"Danzo's in there, isn't he?" Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived at the Root Base and led a group of Anbu straight inside, giving Shimura Danzō no time to react.
The Root members guarding the perimeter were startled by Hiruzen Sarutobi's forceful entrance, but they instinctively moved to stop him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had intended to talk things through with Shimura Danzō. But when the Root Ninja tried to stop him, anger flared. He had allowed Danzo to establish Root and given him considerable autonomy. So what was this?
It was bad enough that Root had failed to report to him. Now they were trying to stop him? Did they no longer take him seriously?
I'm the Hokage!
Hiruzen Sarutobi had doubted that Shimura Danzō was behind the White Zetsu. In fact, he had barely believed it at all. But Root's behavior made him wonder whether Shimura Danzō was hiding something from him.
Could those White Ones really be Shimura Danzō's test subjects?
The possibility made his anger surge. "Take them all down," he ordered coldly.
With that, Hiruzen Sarutobi charged into the Root Base. Ninja came out to stop him, but he subdued them with ease before they could put up much resistance.
Root was at its weakest. The battle at Uzushio Village had dealt it heavy losses, and it had yet to recover. Shimura Danzō had sent most of its remaining personnel elsewhere, so Hiruzen Sarutobi broke in easily.
Inside the Root Base, Shimura Danzō was still puzzling over how to sow discord between the villages when he heard the commotion outside. He laughed in anger.
Well, well. Did every stray think they could come here and walk all over Root now?
Did they think Shimura Danzō was that easy to push around?
But when Shimura Danzō saw Hiruzen Sarutobi, he froze.