Chapter 30: Chapter 30: The Shadow of the Leaf
In a dark underground cave, hidden from the eyes and ears of all but a few, an old man with several bandages on his arm and head was seated on a wooden chair, calmly reading a book by the candle light that illuminated the many instruments and jars of strange liquids. He turned page after page, his eyes scanning through the pages with experienced ease as he quickly read through the pages before sighing and closing the book. He placed it on the table before him, his eyes closing to rest as he spoke, addressing the flickering shadows in the room. "Well?"
"They've completed the mission successfully." A respectful voice replied. "Who struck the blow?" The old man asked the shadow. "It was Shin, he volunteered." the shadow answered. The man opened his eyes at the reply and dismissed the shadow with a gesture while he contemplated, 'I didn't think the boy had it in him. He had the tenacity but the courage to do what is necessary… Perhaps Hiruzen was right and I judged the boy too urgently…' the thought of his old friend being correct caused him to go sour as he got up from the seat.
'No matter, he shall do well to remind the enemies of Konoha that we are still the strongest ninja village on the continent!' The man started to walk away from the cavern and towards his destination, he had been summoned to a meeting of all the jonins and ninjas otherwise charged with the grooming of the genins.
Danzo 'Tsk'ed' at the thought, 'there is no reason to go through all the trouble and ask the ninja for their opinions. A shinobi should just follow commands, nothing more!'
............
"Fools! I am surrounded by nothing but fools and children!" *Crash* The echo of cracking wood reflected off the walls and entered his ears as he heaved and panted. After a bit, he was quickly able to recover his calm, he was far too smart to make decisions while he was emotionally distraught and too experienced to let himself be consumed by his emotions.
After a deep sigh, his calm demeanor returned and his eyes showed renewed vigor and conviction. 'Doesn't matter, I don't need their permission to protect my village! As for the genins, if Hiruzen won't let me have them, I'll just have to take them myself.'
"14." The man spoke lightly as a shadow appeared before him, kneeling in subservience and respect, "Fujio's team will be resolved soon, take the opportunity to train Atsuki and bring him into the fold." The man nodded in acknowledgement, "As you command." and flickered away.
The cavern once more returned to the eerie calm and quiet that had become a staple of this place, after all, a true shinobi embraces the darkness and he was a shinobi more true then many.
.........…
"Heheh." a rare smile graced his lips as he read up the paper in front of him. On the paper was a report that detailed the happening at the recent Chunin exams in Sunagakure. The delay in the exams, the sandstorm, the riot against the sand ninja and the boycott of the Chunin exams.
'This is true warfare, not the petty fights of the children. This is what you had wanted, wasn't it teacher?' his thoughts went to the man that was perhaps the greatest shinobi in the history of the village. While most admired his brother, Danzo knew that the 2nd Hokage was a true shinobi instead of his brother. He had the intelligence to create ninjutsus the likes of which the world had never even hoped to imagine, the wisdom to see the threats to the village and the foresight to act upon his pans to keep them incheck.
His eyes softened for a bit before growing resentful, 'Perhaps the only mistake you made was choosing Hiruzen, if you had chosen me that day, our enemies would know to fear us instead of plotting against us.'
Danzo sighed as he put down the report, shaking away his thoughts before focusing on the report once more, 'The genins performed as well as expected, especially there three.' his eyes lingered on the pictures of three young boys, narrowing as his mind conjured up the many ways he could make use of them. 'I shall recommend Itachi to Anbu and then to the root, Atsuki is already being trained by 14 but him… somehow I don't like him… He is far too smart to be molded and his influence on Atsuki is very strong, it won't be easy to turn him, not to mention…' his mood soured again as a blonde spiky haired figure appeared in his mind, 'He reminds me too much of 'him', only he is much more dangerous… most don't even realize it yet but he might just be the greatest prodigy in the history of Konoha! The way he is able to learn every jutsu he comes across, his skill in medical ninjutsu, his skill with fuinjutsu, his battle instinct… I can't let him grow out of control.' his eyes narrowed as a murderous glint shone within.
Danzo's mind raced as he plotted and pondered, eventually landing on the picture of Atsuki. He got up and pulled a separate file which detailed everything regarding Shin Hirano. He opened the file and turned the pages until he came across a picture of a woman in a white dress, her long black hair fell gently over her shoulders as she played with small children with a bright smile.
