No sooner had Ning Feng and the others departed than several figures, who had been lurking in the shadows, swiftly flickered into view.
At their head was none other than Danzō, the leader of Konoha's Root Organization.
Behind him stood numerous Root operatives, each with cold, lifeless eyes and murderous intent, like emotionless tools.
"Lord Danzō," one of the Root shinobi asked urgently, "the sudden appearance of Konoha's ANBU disrupted our joint plan with Lord Hanzō to wipe out Akatsuki. What should we do now?"
In truth, this time around, Hanzō's side hadn't consisted solely of Rain Village shinobi. Farther away, Danzō's Root members had also been lying in ambush. Their goal had been singular—to exterminate Akatsuki completely.
For Danzō, cooperating with Hanzō had merely been a means to an end, a way to use Hanzō's hand to achieve his own unspeakable objectives.
What he hadn't expected was that their perfectly laid plan would be utterly ruined by Ning Feng, who had appeared out of nowhere.
To think that even someone like Hanzō the Salamander, a so-called god of the shinobi world, had been killed almost instantly.
Had it not been for that, Danzō would have emerged long ago to help the Rain Village shinobi suppress Akatsuki.
Just thinking about how his efforts to approach and win over Hanzō had been forcibly cut short made a nameless fury rise within him.
"Hmph," Danzō said coldly. "Keep watching those ANBU members—especially the one called Uchiha Feng. His performance in ANBU has already far surpassed even Uchiha Itachi and Kakashi. That is… deeply shocking."
He paused, eyes chillingly cold. "Oh, and from now on, withdraw more of our surveillance from the rest of the Uchiha clan. Concentrate it instead on Uchiha Feng, Uchiha Itachi, and Uchiha Shisui."
"With those three around, dealing with the Uchiha clan won't be easy."
As he spoke, Danzō turned slightly and said flatly, "Orochimaru… it seems your scheme has failed after all."
Behind him, a figure cold and serpentine slowly emerged, tongue flicking like a snake's. It was Orochimaru.
"No," Orochimaru replied softly. "On the contrary, I've seen even greater possibilities in Uchiha Feng—greater possibilities for the Sharingan… and for the Uchiha clan."
Danzō, long accustomed to Orochimaru's cryptic ramblings, still couldn't help but ask, "Orochimaru… what do you mean?"
"My experiments have just succeeded," Orochimaru said with a hoarse chuckle. "Through my research, I've discovered that the Uchiha clan's kekkei genkai—the Sharingan—can be transferred to others through transplantation… just like Kakashi."
"And not only that," he continued, eyes gleaming. "My research into Wood Release has also achieved a breakthrough. Honored Lord Danzō, would you care to visit my laboratory?"
With that, Orochimaru's figure flickered—and vanished without a trace.
Watching him leave, the gloom in Danzō's eyes instantly dissipated.
He had lost the position of Hokage back then precisely because he had fallen short of Sarutobi Hiruzen in ninjutsu. That resentment and hatred had never faded.
But Orochimaru's words now brought him unprecedented hope.
"Sharingan… Wood Release…"
Danzō let out a sinister chuckle.
With that, he and the Root shinobi disappeared into the darkness as well.
Yet the moment they left, Ning Feng, Uchiha Itachi, and Kakashi descended silently into the area.
What Danzō and Orochimaru could never have imagined was that their conversation had been heard clearly from beginning to end.
And their presence here was entirely because of Ning Feng.
As a hardcore Naruto fan, how could Ning Feng not be suspicious when he failed to see Danzō near Hanzō earlier?
Moreover, after awakening the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Ning Feng's perception had risen to an entirely new level. Finding Danzō was no difficult task.
Thus, upon spotting him, Ning Feng immediately led Kakashi and the others into concealment to eavesdrop.
As for the figures Danzō had seen earlier leaving the area—that had merely been Ning Feng's Multiple Shadow Clones.
A lifetime schemer like Danzō would never have expected that this time, he himself would be the one outplayed.
"I didn't expect Danzō to be working with Orochimaru," Itachi said grimly, brows knit. "I'll report this to the Hokage immediately. From the sound of it, he may even be planning to act against the Uchiha clan. This is outrageous."
At last, Itachi had found the true reason behind the growing rift between the Uchiha clan and Konoha.
Kakashi didn't speak, but the icy look in his eyes said everything.
Just then, a series of crisp system notifications rang out:
"Congratulations! You have altered the original storyline. Degree of change: 30%!"
"Congratulations! You have received [Yamanaka Clan Advanced Secret Medicine] as a reward!"
…
Hearing the notification, Ning Feng was first startled—then delighted. He hadn't expected that even this would earn him a reward.
He'd been worrying earlier about not obtaining advanced secret medicines from other clans, and now one had dropped right into his lap.
"Uchiha Feng," Itachi said seriously, "you did extremely well this time. Perhaps… we've been misunderstanding Konoha all along."
Beside him, Kakashi took a deep breath and nodded heavily.
As an ANBU squad leader, Kakashi fully understood how serious this matter was.
The leader of Root, Danzō, secretly communicating with a Konoha traitor—and even researching Wood Release and the Sharingan!?
Even an idiot could guess what Danzō was plotting.
The journey back was uneventful, and before long, they returned to Konoha.
The village looked much the same as before—crowded and bustling, packed with players. Still, compared to the Rain Village, there were noticeably fewer here.
After parting ways with Kakashi, Ning Feng slipped away unnoticed and returned directly to the Uchiha compound.
Without hesitation, he took out the [Senju Clan Advanced Secret Medicine], mixed it into a hot spring, and submerged himself within.
True to its name, the moment he entered the water, Ning Feng felt an overwhelmingly powerful vitality surge through him, as if even his own life force had begun to boil.
"So this is the terror of Senju Hashirama… the so-called god of shinobi?"
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