The Root headquarters was a labyrinth of cold stone and flickering torchlight, a place where shadows seemed to breathe and secrets festered. Danzo Shimura sat at the heart of it all, his single visible eye sharp and calculating, his cane resting against his chair. The air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and the faint metallic tang of weaponry. The silence was oppressive, broken only by the soft crackle of flames.
A Root ninja materialized from the darkness, kneeling before Danzo with practiced precision. "Lord Danzo," he began, his voice low and steady, "the ANBU have discovered a boy in one of Orochimaru's abandoned laboratories."
Danzo's eyes narrowed slightly. He tilted his head, fingers tapping rhythmically against the cane resting at his side. "A boy?" he repeated, his tone carefully neutral. "And he was the only survivor?"
The Root ninja hesitated. "Yes, Lord Danzo. The ANBU found him in a chamber filled with containment tanks. Every other child was… beyond saving."
Danzo said nothing at first. His fingers stopped tapping. Then, almost absently, he exhaled a slow breath.
Danzo leaned back slightly, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the armrest of his chair. "Interesting," he murmured, more to himself than to the ninja before him. "A child, left behind in one of Orochimaru's labs... and yet, alive. What is Hiruzen doing with him?"
"The Hokage has taken the boy into his hospital" the Root ninja replied. "He is being cared for in the village, under close watch of ANBU. It seems Lord Hiruzen is... concerned."
A faint smirk tugged at the corner of Danzo's lips, though it carried no warmth. "Concerned, indeed. Hiruzen has always been soft-hearted when it comes to children." His tone shifted, growing colder.
Survivor. An anomaly. Something Orochimaru considered useless, yet still alive.
Danzo's eye narrowed slightly before he shifted his focus back to the operative.
"What of the records?" His voice was sharper now, demanding. "Surely ANBU uncovered some documentation of Orochimaru's experiments."
The Root ninja's posture remained firm, but his next words carried an undertone of uncertainty.
"There were… some records, Lord Danzo. But we do not know if they are complete."
Danzo's fingers tightened slightly around his cane. "Explain."
The Root ninja lowered his head slightly, his voice cautious. "The ANBU recovered fragments of research—test logs, anatomical sketches, mentions of… modifications. However, all of the documents are in the hands of the Hokage. No one except him has seen the full contents."
Silence stretched between them, heavy and tense.
Danzo's mind raced. Hiruzen was withholding information. If the records were incomplete, it meant one of two things—either Orochimaru destroyed the most crucial findings before abandoning the lab, or Hiruzen was hiding something.
Either way, he needed those files.
After a moment, he spoke again, his voice dangerously calm. "Hiruzen is being careful. That means there is something of value within those records."
Danzo's gaze flickered toward the firelight, his thoughts calculating.
Then, his fingers resumed their slow, deliberate tapping against the armrest of his chair. "Keep watching. Monitor the boy. Observe any irregularities—physically or otherwise."
He exhaled, his tone dropping to a near whisper. "And find out what Hiruzen is hiding."
The Root ninja bowed deeply. "As you command, Lord Danzo." With that, he melted back into the shadows, disappearing like mist before the dawn.
Danzo sat alone, his expression unreadable.
The firelight cast long, flickering shadows against the walls.
His fingers stilled.
The Root ninja nodded. "Understood, Lord Danzo."
Danzo's gaze hardened, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "But tread carefully. Hiruzen is no fool. He may already suspect my involvement with Orochimaru. That could complicate matters. For now, we lay low. Let the boy remain in the Hokage's care... for the time being."
The Root ninja bowed deeply. "As you command." With that, he melted back into the shadows, leaving Danzo alone in the flickering torchlight.
Danzo sat in silence for a long moment, his mind racing with possibilities. A boy from Orochimaru's lab... a potential weapon, or perhaps a liability. Either way, he would not let such an opportunity slip through his fingers. Not while the future of the village—and his own ambitions—hung in the balance.
I lay quietly in my hospital bed, eyes closed, piecing together fragments of my memories. Images from this life merged with knowledge from my past world, forming a tangled web of familiarity and confusion. Six years in this world—growing up as an orphan under the care of my grandparents, Horito and Suzune. Their warmth and discipline shaped me, their stories of the once-great Senju Clan igniting something deep inside me. Life in the Hidden Leaf Village was all I had known, yet something about it still felt… incomplete.
There were gaps. My parents had been a part of my life for only a brief moment, leaving behind nothing but flickering impressions. My father—his striking red hair stood out in my mind, a beacon of my Uzumaki heritage. But his face, his name… they were shrouded in haze, lost to time and distance.
My mother, Ayaka, was clearer in my memories. Long, flowing black hair, warm brown eyes filled with endless kindness. She had a smile that could soften even the harshest of days. I could still hear her gentle humming as she held me close, the scent of lavender clinging to her clothes, the way her laughter crinkled the edges of her eyes. Those moments felt real. They felt precious.
But the reality was undeniable. They were gone. And I couldn't even remember how.
I clenched my fists beneath the sheets, frustration simmering beneath my calm exterior. Why was it so difficult to recall? And why did my Uzumaki blood feel like a mystery, like an untapped force just waiting to be understood?
As my thoughts swirled, another realization settled into my chest—a heavy, suffocating truth. This world wasn't just a dream or a story. It was real. The Hokage, the ANBU, the very air of this place—it all confirmed what I already knew deep down. I was in the world of Naruto.
A world where power dictated survival. Where weakness meant death.
I had to grow stronger.
There was no other path. If I wanted to protect myself, protect my grandparents, I needed to master chakra, to push my body and mind beyond their limits. There was no room for hesitation.
But even as I resolved myself, a question lurked at the edges of my mind.
Why am I here?
My last memory was… nothing. Just emptiness. No fear, no pain. Just a void. I had drowned—hadn't I? But that wasn't all. Something was wrong.
How had I survived? How did I end up in this hospital bed?
I opened my eyes slightly, my gaze flickering to the doorway where my grandparents stood, their eyes filled with concern. They wouldn't tell me anything. That much, I was sure of.
And then there was the Hokage. He had visited me. The ANBU, silent and ever-present in the background.
Why were they here?
My instincts screamed that this wasn't just an accident. There was something more at play, something I wasn't supposed to know.
I exhaled slowly, schooling my expression into one of innocence. If I started asking too many questions, I'd only make myself look more suspicious.
So, I would stay quiet. I would observe.
And I would find out the truth myself.