"It's an honor to have caught the attention of Naruto Uzumaki," Danzo said, his voice low as chakra began to surge within him.
"Answer my question," Naruto demanded, his tone cold and oppressive. "Yes or no?"
Danzo remained silent, refusing to respond. His silence spoke volumes.
Everyone in the room—whether they were sharp-minded or seasoned by years of experience—understood what his attitude implied.
"Danzo, you..." Koharu Utatane exclaimed, shock overtaking her features.
Homura Mitokado feigned surprise, his eyes wide in mock disbelief.
"I never expected the head of the Jonin Command and the Hokage to invite an outsider here," Danzo said as he reached up to pull at the collar of his robe. "This is a betrayal of Konoha."
"And collaborating with Obito Uchiha isn't a betrayal of Konoha?" Naruto retorted calmly. "Tell me, what are the details of your collaboration? How did you make contact?"
Danzo's expression remained calm. "I did it for Konoha."
"Kakashi's mind has been poisoned by you. He's no longer fit to be Hokage."
"The Hyūga clan no longer obeys orders."
"The village doesn't need such elements."
Naruto extended his hand. "Choosing to be a tool is your decision. But..."
"Restricting others' ambitions—that's not right."
He paused for a moment, letting the tension hang in the air.
"And there's no need to discuss this further. Tell me how you made contact with Obito Uchiha."
Danzo's face twisted with disdain. "Such arrogance, Naruto Uzumaki."
"I admit, you're strong."
"But... I've let you run wild for too long. This ends now."
With a swift motion, he pulled aside his robe, revealing his right arm—an arm he had long portrayed as disabled.
Three seals shackled the arm, binding and suppressing its power.
"Fū, Torune," Danzo called out.
Two figures, hidden in the shadows, suddenly materialized in the room.
An orange-haired man formed a hand seal, spreading his hands with his thumbs and index fingers connected in a triangle, aiming at Naruto.
Chakra surged.
"Mind Transfer Jutsu."
Fū Yamanaka's mental energy shot out, attacking Naruto.
"The Yamanaka clan, huh?" Naruto said, unshaken, his tone calm. "But using such a technique against me..."
Fū Yamanaka's eyes widened in shock.
What am I seeing?
The Yamanaka clan's secret technique was powerful: refine the soul, strengthen the spirit, and use a more potent soul to seize control of another's body. Most ninja didn't refine or study their souls, making this jutsu nearly unbeatable.
But Naruto Uzumaki was an entirely different beast.
His body...?
What stood before Fū was a towering, majestic soul, overwhelming in its presence.
Just by glimpsing it, his own soul and spirit trembled uncontrollably.
Naruto's soul was far superior to any other ninja's—more powerful than all the souls Fū had encountered in his lifetime combined.
An invincible force!
That was the final thought in Fū's mind as his soul, having left his body, was crushed under the enormous spiritual pressure.
Torune Aburame raised his hand, releasing a cloud of dust-like mist toward Naruto.
"Secret Technique: Poison Cloud Jutsu."
The Aburame clan was known for mastering the "power of insects," and Torune specialized in a type of poisonous insect known as "Rinkaichū."
While the poison wasn't as potent as that of Chiyo from Sand Village or Hanzō of Rain Village, it had the advantage of quantity and a tricky delivery.
His abilities were a nightmare to deal with, perfect for buying time.
But...
The insects couldn't even get close to Naruto.
They instinctively recoiled.
Even when driven by chakra, they froze and dropped dead upon nearing him, forming a circle of purple insect corpses around Naruto in the blink of an eye.
"You can't even get near me," Naruto observed, locking eyes with Torune. The pressure of his spiritual energy bore down on him.
"Let alone these weak creatures with hardly any souls."
With a crash, Torune fell to his knees, his entire body prostrated on the ground, unable to move.
A flash of white light followed.
Yang Nine-Tails emerged from Naruto's shoulder, raising a claw and pointing it forward.
"Hadō #4. Byakurai (白雷, Pale Lightning)."
The beam of lightning pierced Torune's head, snuffing out his life in an instant.
Danzo's face tightened.
His two most trusted subordinates, giving it their all, couldn't even stall Naruto Uzumaki for a moment?
He hastened his movements.
The three seals fell heavily to the ground, revealing his right arm, long shrouded in secrecy.
The skin of the arm was starkly different from the rest of his body, deathly pale after years of sealing, exuding an aura of decay.
But the skin color wasn't the most shocking detail.
From his forearm to his upper arm, several Sharingan were embedded.
"What is this?" Jiraiya exclaimed, his voice filled with shock.
Kakashi stared in disbelief, unable to process what he was seeing.
No one had imagined Danzo was hiding something like this.
"So this is what gives you the confidence to challenge me?" Naruto said softly, moving in a flash.
Danzo didn't answer, attempting to dodge.
But...
Naruto was much faster.
An ominous red blade pierced Danzo's chest.
