Shimura Danzō

Biodata

Power Progression

Appearance

• Initially described as a handsome, middle-aged man, without the gloomy demeanor associated with his later self 8.
• Loses an arm and then his remaining hand during Hatake Sakumo’s assault on Root 94 95.
• A later appearance confirms that his severed arm was medically reattached because it had not been detached for long 115.

Personality

Danzō’s ambition to become Hokage dominates his decisions. His fixation is rooted less in the office itself than in a lifelong refusal to accept losing to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who overshadowed him from their Academy years onward. Being named Acting Hokage leaves him trembling with excitement, and he immediately occupies Hiruzen’s chair after the latter departs 115 181.

He treats rivals and village clans as obstacles to be controlled. He plans to provoke an Uchiha rebellion to obtain Fugaku’s Mangekyō Sharingan, destroys Sakumo’s reputation to eliminate a competing Hokage candidate, and coerces clan members into Root. His professed service to Konoha repeatedly depends on his own acquisition of authority 49 93 129.

Despite his arrogance, Danzō retreats when confronted by superior force. He backs down before an angry Hiruzen, abandons the Uchiha compound when Tsunade attacks, and offers to support Sakumo as Fourth Hokage when his life is threatened 50 51 94.

He is normally suspicious of easy promises, but demonstrable power undermines that caution. Didaze’s enhancement convinces him that Jashin may be genuine; the promise of Wood Release then overcomes his remaining reservations. Didaze also secretly uses black energy to amplify his greed 181.

History

War against Iwagakure

Danzō commands Konoha forces alongside Orochimaru, issuing defensive orders without consulting him. Didaze’s initial raid inflicts heavy casualties and forces Baku to dissipate. During the ensuing battle, Danzō intercepts Kitsuchi with Wind Release but gains only a slight advantage over the younger fighter 8 9.

As Konoha’s losses mount, Danzō attempts to assert authority over Orochimaru’s subordinate during a casualty report. Orochimaru rebukes him for pursuing power struggles during a military disaster. The two nevertheless agree to seek reinforcements, and Danzō sends Hiruzen a request through Root 13 14 15.

Didaze’s explosive arrows later injure Danzō, while Han kills the gravely wounded Orochimaru. Danzō escapes because Didaze prevents Kitsuchi from pursuing him, intending to preserve him as a tool against the Konoha White Fang. Unaware of that motive, Danzō concludes that Iwagakure wants Konoha to distrust him and force him into defection 19 20.

Sakumo’s reinforcements intercept Danzō and make him explain the army’s destruction. Several clan heads blame him for their relatives’ deaths. He subsequently rejoins the fighting, suppressing limited exposure to Didaze’s nanoscale bombs with his chakra 20 22.

Campaign against the Uchiha Clan

After witnessing Fugaku’s Susanoo, Danzō covets his Mangekyō Sharingan. He orders Root to spread damaging stories about the Uchiha, treating public belief—not factual accuracy—as the campaign’s objective 26 32.

Root progressively restricts Uchiha movement until the clan is confined to its compound. Agents invoke the Hokage’s authority and attempt to provoke resistance that would justify further action. Danzō hopes an eventual rebellion will let him suppress the clan and seize Fugaku’s eyes 46 47 49.

Tsunade intervenes after Fugaku seeks her help. Danzō refuses to withdraw Root, outwardly accepts Hiruzen’s subsequent order, and then leaves his agents in place. When Tsunade confronts them, he accuses her of attacking Konoha and planning to defect with the Uchiha. Her release of the Yin Seal and attack force him to retreat 48 49 50 51.

Hiruzen later cuts Root’s funding, requires it to vacate its base, and demotes Danzō to honorary elder, although he retains an elder’s practical privileges. Danzō then eagerly accepts an Iwagakure cooperation proposal involving Sharingan, but receives only one tenth of the eyes after arguing with Hiruzen 75 76 77.

Conflict with Hatake Sakumo

Sakumo kills Root agents over their recruitment methods, prompting Danzō to suspend recruitment temporarily and promise revenge. When an opportunity arises, Danzō orders a public-opinion campaign intended to destroy Sakumo’s chances of becoming Fourth Hokage. The rumors escalate into accusations of foreign collusion, while Danzō also coerces a woman by threatening her child 80 93.

