Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō.
The two of them were like opposite sides of a coin—one a leaf basking in sunlight, the other a root buried deep underground.
Yet in truth, the two men were remarkably alike. Both acted for Konoha, and both would do whatever it took to protect the village.
The only real difference lay in their bottom line.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had one. He knew that no matter how ruthless he had to be, there had to be a line that could never be crossed, or else one would fall into an abyss of irredeemable disaster.
He could order the massacre of the Uchiha clan in the name of "peace and security"…
But he could not bring himself to kill Uchiha Itachi or Uchiha Sasuke afterward.
Even though Itachi possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan, he was ultimately only one person.
If Hiruzen had truly wished to hunt him down, the chances of eliminating him were still quite high.
Danzō was different. To him, as long as it was "for the village," there was nothing that could not be done—even if it meant sacrificing his own people.
Had he been Hokage, once Uchiha Itachi had outlived his usefulness, Danzō would have sought the opportunity to kill him, seize his Mangekyō, and he would never have spared Sasuke either.
"Humph."
Seeing Hiruzen grow angry, Danzō said no more. With a cold snort, he turned and left, muttering inwardly:
Sure enough, you've grown old, Hiruzen. You are no longer fit to be the successor of our teacher.
"Hiruzen…"
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura exchanged uneasy glances at Hiruzen's visible fury.
"You should leave. I want some time alone."
Hiruzen said quietly.
At Kurenai's home.
Her flushed face framed between Kenya's hands, Kurenai's lips were once again stolen by his. Since earlier, she had already lost count of how many times he had kissed her.
But the final step, the true line she guarded, Kurenai refused to cross.
So long as Uchiha Kenya continued living as a reckless rebel, she could never give herself to him fully.
She wanted a partner she could rely on for a lifetime—not a thief in the shadows.
"How did you even sneak in?"
Her red lips, a little swollen, parted with the question that had been weighing on her mind.
Even Uchiha Itachi, a former member of the Anbu, knew well how strict Konoha's barriers and patrols were. With watchful eyes everywhere, Anbu operatives in the shadows, and hidden surveillance devices, slipping through unnoticed was no small feat.
How had Kenya managed it?
"You'll know in three years."
He answered with a sly smile, leaving it hanging like a riddle.
Kurenai rolled her eyes and gave him a playful glare. "As if I even want to know."
But when she noticed his hand wandering again, her cheeks reddened as she swatted him away.
"What are you doing! Don't mess around!"
Kenya didn't push further. Instead, he simply wrapped an arm around her slender waist, pulling her down with him onto the sofa until they were tangled in the intimate posture of a man and woman.
Under her flustered, reddening gaze, his lips claimed hers once more.
"Mmph—!"
Pinned and unable to resist, Kurenai felt his hand pressing boldly against her as her protests were drowned out by another kiss.
Kirigakure – Mizukage's Office.
"What are you planning to do about this, Obito?"
The figure covered in strange plant-like growths emerged from the floor, Black Zetsu's voice low and curious.
"Even if it's just the two of us here, don't call me that name."
Obito's tone was sharp, almost venomous.
He hated it—that name.
Though he often claimed he cared for nothing, the truth was that he despised his real name because it symbolized his past, his weakness, and the rotten world he had once believed in.
To him, the name Uchiha Obito represented everything he had cast away.
It was a denial born of self-deception, especially for someone who kept insisting he was beyond caring.
"Alright, alright. Then what about this situation, Madara-sama? Sand Shinobi and Terumi Mei have teamed up to attack Kirigakure. The village has lost its value, hasn't it?"
White Zetsu's tone was almost teasing, like coaxing a child.
Even without Danzō's earlier leaks, the Sand's movements had already been noticed.
White Zetsu's clones spread across the entire shinobi world, and a gathering army was impossible to miss.
Add to that Terumi Mei's frequent trips between Kirigakure and Sunagakure—there was no way Obito and his allies could fail to see the signs.
Obito gave a cold hum. "Mist was already of little use to me. My plan was to hand Yagura over to Terumi Mei once he was no longer needed. But… Yagura still has one more purpose to serve."
"Oh? And what's that?"
White Zetsu tilted his head curiously.
"The Minister of the Shinobi Forces in Sunagakure—Aizen. Haven't you investigated his background?"
Obito asked, his voice suddenly sharp.
"No. He appeared out of nowhere. Everything before now is a mystery."
White Zetsu sounded almost frustrated.
Normally, no matter who it was, their past could be traced. Their history, their identity, their flaws—something.
But this man, Aizen… was the exception. He had emerged as if from thin air, with no records, no trail, and no past to uncover.
It was the only time their network had ever come up empty.
And that unsettled Obito more than he cared to admit.
Since donning the mask of Uchiha Madara and steering Akatsuki from the shadows, he had always felt the shinobi world resting squarely within his grasp.
But now, a wild card had appeared—someone beyond his reach, a man whose true nature lay shrouded in obscurity.
It gnawed at him.
"Then we'll use Yagura," Obito said coldly. His voice dropped into a dangerous edge.
"To test the true strength of this so-called Aizen."