Jin Uchiha spread the map Keno had provided across the table. Fugaku stood beside him, tracing the markings with a finger. The map was crude, but all the essential information was there-the old training ground's location, the course of the underground passages, how the entrance was concealed, and the rough layout inside.
"The old training ground is east of the village. It's been abandoned for almost five years," Fugaku said. "It's far from Root's headquarters, and nobody normally pays it any attention. Danzo chose well."
"Where's the entrance?" Jin Uchiha asked.
Keno stepped up to the table and pressed a fingernail against a marked point. "There's a dead oak on the south side of the training ground. Its trunk is hollow, with a hidden door at the base. Beneath the dusty stone slab outside the door is a chakra seal that requires specific hand seals to open. I know them, but someone needs to keep watch outside."
"I'll go in alone."
"No." Keno shook his head. "There are three traps in the passage. The first is a Sensory Barrier, the second a Chakra-Draining Formula, and the third a Self-Destruct Mechanism. Each takes two people working together to disable. I can't do it alone."
Jin Uchiha glanced at him. "You spent three years in Root. Why help us?"
Keno did not answer immediately. His gaze settled on the map, and he fell silent for a few seconds. "You'll find out what Danzo has done. I don't need to say much. All you need to know is that I voluntarily left Root three months ago because I couldn't stomach doing those things anymore. Now Lord Hokage wants to investigate Danzo. This is the chance I've been waiting for ever since I left."
Fugaku spoke up. "I trust him." Those few words were