Chapter 42: You Are Mine, and Your Life Is Mine
As a spy, Nōno's mind was always working. The moment she heard the explosions, she knew it was a setup, a trap for both her and Neji.
What she couldn't understand was why Danzō had chosen to abandon her. In all her years in Root, she had served the village with distinction and had never made a single mistake. And with the Tongue-Cursing Seal, there was no risk of her leaking any secrets.
She had never imagined she would end up as a disposable pawn.
She looked at Neji. She remembered that Kabuto had been about the same age as him, only six, when Danzō had taken him. I wonder how Kabuto is now, she thought. Did Danzō raise him to be a medical-nin? Or did he become a professional spy, like me?
Nōno turned her head and stared at the ceiling. "Since you know who I am," she said, her voice devoid of all emotion, "you must also know that a Root ninja can never betray Danzō."
The Tongue-Cursing Seal was placed on the tongue, but it directly affected the brain's neural pathways. It made it impossible for a Root member to reveal any secrets, by any means. No one had ever managed to break free from its control.
Unless Danzō died. But by then, the Hidden Cloud would have no use for her.
Hearing her words, Neji's eyes narrowed. This woman had the will to cut ties with Root. Her decision to leave the organization and start an orphanage after the Third Great War was proof of that.
But Danzō had been unwilling to let go of such a useful tool. After a few years, he had used the village's "lack of funds" as a pretext to threaten her into returning to his service. With the orphanage and the Tongue-Cursing Seal as her weaknesses—especially the former—Nōno had been forced to do his bidding.
But she had never imagined that Danzō, the man who held her weaknesses in his grasp, would choose to have her killed. Even Neji, with his outside perspective, couldn't understand it. Nōno was a woman with no real combat ability. She posed no threat to Root. Killing her was a lose-lose situation.
And yet, Danzō had ordered her death.
Neji's gaze settled on the pitiful, helpless blonde woman on the bed.
If he was going to recruit her to serve the Hidden Cloud—no, to serve him—he would first have to remove the Tongue-Cursing Seal.
If even the Dead Demon Consuming Seal could be broken, then the Tongue-Cursing Seal was nothing. In the original story, Orochimaru had surely removed the seal from Kabuto after taking him in.
"Auntie Nōno, every jutsu has a weakness. The Tongue-Cursing Seal can be removed."
He walked over to her. "Open your mouth. Let me see."
Nōno's eyelashes fluttered. She didn't really believe he could do it. But there was no harm in trying. She opened her mouth and stuck out her small, pink tongue.
Neji leaned in, the veins at his temples bulging as he examined it with his Byakugan.
Most sealing jutsu worked on the same principle: the user's chakra influencing the target's. The Five Elements Seal, the Four Symbols Seal—they were all the same.
Neji studied the seal for a long time, until Nōno's mouth began to water from the discomfort.
"Did you find anything?" she asked, her curiosity piqued by his intense concentration.
Neji nodded. "It's not that difficult to remove."
Nōno sat up, her eyes wide with excitement. "You can remove it?"
"No."
"..."
She shot him an exasperated look. Then why were you staring at it for so long?
Neji rubbed his temples. To remove the seal, one needed extremely precise chakra control and a thorough understanding of the seal itself. Right now, he was less than ten percent confident he could do it. If he failed, Nōno would die. He would only attempt it when he was one hundred percent certain.
But there was no rush.
"For the time being, stay here and continue to play the part of the proprietress."
"Wait," Nōno said, a look of panic on her face as he turned to leave. "They won't let me go. Are you... are you going to use me as bait?"
"I am their primary target," Neji said, shaking his head. "They won't risk coming after you again until they've dealt with me."
"The patrol teams are searching the streets for suspicious individuals. Root won't dare to show themselves for a while. As long as you stay in the Hidden Cloud, you'll be safe."
Nōno stood up, her expression hesitant. "I think it would be better if you just handed me over to the Fourth Raikage. Then you wouldn't have to worry about the seal."
She trusted him, but she didn't trust his abilities. The Fourth Raikage was the leader of the village. Neji was a genius, yes, but he was still only six. What could he really do?
Neji walked over to her and lifted her chin, his eyes boring into hers.
"Auntie Nōno, you are alive right now because of me. You need to be very clear about whose side you're on."
"Let me remind you. From the moment I saved you, you are mine, and your life is mine."
After leaving the izakaya, Neji went straight to the Raikage's tower.
Root ninja had infiltrated the Hidden Cloud. And not just one or two, but at least a dozen. The Barrier Team had been completely unaware. It was obvious there was a mole in the village, someone with access to the barrier's periodically and randomly changed passwords. It had to be someone of high rank.
They had to find him.
Neji told the Fourth Raikage everything, omitting only the information about his Tenseigan.
Hearing that Neji had been attacked, A flew into a rage and tore his new desk in half. When he learned that a large number of Root ninja were hiding in the village, Dodai's brow furrowed in a deep, silent contemplation.
Neji took the cloaked man's severed arm from a storage scroll. "This man's swordsmanship was unusual," he said. "He used the Shadow Imitation Technique. I suspect he's from the Nara clan."
"He's missing an arm. We can start from there and dig out the rest of Root."
"Dodai, investigate this thoroughly," the Raikage commanded.
"A large-scale investigation could cause unrest among the clans and the villagers," Dodai said after a moment of thought. "But if we don't, with Root's covert abilities, it will be very difficult to find them."
"You have a plan, don't you?" the Raikage asked, a brow raised.
"Lure the snake out of its hole," Neji interjected.
Dodai glanced at him. "Root ninja are emotionless machines. They won't give up until they complete their mission. Unless they receive a retreat order from Danzō, they will strike again. And that's when we'll have our chance."