"Protect Lord Danzo!"
At that cry, it was as if time itself froze for an instant.
Then, a fierce wind suddenly rose, and dozens of black figures appeared around Shimura Danzō with ghostly speed.
They were all Danzo's Root members and the Hokage's Direct ANBU.
Now that Shimura Danzō was the Hokage, he naturally commanded this force as well.
Shimura Danzō stood firm as a mountain, heavily planting his cane against the ground with a dull thud.
His sharp gaze shot like twin bolts of cold lightning at the snake not far away.
"Orochimaru? Come out. I know it's you!"
Shimura Danzō said coldly.
The giant snake slowly opened its blood-red maw, and a pungent stench immediately spread through the air.
Everyone stared intently at that enormous mouth, their hearts filled with tension and unease.
Suddenly, a pale hand slowly extended from the snake's mouth.
The hand was covered in sticky fluid that ran down the arm and dripped onto the ground with a chilling patter.
Then, a figure slowly crawled out of the snake's mouth.
He was tall and slender, with messy black hair hanging over his shoulders. Disgusting slime still clung to his strands of hair, making him look utterly bizarre.
"Lord Danzo, it's been a long time~"
A sinister smile appeared on Orochimaru's face. Cold light flickered in his narrow eyes, sending a chill down everyone's spine.
"Hmph! You wretched bastard, you dare come back? A Konoha S-rank Missing-nin, wanted by the entire village—do you have no fear of death? Men, seize him at once!"
Shimura Danzō roared with a dark expression, sharply sweeping out his broad hand as he gave the order.
At his gesture, the many ANBU and Root shinobi reacted swiftly. Each assumed a battle stance as though facing a great enemy, gripping all