Once the barrier dissipated, Arata paused for a moment, observing the aging features of the man before him. Then, with deliberate calm, he said:
"Finally, Lord Third, please summon Advisor Danzo for me."
At Arata's request, Hiruzen's already aged face seemed to grow older in an instant.
A rare silence fell over him as he pondered. Finally, he spoke with a hoarse voice:
"Very well. I will call him."
Hiruzen then produced a cord from somewhere, and after a brief tug, a shinobi appeared....a figure Arata had never seen before.
Dressed in the black uniform of the ANBU, the man moved with instantaneous speed, appearing before the Hokage in a blink.
Hiruzen instructed him, "Go summon Danzo. I need to speak with him immediately."
The ANBU nodded silently and vanished with a teleportation technique.
Watching him go, Hiruzen explained quietly to Arata,
"He is one of my most trusted subordinates. With him, Danzo will arrive faster than anyone else could summon him."
He then asked, with a faint trace of unease,
"Arata… are you intending to control Danzo the same way you controlled me?"
Arata met Hiruzen's gaze steadily and nodded.
"Yes. Danzo is too great a threat. You know how he has always opposed the Uchiha.
I cannot risk him lurking in the shadows, scheming."
Hiruzen's face, lined with years and burdened with worry, reflected a mixture of guilt and helplessness.
He knew Arata spoke the truth. Danzo had always been a thorn in the Uchiha's side.
He hesitated, then said bluntly,
"Though Danzo has committed many wrongs… including the incident with Shisui, I will ask this of you.....please consider sparing his life.
He is still useful; he can manage Root and handle intelligence gathering for you."
Arata simply nodded internally, expecting this argument.
The bond between Hiruzen and Danzo was well-known, and it was one of the few ties keeping Danzo's audacity in check.
If not for Hiruzen's indulgence, Danzo would have already acted without restraint.
Arata gave the Third Hokage a deep, steady glance, and said instead:
"Lord Third… sometimes, I think Danzo might be more suited to the position of Hokage than you are."
As for Danzo's fate, Arata had no intention of sharing that with Hiruzen.
The man had committed far too many sins.
Whether he lived or died would depend entirely on Arata's judgment.
The Third Hokage fell silent. Deep down, he knew his own weaknesses: age had softened him, a dangerous trait for any leader.
The room seemed to grow heavier with the quiet, neither man speaking for several long moments.
Arata waited in the shadows, anticipating Danzo's arrival.
With his strengthened Kotoamatsukami, he no longer needed direct eye contact.
From a hidden corner with a clear view of his target, he could control the illusion with ease, provided he remained within range.
Hiruzen, seated behind his desk, puffed on his pipe silently.
Though he did not want Danzo to be controlled, he understood he could not refuse Arata's request.
After a while, approaching footsteps echoed from the hallway outside.
They grew steadily closer until the office door creaked open.
Danzo entered, unguarded. Knowing the Third Hokage personally, he had no reason to suspect anything and strode boldly to the desk.
"Hiruzen," Danzo began, unhesitant, "what urgent matter calls me here? You know I cannot appear in public easily.
Besides, I am reviewing the documents left to me by Tobirama-sensei… seeking any method to deal with that troublesome Uchiha, Uchiha Arata…"
Unseen in the shadows, Arata activated his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Carefully observing, he confirmed that the figure before him was neither a clone nor using any transformation technique.
There was a ninety percent certainty that this was indeed Danzo.
Without hesitation, Arata's Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan began to spin.
His gaze locked onto Danzo, and the ultimate genjutsu was unleashed.
Kotoamatsukami.....Activate.
Just as it had with the Third Hokage, an unseen, incomprehensible force silently invaded Danzo's mind.
His thoughts, beliefs, and will were rewritten imperceptibly.
From this moment on, the leader of Konoha's Root organization would follow Arata's commands without question.
Danzo's orders were now subordinate to Arata alone.
Like the Third, Danzo offered no meaningful resistance.
The reason was clear.....this was the essence of Kotoamatsukami, the world's most formidable genjutsu.
Danzo froze in place before the Hokage's desk. His eyes, once sharp and calculating, now met Hiruzen's silently.
Arata, satisfied, slowly stepped from his concealment, confident that Kotoamatsukami had fully taken hold.
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