Nine-Tails grumbled, "Naruto, you should've used Ashura."
"Killing this man with the 'Nine-Tails' blade is too..."
Naruto reached out to grab Danzo's soul.
But something strange happened.
Danzo's body slipped off the blade without a sound, standing before Naruto unharmed.
He formed hand seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave."
Danzo took a deep breath, exhaling a sharp, elongated blast of air, visible as a white ribbon, cutting toward Naruto.
Yang Nine-Tails unsheathed his Zanpakutō.
"Bakudō #39. Enkōsen (円閘扇, Round Lock Fan)."
The spinning blade intercepted and shattered the wind attack.
Naruto stared at Danzo through the mirage, his eyes filled with surprise.
What happened?
His blade had clearly pierced Danzo moments ago, so why wasn't he dead? Why didn't he even have a scratch?
Genjutsu?
No...
Even though the Sharingan's genjutsu was powerful, even if it was activated with the Mangekyō, Naruto would have noticed.
Danzo's arm bore many Sharingan, but they were all just ordinary three-tomoe.
His chakra and soul were both weak.
There was no way he could have hidden this from Naruto.
If he hadn't died the first time, then he'd try again.
Naruto clasped his hands together.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains."
Golden chains shot out, whipping and binding Danzo's limbs.
"Hadō #4. Byakurai (白雷, Pale Lightning)."
Forfeiting the incantation, the white beam shot forward.
This time, Naruto was certain his attack had worked. White Lightning had shattered Danzo's heart, and he even sensed the fragmentation of his body, the escape of his soul, and the stirring of the Sage of Six Paths.
But in the next second...
The unbelievable happened again.
Danzo stood there unharmed, calmly stepping aside.
"Surprised, aren't you?" Danzo asked, his voice unnervingly calm. "Even though your strength far surpasses this old man in front of you, you've attacked twice and still haven't managed to kill him."
"It's incredible."
"A miracle, even."
Naruto squinted, enveloping Danzo in his Mind's Eye of the Kagura.
"Yes, it's a miracle," Danzo continued, his tone now tinged with subtle changes, full of temptation. "Konoha has faced many disasters, but without exception, it has always emerged unscathed."
"That's the miracle that has blessed Konoha."
"And I..."
"As Konoha's root, this miracle has now been bestowed upon me."
"Accept your fate, Naruto."
Naruto chuckled coldly, exhaling a breath.
The spiritual pressure within the breath formed a crude, yet powerful technique that effortlessly tore Danzo's sleeve apart.
His entire arm, near the shoulder, had one Sharingan already extinguished, and a second one was slowly closing.
"A miracle, or just the Sharingan?" Naruto mocked, shaking his head. "Did you really think you could scare me with such a petty trick?"
"Isn't that overestimating yourself?"
Danzo's face briefly contorted before returning to its original calm. "You've discovered it, but... in the end, it makes no difference."
"You can't kill me."
Naruto's gaze shifted slightly, focusing on the face on Danzo's shoulder. "The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju."
"You've incorporated his flesh into your body?"
"Didn't all your collaborations with Orochimaru clue you in on this?" Danzo asked, his tone still measured.
Jiraiya was shocked, his eyes widening in surprise as he stared at Naruto.
Collaborating with Orochimaru?
Orochimaru was still alive?
All these years, with no news, Jiraiya had assumed he was truly dead.
"No." Naruto shook his head, his expression calm and composed. "He mentioned it, but I didn't expect you to actually use it."
"I thought Hashirama would hold a higher place in your hearts."
Danzo's voice remained cold, "If the First Hokage knew his body could contribute so much to Konoha, he'd be pleased."
"The Second Hokage would have killed you himself," Naruto whispered.
As he spoke, the golden chains whipped out once more, striking at Danzo.
Danzo formed hand seals.
"Spontaneous Tree Summoning."
The face on his right shoulder wriggled as chakra surged. Thick trees sprouted from nothing, growing rapidly to shield Danzo.
But...
It was futile.
The chains pierced through his body, shattering his heart.
"It's pointless." Danzo leaned on the trees, emerging from behind them. "I told you, you can't kill me."
Naruto observed his arm.
The second Sharingan was now fully closed.
"Resurrection after death. I suppose that's how I should understand this technique of yours," Naruto mused. "It seems quite powerful."
"But it's not without limits, is it?"
"The prerequisite for using it is the Sharingan?"
"I've killed you three times, but only two Sharingan have closed."
"So it's not one eye per life."
"Is it..."
"Time?"
As Naruto uttered the word "time," he caught the subtle change in Danzo's emotions.
So that's it.
"If it's based on time," Naruto said, raising one finger, "each Sharingan can grant you a minute of invincibility?"
"You have eight left, which means eight minutes."
He smiled. "Let's use these eight minutes to have a little chat."
"Tell me everything you know about Obito Uchiha."
"And..."
"Did you have any part in the Nine-Tails' attack sixteen years ago?"