Help

"Heh heh heh! Hiruzen, I know you too well! I know exactly what you're thinking. You want to steal my victory? Not a chance!"

Watching Hiruzen Sarutobi's departing back, Danzo sneered inwardly.

He then arrived before a pitch-black wall and pressed a certain spot with his finger. The wall immediately split open to either side, revealing a dark passage.

Danzo did not light a lantern, instead walking forward by instinct alone.

Before long, he reached the end of the passage and pushed forward.

Creak!

The sound of a wooden door opening.

This was a hidden room, lit by dim yellow lights that illuminated all sorts of experimental equipment.

At that moment, a figure sat in a high-backed chair, conducting research on the instruments at the workbench.

Noticing the door open, the figure rose to his feet.

"Danzo, I told you not to disturb me until it's time for the Uchiha clan's extermination!"

A hoarse yet magnetic voice rang out from the figure.

Danzo ignored him and strode inside.

The figure also took two steps forward. Under the light, his appearance was finally revealed.

He had long, sleek black hair, purple eyeshadow painted along the sides of his nose, golden snake-shaped earrings hanging from his earlobes, and a thick rope tied in a bow around his waist.

"Orochimaru, the time for the Uchiha clan's extermination is coming!"

Danzo tapped his cane against the ground and spoke gravely.

"Oh!"

Orochimaru looked at him in surprise, a gleam seeming to flash through his slit pupils.

"The time was moved up? Interesting. Since when did Teacher Sarutobi become so decisive? This doesn't sound like his style."

"Because an unexpected variable emerged from the Uchiha clan: Uchiha Sasuke! That brat..."

Danzo told Orochimaru in detail about everything Sasuke had done that day.

After hearing this, Orochimaru let out a slurp and excitedly washed his face with his tongue, his eyes shining with interest.

"Interesting, truly interesting! At seven years old, he can effortlessly one-shot a jonin, and he has no regard whatsoever for the Hokage! Hehe..."

"Orochimaru, I came here today not only to notify you, but also to discuss the matter of those two brats, Itachi and Sasuke!"

Danzo looked at Orochimaru and spoke calmly.

"Oh! Danzo, are you interested in those two brats as well?"

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes at Danzo.

"Hmph! Nonsense. Not only am I interested in the Mangekyō Sharingan and the secret behind that sudden surge in strength, Hiruzen is extremely interested too!"

Danzo snorted.

"I understand. You're afraid Teacher Sarutobi will forcibly take those two brats from you, so you want me to secretly take them away, right!?"

Orochimaru was clever and immediately guessed Danzo's intentions.

"That's right. I came to deepen our cooperation! I'll be responsible for subduing those two brats, while you'll be responsible for secretly taking them away. We absolutely cannot let Hiruzen benefit from this!"

"No problem, I agree! We'll share the results of our research afterward!"

Orochimaru agreed without hesitation. Afraid Danzo might have concerns, he added:

"Danzo, you needn't worry that I'll simply run off with the two brats. The two of us will have many opportunities to cooperate in the future. We cannot end our partnership over such a small immediate gain."

"Mhm. Orochimaru, you're a smart man. Destroying our cooperation would benefit neither of us."

Danzo nodded noncommittally.

"Hehe, indeed. Then may our cooperation be pleasant!"

Orochimaru said with a smile, extending his hand.

"Pleasant cooperation!"

Danzo also extended his hand and shook his, a sinister smile appearing on his face.

Hiruzen, Hiruzen! You think I'm on the first level, but I'm actually on the third. You never would have imagined that I had a helper working in secret, would you!

Danzo was immensely pleased with himself.

With his objective achieved, Danzo immediately turned to leave. But suddenly remembering something, he turned back and asked Orochimaru:

"By the way, Orochimaru, how is the arm I asked you to prepare coming along?"

"There has been progress, so don't rush. A few days ago, one of my subordinates discovered someone with an extremely unusual body. His body shows no rejection reaction toward any cells."

Danzo's single eye immediately lit up.

"Good. If that is truly the case, I'll replace my right arm with that person's arm!"

Danzo touched his right arm, unable to conceal his excitement.

His right arm had suffered a hidden injury long ago, making it extremely inconvenient to use.

He had therefore considered replacing it long ago, but he had never found a suitable one, so the matter had been delayed until now.

But today, the perfect arm had appeared.

And it was a flawless arm that would not cause rejection.

Moreover, tonight happened to be the night of the Uchiha clan's extermination. At that moment, a brilliant idea suddenly emerged in Danzo's mind.

Since there would be no rejection reaction, perhaps he could transplant multiple Sharingan into the arm!

Once the thought surfaced, it became impossible to suppress.

"Then I'll go make arrangements first!"

Leaving behind those words, Danzo hurriedly departed from the secret chamber.

He had to return and instruct his subordinates to gather Sharingan with all their strength.

Everything I need is falling into place. Today truly is my lucky day... Danzo thought to himself.

"Hmph! Fugaku actually didn't believe my deduction! He didn't arrange for the clan's ordinary people to evacuate!"

Sasuke stood atop a rooftop, looking at the Uchiha compound, where the lights were still on in every household, and curled his lips in dissatisfaction.

He had already given his warning. If a battle truly broke out and the ordinary clan members suffered terrible casualties, they could not blame him!

Unable to hold himself back any longer, Sasuke decided to use the two lottery chances he had earned from angering the Third Hokage.

He had originally wanted to save up ten chances for a ten-pull, but he simply could not resist the urge to draw.

"System, draw twice. Use both chances at once!"

[ Ding! Draw successful. Obtained 1 Supreme Sunglasses! ]

[ Ding! Draw successful. Obtained 1 24K Pure Gold Chain! ]

"Sunglasses and a huge gold chain? System, are you trying to make me into some underworld boss?"

Sasuke mocked inwardly, then asked the system.

"System, are these just ordinary sunglasses? Can you explain what they do?"

[ Supreme Sunglasses: Blocks all probing gazes! Once worn, not even the Byakugan can clearly see your eyes! ]

The system gave its explanation!

Sasuke raised an eyebrow after reading it. These sunglasses seemed somewhat useful!

They were perfect for concealing his Six-Tomoe Rinnegan.

Even if the Rinnegan were exposed, it would not really matter, but since he had the means to conceal it, he might as well do so. It would reduce some trouble as well!

Of course, the main reason was that sunglasses made him look cooler.

Sasuke then asked the system about the gold chain's function.

[ 24K Pure Gold Chain: An essential accessory for big bosses. Wearing it makes you more imposing. In short, it makes you look cool! ]

Fine, this was just junk.

Sasuke reached that conclusion inwardly.

Of the two draws, only the sunglasses were useful. His luck was not bad!