Sakumo responds by storming Root’s new base inside the Shimura compound. Danzō’s Wind Release and Baku cannot break Sakumo’s enclosing blade-light attacks. His offer to support Sakumo as Hokage fails, and Sakumo severs his arm 94.

Danzō forces Root members to intervene by reminding them that their cursed seals will kill them agonizingly if he dies. Their sacrifice buys him time, but Sakumo severs his remaining hand and kills most of Root’s defenders. Hiruzen finally saves Danzō with Enma’s Adamantine Prison Wall, after which Sakumo escapes and is declared an S-rank missing-nin 95.

Acting Hokage and Imprisonment

Hiruzen appoints Danzō Acting Hokage while he goes to war, explicitly forbidding Root recruitment. Danzō disregards the restriction, secretly gathers talented orphans, and forces bloodline-limit and secret-technique clans to surrender members for cursed-seal control. He avoids directly coercing the Uchiha because he believes they would genuinely stage a coup 115 129.

Convinced that this amounts to successful leadership, Danzō accepts a subordinate’s praise that he is the “greatest Hokage.” He reviews documents diligently, but considers his coercive control of the clans proof that he has surpassed Hiruzen 129 130.

Upon discovering the abuses, Hiruzen returns, punches Danzō into a wall, strips him of office, orders Root disbanded, and has Minato imprison him. The captive clan members return home, but their families remain distrustful of the village. Danzō receives comfortable treatment in prison because Hiruzen does not intend to keep his old friend there permanently 132.

Return to the Kirigakure Front

Konoha’s worsening military position leads Hiruzen to release Danzō. In exchange for holding off Kirigakure, Danzō demands Orochimaru’s assistance, additional troops, and public recognition for victory. Hiruzen accepts those demands but rejects his attempt to restore Root 148.

The clan heads refuse to place their people under Danzō’s command. Hiruzen instead allocates him four fifths of the shinobi remaining in the village. His forces struggle against Kirigakure but retain some capacity to counterattack 149 150.

Danzō later adopts controlled withdrawals to avoid costly direct engagements while waiting for reinforcements. During this campaign, a black-robed Didaze appears, overwhelms him with the Jashin Statue, and offers him the power and opportunity to become Hokage 180 181.

Nawaki’s Murder and Death

Won over by a genuine increase in strength, Danzō agrees to help deliver Nawaki to the Kirigakure battlefield in exchange for Wood Release. While waiting, he refuses to risk his forces rescuing captured nobles, prioritizing his promised kekkei genkai over their lives 181 184.

After Nawaki drives Kirigakure back, Danzō approaches him under the pretense of repentance and promises to help lift Sakumo’s wanted order. His surprise Wind Blade fails, and Nawaki traps him with Wood Release. Didaze intervenes with the Jashin Statue, allowing Danzō to strike Nawaki’s neck and kill him 186.

Danzō receives temporary Wood Release, seals Nawaki’s corpse in a scroll, and begins training in secret. He believes mastery will let him defeat Tsunade, Orochimaru, Hiruzen, and even Didaze. His early tests do not reveal the borrowed power’s fixed ceiling 186 187 194.

Orochimaru discovers Nawaki’s death and alerts Tsunade. She attacks Danzō with support from Dan Katō and Orochimaru. His Wood Shield shatters, Baku is overwhelmed, and Katsuyu’s acid dissolves his Deep Forest Emergence. Realizing the “Executor” deceived him, Danzō stops fighting and shouts accusations before Tsunade kills him with a final punch 193 194.

Abilities & Skills

Wind Release

Danzō’s principal combat specialty supports ranged attacks, cutting strikes, and attempts to redirect airborne threats 9 19 186.

• Vacuum Great Sphere: Used against Kitsuchi, Iwagakure troops, and the disguised Didaze 9 22 180.
• Vacuum Serial Waves: Deployed during his battle with Kitsuchi 9.
• Continuous Vacuum Great Sphere: Used against Sakumo’s blade-light enclosure 94.
• Wind Blade: Attempts to cut through Nawaki’s wooden prison and delivers the fatal strike after Didaze incapacitates him 186.
• Defensive limitation: His attempt to blow away Didaze’s explosive arrows fails when Didaze detonates them early 19.

