At night, the entire Hidden Leaf Village fell into a deep silence.
Ever since the Third Hokage returned from the Land of Grass with the signed peace treaty, the dark clouds of war that had loomed over everyone's heads finally vanished. People could finally sleep soundly, no longer worrying about being dispatched to high-mortality battlefields to fight enemy shinobi.
Although all hidden villages enforced the ideology that "shinobi are merely tools for completing missions," humans are humans. No matter how much brainwashing they undergo, they will always have their own thoughts. After all, avoiding death is the primal instinct of all living creatures.
As the leader of Root, Danzo was currently sitting in a dark, secret room deep underground, listening to a report from his subordinate. Unbeknownst to him, he had grown accustomed to being deep in the darkness; in fact, only in such an environment did he feel a strange sense of security.
Once Torune Aburame had recounted every word of his conversation with Allen, the "Shinobi of Darkness" asked with great interest, "So, you're saying this child possesses quite a mature mind and a mysterious ability to complete assassinations silently, correct?"
"Yes, my Lord. However, I believe his personality is somewhat similar to Orochimaru's. It would be best to handle him with caution," Torune replied with a quick nod.
"No. You don't understand. In this world, any shinobi with true strength and talent will have their own eccentricities; that is nothing to be surprised about. As for his lack of reverence for authority, it doesn't matter, as long as he can be used by me. After all, even the three disciples Hiruzen raised with his own hands ended up leaving him," Danzo explained meaningfully.
Jiraiya was a lecher, Tsunade was a compulsive gambler, and Orochimaru treated his own students as test subjects for his research into Forbidden Jutsus. But did any of that stop them from becoming powerhouses? Obviously not. Even Minato Namikaze, hailed as the perfect Hokage, was a bookworm in his daily life, and a henpecked one at that.
With his vast experience, Danzo had long understood one truth: nobody is perfect. To gain the loyalty of the strong, power alone is far from enough; one needs tolerance and breadth of mind. The Third Hokage possessed such "tolerance," which allowed him to recruit excellent shinobi to his banner time and again, even a genius like Kakashi, who had once fallen into darkness, was no exception.
So this time, Danzo intended to emulate his old friend.
"Then your meaning is... to agree to his terms?" Torune looked up with a surprised expression. This was the first time he had seen the leader of Root make a compromise with an outsider.
"Yes. Because this youth named Allen has that much value. You've already seen the report on that Thunderbird jutsu, haven't you? With that kind of unrestrained thinking and the strength to kill Kitsuchi at his age, his future is destined to be extraordinary. If I can take him into Root before Hiruzen can act, the seat of Hokage will be mine in no time."
As he spoke, Danzo clenched his fist tightly, his tone revealing a determined resolve.
"Understood! I will go and reply to him immediately." Torune agreed without hesitation and rose to leave.
But before he could take more than a few steps, Danzo called out from behind, "Wait. As a welcoming gift, take these two items to him."
A small storage scroll was tossed over. Torune caught it and, without even looking at the contents, bowed deeply before vanishing into the shadows.
A few minutes later, he appeared directly at the residence the village had assigned to Allen. "Danzo-sama has agreed to your terms," he said succinctly. "This is a welcoming gift. From this moment on, you are a member of Root."
"Oh? A welcoming gift too? Danzo-sama is quite generous," Allen said with a bright smile. He opened the scroll in front of Torune and took out two items. One was an eyeball preserved in a special liquid, specifically, a two-tomoe Sharingan. The other was a scroll containing a vast number of Lightning Release jutsus.
"Remember. Joining Root means you must obey Danzo-sama's orders. If the Third Hokage's orders ever conflict with Danzo-sama's, then..."
Before Torune could finish, Allen interrupted with a laugh. "You don't need to say it. I know what I must do. Besides, do you really think I have any trust or goodwill left for that Hokage after what happened?"
"As long as you understand. There are two days until the mission is issued. You'd better hurry and prepare. If you need anything, contact me directly." Torune was clearly satisfied with the boy's reaction and even offered help.
But Allen shook his head and refused. "No, I don't need any help. No matter what kind of team the Tsuchikage sends to ambush me, I will kill them all, leaving no one alive. For those who believe that violence and barbaric slaughter can solve everything, I don't mind returning the favor in kind. Since Onoki losing one son wasn't enough, let his granddaughter Kurotsuchi die as well."
"Heh. I like your tone. It seems Danzo-sama's judgment was correct. You are indeed a perfect fit for Root's style. That's right. There is no need for a shred of mercy or pity for enemy shinobi. Just wipe them out," Torune laughed heartily.
In fact, most shinobi who voluntarily joined Root were those deeply dissatisfied with the Third Hokage's perceived weakness in foreign policy. They believed a powerful Konoha didn't need compromise; instead, it should exert its full war potential to eliminate all other nations and unify the shinobi world. Allen's decisiveness in slaughter was exactly the style they admired most.
"I appreciate the compliment. If there's nothing else, I'm going to start studying this interesting eye," Allen said, directly dismissing his guest.
He was fascinated by the Sharingan. He wondered if the Red Dragon, after consuming this eye, would allow him to gain similar visual prowess.
Torune noticed this and couldn't help but warn, "The Sharingan is a massive burden for someone without Uchiha blood. If you're thinking of a transplant, you'd better think carefully, or you'll end up like Kakashi."
"Don't worry, I've seen Kakashi. I know how much of a strain it is on his body," Allen shrugged nonchalantly.
A transplant? He wasn't that stupid. What he intended to do was use the Chimera Ant ability to devour it, extract the relevant genetic data, and apply it directly to his own body. Only then could he truly obtain the full power of the Sharingan.
In truth, whether it was the Sharingan, the Byakugan, or the Senju, Uzumaki, and Kaguya clans, all were descendants of the union between the alien Kaguya Otsutsuki and the humans of this world. As long as he could devour their genes, he could slowly obtain portions of the "Rabbit Goddess's" power and unravel the secrets hidden within the Otsutsuki bloodline.