Chapter 100: Danzo’s Fall 1
The moment Naruto returned home, the sky had already darkened.
Seeing his extremely messy bedroom, Naruto, exhausted, collapsed onto his bed.
Up until now, he was still in a somewhat dazed and disoriented state.
He didn’t know how long he had been lying on the bed before he sat up again, lifted his shirt, and looked at his unremarkable abdomen.
“Inside me… there’s the Nine-Tails Demon Fox…”
Naruto poked his stomach, feeling nothing unusual.
Logically speaking.
Upon learning that a terrifying Nine-Tails Demon Fox was sealed within him, he should have felt extremely panicked.
But for some reason, Naruto didn’t feel panicked at all, as if he had a strange sense of security.
This sense of security…
Its source wasn’t Grandpa Hokage, but that terrifying man—a man who dared to confront Grandpa Hokage alone in front of many people, and the only man who carried out Absolute Justice in Konoha Village. Such a terrifying man, perhaps he was a bit more powerful than the demon fox within him?
“I remember his name was Uchiha Ikeizumi, right?!”
“…Absolute Justice!”
Naruto looked up at a crack on the ceiling in confusion, unsure why he had blurted those words out on a whim.
It was as if, because he had received someone’s approval, he desperately wanted to cater to that person and not let down their recognition of him.
Moreover, what he had said earlier was indeed from the heart.
There was no falsehood in it at all.
Naruto’s mind also recalled Grandpa Hokage’s words to him after escorting him back.
—”Naruto, Ikeizumi’s justice is inherently quite rigid, inflexible, and difficult to communicate with. Furthermore, it deviates somewhat from Konoha’s Will of Fire. Everyone’s justice is different, you cannot blindly imitate it and forcefully emulate Ikeizumi’s Absolute Justice.”
—”If you truly decide to make Justice and Hokage your ninja way in the future, Grandpa Hokage advises you to have more of your own opinions. Perhaps, you can try to combine the Will of Fire and justice.”
—”Only justice that brings positive effects to Konoha Village is the justice that will truly earn everyone’s recognition. Rigid justice like Ikeizumi’s is hard for people to accept, otherwise, he wouldn’t always be alone.”
—”Cough! I’m not actually speaking ill of him, I’m just saying that good justice cannot be separated from the Will of Fire, and the two should not be opposed, right?”
“Ah! This is too complicated!”
Seven-year-old Naruto hugged his head and gave up thinking.
He just felt that the world of these adults was beyond his comprehension.
Speaking of which, all he had to do in the future was wake up early every day to clean the streets, then go to the Ninja Academy, and after school, he could go see Uchiha Ikeizumi, right?
Ah! Then what about his rest time?!
Naruto finally realized.
…
Under the night sky.
Uchiha Izumi submerged herself in the bathtub, half of her pretty face disappearing into the hot water as bubbles continuously rose.
Izumi felt her strength was still too weak.
When Ikeizumi-senpai, Patriarch Fugaku, Lord Hokage, and Advisor Koharu Utatane were confronting each other, even though she resolutely stood by senpai’s side and glared at them, none of the important figures on the opposing side paid any attention to her.
If she were a little stronger, they definitely wouldn’t ignore her, right? They would definitely realize that Ikeizumi-senpai wasn’t alone, and that Absolute Justice had followers, right?
Now…
Uzumaki Naruto, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, under senpai’s influence, seems to be leaning towards Absolute Justice as well.
Although Uzumaki Naruto is very young, his identity is too special, making his presence stronger than hers.
Izumi sighed softly, and a large bubble rose from the bathtub.
Just then, she suddenly caught sight of a small black shadow reflected in the water of the bathtub, startling her and making her hastily cover herself.
When she quickly looked up, she saw a white ninja cat squatting on the slightly ajar bathroom window.
“Rookie, Lord Ikeizumi wants you to assemble. Tonight, a major event related to you will take place.”
The white ninja cat said calmly, “Don’t be nervous, I’m a female cat.”
