The moment Senju Haruto's chakra erupted, four or five Root operatives instantly darted to Danzo's side, shielding him from the front.
Yet Danzo stood frozen in shock.
Why… why hadn't Kotoamatsukami worked?
When he activated Shisui's Mangekyō to cast the genjutsu, Haruto's eyes had been locked directly on his.
Without a Sharingan, there was no way Haruto should have been able to break free.
And what did he mean by "the fifth layer"?
Could it be… Haruto had known from the very start that he possessed Kotoamatsukami—and had been guarding against it the entire time?
But then… how could Haruto have known?
Was it… Uchiha Itachi?
Danzo's mind instantly flashed to that cold, expressionless face. That man claimed loyalty to the Leaf, loyalty to the village… yet could it be that he had leaked this information to Haruto?
Yes… that had to be it.
Yesterday, Haruto had met with Uchiha Itachi. They must have formed an alliance then. And during that meeting, Itachi must have told him how to defend against Kotoamatsukami.
"But you say you're the fifth layer…"
Danzo's shock faded into cold resolve. If he couldn't control Haruto with Kotoamatsukami, and couldn't recruit him—then the only option left was to take his body back and cultivate a replacement "Konoha's Arm."
"Then I… am the tenth layer!"
Danzo barked, surging forward. Behind him, Root operatives drew shuriken and launched Shadow Shuriken Jutsu, aiming straight for Haruto's vitals.
Danzo's gaze flicked—almost instinctively—to his right arm.
In the world of shinobi, information was everything. And the secrets he held far exceeded those of Sarutobi Hiruzen or Uchiha Itachi.
If Haruto was at the fifth layer, then he was at the tenth.
Layer upon layer of deception.
Haruto, however, said nothing.
Both sides were at the breaking point. Neither would withdraw without getting what they came for.
Danzo wanted Haruto's body. Haruto wanted Danzo's eye.
The village? Sarutobi Hiruzen? At this moment, they were nothing but empty words.
Even the Senju clan's compound could be destroyed and rebuilt if necessary.
After all, if Yamato could clap his hands and create a whole three-bedroom apartment, what could Haruto do?
No holding back. No hesitation.
As countless shadow shuriken hurtled toward him, Haruto slammed his palms together.
Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!
The entire building trembled violently. The floor beneath Haruto's feet split apart, and a storm of vines erupted forward—swelling and hardening at a speed visible to the naked eye. They smashed the Root operatives aside like rag dolls.
Danzo instantly retreated.
"Starting with Deep Forest Emergence, just like the First Hokage…" Danzo's tone was low and heavy.
But even as the Wood Release surged toward him, he didn't move to dodge.
After all, Tenzo was his subordinate… and his own right arm contained the First Hokage's cells.
"No one understands Wood Release better than I do!"
Drawing in a deep breath, Danzo unleashed his strongest Wind Release technique.
Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!
A razor-sharp gale, invisible yet deadly, surged forward like the slash of a weasel's sickle, instantly severing the massive trees in its path.
Among the five basic nature transformations, Wind Release boasted the most destructive cutting power—sharp enough to slice through an entire forest in seconds.
In Danzo's mind, this was the perfect counter to Haruto's Wood Release.
Then, with legs like a whirlwind, Danzo lunged forward, pulling a kunai from his robes. Infusing it with Wind chakra, he transformed it into a blade sharp enough to cut steel, sweeping it toward Haruto's midsection.
Meanwhile, the Root operatives split into attack positions—each unleashing their signature techniques, targeting Haruto's vital points, feinting to create openings for Danzo's strike.
None of this was improvised.
Danzo had prepared these moves long before arriving.
For a shinobi like him, most of the time wasn't enough—absolute certainty was required.
The failed assassination of the Third Hokage… Tenzo's defection… they had taught him this lesson well.
This wasn't a panicked strike after Kotoamatsukami had failed—this was his meticulously crafted backup plan.
"Indeed… in shinobi battles, information is everything," Haruto said, locking eyes with Danzo's Sharingan without the slightest fear of his genjutsu. "The side that masters the other's secrets first… always has the advantage."
And with that, he activated his Byakugan right before Danzo's eyes.
Byakugan—open!
Haruto's black pupils turned milky white in an instant, veins bulging around his temples.
Unlike Neji's Byakugan, bound by the Caged Bird Seal, Haruto's gave him an unrestricted 360-degree field of vision.
In that split second, he saw it all—the Root operatives' positions, their attack patterns, and the exact trajectories of their strikes.
"What?!"
Danzo's eyes went wide. Haruto not only possessed Wood Release… he could also awaken the Byakugan of the Hyūga clan.
And what's more, his way of using it was entirely different from Danzo's own transplanted Sharingan.
After implanting Shisui's eye, Danzo had discovered he couldn't close it—hence the bandages to hide it.
How had Haruto managed this?
Even though the Senju clan had intermarried widely, the Hyūga clan had always strictly forbidden outside marriage, guarding the secret of the Byakugan above all else.
Haruto seized Danzo's momentary shock, controlling his chakra with precision and flooding it through his entire body.
A cloak of violet chakra flared to life around him, deflecting the incoming shadow shuriken.
Then, with a stomp of his right foot, the ground cracked and sank beneath him.
Exploding forward with immense strength, Haruto charged straight for Danzo.
"That's… monstrous strength!"
Danzo's mind flashed to Tsunade, the village's wayward Sannin, as he swept his Wind Release: Vacuum Blade toward Haruto's neck.
But to his surprise, a kunai had already appeared in Haruto's hand—its blade lengthened with Wind chakra far beyond Danzo's own. The clash forced Danzo to retreat.
"When," Haruto asked coldly, "did you get the idea I couldn't use Wind Release?"
Wind Release: Shadowless Blade!
With a single slash, Haruto severed Danzo's left arm and drove the kunai deep into his abdomen.
The sheer force sent Danzo flying, pinning him to a tree trunk in the distance.
Landing lightly, Haruto's foot crushed the earth into a deep crater as he lunged again.
"Not only Wood Release… but Wind Release as well?"
Coughing blood, Danzo finally realized he had underestimated Haruto.
Just how many secrets was this man hiding?
Even the Byakugan of the Hyūga clan…
There was no choice.
He would have to use that.
Gritting his teeth, Danzo swung his right arm forward—straight at the charging Haruto.
Wood Release: Tree Spike Piercer!