After leaving Roran, Zixu headed straight to Konoha. Pain's invasion had only taken place a few days ago, and the village was still undergoing reconstruction. With the likelihood of war increasing, the unstable presence of Danzo needed to be dealt with quickly.
It wasn't that Zixu was being petty—it's just that he really didn't want to be hit by Kotoamatsukami (Distinguished Heavenly Gods) from his so-called "teammate" in the middle of battle. Even someone as cunning as Orochimaru had been caught off guard. Zixu didn't believe he could defend himself from that old man's sneak attack with one hundred percent certainty.
"It looks like war is inevitable. Even though I haven't seen how massive this so-called energy source is, I can already tell there are going to be a lot of people involved. Otherwise, how else could we sustain a war?"
Zixu quietly arrived just outside Konoha. Everyone there already knew him, so there was no need for any inspections—they let him in without question.
Nagato's plan through Pain had achieved a certain effect. Thanks to Zixu's interference, Nagato didn't follow his original path. Those who had died during Pain's invasion had truly died this time. The Konoha shinobi experienced the same helplessness and suffering that the smaller villages had endured during the previous wars.
Although Zixu wanted to eliminate Danzo, he couldn't do it outright. He needed at least a halfway reasonable excuse.
After thinking it over, Zixu decided to abandon the idea of finding a justification to kill Danzo. Why should he give others reasons for his actions? If it were someone like the legendary First Hokage, he might reconsider. But in the current Konoha? Honestly, Zixu wasn't afraid of anyone.
What Zixu didn't know was that he wasn't the only one targeting Danzo. In a cave outside Konoha, Sasuke stood with his bandaged eyes bleeding, his expression dark and sinister.
"You're saying Itachi did all of this under orders from Konoha's higher-ups? To snuff out a potential rebellion before it began…"
Uchiha Sasuke had just heard a truth from Uchiha Madara that shattered his worldview. The Konoha he once saw as bright, harmonious, and noble turned out to be a rotten hell where people were devoured without a trace. The shock of it left him disoriented.
"Don't be fooled by the surface. Konoha has always been this way. The darkness never disappeared—it's just hidden beneath a thin skin of light…"
"Believe it or not, Itachi did everything to protect you. That was his only condition. Otherwise, with Danzo's personality, do you think he would've spared any of the Uchiha? Why do you think the Third Hokage protected you for so long? It was because Itachi was still around, acting as a deterrent."
"These eyes carry Itachi's will. Fuse them, and you'll awaken power beyond the Mangekyō Sharingan."
Uchiha Madara spoke with conviction. He had done this many times—manipulating others was second nature to him.
Sasuke listened in silence. The village Itachi protected to his dying breath now appeared no better than a decaying fruit. Closing his eyes, all Sasuke could see was darkness.
And when he opened them again, he didn't expect to see light.
A village shrouded in darkness should be destroyed by darkness.
Though his vision hadn't returned, Sasuke, manipulating lightning, believed he had enough power to kill Danzo.
Madara followed behind Sasuke, and now, both he and Zixu shared the same target.
Sitting in his office, scheming as always, Danzo suddenly felt a chill run down his spine—as if a wild beast had set its eyes on him.
Zixu had already locked onto his position underground through his sensory perception and was heading straight for him.
He greeted familiar faces along the way as if nothing was happening. Calm and composed, he looked like someone just visiting an old friend, not someone on a mission to kill.
With his aura completely hidden, Zixu infiltrated the Root organization with minimal effort. His original plan was simple: get close to Danzo, kill him, leave. But things rarely go as planned.
Suddenly, alarms blared within Root. A vortex of space twisted open, and a lightning-cloaked figure appeared below ground. Danzo, who was mid-thought wondering if he had caught a cold, was stunned at the two figures that emerged.
"Uchiha Sasuke? Another Uchiha?" Danzo narrowed his eyes, concealing his bandaged arm behind his back, his expression turning grim.
What truly unsettled him was the third figure emerging from the shadows—Zixu.
What could be worse than this?
Zixu was just as surprised. What the hell are these two doing here? Are they here to kill Danzo too?
Even Uchiha Madara under the mask looked visibly stiff. He was sick of bumping into Zixu everywhere—it felt cursed.
Sasuke hadn't noticed Zixu, who had suppressed his presence to the point of feeling like a normal civilian. What he did sense was a strange irregularity in Madara's chakra. But Sasuke didn't care—his goal was to kill Danzo.
"Perfect. I won't need to do anything." Zixu backed off, opting to spectate. He was curious, especially about the lightning energy surrounding Sasuke.
"The power of a Devil Fruit… Tch." Zixu sighed. He was actually hoping more Devil Fruit users would appear—it would save him the trouble of tracking them down.
Danzo didn't waste words. Seeing Sasuke's eyes covered, he launched forward, kunai in hand, releasing sharp Fūton (Wind Release) blades—only for them to vanish in Sasuke's thunder field.
"You used Itachi's peace for your own gain. You deserve to die…" Sasuke hovered mid-air like a judgmental god, thunder dancing across his body.
"Hah, you think you can kill me?" Danzo peeled away the bandages from his arm, revealing rows of grotesque Sharingan, and even a sealed human face on his shoulder.
Despite having an arm full of Sharingan, Danzo didn't seem to have mastered any of their powers. That was expected—unlike the Byakugan, which worked purely on chakra, the Sharingan needed compatible bloodlines to fully unlock their abilities.
Trees sprouted from Danzo's arms, and he continued launching wind blades, even exhaling high-pressure air like some twisted Peashooter.
But none of it mattered. The attacks disappeared into the storm of thunder.
Sasuke eventually fell to the ground—his ability consumed too much energy to maintain indefinitely.
Madara kept an eye on Zixu, expecting a sudden ambush. But Zixu just stared back at the masked man.
"You…" Zixu opened his mouth to speak, but before he could finish, something completely unexpected happened.
Danzo, for some bizarre reason, rushed Sasuke—who was still covered in lightning armor—and stabbed him with a kunai.
The electricity surged through Danzo's body, and the lightning condensed into a blade that pierced straight through him.
Danzo collapsed… breathless.
Was Danzo… dead?
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