As Izumi breathed a sigh of relief, she felt a bit confused by what the white ninja cat said—a major event related to her?
She racked her brain but couldn’t come up with anything.
She could only hastily stand up, dry herself, and change into her attire.
Then she rushed out and closely followed the white ninja cat.
Not long after…
Izumi met Ikeizumi-senpai in a rather dark alley corner.
“Check your ninja tools.” Uchiha Ikeizumi glanced at Izumi, his gaze lingering for half a second on the girl’s still slightly damp long hair. He said, in a way that shocked people, “Tonight, you will kill Shimura Danzo. You will be the one to do it, to unearth this rare ‘treasure of evil’.”
Izumi was suddenly shocked: “!!!”
—Kill Danzo!!!
She remembered Ikeizumi-senpai had said similar things to her before, and she also recalled… whenever she personally killed a villain in senpai’s words while following him in believing in Absolute Justice, she always felt she became a little stronger.
Senpai said this was a gift from Absolute Justice to its followers.
That is to say…
Izumi’s clear eyes widened slightly; she felt she was faintly touching upon another secret of senpai’s!
Of course.
Senpai didn’t seem to consider it a secret, as he had said similar things to her before.
With a hint of peculiar anticipation, Izumi hastily checked the ninja tools she carried and, unable to suppress her curiosity, dared to quietly ask, “Ikeizumi-senpai, do you know where Lord Hokage has hidden Shimura Danzo?”
“I have a faint sense.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi said faintly, “My eyes have left a brand on his soul, allowing me to vaguely sense his general location. What’s strange is that I sense two different locations. Perhaps his soul has been split in two, in this way to avoid the soul-burning of the Heavenly Punishment Fire.”
Izumi suddenly felt a bit of pity for the former Root Leader.
After painstakingly using all sorts of methods, even splitting his soul in two, he had barely managed to evade senpai’s previous ‘hunt’.
And yet, he was still targeted by senpai now.
However…
It served him right. If he hadn’t committed evil, why would he be judged by Absolute Justice?
“Meow, rookie, we’re in for a big night. Perhaps the Third Hokage has already arranged many Anbu Ninja to protect that half-dead dog Danzo.” As Kijiro’s voice sounded, Izumi felt her shoulder suddenly sink.
“Last night, Lord Ikeizumi made the Third Hokage quite angry; during the day he bothered the Third Hokage again; tonight, if he bothers him again, I wonder if the Third Hokage will be stimulated into a heart attack.”
Kijiro’s tone was somewhat gloating.
She forcefully pushed her sinking shoulder upwards and said helplessly, “Kijiro-senpai, why have you switched sides this time?”
Kijiro patted her shoulder with his paw and said, “Isn’t this to prevent you from developing uneven shoulders? I heard that you human girls care about this quite a bit. How about it? Am I very considerate, meow!”
Izumi: “…”
That was indeed “considerate.” She felt that by the time she saw Danzo, her shoulders would already be sore before she even made a move.
…
At the same time.
Anbu Base.
“Hach… hach…” Danzo, with only half a body remaining, lay on the cold iron bed with vacant eyes. The bone-gnawing pain from the depths of his soul, which he felt every moment, could not be eradicated by any means, almost driving him to mental breakdown.
He could no longer scream; his voice had been hoarse for who knows how long. Now, he could only gasp for air with a contorted expression.
Only one eye remained in his eye sockets—the other Sharingan had been removed by a medical ninja under the pretext of “Lord Hokage’s order.” At the time, Danzo was almost angered to the point of fainting.
Because the Sharingan in his eye socket…
was Shisui’s Mangekyo Sharingan!
But now that he had fallen to such a state, he was powerless to resist, becoming meat on a chopping block, at anyone’s mercy.
IV tubes were connected to his body, allowing him to barely survive even without being able to drink or eat.
This situation…
It was even worse than dying a clean death!
But!
The intense unwillingness and hatred in his heart made Danzo reluctant to end himself. Furthermore, ending himself would not bring release; that kind of soul-piercing pain would follow him to the ends of hell and never disappear!
