Outside Root's Base
Outside the former Root headquarters, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi stood side-by-side with his two advisors. Behind them were Shibi Aburame, clan head of the Aburame, and Inoichi Yamanaka, head of the Yamanaka clan.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Several ANBU wearing animal masks appeared and dropped to one knee.
"Hokage-sama! We found no suspicious activity inside Root's underground base. Aside from Aburame Torune and Yamanaka Fū being missing, the rest of the disbanded Root operatives have all been detained and sent to Captain Ibiki of the Interrogation Division."
"Barrier Squad also reported no chakra signatures from Night Dance or her team in the Forest of Death."
Hiruzen's expression turned sharp, his voice low and commanding:
"Send word to the Hyūga and Inuzuka clans. Have them dispatch teams immediately to conduct a joint search of the Forest of Death."
"Everyone else—summon Danzō to the conference room!"
After giving the orders, Hiruzen and his advisors headed toward the Hokage Tower.
Behind them, Shibi and Inoichi exchanged grim looks. They could both sense the severity of the situation.
Though neither of them had ever fully agreed with Danzō's methods, they had cooperated with Root in the past. And even though Hiruzen had stripped Danzō of all formal authority and placed him under house arrest after the Uchiha massacre, it wasn't like decades of collaboration could be undone overnight.
In their eyes, Danzō's influence had only grown after the Nine-Tails attack, even surpassing that of Hiruzen's own faction in some areas. Besides, cooperating with Root had never directly conflicted with their clan's interests—or Konoha's.
But after the Uchiha incident, Root had been dissolved virtually overnight.
And since then, Hiruzen had personally reached out to them multiple times under the guise of discussing clan development or shinobi training for future generations. Until now, it had always seemed like routine bureaucracy.
Tonight, however, was different.
They had been summoned directly to Root's former base. And ANBU had specifically mentioned their clan members in Root were now missing.
That was clearly no coincidence.
Shibi had long held resentment toward Danzō. Years ago, he'd refused to allow his son Shino to join Root. In retaliation, Danzō had manipulated a border conflict with the Uchiha to marginalize the Aburame clan—using the excuse that they had once "wanted to claim a forest"—and forced them to relocate to the village outskirts.
Later, Torune, who had joined Root in Shino's place, performed well and earned favor with Danzō, improving relations between the clan and Root.
But now, the political tides had shifted.
Hiruzen's faction clearly had the upper hand, and Danzō… had likely done something he couldn't talk his way out of this time.
If they didn't cut ties now, they could be next to fall.
Inoichi was much calmer. As one of the "Ino-Shika-Chō" trio and a trusted member of the Hokage's inner circle, he had always been closer to Hiruzen. He knew Danzō's entire Root operation had been allowed to flourish only because the Third Hokage had turned a blind eye in the past.
But with Hiruzen's newfound resolve, it was clear Root was no longer protected.
For him, cutting ties was no burden at all.
And with Hiruzen acting decisively, this time wouldn't be like all the others.
Both clan heads made their decision.
Hokage Tower – Conference Room
The group entered the large conference room. Soon after, Danzō Shimura arrived under escort by two ANBU.
When he saw that both clan leaders were present, Danzō's ever-squinting eye flashed coldly. Leaning on his cane, he walked slowly to the center of the room and sat down.
"Hiruzen. You gather everyone like this—are you planning to interrogate me?"
His voice was cold and emotionless.
The Third Hokage stood, holding a blood-red demon mask in his hand. His expression was grave as he stared at Danzō.
"Five of my operatives disappeared while pursuing Root members suspected of treason. This mask is all we found at the scene."
Danzō's eyes narrowed slightly.
"If they really were Root, Hiruzen… you wouldn't have found the mask at all."
Hiruzen's voice turned icy.
"Then why have your two most trusted subordinates—Torune and Fū—also gone missing?"
Danzō's expression did not change.
