The promotion from Anbu Squad Captain to Captain, for Mokgetsu who has no subordinates, means the only tangible change is the bigger Anbu office he now occupies.
Now Mokgetsu has an office similar in style to Sarutobi Masanari's big office.
"Yamanaka Yoshihiko, Aoyama Hideaki..." Mokgetsu flips through the files on Perception Ninja given by Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Perhaps due to the long-term cultivation of special Secret Techniques by the Yamanaka Clan, Mokgetsu discovers that many of the clan's ninjas have perception talents.
Mokgetsu recalls the panels corresponding to the names, ticking off the names of ninjas he thinks may have learned Observation.
While flipping through the information, Mokgetsu skips all the Perception Ninjas with the surname Hyuga.
Due to the existence of the Byakugan bloodline limit, strictly speaking, all of the Hyuga Clan can be Perception Ninjas.
Obito and Shisui with their Sharingan learning Observation make sense, as it can be used as Perception Ninjutsu and also detects attacks beyond vision.
There's no need for the Byakugan, which already excels as Perception Ninjutsu and offers a 360-degree vision.
Given the overlapping abilities, unless Observation is cultivated to a certain realm, it isn't very necessary for ninjas with Byakugan.
After selecting enough twenty people, Mokgetsu has the Anbu send the list over to Sarutobi Hiruzen for approval.
Many of the selected ninjas work in various departments like perception and analysis, it's impossible for them to just abandon their jobs and follow Mokgetsu for cultivation without following the procedure.
Furthermore, notifying so many people one-by-one can be troublesome for Mokgetsu, especially now that he's the Anbu Squad Captain.
However, Mokgetsu estimates that the final number could exceed the twenty on his list.
Firstly, the list includes Anbu members but not Root members, that Shimura Danzo would surely want his subordinates to master Observation, potentially slipping in at least two or three.
Moreover, if other high-ranking officials or major clans catch wind of the training, they might leverage connections to insert individuals to learn as well.
After all, the ability to perceive malice is indeed handy.
Events unfolded as Mokgetsu expected.
That evening, Mokgetsu received a message from Shimura Danzo, requesting him to visit the Root Base.
"Mokgetsu, why isn't there a single Root Ninja in the Observation training list?" Shimura Danzo's face clouded as he looked at Mokgetsu.
Last time, he didn't specifically mention this issue to Mokgetsu, believing Mokgetsu wouldn't need a reminder and would handle the matter properly.
Seeing the final result gave Shimura Danzo a sense of betrayal.
Given Mokgetsu's special situation, spending more time in the Hokage Office than at the Root Base, Shimura Danzo worried that the benefits given by Sarutobi Hiruzen might corrupt Mokgetsu's mind.
Yet Shimura Danzo had no means to counter it, as Sarutobi Hiruzen could offer Mokgetsu things that were better and more than he could.
Mokgetsu appeared confused, "There weren't any Root Ninjas on the list given to me by the Third Hokage."
He reckoned that Shimura Danzo's actions in secret might have been discovered or Danzo had been too visible recently before Sarutobi Hiruzen, otherwise, Hiruzen wouldn't go out of his way to deliberately give Danzo such a warning.
"What! Hiruzen he actually..."
Realizing he misunderstood his key figure, Shimura Danzo's expression improved rapidly.
Of course, the rage within Shimura Danzo didn't genuinely disappear, it was even more intense, but the target was not nearby to vent.
It being after hours was the only thing preventing Shimura Danzo from heading to the Hokage Office to confront Sarutobi Hiruzen now.
"Mokgetsu, here's the cultivation resources for the first half of the year." Shimura Danzo awkwardly shifted the topic and handed a scroll to Mokgetsu.
Although he misjudged Mokgetsu, Shimura Danzo would never apologize to his subordinates.
He believes it could undermine his authority and affect his subordinates' obedience.
If anyone started thinking of him as easy-going, chaos would surely follow.
Mokgetsu casually responded with a few words before leaving.
He feels that things between Shimura Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen are fine as they are.
Let Sarutobi Hiruzen deplete Shimura Danzo's energy lest Danzo suddenly conceive some startlingly shrewd plans.
"I'm finding it increasingly difficult to restrict him. I need a solution." After Mokgetsu left, Shimura Danzo sat alone in the Root office, his brows knitted tightly.
In practice, it was Sarutobi Hiruzen who meddled, not Mokgetsu who betrayed him.
Nevertheless, with Mokgetsu not bearing any Curse Seal, and frequent absences from the Root, Shimura Danzo felt uneasy.
Given Mokgetsu's current strength, even if Mokgetsu defected to Sarutobi Hiruzen, Shimura Danzo couldn't do much more than create minor nuisances for Mokgetsu.
"Should I get him involved in my collaboration with Orochimaru?" Shimura Danzo thought of a viable idea.
His closeness with Orochimaru isn't because they share good feelings but because they know too many of each other's unspeakable matters.
If Sarutobi Hiruzen uncovered all they had, the most lenient result would be life imprisonment.
Should Mokgetsu also be drawn in, he'd be tied to them, sharing their fate and fall.
"He's keen to develop Wood Release, and Hashirama Cells are our most significant experiment," Shimura Danzo increasingly found this approach feasible.
The only downside being Mokgetsu could eventually shake off the title of subordinate, elevating to a status like that of an equal partner akin to Orochimaru.