Without a doubt, five of the people in these photographs were members of Root: Aburame Ryoma and his four subordinates.
With the evidence right before him, Danzo simply dropped the act. He tossed the report onto the desk and said in a low voice,
"I merely sent a few men out to deal with some dangerous elements."
"Dangerous elements?" Hearing Danzo's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi slammed the desk again in anger and roared,
"The Uchiha are members of this village too, not dangerous elements!"
"Aren't they? Heh."
Danzo chuckled twice and pointed to another document.
"Hiruzen, look at their reports, especially Uchiha Ye Chen's. Can you honestly say he poses no threat to the village? The Four-Tails Jinchūriki, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, over a hundred elite ninja-with a record like that, do you understand the consequences if he ever comes to resent the village?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was momentarily speechless. Only after a long silence did he speak.
"They're Konoha Jonin. They've been fighting for Konoha all this time..."
Before Hiruzen Sarutobi could finish, Danzo loudly cut him off.
"Hiruzen, stop being naive. We're at war right now, so of course they have to fight for Konoha. Once the war ends, who can guarantee they won't rebel? Have you thought about that?"
Danzo shifted his tone and said gravely,
"Don't forget how that man left the village."
At those words, Hiruzen Sarutobi shuddered involuntarily.
Then he recalled the terrifying scene he had witnessed as a child.
That towering, godlike figure was beyond anything ordinary mortals could imagine. Only the First's Wood Release could stand against him.
But now the First was dead. If another Madara Uchiha appeared, who could possibly keep his power in check?
Amid the smoke, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression shifted again and again. Finally, he said,
"Danzo, you're overthinking this. Whether