Danzo's Arm

Land of Fire

A hidden underground base somewhere beside the Vast River.

In the dimly lit room, candlelight flickered, Danzo sat on a tatami cushion, holding a scroll, listening to the report from the masked ninja below.

"Understood, investigate further."

"Hi!"

The Root ninja who reported received the order and got up to leave.

Danzo remained expressionless and closed the scroll in his hand.

"Controlling this arm is really not easy."

Danzo's transplantation of this arm, which initially caused Chakra chaos, physical pain, and fainting, has now been completely suppressed and under his complete control over all negative effects, taking a full year.

Through his own research and with the assistance of some Fuinjutsu, Danzo has now truly gained complete control over this arm.

He had endured humiliation and hardship for a year, and this was the moment he had arrived at. Although Danzo wanted to kill Shisui, he ultimately failed to do so, Fourth Hokage falsely accused him of murdering Shisui.

They also claimed to have discovered many Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan at the destroyed A-1 base, demonstrating the Fourth Hokage's evil nature.

How could Danzo not understand the purpose of the base? It was a base for training members, and there was absolutely no data or materials related to experiments inside.

If Danzo hadn't transplanted this Sharingan arm, unlike the eye which can be easily removed and reinstalled, he would definitely have detached it and returned to Konoha Danzo confront the Fourth Hokage.

Any attempt to Danzo would be met with complete denial by Danzo. Even when it came to examining a soul, Danzo could ensure that the person examining the soul knew what to say and what not to say.

The Fourth Hokage's faction examined the souls and presented what they called evidence, Danzo could deny entirely, dismissing as slander. Ultimately, the incident would, as usual, become a muddled and unresolved matter.

The more Danzo thought about this, the more grief and indignation he felt. He was always the Danzo others, but he never imagined that he would be framed by someone else in his lifetime.

Bang! Bang!

"Enter!"

A masked, red-haired Anbu entered Danzo's room, knelt on one knee, and said coldly:

"Danzo, Uchiha Itachi has been frequently appearing near the base. Should we eliminate him?"

The Root's underground stronghold, located beside the Vast River, is extremely well-hidden. With the Vast River right next to it, and underground rivers connecting to it, it would be impossible for any stronghold to be established there. It's a stronghold that no normal person would ever think of.

"Uchiha Itachi?"

Danzo for a moment, unable to determine whether this was a coincidence.

Initially, the Konoha Anbu and Konoha Ninja squads searched around the Vast River for a period of time, but the stronghold was too well hidden, and Konoha could not find any clues. Later, they all stopped their operations.

However, Uchiha Itachi has been frequently appearing here in the past two months, so it's possible that he has discovered something.

"Red Ogre, gather your squad and come with me."

Danzo made a decision: under no circumstances would anyone be allowed to operate around this stronghold for an extended period. It was highly unreasonable for anyone to be active in such a remote location.

Moreover, Danzo had absolutely no goodwill towards the Uchiha Clan. He had previously been quite fond of Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi, but Uchiha Shisui completely sided with his clan, which greatly disappointed Danzo.

This Uchiha Itachi is probably like Uchiha Shisui; it would be better to just eliminate him and take his Sharingan as a Sharingan.

"Hi!

Red Ogre gave a soft reply and left Danzo's office to gather his subordinates.

On a small hill beside the Vast River, Uchiha Itachi sat on the edge of a cliff, his hand resting on his right foot, quietly gazing at the Vast River.

"Shisui, it's been half a year, and we still haven't found any trace of you. Could it be that you..."

For half a year, Uchiha Itachi searched the entire Azure Dragon River and Jade Dragon River, but he couldn't find any trace of Shisui, because the Azure Dragon River connects to the Vast River.

For nearly two months, Uchiha Itachi has been searching in the Vast River, relentlessly pursuing the case with the attitude of finding the person alive or dead.

However, in the past six months, no trace of Shisui has been found in any location.

Uchiha Itachi then realized that Uchiha Shisui might have really met with some misfortune. Otherwise, he wouldn't have remained hidden for half a year.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Uchiha Itachi noticed what was happening behind him, instantly stood up, turned around, placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, and looked at the person who had approached.

"Danzo?"

