Danzo and Hiruzen Sarutobi helped build Konoha together and weathered numerous crises as partners. By the time Xingye presents evidence against him, Danzo has become willing to eliminate the Uchiha clan under the justification of protecting “the interests of Konoha” 22.
His Root operatives monitor Xingye from the beginning of the story. When three Root jonin attack the six-year-old in a forest, Xingye defeats them and allows two survivors to carry a warning back to Danzo. Xingye initially avoids confronting Danzo directly, judging his personal strength and Root’s influence formidable enough to risk civil war 1 3.
Fugaku and Xingye report the attack to the Third Hokage. During the meeting, Xingye asks that Danzo cease covert surveillance of the clan. Danzo interprets the request as a threat and privately reaffirms his intention to purge the Uchiha. He subsequently sends a spy to observe Xingye and Itachi at Naka Shrine 4 5.
Extermination Plot and Failed Assassinations
Xingye discovers that Danzo’s extermination scheme is part of a wider conspiracy involving Black Zetsu and Obito. Their planned massacre is scheduled for October 10th, Konoha 63: Danzo is to help fabricate evidence of an Uchiha rebellion, while Itachi is designated to carry out the killings 7.
The Uchiha’s internal reforms make Danzo increasingly uneasy. As the clan strengthens its outside connections and secretly gathers evidence of his crimes, he accelerates preparations for its annihilation. In winter of Konoha 55, he sends three Root jonin to kill Xingye outside the village; their deaths instead provide evidence for the Uchiha’s complaint against him 8 9.
Xingye’s public Mangekyo Sharingan display and Chunin Exam victory intensify Danzo’s demands for immediate action. Hiruzen restrains him because of the danger of internal strife, but at this stage also supports continued surveillance and accelerated preparations for the massacre 10 16.
After learning that Xingye has repelled Orochimaru, Danzo dispatches six elite Root jonin into the Uchiha compound. Xingye defeats them using guerrilla tactics, shadow clones, and Susanoo. The failure prompts Danzo to seek other villages’ interest in attacking the Uchiha and to hold further secret planning meetings 17 19.
Removal from Office and Death
Xingye eventually submits an investigative report documenting Danzo’s assassination scheme against the Uchiha clan leader, manipulation of Uchiha radicals, secret transactions with Rain Village, and purges of dissenters within Root. Hiruzen agrees to strip him of all duties and investigate his conduct 22.
Enraged by the decision, Danzo sends three Root assassins to kill Fugaku and Xingye while creating chaos that can be presented as an Uchiha rebellion. Xingye anticipates the raid, captures the attackers, and sends them to the Hokage for interrogation. Hiruzen then orders Danzo’s arrest 23.
When hundreds of Konoha ninja surround the Root base, Danzo refuses to surrender and activates Izanagi. He briefly becomes nearly invulnerable, but the technique rapidly consumes his chakra and vitality. Xingye waits for him to reach his limit and confronts him with the Mangekyo Sharingan; Danzo is defeated and dies 24.
His death removes the immediate extermination threat and precedes the Uchiha Clan Revival Assembly, where Xingye announces the clan’s expanded role in Konoha 25.
Appearance
- Single visible eye: Repeatedly described through the cold or murderous expression in his single eye 16 19 23.
- Sharingan-bearing right arm: Shisui Uchiha’s Sharingan is embedded in his right arm. During the final battle, the implantation wound bleeds as he emerges from the ruined Root base 23 24.
Personality
Danzo treats his pursuit of power as service to Konoha. Even when Hiruzen confronts him with his crimes, he insists that everything he has done was for the village. Hiruzen rejects this defense as an excuse for ambition 22 24.
He relies on surveillance, assassination, political manipulation, and fabricated rebellion charges to remove opponents. His own organization is not exempt from his ruthlessness: Xingye’s evidence includes the purging of dissenters within Root 7 19 22 23.
His judgment deteriorates when his authority is challenged. Xingye deliberately exploits his anger and fear, provoking the failed raid that exposes him to Konoha’s leadership. During his last stand, Danzo refuses to acknowledge defeat even as Izanagi drains his life 20 22 23 24.
Abilities & Skills
Sharingan and Izanagi
- Possesses an implanted Sharingan belonging to Shisui Uchiha 23.
- Uses Izanagi: Reality Rewrite to warp reality, causing attacks to disappear before reaching him 24.
- Produces numerous Susanoo clones during his final rampage through Izanagi 24.
- The technique rapidly drains his chakra and vitality; Xingye identifies his nearly exhausted Mangekyo Sharingan as a decisive limitation 24.
- Its temporary protection does not prevent his defeat once the eye’s power begins to fail 24.
Covert Operations and Command
- Directs Root’s surveillance and assassination missions against Xingye and the Uchiha leadership 3 5 9 19 23.
- Commands operatives trained from infancy to obey without independent thoughts or emotions 23.
- Uses secret meetings, foreign contacts, and manufactured evidence to prepare political grounds for exterminating the clan 7 17 19 22.
Relationships
- Uchiha Xingye — Principal opponent. Repeated assassination attempts fail, while Xingye gathers evidence and manipulates Danzo into exposing his conspiracy 3 9 19 22 23.
- Hiruzen Sarutobi — Former trusted partner and political associate. Initially shares concerns about the Uchiha’s growth, but ultimately removes Danzo from office and orders his arrest 10 16 22 23.
- Uchiha Fugaku — Targeted clan leader. Danzo orders his murder during the final attempt to frame the Uchiha for rebellion 22 23.
- Root operatives — Subordinates used for surveillance, assassination, and staged unrest; Danzo expects unquestioning obedience 19 23.
- Black Zetsu and Obito — Participants in the wider massacre conspiracy. Black Zetsu identifies Danzo as their collaborator in fabricating rebellion evidence 7.
- Shisui Uchiha — Source of the Sharingan implanted in Danzo’s right arm 23.