"Hah, and here I was wondering who it might be. Turns out it's our illustrious Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin from the Hidden Leaf Village! Aiya... I must have underestimated Hiruzen's determination to stamp me out—he even went so far as to drag this vagabond back from outside the village…"
Even though it had been some time since they last met, the distinctive white hair and the iconic oil-symbol forehead protector were enough for Danzo to immediately recognize the man who had ruined his plans. While his face briefly contorted in shock and anger, he soon returned to his usual calm demeanor. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the writhing Naruto, who was howling in pain as his body convulsed violently. Confirming that his trump card was proceeding according to plan and entering a Tailed Beast transformation, Danzo casually plucked a shuriken from his arm—allowing his wound to heal rapidly thanks to the regenerative powers granted by the First Hokage's cells. With an indifferent face, he twirled the blood-stained weapon between his fingers and sneered mockingly.
"Someone of your... 'strength'... stooping to tailing others like a petty thief, masking your presence so well—not bad. Let me guess… is that a skill you picked up from all those peeping sessions in women's bathhouses while traveling the world for 'research'?"
Danzo's sarcastic tone, combined with Naruto's weakening cries, made Jiraiya clench his fists, veins bulging with fury. Regret burned deep in his chest. Regret that he hadn't aimed better when he first attacked—that he hadn't put a hole through this bastard's skull and ended his life on the spot!
"You damn geezer… I thought I already had the lowest opinion possible of your disgusting true nature behind that fake mask... but I didn't expect you'd stoop so low as to use a child! You ruined his childhood, let the village treat him like a monster, and now you want to steal the Nine-Tails from his body?! You know his body can't handle that kind of rampaging Tailed Beast chakra! You're trying to kill him!"
Jiraiya ignored Danzo's insults, eyes locked on Naruto. Slowly, he drew one foot back, stabilizing his stance, arms loosening into his usual fighting pose.
"I'm giving you one last chance, Danzo. If you want to die with even a shred of dignity, then let Naruto go. Otherwise…"
His voice low and threatening, Jiraiya's posture may have looked somewhat comical, like a priest in the middle of a dance, but the fire in his eyes and the snarl on his face erased any trace of humor. He looked less like a man and more like a wrathful demon risen from the depths of hell. If Naruto hadn't been collapsed mere feet from Danzo's feet, Jiraiya might have unleashed a storm of attacks already instead of just that single warning shuriken.
"Oh? And what if I don't? Gonna kill me? You look scary enough… but I doubt you have the guts to risk it while he's here."
As a seasoned schemer, Danzo could easily see the hesitation in Jiraiya. Smirking, he suddenly slammed his foot into Naruto's soft belly. The boy, who was barely conscious and on the verge of passing out, let out a hoarse, agonizing scream as his body convulsed again, his eyes rolling back. The scream echoed through the empty cavern like a curse.
"Mm~ hear that, Jiraiya? Isn't it beautiful music? A shame I wasn't there when this little brat's idiot parents died—I missed such a perfect performance. One of the few regrets of my entire life."
"DANZO!! You bastard!! Let go of Naruto!"
Jiraiya had been holding back his fury, afraid that a rash move might provoke Danzo into hurting Naruto further. But the moment Danzo began tormenting the child even more cruelly, he couldn't hold it in any longer. He had always felt guilty for not being there to protect Naruto—and now seeing him suffer like this was unbearable. His eyes burned red with rage as he instinctively raised a hand and began forming a glowing Rasengan, ready to leap into action. But before he could move—
Danzo pressed a glinting kunai against Naruto's fragile neck, the blade pricking just enough to draw a trickle of blood. The message was clear: whatever Jiraiya tried, Naruto would die first.
"That's more like it. Good boy."
Seeing Jiraiya halt, teeth clenched and face twisted in rage, Danzo finally relaxed a little, feeling the weight of the situation shift in his favor. He now realized just how valuable Naruto truly was. With a mocking smirk, he taunted:
"I still don't get why Hiruzen went through so much trouble to bring you back. You failed to stop your friend's defection, you never won the heart of the woman you loved, and even your so-called 'precious student' died like a fool without you ever saying goodbye. You're a complete failure from beginning to end! And now what? You return all the way here only to watch this brat die? Powerless again? Or… do you enjoy it? If I were you, I'd have ended it long ago rather than live such a pathetic existence. Hahahahaha!"
