The Death of Shimura Danzō

The moment he saw Wood Release, a name surfaced in Shimura Danzō's mind: Orochimaru.

At that moment, Shimura Danzō was still pondering something.

But Obito Uchiha paid no attention to any of that. A wooden spike emerged from his palm and shot toward Shimura Danzō.

Though his body had been damaged in many places, Shimura Danzō still possessed some strength. He might not have measured up to the level of Hokage, but he far surpassed ordinary Elite Jonin.

He formed hand seals with both hands and spat out several Vacuum Bullets, all while dodging the wooden spikes Obito Uchiha fired at him.

"Wood Release. Where did you get it?"

At this moment, Shimura Danzō had devoted all his attention to Wood Release.

It was the unique ninjutsu once wielded by the God of Shinobi. He craved it more than anything.

Obito Uchiha did not answer. He let the Vacuum Bullets pass through his illusory body and walked toward Shimura Danzō one step at a time.

Seeing this, Shimura Danzō could not help frowning. He reminded him, "If you want Nohara Rin to remain in this state forever, then keep attacking."

Only upon hearing Rin's name did Obito Uchiha come back to his senses.

"What do you mean?!"

Obito Uchiha asked coldly.

"Exactly what it sounds like. Impure World Reincarnation is a very special forbidden technique. Only the caster can release it."

"Though I did not order anyone to awaken Nohara Rin's consciousness, the Impure World Reincarnation ritual has now been completed. And the only person who could undo the forbidden technique has already been killed by you."

Shimura Danzō was extremely pleased with himself. From the moment Nohara Rin had been successfully reincarnated, he had won.

But in the next instant, Obito Uchiha's words froze the smile on Shimura Danzō's face.

"Black Zetsu, can the Human Path's ability be used... on Rin?"

Obito Uchiha asked Black Zetsu. No matter what, he would not spare Shimura Danzō today.

"It can!"

With that answer, Shimura Danzō's life was finally nearing its end.

Against Obito Uchiha's Kamui, even though Shimura Danzō exhausted every trick he possessed, he remained powerless.

Obito Uchiha did not seem to be in any hurry to kill him. Instead, he continuously left all manner of wounds across Shimura Danzō's body, wounds that were difficult to heal.

"Obito Uchiha, don't get cocky. Even if you have a way to release the Impure World Reincarnation, I still have..."

Even at the very end of his life, Shimura Danzō still wanted to threaten him with something. But a wooden spike had already pierced his chest...

With no spare Sharingan left to use Izanagi, Shimura Danzō used every last ounce of strength to unleash the Reverse Four Symbols Seal at the final moment.

Yet in the end, it only sealed away his own body.

One day after Shimura Danzō's death...

"What? Danzo is dead? Hiruzen Sarutobi thinks I did it???"

Uchiha Ensei, who had just finished a cloning experiment, ran into Shisui Uchiha head-on and learned an unexpected piece of news from him.

"Wasn't it you?"

"B-But other than you, who else could kill him in Konoha?"

Seeing Uchiha Ensei's reaction, Shisui Uchiha began to doubt his own judgment.

This sudden turn of events left Uchiha Ensei, who had been in a fine mood, feeling somewhat irritated.

"Are you sure Danzo is really dead? Could this be some fake-death trick? Where's the body? And when exactly did he die?"

Uchiha Ensei questioned him while also considering who might have killed Danzo.

Danzo might have been weak, but he could still fight a Mangekyo for a while. His strength was not particularly poor.

Setting aside those members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan, the only people in the entire Ninja World who could silently kill Shimura Danzō in Konoha were...

Orochimaru, or Obito Uchiha.

"The Cursed Tongue Eradication Seals on the Root ninja have been released, confirming Danzo's death. He died in an abandoned laboratory within Root. The time of death was one day ago. Also, the Root base was attacked a day and a half ago, with heavy casualties among the Root ninja."

Shisui Uchiha told Uchiha Ensei everything he knew. Naturally, he did not want friction to arise between the village and the clan at such a crucial time.

Although he had learned from Uchiha Ensei about the true relationship between the village and the Uchiha Clan, Shisui Uchiha still hoped there was a better choice.

"Obito Uchiha probably did it. Only space-time ninjutsu could infiltrate so easily."

Orochimaru was also a possibility. His ties with Danzo ran deep, and he knew much about Root, but under normal circumstances, Orochimaru should not have attacked Danzo at this time.

Therefore, Obito Uchiha remained the most likely culprit.

"If it were me, there would have been far more commotion."

"Also, have you forgotten my age? Though I have enough strength, I don't know that many ninjutsu."

"I can kill Danzo, but killing someone without making a sound is simply impossible."

"Enough. Don't bother me with these trivial matters. I have things to do."

Uchiha Ensei offered a few words of defense. Without caring whether Shisui Uchiha believed him or what Hiruzen Sarutobi might do, he turned and returned to his bedroom to catch up on sleep.

These past days, Uchiha Ensei had gone a long time without rest while separating the two special cells he had collected. It had taken him a great deal of time to isolate the Hashirama Cells.

The next day, not long after Uchiha Ensei woke up, he was summoned to a meeting.

It was Konoha's Jonin meeting.

Though only ten years old, as an elder of the Uchiha Clan, he still had to participate in certain major affairs of Konoha.

Many of the Jonin attending the meeting stared at him curiously.

Even in the world of ninja, a Jonin around ten years old was the stuff of absurd legend.

"Based on an examination of the dead body's memories, we have reached a conclusion. The one who killed Elder Danzo was Obito Uchiha, a member of the Uchiha Clan who disappeared during the Third Shinobi World War."

At the Jonin meeting, Hiruzen Sarutobi announced Shimura Danzō's death and revealed the culprit as well.

Shimura Danzō's death could not be concealed, nor should it be concealed. Not only could it not be hidden, Konoha had to make its stance clear.

Therefore, in the name of the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi issued the Uchiha Clan an S-rank mission: hunt down the rogue ninja—Obito Uchiha.

Hearing Obito Uchiha's name again, Kakashi could not help reaching up to touch his right eye.

Kakashi had learned of Obito's situation shortly after the Nine-Tails' Attack.

At the time, Kakashi had found the news difficult to believe. Only later, when he discovered that his right eye truly was a Mangekyō Sharingan, did he choose to believe it.

After training, he was now able to use that eye successfully.

"Lord Hokage, I request to join this mission to hunt down the rogue ninja."