Wanted a Title

The battlefield was filled with war and smoke.

Danzo stood quietly before Dodai.

He was too fast. Dodai had no chance to resist or dodge before he was cut down.

His head and body were separated, yet not a drop of blood splattered.

A scorched stench rose from the wound. The seared flesh had sealed in all the blood. With his immense strength and the speed of his swing, the blade had continuously heated up as it moved. That strike had not only been sharp, but burning hot.

As the slash fell, the entire battlefield sank into dead silence.

"Dodai is dead! Why haven't you surrendered yet?!" Excitement flashed in Danzo's eyes as he held Dodai's head aloft and shouted.

This was his first battle in the shinobi world, and his first opponent had been a renowned jonin.

This Kumogakure jonin had been famous throughout the shinobi world and highly active during both the Second and Third Shinobi World Wars. He had not even had time to use his strongest Lava Release before his life was ended.

Relying on the calm combat experience of his past life and the original owner's understanding and mastery of Blade Technique, Danzo had executed a perfect killing blow with this body's S-rank speed.

Danzo's words reached every corner of the battlefield, and all the Kumogakure shinobi began to panic.

"Charge! Charge! Charge!"

"Lord Danzo is mighty!"

"For Konoha!"

Konoha's momentum surged, and the previously even battle instantly became one-sided.

Meanwhile, the notification for Skill Points +1 kept sounding in Danzo's mind.

With Dodai dead, Pu Song—the strongest among Kumogakure's forces and the deputy commander—shouldered the burden. Somewhat dejected, he exchanged a punch with A Kai and used the force to retreat.

"Retreat!"

Pu Song roared, trying to command the other Kumogakure shinobi around him.

Before he could do anything, however, a pair of scarlet eyes with three black tomoe spinning within them appeared before him.

The war ended, and the genin and logistics personnel were assigned to clean up the battlefield.

Danzo stood atop Si Ming Mountain, gazing toward Kumogakure.

According to the latest intelligence, Kumogakure's reinforcements included the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, Samui's squad, and Darui, the Fourth Raikage's guard.

Yugito, the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, had already been able to skillfully undergo Tailed Beast Transformation when she appeared in the original story, borrowing the tailed beast's power. But this was more than a decade earlier than in the original story, and Fugaku was nearby as well, so Danzo was not too worried about this Jinchuriki.

Samui was a relatively famous jonin in Kumogakure. Though she was not Dodai's equal in seniority, her strength was absolutely on par with his.

Of these reinforcements, the one Danzo cared about most was Darui of the Yotsuki Clan.

The Yotsuki Clan was a major clan of Kumogakure, holding a status equivalent to the Senju in Konoha.

Nearly every Raikage of Kumogakure had come from the Yotsuki Clan, and Darui would become the Fifth Raikage after the Fourth Shinobi World War ended.

Though Darui was only a young junior now, he already possessed the strength to serve as the Fourth Raikage's guard.

The talent brought by this clan's bloodline could not be underestimated.

"Lord Danzo, the battle report has been compiled. Please review it." Yume Ryoma respectfully handed Danzo a scroll. After this incident, Ryoma admired Lord Danzo even more.

Although Ryoma had always respected Danzo, he was still rather young.

By the time he joined Root and began working for Danzo, Danzo had rarely taken action personally. He mostly engaged in schemes and plots. Though those were impressive as well, they were ultimately not as direct as true strength.

Noticing Ryoma's change, Danzo said nothing and silently accepted the scroll from him.

Strength was the foundation for gaining a foothold in the shinobi world. Danzo had understood that long ago.

Scheming in the shadows would never truly earn respect. Both strength and methods had to keep pace.

"Friendly casualties."

"More than a thousand Kumogakure prisoners."

After flipping through the scroll and glancing at it a few times, Danzo tossed it back and looked at Ryoma. "How long until Mito's forces arrive?"

"Lord Mito's forces are expected to arrive tomorrow," Ryoma Responded respectfully.

"That old fellow." Danzo could not help laughing. To claim a share of the credit, he was really risking his life on the road.

"Once he arrives, hand all these prisoners over to him for supervision. After the war ends, these people can be exchanged for considerable resources."

"Yes."

Ryoma nodded and was about to leave.

"Wait."

Danzo stopped him. "Make another copy of the battle report in your hand and send it to the daimyo of the Land of Lightning. It seems the pressure on him is still not enough. The Raikage actually dared to send reinforcements to the front lines."

"Understood." Ryoma nodded. After waiting for a moment and receiving no further orders from Danzo, he turned and left.

Primary Attribute Panel

Name: Shimura Danzō.

Age: Twenty-one.

Strength: B

Body: B

Speed: A+

Spirit: A+

Skills:

Strength Amplification (Activated) Critical Hit (Passive Skill) Damage Amplification (Not Activated)

Body Amplification (Activated) Endurance Amplification (Passive Skill) Brass Body (Not Activated)

Speed Amplification (Activated) Sprint (Active Skill) Potential Unleash (Not Activated)

Spirit Amplification (Activated) Mental Resistance (Passive Skill) Mental Projection (Not Activated)

Skill Points: 177

--

Sitting quietly inside the tent, Danzo reached out and lightly tapped the air.

After leading his forces to victory, Danzo had gained nearly a hundred Skill Points, and they were still steadily increasing.

Using the reputation of Lava Release Dodai as a stepping stone, Danzo had returned to the public eye. Everyone began to reassess this powerhouse from the same era as the Third Hokage.

With 177 Skill Points, he could activate another skill. With war approaching, Danzo did not want to delay the activation any longer. The gains it would bring him this time would be enormous.

Through this war, Danzo also wanted a title of his own.

Such a title would undoubtedly be of great use in spreading his reputation and harvesting points.

Looking across the entire Naruto story, Shimura Danzō was not low in status, strength, or seniority, yet he did not possess a title of his own within the series.

Instead, outside the series, he had titles such as Konoha's Great Root, Konoha's Pot King, Darkness of the Shinobi World, and Undying Ambition.

But Danzo only wanted to say, what use were those titles to him now?

Didn't every one of those titles sound like something a villain would have?

Am I, Shimura Danzō, a villain?

Saving people from misery and disaster, willing to start wars for peace in the shinobi world—how could I, Shimura Danzō, possibly be a villain?

Nodding to himself with a clear conscience, Danzo turned his thoughts back to activating a skill.

Would he spend a hundred Skill Points to activate Potential Unleash, the skill derived from Speed Amplification, and compete with the Second Hokage, Fourth Hokage, and Fourth Raikage for the title of the fastest shinobi in the world, or seek another path?