Danzo's words were aimed directly at Jiraiya's heart—and by extension, a slap in the face to the Third Hokage's legacy. In his arrogance, Danzo focused entirely on mocking Jiraiya, forgetting a crucial and dangerous fact...
Tailed Beast Jinchūriki were considered their village's ultimate weapon. Even three-year-old Naruto was no exception once transformed.
Splat.
Lost in his gloating, Danzo had let his guard down and forgotten that the enraged Naruto—half-transformed into a Tailed Beast and clutched tightly in his arms—was essentially a ticking time bomb.
And now, that bomb exploded.
Naruto, his eyes now beast-like and glowing crimson, driven by instinct and rage, lashed out. His right hand, now clawed and shrouded in a cloak of Crimson Chakra, shot forward—piercing through Danzo's chest and shattering his heart.
"Gah… y-you… brat…?!"
Danzo's face froze in shock. He looked down at the boy in his arms, the very one who was supposed to be helpless, now ripping through his chest.
"I… I gave you the chance… the power to explode… and you… you dare—"
Naruto didn't let him finish. With a growl, he retracted his arm just enough to shove his claws deeper and violently shred what was left of Danzo's internal organs. Then, with a wet squelch, he ripped his hand free, warm and dripping with blood and gore.
Danzo stumbled backward, but Naruto wasn't done. With a savage roar, he kicked the dying man to the ground and began stomping down with brutal fury. Blood and fragments of bone sprayed through the gaping hole in Danzo's chest, as Naruto howled like a wild beast, venting all the pain and rage pent up inside him.
"Naruto… you poor child… it's too late, huh? He's completely lost control."
Though Jiraiya felt a grim satisfaction watching Danzo meet such a gruesome end, his joy was quickly replaced by dread. Could he still bring Naruto back from this? Could he stop the transformation alone?
But before he could act, something strange happened—so strange, in fact, that it completely changed his priorities. He vanished instantly using the Body Flicker Technique.
Because in that very moment—Danzo's corpse began to dissolve. The body twisted and vanished into thin air… only to be replaced by a completely unharmed, newly-appeared Danzo, standing right in front of Naruto once again.
"Damn it! I let my guard down! I can't believe I wasted a precious Sharingan on that brat… Unbelievable!"
Just as Naruto had feared—Danzo had not only grafted the First Hokage's cells into his body but also mastered a forbidden Uchiha technique. By sacrificing a single Sharingan, he could use Izanagi, a secret jutsu that rewrites fate itself, even erasing death—for a time.
Though Danzo couldn't fully wield Izanagi's power, the brief window it gave was more than enough to save him from death.
"Filthy animal! You dare betray your master?! All you had to do was obey!"
Despite being revived, the humiliation of dying at the hands of a three-year-old drove Danzo into a blind rage. He raised his arm again, intending to use his remaining Sharingan to fully subdue Naruto—or rather, to seize control of the rampaging Nine-Tails.
"Not on my watch! Rasengan!"
But Danzo had grown complacent. His battle instincts dulled with age and politics. So focused was he on Naruto that he completely forgot about Jiraiya.
In a flash, Jiraiya appeared behind him.
A swirling, roaring orb of blue chakra smashed straight into Danzo's skull.
Boom!
Blood and brains exploded outward. The Rasengan tore through him with brutal finality. Danzo's lifeless body staggered, then collapsed forward—dead once more.
"Tch. So that's a jutsu that lets you come back from the dead? Creepy as hell. But you won't be using Naruto as leverage anymore. You really did hoist yourself by your own damn petard."
Not long after, Danzo's headless corpse twisted and reformed once more. The old man appeared again, face pale and furious.
Jiraiya cracked his knuckles with a loud pop and narrowed his eyes, voice dropping cold and heavy.
"Now… it's time to settle this. Get ready, you filthy bastard. For what you just did to Naruto—no matter how many times you come back, I'll kill you again… and again… until there's nothing left to bring back."