"Cooperate?"
Danzo stared at the fox-masked man before him.
It wasn't as if he had never considered dealing with Fox before.
He had.
He had simply never succeeded.
The first reason was simple—Fox's strength grew far too quickly.
One moment he was a jōnin.
The next, he had already stepped into the Kage level.
And now… he could even crush a Tailed Beast.
Trying to move against him now would be nothing short of foolish.
The second reason was even more troublesome.
Fox walked the same path as Danzo—
the path of moral compromise.
The methods Danzo had used against Hatake Sakumo and Tsunade were utterly useless against Fox.
Danzo knew Fox's true identity.
As far as he knew, Fox had no fewer than seven or eight lovers.
Was he supposed to kill all of them?
Kill one or two?
Fox would probably just feel sad for a night.
Kill three or five?
That would only enrage him—and the consequences would be unbearable.
A shinobi who was both powerful and morally flexible—
was almost impossible to deal with.
Danzo's gaze flickered.
"So… how do you propose we cooperate?"
Yako spoke calmly.
"Lord Danzo, you must already know this.
I wanted to obtain the Scroll of Seals from the Hokage.
But he refused."
"The Scroll of Seals is very important to me.
Just as Orochimaru once sought it, I now need it just as urgently."
"When a shinobi reaches a certain level, ordinary ninjutsu begins to lose its effectiveness.
Forbidden techniques… are the next step forward."
"So I wonder—
what can I offer in exchange for the Scroll of Seals?"
Danzo relaxed slightly.
So that was it.
Just like Orochimaru—
Fox had begun chasing the pinnacle of power.
Even Wood Release was no longer enough to satisfy him.
Danzo said slowly:
"I'm not as rigid as Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Obtaining the Scroll of Seals from me… isn't impossible."
He stared at Fox, his expression gradually darkening as old memories surfaced.
Fox seemed to sense it and spoke first.
"Lord Danzo, our previous… minor conflicts were all due to Yellow Dog."
"The misunderstandings were between Advisor Shinnosuke and you.
As his subordinate, I naturally had to support him."
"Now that Lord Shinnosuke has unfortunately fallen…
those misunderstandings should be put to rest."
"In truth—
there is no real conflict between us, is there?"
Danzo thought for a moment.
That explanation… made sense.
All the setbacks he had suffered in recent years had come from the expansion of Sarutobi Shinnosuke's faction.
Power in Konoha was like a six-inch cake.
The more Shinnosuke took—
the less remained for everyone else.
And Danzo had been the one losing slices.
Fox, as Shinnosuke's right-hand man, had opposed him at every turn.
But now Shinnosuke was dead.
And Fox… was looking for a new ally.
Danzo spoke again.
"What I want is simple."
"Spiral Zestu's Mangekyō Sharingan."
"Bring it to me—and I will give you the Scroll of Seals."
Yako inwardly scoffed.
Old bastard… still thinking about Mangekyō.
His gaze flicked briefly toward the figure behind Danzo—
Uchiha Suigiku.
If Danzo wanted Mangekyō so badly…
perhaps he should start with the traitor already at his side.
Yako feigned hesitation.
"Lord Danzo, you know how difficult it is to catch Spiral Zetsu.
He can come and go freely."
"And he's an important subordinate of Uchiha Madara."
"On my way here, I already anticipated that you might ask for Mangekyō."
"To deal with someone like him, we must strike at what he cannot afford to abandon."
"In other words—
we must target Uchiha Madara."
"If we pressure Madara, Spiral Zetsu will have no choice but to stay by his side."
"And that… is when we can kill him."
Danzo nodded.
"That is reasonable."
Yako continued:
"To be frank, even if I cannot defeat Madara outright…
I can at least hold him off for a time."
"But I cannot fight both of them at once."
"So, Lord Danzo—
I will hold Madara in place."
"And you… take Spiral Zetsu's Mangekyō."
"What do you think?"
Danzo frowned.
The logic was sound.
Fox wasn't exaggerating.
This might indeed be the highest probability approach.
But Danzo didn't agree immediately.
Instead, he said:
"Gather intelligence on Spiral Zetsu first."
"Once we understand how to obtain the Mangekyō—
we will discuss this again."
