Anyone capable of doing this would need, at the very least, Kage-level strength.
After thinking it over carefully, Danzō felt that even an ordinary Kage might not be able to pull this off. A Kage's speed didn't necessarily reach that level. In the entire shinobi world, only a few could do it.
In his memory, perhaps only the Third Raikage of the Land of Lightning—and Konoha's Arata.
But the Third Raikage had already gone to attack Uzushiogakure. There was no way he'd have time to appear near the borders of the Land of Rain. That meant all signs pointed to Danzō's mortal enemy—Arata.
At that moment, Danzō turned and saw a familiar corpse. The lower half of the body still held the posture of someone performing a Reverse Summoning Jutsu.
The scroll was now soaked in blood, and the head was nowhere to be seen.
But after working with the man for years, Danzō recognized him instantly.
It was Sarutobi Hiruzen.
In other words, Konoha's Third Hokage had inexplicably died out here in the wilderness.
Hiruzen's strength was no joke. In a real fight, even Danzō himself was no match for him. Otherwise, Hiruzen would never have suppressed Danzō and many other strong figures to become the Third Hokage.
Yes, the Sarutobi clan's influence back then played a role—but without Hiruzen's own strength, even clan backing wouldn't have been enough for the Hokage seat.
And yet, someone of Hiruzen's caliber had died here without a sound. That meant the killer was a monster beyond Kage level.
Hiruzen had fought many opponents over the years. Even when at a disadvantage, very few could truly kill him—because he possessed Reverse Summoning.
With that space-time escape technique, he could usually flee the moment things turned bad. Almost no one could finish him off.
Even the famously fast Third Raikage had suppressed Hiruzen before but still failed to kill him—precisely because of that jutsu.
But now Hiruzen's bloodied, headless body lay here. Danzō could not be mistaken.
Linking this with his earlier deductions, Danzō immediately thought of Arata. In today's shinobi world, perhaps only Arata could accomplish something like this. That terrifying speed could belong to no one else.
And even if someone else had such speed, they wouldn't easily know Hiruzen's movements. This trip to the front line had been a sudden decision. Hardly anyone in Konoha even knew.
But Arata, as a Konoha shinobi—and publicly the ANBU vice-captain—could naturally obtain such information. So suspecting Arata made perfect sense.
What Danzō couldn't understand was this: if Arata had acted, why leave the bodies and only deal with the heads?
Then it clicked.
Arata must have had very little time after succeeding. He likely sensed someone approaching and fled before fully disposing of the corpses.
And the one he sensed coming… was probably Danzō himself.
Realizing this, Danzō instantly entered combat mode. He even tore off the bandages that always covered his right eye.
Beneath the wrappings was a three-tomoe Sharingan.
So Danzō had indeed transplanted a Sharingan long ago—and this eye most likely belonged to his former teammate, Uchiha Kagami.
Kagami had grown up fighting alongside Danzō and Hiruzen in the same squad. The fact that Danzō could harvest the eye of such a comrade showed just how cold-blooded he truly was.
After uncovering the eye, Danzō's gaze sharpened as he scanned the surroundings.
At the same time, he spoke:
"Arata! I know you're still here. If you had the guts to attack Hiruzen, then you definitely won't spare me, right?!"
Although Danzō had always operated in the shadows—including multiple assassination attempts—he knew very well that Arata had disliked him since the days Arata was only a Tokubetsu Jōnin.
If Arata hadn't been weaker back then, he likely would have attacked Danzō already.
At the time, Danzō didn't even know why Arata disliked him and didn't take him seriously. A mere Special Jōnin was, in his eyes, an ant he could crush anytime.
If Arata hadn't grown close to Tsunade later, Danzō might not even have bothered dealing with him.
But once he started, he never held back. His first assassination attempt on Arata even involved sending his own nephew—an elite jōnin-level subordinate.
Unfortunately for him, by then Arata had already obtained the system, so the attempt failed.
After that, multiple assassination plots followed, often in cooperation with Hiruzen. None caused Arata real trouble.
By now, Danzō could no longer pose much of a threat to Arata directly. So he had recently planned to target those Arata cared about.
Shizune was his next target.
Even before meeting her, Arata had specifically requested Shizune from Hiruzen. Now that they had spent time together, intelligence showed their relationship was good. That gave Danzō an angle.
His original plan was to act after the war—capture the girl and use her as leverage in negotiations with Arata.
But now, it was too late.
If Arata had already moved against Hiruzen, he certainly wouldn't leave Danzō alive.
The moment Danzō finished speaking, space behind him distorted.
Arata's hand emerged from the swirl at the same instant.
Though weaker than Hiruzen, Danzō reacted quickly. The instant Arata appeared behind him, he leapt away to dodge.
When he turned around—
Arata had already stepped out of the Kamui space and manifested once more.