Chapter 480: Let the Third Hokage Chase Danzo First

"This discussion can continue later," Tsunade said bluntly before leaving. She needed to find Takuya and inform him of the news.

As for the Third Hokage...

Tsunade had little hope he would actually capture Danzo.

If he managed not to let Danzo escape again, that would already be a success. Expecting him to apprehend Danzo was as futile as expecting him to deal with Orochimaru in the original timeline.

Back then, Orochimaru's crimes had been exposed. If the Third Hokage hadn't hesitated due to sentimentality, even with Orochimaru's exceptional escape skills, he wouldn't have gotten away so easily.

With no faith in Hiruzen Sarutobi, Tsunade decided to prepare the wanted notice and bounty for Danzo instead.

She was confident that Takuya would be more than happy to take on the task of hunting down Danzo—he might even do it without the 30 million ryo bounty.

In the Hokage's office, only Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado remained.

Homura removed his glasses and rubbed the sore bridge of his nose. "Do you think Hiruzen can actually bring Danzo back?"

"What do you think?" Koharu shot him a glare before standing up.

"You handle the wanted notice."

"…"

Homura sighed. Danzo was the one who escaped—why am I the one getting yelled at?

When Tsunade arrived at Takuya's place, she found him curled up under a blanket, fast asleep.

Opening the door, she noticed he didn't react to her presence at all. From his profile, she could see faint dark circles under his eyes.

What's he been researching so much? Even if he masters Ice Release, can it really be stronger than the Sharingan?

Shaking her head, Tsunade decided not to wake him gently. Instead, she leaned against the doorframe and casually said:

"Danzo has escaped."

"!"

The words Danzo has escaped jolted Takuya awake. His eyes snapped open, and he shot upright as if on springs.

I knew this day would come.

Tsunade smirked in satisfaction. She had known this method would work.

If she had tried waking him normally, Takuya would have just rolled over and gone back to sleep—especially with how little rest he'd had recently.

But mentioning Danzo, especially his escape, was guaranteed to get a reaction.

Though still groggy from lack of sleep, Takuya's mind quickly cleared, and a hint of excitement surfaced in his expression.

After all, he'd been waiting for this moment for a long time.

The prison had been unusually calm, and Danzo had seemed surprisingly well-behaved, showing no signs of making a move—until now.

"When did he escape? Who helped him?"

Tsunade had been expecting Takuya to immediately leap out of bed, get dressed, and rush out to hunt Danzo down. Instead, he just sat there, asking questions.

"???"

Shouldn't he be scrambling to arm himself and chase Danzo down to finish him off outside the village?

Why was he still sitting there, looking half-asleep?

Tsunade stared at Takuya in confusion, her mind filled with question marks.

Still, she answered his questions despite his unexpected calmness:

"About an hour ago. The old man has already gone out with a team to capture him, but I doubt they'll succeed."

"As for who helped Danzo, it was the jonin squad the Hokage personally selected to assist Nawaki in guarding the prison.

"They waited until Nawaki was resting, then ambushed the ANBU operatives and broke Danzo out of his cell. Whether they were coerced or were already working for Danzo remains under investigation."

"Cough, cough!"

Takuya, now fully awake, stared at her in disbelief.

"You're saying the ones who helped Danzo escape were the jonin squad personally chosen by the Hokage?"

Takuya couldn't help but exclaim, "Unbelievable! What a move!"

Was this pure coincidence, or had Danzo planned it? Did he still have hidden allies within the village?

It sounded absurd, but the facts were undeniable.

Tsunade shrugged helplessly, raising her hand in a gesture of exasperation.

For a moment, Takuya just sat there, stunned. Then, all at once, he burst into laughter.

"Pfft—HAHAHA! This is too much! My stomach hurts… I can't… hahaha!"

Takuya doubled over, tears streaming from his eyes as he laughed uncontrollably, even rolling around on the bed.

Veins popped on Tsunade's forehead as she tried to keep her temper in check.

"This is the biggest assist ever. Poor Nawaki—he's going to be absolutely miserable."

As the primary guard responsible, Nawaki would be humiliated. For years, this incident would be a mark of shame that others would bring up to tease him.

But someone had it even worse—Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The Third Hokage's face would metaphorically swell from the sheer embarrassment of it all.

He had sent "reinforcements" to assist with guarding Danzo, only for them to end up helping Danzo escape. It was a comedic blunder that would haunt him.

Takuya was sure that if this news spread, the Third Hokage's reputation would be dragged through the mud.

Tsunade sighed, rubbing her forehead with a slender finger.

"At least this happened while Nawaki was on a break. Otherwise, he'd be shouldering even more blame.

"But the old man is in real trouble now—he's the one who'll have to bear the brunt of responsibility for this fiasco."

Takuya finally stopped laughing long enough to sit up, wiping tears from his eyes.

"After this blows over, I'll treat Nawaki to a meal and try to soothe his shattered pride."

Saying this, Takuya pulled his blanket back over himself, clearly intending to go back to sleep.

"You're going back to bed?" Tsunade asked, incredulous.

From under the blanket, Takuya replied in a muffled voice:

"Why not? The Hokage is already on it, so why should I bother? Let him deal with it."

Could Danzo be caught?

There was a slim chance, but Takuya doubted it. Danzo was far too cunning, capable of evading most tracking methods.

In the original timeline, even Orochimaru, with all his hiding skills, was nearly impossible for Jiraiya to find. If Orochimaru could pull it off, so could Danzo.

"If the Hokage wants to lead the charge personally, let him. It's not the first time he's embarrassed himself, and it certainly won't be the last.

"Besides, even if he fails, who's going to call him out on it? He's the Hokage, after all."

"..."

Tsunade also doubted the Third Hokage's ability to capture Danzo, but she wouldn't openly admit it—not when he was her teacher.

Still, she couldn't deny that Takuya's bluntness was refreshing.

"Fine, you do you… Hey, what are you—"

Before she could finish, Takuya pulled her into the blanket.

A muffled complaint followed:

"You little brat! Where do you think you're grabbing?!"

"..."

Meanwhile, the Third Hokage was leading a group of ANBU operatives in pursuit of Danzo.

Tracking was an area of expertise for the ANBU, but Danzo was no ordinary target.

The further they searched, the fewer traces they found, and Danzo remained elusive—a testament to the cunning of the man who had evaded so many obstacles in the past.

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