Yako understood.
Danzo was far too cunning to fall for anything too quickly.
So Fox said nothing more and left Root.
Danzo watched his retreating figure.
One detail caught his attention.
Fox hadn't used the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Then Danzo sneered inwardly.
Of course not.
Flying Thunder God required spatial talent.
Precision beyond imagination.
Even if Fox had obtained the technique—
how could he possibly master it in just a day or two?
The next day—
Yako arrived at the ANBU base and entered the commander's office.
This office…
had once belonged to Danzo.
Then to Shinnosuke.
And now—
it belonged to him.
The entire ANBU now lay under his control.
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Even Danzo.
Even the "sand" they had mixed into his ranks.
All of it… within his grasp.
Just as Hiruzen used the will of Konoha to demand sacrifice—
Yako could use ANBU's rules just as easily.
To control.
Or eliminate.
As simple as drinking water.
In just two days, those "sand grains" had already begun to feel the overwhelming pressure of the new commander.
The door opened.
A woman wearing a snow-rabbit mask stepped inside.
Yakushi Nono.
She placed a scroll on the desk.
"Commander, this is the intelligence summary from the Hidden Stone."
"I've re-established contact with their intelligence handler."
"At this point, all major villages' intelligence networks have been restored."
Yako picked up the scroll.
Yakushi Nono explained:
"After you killed three high-ranking shinobi from the Hidden Cloud…"
"the entire shinobi world has fallen into a strange silence."
"To the other villages, a terrifying balance has emerged."
"Uchiha Madara's rogue organization is suppressing Konoha."
"And you… are suppressing everyone else."
"No village wants to see their Tailed Beast killed."
"After the Hidden Cloud suffered heavy losses, the Hidden Stone has become restless."
"Many jōnin are urging an attack on the Hidden Cloud."
"But since they also participated in the ambush against Shinnosuke…"
"Ōnoki fears retaliation from Konoha."
"So for now—
all sides are locked in a fragile balance of deterrence."
"Our allied nations are safe… for the time being."
Yako nodded.
Then said lightly:
"So how do we convince Ōnoki to act boldly against the Hidden Cloud…"
"and assure him that I definitely won't interfere?"
Yakushi Nono shook her head.
"No matter what we say… he won't believe us."
"In fact, he'll only become more cautious."
Yako smirked slightly.
A den of old foxes…
Danzo was one.
Ōnoki was another.
He gestured for her to come around the desk.
Why bother analyzing middle-aged schemers…
when there was a beauty right in front of him?
He wrapped an arm around her waist, feeling the curve of her hips.
"Once you're back in the village, there's no need to use transformation techniques."
"A mask is enough."
Yakushi Nono gently cupped his face.
Through the mask, she looked into his dark eyes.
At last—
she no longer had to obey Danzo.
No longer had to wander endlessly.
She could finally return to the orphanage…
and see the children again.
All of this…
because of the man before her.
He gave her a sense of safety she had never known.
Her sacrifices…
had been worth it.
"Tonight… come to my orphanage. Alright…?"
Yako paused, then said:
"Tonight?"
"I don't think that's necessary."
Her heart tightened.
She had long noticed—
the other assistant, Purple Cat.
Her relationship with Fox was… far from simple.
So this was it.
She still couldn't compare…
to the one who had been by his side the longest.
But she quickly steadied herself.
In ANBU—
jealousy was laughable.
Yako continued, his hand still resting at her waist.
"No need to wait until tonight."
"I'll deal with one of Danzo's spies first."
"Go wait in the lounge next door."
"I'll be there soon."
Yakushi Nono let out a soft hum and walked toward the side room.
Yako picked up the scroll. After analyzing the data, he decided to consult Hippo—who was proving to be much more "efficient" than White Ram. White Ram had been with him too long and was starting to act like a good person. Hippo, on the other hand, was the true moral floor of Konoha.
Half an hour later—
she stepped out of the office, nearly bumping into Purple Cat, who was waiting to give her own report.
Yakushi Nono recalled the traces left in that lounge…
The scent.
The signs.
So it was you… Purple Cat.
Purple Cat, meanwhile, instinctively held her breath—
her guard instantly rising against this new "snow-rabbit" assistant.