Danzo stormed back to his residence, his strides heavy with frustration. He went directly to his private vault, performed the unlocking sequence, and pushed the heavy door open.
Empty.
For a moment, he stood there frozen, staring into the barren chamber. Then his face twisted in disbelief before rage overtook him.
"Ah…"
The sound escaped low at first, but then his single eye reddened, veins bulging as he roared.
"Who did it?!"
"Who dares steal from me?!"
"I'll kill you!"
He raged like a mad beast, the grief of his loss so sharp it could move an onlooker to pity. Then, like a starving hamster whose winter stores had been taken, Danzo scurried desperately around the vault, clawing at corners, scrutinizing the floor, searching for any clue.
But there was nothing. No traces, no signs, Uchiha Gen had left nothing behind.
A perfect clean sweep.
At last, Danzo's fury could not be contained within his home. He burst out of the vault and made straight for a hidden research base deep in the forest behind the mountain.
Inside, Orochimaru stood at a workbench, gloved hands calmly conducting experiments. His golden eyes flickered sideways as the door slammed open.
"Orochimaru!" Danzo's voice was hoarse with fury. "Did you steal my money?!"
The more he thought on it, the more certain he became. Among all the enemies he had made, only Orochimaru had both the motive and the ability to breach not only the Root's vault but his personal one as well.
Orochimaru barely looked up, his expression unreadable. "Danzo… although you are the Hokage's assistant, you are not in a position to hurl baseless accusations. You speak nonsense. I don't even know what you're talking about." His voice was cool, indifferent.
"Stop pretending! It had to be you!" Danzo advanced, glaring, his single eye like a dagger. "Only you, Root's former deputy, would even know how to get into that vault."
"I'm busy," Orochimaru replied, his tone smooth and flat. "If you really think I did it, then bring evidence. Otherwise, don't waste my time."
"You—!" Danzo's voice cracked with frustration. But without proof, he had no leverage. Even he could not touch Orochimaru recklessly. After grinding his teeth in silence, he turned and stormed out.
With no other option, he swallowed his pride and sought support from his own clan, the Shimura.
Though Danzo led them as clan head, the Shimura were no longer the force they once were.
Once famed in the Warring States Era for their Wind Release mastery, their numbers had dwindled after three shinobi wars. With his backing, they ranked now only as a middling clan. Still, they retained enough resources. Through some maneuvering, Danzo scraped together emergency funds.
It was enough to sustain Root until the next yearly allocation.
As for his own livelihood, he reassured himself there were still coins tucked away in his chambers. If necessary, he would live frugally or else send Root shinobi out to 'earn' extra income through missions.
Danzo personally returned the borrowed money to the Root vault and supervised the installation of a strict defense system. If the thief dared return, he wanted them ensnared.
All morning he obsessed over it. He skipped lunch entirely, fury keeping his stomach full. Only in the afternoon did he calm enough to resume paperwork.
By the time he finished, he was faint with hunger. Danzo prepared to head home, but a messenger arrived, the Hokage summoned him.
His face darkened.
Grudgingly, he bought a bite from a street vendor, then hurried to Hiruzen Sarutobi's residence.
The sliding door of the tea room rasped open. Danzo stepped inside, closed it firmly, and crossed the tatami to kneel opposite the Third Hokage. He lifted a teacup, sipped once, then said in a deep voice, "Hiruzen, what is it you want of me?"
"Root's vault was robbed." Hiruzen puffed lightly on his pipe, his face wearing the faintest smile, easily mistaken for smugness, if not outright schadenfreude.
Danzo's single eye narrowed dangerously. "Your information is quick, Hiruzen." Damn it—there's a spy in Root.
"Of course," Hiruzen replied smoothly. "I am the Hokage. How could I not be well-informed?"
"Temporary," Danzo muttered coldly.
"You want to be Hokage?" Hiruzen asked mildly.
"Every shinobi in Konoha dreams of it."
"That may be. But when you cannot even safeguard Root, when its vault is plundered under your watch… it's laughable." Hiruzen's smile vanished, his tone sharp.
"I suspect Orochimaru," Danzo shot back. "Only he..."
"It doesn't matter who. The point is this, you failed your duty."
Danzo's temper snapped. "Hmph! So this is it, you nitpick, holding on to a single mistake, just to cling to your power!"
Hiruzen shook his head slowly. "No, Danzo. The truth is that your ideology is far too extreme. If the village were entrusted to you, peace would not last. Konoha cannot endure more turmoil. If another war breaks out, even victory would leave us weaker than ever. One calamity, and Konoha could be destroyed outright." His eyes hardened. "To be frank… I do not feel at ease leaving Konoha in your hands."
Danzo's face turned to stone. "Hmph. In other words, only if you hold power yourself do you feel safe."
"Yes," Hiruzen said calmly. "Only if I hold it myself. But I will not cling to the seat forever. I intend to find a worthy successor during my tenure. If you one day satisfy me, I would not oppose supporting you."
For an instant, hope flickered in Danzo's chest but he crushed it at once. This was a carrot dangled before him, nothing more. No matter how he toiled, one word of 'dissatisfaction' from Hiruzen would undo it all.
And time was not on his side. He was old. Even if he rose to Hokage now, it would not be for long. After decades of waiting, he could no longer stomach further delays.
Hiruzen seemed to sense his silence. "Ah… why must it always come to this with you? Look at this."
The Hokage produced a scroll from beneath the table, laying it gently before him.
Danzo's pulse quickened. A bad feeling churned in his gut. He unrolled the parchment and his blood ran cold.
The document detailed everything; his and Orochimaru's secret resumption of the Wood Style transplant experiments, their black-market dealings, the Sharingan he had stolen during the Third Shinobi War, his role in the Nine-Tails Night, and countless hidden operations.
Even the Wood Style research, which Hiruzen had never authorized, was laid bare.
Orochimaru and Danzo had restarted it in secret.
Though Hiruzen had known for some time, he had held his anger, choosing to watch, so long as villagers and countrymen were not used as test subjects.
"Danzo," Hiruzen said gravely, "your selfishness runs too deep. Darkness fills your heart. I too have selfishness, I too have darkness but Konoha always comes first for me. For you, it is yourself first, and Konoha second. Unless you change, you will never be Hokage."
Danzo trembled with suppressed rage. Easy words, coming from the one who lived forever in sunlight. If he too had been forced into the shadows, perhaps he would understand. He did not put himself above Konoha, they were one and the same.
Everything he did, no matter how foul, was for the village as well as for himself.
But caught red-handed, he could not challenge Hiruzen. The Hokage could remove him, strip everything, crush him.
Grinding his teeth, Danzo lowered his head and conceded, stating he would give up his claim to Hokage, continuing to serve faithfully as always.
Only then did Hiruzen let the matter drop.
That night, Danzo returned home.
He sat alone in darkness, replaying the encounter, and with every thought his fury grew sharper. By the time he clenched his fists, it was no longer mere anger but pure malice that burned in his heart.