026 Brilliant Glory

Konoha, Temporary Hokage Tent

Danzo had just returned from the Iron Country, barely escaping with his life. He now walked with a cane in his left hand.

His right eye and right arm had been replaced with artificial ones, both tightly wrapped in bandages to avoid drawing attention.

A letter from the daimyo had just arrived, and its content was clearly unfavorable to him. It read:

Danzo, to be honest, I'm extremely disappointed in your performance at the Five Kage Summit.

But since I personally appointed you as Hokage, removing you now would reflect poorly on my judgment.

You have one hundred days to turn things around and get Konoha back on track, or I will name a new Hokage.

After reading the letter, Danzo lit it on fire with a candle. His expression darkened.

"What a shame... If I still had Shisui's right eye with the Kotoamatsukami, I could've cleared my name..."

After burning the letter, Danzo sat in deep thought for a while.

Then, he summoned the head of Konoha's infrastructure and asked about the village's reconstruction, and specifically added new instructions: build the face of the Sixth Hokage on the Hokage Rock.

"This..." The man hesitated. 

"Although the Fire Country has provided reconstruction funds, the work is massive and people are still unsettled. Isn't building Hokage Rock right now... a bit inappropriate?"

He carefully watched Danzo's reaction. After all, someone who could snatch the title of Hokage was not to be taken lightly.

Danzo spoke with authority, "Every Hokage carves their face on the Hokage Rock. It marks a new beginning. The village is in ruins. We need a symbol, a spiritual anchor for the people."

"This..." The man tried to argue again, but when he glanced at the masked Root members standing nearby with cold stares, he quickly changed his tone.

"That... does make sense!"

Danzo said, "Then start the work immediately. A custom Hokage Rock must be made for me! From materials to process and manpower, submit everything to me for approval."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!"

After the official left, Danzo opened the tent flap and looked out with his exposed left eye, staring at the distant cliff where the Hokage Rock stood among the ruins.

"My face will finally be carved there for all to see…"

The memory of his narrow escape from the Iron Country still haunted him. Even now, the fear lingered. He hadn't been able to sleep or eat properly for days.

Returning to his chair, he gripped his cane tightly.

"I was so close. I had just become Hokage, but it almost slipped away. I didn't expect Uzumaki Naruto to be this powerful… The strength boost from the Rinnegan is beyond anything we've seen. If I had known, I should've taken Nagato's eyes from Amegakure sooner…"

Losing his right eye and right arm had stripped him of his strongest defenses. 

Now, Root elites guarded him within a hundred paces wherever he went, and all regular ANBU assigned to village security had been secretly replaced by Root operatives.

That evening, just before the Five Kage Summit, Terai—one of Danzo's agents sent to track down Yakushi Kabuto, returned, injured.

"Lord Danzo," he said, kneeling, 

"I found him. But his strength far exceeds what we had in the reports…"

Danzo frowned. "Far beyond what we expected? Then how did you manage to survive?"

"To be honest… it felt like he let me escape on purpose..." Hiss! A sudden flash of a snake-like vertical pupil appeared in Terai's eyes!

Snap! 

Danzo's expression changed instantly. He dropped his cane, leapt from his seat, and grabbed Terai by the throat

"Urgh…!"

A white snake slithered out of Terai's mouth, holding a scroll. Terai collapsed to the ground, already dead.

Danzo bent down, picked up the scroll, and unrolled it. As his eyes scanned the contents, a sharp glint flashed in them.

"…Danzo-sama…"

"Get rid of Terai's body."

"Yes, sir."

"Also, I'm leaving the village for a while. This must remain absolutely secret. Not a word to anyone."

"Then what about the Hokage position, the village—?"

"Let my stand-in handle it."

As someone constantly targeted by enemies, Danzo naturally had a body double prepared, perfectly matching his height, appearance, and even speech patterns. Even most Jōnin couldn't tell the difference.

