"How troublesome…"
Inside Konoha's Root headquarters, Shimura Danzō stared at the scroll in his hand, his thoughts drifting elsewhere.
Lately, he kept feeling a strange heat in his ears. It made him wonder whether someone was cursing him behind his back.
Then again, that wouldn't be surprising.
If all his enemies lined up around Konoha, the circle probably still wouldn't be big enough.
And recently, there had been no shortage of headaches.
"'Kō'… the Wood Release asset."
He had sent Kō to trail Hatake Kakashi, waiting for an opportunity to seize the Sharingan.
What he hadn't expected was total failure.
Worse still—Kō had helped the poisoned Kakashi escape.
Open defiance.
Unacceptable.
And that ridiculous excuse—
"I'm not just a member of Root. I'm a shinobi of Konoha. I can't harm my comrades."
Had the brat truly forgotten who controlled his life?
"It seems Kakashi's Sharingan is no longer an option…"
Danzō frowned, already recalculating.
If that eye couldn't be taken, then he would transplant Uchiha Kagami's Sharingan instead—and tighten Kō's leash.
Genjutsu.
Cursed seals.
Every method necessary.
Wood Release was not something he could afford to lose.
Kō could never be allowed to develop a will of his own.
Then there was Ren.
"That brat has returned too… apparently reporting directly to Hiruzen."
Danzō didn't yet know how the mission had gone.
But according to Root agents embedded in Sunagakure, the situation there was… chaotic.
"What exactly happened?"
"Is Pakura dead?"
"And what about Uchiha Shisui…?"
Danzō trusted his own operatives.
Ren wasn't incapable of pulling it off.
Pakura's death wasn't even the key issue.
What truly mattered was Shisui.
That Uchiha child…
"Danzō-sama, intelligence has arrived."
Aburame Ryōma stepped forward and presented a scroll.
Danzō nodded casually—until he noticed the seal.
"…Kabuto?"
The agent hidden within Sunagakure?
Why was he reporting now?
Danzō opened the scroll and skimmed it.
His expression instantly darkened.
"That brat came back?! Who gave him permission to leave Sunagakure?!"
Leaving one's post before the mission concluded was nothing short of betrayal.
But as his eyes moved further down the report—
Danzō froze.
At the same moment—
Hokage Tower
Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the report in his hands, utterly stunned.
Then he looked up—carefully, repeatedly—at the three shinobi standing before him.
For a long moment, his mind went completely blank.
Such a massive operation…
Completed by these three?
After what felt like an eternity, the Third Hokage finally spoke.
"You have performed exceptionally well," he said slowly.
"However… I have several questions."
He even felt a bit embarrassed.
They had only just returned from the Land of Wind, having already submitted a full mission report.
And yet—
He still felt as if he hadn't fully grasped what had happened.
That alone spoke to how outrageous the situation was.
After steadying himself, Hiruzen looked at Ren.
"Ren. I'm told that you handled much of the decision-making during this mission."
"I'd like to hear your reasoning."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
Ren nodded calmly.
He had anticipated this.
During the return journey, he had already prepared a complete strategy for explaining just enough—and hiding the rest.
"I want to know how you determined Sunagakure's motives," Hiruzen said.
"And according to the report, you personally returned Pakura afterward. I'd like to understand why."
At that, Shisui and Yugao both glanced at Ren—clearly dissatisfied.
The final stage of the mission had been carried out by Ren alone.
He had even sent them away to the Land of Rivers border, leaving them to handle extraction.
Anyone would feel uncomfortable about that.
Ren could only smile awkwardly.
"My judgment process was largely the same as Captain Shisui described," he explained.
"I considered Pakura's battlefield value, Kirigakure's logistical limitations, and the accumulated hatred between the villages."
"And… our own experience from the Hyūga incident a year ago—"
"Cough—cough!"
Hiruzen immediately cut him off, coughing loudly.
"I understand!"
The logic was sound.
Painfully so.
But did he really have to bring that up?
"As for my meeting with Elder Ebizō," Ren continued smoothly,
"I deliberately allowed Pakura to remain conscious and spoke from Konoha's position."
"Hokage-sama, I have never trusted Sunagakure's alliance."
"That belief was instilled by the person who trained me."
"If they intended to use Pakura as a bargaining chip, then I believed it was something that must not be allowed to happen."
"And coincidentally, we encountered Sasori of the Red Sand."
Ren paused.
"I informed Ebizō that intelligence about Sasori had already been transmitted. If anything happened to me—"
"The information would spread within the Land of Wind," Hiruzen finished quietly.
"And since you fought Sasori directly, he feared your strength. With Shisui and the others hidden, you were able to withdraw safely."
After finishing his sentence, Hiruzen let out a long sigh.
This boy…
Was far more outstanding than he had ever imagined.
Ren could think from Konoha's strategic perspective, possessed decisive courage, and executed actions others wouldn't dare.
A civilian-born shinobi—
Yet unmistakably a genius.
For a fleeting moment, Hiruzen saw the shadow of Namikaze Minato.
"…We must move quickly."
What began as concern over Naruto had now changed entirely.
Allowing Ren to remain under Danzō any longer was unthinkable.
Once he entered ANBU—
He would be Hiruzen's man.
"You've worked hard."
Hiruzen smiled warmly.
"This mission, combined with your previous performance, merits a significant reward."
"For now—go and rest."
"You are Konoha's heroes."
"Yes, Hokage-sama!"
The word heroes made both Shisui and Yugao visibly tremble with excitement.
Such recognition outside of wartime was extraordinarily rare.
Ren himself didn't care much for titles—
Until the system notification appeared in his mind.
System NotificationSide Quest Completed:Investigate Sunagakure's Secrets
Mission Evaluation:S
Reward:8 Free AttributePoints
Special Reward (Exceeded Expectations):
〈Ninja World Polymath〉
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