This Mangekyo ability was so terrifying that it made Danzo despair.
Danzo placed all his hope on Sarutobi Hiruzen.
If…
Monkey realized that the eyes of that evil Uchiha brat, Uchiha Ikeizumi, were enough to threaten anyone in the village, including his so-called Konoha Hokage. Then, if Monkey found a way to kill Uchiha Ikeizumi, would the special ability of the Mangekyo automatically be lifted?!
After all, he had stolen my Kotoamatsukami! Shouldn’t he be paid to kill Uchiha Ikeizumi for me?
With such hope, Danzo did not give up his will to survive.
He still had a chance!
He hadn’t lost yet!
If he hadn’t completely eradicated the inherently evil Uchiha clan from the ninja world, how could he, Shimura Danzo, fall here!
He had inherited the final will left by his teacher Tobirama!
He was going to contend for the next Hokage position!
He was going to change the future of Konoha Village!
Dong.
Dong.
Dong.
A faint sound reached Danzo’s ears. His consciousness slightly hazy, he shifted his bloodshot, tired gaze to the left and saw an old acquaintance—Homura Mitokado!
Homura Mitokado pulled up a chair, sat beside Danzo, and adjusted his reading glasses on his nose.
He slowly spoke, “Danzo, Konoha’s medical ninjas have tried every possible method, and Uchiha Itachi has also done his best, but nothing has worked. Perhaps, only Uchiha Ikeizumi has a way to undo the Mangekyo jutsu he inflicted upon you.”
Danzo’s somewhat numb facial muscles twitched violently. He wanted to scold the medical ninjas for being incompetent, wanted to scold Uchiha Ikeizumi as a scourge.
But he couldn’t even utter a single word at this moment.
Homura Mitokado looked at his former colleague with a complicated expression.
He couldn’t help but feel a sense of sympathy, like seeing a fellow rabbit meet its end.
“Danzo, although you are bedridden and unable to move, it’s probably best to tell you about recent events. Uchiha Ikeizumi has recently caused quite a stir in Konoha. And it has also involved the Daimyo and a Jinchuriki.”
Homura Mitokado slowly recounted the events of the past two days.
Even the tortured Danzo couldn’t help but freeze.
That inherently evil Uchiha brat’s troublemaking ability seemed to be growing!
And no one could control him at all!
No! If Monkey was determined to control him, he absolutely could. But Monkey was too indecisive!
Was he going to ignore Uchiha Ikeizumi out of fear of causing too many sacrifices? Such hesitation wouldn’t solve the problem, it would only create a deadlock.
Danzo hated so much that his few remaining teeth were about to be ground to dust.
Damn Monkey for not being ambitious!!!
“Danzo, you don’t need to think too much until you recover. It’s late, and I should be going.” Just as Homura Mitokado stood up to leave, a sudden thunderous roar and a ground-shaking, exaggerated vibration caused Homura Mitokado’s expression to suddenly change.
Quickly steadying himself, he looked up.
He saw that the ceiling above suddenly began to glow an orangish-red.
Homura Mitokado’s pupils contracted. A strong premonition made him shudder. He burst forth with astonishing speed and rapidly retreated!
In that same instant, the orangish-red glowing ceiling melted away, and a torrent of lava with terrifying impact power plunged downwards, creating a massive lava hole that pierced the ground to an unknown depth!
The splashing lava also ignited many flammable materials, setting off multiple fires within the Root Base.
The pervasive smell of lava struck Homura Mitokado with great fear.
“Uchiha Ikeizumi!!!” He shouted the name in shock.
And at this moment.
A rather young, yet somewhat familiar voice coldly sounded: “I see. So, by using the Reaper Death Seal, a forbidden jutsu, you split the soul being burned by the Heavenly Punishment Fire into two halves, thus preventing the Heavenly Punishment Fire from affecting the other half of the soul.”
“My stereotypical impression of you… is that you’re someone who occasionally makes foolish mistakes, after all, you even performed the operation of stabbing Susanoo with a kunai. Now it seems you do have a bit of cleverness.”
