In the chamber deep within Konoha's Root headquarters, candle flames still flickered restlessly, making the expression on Danzo's half-shadowed face look even more changeable.
The "future intelligence" Sai had brought was like a boulder dropped into the already troubled waters of his heart. It stirred up not only towering waves, but also a complex mixture of wild joy, anger, calculation, and urgency.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's "weakness" and "betrayal" seemed to have been "confirmed." The Uchiha threat and "his own" role in "turning the tide" inflated his opinion of himself, while the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, that "generous gift," gave him yet another bargaining chip.
But Sai clearly had more to say. He had to know how that "future" unfolded, especially what happened after Hiruzen.
"You just said that Hiruzen Sarutobi's rotten rule... ended?" Danzo's voice was low, with a barely perceptible trace of eagerness. "What happened afterward? The Fifth Hokage... who was it?"
Sai remained kneeling on one knee, his head slightly lowered. In a steady voice threaded with intertwined traces of "grief" and "relief," he continued recounting that carefully embellished "future":
"Yes, Lord Danzo. After that, around Konoha Year 64 in our world, Konoha faced even greater turmoil-the 'Konoha Crush Plan.'" He deliberately kept the timing vague while emphasizing the event's brutality. "The rogue ninja Orochimaru colluded with Sunagakure and brazenly invaded Konoha during the Chunin Ninja Exams!"
"Orochimaru? That monkey's most prized disciple?" Something flickered in Danzo's lone eye-shock, but also a faint hint of pleasure. That genius who had defected had actually become Hiruzen's gravedigger?
"Exactly. Orochimaru exploited Sunagakure's ambitions and set up the Four Violet Flames Formation inside the village, trapping Lord Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage at the time... within it." Sai paused, as though recalling a harrowing scene. "That battle... was incredibly brutal. Though the Third Hokage