Konoha Hospital, Intensive Care Unit.
Even now, Danzō still hasn't been discharged.
His entire body remains so frail that he looks like a mummy.
The reason he hasn't been discharged yet comes down to two factors.
One is that the theft of 1.1 billion ryō from Konoha's treasury still hasn't been settled.
Although there's no direct evidence proving it was his doing, Konoha's "F3" refuses to let him off the hook.
The other reason is that, although his injuries aren't quite as dramatic as they appear on the surface, they're still pretty serious!
Those top dogs from Kumogakure are not only black-hearted, but their methods are just as ruthless!
If it weren't for Senshi having a 100% mission completion rate as leverage, Danzō would already be reporting to the First Hokage and the Second Hokage in the afterlife.
Right now, beside Danzō's hospital bed, Shimura Matsu of the Shimura Clan is reporting on the clan's current situation.
Shimura Matsu, looking terrified at the mummy-like Danzō wrapped in bandages, says, "Clan Leader, the Shimura Clan is now being fully suppressed and taken advantage of by the village. Our days are getting impossible to endure."
"All of our applications are being rejected. All subsidies and other forms of assistance originally granted to the Shimura Clan by the village have been completely cut off."
"The most serious issue is that the Shimura Clan's shinobi are having all their old records dug up. They're being taken away by the Anbu for investigation over various issues. Right now, the clan urgently needs you to come forward and communicate with Lord Hokage to resolve these problems."
At this moment, Shimura Matsu is under tremendous pressure.
Unless you've always been a low-level shinobi who's never held any power, who can guarantee they've never abused authority, even just once?
He's not too sure about others, but he himself definitely can't withstand being investigated. If the Hokage's office continues digging, sooner or later they'll come knocking on his door. Then the next Shimura shinobi reporting to the clan leader will be someone else entirely.
Danzō knows the Shimura Clan is having a hard time. But there's no helping it—he's in an even tighter spot.
For now, all he can do is continue lying in the hospital, thinking about what to do next.
Weary and powerless, Danzō says to Shimura Matsu, "Hang in there; there will be a way! As for now, you can see how I am. My injuries are too severe and I can barely protect myself, so if you need anything else for the clan, you'll just have to look elsewhere!"
Hearing this, Shimura Matsu is speechless inside.
The Shimura Clan's predicament—wasn't it caused by you in the first place?
Of course, he doesn't dare say this outright to the clan leader, so he can only sigh silently and leave.
Shortly after Shimura Matsu departs, Yamanaka Fu of Root arrives in Danzō's hospital room.
Seeing Danzō lying in the hospital bed, Yamanaka Fu speaks respectfully:
"Lord Danzō, all of our recent requests from Root have been rejected."
"Not only that, but documents previously approved by the Hokage's office have been withheld as well."
"All our actions are now being monitored by the Anbu. Furthermore…"
Yamanaka Fu reports all the difficulties currently facing Root, one by one, to Danzō.
Danzō listens, feeling as though his head is about to explode. When Yamanaka Fu finally finishes listing Root's problems, Danzō heaves a long sigh and says, "Hiruzen and the others are really going too far! If my health weren't so poor, I'd go to the Hokage's office right now and give him a piece of my mind!"
His meaning is obvious: Root has a pile of troubles, but he can't deal with them because of his injuries. He genuinely wants to confront the Third Hokage and fix these issues, but he's still too hurt to move.
Hearing Danzō's words, Yamanaka Fu also feels a headache coming on.
Currently, all of Root's members are treated like criminals and monitored by the Anbu. They can hardly move a muscle within the village. If this goes on, Root will practically be disbanded—no point in serving on the surface as some "Anbu Trainee Unit" anymore.
Unlike Shimura Matsu, who left sighing in defeat, Yamanaka Fu refuses to be brushed off so easily. He suddenly recalls something. Previously, for some unknown reason, Lord Danzō loathed Orochimaru with a passion. Every day he would drag out Orochimaru's family records and curse him repeatedly. Given how much Lord Danzō hates him, if he hears Orochimaru has come to Konoha, he certainly won't keep lying around in the hospital!
With that in mind, Yamanaka Fu hesitates briefly before deciding to share this intel with Danzō.
"Lord Danzō, Orochimaru has appeared in the village!"
As soon as Yamanaka Fu utters these words, he secretly peeks at Danzō. Then, just as expected, the effect is remarkable.