A smile appeared on Danzo's face as he closed the file and returned it to its place, 'yes… this will work just fine.'
............…
"The villagers are getting more and more restless, Danzo sama. The distrust of the Uchiha has even grown to the level that many shinobi refuse to work with them anymore. Even among the doctors, there are only a few that would treat someone from the Uchiha clan."
The man in question sat comfortably as he listened to the report, his eyes closed as calming dismissed the shadow before summoning another, "14, how is the training of the boy coming along?" A shadow flickered in front of him as it spoke, "It's going well, the boy shows promise but I'm afraid it won't be enough; he had grown far too attached with Shin and his mother."
Danzo simply waved off his loyal shadow's worries as he spoke, "That matter will soon be resolved, how is the doctor?" "There are no problems, the matter can be handled at any time." The shadow assured his master, causing him to nod in approval. "Make sure that Shin is not present when it is done, if the rumors of his skill are even half true, he will be able to spot the issue and at that time it would be far too much trouble for us if Hiruzen gets wind of this."
The shadow nodded and flickered away, leaving his master to his contemplations.
............
"Heheh, I couldn't have planned it better even if I tried." Danzo was very happy at the wonderful turn of events, 'Now I can use both the fox demon and the Uchiha to turn Atsuki into a perfect counter against Shin!' Shin had been proving himself to be a threat, especially his preference for the Uchiha, if he were allowed to grow then it would definitely come to bite him sooner or later but now with Atsuki he could devise the perfect counter against the boy.
Atsuki was intimately aware of Shin's tactics and fighting styles, after all they had created and refined their own fighting styles together. 'All Atsuki needs is a little "improvement" and he will become the perfect shinobi to counter Shin!'
'I am sure that Orouchimaru wouldn't say no to a potential candidate for the Hashirama cells.' he caressed his right arm as he thought about the power the first Hokage commanded and how he longed to possess such power, 'If only I had the first Hokage's power, the whole Shinobi world would bow down to me!.'
He shook his head, dispelling such thoughts before they could fully take form.
............
"Ugh…" he opened his eye slowly as woke up from a quick nap, he gently pressed the area around his right eye that was bandaged as he shook off the drowsiness. He had still been recovering from the transplant procedure that he had undergone just a few days ago.
Danzo slowly took off the bandages and opened his right eye. The room seemed to brighten as observed his surroundings, noticing tiny details on things he had never seen before. He held his hand before him and saw blue energy running through a network akin to blood, traveling all over his body.
'Incredible! So this is how they see the world! Such a powerful sight!' he marveled at his new found power as he looked at everything in the room as if he was just seeing it for the first time. "Agh." he held his right head in slight pain as a shadow immediately appeared before him, "Danzo sama! You should rest, it will take some time to adapt to the eye." the shadow spoke with concern but the old man simply dismissed him, "I'm fine. Are the preparations complete for the operation? We cannot let anyone interfere or allow any mistakes!" Danzo spoke in a commanding tone.
"Everything is ready, the guard duty roaster has been changed and we have made sure that no one would be anywhere near the Uchiha compound during the operation." The Shadow assured him and Danzo acknowledged with a nod before asking another question, "What about Sasuke?"
"He will be delayed at the academy until the appointed time, we have even placed 21 enroute to make sure that he doesn't arrive before the appointed time, if need be, 21 will use genjutsu to delay the boy."
"Alright, you can go." Danzo dismissed the shadow while he returned to his chair, 'After tomorrow, the threat of the Uchiha would be erased forever! It's a pity though…' Danzo touched the re-done bandages around his right eye as he spoke with longing, 'If only I had gotten the other one as well. No matter… there will be plenty to choose from soon enough.'
............
Danzo stood outside the secret entrance of the foundation with a sour mood, it was one of secret labs that even the Hokage didn't know about and this was exactly what made him so pissed when an elite Jonin of Konoha, who had always expressed her dissatisfaction with Danzo, had come knocking on his doorstep.
Danzo looked at the purple haired Jonin with annoyance, 'Tonight of all nights!' he cursed in his mind when a shadow flickered behind him and whispered something in his ear, something that only made him more angry. He didn't have any more time to waste, tonight was an important night for Konoha as the biggest threat to the village was going to be eliminated so he cut to the chase and spoke to the purple haired woman with an annoyed tone, "What are you doing here Fujio? You have no business here!"
