The Chunin Ninja Exams finals are in full swing.
On the field, the fierce battles Genin drew cheers from the stands, wave after wave.
However, directly beneath this bustling arena lies tens of meters underground.
A suffocating, chilling atmosphere permeates a secluded underground space that is perpetually shrouded in darkness.
This is a secret stronghold of the Root, and also the nerve center used by Shimura Danzō to monitor the entire Konoha.
The dim candlelight flickered, Danzo an unpredictable shadow on Danzo's wrinkled, bandaged old face.
He stood in the darkness, leaning on his cane, like a statue.
The single eye, not covered by bandages, gleamed with a cold, greedy light, like that of a venomous snake.
Before him, hundreds of elite Root wearing animal masks knelt in neat rows.
They were silent, motionless, like a group of lifeless killing machines.
This is all the trump cards Danzo has secretly cultivated over the years, and it is also his strongest bargaining chip tonight, which he plans to use to overturn the chessboard and completely rewrite the history of Konoha.
" Danzo."
A Root Jonin charge of intelligence appeared like a ghost beside Danzo, kneeling on one knee and speaking in a very low voice, as if afraid of disturbing the revelry on the ground.
"A clear signal has come from Orochimaru's side."
"The allied forces of Otogakure and Sunagakure have dispersed and infiltrated the area around the venue and key defensive points of the village through underground passages and camouflage."
"Furthermore... the Kazekage's guards have confirmed that Orochimaru has successfully assumed the identity of the Fourth Kazekage and is currently sitting openly next to the Third Hokage."
Danzo hearing this news, Danzo's perpetually expressionless face finally broke into a chilling smirk.
"Very good."
" Orochimaru, though a dangerous pawn, is still somewhat useful."
It turns out that this happened long before the Chunin Ninja Exams even began, and even before Senju Kenya's earth-shattering return.
Danzo had already secretly made contact with Orochimaru.
He not only turned a blind eye to Orochimaru's infiltration of Konoha, but also secretly provided some of Konoha's barrier defense diagrams.
They tacitly approved the infiltration of the Sound Ninja and Sunagakure into Konoha.
All of this is part of his grand plan.
He intends to use Orochimaru to incite turmoil in Konoha and completely stir up this stagnant situation.
" Hiruzen, Hiruzen, your laughable mercy and compromises have finally pushed Konoha into the abyss."
Danzo sneered inwardly.
In his plan, Orochimaru and the Sunagakure uprising would severely damage Konoha's regular defenses and plunge the major clans into chaos.
The Third Hokage, that indecisive old man who has long lost his edge, will surely either die or be seriously injured in his battle with Orochimaru.
By then.
It was he, Shimura Danzō, who led this well-preserved elite force of the Root, which had been lurking in the shadows.
It was time to step forward as a savior to quell the rebellion and save Konoha!
He will step over Hiruzen's corpse and rightfully put on the Hokage hat he has longed for for half his life!
As for Senju Kenya, whom he hated to the core and who made him lose face.
"That Jinchūriki from Sunagakure is the grand finale gift I've prepared especially for you."
A cruel glint flashed in Danzo's single eye.
He learned through special channels within the Root organization that Gaara, whom Sunagakure had sent to participate in the exam, had the terrifying One-Tail Shukaku sealed within him.
Moreover, that brat's mental state is extremely unstable; once he loses control of his emotions or is provoked, Shukaku will completely go berserk.
" Senju Kenya, even if you possess that strange, hardened black defense and unreasonable, monstrous strength..."
"Faced with a fully enraged Tailed Beast possessing limitless Chakra, you'd only be crushed into mincemeat!"
Danzo was frantically calculating in his mind.
When Senju Kenya and Shukaku were both severely injured and exhausted...
He would personally take action, not only to completely kill Kenya, but also to avenge his previous humiliation.
He also wanted to personally dig out his heart and extract his spinal cord to study the mutated Wood Release Cells that were immune to Ninjutsu and as hard as steel!
Once he masters that power, Shimura Danzō will become a true god in the Shinobi World!
" Danzo, when shall we make our move?"
The Root asked for instructions in Jonin voice, a hint of desire for the impending slaughter shining through his eyes beneath the mask.
Danzo raised his head and glanced at the thick rock ceiling above him.
He could almost see through the mud and rocks dozens of meters above him, and there stood the arrogant young man with his legs crossed in the VIP seats.
"No rush."
Danzo said coldly, his tone revealing absolute confidence and an arrogant sense of control.
"Wait until the situation on the field is completely chaotic, and wait until Orochimaru launches his so-called ' Konoha Crush Plan '."
"Once that monster named Shukaku fully awakens, it will turn the entire venue into hell."
"When both Senju Kenya and Hiruzen are in dire straits and have no choice but to fight to the death."
He slammed his cane against the ground, the dull thud echoing in the empty basement like the tolling of a death knell for an era.
"That's the time for us to launch a full-scale attack and close the net!"
Danzo his arms wide, his face contorted with extreme fanaticism, as if he could already see himself ruling Konoha.
"After today, Konoha will belong to me!"
"Whether it's Hiruzen, that hypocritical Hokage, or that brute who only knows how to use brute Taijutsu."
"Nothing is worth fearing in the face of my schemes!"
"I am Konoha's only darkness, and also Konoha only hope!"
This is a classic speech from someone in a position of power, brimming with the peculiar confidence and arrogance characteristic of villains.
Danzo believed that everything was under his perfect control.
He had even begun to fantasize about the day he would sit in the Hokage's office and reclaim all of the Senju Clan's territory from Root.
However.
He seemed to have forgotten.
Faced with absolute physical superiority, all schemes and tricks are nothing but paper tigers.
What's more, he was facing a man who could crush the rules with his bare hands.
At this moment.
In the VIP seats above the main hall.
Senju Kenya was leaning back in his comfortable chair, slowly picking his teeth with a toothpick made of Black Iron Wood.
He appeared to be engrossed in the game, completely unaware of the impending danger.
But in reality, his Observation Haki had already formed an invisible and dense net.
It encompassed the entire venue, including the Root stronghold deep underground.
From Orochimaru's disguise as the Kazekage to Danzo's Danzo underground.
Everything was within his perception.
Danzo's arrogant declaration, which he thought was secretive and full of adolescent chuunibyou (delusional) tendencies.
Every single word was clearly uttered and heard by Kenya, as if a loudspeaker had been placed right next to his ear.
Kenya stopped picking his teeth and flicked the toothpick away.
The toothpick transformed into a black Inazuma, piercing straight through the solid iron railing in front of it.
He did not stand up, nor did he make any exaggerated movements.
He merely lowered his head slightly, glanced at the floor beneath his feet, and a playful yet cruel sneer curled at the corner of his lips.
Then, his lips moved slightly, and a voice, extremely compressed and imbued with Conqueror's Haki, escaped.
Like an invisible steel needle, it pierced through tens of meters of rock strata.
It seems to be a telepathic message to someone underground.