Danzō: (O_O)???
Startled for a moment, Danzō's entire demeanor changes from top to bottom. Wrapped in white bandages, he nearly jumps out of bed from excitement. But he resists the urge to do so—he truly is still too injured for such recklessness.
He hurriedly says to Yamanaka Fu, "Help me up! I need to see Orochimaru!"
Over these last few weeks, thanks to that missing 1.1 billion ryō, the Konoha F3 has publicly raked him over the coals. And he even got beaten black and blue by those high-ups of Kumo. But at this moment, Danzō suddenly realizes he might have misunderstood Orochimaru all along!
Perhaps Orochimaru didn't actually embezzle the funds and run, but was forced to move somewhere under circumstances beyond his control. And now that Orochimaru is swaggering back into Konoha in such a high profile, there can only be one reason: he must have fully perfected the Wood Style technique he was developing!
If that's the case, then this is Danzō's moment of triumph. After all, he was the one who provided Orochimaru with funding and endured all the pressure. Without him, Orochimaru never could have completed his Wood Style research. Danzō needs to rush over and claim the technique he's yearned for all these years.
But what Danzō doesn't expect is that Yamanaka Fu still has more bad news for him:
"Lord Danzō, since arriving in the village, Orochimaru hasn't tried to contact Root at all. From what I've learned, he slipped in quietly and went straight to the Hokage's office to see the Hokage."
Danzō: (O_O)!!!
He flies into a rage.
"That bastard, Orochimaru! He wants to claim all the credit for himself!!"
He trembles with fury. He believes Orochimaru must have completed the Wood Style technique he once demonstrated near the Land of Fire's border—so vibrantly alive, it seemed to outshine nature itself. Danzō remains convinced that technique was nearly on par with the First Hokage's own Wood Style. Given enough time and research funds, someone with Orochimaru's genius certainly could have taken it the final step to perfection.
But that scoundrel Orochimaru has now gone to Hiruzen first, which is utterly unacceptable to Danzō. From beginning to end, he was the one who funded the project and bore the brunt of all the blame and pressure! How can the finished product be handed over to Sarutobi Hiruzen?
That Wood Style belongs to him! That glory should belong to him! With power on the level of the First Hokage's Wood Style, he'd come back stronger than ever—and finally become Hokage!
With that in mind, Danzō can't waste another second. He immediately issues orders:
"Fu, take me to the Hokage's office at once. Also, notify Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu—have them both head there right away. I have important matters to discuss!"
Danzō is unwilling to confront Hiruzen alone; he worries the Hokage might steal his credit. Such a massive achievement is tempting to anyone, especially to a Third Hokage who has, on more than one occasion, quietly claimed the merits of others. Just look at how the Fourth Hokage's inheritance simply vanished without explanation…
Hence, Danzō calls in the other two Konoha Advisors. Once the four old friends—Konoha's so-called "F4"—are all present, then credit should go to its rightful owner!
Hearing the orders, Yamanaka Fu sets off at once. Before long, a few Root shinobi have gone to request that Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu come to the Hokage's office. Yamanaka Fu then wheels Danzō himself over. Although Danzō had just been declaring that his injuries needed "peace and quiet," now he's rushing at top speed to attend a meeting, performing a complete about-face.
Yamanaka Fu can only struggle to contain his laughter, dutifully pushing Danzō's wheelchair to the Hokage's office.
By the time Danzō arrives outside the office, Koharu and Homura are already inside.
He hurries out of the wheelchair, pushes the door open, and yells:
"Hiruzen! What do you think you're doing? I'm the one who's been supporting Orochimaru's research all along!"
Unlike Minato Namikaze—who was easily bullied—Danzō isn't someone to be trifled with. He's used to being the one doing the bullying. Anyone who tries to rob him of his credit might as well be asking for death!
Sarutobi Hiruzen: (O_O)???
Orochimaru: (O_O)!!!
Konoha's other two advisors: (O_⊙)???
Everyone in the Hokage's office is stunned by Danzō bursting in.
Homura and Koharu have just arrived and only heard a little from Hiruzen about the situation; they have no idea what's going on.
Orochimaru, for his part, is cursing silently to himself: Damn you, Jiraiya, you worthless informant—didn't you say Danzō was bedridden and couldn't move? But he quickly recovers; someone with Orochimaru's cunning is never at a loss.
