Assassinating Shimura Kobira was originally intended to strike a blow against Danzo, but unintentionally helping Hatake Sakumo was a pleasant surprise. It seemed that as long as one put in enough "effort" regarding Danzo, there would always be a return on investment.
The Fox Division was preparing to depart for the border of the Land of Steam. Purple Cat followed Captain Fox into Vice-Commander Yellow Dog's office. Yellow Dog discussed the priorities for the upcoming mission, but the final topic was a specific request from Fox.
"Commander, while I was serving as an instructor at Root, I noticed a recruit named Yamanaka Ryu with excellent talent. I hope she can be transferred to my division."
"Oh?" Yellow Dog mused. "Yamanaka Ryu... why does that name sound so familiar?"
He glanced at Purple Cat standing behind Fox and remembered her real name was Yamanaka Rika. Fox was clearly worried about Purple Cat's younger sister being swallowed by Danzo's Root. Becoming a Root ninja was indeed a terrifying fate.
"Very well," Yellow Dog said. "Follow me. We'll go to Root right now to claim her."
"Thank you, Commander!"
...
Yagami and Purple Cat followed Yellow Dog to the Root base, located within the Forest of Death, just a kilometer from the ANBU headquarters. Upon entering, Yellow Dog signaled for C to approach.
"ANBU needs to replenish five members," Yellow Dog stated. "We'll take the most capable recruits directly. C, bring me the roster and training records."
C had J fetch the scrolls. As Yellow Dog reviewed them, C interjected, "Lord Yellow Dog, these recruits haven't even completed three months of training. Moving them to ANBU now seems... irresponsible."
"The Lynx Division is heading to Grass, and the Fox Division is heading to Steam," Yellow Dog countered coolly. "Both will see casualties soon. It's better to arrange replacements early and let the captains train them in the field."
Yellow Dog quickly selected five people. Yagami noted that if Yellow Dog had picked only one person, C might have suspected an ulterior motive and refused. Selecting five made the inclusion of Yamanaka Ryu seem perfectly routine.
"Please wait, Lord Yellow Dog," C said. "I must take these five to Lord Danzo for final approval."
The five recruits followed C out of the training hall. Yagami watched the twenty children remaining. They were training with a grim intensity that belied their age; while they should have been enjoying the innocence of early childhood, they were already perfecting their Taijutsu.
After a long wait—far longer than expected—the recruits returned with C.
"Lord Yellow Dog, you may take them," C said.
...
Back at ANBU, the recruits were distributed. Yagami claimed Yamanaka Ryu and led her to his office. Purple Cat, acting as his assistant, followed them into her private scroll room, trembling with excitement.
Once the door was shut, Purple Cat removed Ryu's Root mask. "Don't be afraid, Ryu! It's me!"
But Purple Cat froze. The face beneath the mask was pale and hollow. In less than a month, Ryu's lively, spirited nature had vanished, replaced by a haunting, hyper-vigilant fear.
"Ryu, what happened to you?"
"It's nothing," Ryu whispered, her voice devoid of emotion. "In ANBU, we cannot address each other as sisters. Purple Cat... what is my code name?"
Purple Cat's heart ached. "Come, let's see Captain Fox. He will assign your mask and name."
They entered Yagami's office. "Captain, the recruit needs her assignment."
Yagami looked at the girl. That long delay at Root while they met with Danzo... a dark suspicion crossed his mind.
"I understand. I'll speak with the recruit privately to assess her skills first. Purple Cat, go tend to your duties."
Once they were alone, Yagami asked a few routine questions to lower her guard. Ryu explained she was proficient in the Yamanaka clan's secret techniques and basic medical ninjutsu. Beneath the desk, Yagami's hands were already moving through seals.
Demonic Illusion: Descending Hell Gigas!(Temple of Nirvana Jutsu)
White feathers began to drift through the air. Ryu, exhausted and only at the level of a Chunin, stood no chance. She slumped into a deep sleep instantly.
Yagami caught her and laid her on the desk. He pried her jaw open and inspected her tongue. It looked clean, but he didn't trust it. He channeled his unique Uzumaki-tainted chakra into a specific counter-seal.
"Five Elements Unseal!"
The burst of pure sealing chakra acted as a catalyst. Suddenly, black ink bled onto Ryu's tongue, forming the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal—the hexagram of the sixty-four trigrams, two yin lines and four yang lines.
Yagami's face darkened. He had been willing to give Danzo a moment to breathe, but the old fox had used that breath to poison his own subordinates. Danzo clearly intended for these five to be his ears within the ANBU.
He repeated the process throughout the night. He slipped into the locker rooms of the Golden Eagle Division and the Black Ant Division—the latter being the Hokage's most trusted unit.
Every single one of the five new recruits had the seal.
The bad news: Danzo had planted spies directly under Yagami's nose.
The good news: Danzo wasn't targeting Yagami specifically; he was casting a net over the entire ANBU, including the unit that guarded the Hokage's secrets.
Yagami didn't report this to Yellow Dog. He had a better resource. He would have Uzumaki Yuka study the seal to find a way to break it silently.
For now, he would head to the Land of Steam. He would help Hatake Sakumo build his reputation and hide in the chaos of the border conflict while Danzo's "mad dog" phase ran its course in the village.