Hurry and Invite the Third Hokage~

"Lord Zhixiang, what should we do now?" A Root ninja cast his gaze toward the Aburame clansman who was deeply trusted by Lord Danzo.

"Sigh... Lord Danzo is currently determined to die. We can stop him once, but we cannot stop him for a lifetime. I am helpless in this situation. Quickly, go and invite the Third Hokage!"

"Yes, Lord Zhixiang!" Before the words had even faded, the man vanished with a whoosh.

Utatane Gen, what on earth did you do to Lord Danzo? Aburame Zhixiang stared at the arrogant graffiti left on the wall by Utatane Gen, not knowing what to do.

Sarutobi Clan Compound~

"What? You say someone has invaded the Root?" Hiruzen Sarutobi looked completely bewildered. Konoha had only recently experienced the Nine-Tails incident; how much time had passed since then? And now, someone else was daring enough to invade the Root? It was truly a troubled autumn.

"Yes, Third Hokage! Lord Aburame Zhixiang sent me to inform you to come and take charge of the situation!" the Root Ninja A said hurriedly.

"Me? Take charge? And what about Danzo? How is Danzo? Could it be...!!!" Given the nature of that guy Danzo, touching his Root was more fatal than touching his own descendants. In this matter, he recognized no family and gave no one face, including himself, the Third Hokage!

But now, a Root ninja was actually asking him to take charge? Could it be... Danzo, he...

Thinking of his old friend of many years leaving him just like that, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a sharp pain in his heart. He took two deep drags of his pipe to barely steady his emotions.

"Lord Danzo is fine, but his current mood is somewhat unstable; he keeps thinking about committing suicide!" Root Ninja A reported truthfully.

"??? Did I hear that wrong? What did you just say?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, his face full of suspicion. Could this Root ninja be an enemy spy?

"You heard correctly, Lord Danzo, he... he really wants to commit suicide! It was only after our Root medical ninjas performed emergency treatment that his life was barely saved. Now, it takes all the Root ninjas working together to keep him restrained; otherwise, I suspect Danzo would have already gone to the Underworld to meet the First and Second Hokage! Third Hokage, please go and take a look; Lord Aburame Zhixiang might not be able to maintain the situation!" Root Ninja A said sorrowfully.

"Hahahaha! Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Danzo? Suicide? Him? I have worked with Danzo for decades! No one knows what kind of person he is better than I do! You saying I committed suicide would be more believable than Danzo committing suicide! You bunch of clowns! To think you would try to deceive me, Hiruzen Sarutobi! Speak! Who sent you!" Sensing that something was wrong, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately switched to a combat stance and shouted.

"Nani? Who sent me? I? Lord Zhixiang told me to come!" Root Ninja A was also completely bewildered.

"So that's how it is! Aburame Zhixiang, is it? I didn't expect his ambition to be this great! Danzo, oh Danzo! You truly have been pecked in the eye by the geese you raised all year! Hmph! In the end, it still falls to me to clean up the mess! Aburame Zhixiang! A man with the eyes of an eagle and the heart of a wolf, unfit for high society! Someone come!" Hiruzen Sarutobi mused to himself, then gave an offhand order.

"Here, Third Hokage!" A ninja in Anbu uniform emerged from the shadows.

"Go notify the Fourth Hokage. There is a special situation. Immediately! Assemble!" To be safe, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to have Namikaze Minato called over first. Since Aburame Zhixiang wanted to lure him to the Root, it meant he must be very confident in keeping him there! It was safer to bring Minato along; that way, they could look out for each other.

One incense stick later!

"Third Hokage, why did you call for me?" The voice arrived before the person! A streak of yellow light instantly entered Hiruzen Sarutobi's vision.

"Minato, something has happened at the Root! Aburame Zhixiang has rebelled, and Danzo's life is hanging in the balance! You must accompany me!" Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a grave expression.

Huh? There was such a good thing? Danzo's life hanging in the balance? If he had known, he wouldn't have come!

"Aburame Zhixiang? Rebellion? I have long felt that a force like the Root, which operates outside the Hokage's authority, was unreliable. Now it has finally happened. Third Hokage, I think it is necessary to disband the Root organization!" Minato took the opportunity to suggest.

"Hm? I will consider this matter. The top priority is to capture Aburame Zhixiang and rescue Elder Danzo!" Hiruzen Sarutobi said, feigning deep thought. Are you kidding me? The Root is nominally Danzo's force, but in reality, it is my own. If we really disband the Root, the influence of our Elder Council would be cut in half. Disband the Root? That's impossible to even think about!

"Yes, Third Hokage! Then let's wait until after we rescue Elder Danzo to discuss it!" Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi's perfunctory attitude, Namikaze Minato nodded helplessly.

Root~

Because the information between the two sides was completely mismatched, the Root believed Hiruzen Sarutobi was there to take charge, so they had no intention of stopping him.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and his party, meanwhile, assumed that the Root was being "loose on the outside but tight on the inside," having already set up layers of traps just waiting for them to walk into. Although they walked in with a calm demeanor, their hearts were tightened to the extreme.

Inside the Root general affairs office, Aburame Zhixiang was nervously pinning Danzo down to prevent him from continuing his suicide attempt.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and his party walked in just in time to see this scene!

"Aburame Zhixiang! You have a lot of nerve! Let go of Elder Danzo at once!" Hiruzen immediately shouted. At the same time, he signaled to Namikaze Minato beside him, letting him know to take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack so they could quickly subdue Aburame Zhixiang.

Namikaze Minato understood immediately! He kept his eyes on Aburame Zhixiang, ready to find the right moment. After all, Aburame Zhixiang was a formidable Jonin, and since he was currently holding Danzo hostage, Hiruzen and the others had to be careful not to hurt the hostage.

"Third Hokage, you've finally arrived! Please, persuade Lord Danzo; he wants to commit..." Aburame Zhixiang thought the Third Hokage was telling him to let go of Danzo first, as he would handle everything. Hearing this, he prepared to release Danzo without any defenses.

Boom! The moment Aburame Zhixiang's hands left Danzo's body, Namikaze Minato used the Body Flicker Technique, combined with a Rasengan he had prepared behind his back! In an instant, he smashed Aburame Zhixiang into the wall like a painting.

"Na... Nani???" The surrounding Root ninjas were all bewildered! Too many bizarre and outrageous things had happened today; their little brains could no longer process it. In this situation, they didn't even know which side to help...

At the same time, freed from control, Danzo Shimura used a Body Flicker Technique and resolutely lunged forward!

Thud! That sound hurt just to hear! Unfortunately, due to the mental trauma and having his limbs restrained for so long, Danzo's physical capabilities had severely declined, meaning this wall-slam did not result in his brains being splattered.

"Quick, quickly go and get a medical ninja!" Seeing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly ordered.

At this moment, Aburame Zhixiang on the wall also tremblingly relied on his own willpower to peel himself off the wall, using both his hands and feet.