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As he approached the towering doors of the temple, Kakashi's gaze was inevitably drawn upwards. The doors themselves were monumental—fifteen meters high and four meters wide, their robustness equivalent to the girth of an adult's arm. Adorned with frescoes that were meticulously restored on a regular basis, the vibrant depictions of the Great Mother's life seemed almost alive, imbued with nature chakra that felt both overwhelming and comforting.
He had been here before, some twenty years ago. Yet, even through the thick fog of grief that had clouded that day, he couldn't help but remember these doors. How could anyone not notice them? But back then, the awe was overshadowed by the horror of finding his father after he had committed seppuku. The memory was a sharp blade that still cut deep.
This temple had been built by a Daimyo as a religious site for shinobi, though he hadn't realized that most shinobi cared little for anything beyond their village. Over time, it had transformed into a sanctuary for those banished from the village. Kakashi's father had stayed here, and as his only family, this place had framed the backdrop of his early years.
Sighing deeply, Kakashi pushed the weight of these memories aside. Now was not the time to dwell on the past. He needed to be sharp, ready—today, he could not afford to be a mere puppy in the presence of a hawk. Today, he needed to be a wolf: savage and astute.
Glancing over at his genin, he noticed their reactions to the temple. Choji had actually stopped eating, his eyes wide as he took in the sight of the temple. Ino was practically vibrating with excitement, her eyes sparkling with curiosity and wonder. Even Shikamaru, who typically wore a perpetual expression of disinterest, couldn't maintain his usual blasé demeanor.
"Impressive, heh, my little genin?"
Ino whirled around. "That doesn't cut it, Lazy-sensei!" she exclaimed. "I had heard of it, but seeing it for real is so cool! Neh, could we stop for a while to observe them once the mission is over?"
Kakashi couldn't help but eye-smile at her spirited response, happy that she wasn't effect negatively by Naruto's rejection, but before he could agree, Shikamaru interjected with his typical languor. "Troublesome. We're not on vacation, Ino. We don't have time to gawk at... Doors."
"Tch, don't be like that, you bum," Ino retorted, wagging a finger menacingly at the pineapple-haired clan heir. "You just want to go back to watching clouds. Well, looking at art might joggle your brain a bit. Might make you less lazy."
"So, what exactly are we doing, sensei?" Choji's question brought them back to the reason they were here.
"Oh, you guys are going to be cleaning the temple," Kakashi announced, his voice tinged with mirth as he watched their enthusiasm deflate like a balloon. This mission was supposed to be their first mission out of Konoha's safe walls, yet it was as mundane as anything they'd done back home.
The white haired cyclops chuckled softly to himself, his single visible eye crinkling with amusement. If only these three knew that the real mission here was for him, a task hidden beneath the guise of temple cleaning.
As they approached the entrance, each of his genin jostled the small bell hanging by the door, tossing a ryo into the well below it—a ritual to announce their presence and seek the benediction of whatever deity or spirit was believed to watch over this shrine. It was more a show of politeness than any real act of faith.
They waited patiently at the entrance of the shrine, their presence eventually summoning the surprised face of a priest. He disappeared as quickly as he had appeared, only to return moments later with the abbot, an elderly man adorned in richly detailed robes that spoke of his esteemed position.
"Welcome, Konoha-nin. What brings you here, to the Great Mother's abode?"
"Well, my cute little genins are here to clean up the village, while I am here to see a friend of ours who retired here. He grew weary of the strife and sought peace in the Great Mother's embrace," Kakashi explained, maintaining a casual demeanor.
The abbot's eyes briefly hardened, a quick flash of something deeper before he nodded once and gestured for a monk to lead Kakashi's genin team to their assigned tasks. Kakashi followed the abbot as he led him towards a secluded room, the heavy silence between them laden with unspoken understanding.
As they entered, Kakashi was greeted by familiar faces—two other Jonin, Ibiki and Aoba. "Good to see you, Kakashi-san," Ibiki said, adjusting his bandana, his scarred face breaking into a brief smile.
"So, where is Danzo?" Aoba chimed in, pushing his glasses up on his nose as he scanned the room. Born blind, Aoba had been forced to develop his sensory abilities to an extraordinary level, making him a key player in missions where deception might lurk around every corner—especially now, since Danzo was involved.
Ibiki, the interrogator, and Kakashi—part protector, part enforcer, all depending on what Danzo might try today.
"Well, he must be taking care of his pumpkins," the abbot finally responded, his tone neutral, but they all thought the same thing instantly:Those pumpkins are definitely poisoned.
