Tanzaku Town, a bustling commercial center, was famous for its casinos and hot springs. In an unremarkable Japanese-style mansion with a spacious backyard on the edge of town, the survivors of the Uchiha Clan had temporarily settled in. The property had been purchased by Ling through the system's channels and Zabuza's black-market connections, with its ownership flawlessly disguised.
Dozens of clan members crowded into the somewhat cramped mansion, still shaken. Grief and confusion hung over them, but their instinct to survive and their faint hope for the future kept them going. Uchiha Izumi had taken the initiative to coordinate everyone and get them settled, showing a resilience beyond her years. Haku, with his gentle nature and attentive care, had earned the trust of many children and elders.
Ling temporarily entrusted the management to Izumi and Zabuza—the latter responsible for perimeter security and distributing supplies—while he took Kimimaro and quietly returned to Konoha using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
He had to come back. Naruto was still at the little compound, and a prolonged absence would inevitably incur the Third Hokage's and Danzo's displeasure. He needed to maintain the outward appearance of a "monitored Nine-Tails Jinchuriki" and hide in plain sight. That was the only way to let Dawn Wind operate more effectively in the shadows.
By the time he returned to the compound, dusk was approaching. Yamada, who was keeping watch, saw him and Kimimaro "returning from training" and merely recorded it as routine, asking no questions. But Ling could sense that beneath the seemingly calm glance lay more scrutiny than before.
Sure enough, trouble came knocking the day after he returned.
It wasn't the Anbu who came, but two members of Root wearing animal masks. Their bearing was even more chilling, and their chakra carried a ruthless edge. They ignored Yamada and barged into the compound.
"Uchiha Ling," said the Root ninja in the lead, his voice devoid of feeling, like a machine. "Lord Danzo summons you."
So it had finally come. Ling sneered inwardly, but on his face he wore just the right amount of a child's "tension" and "confusion." "Lord Danzo? What does he want with me?"
"Lord Danzo's will is not for you to question. Just come with us," the other Root ninja said curtly, his command leaving no room for argument.
Kimimaro immediately stepped forward, placing himself in front of Ling. His green eyes gleamed with killing intent.
"It's all right, Kimimaro." Ling gently pressed a hand to his shoulder, signaling him to stay calm. He knew that a direct confrontation with Root now would be tantamount to suicide.
He followed the two Root ninjas away from the compound, through familiar streets, and down into Konoha's dark underground—to a Root base filled with the smell of disinfectant and rust.
In a spacious interrogation room containing only a table and two chairs, Shimura Danzō sat at the head of the table, his single eye fixed on Ling as he entered.
"Uchiha Ling," Danzō said, his voice low and oppressive. "Tell me, where were you on the night of the Uchiha Clan Massacre?"
"I was asleep in my room with Naruto." Ling answered with the story he'd prepared long ago, looking at Danzō with "innocent" eyes. "There was a lot of noise outside, but I was scared and didn't dare go out."
"Asleep?" Danzō sneered, his single eye flickering with cold light. "As far as I know, you aren't an ordinary five-year-old. You have Uchiha blood, the Nine-Tails sealed inside you, and you can even command the orphan of the Kaguya Clan. And yet, when the Uchiha were staging a coup, you slept peacefully?"
A powerful, oppressive chakra spread from Danzō, trying to put pressure on Ling.
The Sage Body within Ling naturally went to work, easily dispelling the pressure. He put on an expression of "hurt" and "defiance" at just the right moment. "Lord Danzo, although my surname is Uchiha, both my parents died early, and I wasn't welcomed by the clan. That night was terrifying. What's wrong with protecting myself and my little brother Naruto? Was I supposed to run outside and get myself killed?"
His rebuttal was perfectly reasonable, vividly portraying the instinct for self-preservation of an orphan who wasn't accepted by his clan.
Danzō narrowed his single eye, clearly unconvinced. He changed tack. "That Kaguya Kimimaro by your side has an unknown background. Could he be connected to the strange fog that appeared at the Uchiha Clan Compound last night?"
"I found Kimimaro outside the village, an orphan with nowhere to go. I felt sorry for him, so I took him in. Grandpa Hokage approved it, too." Ling invoked the Third Hokage. "As for the fog, I don't know anything. I was in my room the whole time."
He stuck to his claim that he hadn't left that night, pushing every suspicion away from himself.
Danzō stared at Ling for a long while, trying to find a flaw in his expression. But Ling's acting and mental acuity far exceeded his age, and the naturally gentle aura from his Sage Body gave Danzō no opening.
"Hmph. I hope you're telling the truth." Danzō knew he wouldn't get anything more out of him, but his suspicions hadn't lessened at all. He waved a hand. "You may leave. But... remember, Konoha will not tolerate any threat. Watch yourself."
It was a blatant warning.
Ling gave a "relieved" bow and turned to leave the suffocating interrogation room.
After he left, Danzō gave an order to the shadows. "Increase surveillance. Activate 'Elephant.' I want to know every last thing he does: everyone he sees each day, everything he says, even the movement of the air in his room."
"Yes!" came the reply from the shadows.
Ling walked back to the compound, his expression calm, but a solemn chill settling in his heart. Danzō was like a viper, and he had fixed his gaze on Ling. Ling didn't care about ordinary surveillance, but Danzō's mention of "Elephant" made him wary. It might be some highly specialized surveillance method.
Back at the compound, Ling picked up Naruto, who was babbling and reaching out to him with tiny hands. His gaze turned resolute.
Taking a beating without fighting back wasn't his style. He had to warn Danzō—a warning that would leave a deep impression without directly igniting a conflict.
That night, Ling once again connected to the system's anonymous channel and posted a new task with an unmistakable objective.
[Task Type: Intelligence and Warning.] [Target: Shimura Danzō.] [Request: Place the following item and information on his Root office desk at noon tomorrow, without leaving a trace.] [Item: A concise copy of a report on his secret experiments transplanting Hashirama Cells into organs (with key details redacted). Information: "Any probing beyond your bounds will bring consequences you cannot bear. Keep your gaze fixed on what lies beneath the setting sun."] [Reward: To be negotiated (high).]
Ling would lift the veil on Danzō's most closely guarded secret, just a corner of it, and leave it on his desk. It was both a demonstration of his power and intelligence-gathering ability, as well as a stern warning: I know where your limits are, so stop trying to cross mine.
When he had finished, Ling gently rocked Naruto in his arms and murmured, "Looks like Konoha's 'Root' needs pruning, too."
The shadows beneath the bright sunlight and the weapons in the dark had clashed at a distance for the first time.
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