The Two-Tails was currently confined within the Whirlpool Attic, secured by multiple sealing barriers.
"Go report back."
Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hand wearily, signaling Uchiha Itachi to leave quickly. The sight of those red eyes was starting to give him a headache.
Itachi nodded silently and departed without a word. He could tell that what followed was an internal matter for the Senju.
As an Uchiha, it wasn't his place to stay.
Watching Itachi leave, Tobirama Senju's eyes suddenly sharpened!
"Hiruzen!"
"Bring Danzo here!"
Tobirama's fury erupted in that moment.
What Sakura had just told him wasn't trivial—it was about Danzo's catastrophic loss of four thousand shinobi on the battlefield, the shadow of Danzo's involvement in Qikaku Sakumo's suicide that Sakura had uncovered, and even earlier, when Orochimaru colluded with Sunagakure to attack Konohagakure, Danzo's Root didn't lift a finger.
And then there was the Uchiha Clan massacre—Danzo couldn't escape responsibility for that either.
Though Danzo had more sins to his name, those were secrets Sakura shouldn't have known.
By exposing them, Sakura herself would struggle to explain how she came by such information.
But what she'd revealed was already enough to make Danzo pay dearly.
Hokage Tower
Hokage Meeting Room
Danzo trudged toward the meeting room, puzzled by Hiruzen Sarutobi's sudden summons.
He'd previously tried to recruit Haruno Sakura into his camp, but she'd shown no interest and even mocked him, leaving him humiliated.
Though he wanted revenge, Sakura's rising reputation made it difficult to smear her name at this juncture.
At just thirteen years old, finding a plausible excuse to tarnish her was proving challenging.
It couldn't be something like forming a faction…
Wait.
Forming a faction!
Danzo's eyes lit up as he began to consider Sakura's connections.
Uchiha, Uzumaki, Ino-Shika-Cho, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kakashi…
This group sticking together could absolutely be framed as forming a faction to discredit them!
The more Danzo thought about it, the more delighted he became, a faint smile creeping onto his usually grim face.
Danzo conveniently overlooked one detail.
The group he was thinking of had another name.
The Hokage's faction.
More precisely, the direct allies of the current Hokage.
Accusing them of forming a faction was tantamount to pointing at the Hokage's nose and cursing him in public.
Gripping the meeting room's door handle, a pleased Danzo pushed it open.
Though he found it odd that Hiruzen summoned him to the meeting room instead of his office, Danzo, in high spirits, didn't dwell on it.
Creak~~
The aged door let out a grating squeak, making Sakura's skin crawl with goosebumps.
But before Danzo could speak, a figure stormed in from behind!
"Out of the way, old man!"
Before Danzo could dodge, the figure shoved him aside and charged into the room.
Tsunade froze, staring at Tobirama Senju seated at the head of the table, momentarily speechless.
"It's been a while, little Tsuna."
Tobirama looked at Tsunade, his eyes softening with a rare warmth.
"Who…"
"Who did this!"
"Who reanimated my Second Grandpa with the Reanimation Jutsu!"
Tsunade gritted her teeth, glaring at Tobirama's blackened sclera and the cracked lines on his face.
Sakura nearly admitted it was her doing, but seeing Tsunade's fiery rage, she wisely chose to stay silent.
But she was a step too late. Tsunade's sharp eyes caught Sakura's guilty expression.
Marching forward, Tsunade grabbed Sakura's collar, her face livid with anger. "You pink-haired brat! After all I've done for you!"
"You dared lay a hand on my Grandpa!"
Sakura, sweating nervously under Tsunade's glare, stammered, "Uh, Lady Tsunade, let's talk this out. No need to get impulsive—impulse is the devil."
But Tsunade seemed deaf to her words, looking ready to teach Sakura a lesson.
"That's enough, Tsuna."
Seeing his great-niece about to clash with his disciple's disciple, Tobirama quickly grabbed Tsunade's wrist.
"Second Grandpa!"
Tsunade's heart ached with grievance. Who do you think I'm standing up for!
And who's your real granddaughter here!
It can't be that because Big Grandpa thought this pink-haired girl was his great-granddaughter, you're treating her like your daughter too!
I'm still a fifty-year-old bachelorette!
"It's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding~~~"
Sakura hadn't considered Tsunade's feelings when she used the Reanimation Jutsu on Tobirama, so she could only apologize sincerely.
"Those who tamper with forbidden techniques are doomed to be toyed with by them, let alone me."
Tobirama restrained Tsunade, his crimson eyes turning to the old man standing stunned at the door.
Decades had passed.
The once-handsome young man was now an elderly figure.
"Danzo."
Tsunade ignored Shimura Danzo, instead shooting a fierce glare at Sakura, then another at Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was pretending nothing was wrong.
