Sakumo paid no attention to Tetsuya's remark. Instead, his gaze fell on the ninja Tetsuya had killed.
"These are... Konoha's Root ninja! Why would Root send ninja to assassinate you?"
"Oh, what else could it be? Money, of course."
Tetsuya raised an eyebrow and looked at Hatake Sakumo with interest.
"That's nothing surprising. What I'm more curious about is that you actually know about Root."
"I do. Officially, it's a training institution for the ANBU under the Hokage's direct command. In reality, it's Konoha's darkest root, dedicated to things that can't stand the light of day.
"After my older brother died, Root approached me and tried to recruit me, but Lord Hokage stopped them in time."
"And what happened after that? Danzo isn't someone who gives up easily."
"After that..."
Hatake Sakumo's expression grew a little strange.
"After that, Danzo sent me to Sunagakure to cut off their supplies and disrupt their rear lines."
"Huh? Didn't you volunteer for that?"
"Well, how should I put it? I suppose I did volunteer, but the circumstances were rather unusual."
Both Tetsuya and the driver perked up and sat down right on the ground.
"Unusual how? Tell us everything. Go into detail, from beginning to end."
At that moment, Tetsuya felt a little regretful. All the fruit in the carriage had been blown up. Otherwise, he could have enjoyed a snack while watching the drama unfold.
Seeing how curious Tetsuya was, Sakumo held nothing back and told him what had happened.
"Root's people took me to their base. Danzo kept describing my brother's death, stoking hatred and darkness. He said I carried a past filled with hatred and darkness, and that I should join Root and use my own darkness to serve Konoha.
"My brother's death really had hit me hard, and he