Deep within Konoha's underground facility...
Seated in a wheelchair, Danzo waited anxiously.
Did the shaking stop?
Seems like... the fight's over?
What was the outcome?
The moment the noises above quieted down, Danzo quickly pressed for answers.
Two Root agents who had just barely returned immediately reported their findings.
The result?
When he heard that Sarutobi had used [Kinjutsu] without hesitation to take an enemy down with his life, Danzo couldn't help but shudder inwardly.
He tightly clenched his remaining hand — his left fist — tightly clenched.
They had been rivals for decades, locked in a lifelong struggle.
Their bond had always run deep.
Though countless times he'd wished that old man would just die already, so he could finally seize control of Konoha.
He'd even once sent assassins after Sarutobi.
Yet now, upon truly hearing of his death,
A wave of sorrow surged within him, followed by a flood of conflicting thoughts.
That bastard!
Even in death, you're always one step ahead of me?!
But don't worry, Hiruzen. Once I become Hokage, I'll make sure your sacrifice wasn't in vain!
Danzo angrily cursed under his breath, silently vowing revenge for Sarutobi.
Ah, Lord Danzo... There's also another report.
Speak!
After the Hokage's death, it seems he summoned The First Hokage and The Second.
It was those two Lords who repelled the enemy and defended the village...
Upon hearing this, Danzo was stunned yet again.
His expression changed drastically.
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
H-How could those two Lords possibly return to life?!
If they've come back... where does that leave me?...
At this moment, even the ever-calculating Danzo lost his composure.
After all, standing before The Second, Tobirama, he'd always been merely a cowardly member of the Personal Guards who couldn't bring himself to die honorably.
And compared to The First Hokage, whose power surpassed even that...
If those two truly returned, then where exactly would there be room for someone like him anymore?...
Just as Danzo was panicking internally and denying everything repeatedly,
A familiar voice barked sharply from above the towering underground facility:
Danzo!
This instantly startled him.
He hurriedly looked up.
The next moment,
Indeed, a figure descended from above, landing steadily right in front of him.
T-Tobirama... Lord Second!
Y-You're really here!
Speechless, Danzo stared at the familiar silhouette before him, stammering in shock.
Tch. Danzo, you've gotten old too, huh?
Why are you hiding in such darkness underground?
It took me quite some effort to finally find you!
Do you call yourself a Ninja of the Hidden Leaf, yet hide away when the village faces crisis?!
After landing, Tobirama surveyed the gloomy underground facility with clear disapproval.
Back when he died fighting, Konoha hadn't built all these elaborate underground facilities yet.
Instinctively, he criticized Danzo.
Found hiding here instead of fighting outside...
However, when he turned to take a closer look at Danzo,
and noticed his former subordinate had already lost both legs, a right arm, and the right eye...
Seeing how pitiful and broken he looked,
he immediately stopped himself from saying anything further.
After all, given Danzo's condition,
it wasn't hard to understand why he was hiding here.
"It seems you've had it rough these past few years too."
Tobirama sighed, filled with emotion.
Hearing this, Danzo couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart.
"Second... Second Lord, you—"
"Save the explanations for later."
"The First Lord wants to see you. Xiao Gang has been searching for you for quite some time without success."
"That's why I came personally."
Tobirama quickly explained.
"The First? You mean the First Hokage? The First Lord wishes to see me?"
Danzo was even more shocked, his heart trembling once again.
"That's right. No more chatter."
"Hey! You two, take Danzo back to the surface first!"
Tobirama ordered sternly to the two Root ninjas behind Danzo.
The two hesitated, darting uncertain glances between Tobirama and Danzo.
Clearly conflicted inside, unsure whether they should obey.
Seeing their hesitation, Tobirama frowned slightly.
"Danzo, your subordinates are indeed loyal."
This sarcastic remark chilled Danzo to the bone.
He immediately gave the order:
"Do as told! All of you, follow the command!"
"This is the Second Lord! You must not defy his orders!"
"Yes sir!"
The two Root ninjas sprang into action instantly, lifting Danzo and leaving the base, returning to the surface.
Then, Tobirama turned his gaze to the other side.
At this moment, several dozen elite members of Root remained kneeling halfway, silently awaiting orders.
"All of you are under Danzo's command?"
"What are you still lingering here for?"
"With such fierce battle above and countless wounded waiting for treatment, are you planning to hide here like scared turtles?"
"Get up now! Immediately go assist in the village search and rescue!"
Tobirama roared loudly.
His voice caused the Root ninjas to exchange uneasy looks, their skin crawling with fear.
After all, the identity of the Second Hokage had already been confirmed by Lord Danzo.
How could they refuse?
Soon enough, the group of Root ninjas rushed out and joined the search and rescue efforts within the village.
...
Meanwhile.
To avoid exposing the [Flying Thunder God Technique],
Shimoku did not use the technique to return instantly.
Instead, he walked back together with Orochimaru.
A day and a half later,
just as dawn broke the next morning, they finally returned to their own [Homuragakure].
Back home, after giving a few brief instructions,
and receiving a gentle early-morning service from Maid Captain Nonou,
Shimoku hurriedly made his way to the training ground outside the village.
After casually setting up a barrier,
he finally pulled out 'Sasori's' core.
"Hmm?"
"Now that I think about it, I don't seem to have any puppet spare parts on hand either!"
"How am I supposed to let Sasori build a new body and come back to life?"
Shimoku thought for a while before finally choosing the simplest method.
He simply chopped down a tree outside the Village.
Using a Chakra dagger, he cut it into sections and began his [Soul Carving Technique].
Soon,
he managed to carve out a pile of puppet parts.
He placed all these wooden components next to Sasori's Core.
Quickly, Sasori sensed the suitable puppet materials nearby and immediately extended dozens of Chakra threads from within the Core.
He started assembling the wooden pieces one by one.
Before long, Sasori had shaped them into a humanoid form.
"Creak… clack-clack—"
Sasori manipulated this crude body, producing sounds of wood rubbing together.
He was clumsy and stiff, but alive nonetheless.
Yet as soon as Sasori looked at the Shimoku standing in front of him,
then lowered his gaze to examine his own hideously ugly 'matchstick man' body,
he immediately plunged into a long, heavy silence...
If given another chance,
he'd rather stay dead than reassemble himself like this ever again—especially because of that damned Uchiha brat!
Did that brat carve these parts with his damn feet?!
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