Chapter 5: The Death of Danzo
"It seems I have no choice but to take action myself."
Despite the massacre of his subordinates, the Shadow of the Shinobi World remained composed. He discarded his cane and began unraveling the bandages from his right arm, revealing a horrific sight—an arm covered in Sharingan.
"Sharingan?!"
From within Susanoo, Uchiha Inaho and Uchiha Saito erupted in fury.
"How dare you desecrate the remains of our ancestors?!"
"You Uchihas are an inherently evil clan!" Danzo declared coldly. "Sharingan's power should only be wielded by me—for the sake of Konoha's protection."
His gaze then fell upon the towering, dark-armored Susanoo standing amidst the storm.
"Uchiha Douhuan, today, I shall personally put an end to your sins!"
With that, Danzo charged forward, his hands flashing through hand seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Bullets!"
Wind-natured chakra condensed in Danzo's mouth before being fired like bullets, shooting toward Douhuan's Susanoo. At the same time, Danzo weaved between the flying bullets, kunai in hand, aiming for Douhuan's heart.
However—
The colossal Susanoo raised its sword and, with a single slash, obliterated the vacuum bullets—and in the same motion, cleaved Danzo in half at the waist.
As Susanoo slowly dissipated, Douhuan and his two comrades stood unscathed.
"Is it over?" Inaho muttered, still processing what had just happened.
"Yeah, it's over," Douhuan confirmed, stepping toward Danzo's corpse—or what was left of it.
However, the very next moment—
Danzo's body disappeared.
A sudden gust of wind howled behind Douhuan.
"Uchiha Douhuan, your eyes belong to me!"
Danzo's voice carried a barely restrained excitement. If he killed Douhuan, he would possess not only Shisui's Kotoamatsukami but also another pair of Mangekyō Sharingan.
With that power, he could finally become Hokage.
His kunai closed in, mere millimeters from Douhuan's back—
But suddenly—
Danzo froze in place.
A second later—his body began to fade away.
"W-What is this…?"
Danzo's voice trembled with disbelief.
His right arm—along with his kunai—was vanishing into thin air.
"You were relying on Izanagi, weren't you?"
Douhuan finally turned his head, his left eye spinning rapidly in its Mangekyō pattern.
"A genjutsu that manipulates reality and illusion… but unfortunately for you, it's completely countered by my ability."
"My dojutsu—Mugen no Me—nullifies all falsehoods in its gaze. Izanagi included."
With those words, Danzo's entire being disintegrated into nothingness.
A moment later—his original corpse reappeared, lying motionless on the ground.
Without chakra to suppress them, the Hashirama cells in Danzo's body went berserk, causing his half-destroyed remains to writhe violently.
Douhuan swiftly formed a series of seals, placing several binding fūinjutsu on the body to prevent further cellular rampage.
Then, he bent down and lifted what remained of Danzo Shimura.
"Let's go. We're heading back to the village."
"...Back to the village?" Saito blinked in surprise.
"Yes," Douhuan replied casually. "We're going back to demand answers."
His gaze then flickered toward a barely breathing Root ninja in the distance.
"Bring him as well."
---
At the Hokage's Office
Inside his office, Hiruzen Sarutobi lit his pipe for the twenty-seventh time that day.
A heavy sense of unease had plagued him since the morning.
"Hokage-sama!"
Suddenly, an Anbu ninja barged into the office.
"Uchiha Douhuan has returned to the village! There's been an altercation at the village gates!"
Hiruzen's heart sank.
Douhuan had returned? That meant Danzo had failed.
"Why would there be an altercation if he was simply returning from a mission?" Hiruzen asked, forcing himself to remain calm.
The Anbu hesitated before answering—
"Because he's carrying Danzo-sama's corpse."
Hiruzen's eyes widened in shock.
He had already anticipated that Danzo might fail. He had even considered the possibility that Danzo had fallen under Kotoamatsukami.
But he had never expected Danzo to die outright.
"And…" the Anbu swallowed hard.
"Danzo's corpse… bears multiple Sharingan."
"WHAT?!"
Hiruzen shot to his feet.
Even for him, this was a shocking revelation.
"The village elders have already heard the news and are heading to the gates."
"Furthermore, the Uchiha clan has also been informed. They are mobilizing."
At those words, Hiruzen could no longer sit still.
He hurried out of his office, making his way toward the village gates.
---
At the Village Gates
By the time Hiruzen arrived, tensions had reached their peak.
Dozens of elite Jonin had surrounded Douhuan and Inaho, forming a tight encirclement.
But no one had made the first move.
At the center of it all, Douhuan stood calmly.
Lying at his feet—as if it were nothing more than garbage—was Danzo's severed corpse.
"How dare you?! You dare to kill a Konoha elder?!"
A furious voice rang out.
The crowd parted, and from it emerged Mitokado Homura and Koharu Utatane, the two village advisors.
Upon seeing their former comrade's mutilated remains, their fury exploded.
"Seize these traitorous Uchiha!" Koharu commanded.
"Let's see who dares."
At that moment—
A large group of Uchiha shinobi arrived.
The setting sun cast a red glow, reflecting in their crimson Sharingan eyes.
Leading them were the clan's most militant elders, with Uchiha Fugaku following reluctantly behind them.
After receiving the message from Saito, the Uchiha had mobilized at record speed.
And when they heard about Danzo's armful of Sharingan—even the moderates in the clan were enraged.
Shisui, who had just completed his eye surgery, had also rushed over, accompanied by Itachi.
Both had tried to stop the growing storm within the clan, but their voices had fallen on deaf ears.
Now, they had no choice but to follow along.
"Uchiha, are you planning a rebellion?!" Homura demanded.
"Defiling the remains of our kin—if rebellion is the answer, then so be it!"
One of the Uchiha elders refused to back down.
"EVERYONE, STAND DOWN!"
At that moment, a powerful voice rang through the battlefield.
A small, elderly figure walked into the space between both factions.
Upon his white robe, the words "Third Hokage" stood prominently.
At his arrival, both sides froze in place.
Hiruzen's gaze swept across the gathering storm.
Things had now reached a tipping point.
And what happened next… would determine the fate of the village.
---