This pink-haired girl reanimating her Second Grandpa? The old man must have approved!
Fine, fine, fine!
Got a new little disciple, so you don't care about your old one, huh, you stinking old man!
Perhaps Tsunade's glare was too intense, as Hiruzen coughed awkwardly.
"Heh, old man, not feeling well? Need me to loosen your joints?"
Tsunade cracked her knuckles, giving Hiruzen a cold, mocking smile.
"Don't worry, I'm a professional."
Hiruzen looked at his smirking disciple, at a loss for words.
"Tsunade, let's drop it."
It's exactly because you're a professional that I'm worried!
"And Sakura's here too. When it comes to medical ninjutsu, she…"
Hiruzen started to say Sakura was just as capable, but when he turned, the pink-haired girl who'd been beside Tsunade was nowhere to be seen.
???
Where's my pink-haired girl?
"Heh, Sakura's gone, so let me show some filial piety, Teacher~~~"
Tobirama looked at Shimura Danzo, his expression calm as a still pond, his earlier rage seemingly vanished.
But those who truly knew Tobirama understood—the calmer he appeared, the angrier he was.
Danzo, drenched in cold sweat, faced Tobirama.
It was as if he'd been transported back decades, unable to lift his head before Tobirama Senju.
"Tch… Teacher."
Danzo gritted his teeth.
"Shimura Danzo, tell me, are you a shinobi of Konohagakure?"
Tobirama's lips parted slightly, his simple question striking Danzo's heart like a heavy hammer!
"Yes! I am! I am a shinobi of Konohagakure!"
Danzo looked at the man before him in panic. The Reanimation Jutsu…
That damned pink-haired girl had defiled his revered teacher!
This was no different from defiling him!
"Tell me!"
"What happened with Qikaku Sakumo!"
"When the Hokage was in danger, why did you stand idly by!"
"And the Uchiha Clan's destruction—what was that about!"
"Speak!"
Tobirama's eyes were sharp, his tone icy.
He may have disliked the Uchiha personally, but from a broader perspective, preserving the Uchiha was the most beneficial choice for Konohagakure.
Losing the Uchiha was like Konohagakure cutting off its own arm!
Tobirama didn't mention Danzo's loss of four thousand shinobi.
After reviewing the incident, while he was frustrated with Danzo's incompetence, it was due to insufficient intelligence.
And while a person could be malicious or deceitful, they couldn't be stupid!
Once they acted foolishly, that was the end of their worth!
Faced with Tobirama's sharp and rapid questioning, Danzo instinctively responded, "Konoha's White Fang was slandered by rumors and took his own life."
"When the Hokage was in danger, I held back for the greater good."
"The Uchiha… the Uchiha were planning a rebellion, and their elimination was decided by Koharu, Homura, and Hiruzen together!"
Though Danzo was Tobirama's disciple, he'd lived for decades, his experience not far behind his teacher's.
Within moments, he snapped out of Tobirama's intimidating interrogation tactics, leveraging his teacher's authority.
What?
Koharu and Homura were involved too?
Tobirama turned to Hiruzen, whose face was awkward, and felt a headache coming on.
His disciples…
How had they all turned out like this!
"Summon Utatane Koharu!"
From some corner, a pink-haired head popped out, shouting excitedly.
That old hag had crossed her in the Frost Country battlefield, and Sakura hadn't forgotten!
Hiruzen looked at Sakura, who was reveling in the chaos, and felt regret.
He shouldn't have entrusted the Reanimation Jutsu to her!
In less than twelve hours since summoning Lord Tobirama, everything had spiraled into chaos!
I told you to develop Yang Release ninjutsu, and you pull this stunt?!
Catching Hiruzen's displeased gaze, Sakura grinned awkwardly.
Could she be blamed for this?
Who told Tobirama to ask her how she'd handle the relationship between the village leadership and the Uchiha as Hokage or clan leader?
And you, old man, just had to bring Uchiha Itachi into this~~~
Neither of us is escaping responsibility…
Before long, Utatane Koharu rushed into the meeting room.
The seventy-year-old woman stepped in, thinking her end was near.
Why did it seem like her long-deceased teacher was here?
Was her time up, and had her teacher come to take her away?
"Tch… Teacher… you're here for me?"
Koharu's words nearly made Tobirama's mouth twitch.
"You're still alive and well. Answer my questions and don't ramble."
Tobirama waved impatiently.
Seeing his disciple again, he felt no nostalgia.
Only frustration.
Kagami, if you were still alive, would you have turned out like this too?
Does time really change a person?
If it does, why am I still the same as I was?
So…
It's all these unfilial disciples' fault!
--
Support me & read more advance & fast update chapter on my patreon:
pat reon .com/yuuwand