A Silent Return Strike

Danzo felt he had found the truth: the No-Face who had caused him such a great loss by wreaking havoc in Root was definitely Uchiha Yunyan!

Thinking of this, Danzo was almost filled with murderous intent, and subconsciously wanted to lead the Root ninjas to capture Yun Yan immediately.

But the next second, Danzo realized something.

Wait a minute, if I remember correctly, Uchiha Yunyan isn't in Konoha right now!

He must have gone with Kakashi on Anbu mission, a mission assigned to him by Anbu Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Since Danzo had people in Danzo Anbu, he was pretty sure that Uchiha Yunyan had indeed left the village on a mission, and that Danzo attacked Uchiha Yunyan Izumi Uchiha while Uchiha Yunyan was away.

In that case, Uchiha Yunyan probably wouldn't have had time to come back and save Izumi Uchiha, wouldn't have had time to know what happened last night, and wouldn't have had time to take revenge on Root.

Something doesn't seem right; following this logic, it definitely doesn't make sense.

Upon realizing this, Danzo discovered the flaw in his logic and understood that his guess seemed to be wrong.

But should we just give up like this?

Because of his fear and disgust towards Uchiha Yunyan, Danzo now wants to pin this crime on Yun Yan.

Regardless of the true identity of that No-Face, let's find a legitimate reason to attack Uchiha Yunyan.

When they tried to pin a charge on him, they found it difficult. He had a clear alibi; he wasn't even in Konoha when Root was invaded. What could they do?

For a time, Danzo was caught in a dilemma.

He wanted to find out who this No-Face was, and he also wanted to believe that this No-Face was Uchiha Yunyan, but things just wouldn't go as he wished.

Danzo was very annoyed, feeling that nothing was going right.

However, even worse things were yet to come.

Just as Danzo and feeling frustrated, a Root ninja rushed in to report that while they were further tallying the casualties, they suddenly discovered that all the remaining Hashirama Cells stored in other Root laboratories had been destroyed!

Upon hearing this news, Danzo was so angry he nearly blew smoke. He immediately demanded, "What do you mean by 'completely wiped out'?"

The Root ninja's miserable reply, "completely wiped out," meant that their remaining Hashirama Cells were either completely destroyed or had vanished without a trace.

Danzo was truly dumbfounded, utterly bewildered, and extremely angry.

What exactly happened? Weren't only a portion of the Hashirama Cells lost? Didn't he avoid putting all his eggs in one basket? When the casualty statistics were first compiled, wasn't it only the Hashirama Cells in that one lab that were affected?

An enraged Danzo questioned the Root ninja.

This unfortunate Root ninja could only honestly state that during the initial casualty count, the only loss was indeed of the Hashirama Cells from that laboratory.

However, when they conducted the second casualty count, they were horrified to discover that all the remaining Hashirama Cells in the Root Base had perished!

Upon hearing this specific detail, Danzo couldn't help but slump into his chair, a cold sweat running down his back.

The first casualty count wasn't too bad, but by the second casualty count, all of Hashirama Cells were gone!

What does that mean?

This means that in the brief interval between the first and second casualty counts, someone sneaked into the Root and stole and destroyed all the remaining Hashirama Cells!

How... is this possible?

Their Root had just been attacked, and their defenses were at their strongest. How could they be attacked again in such a short time?

Who infiltrated their Root? Who stole the Hashirama Cells? What was their purpose?

Could it be... that No-Face? Did he return again? Sneaking back to the Root Base and doing all this while I wasn't looking!?

You know what, Danzo's guess was pretty accurate.

The one who made this silent comeback was none other than Yun Yan himself.

As mentioned before, before Yun Yan officially teleported away from Konoha using the Flying Thunder God Technique, he also did a small favor.

Yes, without a doubt, the little thing he did was to quietly return to the Root and launch a surprise attack, eliminating all the remaining Hashirama Cells stored Root.

It's very simple to do this.

He invaded the Root openly and honestly, killing so many people deep within Root. How could he not have left behind a few Flying Thunder God Formula while wreaking havoc Root?

Even though he had only just begun learning the Flying Thunder God Technique, he had already left behind the Flying Thunder God Formula. Infiltrating the Root Base silently was an extremely simple matter.

Once inside, use Endless Vista to scan and locate the Root laboratories and Hashirama Cells at the root. Then, easily destroy all of these Hashirama Cells.

Moreover, Yun Yan's choice to take action after the initial casualty count at the Root was also reasonable.

Because at this time, the Root appear to be more securely defended due to the attack, but this is not actually the case.

In reality, most Root ninjas thought that the enemy was already gone and wouldn't come back at this time anyway, so there was no need for them to be so nervous.

Taking advantage of this common flaw in the mindset of most Root ninjas, Yun Yan deliberately went against the grain, launching a surprise attack at this crucial moment. Who could have predicted that?

Therefore, Yun Yan's silent counterattack was very successful, and he completely destroyed the remaining Hashirama Cells in the Root Base.

Upon receiving this news, Danzo was utterly devastated.

His Root, after being openly attacked at night, were then silently invaded just as dawn was breaking.

Hashirama Cells he had carefully cultivated over the years, which he had always considered taboo, are now gone!

What... what should we do!?

His cherished Wood Release, his desire to restore his right arm, and his wish to continue using Izanagi Sharingan implanted—all of that was lost!

Wait! Sharingan!

Thinking of this, Danzo's heart suddenly skipped a beat. He quickly stood up and ran towards one of the most important and secret laboratories in the Root Base.

The existence of this secret laboratory is highly confidential; even most Root ninjas are unaware of its existence, except for Danzo and a few of his close confidants.

Moreover, this secret laboratory doesn't store Hashirama Cells; it stores and studies...

Danzo rushed to the secret laboratory, opened the door and peeked inside, only to find everything went black!

Why did Danzo react this way?

Danzo discovered that the medical research ninjas in the secret laboratory had all collapsed and turned into corpses.

The most important thing treasured in the secret laboratory—Danzo's last few Sharingan — Danzo all vanished without a trace!

Yes, this secret laboratory contains Danzo's greatest trump card: Sharingan he had collected from various places over the years, all of which are Three Tomoe Sharingan!

But today, all the trump cards he'd accumulated over the years are gone! All gone!

This blow nearly Danzo's spirit; his heart, hardened over the years, almost broke, and he nearly fainted from the shock!

Those Danzo of the family know their own situation. Danzo also knew himself very well. He knew that his strength was insufficient, and if he wanted to increase his strength, he could only resort to some crooked and evil methods.

His biggest trump card and most important unorthodox method is the Sharingan, Izanagi, and the extra lives!

It's fair to say that as long as he has these lives, Danzo is confident he can start over no matter what happens; it's practically a way to undo his mistakes!

But now, those lives, that chance for regret, are gone! All gone!

This time, Danzo suffered a blow; to put it simply, it almost shattered his Dao heart!

Leaning against the doorframe of the secret laboratory and using a cane, Danzo nearly fainted.

With his head down and face grim, Danzo took several deep breaths.

Finally, Danzo his temper! He was utterly enraged!

Seeing the complete mess in his secret laboratory, Danzo let out a terrifying, sinister, and horrific roar:

"Who!? Who did this!?"

Who destroyed my remaining Hashirama Cells? Who destroyed my treasured Sharingan!? Who was it!?

A vicious and resentful roar echoed deep within the Root Base.