59: Chapter 59 The True Colors Are RevealedWithin the Frost Kingdom, there is an underground bank disguised as an ordinary brewery.
Late at night, the workshop was brightly lit.
Several Root members, their faces expressionless, counted the last few boxes of gold, silver, and chakra ingots, deftly packing them into specially made storage scrolls bearing the secret mark of the Apocalypse Merchant Guild.
Hibari stood in the shadows, toying with an antique gold coin found deep inside the vault, bearing Danzo's personal seal.
"Inventory complete, Lord Hibari."
A member of the Root organization who was leading the team stepped forward to report, his voice calm and composed: "All liquid assets, precious metals, and ninja tool materials have been transferred, with a total value of approximately 800 million ryo."
"The 'investment loss' record on the accounts has also been fabricated, using blank instructions that Danzo had previously signed for black market transactions."
Lark nodded, flicked the gold coin into the air, and caught it steadily: "Well done.Go back and tell the guild leader that the fish have been caught clean."
"yes."
Several members of the Root organization put away the scroll, vanished into the darkness like ghosts.
The underground vault was instantly emptied, leaving only a few lonely empty boxes.
A few days later, in Konoha Village, at the Root Base.
"Bang!"
With a loud crash, Danzo's favorite purple clay teapot was smashed to the ground, shattering into pieces.
His chest heaved violently, and his left eye, the only visible eye, was bloodshot with rage as he stared intently at the finance manager kneeling before him, reporting to him.
"What did you say?Say it again!" Danzo's voice was hoarse and distorted with extreme anger.
The finance manager trembled with fear, his voice trembling with tears: "Lord Danzo.our secret treasury in the Land of Frost.has been.emptied!The accounts show.it's from a high-risk investment you signed.all gone."
"Bullshit!" Danzo kicked the manager to the ground."I never signed anything like that!This is betrayal!This is theft!"
He was panting heavily, several suspects flashing through his mind—Jiraiya?Hyuga?Or…that Naruto Uzumaki?
Eight hundred million taels!This is almost half of his liquid reserves accumulated over decades of managing "Gen"!
It was the lifeline that allowed him to maintain his vast underground network, bribe various parties, and conduct secret research!And now it's been completely emptied without anyone noticing?
What a disgrace!It's like rubbing Shimura Danzo's face into the ground!
At the same time, a communications ninja rushed in, bringing another piece of news that added fuel to the fire.
"Lord Danzo!Urgent intelligence!Sunagakure and the Apocalypse Merchant Guild have jointly issued an announcement, formally establishing a strategic alliance and announcing the joint establishment of a supply depot and rapid reaction force on the border!"
"Kazekage Gaara highly praised Naruto Uzumaki's 'key role' in resisting the Akatsuki's attack!"
"What?" Danzo's vision went black, and he almost fainted.
Nine-Tails Jinchuriki!Sunagakure!Alliance!
These words, when put together, were like a heavy hammer, striking his heart hard.
Despite the shock, he immediately realized that this was an excellent opportunity to launch an attack!He had to maximize Naruto's threat level and force the village to take strong measures!
He forcibly suppressed his fury at the empty vault and immediately set off for the Hokage Building.
The atmosphere in the Hokage's office was heavy.
Jiraiya looked at the official endorsement issued by Sunagakure and rubbed his throbbing temples.
The advisors, Mitokado En and Utatane Koharu, looked ashen-faced.
Danzo, leaning on his cane, spoke in a chilling voice: "You've all seen it!Naruto Uzumaki, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, has completely lost control!"
"Not only is he trying to leave the village and establish a private army, but now he's even colluding with Sunagakure!What is he planning to do?Overthrow the ninja world order?"
He slammed his cane down hard: "Sunagakure is our former enemy!To ally with them is tantamount to asking a tiger for its skin!Naruto's actions are putting Konoha in danger!I suggest that we immediately designate the Apocalypse Merchant Guild as an enemy force and issue an S-rank warrant for Naruto!"
Jiraiya frowned: "Danzo, things haven't come to that point yet, Naruto."
"It hasn't reached that stage yet?"
Danzo interrupted him, his one eye sweeping over the clan representatives present."Look at what he's doing!Winning over our allies, and now he's even reaching out to Sunagakure!Who's next?Kumogakure?Iwagakure?Once he's fully grown, Konoha will be the first to suffer!"
Silence fell over the meeting room.
After a long while, Nara Shikaku spoke slowly: "Elder Danzo, as far as I know, the cooperation between the Apocalypse Merchant Guild and Sunagakure mainly focuses on commerce and defense against the Akatsuki organization."
"The resources provided by the Chamber of Commerce are of excellent quality and reasonably priced, which are not without benefit to the village."
Even the usually conservative Hiashi Hyuga remained silent and did not explicitly support Danzo.
Clearly, the strength and neutral stance displayed by the Tianqi Chamber of Commerce have made these major families ambiguous in their attitude, unwilling to easily break ties with a force with enormous potential and multiple resources.
Danzo's heart sank completely as he watched this scene unfold.
He had been operating in Konoha for many years and considered himself to be all-powerful.But now, when he wanted to deal with a "rogue ninja" he thought he had, he found that the alliance and deterrent power he thought was solid were so vulnerable in the face of real interests and unknown risks!
Isolation!He felt an unprecedented sense of isolation!
The meeting ended unhappily.
Danzo returned to Root Base with a livid face, his frustration and anger almost consuming him.
The humiliation of having his treasury emptied, the shame of having his proposal ignored, and the uncontrollable killing intent towards Naruto Uzumaki.
A mix of emotions led him to make a crazy decision.
He summoned his most trusted root squad leaders and, in a hoarse voice, issued his final order:
"Mobilize all available resources from the 'root'""Send our elite forces to infiltrate the Land of Waves and, at all costs, kill Naruto Uzumaki!Execute immediately!"
However, after the order was given, the secret room fell into a deathly silence.
The squad leaders stood still, like wooden statues, with no one taking orders or making any moves.
Their eyes, hidden beneath their masks, were terrifyingly silent, silently watching Danzo, whose face was contorted with rage, through their pupils.
Danzo was stunned, then flew into a rage: "Are you deaf?Execute the order!"
The leading squad leader finally spoke, his voice flat and cold like a machine: "Lord Danzo, this order jeopardizes the overall interests of Konoha, and its success rate is less than five percent."
"According to the ironclad law of the root, it shall be refused to be implemented."
"Wh.what?" Danzo was struck dumb, unable to believe his ears!
Refuse to comply?His "roots"!His absolutely loyal tools, cultivated with countless efforts!
They actually refused his order?And for such a ridiculous reason?
He turned to look at the others and found that they also had no reaction, clearly agreeing with the squad leader's statement.
A chill instantly shot from the soles of my feet straight to the top of my head!
He realized that the problem wasn't just with the vault, nor was it solely due to his influence at the top.
Even his most core and trusted foundation of military power—his "roots"—has run into problems!And big problems at that!
When?By then, the roots had been thoroughly permeated, turning into a sieve?
"You.you." Danzo pointed at them, his fingers trembling violently with fear, unable to utter a complete sentence.
The shadow of failure, like a cold tide, completely overwhelmed him at this moment.
Everything he had painstakingly built was crumbling in ways he couldn't comprehend.
The true intentions are revealed when the map is unrolled.
At its base, the tip of this poisoned blade, honed over countless years, finally turned around and aimed at the man wielding it.
Danzo staggered back a step and crashed into the cold wall, his single eye revealing a look of near despair for the first time.
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