That brief exchange set the tone.
No mistake would be forgiven.
As Kakashi approached the so-called Warhawk of Konoha, Danzo seemed engrossed in his meal, softly eating some pumpkin. Despite his outward appearance of being just a feeble, retired old man, none of the Jonins were fooled for a second. His frailty was too convenient, a mask that they knew concealed the mind of a monster.
"It's an honor to meet a legendary ninja of Konoha," Ibiki said, his voice smooth as he tried to ease into what was essentially an interrogation masked as casual conversation.
"Oh, it's nothing. I just did what I had to do for Konoha," Danzo replied, his tone dismissive, his body giving nothing away.
Even to Kakashi's hidden Sharingan, activated discreetly behind a specially modified headband cloth that allowed him to use the Sharingan without anyone being the wiser.
As the Sharingan came into play, a familiar drain on Kakashi's chakra began, and he felt his vision start to dissociate. The world didn't slow down; instead, it exploded into a confusing array of possibilities, each one collapsing under its own improbable weight. He suppressed a reflexive twitch, channeling a small portion of his chakra to enhance the cognitive processes in his brain, struggling to adapt to the flood of information.
When Obito had gifted him his eye, they could only graft the orb and the optical nerve. Kakashi's brain wasn't naturally equipped to decode the complex visuals the Sharingan offered. It had taken countless hours of grueling training for him to even begin to interpret what he saw through it—fulfilling his promise to Obito to see the world through his eyes was an exhausting ordeal.
As Kakashi took his seat next to Aoba, he forced the chaotic possibilities out of his vision, focusing intently on Danzo. The old man's presence commanded attention, his every subtle movement or the lack thereof potentially significant. Kakashi needed to concentrate, to sift through the visual noise and catch any hint of his true intentions.
Each second felt stretched, his senses heightened to an almost unbearable degree. The air felt thick, charged with the silent tensions of unspoken threats and watchful waiting. His mind raced, analyzing every detail, every word.
Kakashi could feel the subtle movements, almost imperceptible, but there they were. The gentle ebb of chakra flowed from the elder's tenketsu, a natural phenomenon even for one as guarded as Danzo Shimura. However, his attention wasn't on Danzo's chakra. Instead, his gaze was fixed intently on the delicate skin of his throat, searching for the telltale flutter of his pulse—a much more reliable indicator than his eyes, which could easily deceive.
Facing Danzo, trying to catch a lie through eye contact was a fool's errand. No ninja, no matter how skilled, could control the instinctive twitch of a pupil dilating in response to deceit. But there was a trick to bypass even this involuntary response: a simple wink. This rudimentary gesture could disrupt the most careful observation, a lesson Kakashi had learned from countless deceptive encounters.
The stakes were too high to leave with questions unanswered just because their target decided to blink at the opportune moment. Monitoring his heartbeat was the tactic Kakashi chose. Danzo, with his age-hardened yet oddly resilient skin, presented an accessible jugular. Yet, for a ninja of his caliber, moderating his heartbeat to mask his emotions would be second nature. Not completely controlling it, though; certain emotions inevitably sparked a spike, a discrepancy, a detail that Kakashi's Sharingan would undoubtedly detect.
"Lord Hokage asked about your retirement," Ibiki said.
"Tell that old monkey, I am doing fine," Danzo replied, his tone surprisingly genuine. This unexpected sincerity sent a ripple of confusion through Kakashi. It wasn't like Danzo to speak so openly, so unguardedly. This wasn't his usual cadence, and that in itself was a clue. Kakashi needed to push him further, to provoke a slip.
Sniffing his fingers subtly, Kakashi communicated a new sequence of pre-decided codes to Aoba—codes that Danzo couldn't possibly know since they had concocted them mere minutes before this meeting.
"Please address the Hokage with respect," Aoba interjected. He was playing his part, feeding Kakashi more material.
Inside, Kakashi's mind raced. Was his calmness a facade? Or was there a genuine resignation to his fate, a rare glimpse of sincerity from a man known for his inscrutable nature?
"Did my friend ask for my retirement or the Hokage?"
"The Hokage," Ibiki responded, his voice flat, revealing nothing.
"Well, then convey my statements to my friend, I am sure he'll find them... nostalgic," Danzo replied, his eyes narrowing slightly as if amused by his own words. The trio wasn't buying his act.
"I am sure, he will. The Hokage asked us to give you this," Kakashi said, pushing a scroll across the table toward him.