Summoning Technique: Baku

Baku provides wind support that greatly strengthens Danzō’s Wind Release 94.

• Normally draws things inward, but Danzō later orders it to blow outward after an earlier encounter with Didaze 94.
• Recovers from its earlier severe injuries over several years 94.
• Cannot overturn Sakumo’s blade-light assault despite amplifying Danzō’s attacks 94.
• Serves as an emergency shield in Danzō’s final battle, buying time for hand seals before returning through Reverse Summoning after his death 194.

Tongue Eradication Cursed Seal

Danzō uses cursed seals to control forcibly recruited Root members 95 129.

• Includes a condition that causes subordinates to die agonizingly if Danzō dies, which he invokes to force them into Sakumo’s attacks 95.
• Applied to recruits taken from bloodline-limit and secret-technique clans 129.
• Can be gradually erased with the chakra of a Kage-level expert; Hiruzen is capable of removing it 132.

Temporary Wood Release

Danzō’s borrowed kekkei genkai comes from a limited portion of Nawaki’s power, not a permanent, unrestricted transfer 186.

• Wood Shield: Creates a defensive barrier, but Tsunade shatters it 194.
• Deep Forest Emergence: Produces dense trees; Katsuyu’s acid rapidly destroys them 187 194.
• Physical benefits: Heals old hidden injuries and increases his physical strength 186 194.
• Duration: Approximately one month 186.
• Output limit: Additional chakra cannot exceed the ceiling set by Didaze. The text gives Elite Jonin level as an illustrative example, not a confirmed rating for Danzō’s Wood Release 194.

Chakra Control and Tactical Command

• Suppresses Didaze’s nanoscale bombs with his own chakra when he has not inhaled a large quantity 22.
• Uses withdrawals to preserve troops and discourage Kirigakure from advancing into a possible encirclement 180.
• Directs coordinated rumor campaigns against the Uchiha and Sakumo, withdrawing Root’s active participation before Tsunade can catch the agents spreading rumors 32 93.

Equipment & Research

• Sharingan allocation: Obtains one tenth of the Sharingan supplied by Iwagakure after unsuccessfully demanding a larger share. The material does not establish that he personally implants them 76 77.
• Hashirama Cells: Examines changes in the cells at Root’s base before Sakumo attacks; no resulting personal enhancement is documented there 94.
• Sealing scroll: Uses a scroll to conceal Nawaki’s corpse after the murder 187.

Relationships

• Hiruzen Sarutobi — Lifelong friend and rival. Danzō alternately regards him as his closest companion and mortal enemy, relying on his protection while resenting his possession of the Hokage office 49 95 181.
• Orochimaru — Research collaborator and political rival. Root supplies laboratories and captured enemy ninja for his experiments. Orochimaru ultimately helps kill Danzō to avenge Nawaki 13 184 194.
• Hatake Sakumo — Rival Hokage candidate and target of Danzō’s smear campaign. Sakumo retaliates by nearly killing him and devastating Root 80 93 94 95.
• Uchiha Fugaku — Target of repression whose Mangekyō Sharingan Danzō seeks to seize by provoking an Uchiha rebellion 26 32 49.
• Tsunade — Opponent of his persecution of the Uchiha and ultimately his killer. She kills him in revenge for Nawaki 51 194 195.
• Senju Nawaki — Victim of Danzō’s pursuit of Wood Release. Danzō feigns remorse before attacking him, then kills him with Didaze’s assistance 186.
• Didaze / the Executor — Manipulator whom Danzō accepts as Jashin’s representative. Didaze enhances his strength, exploits his ambition, and gives him deliberately limited Wood Release 181 186 194.
• Dan Katō — Helps Tsunade avenge Nawaki, using Spirit Transformation to disrupt Danzō during the final battle 194.

Notable Quotes

“Everything I do is for the village too!” 77

“Hatake Sakumo, let's talk this over. How about I support you as the Fourth Hokage?” 94

“He was lying to me! He was lying to me! Executor, you lied to me!!” 194