Hiruzen, meanwhile, is furious. He was still pondering the validity of Orochimaru's and Kabuto's claims. And now Danzō storms in, inadvertently confirming some of those rumors, declaring he was the one who fully supported Orochimaru's experimental research with living subjects.
Hiruzen demands angrily, "Danzō, are you telling me you're behind Orochimaru's research all along?"
Hiruzen's phrasing is deliberately vague, but Danzō understands immediately. He's talking about those forbidden experiments with captive villagers. In the past, he would have firmly denied it. But this time is different—Orochimaru appears to have perfected the Wood Style, and Danzō wants to secure that triumph. So he puffs himself up:
"Indeed, I did it. Who else in Konoha would have the vision for something like that?"
Hiruzen's face was already grim; now it's practically terrifying, dark as storm clouds. He glares at Danzō, voice stern:
"So it was really you, secretly supporting Orochimaru, letting him experiment on the villagers?!"
Taking a long, deliberate breath, Danzō speaks to Hiruzen with heavy reproach:
"Hiruzen, you're too soft! You're still hung up on a few villagers dying. If it's for Konoha's prosperity and greater development, that sort of sacrifice is worthwhile—necessary, even!"
"Since you seem so sincere in asking, let me be perfectly frank: Orochimaru's experiments were entirely directed and funded by me. Everything has reached this point all because of my contributions, and not even you as Hokage can deny that!"
His meaning is plain. The resurrection of the First Hokage's Wood Style is thanks to Danzō. Such a monumental achievement can't be stolen away, not even by the Hokage.
Everyone else in the room is equally shocked and furious. For his part, Hiruzen is seething:
"How could you do such a thing? As the Hokage's advisor, why would you allow Orochimaru to harm villagers for his experiments?"
But Danzō, hearing this, only grows more disappointed in Hiruzen.
"Hiruzen, you've let me down! I've told you many times, we have to go all out to revive the First Hokage's Wood Style. In that pursuit, the deaths of a few people, or spending a bit of money—what do those matter?"
He can't be bothered to keep quarreling. He turns around to face Orochimaru, his back toward Hiruzen:
"Orochimaru, show him your results!"
Danzō obviously wants Orochimaru to demonstrate Wood Style to Hiruzen, to prove its success. In Danzō's mind, his money and support have yielded a technique that rivals the First Hokage's. However, though Orochimaru understands perfectly, his expression turns puzzled:
"What results?"
Danzō freezes up. Orochimaru's response makes him suspect Orochimaru must have come to some arrangement with Hiruzen—perhaps the official word will soon be that the Third Hokage's wise leadership and Orochimaru's brilliant efforts have resurrected the Wood Style. That would mean they get the glory, despite his sacrifice. A travesty!
Furious, Danzō spells it out:
"Orochimaru, I'm talking about that Wood Style research you were working on. Hurry up and show it to me!"
Orochimaru just shakes his head in disappointment:
"Danzō-sama, have you gone mad, or are your wounds so severe that you're experiencing hallucinations? In any case, please don't slander me so unjustly. You know as well as anyone that I've long since washed my hands of human experimentation. And as for any existing Wood Style data—from what I remember, you took the specimen codenamed 'Tenzo.' Right?"
At this, Danzō is dumbfounded. This is entirely different from what he expected. He only wants the Wood Style ability he saw Orochimaru demonstrate at the Land of Fire border. Instead, Orochimaru's talking about some old project they abandoned years ago.
Pressing on, Danzō becomes even more direct:
"Orochimaru, don't mess with me! The Wood Style technique you showed me before—surely by now you've perfected it. I even gave you 1.1 billion ryō in research funding!"
In response, Orochimaru puts on a thoroughly shocked face, blinking incredulously. After a stunned moment, he exclaims in anger:
"Lord Danzō, are you out of your mind from your injuries? How can you accuse me of such a thing?!"
With that, Orochimaru turns to Hiruzen and the other two advisors, quickly pleading:
"Sarutobi-sensei, you know me. My only passion in life is scientific research. I've never cared about money at all. In fact, my happiest time was simply teaching Nawaki and drawing a stable paycheck!"
Homura and Koharu nod at once; they know Orochimaru truly isn't the greedy type. Hiruzen, who has known him the longest, can easily confirm:
"That much I can attest—Orochimaru has never been a money-driven person."