Danzo's fingers, still steady despite his age, reached for the scroll. As he unfurled it, revealing the sealing array inside, Kakashi couldn't help but notice its intricacy.
It was a beautiful, complex design, new yet somehow familiar as if someone had taken the storage seal and made it better.
But what caught Kakashi's attention wasn't the artistry of the seal—it was the sudden, subtle buildup of chakra.
Something was about to happen. Kakashi tensed, ready for any threat.
A puff of smoke erupted from the scroll, and for a moment, all of them blinked in surprise. As the smoke cleared, a figure appeared—a beautiful naked vixen enveloped in clouds, blowing a kiss towards Danzo before vanishing as quickly as she had appeared. The room fell into a stunned silence, each of them trying to process the unexpected display.
"Thank the Hokage for his gift," Danzo said, his voice calm as if surreal moments like these were nothing out of the ordinary for him. The rest of them could only shrug, thrown off by the bizarre occurrence.
As they returned to the matters at hand, a nagging thought lingered in Kakashi's mind. That shadow clone girl... she bore a striking resemblance to Naruto. The connection seemed too coincidental, too precise to be a mere prank or a simple message. Was the Hokage hinting at something deeper, something they were yet to understand?
Ibiki's voice brought him back to the present.
"Good. I will not insult your intelligence and pretend it is not an interrogation, Shimura-san. We have uncovered some disturbing operations in Konoha, and they have been linked to a certain S-rank encoding key—a key that belonged to you."
Kakashi watched closely as he mentioned the key. Danzo's composed demeanor faltered for just a moment, his heart skipping a beat—an involuntary reaction that spoke volumes. Kakashi smiled slightly; this reaction
"Do you recognize the existence of this seal?" Aoba chimed in, his voice carefully neutral as he produced the S-rank special mission order key.
Danzo's response was immediate and smooth, betraying no hint of deceit. "I think you are mistaken, this isn't mine... rather, it belongs to Orochimaru." His voice carried a tone of genuine clarity, and for once, Kakashi could not pick up any signs of lying from him. There were no shifts in chakra, no subtle tells in his pulse—nothing to indicate deception.
The trio exchanged confused looks. This wasn't the confession they were expecting, while Danzo felt a sense of satisfaction, believing he had thrown Konoha off his trail. However, unbeknownst to the Warhawk, his plans were already crumbling, undone by the simplest of errors—the unknown factor that was Naruto uzumaki.
[ Name: Shimura Danzo ]
[ Status: Shadow Clone ]
[ Title: The War Hawk of Konoha, Secret Leader of Root Anbu Black ops ]
[ Level: 20 ]
[ Class: Shinobi ]
[ Second Class: Manipulator ]
[ Race: Human Chimera ]
[ HP: ∞ ] ( ? )
[ AC: ∞ ] ( ? )
[ CP: 9000 / 9000 ]
[ Lineage Traits: ]
- [ Grafted Sharingan ]
- [ Wood Release ]
[ Class Features: ]
- [ Mind to Body reading ]
- [ Silver Tongue ]
- [ Wind Release ]
[ Feats: Redacted ]
[ Stats: Redacted ]
[ Description: This is a Blood Clone of Shimura Danzo created to serve out his banishment while the real body moved through the shadows ]
In the Hokage's office in Konoha, a clone of Naruto sat absorbing information from the sexy jutsu clone that was sent to the War hawk via sealing scrolls.
Naruto had lied to Hiruzen and the others about an Uzumaki seal he had "created", which could detect whether Danzo was an imposter or not. He had explained that Danzo was using a special fuinjutsu to communicate with his men and that his seal could detect the master seal on Danzo to verify his presence. In reality, Naruto was simply going to rely on his Observer feat, which was quickly becoming one of his most useful ability.
"Well?" Inoichi prompted, peering intently at the clone.
"He's a fake," the blonde boy declared bluntly, noting the immediate reactions of his seniors. Inoichi's eyebrows knitted together in a frown, Hiruzen let out a weary puff of smoke and Shikaku simply muttered a resigned, "Troublesome."
There was a heavy pause before the head of I&T leaned forward, his voice low but clear.
"I think I've figured out Danzo's plan with the kid. His goal is to acquire Naruto's unique Kekkei Genkai, which means he'll need to get Naruto on his side. The problem for him is that Naruto here isn't just anyone; he's the Jinchuriki and someone we're all committed to protecting. Danzo would need to isolate him to control him. Using the Anbu as a cover seemed perfect... with Dragon somehow following Danzo's—"
Hiruzen's cough cut him off.
