"Really? What a pity. It seems I can only die with regrets."
Shimura Danzo remained surprisingly calm upon realizing that his death was inevitable.
He recalled that night over ten years ago. Fear of death had held him back, causing him to hesitate—just a moment too late—allowing Sarutobi Hiruzen to seize the position of Hokage. Had he acted differently, the outcome might have changed.
Since his teacher had sacrificed himself for Konoha, he too could die for the village—alongside Uchiha Madara.
After all, he had long prepared his trump card for the day he encountered an enemy he could not defeat.
At that moment, he removed the bandage wrapped around his right hand, revealing an eerie eye embedded in his arm. As it opened, the pupil turned blood-red, three black tomoe swirling within it.
Shimura Danzo glanced at the Sharingan on his arm and sighed with regret. If given the chance, he would have filled his entire right arm with Sharingan, granting himself countless opportunities to correct his mistakes.
However, reality was not so kind. He had discovered that bearing multiple Sharingan led to overwhelming backlash, beyond his body's ability to endure. He had experimented with various methods, but all had ended in failure—thus, he had turned to Wood Style.
"A Sharingan, and it's at the three-tomoe stage. It seems your hands are stained with the blood of many Uchiha," Uchiha Madara remarked, glancing at Danzo's arm.
"And yet, you actually implanted Sharingan into your arm? How disgraceful!"
Madara found Danzo's actions deeply insulting. It was as if he looked down upon the power of the Uchiha's bloodline.
Danzo, however, remained silent in response to the taunt. The Sharingan on his arm was merely a means to survival.
"I do not underestimate it—it is simply a matter of convenience."
With that, he lunged at Uchiha Madara.
Madara was momentarily surprised. Were Konoha ninjas now this reckless? Did Danzo fail to see his Susanoo?
No matter. He swung his blade downward.
Boom!
The already fragile stone bridge was instantly cleaved in two, crumbling beneath Madara's attack. Danzo's body lay motionless at the edge of the shattered bridge.
Seeing this, Madara dismissed his Susanoo and approached Danzo's fallen form.
However, in the blink of an eye, Danzo's body vanished.
From behind, a voice echoed:
"Four Symbols Sealing Technique!"
Madara slowly turned, his gaze falling upon Danzo, whose chest now exuded a dark, ink-like substance.
"I see... You used Izanagi, our Uchiha clan's forbidden technique. Not bad, not bad. Tobirama's student, at least, isn't entirely useless."
Madara observed Danzo, whose body was now enveloped in the sealing technique. "So, you wish to take me down with you using the Four Symbols Seal. If I recall, that technique belongs to the Uzumaki clan."
A smirk crossed his lips. "How pitiful. The Uzumaki were wiped out, and now jackals like you scavenge their corpses."
Madara understood the situation. Having activated the Four Symbols Seal, Danzo's death was inevitable.
Yet, Madara did not attempt to escape.
This was merely one of his Wood Clones. Losing it meant nothing. He was even curious to witness the full power of the technique firsthand.
Besides, he felt little inclination to run. Perhaps he would humor this poor man, allowing him at least this small satisfaction before his demise.
Madara recalled Danzo's earlier question. "Since you know about Izanagi, I may as well satisfy your curiosity. You asked how I survived my battle with Hashirama?"
He smirked. "Like you, I used Izanagi—a secret technique capable of transforming even death into illusion."
Hearing Madara's words, Danzo nodded. He did not know why Madara remained standing there, but it no longer mattered.
They say that before death, one sees their life flash before their eyes. Now, he too saw his past unfold before him.
His childhood—growing up with his parents. Becoming a disciple of Senju Tobirama.
Then came that fateful night over a decade ago. Hiruzen Sarutobi, Kagami Uchiha, Akimichi Torifu, and himself—standing alongside their teacher.
"Goodbye, Monkey. I too have shown my courage for Konoha."
Buzz!
As the ink-like substance on Danzo's chest solidified, a dark, spherical space expanded outward, engulfing both him and Madara's Wood Clone.
In an instant, they vanished—along with what remained of the crumbling stone bridge.
Shimura Danzo, dead.
With the disappearance of his Wood Clone, Uchiha Madara received its memories.
"Hmph. Even an outsider has mastered the Uchiha's secret technique? The clan is growing weaker by the day."
Standing amidst the battlefield, he surveyed the surrounding corpses—all those who had come to capture Obito were now dead, except for Danzo.
Yet, before his demise, Danzo had managed to seal away one of Madara's clones along with the stone bridge. A minor accomplishment, at best.
Shaking his head, Madara vanished.
Konoha, Hokage's Office.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was already envisioning what Danzo would do once he returned with the wielder of the Wood Style bloodline.
First, he would confirm whether the individual belonged to the Senju clan. If so, matters would be simple—he would be entrusted to Uzumaki Mito.
If not, Danzo would employ Konoha's ideology—the Will of Fire—to shape the individual into his unwavering loyalist.
Pleased with his own thoughts, Hiruzen took a slow drag from his pipe.
Suddenly, an inexplicable sense of unease gripped him.
A frown creased his forehead. In that moment, he felt as though he had lost something truly important.
He did not know why he felt this way, but it left him deeply unsettled.
A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.
"Enter."
"Lord Hokage," an Anbu operative greeted him.
"Has anything unusual happened in the village?"
"No, Lord Hokage."
Hiruzen tapped his fingers on the table. "Very well. You are dismissed."
"Yes, sir."
Once alone, he took another puff from his pipe.
"What was that feeling just now? Why do I feel as though a shadow looms over me...?" he murmured to himself.