The next morning, it was already late when Kaguya finally woke up from her sleep. She sat up, drew back the curtains, and let the soft sunlight stream through the window.
Kaguya yawned lightly, feeling she hadn't slept this comfortably in a long time, and her whole body felt much more relaxed.
She lifted the quilt, got out of bed, went to the bathroom to wash up, dressed, and grabbed a quick bite to eat before heading out.
Kaguya remembered that the Hokage had something to discuss with her. After pausing on the street for a moment, she headed towards the Hokage's office.
As she entered the building, an Anbu ninja wearing a mask approached her.
"The Hokage is waiting for you. Please follow me," the Anbu ninja said, gesturing for her to follow.
"Okay," Kaguya nodded.
Following the Anbu ninja, Kaguya felt increasingly uneasy the further they went.
"This isn't the way to the Hokage's office," Kaguya suddenly stopped and said.
"The Hokage is not in the office but in another location," the Anbu ninja replied. "Please follow me."
"Okay," Kaguya nodded but suddenly produced three shuriken and threw them at lightning speed.
"Clang, clang, clang!"
The shuriken were deflected and struck the wall.
"Discovered, huh?" the Anbu ninja chuckled.
"Who exactly are you?" Kaguya asked coldly.
"You'll find out when we get there," the Anbu ninja said, drawing a long sword and charging at Kaguya.
Kaguya flicked her hand, producing four shuriken, which she hurled at the Anbu ninja.
"Stop resisting. With your current strength, you are no match for me," the Anbu ninja said, deflecting the shuriken with ease and laughing wickedly as he charged at Kaguya again.
Kaguya drew a kunai, holding it in front of her chest and slashing upwards, creating sparks as it clashed with the long sword.
Kaguya frowned, thinking that Yugao hadn't lied to her; the Hokage really did want to see her. But it seemed Danzo had taken advantage of this to have her intercepted.
Of all times, why now? Danzo must have gathered a lot of information about Kaguya, enough to know she hadn't fully recovered.
The Anbu ninja's swordsmanship was fierce and skillful, but Kaguya's taijutsu was not weak either. The two exchanged blows, sparks flying, and the clashing of metal resounded in a rapid series of crisp sounds.
"Bang!" Kaguya was kicked into the wall and slid down, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.
"Give up. Danzo only wants to meet you; he won't harm you," the Anbu ninja said.
"Fine," Kaguya coughed a few times. "I'm injured now. Help me up."
"That's a wise choice, sparing yourself more pain," the Anbu ninja said, walking over with a cold smile.
"Thunk!"
The sound of a blade piercing flesh echoed.
"What..." The Anbu ninja turned his head with difficulty, his pupils constricted, realizing that Kaguya had appeared behind him. "Shadow Clone Technique."
"Yes," Kaguya said coldly, pushing the kunai deeper into his heart.
The other shadow clone by the wall dissipated with a "poof" into white smoke.
She knew this was not a place to linger; Danzo would definitely send more people, making it increasingly dangerous to stay.
Suddenly, a deep voice sounded from behind her.
"Not bad."
An elderly voice echoed from behind Kaguya, causing her pupils to contract as she turned around sharply.
Standing behind her was a man with half of his body wrapped in bandages, his eyes and arm covered by thick bandages, his gaze sinister, with two intersecting scars on his chin.
Kaguya's heart sank. If she guessed correctly, this man was Danzo.
"What do you want from me?" Kaguya asked coldly. "I don't recall having any dealings with you, Danzo."
"Oh, you know my name," Danzo's half-closed eyes opened slightly.
"As a member of the Anbu, don't you think what you're doing is disgraceful?" Kaguya raised an eyebrow.
"Disgraceful?" Danzo said expressionlessly. "I am merely eliminating unstable elements for Konoha."
"Unstable elements?" Kaguya sneered.
"Six years ago, you suddenly appeared in Konoha, then were considered an orphan of the Hyuga clan and adopted by them," Danzo said slowly. "During this time, you have always shown yourself to be different from others, and now you have acquired strange powers. It's hard to believe you're not a spy planted by an enemy nation."
"A five or six-year-old spy?" Kaguya scoffed.
"Whatever you say is useless," Danzo said indifferently. "Keeping someone like you in Konoha is just a threat."
"Nice words. Isn't Orochimaru a threat to Konoha?" Kaguya sneered. "He just attacked Konoha not long ago, and yet you collude with him."
"Discovered, huh," a pale-faced man with snake-like eyes walked out from the shadows. It was Orochimaru. "I desire you more and more." He licked his lips.
But his smile did not last long as pain contorted his face. He clutched his right arm tightly, and Kaguya noticed that the arm he had severed earlier had not regenerated.
Noticing Kaguya's gaze, Orochimaru said darkly, "Your jutsu is interesting, it can even stop my regeneration." He then smiled again. "But this is only temporary. You will become my next vessel."
"Dream on," Kaguya raised her arm, and a powerful repulsive force burst out. The thought of becoming Orochimaru's vessel was nauseating.
"Boom!"
Sand and stones flew, and dust filled the air.