Tsunade, You’ll Regret This!

Everything left behind in Root was sealed away by Kimimaro using Sealing Scrolls, including the remaining mission records, ninjutsu scrolls, experimental equipment, and more.

Under the watch of Kimimaro and Kakashi’s Anbu squad, the Anbu members Sarutobi Shinnosuke had brought along had no chance to pull any tricks. Bone forests seven or eight meters tall still stood throughout the Root base. If they tried anything behind his back and Kimimaro noticed, he would definitely strike without hesitation.

Under the gaze of those indifferent eyes, the Sarutobi Family’s Anbu Ninja felt uncomfortable all over. Though they possessed the strength of Chunin or Jonin, they had likely not experienced even a fraction of the killing Kimimaro, a mere youth, had.

As Orochimaru’s foremost executioner, Kimimaro had no idea how many dirty jobs he had handled for Orochimaru. The number of people he had killed might have exceeded the population of an entire small Ninja Village.

His methods were even more cold-blooded than those of Anbu Ninja. Just like earlier, Kimimaro had decisively killed every Root Ninja who refused to obey Tsunade-sama’s orders.

After Kimimaro watched them seal away everything in Root, there were also the corpses of the Root Ninja he had killed. The information in their brains was a form of wealth as well. Especially for Root Ninja—even if their brains bore Cursed Seals, extracting even a little information from them would be a loss for Konoha.

Kimimaro then turned to Kakashi and said calmly, "Kakashi-senpai, please keep an eye on these Root Ninja. If they entertain any thoughts of running after recovering from their injuries, kill them immediately. If one person escapes, kill them all."

The Root Ninja crouching nearby with their heads lowered all trembled slightly upon hearing that. This was the first time they had encountered a Ninja even more cold-blooded than themselves. More than twenty people inside the Root base had just been decisively killed because they said they would listen to Lord Danzo.

Did this guy really consider them comrades? At least let them see the appointment scroll! Were they not even allowed to question it? Facing Kimimaro, the surviving Root Ninja all felt deeply wronged.

Lord Danzo, it’s not that your subordinates are disloyal. The enemy is simply too cold-blooded and cruel!

Hearing this, Kakashi sighed and scratched his head before saying to Kimimaro, "I understand, Kimimaro. Don’t worry. I guarantee none of them will escape."

After entrusting that matter to Kakashi, Kimimaro headed toward the Hokage Tower.

Before going there, however, he first returned to the Anbu base to change clothes. The Anbu members he encountered there silently kept their distance after seeing Kimimaro. Apparently, during the time it took him to return, what he had done at the Root base had already spread through Anbu.

After changing into a fresh set of clothes and writing up a mission report, Kimimaro hurried to the Hokage Tower. By the time he arrived, quite a few people had already gathered in Tsunade’s office.

Kimimaro glanced around and found that, aside from several Ninja Clan Heads he had met that day, there were also two old men. One was missing an arm, while the other was covertly looking at him with hatred in his eyes.

Kimimaro had never paid much attention to people who could not hide their hatred, yet did not dare display it openly. Such people generally had no real prospects.

"Tsunade-sama, Root has been fully taken over. During the process, we encountered some Ninja who intended to betray the village, but they have all been killed."

After saying this flatly, Kimimaro handed Tsunade a written mission report.

Tsunade took it and gave it a cursory look before nodding. "Well done, Kimimaro. Count it as an A-rank Mission."

"Tsunade, aren’t you going too far!?"

Hearing that, Danzo finally could not hold back and shouted.

More than twenty of his Root personnel had been killed, and Root’s forces within Konoha had been wiped out in one sweep—yet she was praising him for a job well done?

The more than forty Root Ninja in the village had made up over half of the forces under his command. Now that Tsunade had sent someone to seize them, the Root Ninja Danzo had left were scattered outside on missions. There were probably fewer than thirty in total.

Moreover, he no longer held the position of Hokage Advisor. Mitokado Homura

"Why are you yelling, old man? Letting a civilian like you sit in on discussions at the Hokage Tower is already giving you face. Keep shouting, and get out immediately!"

With a bang, Tsunade slammed her hand onto the desk and shouted back. She glared at Danzo with clear hostility. This bastard had relied on the old Third Hokage’s delegation of power to turn the village into a complete mess, only to leave her to clean it up after returning.

After Tsunade crushed Danzo’s momentum with a single sentence, Mitokado Homura stepped half a pace forward and tried to persuade her. "Tsunade, no matter what, Root are Konoha’s Ninja. They earned many merits defending Konoha, yet so many have now died because of Kimimaro’s wanton slaughter. Tsunade, if you do not provide an explanation—"

"Provide what explanation? To whom do I need to provide one?"

Tsunade gave an unconcerned sneer, her expression turning slightly cold as she said to Mitokado Homura, "I am now the Fifth Hokage, and the Daimyo’s appointment is already on its way. I sent Anbu to take over Root Ninja who had no leader. When they encountered resistance from Ninja attempting to betray the village, were they not allowed to fight back?"

