---
The air in the Hokage's office was thick with tension.
Reports of the Uchiha Massacre were still echoing through the village, whispers spreading like wildfire. Distrust brewed among clans, and the civilian council demanded answers.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, sat with his pipe in hand, eyes narrowed. He had ruled long enough to recognize hidden currents beneath every event.
The massacre wasn't just Itachi's decision. No, someone else had shaped the circumstances. Someone in the shadows.
His gaze shifted to the man before him.
"Danzo."
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The Confrontation
Danzo Shimura, bandaged and unmoving, bowed slightly but his single visible eye gleamed with calculation.
"You asked for me, Hiruzen?"
The Hokage's voice was firm.
"I know you had your hand in this. You've always manipulated from the shadows—feeding hatred, planting paranoia. The massacre was unavoidable, but your schemes have gone too far. From today forward, Root is disbanded."
The silence that followed was heavy. Even Danzo's hardened face flickered for a moment.
"You would cripple our village's defense… for sentiment?" Danzo replied, voice low, almost hissing. "While other nations grow stronger? While Akatsuki moves in the dark?"
But Hiruzen's tone cut through him like a blade.
"Do not mistake my compassion for weakness. The Will of Fire does not need your poison. I'll say it only once more—Root is finished."
---
The Illusion of Defeat
That evening, word spread quickly: Root was disbanded by direct order of the Hokage.
Many villagers sighed in relief. Some ANBU whispered of finally being free from Danzo's iron grasp. The surface seemed calm.
But beneath that calm, nothing truly changed.
In a dim underground hall, far from the Hokage's watchful eyes, Danzo stood before his kneeling operatives.
Each one bore a dark mark on their tongue—the Binding Cursed Seal of Root.
Danzo raised his hand, and the hall trembled with silent obedience.
"Hiruzen believes Root no longer exists. Let him think that. You are no longer Root in name, but in truth—you are mine."
Dozens of masked shinobi pressed their foreheads to the floor, voices unified:
"Yes… Danzo-sama."
A faint smile curled beneath his bandages.
"Disbanded? No. The roots of Konoha grow deeper in the dark. And no Hokage can pull them out."
---
Kirito's Perspective
In his lab, Kirito received the news through whispers overheard in the village: Root was disbanded. For a brief moment, he allowed himself to feel relief.
But his instincts screamed otherwise.
His clones reported unusual activity near the Uchiha district ruins—movements too coordinated, too silent to be ordinary ANBU. They wore no insignias, no clan markings.
Root operatives. Still alive. Still moving.
Kirito's eyes narrowed as he scribbled notes on a scroll.
"So the snake still slithers… Danzo won't give up his tools so easily. If Root lives, then my secret isn't safe forever."
He glanced at the jars filled with Sharingan, glowing faintly in the candlelight.
"Looks like I'll have to prepare… not just for power—but for war in the shadows."
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