Shota stood straight with the other ANBU of the assassination division of Suna as Spider stood in front of all of them on a raised stand.
Shota tried to hold back a yawn. He had slept early yesterday and woke up late today but for some reason he was still feeling sleepy.
'There is definitely something wrong with me that I want to sleep so much. Do I have some disease? Nah, Probably it's just me missing my very comfy but very expensive bed. That must be it.' Shota thought
Spider's voice rang out clearly through the hall, breaking him from his drowsy state.
"I have an important news for all of you. The same news would help you understand what your following missions would be about and why you are being given those missions."
He paused for a moment to let the words settle. Everyone stood perfectly still. No one shifted. No one whispered. ANBU discipline was absolute. Except for Shota who could not hold back his yawn anymore. Thankfully no one could see through his mask to notice it.
But he was sure that Spider had glared at him for a second.
'How could he even see me yawn through the mask? Well, He has been training me for some time so he knows my habits. Should I be happy or sad that a man pays so much attention to me rather than a woman? I would have loved if Lady Pakura was my teacher. Would not that be great, to be taught my that baddie instead of Spider? Even his codename is creepy.' Shota was once again brought out of his thoughts by Spider.
"Yes, you have heard it right. Most of you would be given a similar mission. A mission to hunt the shinobi of Root, also known as the Foundation of Konoha, whose leader is Danzo Shimura."
The ANBU were disciplined so there were no murmurs, but everyone had a lot of questions in their mind along with shock.
Even Shota was a little shocked.
'Huh, why do we have to hunt Root? Something must have gone wrong in Konoha after what I told Minato.'
He had expected many things after the peace treaty, but hunting Danzo's private army was not one of them. He had given that job to Minato afterall.
Spider continued.
"Now you might be wondering we just formed a peace treaty with Konoha. Why are we hunting their shinobi? Was the treaty a farce? Are we going to break it? The answer to those questions is no, we are not breaking it. In fact, it's Konoha who had asked us for help with this."
He let that sink in again.
"Danzo Shimura has been accused of bloodline theft, kidnappings of both civilian and clan children, human experimentation, and several other crimes by Konoha itself."
As Spider said that, the silent and disciplined ANBU could no longer stay silent.
They all were happy to know they would be hunting Danzo whose deeds had claimed many of Suna lives in the Second Great Shinobi War as well as the First Great Shinobi War.
One ANBU near Shota muttered under his breath, "Finally. That old bastard's hands are soaked in our blood too."
Another whispered, "Serves him right. He thought he could play god in the shadows. Now the shadows are coming for him."
A third added quietly, "I lost my brother to one of his schemes during the last war. I hope I get the mission to put a kunai in his throat."
A fourth one said, "That bastard must have thought he was untouchable. Now he's a rogue nin. Let's see how long he lasts when every village wants his head."
A fifth voice added, "He played with fire for years. Now the fire is coming back to burn him. Good riddance."
The murmurs grew for a few seconds before Spider raised a hand for silence. The hall fell quiet again.
"As for why we would be hunting them and why the Hokage has not dealt with Danzo and his Root himself, it is because before he could do so, Danzo for some reason had been warned and had deserted the village, becoming a rogue nin along with his Root shinobi. Konoha has asked us to help in their efforts to hunt these Root shinobi down."
As Spider said that, the murmurs became strong again.
"And they called him a loyal Konoha shinobi…"
"Serves that bastard right. Now he would be hunted like a dog."
"Let's see how he likes being the prey instead of the hunter."
"I hope I get to deliver the final blow. He owes Suna a lot of blood."
Shota thought,'Damn, Danzo is even more slippery than Orochimaru. He escaped Minato? He must not have trust me and the Kazekage not using this info against him so he must have already left Konoha with Root after he received my letter. I should not have given him the warning. But I needed the name of the traitor and now with Danzo on the run, Konoha would be busy recovering their strength. I have to remember that I am a Suna shinobi and not a Konoha shinobi.'
Spider waited until the hall quieted once more.
"Now I know this is a joyous occasion. You can go have drinks for tonight. From tomorrow, I will be giving each squad a mission. Dismissed."
With cheers and thankful shouts of "Thank you, Spider-senpai!" everyone left the hall.
The ANBU moved out in orderly lines, but the excitement was clear in their steps. Shota stayed behind for a moment, watching them go. He felt a strange mix of satisfaction and worry. Danzo was on the run. That was good for everyone. But a cornered Danzo was dangerous. He would not go quietly. He would drag as many people down with him as he could.
--------Author Notes---------
I have decided to increase the number of extra chapters on patreon from 15 to 20. Thankyou.
Y'all can now read the next 20 chapters of the fanfic on my pat*reon.
https://pat*reon.com/Charizard6
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