"What a joke. Has Root become too powerful to control? They can even disregard the Hokage’s orders? As for the merits you claim they earned defending Konoha, bring them out and let me see them. If they truly have merits to show for it, then I’ll admit today’s mistake."

"You—"

Danzo choked on those words, too angry to speak. The reason Root defended Konoha in the darkness was that everything they did could not bear the light of day. Even Sarutobi Hiruzen had only known the rough outline of Root’s operations.

Tsunade had no patience to keep bickering with Danzo. She directly shouted, "Enough! Konoha’s affairs are not for you two Civilians to meddle in. Anbu, escort them home. Unless necessary, they are not permitted to come to the Hokage Tower."

"Yes, Fifth Hokage-sama."

Three Anbu members instantly appeared in the room, then moved to escort Mitokado Homura and Danzo back to their respective homes.

"Tsunade, good. Very good."

Obvious fury surfaced on Mitokado Homura’s face. Tsunade and her teacher truly were cut from the same cloth—using up Konoha’s meritorious officials and then tossing them aside.

Danzo’s heart was likewise filled with rage. Tsunade was striking at his Root, shattering his dream of becoming Hokage piece by piece. Before the Anbu escorted him away, Danzo said coldly, "Tsunade, you will regret this."

Tsunade answered without the slightest concern, "Regret it? I am the Hokage!"

After the two men were escorted away, Tsunade discussed the Hokage succession ceremony to be held three days later with the others. Since the front line was still at war, they only needed to invite a few allied small countries nearby, and the ceremony would be kept as simple as possible.

Once the other matters had been discussed, Tsunade said to Kimimaro, "Kimimaro, take control of Root as quickly as possible. Afterward, I will give Root Ninja greater autonomy than Anbu. Hmph, that old man’s Sarutobi Family has gone too far!"

"I understand, Tsunade-sama." Kimimaro suddenly recalled something. After pausing, he continued, "Tsunade-sama, the Root Ninja are all marked with the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal. Should we dispose of them and recruit new personnel?"

Smack!

Tsunade slapped her fair forehead. Kimimaro’s excessive bloodlust gave her a headache as well, though that was something to correct gradually in the future.

"No. As for the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, I will find a way to remove it. Your task is simply to subdue the remaining Root Ninja as soon as possible while expanding Root’s numbers."

Danzo’s Cursed Seal Jutsu might seem somewhat impressive to others, but the helper Tsunade could call upon would certainly be capable of breaking the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal.

Kimimaro nodded calmly at that and said to Tsunade, "I understand, Tsunade-sama."

"By the way, Kimimaro, why hasn’t that other person Orochimaru mentioned shown up yet? Do you know anything about him?"

Tsunade suddenly remembered that Orochimaru had promised her another helper. So much time had passed, yet the person had still not appeared.

After thinking for a moment, Kimimaro replied, "That person should be Kabuto-sama, Yakushi Kabuto. Aside from Orochimaru-sama, no one else, myself included, knows his whereabouts."

"Alright, I’ll press Orochimaru again. You can leave."

After hearing this, Tsunade waved her hand and dismissed Kimimaro.

Saudi Federation Guest House

Ever since obtaining Uchiha Fugaku’s corpse, Hyuga Mirai had holed up in the Guest House to conduct research. He had brought a full set of research equipment with him. While he could not take all of it out, he could at least bring out the instruments needed to dissect and examine a corpse.

After carefully studying Uchiha Fugaku’s brain for two days, Hyuga Mirai finally understood the secret of the Uchiha Clan’s Sharingan.

When an Uchiha clansman’s brain secreted substances that affected emotions, it stimulated a special inherited gene within the Uchiha Clan, thereby awakening the Sharingan. The more of those substances the brain secreted, the more intensely that gene awakened the Sharingan.

The Mangekyō Sharingan was the manifestation of a complete awakening.

Judging from Uchiha Fugaku’s genetic makeup, the Mangekyō Sharingan was his limit. Moreover, once that gene had fully awakened, it would manifest in an Uchiha clansman’s body, causing them to awaken a special type of Chakra based on that inherited gene.

However, this Chakra was nonrenewable. Once it was used up, it was gone. Only by transplanting genetic fragments from Hashirama Cells could this Chakra, unique to the Mangekyō Sharingan, be continuously produced.

"Looking at it this way, the thing that can stimulate the Mangekyō Sharingan’s evolution should be genetic fragments from the God Tree. Indra’s Chakra just happens to correspond with the Mangekyō Sharingan’s evolution. I should have made a move on Sasuke sooner. If possible, I might even be able to replicate several pairs of Rinnegan."

Hyuga Mirai looked at the research findings in his hand and pondered inwardly. He needed to find an opportunity to take Sasuke out.

Just as Hyuga Mirai was considering making a move on the Indra’s Chakra within Sasuke, Uzumaki Ayaka suddenly knocked on the door outside and told him that Uchiha Mikoto had arrived.

"What perfect timing."

Hyuga Mirai went straight to the entrance, opened the door, and welcomed Uchiha Mikoto inside. With a faint smile, he said to her, "What perfect timing, Madam Mikoto. I was just about to come find you."

There are still two chapters to come. The first one was a little late!