Inoichi nodded, understanding the caution, and continued, "It would have been easy to kidnap Naruto under the guise of Anbu activities without anyone suspecting a thing. With Danzo's tactics, Naruto, you would've been broken down, your ideals stripped away as he indoctrinated you with his ideology until you were nothing but his puppet."
Naruto swallowed hard. He was shaken by how narrowly he had escaped a fate where he could have lost everything that defined him. A wry smile tugged at his lips as he shook his head slightly.
"I guess my luck really came through with this one."
"I think I would like to add a follow up to Inoichi's deduction."
Shikaku captured everyone's attention as he leaned back. "With Danzo and Root lurking in the shadows, this situation escalates to a matter of national security."
"How so?"
Hiruzen explained to naruto gravely, "He has served Konoha for over sixty years. Danzo knows too many secrets—secrets that should never see the light of day. With that knowledge, he could theoretically trigger a war."
"But doesn't he love Konoha?"
Hiruzen answered with a heavy tone, "His love for Konoha isn't the love you understand. It's not love for the village itself but for a vision of what he believes the village should be."
Naruto's expression hardened as he digested this, then he asked, "So, what's the plan?"
"Using you as bait," Shikaku stated bluntly.
"No." Hiruzen's hand slammed down on the desk.
"Hokage-sama," Naruto reprimanded, the old man looking at him with conflicted eyes. "Now is not the time to treat me like a child."
Hiruzen sighed, recognizing the truth in Naruto's words, but that didn't mean he liked where the plan was going.
Inoichi then chimed in, "Wouldn't the Anbu already be compromised? What's to stop someone like Dragon from having Naruto's team go missing via a false mission, which is just a trap?"
"The possibility is there," Shikaku admitted, nodding at the astute observation. "That's why I'm suggesting a method that keeps Naruto safe while forcing Danzo to make a drastic move that would reveal his true self."
Everyone at the table leaned in, their focus sharpening as Shikaku paused for effect. Then, with a strategic glint in his eye, he concluded, "Summoning Jutsu!"
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Inside the Anbu commander, tension hovered like a dense fog.
Dragon stamped the S-rank mission key with a decisive thud. As he looked up, his eyes narrowed slightly, observing the figure before him.
"You have been coming here a lot lately, or are you one of those stupid blood clones?"
Danzo walked towards the desk with his usual deliberate slowness.
"Actually, don't answer. I'd rather believe you are a blood clone. At least one percent less uglier than the real thing."
The old man remained stoic, his gaze unwavering as he stood before Dragon. "You betrayed me."
"You say that as if I was ever on your side," Dragon retorted, almost laughing.
"Did the effects of Kotoamatsukami wear off?"
"Not really. But I found a loophole in that ultimate genjutsu," Dragon revealed, a hint of pride lacing his words. "Kotoamatsukami implants a command into the body, almost to the point it's more important than breathing. But the thing is, it only affects the body, not the mind. It took me a lot of trial and error, but I found that Kotoamatsukami is a one-sided contract set by you, my friend. As long as I don't break the rules, my body will do what I want."
Dragon watched as Danzo's grip on his cane tightened, it was satisfying.
"Where is the weapon?"
"With his team," Dragon replied, his voice steady.
"And where?"
"Land of Demons," Dragon disclosed coolly.
Danzo turned to leave, but Dragon called out, his tone casual yet pointed. "Try not to get too close. Hiruzen is looking after the boy." Danzo could almost hear the celebrations in the commander's voice.
"Now get out. I have a lot of stuff to do. Stuff that actually helps Konoha," Dragon dismissed him sharply.
"What's your end goal?"
Dragon looked at his old teammate and slowly removed his mask.
"I ... Want ... You... DEAD!"
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[ AUTHOR NOTE:
—Finally, plot B is done.
Most of the relevant characters have settled into alliances, and the stage has been set with Danzo hiding in the shadows.
Hiruzen and Naruto are baiting him out unless Naruto gets too strong.
Kakashi is having some level of suspicion.
Dragon has executed his plan A.
— Anyway, after this chapter, the majority of the story is going to focus on Naruto with some chapters here and there for Hinata and Tenten, but mostly Naruto in the land of demons and on some other Anbu missions.
— Why is Danzo's HP infinite? The answer is Izanagi.
—Anyway, what kind of summoning animal should Naruto get?
A monkey, or something more unique from Hiruzen?
...
Thank you for your continued support and engagement with my work. Have a blessed day, and I look forward to reading your thoughts in the comments!