The woman on the opposite side simply stared him down for a while, something that only made the man more angry, before she spoke, "I know you have been colluding with Oruchimaru, using the citizens of the village for experimentations!" Danzo was a bit surprised at the accusation as he raised an eyebrow, "That is quite a serious accusation Fujio, I am an elder of Konoha and Ihave spent my entire life in service to the village. Yet you are accusing me of colluding with the traitor?"
Fujio didn't move as she observed the one-eyed man, "I honestly don't care what you do Danzo, I'm just here for my student. Return him to me and this matter ends here, if not…" She raised her hand towards the sword on her back as the members of Root entered the fighting stance and prepared to defend their master.
Danzo on the other hand simply observed Fujio before a smile crept up on his face, "Quite a bluff you are playing Fujio-san. But I don't think you are going to do anything… because you have no proof." His words struck a chord inside Fujio as a muscle on her hand involuntarily twitched slightly, something Danzo caught easily. Danzo chuckled as he spoke, "If you did have proof, you would not be here trying to bargain with me but with Hiruzen."
Fujio's eyes widened as she realized something, "So you are admitting to colluding with Oruchimaru!?"
*Swish Swish Swish* shadow's appeared around Fujio and surrounded her, Danzo's smile disappeared as he spoke with a chill, "If you had come any other, you might have walked out of here unharmed afterall you are an elite Jonin of Konoha. However, tonight, I cannot afford any mistakes!"
On cue, the shadows jumped forward at Fujio as she unsheathed her sword and swung it around, lighting danced on the sword, lighting up the surrounding trees as a sharp sound spread through the area.
The ninja's that had jumped forwards all moved to dodge the sword strike but a few were far too slow as the lightning ripped through them, shredding them with sheer destructive power of the Lightning Style Kenjutsu.
Danzo 'Tsk'ed' as he saw the sense, 'She is an elite ninja after all, it won't be easy to take her down.' Danzo weaved hand signs and breathed in huge amounts of air, before spewing out Vacuum bullets that tore through anything they came into contact with, disintegrating large chunks of trees that they hit.
Fujio flickered away to dodge the attack when she felt being attacked from three sides. She swung her sword, deflecting the oncoming shurikens. The deflected shurikens were sent back with twice the speed as they became charged with lightning chakra. Fujio used this opportunity to breathe in and send forth air bullets at Danzo which he jumped to dodge.
Fujio anticipated this and tried to strike him in the air with her sword but a root member jumped up to take the strike head on, allowing Danzo enough time to retreat.
Danzo retreated and took the opportunity to send forth a large vacuum ball towards Fujio who used the root member she had just struck as leverage to dodge midair. She was successful for the most part but unfortunately the ball was too large to dodge completely mid-air and she lost her right arm.
Fujio grit her teeth, trying to ignore the pain as she looked at Danzo with hate. "You can only blame yourself for standing against me Fujio-san. Though I have to admire your commitment to your students, in that regard, you have my respect. So, die peacefully…" Danzo's face twisted into a smile as he continued, "Knowing that the precious student you came to protect will be joining you soon enough."
Fujio's eyes widened in horror and surprise as she yelled at Danzo, "You BASTARD!" She jumped towards Danzo, her sword trailing a path of destruction as she ran towards him. Danzo's eyes widened as he saw her charge and yelled, "Stop her!" Earth started to rise between the two but it all proved futile as she swung her sword, shattering every new wall that rose without stopping her charge.
Danzo jumped back and sent forth a wave of air towards the oncoming Fujio who swung her sword downwards, smashing it into the ground and creating a vertical slash of lightning chakra that disrupted the incoming wave of air, breaking it in two. The wave of air created two pits on either side as she started to pant.
The shadows moved forwards to attack her but Danzo stopped them, instead he grabbed a sword from one of the shadows and spewed air on to it, charging it with wind nature chakra. He walked towards Fujio as she stood up straight and held her sword up, lightning dancing across the sword.
"I have always admired that jutsu of yours, too bad it is simply too impractical; it uses too much chakra and is too difficult for anyone to control afterall Lightning is simply too chaotic." Dazno praised the woman and it seemed to bring a slight smile to her lips, something that the man found rather surprising, "Why are you surprised?" he asked in a curious tone. Fujio's smile grew until she started to laugh, in the end an injured, one armed woman at death's doorstep and surrounded by enemies, let out a hearty laugh.
