Late at night, inside the Konoha Mental Hospital.
The entire building was pitch dark, with barely anyone around.
In one of the rooms, Danzo sat on his bed, his eyes vacant as he stared out the window at the moonlight. Having recently lost an arm, he was still adjusting to his new balance, his sitting posture much more stable now.
Opposite him sat an elderly man with a head full of white hair. In the dim moonlight, his face was lined with worry.
"Danzo, how are you finding life here?" the old man asked.
"Half a month, a whole half month, Hiruzen! To keep our secret, I, Danzo, have pretended to be insane and become a mental patient, and this is how you treat me!" Danzo's voice was filled with anger.
Through his ruse of feigning madness, he had intended for Hiruzen Sarutobi to take him away, assuming he would be returned to his base. Instead, he had been confined to the mental hospital for half a month, surrounded by actual lunatics.
Even a sane man would go mad here.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed, "Danzo, my subordinates are very displeased with how I've handled this situation. I'm under immense pressure. Preserving our secret and your life is already the best outcome..."
Danzo sneered, "That might be the best for you! For me, this is the worst! Hiruzen, let me out."
"No!" Hiruzen's voice was firm. "Under no circumstances can you leave. This is my bottom line."
"Hmph!" Danzo stood up, walked over to Hiruzen, and pulled away the bandage over his right eye, revealing a bloody eye socket. "Do you see this? This is the injury inflicted on me by Natsuhane. I've lived a long life and never suffered such humiliation. I must settle this score with him!"
Hiruzen took a deep breath and coldly asked, "Danzo, first answer me this... why do you have Uchiha Shisui's Sharingan in your possession?"
"And that arm full of Sharingan, what's the story behind it? The white material on it clearly comes from Hashirama's cells!"
"What else have you been hiding from me? Today, you must explain everything!"
Faced with Hiruzen's barrage of questions, the anger in Danzo's heart dissipated. He sighed, realizing there was no point in hiding anymore given his current predicament.
"Uchiha Shisui did not commit suicide. Two and a half years ago, I led the Root to seize his right eye..."
"Why did you do that!" Hiruzen roared, "Shisui was one of our own, a child I had high hopes for! If he were still alive, we wouldn't have needed such extreme measures against the Uchiha clan! Didn't you know about Shisui's Mangekyo ability..."
"We could have used his Kotoamatsukami on Fugaku and the dissenters, and no one would have needed to die!"
"Of course, I knew!" Danzo laughed darkly, his expression sinister. "You think Shisui was loyal to us? Trustworthy?"
"Hmph... don't flaunt your compassion. Don't you understand Tobirama's will? The Uchiha clan is inherently evil. Once they awaken the Sharingan, their brains become pathological, and even they can't control themselves. Who knows when they might turn against us!"
"Shisui could control Fugaku with Kotoamatsukami, but he could also control us! Hiruzen, I didn't want you or me to become puppets of the Uchiha. As Tobirama's disciple, that would be a disgrace!"
"So, rather than rely on a pathological Uchiha, I preferred to wield that power myself!"
Hiruzen was silent.
Danzo continued, "After obtaining Shisui's Sharingan, I realized how difficult it was to control the Mangekyo. Thus, I implanted Hashirama's cells to better harness its power..."
"Hiruzen, do you know who performed the transplantation? Your beloved student, Orochimaru."
Hiruzen was shocked, "Orochimaru? Danzo! How could you collude with him?"
"Why are you surprised?" Danzo sneered again. "Hiruzen, do you understand why I believe I should be Hokage instead of you?"
"It's because you're not ruthless enough! Your indecisiveness and reluctance to act are your fatal flaws!"
"If you had killed Orochimaru when he defected, none of this would have happened..."
"Every consequence, though you were involved less directly, traces back to your leniency."
Hiruzen remained silent, his pipe filled with ashes.
It was a lot to process.
"The Sharingan on my arm were taken from the corpses of elite Uchiha shinobi during the massacre..."
"That's all my secrets. Everything I needed to say, I've said."
Danzo rebandaged his right eye, observing the stunned Hiruzen. He sighed and continued, "The reason I'm telling you these secrets is to show my stance and to warn you not to underestimate Natsuhane!"
"He has awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. Setting aside the uncontrollable pathology, he knows secrets I intended to take to the grave. Aren't you curious how he knows them?"
"It's likely related to his Mangekyo ability! If that's the case, you can't hide anything from him!"
"Hiruzen, release me. Together, we can annihilate the Uchiha once and for all. This time, leave none alive, not even Sasuke!"
"These Uchiha brats are too dangerous!"
"Like before, I'll handle the dirty work while you stabilize the village. Only by eliminating the Uchiha can Konoha truly be at peace!"
"Without me, you can't do it alone. My ruthlessness is what secures your position... otherwise, Natsuhane will eventually replace you..."
These words hit Hiruzen like cold water splashing on his face.
After a long silence, Hiruzen finally spoke.
"Danzo, you're right... I lack ruthlessness. It's not that I can't be ruthless, but rather I am unwilling to be..."
Seeing that Hiruzen seemed to understand his words, Danzo was delighted, "Whatever the reason, with my help, we can compensate for your shortcomings! Release me, Hiruzen!"
Hiruzen shook his head with a smile, "Danzo, I appreciate what you've told me today. But it's not that I can't be ruthless without you..."
"What do you mean?" Danzo asked, puzzled.
"I mean... I want to find that missing ruthlessness on my own. Danzo, your secret actions have become a danger to me. I can't tolerate you anymore; you've crossed the line."
Hiruzen put away his pipe, took out a kunai, and slowly approached Danzo.
"H-Hiruzen! What are you doing?"
"Don't blame me, Danzo. To find my own ruthlessness, I'll start with you..."
"Hiruzen! You can't do this, you...!"
With a swift motion, the kunai pierced Danzo's body, and he collapsed in a pool of blood.
"Forgive me, my old friend..."
"I will remember your words and strive to be more ruthless..."
"For the sake of Konoha, retire quietly. As for Natsuhane, don't worry. I will not let him replace me, no matter what..."