"Hokage-sama!"
Anbu ninja descended from above one after another. Yamato used the Body Flicker technique to appear beside Hiruzen, asking urgently, "Are you alright?"
They had felt that massive burst of Wind Style chakra from all the way outside the valley, letting them imagine just what kind of terrifying battle had taken place here. Yet, upon arriving at the scene, they found the surroundings only slightly damaged. Yamato was completely bewildered.
"I am fine," Hiruzen shook his head. He had already dismissed Enma. No one but the two of them knew what had truly transpired here. Showing a rare hint of exhaustion, he sighed. "Masahiko arrived just in time. Danzō has retreated."
Yamato looked over, puzzled. "Masahiko, why are you here?"
Masahiko offered a smooth, effortless smile as he briefly explained his route back from the hospital and how he had intercepted Anbu operatives attempting to kidnap Yakumo. Yamato nodded thoughtfully.
Hiruzen turned to Masahiko. "So, you are saying these two children, Shin and Sai, did not participate in this rebellion?"
"Yes. They even helped intercept Osamu Akai, assisting Kurenai in killing the rogue ninja and retrieving Yakumo. My Shadow Clone Jutsu witnessed this firsthand," Masahiko confirmed.
Hiruzen nodded, a trace of sorrow knitting his brows. "We will discuss the details on the way back. Let us return to the village first."
"Understood!" Masahiko replied.
On the journey back, Hiruzen broke the silence. "Masahiko, those two boys, Sai and Shin, have been under your supervision for a month now. What is your assessment of them?"
"Sai enjoys drawing. He's kind-hearted, and his abilities are quite solid," Masahiko noted, pausing slightly for effect. "Shin hits it off perfectly with Naruto. The two are remarkably similar. To be honest... I don't think either of them belongs in Root."
"Similar to Naruto?" Hiruzen frowned deeply. Dealing with one Naruto was enough of a headache; he didn't even want to imagine a second.
"He's actually a very caring kid. Honestly, I think having him protect and guide Naruto might yield better results," Masahiko suggested smoothly.
Hearing this, Hiruzen fell into deep thought before giving a slow nod. "I will consider it."
He didn't ask anything else. Some matters simply weren't suitable for discussion in the open field. Masahiko also continued the journey in silence, his mind pragmatically focused on the System panel hovering in his vision.
[Naruto: The Prequel - Episode 19 filming complete!]
[Editing in progress...]
[Production successful!]
[Total Screen Time: 6 minutes 32 seconds. Screen Time Percentage: 31.2%.]
[Because a large number of characters appeared in this episode, your screen time as a villain exceeded 30%. Salary rewards have been increased.]
[Notification: ...]
These notifications had popped up shortly after he finished stirring up trouble and retreated from the battlefield. Earlier, Masahiko had been too busy fighting, shifting positions, and maintaining his charismatic disguises to study them properly. But looking at it now...
'A third of the screen time... Quite a lot happened, it seems.'
Reining in his thoughts, Masahiko looked toward Konoha in the distance, calculating his next moves.
'Root... I need to figure out exactly how I'm going to spin this debriefing for Hiruzen.'
Konoha was supposed to be a bustling sea of prosperity during the New Year Festival, but now it was a complete mess.
Kakashi swung his blade, decapitating a giant snake. Sweat beaded on his forehead. After panting heavily a few times, he spotted another massive serpent in the distance. Just as he was about to charge at it...
Swish! A figure flashed through the air. In a single, unbelievable encounter, the giant snake's head and body were sliced into several pieces. The newcomer landed lightly on a rooftop, the bladed claws on one of his legs retracting.
Kosuke Maruboshi looked over at Kakashi. "There is more than one Jōnin in Konoha. You do not need to push yourself so desperately."
"Senpai..." Kakashi wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Leave the rest to me," Kosuke replied. "You should be at the Hokage building taking command, not blindly slaughtering in the streets."
Kakashi froze, a look of daze washing over him. He thought of his sensei. After becoming the Fourth Hokage, Minato went on missions less and less, instead staying back to command from the rear. It was exactly because of that necessity that he couldn't personally attend to everything. Kakashi fell silent. Had he unknowingly started walking down that exact same path?
He felt stunned and lost. He wasn't ready to shoulder this kind of responsibility.
"Do not overthink it," Kosuke chuckled gently before vanishing from the spot.
Only then did Kakashi belatedly realize something: Kosuke's leg had been amputated due to a prior injury, yet it was now replaced by a highly specialized prosthetic. A Puppet Exoskeleton mixed with special metals?
He clicked his tongue inwardly, easily guessing whose handiwork it was. Only Hiruzen could provide that much special metal, and only Masahiko could invent such a bizarre and brilliant contraption. Feeling a deep wave of exhaustion, Kakashi forced himself to stand tall and hurried toward the Hokage building.
Out in the vast wilderness.
Shikuro Aburame came to a halt, coughing continuously. Even through his mask, it was painfully obvious he was in terrible condition.
"Father..."
"Inside the organization, call me Captain!" Shikuro scolded in a low voice.
Torune Aburame lowered his head. "Captain, are you alright?"
"It is an old ailment." Shikuro looked back into the distance. Danzō, his arm freshly resealed, was rapidly catching up to them.
"Danzō-sama, are you unharmed?"
"I am fine," Danzō replied coldly, shaking his head. "Let us move."
"Where are we heading, sir?" Shikuro asked. It wasn't just his question; it was the question burning in the minds of all the Root shinobi who had chosen to defect with him.
Danzō, naturally, already had a plan. "The Land of Rivers." He paused briefly. "Can your body still hold out?"
"There is no issue, sir... The Land of Rivers..." No sooner had Shikuro spoken than he was forced to cover his mouth and cough violently. Afterward, he hesitated.
"Toge has already established a stronghold there," Danzō stated.
The men exchanged looks of surprise and confusion. "That is a territory heavily monitored by the three great ninja villages. Will it not be too risky to go there?"
"It is the most suitable place for us." Danzō offered no further explanation.
The group nodded, knowing better than to press the issue. Even though Danzō was no longer a Konoha elder, his strength and decades of accumulated prestige remained. The members of Root still firmly believed in him, especially those privy to the inner workings of his grand plan like Shikuro and Fu Yamanaka.
Danzō retrieved a scroll. Unrolling it, he gave it a quick glance before tucking it away. This was a scroll written by Masahiko in response to his previous notes. It detailed how to adapt the Water Style: Water Severing Wave into a combination ninjutsu: one person would release the Water Style, while one or two others used their chakra to continuously compress the water column, turning it into a high-pressure water blade. Furthermore, it discussed the technical progression required for a single person to master it.
With this data, even if they couldn't fully master the true technique, they could at least utilize a multi-person variant. Whether it still counted as the real Water Severing Wave, however, was up for debate.
The bottom half contained answers regarding the Bringer-of-Darkness Jutsu and the Spirit Sealing Jutsu. There were extensive notes on the Bringer-of-Darkness Jutsu, indicating some promising results. As for the Spirit Sealing Jutsu, the conclusion was brief and straightforward: Masahiko couldn't understand it and needed more time to research it.
"Danzō-sama, Yagyu Masahiko... he..."
"Pay him no mind. He is a smart man. He knows exactly what he wants," Danzō replied, absolute certainty in his cold voice. "Hiruzen values him greatly and has put extensive effort into grooming him. It was never possible for him to be blindly loyal like the rest of you, willing to sacrifice everything."
Reaching this point, Danzō let out a quiet, cynical chuckle. "The fact that he was willing to give me this much is already quite the surprise."