Danzo

Biodata

Background / History

Becoming Hokage is Danzo’s lifelong ambition. He considers Hiruzen Sarutobi too indecisive for the position, although he respects Hiruzen’s strength and competence. Looking back on their teacher’s retreat-covering test, Danzo believes that greater composure would have helped him recognize the test and avoid losing the position to Hiruzen 9 17 19.

Danzo sought to bring Naruto into Root and raise him as a weapon, believing that control of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki would secure his path to becoming Hokage. After Hiruzen refused, Danzo spread rumors that Naruto was the Nine-Tails reincarnated, hoping the villagers’ hostility would turn Naruto against Konoha. Hiruzen assigned Anbu protection partly to keep Danzo away from him 4 21.

Appearance

• One exposed eye: His remaining visible eye becomes bloodshot during prolonged gaming sessions 17 37.
• Pale right arm: Its pallor is attributed to Hashirama cells; it bears two grotesque Three-Tomoe Sharingan 19.
• Half-black, half-white hair: By the time Naruto’s clone visits Root, much of it has fallen out or been torn out 37 43.
• Gaming-related deterioration: He develops dark eye bags, disheveled hair, a grubby face, and an exhausted appearance after repeatedly sacrificing sleep to play 19 29 43.

Personality

Danzo equates his own rise to power with Konoha’s welfare. He justifies eliminating political obstacles and destroying the Uchiha as actions taken for the village, even while acknowledging that losing its foremost clan could encourage foreign threats. He sees himself as more decisive and driven than Hiruzen despite his own faster decline in strength 19.

His rivalry with Hiruzen shapes even his understanding of entertainment. He initially assumes Dark Souls III is training in perseverance and perception, then interprets Hiruzen’s romance game as an attempt to overcome lust. Repeated defeats leave him furious, but he cannot bring himself to destroy his laptop after discovering that Hiruzen was never playing Dark Souls III 17 37 44.

His gaming obsession also exposes his cruelty toward subordinates. Root members report that he nearly tortured an operative to death for taking away the laptop, while his dwindling mission assignments leave other members questioning whether Root should continue to exist 37.

Abilities & Skills

Implanted Sharingan and Hashirama Cells

Danzo’s right arm contains Hashirama cells and two Three-Tomoe Sharingan 19.

• He seeks a Mangekyō Sharingan for its visual perception, believing it would help him dodge enemies in Dark Souls III 19.
• He regards additional Sharingan as another possible means of overcoming the game’s difficulty 19.
• The supplied events establish his existing implants, but do not show him acquiring a Mangekyō Sharingan or demonstrating the implants in combat 19 29.

Cursed Seal

• According to Root members, Danzo used his Cursed Seal to nearly torture a senior operative to death after the operative removed his laptop 37.
• That incident discouraged other members from interfering with his gaming 37.

Intelligence and Covert Command

• Directs Root surveillance despite Hiruzen’s order to withdraw observers from Naruto 4 17.
• Rapidly places Konoha’s elders, Military Police Force, outer defensive lines, and Barrier Team under surveillance when he believes Hiruzen has been murdered 9.
• Orders searches for the supposed Blood Release Ninja, hoping to recruit an assassin capable of repeatedly escaping Hiruzen 10 17.
• Uses Root to pressure and monitor the Uchiha Clan while pursuing more Sharingan 19.

Equipment / Items

• Stolen laptop and peripherals — Taken from Naruto by Root; becomes Danzo’s principal gaming setup 16 17 43.
• Dark Souls III and its two DLCs — His initial obsession; Naruto’s clone installs the missing expansions after being brought to Root Base 38 43 44.
• Elden Ring — Downloaded by Naruto’s clone alongside the DLCs 44.
• Ninja Guide — Installed and configured for multiplayer by Naruto’s clone, eventually replacing Dark Souls III as Danzo’s focus 44 45.
• LAN connection — Allows him to play against Hiruzen; the two are each other’s only online friend 44.

Relationships

• Hiruzen Sarutobi — Lifelong rival and obstacle to becoming Hokage. Danzo respects his abilities but rejects his leadership style; Naruto later makes them anonymous opponents in Ninja Guide 9 17 44 45.
• Naruto Uzumaki — Initially coveted as a weapon and political asset. Later, Danzo has Naruto’s clone brought to Root for technical help rather than to seize the Nine-Tails 4 21 38 43.
• Root operatives — Subordinates shaped by his ideals and brainwashing. His gaming addiction leaves early confidants despairing over the organization’s loss of purpose 37 38.
• Uchiha Clan — Targets of pressure, surveillance, and a planned destruction motivated by Danzo’s desire for power and additional Sharingan 19.
• Second Hokage — His teacher. Danzo invokes the Second’s imagined approval to justify his plans against the Uchiha 19.
• Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura — Elders he expects to oppose his accession; he positions Root members to detain them during his attempted takeover preparations 9.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Attempted Takeover and the Blood Release Search

• Finding blood across the Hokage’s office, Danzo assumes Hiruzen has been murdered and secretly prepares to seize control of Konoha. Hiruzen’s appearance at the Sarutobi compound stops the attempt 9.
• Danzo briefly considers attacking Hiruzen, but rejects it because of Hiruzen’s strength and the consequences of killing him inside his clan compound 9.
• Hiruzen invents a Blood Release attacker to conceal the true cause of the blood—nosebleeds from watching explicit videos. Danzo mobilizes Root to find the nonexistent ninja and even secretly protects Hiruzen while searching 10 12.
• Later, Danzo invents an accomplice to that attacker to explain his own gaming-induced exhaustion 29.

Dark Souls III and Pressure on the Uchiha

• After Root steals Naruto’s laptop, Danzo mistakes its games for Hiruzen’s secret training method and begins playing Dark Souls III to surpass him 16 17.
• His repeated defeats strengthen his desire for more Sharingan, prompting orders to increase pressure on the Uchiha and watch their entire compound 19.
• He also uses reports of Naruto’s apparent second personality to renew his demand for custody, but Hiruzen refuses again 29.
• By the time he reaches the Untended Graves, Danzo learns that Hiruzen has actually been playing a dating game. Despite his anger, he keeps the laptop 37.

Capturing Naruto for the DLC

• Danzo vows to resume work after finishing Dark Souls III, then decides that completion will not count without its two missing DLCs. He orders Root to capture Naruto within three days, preferably without alerting Hiruzen’s men 38.
• Root instead brings Naruto’s exhausted scrap-collecting clone to the base. The clone finds nearly six hundred hours of recorded playtime and agrees to install the DLC 42 43.
• Naruto’s clone also offers Danzo a future game in which he could establish a ninja village and become its Hokage—or even a daimyo. The prospect immediately captures his interest 44.

Little Tuantuan’s LAN Rivalry

• Naruto connects Danzo and Hiruzen through the LAN without revealing their identities to each other 44.
• Playing as Little Tuantuan, Danzo loses both sides of a romance match to Hiruzen’s Monkey King. His character earns the title Tsundere Girlfriend during the first round 45.
• Furious at the defeats and his opponent’s taunt, Danzo shifts from grinding Dark Souls III to pursuing victory in Ninja Guide 45.

Notable Quotes

“Hiruzen, you'll regret this!” 4

“So that I can clear this game faster than Hiruzen Sarutobi, Uchiha... you'll just have to make a sacrifice! This is all for Konoha...” 19

“Monkey King, is it? Just you wait. I'll beat you for sure!” 45