Danzo and his men looked at her as if she was crazy, 'Did she go crazy when she was about to die?' Danzo thought but before he could speak, Fujio stopped laughing and gave Danzo an amused look, "You are right Danzo, you are totally right. But you see… some people are just born to tame the chaos!" She declared as she pointed her sword at Danzo, "Let's end this now, shall we?"
With those words, Fujio's hair started to float as her skin started to turn red, "Let me show you a glimpse of the future Danzo! Let me show you the power of chaos! Let me show you your death!"
Danzo's face went white as he grabbed the bandages on his head and tore them while yelling to his subordinates, "Stop her! Stop her NOW!" The surrounding henchmen all rushed to stand in between Danzo and Fujio and Danzo cursed her under his breath, using his sharingan to observe as her chakra started to go berserk.
Fujio's chakra flowed to her sword, turning into lightning chakra before traveling through her hands and towards the rest of her body, turning red to match the color of her skin as veins bulged with excess energy. 'She is using that technique! But how!? There was never any intel regarding this!? She is suicidal!' Danzo sweated as he saw Fujio lower her body before exploding in a blur of speed.
Fujio used her Sword and lightning to cut through the obstacles, the lightning from her sword striking everything around it as the lightning around her body deflected every attack thrown at her while latching on to anyone that got too close to her and sending them convulsing through the air.
Danzo quickly made a hand seal as he saw her get closer, 'Not good! There is no other choice, I can't dodge!' And just as he did, Fujio zapped between root members before arriving above Danzo, she struck her sword downwards while declaring her final move, "Lightning Style Kenjutsu! Final Strike!"
*BHOOOOM* Thunder rang across the woods as lightning rose to the sky before striking down once more, decimating everything in the vicinity.
Danzo appeared in the dust, coughing as he looked at the crater he was in with shock and regret. "Such power… a pity, you could've been a real asset to me." he shook his head with regret as he picked up the woman's sword while thinking. "Give this sword to Atsuki, tell him to take care of Shin." he spoke to the shadow who nodded before disappearing. 'Last year Fujio trained Shin for sometime. While I do not know the specifics, I can't take any chances.'
Danzo started to walk, thinking of how close he had come to death. He glanced at his right arm, pondering for a moment before instructing his henchmen to erase any traces of their involvement but to leave the battlefield otherwise untouched. Danzo also emptied out the secret base that was close by, it could no longer be used.
............
"Anything new?"
"No Danzo sama. The boy visited the location of Fujio-san's death after Kakashi visited him but apart from that, there has been no movement for a week already." the shadow replied. Danzo looked at the surveillance reports and cursed in his mind, These two, teacher and student, had caused far too much damage to the foundation. Not to mention that his men had seen Shin using the same lightning style kenjutsu as Fujio, it was something that had left an impression on Danzo, the last thing he needed was another ninja with that level of power coming after him. 'So did pass on that technique to him, luckily it seems that the boy has fallen into depression.'
Watching the stubble expressions of his master, "Should we kill him?'' The shadow offered his suggestion to which Danzo gave a harsh look which made him immediately apologize and shut up. Hiruzen is breathing down his throat and his shadow had just suggested that he send someone to kill a skilled ninja prodigy that might have potentially mastered Fujio's jutsu, lived in the middle of Konoha and was no doubt under the watch of the Anbu?
Danzo dismissed the shadow and pondered the aftereffects of that night; Hiruzen had kicked him off the council, disbanded the foundation, kept a constant eye on him while Danzo had lost many many men to Fujio and Shin's rampage not to mention Itachi had threatened him to stay away from Sasuke.
The outcome was less than ideal, however he had achieved his goal; the Uchiha were no longer a threat, many nobel clans had become dissatisfied with Hiruzen and even some of the the civilians had hastily sold their property to flee the village.The surrounding villages were probing the boarders.
'If another war breaks out, Hiruzen would get blamed for it. The fire daimyo might even ask for his removal and with the sanin's missing and no other candidate, I will be chosen as the next Hokage!' a smile formed on his face.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
HermitOfLifeMount
HermitOfLifeMount Some of the hardest demons to beat are the ones that we get used to living with us.
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