Chapter 162. Root Disbanded, Danzo Loses Power

Chapter 162 - 162. Root Disbanded, Danzo Loses Power"Being too enthusiastic isn't always a good thing." At the entrance of the Hokage Building, Tsunade let out a breath and couldn't help but comment. "This shows that Sensei is admired by everyone," Hanekawa, who had been observing, replied. He noticed that besides the ordinary villagers, even the Uchiha Clan, Hyuga Clan, and the Ino–Shika–Cho clans had sent ninjas to participate. Add the Daimyo of the Land of Fire to the mix, and it could instantly become a Hokage succession ceremony. "Don't say such nonsense," Tsunade said, raising her hand to flick his forehead. What "admired by everyone"? It sounded as if she was about to become Hokage right away. She entered the Hokage Building. "Lady Tsunade!" The passing ninjas, just like the villagers earlier, were visibly excited upon seeing her. When they arrived at the Hokage's office, Tsunade kicked the door open unceremoniously. This time, there was a hint of personal grievance in her actions. After all, if it weren't for Hiruzen Sarutobi's antics, she wouldn't have wasted those extra ten minutes. "You've worked hard. You all did an excellent job this time," Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a smile, already accustomed to Tsunade's bluntness. "Especially since you eliminated Hanzo, removing a major threat to Konoha." "Since you already know, I don't need to write a mission report." Tsunade casually tossed a scroll onto the table and said, "Hanzo's corpse." "Shin." Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't pick it up, letting it land on the desk. He instructed, "Take it to the Interrogation Unit." "Yes." An Anbu ninja at the door stepped in and took the scroll away. "This is your reward for the mission." Hiruzen Sarutobi took out a bankbook and said, "Of course, this amount is far from enough. Let me know if you have any additional requests." "I don't really want anything," Tsunade said nonchalantly as she accepted the bankbook. "I figured you'd say that." Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled and added, "I've added an extra ten million ryo to the account as your personal reward." "That'll do." Tsunade raised her eyebrows, accepting it readily. An S-rank mission usually came with a reward of one million ryo, so ten million ryo was equivalent to the payment for ten S-rank missions. And since it was essentially free money, she had no reason to refuse. "What about the four of you?" Hiruzen Sarutobi turned to Hanekawa, Might Duy, and the others. "You can request ninja tools, techniques, or money." "I don't need anything!" Might Duy said enthusiastically. His greatest wish in life was to fulfill his youthful dreams, and the grand welcome they had just received had already fulfilled that. "From today on, you're a Special Jonin," Hiruzen Sarutobi said with approval. He greatly admired Might Duy, a pure-hearted ninja whose fiery spirit exemplified the Will of Fire. Though... his personality was a bit intense. Kurenai Yuhi fell into thought. As a Chunin, the most logical choice for her was to request a new technique. However, through Tsunade, she had already learned the Water Release techniques of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. As for genjutsu, her father, Shinku Yuhi, had already passed on his skills. "Kurenai," Hanekawa leaned in and whispered in her ear. "I want the Darkness Technique," Kurenai said, her eyes lighting up as she chose to trust Hanekawa's suggestion. "Sure," Hiruzen Sarutobi said after a brief pause. He didn't refuse her request. Since Kurenai had already learned so many of the Second Hokage's Water Release techniques, adding the Darkness Technique wasn't an issue. It just felt a bit strange. By this logic, Kurenai had essentially become a second-generation student of Tobirama Senju. Hanekawa had carefully considered the suggestion. Though Konoha had many forbidden techniques, most were difficult to learn or came with significant side effects, making them unsuitable for Kurenai. The Darkness Technique, however, was different. It was an A-rank genjutsu and a counter to the Sharingan. It might even help restore the honor of regular genjutsu users in the future. "I..." Rin Nohara hesitated and instinctively looked at Hanekawa. Standing close by, she had overheard his whisper to Kurenai earlier. As a medical ninja under Tsunade, she wasn't sure what to choose. Hanekawa met her gaze and blinked, realizing that she was now asking for his advice. Searᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Given Rin's natural talent, focusing on medical ninjutsu was more than enough for her. Choosing another technique wouldn't significantly enhance her abilities, and asking her to engage in close combat might only put her at risk. Suddenly, Hanekawa had an idea. A safe, long-range technique came to mind. He leaned down and whispered softly to Rin. "Lord Hokage, I'd like the Spirit Transformation Technique," Rin said, trusting Hanekawa's judgment even though she didn't know what the technique was. "The Spirit Transformation Technique?" Hiruzen Sarutobi was surprised. "Hanekawa, how do you know about this technique?" "Shizune told me," Hanekawa replied without batting an eye. "That explains it." Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Rin and hesitated. "This is an S-rank technique. Technically, your contributions don't qualify." Tsunade and Might Duy defeated Hanzo, while Hanekawa and Katsuyu took down the salamander. By comparison, Kurenai Yuhi and Rin Nohara didn't contribute as much. The Darkness Technique is an A-rank jutsu, valuable but still within the range of what can be granted. However, the Spirit Transformation Technique is different. It's an S-rank jutsu and a powerful forbidden technique. "Huh?" Rin looked completely bewildered. She hadn't expected Hanekawa to choose an S-rank jutsu for her. Could she even learn it? "Old man," Tsunade interjected at the right moment. "Put it on my account." "Fine." Hiruzen Sarutobi hesitated for a few seconds but ultimately agreed. After all, he suspected that if he refused, Tsunade would cause an uproar in the Hokage's office. Hanekawa raised an eyebrow. This works too? If that's the case, he didn't need to overthink his choice of jutsu. As long as Tsunade was around, he could learn whatever jutsu he wanted. "Lord Hokage," Hanekawa spoke up after some thought. "I'm from the orphanage, so instead of jutsu, I just want to help the director and the orphanage." Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression turned to surprise. Even Tsunade looked at Hanekawa with a face full of astonishment. "Is that not allowed?" Hanekawa scratched his head awkwardly. "Of course it's allowed," Hiruzen said with a smile, praising him. "You're a good child who knows how to show gratitude." Hiruzen was growing increasingly impressed with Hanekawa. While strength and talent are important, a person's character and values are what truly matter. "How do you want to help them?" Hiruzen asked. "I hope the director and the orphanage can operate without outside interference," Hanekawa replied with hidden meaning. He knew Hiruzen would understand. As Hokage, there's no way Hiruzen wouldn't know that Nonou Yakushi and the orphanage were under Danzo's control. "I understand." Hiruzen nodded slightly. "I'll talk to Nonou about it." As for Danzo, Hiruzen already had plans in place, waiting for Tsunade to bring it up. "Thank you, Lord Hokage." Hanekawa sighed in relief. In the original story, Nonou Yakushi and Kabuto Yakushi were sent by Danzo to act as spies after the Third Shinobi War. When they were no longer useful, and because they knew too many secrets, they were manipulated into killing each other. With Hiruzen stepping in, Danzo would no longer be able to threaten Nonou Yakushi, sparing her from her tragic fate. "One more thing." Speaking of Nonou Yakushi, Tsunade thought of Danzo and said bluntly, "I found Root ninjas in the Land of Rain." "These are the corpses of Root ninjas," Hanekawa immediately added, handing over a scroll. "I've already heard about it from Danzo," Hiruzen said, taking the scroll. "Oh?" Tsunade scoffed. "Did he admit to colluding with Hanzo?" "He claims that Hanzo manipulated the members of Root into defecting," Hiruzen said slowly. "What nonsense!" Tsunade, enraged by the explanation, slammed her hand on the Hokage's desk. "Wait!" Hiruzen's face changed, but it was too late. He quickly grabbed the documents on the desk in an attempt to save them. Crack! The Hokage's desk split in half. Kurenai Yuhi and Rin Nohara exchanged stunned glances. As expected of Tsunade, their teacher—she dared to slam the Hokage's desk. Hanekawa suddenly had a peculiar expression. As the desk broke, several documents and books fell out, among them a familiar novel and manga: Steel Witch by Thunderfire Sword. Well, well, well, so the old man had a rebellious streak! But then again, it wasn't too surprising. After all, Jiraiya had probably learned his habits from Hiruzen, especially the "Telescope Technique." Even Asuma Sarutobi's existence hinted at Hiruzen's enduring vitality—after all, Asuma was born when Hiruzen was already over 40. Truly a resilient old man! "I never said I believed his story," Hiruzen said, holding the rescued documents with a pained expression. "You could've said so earlier," Tsunade muttered, coughing lightly as she withdrew her hand. "So what are you planning to do about him?" "Shin," Hiruzen called toward the door instead of answering directly. "Lord