"Root was officially disbanded long ago. Torune and Fū haven't reported to me in a long time. Perhaps they disappeared for the same reason as your men. Let's hope they're still alive."
The Third Hokage scowled.
"So you're refusing to give me a straight answer?"
Danzō stood, tapping his cane once against the floor.
"There's nothing I need to explain to you, Hiruzen. Don't forget your own words."
"Where there is light, there must also be shadow."
The moment he said that, Hiruzen's eyes turned colder than ever.
Then he calmly sat back down and gestured to the ANBU nearby.
"Take him back."
Danzō said nothing more. His face remained unreadable as he turned and walked past the two ANBU, leaving the room.
Silence fell over the conference room.
After a long pause, Koharu Utatane broke it.
She looked at the mask on the table and said:
"Danzō… may have a point. It's not like Root to leave such an obvious trace."
Homura Mitokado nodded in agreement.
"Indeed. This doesn't match their usual methods."
Hiruzen's gaze was razor-sharp.
"But he didn't explain why his men—Torune and Fū—disappeared. ANBU surveillance clearly saw them enter the Root base before we arrived."
The advisors fell silent again.
They had spoken only to test the waters. Truthfully, they still couldn't guess what Hiruzen truly intended to do with Danzō.
But based on how things just unfolded, it seemed like Hiruzen had once again pulled his punch—just like all the times before.
Was this really just another warning, another slap on the wrist?
The meeting room grew quiet again.
Koharu and Homura exchanged glances with the two clan heads, and both quickly found excuses to leave.
A while later, Hiruzen turned to Inoichi with a serious expression.
"Inoichi. I know it's late, but I need your help at the Interrogation Unit. I believe your clan's abilities will make Ibiki's job with the Root members much easier."
Inoichi stood without hesitation.
"I'll go right away."
After Inoichi left, Hiruzen's expression finally relaxed a little.
He stood and walked to the window, puffing silently on his pipe, lost in thought.
Something about his missing operatives still didn't sit right.
The mask was too conspicuous—a red herring?
This matter needed further investigation.
Still… tonight's main objective was complete.
Most of the Root operatives had been processed, and the remainder would soon be absorbed into ANBU proper. The Yamanaka clan was now firmly back on the Hokage's side.
The next generation of Ino-Shika-Chō was secured.
"Hmm... I feel like I'm forgetting something..."
Hiruzen furrowed his brow. Something still nagged at the back of his mind.
Just then, a voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Hokage-sama! Is there anything the Aburame clan can do to serve you?"
A Few Days Later – Nanhe River
In a quiet grove, Naruto leaned against a tree, eyes wide open, but unmoving—deep in thought.
Not far away, Sasuke was swinging a practice sword, locked in an intense sparring session against a dozen Naruto shadow clones.
Inside the seal, Kokuō, the Five-Tails, observed through Naruto's senses.
"Oh? That Uchiha brat got stronger again."
The Nine-Tails, curled up nearby, didn't even bother to look.
"Hmph. Still can't get past a bunch of Naruto's clones."
Kokuō opened its mouth to reply—but then froze.
Its tone turned sharp.
"Kurama. That idiot Han just defected—with the Four-Tails Jinchūriki."
Kurama's eyes finally opened.
"Didn't he just return to Iwagakure yesterday? Why run now? Isn't he afraid of being hunted down by the Akatsuki?"
"No." Kokuō's voice grew serious.
"He believes staying in the village is more dangerous. The Four-Tails' host discovered that Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage, has secretly been working with the Akatsuki."
Kurama's eyes narrowed.
"Seriously?"
"What about you and Son Gokū?"
Before they could finish the thought, Naruto appeared in the seal.
"Kokuō. I just got word from the Mirror World—Han and Roshi defected from Iwa. They confronted Ōnoki, asking if he was the one who had Deidara betray Han. But Ōnoki refused to give any explanation."
Kurama and Kokuō exchanged a glance.
"Understood." ×2
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