Homura, catching on, exchanges looks with Koharu and shouts at Danzō:
"Danzō! So you really were the one who took that 1.1 billion ryō from the village treasury!"
Koharu is likewise upset:
"How could you be so outrageous, covering up your own crime by pinning the blame on a missing-nin?!"
Hiruzen, thinking back on Orochimaru's situation: Indeed, Danzō orchestrated those events. Orochimaru fled the village, but under extenuating circumstances. His wrongdoing is comparatively minor. He's come back to atone, to serve the village.
Hiruzen's anger flares again:
"Danzō, your actions are truly despicable! Because of your reckless scheming, Konoha lost a valuable high-level talent for so long! Now that he's finally back, you're splashing him with mud yet again—what, are you scared your hidden crimes will come to light and hope to chase him away a second time?!"
Danzō: (O_O)???
Nothing is going the way he imagined.
He looks around at everyone glaring at him—Homura, Koharu, and Hiruzen—and ends up focusing on Orochimaru, the swindler behind all of this.
"Orochimaru, what are you trying to pull? Where's the Wood Style technique you developed for me? Hand it over immediately!"
Orochimaru only shakes his head in pity:
"Danzō-sama, from the day I left the village, I've never again touched forbidden research on living humans. As for some 'Wood Style on par with the First Hokage'… do you really believe such a thing can be developed so easily?"
Hiruzen and the others find Orochimaru's words much more credible. Technology and ninjutsu research aren't genjutsu illusions; you can't just conjure them out of thin air. Even if Danzō doesn't understand the complexities, he should at least respect them.
Meanwhile, Kabuto has been standing quietly off to the side, observing. Today's turn of events has been a real eye-opener. He reflects that indeed, the pursuit of knowledge is endless, and he still has so much to learn from Lord Orochimaru. Just a moment ago, it looked like Danzō had pinned all blame on Orochimaru, yet now Konoha's leadership is united against Danzō. The man who thought himself untouchable is getting pummeled on all sides—how satisfying!
With things at this point, Orochimaru decides it's about time to wrap up and take his leave. Even he hadn't guessed Danzō would show up here in person, but it's okay. Everything is firmly under his control, and now the F3 is directing all their rage at Danzō. In their eyes, the mere act of Danzō breathing is a sin. Orochimaru can simply let Danzō bear the full brunt of their fury.
Before leaving, Orochimaru takes out four small boxes:
"Sarutobi-sensei, in all my years wandering the ninja world, I never forgot about Konoha. I've continued my research with the village in mind. Each of these four boxes contains one of my major breakthroughs.
"I call it the 'Eternal Chakra Elixir.'"
Hiruzen and the others look puzzled. Hiruzen, in particular, frowns. Is this another forbidden item produced by inhumane methods? He asks:
"Orochimaru, what exactly is this made from, and what does it do?"
Orochimaru thinks for a moment and answers:
"During my travels, I encountered a shinobi with extremely unusual chakra. It was not only special, but incredibly rare—there's no second example in the entire ninja world. Its most remarkable property is that it can improve the condition of living cells, thereby enhancing the user's overall health."
"Having received permission from that individual, I spent years collecting and researching his chakra. After many sleepless nights, I've managed to synthesize it. I call it 'Eternal Chakra,' and it can help rejuvenate the cells of an older shinobi's body, letting them recover some of their lost vitality. In simpler terms, a middle-aged or elderly ninja who takes it can experience about a 10% boost over their current level of health and flexibility. And this is just the beginning—there's room for even greater improvement."
Orochimaru isn't completely lying; this "Eternal Chakra" is indeed based on Senshi's chakra, though the actual effect is limited—probably around a 3% improvement. Still, even that small improvement can feel very real to someone whose abilities have been declining with age. Better yet, by calling it "Eternal Chakra," Orochimaru is planting the idea that, one day, old-timers might return to their prime. Of course, that part is impossible. But these top-level, older ninja leaders don't really know the science, and Orochimaru is a master at marketing. Selling high-end "health supplements" is his new project, with important older clients as his main target.
After all:
Once you hit middle age, there's no escaping it—you start carrying a thermos of goji berries like a badge of wisdom. But even goji berries can't turn back the clock, and before you know it, you'll be tossing in angelica root like a sorcerer trying to brew up lost youth.
Too Chinese. Blah blah...
~~~
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