In the distant forest, Danzo suddenly felt his vision distort.
The world twisted—
Space folded—
And in the next instant, he found himself standing in an unfamiliar place.
Stab!
A kunai pierced through his back, thrust straight into his heart.
Blood spilled from the corner of Danzo's mouth, only to be washed away by the falling rain.
He lowered his gaze.
On the ground lay a puddle of flesh—Uchiha Suigiku, crushed by the Island of Miasmic Collapse.
But the person behind him…
Why—
Flying Thunder God?!
That ability—to instantly relocate both himself and even the corpse-mud—
There was no mistake.
It was Flying Thunder God.
He had experienced it before—personally brought along by his teacher.
There was no way he could be wrong.
This was impossible.
This was absurd.
Spiral Zetsu's throat had been pierced clean through by the Vacuum Blade.
Only thin strips of flesh, no more than two centimeters thick, still connected it.
And yet—
Not only was Spiral Zetsu alive—
He could still fight.
He could still use Flying Thunder God.
Danzo's voice came out hoarse:
"Who… exactly are you?"
From beneath the spiral mask came a muffled voice:
"I'm Spiral Zetsu. Isn't that who you've been looking for?"
"I came to you… and now you've found me."
The next moment—
Danzo's body vanished.
The sudden absence made the kunai feel weightless.
It pushed forward into nothing but air and rain.
Far away, Danzo reappeared.
The wound through his heart was gone.
His right eye—
The three-tomoe Sharingan slowly faded into gray.
Danzo stared at Spiral Zetsu, his voice trembling:
"No… you're not—"
Before he could finish—
A figure appeared directly in front of him.
Another thrust.
The kunai stabbed straight into his chest again.
His heart was pierced—again.
Danzo's entire body tensed.
This—
This was exactly how his teacher fought.
Mark the enemy.
Appear instantly.
Kill without warning.
He ignored the pain and immediately raised his hand—
And saw it.
On his wrist—
A seal.
A technique he knew all too well.
When Spiral Zetsu had grabbed him earlier—
That was when it happened.
A Flying Thunder God mark had been placed on him.
And that pattern—
It was identical to his teacher's.
Danzo's fear surged to its peak.
Was he…
Being hunted by his teacher?
Was his teacher not dead?
Had he, like Madara, been hiding somewhere in the world all along—
Watching Konoha…
Watching everything?
Danzo's mind spiraled.
Of course—
Of course the Cloud ninjas couldn't have killed his teacher.
The teacher must have deceived everyone.
Perhaps—
Because he knew Madara was still alive…
He had remained in the shadows, planning something.
But—
Then why…
Why kill him now?
Was it because his teacher disapproved of his actions?
"No!"
Danzo shook his head violently.
Not his teacher.
Impossible.
Then suddenly—
He remembered.
Fox.
Fox had obtained the Flying Thunder God technique from Hiruzen.
It was him.
It had to be him.
"Fox! You're Fox!" Danzo shouted, then hesitated.
"But why do you have a Mangekyō Sharingan?"
"What's your relationship with Uchiha Gogo?"
His thoughts clicked into place.
"The eyes of Uchiha Toka were never destroyed."
"You took one of them!"
When Uchiha Toka defected, Fox had been the one to hunt him down alone.
Fox's report had stated:
Toka's eyes were destroyed.
Gogo's eyes had been taken by Madara.
Gogo's abilities were Island of Miasmic Collapse and Heavenly Pillar.
Toka's were Island of Miasmic Collapse and Pillar Leech.
So the one who used Island of Miasmic Collapse earlier—
Was never Spiral Zetsu.
It was Fox.
Danzo vanished again.
Reappearing at a distance, he panted heavily, staring at Fox with extreme caution.
He pulled open his clothes, exposing his right arm.
On it—
A face of Hashirama Senju.
And three implanted Sharingan.
Unlike the future version of himself, he had not yet collected many eyes.
One in his right eye.
Three in his arm.
Four in total.
Two had already turned gray from Izanagi.
Only two remained.
"Who are you?! Are you Fox?!"
"That's no fun," the masked figure replied.
"I thought I could scare you a little longer."
"You figured it out too quickly."
Another flicker—
Another teleport.
Danzo reacted instantly this time.
His strongest defensive technique erupted:
"Wood Release: Violent Spear Tree!"
From his body, a massive tree burst outward, expanding violently.
The explosive growth forced Fox backward.
Fox retreated in a blur.
But the tree couldn't grow forever.
Eventually, it would stop.
Fox watched calmly—
And created a clone.
The clone vanished instantly.
Far away—
In Konoha.
Late at night.
Tsunade sat in her office at the hospital, writing medical reports.
Then suddenly—
A figure appeared before her.
A kunai hung on the wall.
The one Fox had given her.
"Tsunade-hime. Come with me."
Fox placed a hand on her shoulder—
And in the next instant, both vanished.
When Tsunade's vision stabilized—
She was standing in the rain.
In front of her, two figures faced each other.
Danzo.
And a masked man…
Slowly removing his mask.
Tsunade turned sharply.
"What's going on? Why is Danzo here?"
Beside her, Fox's Wood Clone spoke calmly:
"Princess Tsunade… just listen."
"It's time you learn the truth."
Her pupils trembled.
There were too many truths she wanted to know.
Too many tragedies surrounding her.
The Nine-Tails transfer incident…
Nawaki…
Dan…
Her pain was so overwhelming that she couldn't even guess which truth this was about.
Across the field—
Danzo watched as Spiral Zetsu removed his mask, revealing a face covered by another layer.
"Fox. So it really is you."
Then—
The man removed the second layer.
Revealing his true face.
Danzo narrowed his eyes.
"So… you're showing me your identity as Yakō now?"
Yakō replied calmly:
"If I followed my mother's surname…"
"You should call me—"
"Senju Yakō."
Danzo froze.
Senju… Yakō?
Immediately, his mind raced.
"You're not a civilian."
"You're a spy planted in ANBU by Senju Renji?"
Everything suddenly made sense.
"If that's true… then everything adds up."
"You've risen through the ranks…"
"And everyone above you kept dying—except Black Ape."
"You did it on purpose, didn't you?"
Yakō replied calmly:
"Don't slander me."
"Some deaths were related to me."
"But most of them… died gloriously for Konoha."
Danzo's voice turned sharp:
"What about Sarutobi Shinnosuke?"
"Was his death your doing—or another 'glorious sacrifice'?"
Yakō's gaze hardened.
"Danzo."
"From the moment you and Yellow Dog conspired to kill Nawaki…"
"We became mortal enemies."
Behind him—
Tsunade's body trembled.
Her pupils shrank violently.
Her arms shook uncontrollably.
She stared at Yakō.
Then at Danzo.
Then back at the clone beside her.
A thunderclap split the sky.
Illuminating Danzo's shadowed face.
And strangely—
He straightened his back.
As if fear had left him.
"The truth behind the destruction of the Uzumaki clan…"
"Must never be known to the Senju."
"Must never be known to the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki."
"Senju Nawaki was getting too close to the truth."
"For the sake of the village."
"For the Nine-Tails."
"For Konoha's greater good—"
"He had to die."
In that moment—
Danzo understood something.
Senju Yakō—
Was far too dangerous to Konoha.
He had become the head of ANBU.
He controlled the darkness of the village.
And Hiruzen—
Knew nothing.
Danzo made his decision.
If necessary—
He would die with him.
He tore off his upper garments completely.
And waited.
He was the root in the darkness.
Konoha's darkness—
Would be protected…
By him.