Danzo added, "Even if it's a stand-in, they must carry the full dignity of a Hokage. If anything looks off, it'll raise suspicion. The Daimyo is already pressuring me. At a time like this, I can't afford a single misstep."

"What about your personal guard?"

Danzo's personal guards, Fū and Torune, had both been killed by Naruto…

After a moment of thought, he said, "Call back Ryoma."

"Aburame Ryoma-senpai!?" 

The white-robed Root member looked stunned and respectful.

Aburame Ryoma was one of the strongest members of the Aburame clan. Back when Orochimaru served in Root, Ryoma was his partner. 

[In the Hokage Orphanage arc, Ryoma was the one standing behind Danzo alongside Orochimaru.]

That night, after making all the arrangements, Danzo dressed in black, covered his face, and quietly left the village.

Before disappearing into the night, he turned to look at the Hokage Rock and muttered,

"When I return, my face will be carved on the Hokage Rock. My era is finally coming…"

With that, Danzo vanished into the darkness.

...

The night was long and quiet.

In the southern part of the Land of Fire, inside Akatsuki's hideout—

"Mmm…" Sasuke slowly regained consciousness.

"Sasuke…" Karin smiled gently.

"You're finally awake," said Obito, seated above them, resting his cheek on one hand.

As Sasuke's thoughts cleared, he asked, "Where's Naruto?"

Obito replied, "After his fight with the Raikage, he left the Iron Country safely."

Boom!

Sasuke slammed his fist onto the stone platform.

"Damn it… Naruto's power has grown that much?!"

Obito said calmly, "Don't let it get to you. By the end of your fight, your strength had awakened significantly. If Naruto hadn't taken Nagato's eye, he wouldn't have won so easily."

"Hmph! Don't try to comfort me with weak excuses!" Sasuke snapped.

Obito looked at him with interest. "So, what's your plan now? If you go back to Konoha just for revenge, nothing will change."

Sasuke's eyes burned with determination. "I want to transplant Itachi's eyes."

"Oh?" Obito's expression shifted as he stepped down from his perch

"So this is what you've decided?" Obito asked.

"I just want enough power to defeat Naruto… and destroy Konoha!" Sasuke said coldly.

Obito looked at him deeply. "Then come with me."

…

Outside the Iron Country, deep inside a hidden cave used by the Yamanaka clan—

Zzzt…

Naruto slowly opened his right eye, now glowing with the curved magatama of the Mangekyō Sharingan, once belonging to Uchiha Shisui.

"Naruto-kun, how do you feel?" 

Orochimaru asked with a sly smile, having just completed the eye transplant himself.

Naruto replied, "This darkness… I can see it more clearly now."

Orochimaru nodded. "Kotoamatsukami is an extremely rare genjutsu. Without Hashirama cells, it can only be used once every ten years. But you, Naruto-kun, are from the Uzumaki clan, distant relatives of the Senju. Your body's vitality shortens that limit."

"So… how often can I use it?" Naruto asked.

"About once every half month," Orochimaru answered. 

"But remember… there's also the risk of blindness."

Naruto asked with a hint of warning, "Orochimaru, aren't you afraid I'll use this eye technique on you?"

Orochimaru smiled calmly. "Heh… If you really planned to use it, you wouldn't have warned me. Besides, even if you did, I wouldn't be able to tell, right?"

Naruto looked away in silence.

Konan stepped forward. "Our goal is complete. Do you want to return to Amegakure?"

Naruto's expression turned serious.

Right now, Akatsuki was hunting the Eight Tails.

The Raikage had rushed out to save him.

That man… the one who stood firm to protect his comrades, still lingered in Naruto's mind.

"To move forward, we need more manpower…"

Konan asked, "So you plan to recruit after returning to the Rain Village?"

Naruto touched his right eye. "There's one man I want to protect and bring to our side."

"Who?" Konan asked.

Naruto's eyes lit up with determination.

"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist… the wielder of Samehada, Hoshigaki Kisame."

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED

_________________

Noted : if you guys want read advance chapter, you can check at my P@treon : patreon.com/MoonEater18