As expected, after receiving the news from Orochimaru, Danzo Shimura arrived the very next day at the appointed meeting place, leading three elite Root squads.
The meeting took place in a valley.
Simu and the other Wood Style youth stood right beside Orochimaru.
Before long, the figures of Danzo and his subordinates emerged.
To ensure this operation was foolproof, Danzo had brought only his finest elites.
Combined with his own formidable strength and his recently transplanted arm and eye, he was capable of handling the vast majority of enemies in the shinobi world.
"We meet again, Orochimaru."
Danzo spoke in a raspy voice. His gaze lingered on Orochimaru for less than a second before involuntarily shifting toward the two youths standing beside him.
Seeing this, Orochimaru let out a sneer. He knew exactly how much Danzo hungered for a Wood Style ninja. He didn't waste time with pleasantries and got straight to the point. "These two are the Wood Style ninjas you wanted."
Upon receiving Orochimaru's confirmation, Danzo's gaze instantly became fervent.
Simu felt as if his entire body were being scorched by that stare. The other Wood Style youth also felt uneasy; having grown up in Root, he had never experienced such an intense look from Danzo.
Despite his inner excitement, Danzo remained a cautious man.
"Check them."
He gave orders to his left and right. Soon, subordinates stepped forward to perform a detailed inspection of Simu and the other youth to verify their identities and the chakra within their bodies.
"Lord Danzo, they are indeed our experimental subjects. There is also no mistake; they possess Wood Style chakra."
The speaker was a sensory ninja, capable of determining another person's chakra nature through sensory ninjutsu.
His face showed a hint of disbelief. He never imagined that the First Hokage's legendary Wood Style would truly reappear in this world.
Hearing his subordinate's report, Danzo allowed himself a rare smile. Though it looked quite repulsive, it accurately reflected his state of extreme exhilaration.
"You have done very well this time, Orochimaru."
He offered a raspy word of praise. After investing so much capital and so many experimental subjects, Orochimaru had finally shown him a worthy result.
Orochimaru merely gave a cold laugh. "As long as Elder Danzo does not forget our agreement."
Since the Wood Style ninjas had been successfully delivered, shouldn't the subsequent funding be increased?
"Rest assured."
Since Orochimaru had produced results, Danzo would not be stingy with further capital investment. He agreed to Orochimaru's request on the spot.
"I will be taking these two with me."
Danzo was impatient to bring them back to the Hidden Leaf Village, teach them Wood Style ninjutsu, and forge them into the deepest, strongest, and thickest roots of the village!
Naturally, these "roots" of the Hidden Leaf would also be the sharp swords used to strike at his enemies and the Uchiha!
Having received his guarantee, Orochimaru naturally had no objections.
"As you wish."
Danzo then turned and left with the two Wood Style ninjas without looking back.
Only Orochimaru remained, watching the backs of the two youths with a strange smile on his face.
He was looking forward to it—looking forward to seeing exactly what kind of chaos a guy like Simu would stir up in the Hidden Leaf this time.
Under the protection of the Root ninjas, Simu and the other ninja encountered no danger along the way and successfully entered the Hidden Leaf Village.
It had to be said that the Hidden Leaf was the most prosperous village Simu had seen since arriving in this world.
The weather was beautiful, the buildings were orderly, and the roads were wide and bright.
It was no wonder it was called the strongest village in the shinobi world, and no wonder it was besieged during every Great Shinobi World War.
After all, the Land of Fire had a mild climate, and the vast majority of its regions were suitable for farming. Food was plentiful, resources were abundant, and its overall national strength was mighty.
Once war broke out, the first choice of other countries was naturally to unite and tear a large piece of meat from this behemoth.
By comparison, the Hidden Sand Village—despite also being one of the Five Great Shinobi Nations—was absolute trash compared to the Hidden Leaf.
Endless yellow sands, a harsh environment, water shortages, limited food, and a Daimyo who wanted to cut military spending. On top of that, they had to suffer attacks from the Jashin Religion and even had their Tailed Beast stolen.
Sigh.
Pitiful.
However, Simu was not given much time to admire the scenery. Soon, the bright world before him turned into dark underground tunnels.
Here, everyone Simu saw wore uniforms and masks. They even addressed each other using codenames. They were men of few words; if a conversation could be resolved in one word, they would never use two.
A cold, oppressive feeling instantly washed over them.
Naturally, this meant nothing to Simu, who remained perfectly calm.
The Wood Style youth beside him also regained his composure after a brief moment of panic.
Observing this from the shadows, Danzo nodded slightly.
It seemed these two had decent psychological fortitude.
Arriving at a spacious training ground, Danzo finally turned around and said with great gravity, "From this day forward, you two are officially members of Root."
"Henceforth, you are the great roots buried deep underground, silently providing nutrients for the village's development and supporting it from the shadows!"
"You have no emotions, no past, and no names. You have only the mission!"
"Do you understand?"
Danzo's raspy, commanding voice echoed throughout the dark training ground.
Brainwashing right off the bat?
This level of brainwashing is a bit... crude, isn't it?
Simu thought to himself with some indifference.
With this kind of brainwashing technique, back in his previous world, the man wouldn't even manage to be a pyramid scheme leader.
Of course, this was a world of supernatural powers; perhaps there would be corresponding control methods later on.
Despite his internal thoughts, Simu maintained a submissive expression. "Understood!"
The Wood Style youth beside him echoed loudly as well.
Danzo nodded. "Although you may not yet understand the mission and importance of Root, it doesn't matter. I will make sure you realize it clearly in the coming days."
"The roots buried deep underground have no names, but for convenience, you require codenames."
He walked up to the Wood Style youth. "You shall be known as [Jia]."
Then he pointed his cane at Simu. "Your codename is [Yi]."
"Yes."
It was merely a codename; Simu accepted it without any burden.
After assigning the names, Danzo tapped his cane on the ground.
A Root ninja instantly appeared by his side.
"Tatsuma, for the next month, I leave the training of Jia and Yi to you. Ensure they are forged into true 'Roots'."