"I heard you've been getting along quite well with the Uchiha."
Inside Root headquarters, Danzo spoke expressionlessly.
"Obviously."
Arin answered proudly.
"They're all my brothers now. If I say one, they don't dare say two."
Well—
Except whenever he suggested attacking Kirigakure directly.
Then every single Uchiha suddenly became evasive.
Outside of that, they really did not refuse him much.
"Don't forget your identity," Danzo said coldly.
And don't forget the things you've done either.
This guy who constantly shouted about killing Uchiha somehow managed to maintain excellent relationships with them.
Even Danzo found it unbelievable.
"What identity?"
Arin replied indifferently before slapping Hiruzen's appointment scroll onto the table.
"Commander of the Anti-Mist Front."
"Danzo-sama, our positions are basically equal now."
In a certain sense, their authority truly had become comparable.
Danzo originally wanted to threaten Arin with the various secrets he still held over him.
But considering Arin's shameless personality, he doubted it would accomplish anything.
If anything, it would probably provoke an even stronger reaction.
In the end, Danzo could only sigh deeply.
"You make things difficult for everyone."
"What's difficult about it?!"
Arin slammed his hand onto the desk.
"You threw me over there for THREE YEARS."
"Do you know how I spent those three years?!"
"Every morning I woke up and inspected the camp."
"Then during the day I wandered around the Land of Bears."
"The Mist ninja ran the moment they saw me."
"And whenever I tried to attack, someone would stop me."
"I told those Uchiha to attack the Land of Water."
"One guy suddenly had a stomachache."
"Another claimed his grandmother was getting married."
"And one outrageous bastard even said his little brother was giving birth to a child!!"
"I spent every day doing absolutely nothing."
"That garbage place barely had any excitement."
"The biggest disturbance I saw was two birds fighting."
Danzo already knew threatening this battle maniac with political leverage would never work.
He stared speechlessly at Arin.
The peaceful lifestyle everyone else desired had become Arin's personal hell.
"And the Sharingan?" Danzo asked.
"The Sharingan?"
Arin shot him a sideways look.
"Do I look like I had any chance to get one?"
There had been no battles.
Everyone watched him constantly.
The slightest disturbance became known across the entire camp instantly.
Where exactly was he supposed to obtain a Sharingan from?
"Forget Sharingan."
"I'll give you my Byakugan instead. Want it?"
Actually…
That sounded tempting.
Danzo felt completely suppressed by Arin's momentum and chose not to continue the topic.
"Fine."
"I know you suffered greatly."
Even Danzo felt guilty saying that.
Who the hell considered living peacefully outside the village a hardship?
Did this lunatic genuinely require nonstop warfare?
"For now, too many people are watching you," Danzo said after some thought.
"It's not suitable for you to act recklessly yet."
"Once this period passes, I'll assign you more missions."
"Sure."
Arin patted Danzo on the shoulder meaningfully.
"I'll wait for your mission."
His body transformed into flames and vanished instantly.
Danzo frowned while staring at his own shoulder.
"This brat is becoming more and more arrogant."
Arin's growing status now genuinely threatened him.
And worst of all—
This brat was just as ruthless and unscrupulous as Danzo himself.
Troublesome.
Very troublesome.
…
Arin returned home.
"You… came back."
Hyuga Natsuna hesitated slightly while looking at him.
After all, Arin had fully matured over the past three years.
Compared to before, he had changed considerably.
Though upon closer inspection, he remained recognizable.
"Natsuna?"
Arin stared at the beautiful young woman before him and froze for a full three seconds.
"...It is I."
Natsuna's voice sounded soft and gentle.
She looked absurdly easy to bully.
Arin shook his head violently, throwing away dangerous thoughts.
Girls really did change dramatically as they grew up.
The current Natsuna no longer resembled the arrogant young miss she once was.
Whoosh.
At that moment, a woman wearing ANBU attire and a mask appeared beside him.
Natsuna obediently turned around and continued cleaning the room.
"You're back."
Machi removed her mask expressionlessly.
Three years had failed to leave even the slightest mark on her.
"Just got back."
Arin walked inside and sat down on the sofa.
The next instant—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
One figure after another appeared before Arin.
All of them knelt simultaneously.
"Arin-sama."
Arin leaned back and looked toward Machi.
"Seems you've done pretty well these past few years."
Machi replied expressionlessly:
"I merely relied on your reputation."
Arin had not left without preparation.
Following his arrangements, Machi had inherited command of Second Squad and spent the past years gathering dissatisfied ninja beneath them.
Once those people entered Root, Danzo naturally branded them with the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal for control.
But Machi promised them that once Arin returned, he would remove it personally.
"So."
Arin smiled while looking at everyone present.
"You've all decided to pledge loyalty to me?"
"We swear loyalty unto death!"
"Even if I ordered you to assassinate the Hokage?"
"We swear loyalty unto death!"
Not a single person hesitated.
With Danzo's tacit approval, the size of Second Squad had continued expanding steadily.
The organization now consisted of three primary groups.
The first group was the original members of Second Squad, who had already completely sided with Arin.
The second group consisted of deceased Hyuga clan members.
Naturally, they stood with Arin.
Though most Hyuga members remained scattered throughout Root overall.
Danzo would never relinquish control over the Hyuga so easily.
Arin's group represented only a small portion.
The third group consisted of frustrated and unsuccessful ninja gathered from outside.
Some possessed limited talent and would never surpass chunin.
Others had suffered permanent wartime injuries and lost the ability to continue as ninja.
Under Machi's spread of Chakra Nen, however, they gained new strength.
As long as someone was not completely crippled, Machi's Nen threads could fully heal them.
Meanwhile, Danzo remained entirely unaware of all this.
He considered these people worthless anyway, which was why he permitted them to gather under Arin.
"Then, gentlemen…"
Arin's hand glowed with blue light.
"Welcome to your new lives."
Exorcism activated.
Natsuna silently returned to her room.
…
The next morning, the sun rose as usual.
Sakumo Hatake sat silently atop a rooftop while staring at the sky.
For some reason, even the sunlight felt dark to him.
"Yo, White Fang-senpai."
A voice interrupted his thoughts.
Sakumo turned his head.
The fully matured Arin stood nearby, looking down at him from above.
"You seem pretty relaxed."
Arin grinned, revealing gleaming white teeth that reflected beneath the sunlight.
Sakumo slowly stood up, one hand resting on the short blade at his back as he stared at Arin warily.
"Whoa, whoa."
Arin raised his hands innocently.
"White Fang-senpai, I just came to visit you."
"There's no need to draw weapons."
"That really hurts my feelings."
Sakumo stared at him silently for a long moment before finally speaking.
"Your killing intent…"
"…is far too obvious."
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