After Danzo left, Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up the document in his hand and looked it over. It was a ninja's file, which read:
Name: Mamoru Uehara Age: 27 Position: Jonin Specialties: Proficient in Taijutsu and Earth Release Ninjutsu Mission history: 88 D-rank missions, 145 C-rank missions, 166 B-rank missions, 190 A-rank missions, and 20 S-rank missions
This was an extremely experienced ninja with the formidable strength of an elite Jonin. Deaths were rare among the ninja teams he taught, making his team a very suitable place for Kōki.
Knock, knock, knock.
Just then, a knock came at the office door.
"Come in," Hiruzen Sarutobi said when he heard the knock.
A ninja who looked about twenty-five, with a square, resolute face, walked into the Hokage's office. Looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi in his seat, he asked, "Lord Hokage, you wanted to see me?"
"Mamoru, you're here."
Indeed, the ninja who entered was the man whose file Hiruzen Sarutobi was holding, Mamoru Uehara.
Upon seeing Mamoru Uehara, Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "Mamoru, one of the Genin on your team was severely injured during your previous mission. Although the hospital saved their life, they can no longer work as a ninja."
"To fill the vacancy on your team, I recommend a newly graduated student. He's quite capable, and I believe you'll be satisfied with him."
"Lord Hokage, do you mean the student who graduated at seven?"
Although Mamoru Uehara had only just returned from a mission, he had heard something of Kōki, the prodigy who had graduated at this unusual time.
"Yes. His name is Kōki Itō, and he's a gifted ninja. I hope you'll teach him well."
"All right, but Lord Hokage, I will test him. If the way he does things doesn't fit my style, then I'm sorry. I won't gamble with the lives of the other two subordinates on my team."
Mamoru Uehara looked completely serious. He did not agree carelessly simply because the request came from the Hokage.
As he understood it, gifted ninja often meant trouble.
Such people thought differently from ordinary people. They had their own ways of doing things and found it difficult to listen to others' opinions.
Their unconventional ways often caused enormous trouble for their teammates in actual combat.
Kakashi Hatate, whom Mamoru Uehara knew of, was one such example. He was powerful, but his teamwork was an utter mess. His mission-first approach frequently resulted in casualties among his teammates, yet he did not believe he had done anything wrong.
Many teams were already unhappy with Kakashi's behavior. They felt he was far too cold and lacked any sense of camaraderie with his teammates.
Thus, in Mamoru Uehara's view, if a ninja was powerful but lacked a sense of teamwork, he would not let them join his team.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had no objections to what Mamoru Uehara said. He believed that Kōki's personality made him an ideal fit for Team Uehara.
At the same time, he also believed Mamoru Uehara was the most suitable instructor for Kōki.
"Don't worry. I'm sure that boy Kōki will meet your requirements," Hiruzen Sarutobi said confidently.
"All right, Lord Hokage. I'll take my leave, then." With that, Mamoru Uehara turned and left.
Mamoru Uehara was somewhat looking forward to Kōki's performance tomorrow. For Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Hokage himself, to recommend him, surely he had something exceptional about him.
Meanwhile, after returning to the Root Base, Danzo grew angrier the more he thought about it. He muttered darkly to himself, "Hiruzen, you won't be so pleased with yourself for long. One day, the position of Hokage will be mine."
Suddenly thinking of something, he called toward a dark corner, "Someone, come here."
A Root ninja's figure slowly emerged from the corner and knelt on one knee before Danzo.
"Lord Danzo."
"Washi, investigate Kōki Itō's identity. How have I never heard of a child so young who knows the Superhuman Strength Technique?"
"Yes, Lord Danzo."
After hearing Danzo's orders, the Root ninja named Washi vanished on the spot. Before long, he reappeared before Danzo.
"Lord Danzo, our intelligence shows that this child, Kōki Itō, is an orphan. His identity records list him as the orphaned child of deceased ninja who served under Lord Hokage."
"However, we found a discrepancy in Root's internal records. This child was a test subject at that laboratory of ours that was discovered. We confirmed his death when we evacuated the laboratory, but for some unknown reason, he's still alive."
"Perhaps Kōki Itō was in a state of suspended animation at the time and inadvertently fooled our examiners. Our evacuation was also rather rushed, leaving us no time to check again," Washi reported with his head lowered.
Danzo frowned deeply upon hearing this intelligence. Back from the dead? Could he have awakened Wood Release? Impossible. Wood Release isn't that easy to awaken. Kinoe awakening it was already extraordinarily lucky.
Danzo knew very well that Wood Release did not emerge so easily. His teacher, Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, had once conducted numerous experiments in an attempt to reproduce Wood Release, but all had failed.
He was already very fortunate to have successfully obtained Wood Release now. He did not believe another instance of Wood Release could emerge.
At the same time, it occurred to him that, given Hiruzen Sarutobi's personality, if Kōki Itō really had awakened Wood Release, Hiruzen could not possibly have allowed him to graduate early.
Based on his understanding of Hiruzen Sarutobi, Hiruzen would only let Kōki go once he had successfully mastered the full power of Wood Release.
It was just like the current Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, who could only remain in Konoha and could not go outside until she had fully mastered the Nine-Tails' power.
With that thought, Danzo dismissed his suspicions about Kōki. What he had not anticipated was that Kōki had used his incredibly strong Will of Fire to persuade Hiruzen Sarutobi, almost as if brainwashing him, to let him graduate early. Otherwise, Danzo really would have guessed the truth.
Having worked it out, Danzo relaxed inwardly and no longer questioned Kōki's talent. He knew that anyone who survived the Hashirama cells fusion experiments was no ordinary person, so such talent was only natural.
Unfortunately, he had not thought of it earlier, and learning it now was too late.
If they had searched thoroughly back then and brought that child back, Kōki Itō would now be his subordinate. And with Root's elite training, he might even have become an elite Jonin in a few years.
The thought of Sarutobi getting a bargain in the form of a promising future Jonin pained Danzo as though he had lost hundreds of millions of ryo.
Fortunately, he still had Kinoe, that important Wood Release ninja, which eased Danzo's mood. Compared with the potential to become a Jonin, Wood Release suited him better after all. He had very few particularly outstanding subordinates.
Danzo thought about how, ever since Hiruzen Sarutobi became Hokage, talented people had kept emerging under his command. First came the White Fang, then the Sannin, and now he had heard that someone named Minato Namikaze had also gained considerable renown in the village.
His own ranks, however, were sorely lacking in talent, and every time he went to Hiruzen Sarutobi to ask for people, he was brushed off. It was precisely this that had made him resolve to restart the Wood Release experiments. He hoped to obtain the power of Wood Release, surpass Hiruzen Sarutobi in one stroke, then become Hokage and revitalize Konoha.
At the thought of having Wood Release in his hands, Danzo could not help feeling a little smug, but his face remained expressionless as he told Washi, "We'll let the previous mistake go, but from now on, I want you to watch Kōki Itō from the shadows. I want to see how far he can go."
This was also his usual precaution, in case something truly uncontrollable arose.
"Yes."
Hiruzen, let me see whether the test subject on your side is stronger, or the one on mine, Danzo thought to himself.