“It’s just a shame that the pain connection between the two halves of the soul cannot be severed by the Reaper Death Seal. It is precisely because of this that you are lying on this bed like this, a cripple.”
“Your flash of cleverness has not only failed to free you from endless torment, but it has also made your life worse than death.”
“Am I right, ‘Lord’ Shimura Danzo?”
Uchiha Ikeizumi had rushed to two places tonight. One was the Uzumaki Clan’s Namendo in Konoha Village—at that time, he could clearly sense that one half of Danzo’s soul was nearby.
At that moment, he realized what method Danzo had used.
The second place he rushed to was the Anbu Base here!
And the moment his voice fell, Homura Mitokado, standing not far away, personally witnessed a figure standing within the rolling lava.
He stared at Uchiha Ikeizumi with wide eyes.
“What are you doing!?”
While extremely vigilant, Homura Mitokado anxiously shouted, “Uchiha Ikeizumi, this is the Anbu Base! You’re trespassing into the Anbu Base and even destroying the base’s structures, what are you trying to do?!”
Homura Mitokado saw the rolling lava on the ground subside and all converge into Uchiha Ikeizumi’s body.
Then, seeing the other party shift his cold gaze over.
Homura Mitokado was greatly startled. Before any confrontation could begin, he immediately shifted his head slightly.
The miserable state of Danzo was vividly imprinted in his mind. Like Sarutobi Hiruzen, Homura Mitokado also greatly feared Uchiha Ikeizumi’s Mangekyo.
“To eliminate the evil of the ninja world.” Facing Homura Mitokado’s anxious questioning, Uchiha Ikeizumi’s reply was concise.
Homura Mitokado’s heart chilled.
Could it be! This guy still refused to let Danzo go?
The key was, how did he know Danzo was hiding here?
And at this moment.
Homura Mitokado suddenly saw two figures jump down from the large hole blasted in the ceiling—one was a girl in Uchiha Police Force attire, and the other was an orange ninja cat.
“Meow, this is the Anbu’s territory, right?” Kijiro squinted and muttered, “These Anbu Ninja are really fast!”
Just then…
Quite a few Anbu Ninja were drawn by the commotion here, and within a few seconds, seven or eight Anbu Ninja had gathered, all standing behind Homura Mitokado.
It was precisely because of the appearance of these Anbu Ninja that Homura Mitokado, who was so nervous he was sweating profusely, finally felt a little sense of security.
The group of Anbu Ninja were also taken aback upon seeing Uchiha Ikeizumi.
No one had expected to meet again so soon after just parting ways.
And in such a special way.
“Uchiha Ikeizumi… Danzo can no longer do as he pleases, Konoha’s Root is no longer under his command, Hiruzen has stripped him of all his positions, and he is no longer a high-ranking Konoha official.”
Homura Mitokado hid the shock on his face and took a deep breath, only to be choked by the pungent smell of sulfur that filled the air.
After coughing a few times, he said with a complex expression in a deep voice, “In this situation, do you have to go all out to the point of no return? Can’t you show some restraint out of consideration for being from the same village?”
“If your justice were a little more tactful, I believe many people in the village would more readily accept your Absolute Justice.”
The Anbu Ninja behind him looked astonished, and they seemed to understand why Uchiha Ikeizumi was here.
That guy has been hunting down Shimura Danzo!!!
Danzo is truly unfortunate to have provoked Uchiha Ikeizumi…
Uchiha Ikeizumi retorted, “When Shimura Danzo committed his evil deeds, did he think of showing restraint?”
His words left Homura Mitokado speechless.
If Danzo were the type to show restraint, he wouldn’t be Shimura Danzo!
“Absolute Justice will cut out a large tumor of evil from the Ninja World.” Uchiha Ikeizumi, alone with his sword, took a step forward, blocking all the Anbu Ninja by himself.
“Anyone who obstructs the execution of Justice will be considered an enemy of justice and an accomplice to sin by me.”
“Tonight, this path is impassable.”
“Danzo must die.”
…
…