Uchiha Itachi looked at Danzo with surprise, and lowered his right hand from the hilt of his sword.

Danzo, accompanied by a small squad of Root, stared expressionlessly at Uchiha Itachi. Danzo hadn't expected Uchiha Itachi to still treat him with such respect, addressing him as "sir," and lowering his hand from his weapon, indicating that Itachi seemed to have no hostile intentions.

"Itachi, what are you doing here?"

Sensing Itachi's strange attitude, Danzo slightly suppressed his initial thought of setting off immediately and asked with a blank expression.

Uchiha Itachi looked at the solemn-looking old man opposite him, his expression as complex as ever, and asked with a somewhat complicated look:

"Danzo, there are rumors in Konoha that you killed Uchiha Shisui, is that true?"

After asking his question, Uchiha Itachi reached for the hilt of his sword on his back with his right hand again, his expression becoming slightly serious.

Itachi's question puzzled Danzo. The Fourth Hokage had already released the news, so why would Itachi, a member of the Uchiha Clan, have such a skeptical attitude?

"Uchiha Shisui... could he really be missing? Could it be that the Fourth Hokage, in order to smear me, took advantage of Uchiha Shisui's Uchiha Shisui after our battle and actually killed him...?"

The cunning Danzo, his mind racing, noticed Uchiha Itachi's hesitation and inner conflict. After a moment's thought, Danzo devised a plan and slowly said:

"No, Itachi. Shisui... he was killed by the Fourth Hokage."

"What!?"

Shock flashed in Uchiha Itachi's eyes, and he said coldly:

"Danzo, you killed Shisui, didn't you? And you even slandered the Fourth Hokage!"

Danzo noticed Itachi's shock and said expressionlessly:

"Itachi, what I said is absolutely true."

Danzo answered softly, a hint of reminiscence in his eyes, and continued:

"That day, Shisui discovered the Fourth Hokage's secret and asked me for advice. As a result, the Fourth Hokage found out."

The Fourth Hokage personally pursued Shisui and me. To cover my escape, Shisui entrusted his Sharingan and his will to save Konoha to me, then turned back to intercept the Fourth Hokage...

At this Danzo, Danzo made a bold decision. He removed the bandages from his head, revealing his right eye, which held a scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

"Sharingan! Shisui... I see!"

When Uchiha Itachi saw Danzo's right eye, he remembered the Fourth Hokage's instructions and trembled all over, his Chakra surging and gathering in his eyes.

Danzo noticed Uchiha Itachi's slightly trembling body, and was somewhat surprised, which further confirmed his guess. He continued:

"Shisui covered my retreat, but now it seems Shisui's in grave danger, likely killed by the Fourth Hokage. Itachi, that's how it happened. Konoha is too cruel now..."

Danzo improvised, spouting nonsense and weaving lies. Whether Itachi trusted him or not, he could undermine Itachi's convictions. He could even take advantage of Itachi's momentary lapse in judgment to launch a swift and deadly attack.

After Danzo finished speaking, a hint of sorrow and remembrance appeared on his face. The Sharingan Chakra his right eye surged slightly, but his eyes were fixed on Uchiha Itachi opposite him.

"That's right! Although I respect Danzo, I've always believed that you don't have the strength to kill Shisui. The only one who could completely defeat Shisui is... the Fourth Hokage, who is also from the Uchiha Clan!"

Uchiha Itachi was in a strange state. A red light flashed in his eyes, and his eerie Sharingan held confusion, sadness, and a clear understanding and determination as if he had discovered the truth.

Danzo Uchiha Itachi's strange condition, Danzo hesitated whether to kill him. But then he noticed a strange fluctuation of Chakra Uchiha Itachi Uchiha Itachi.

Uchiha's Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly, transforming into a strange pattern.

"The Mangekyō Sharingan!? An eye that can only be awakened by the death of a loved one! He awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan because of my lie!?"

Danzo noticed Uchiha Itachi's eyes and then his usually placid face showed shock. The Mangekyō Sharingan, the most genuine emotions—this meant Uchiha Itachi trusted him!

As Uchiha Itachi awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan for the first time, a few drops of blood slid from the corners of his eyes, and he said coldly with a ferocious expression:

"Danzo, please tell me in detail what happened to Shisui!"