Hokage." Shin entered the room. "Clean this place up and notify Danzo to come over," Hiruzen said, handing over the documents in his arms. "Yes." With a wave of her hand, Shin summoned four Anbu members. They quickly removed the broken desk and scattered documents, leaving the Hokage's office empty and bare. "Hanekawa, you and the others may leave for now," Hiruzen said after some thought. Danzo Shimura, after all, was a senior figure in Konoha Village, and some face had to be saved for him. "Hanekawa will stay," Tsunade said. "That's fine," Hiruzen Sarutobi replied, glancing at her. He could somewhat guess Tsunade's intentions—it was nothing more than paving the way for Hanekawa. However, Hanekawa was indeed qualified, so making an exception for him wasn't an issue. "I'll handle this matter and give you a satisfactory answer," Hiruzen assured her, worried that Tsunade might start an argument with Danzo, which would make things difficult to resolve. "It better be satisfactory," Tsunade replied with a slight pout. Not long after Rin Nohara and Kurenai Yuhi left, Danzo Shimura slowly entered the room. He had anticipated this and wasn't surprised to see Tsunade there. "Danzo, do you admit your mistake?" Hiruzen asked directly, looking at him. "What mistake have I made?" Danzo replied calmly. "If you're referring to the matter in the Land of Rain, I already explained yesterday—it was their independent action." "You can fool yourself, but don't try to fool us," Hiruzen said, shaking his head. "Hanzo's corpse has already been handed over to the Interrogation Unit." Danzo's expression stiffened upon hearing this. In the shinobi world, even a ninja's corpse can reveal secrets. The Yamanaka clan's interrogation of Hanzo's corpse would undoubtedly confirm their meeting. "Indeed, I did cooperate with Hanzo," Danzo admitted when he realized there was no way to deny it. "But everything I did was for Konoha!" "There's no need for such excuses," Hiruzen said sternly. "Hanzo was an enemy of Konoha. By assisting him, you violated the village's rules." "I..." Danzo instinctively tried to argue but froze when he met Hiruzen's icy gaze. "From today onward, Root will be disbanded. You are to return home and reflect on your actions," Hiruzen declared decisively. "No! Hiruzen, you can't do this to me!" Danzo exclaimed, his eyes widening in shock. "I've contributed to Konoha! I've bled for Konoha!" As a senior figure in Konoha, Danzo's greatest source of power was Root. With Root disbanded, his authority would be significantly reduced, leaving him with mere influence but no real power—similar to Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado. "There is no room for negotiation," Hiruzen said coldly. "Hiruzen, you'll regret this!" Danzo shouted in anger and fear. "Danzo, I am the Hokage!" Hiruzen stood up, his small stature emanating an oppressive aura. The familiar commanding presence of the shinobi Hiruzen once was had returned, making Danzo involuntarily take a step back. He hesitated, swallowed his words, and turned to leave. "Tsunade, let this matter rest," Hiruzen said to her in a calmer tone. "Danzo has done much for Konoha." "Fine," Tsunade replied, saying no more. In truth, this punishment was already severe. Hiruzen couldn't outright execute Danzo, but disbanding Root was a significant blow. "Let's go," Tsunade said, waving her hand. "And don't forget to send over the Darkness Technique and Spirit Transformation Technique." Hanekawa nodded, bid Hiruzen farewell, and left with her. Hiruzen sat back in his chair, letting out a long sigh. If this matter had remained unknown, he could have turned a blind eye. But since it involved Tsunade, he had no choice but to take decisive action. Otherwise, her dissatisfaction could escalate and make the issue public, turning it into a scandal under his leadership. "That man brought this upon himself," Hiruzen muttered with a cold snort. His decision wasn't just to appease Tsunade; it also stemmed from genuine frustration and the need to teach Danzo a lesson. "Bring Nonou Yakushi here," Hiruzen said after a long silence. "Yes," came Shin's voice from outside the door. In less than ten minutes, Nonou Yakushi arrived from Konoha Hospital. "Root has been disbanded. From now on, you can focus solely on running Konoha Hospital," Hiruzen said directly. "You don't need to worry about Danzo anymore." "Huh?" Nonou was stunned. "This was Hanekawa's request," Hiruzen added. Hanekawa? Nonou slowly processed the information. She recalled the recent rumors about Hanzo's death and how Tsunade and Hanekawa had just returned to the village today. What a kind child, she thought, feeling a warm sense of gratitude. A gentle smile appeared on her face. 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