"The older you get, the more cowardly you become, Hiruzen..."
Danzo's eyes flickered with a calculating light as he pondered his next move. Soon after, he sent for Jia and Yi.
The two appeared before him quickly, bowing respectfully. "Lord Danzo."
"Mm. I summoned you because I have an announcement to make." Danzo's composure had fully returned, and he radiated the stern authority of the Root leader once more.
"Please give us your orders, Lord Danzo! I guarantee I will complete the mission this time!" Simu promised immediately.
Looking at the determined Simu, Danzo felt a strange prickle at the back of his neck for some reason. Nevertheless, he spoke seriously. "From today onward, you are no longer members of Root. Moving forward, you will become Anbu ninja under the direct command of the Third Hokage. Do you understand?"
Jia remained silent, but Simu's hair practically stood on end in shock.
"Why are we being transferred to the Anbu? Is it because Shisui Uchiha escaped from me? I'll go wipe out the Uchiha Clan right now!"
He finished speaking hurriedly, a terrifying killing intent erupting from his body as he turned to march toward the Uchiha compound.
"Stop right there!" Danzo stared at Simu's back, explaining with a hint of helplessness, "It isn't because of Shisui Uchiha. The Anbu is short-handed lately and needs you two to go help."
Only then did Simu's emotions calm down slightly. "Will we be transferred back to Root later?"
Danzo shook his head. "That isn't certain. For now, just focus on working hard under the Third."
Simu's expression shifted again. He stared into Danzo's eyes and asked earnestly, "Lord Danzo, tell us the truth. Are you... throwing us away?"
Seeing Simu's stubborn persistence, Danzo felt a headache coming on, yet he also felt a trace of gratification. It seemed his brainwashing over the past six months had been extremely effective.
He spoke up. "Of course not. I would never abandon a member of Root."
Having received a definitive answer, Simu narrowed his eyes and said in a low, sinister tone, "Since you aren't abandoning us, then that old man Hiruzen must be using some flimsy excuse to force us apart?"
Uh...
Danzo fell silent because, in a way, Simu's interpretation wasn't entirely wrong.
"Don't worry, Lord Danzo. I'll go kill that old man Hiruzen right now so you can become Hokage!"
Simu turned around again, ready to assassinate someone—specifically the Hokage. Unfortunately, before he could even make it out the door, a frowning Danzo called him back.
"Enough! Yi, stop being so extreme."
"Oh."
Reprimanded, Simu immediately looked aggrieved, leaving Jia standing nearby in a state of complete confusion.
Danzo covered his mouth and coughed. "I didn't bring you here to go on a killing spree. Although you will be the Hokage's direct Anbu from now on, you must never forget the kindness Root has shown you. If anything unusual happens in the Anbu, report to me immediately. Understood?"
This was Danzo's true objective. Since the transfer of the two Wood Style users had become a reality, struggling against it was pointless. It was better to use the opportunity to insert them into the Anbu as his eyes and ears.
Thinking of this, Danzo couldn't help but admire his own foresight. He had brainwashed these two into his own image long ago. Even if that old man Hiruzen kept them by his side, the only one who could truly control them was himself!
Hearing Danzo's instructions, Simu's expression turned excited.
"Lord Danzo, so you mean we aren't actually joining the Anbu, but going there on a spy mission?"
Danzo nodded. "You can understand it that way."
Since it was a mission, that made things easy. Simu straightened his posture and shouted his guarantee, "Mission will be completed!"
Jia could only stand beside Simu and echo, "I guarantee the mission will be completed."
After accepting Danzo's spy mission, Simu and Jia quickly returned to their rooms to pack. The Hokage's order was urgent, requiring them to report to the Anbu within two hours.
While Jia was packing, Simu suddenly burst into his room.
"What is it?" Jia turned around calmly, seemingly used to this kind of behavior.
Simu slammed his fist into his palm with a look of sudden realization. He lowered his voice and said, "Jia, do you think Lord Danzo was giving us a hint?"
A bad premonition bubbled up in Jia's heart. "A hint about what?"
"I think Lord Danzo's plan is this: he wants us to join the Anbu to monitor the old Hokage's movements and gather intel. Then, when the time is right—slash!"
As Simu spoke, he made a very vivid gesture of drawing his hand across his throat.
Jia was already accustomed to Simu's treasonous talk. He sighed softly. "Yi, deciding which missions to execute is Lord Danzo's job. Don't take matters into your own hands."
Simu curled his lip, wearing an expression that suggested Jia simply didn't understand Lord Danzo at all.
Regardless, Hiruzen Sarutobi had successfully used a single prohibition to gain two powerful Wood Style users while simultaneously weakening Root's combat power and potential threat. Furthermore, the Uchiha had lost one of their strongest fighters in Shisui Uchiha during this upheaval.
Overall, both Root and the Uchiha had been weakened, while the Hokage's direct Anbu had gained two powerful assets. Of course, whether these assets were actually reliable remained to be seen, but they were better than nothing. Additionally, this had delayed the Uchiha Clan's coup, buying the village more time to deal with the crisis.
Watching Jia and Yi leave Root, Danzo's cold gaze held unreadable thoughts. In this incident, Root's strength had suffered a massive blow. Several elites were lost in the fight against Shisui, and the two Wood Style users were transferred away. Root's apparent combat power was undoubtedly diminished.
However, for Danzo personally, his individual strength had seen a massive leap.
Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan had already been transplanted into his eye socket. Although he couldn't use Kotoamatsukami yet, Danzo could feel the powerful visual prowess within it. Even the Hashirama cells in his body were being suppressed to a certain extent, becoming slightly more stable.
Once he fully mastered this Sharingan, he could use it to bring his body into a delicate balance. With Kotoamatsukami, Izanagi, and Wood Style, Danzo was confident he could clash with anyone in the shinobi world.
Of course, not in a head-on clash—Danzo excelled at striking from the shadows.
"Hiruzen, are you still my opponent now?"