"Nono?"
Hearing that name, Danzo's eyes flickered. In an instant, a wave of memories surged into his mind. He narrowed his eyes and asked in disbelief,
"You're that kid from back then?"
Kabuto smiled faintly.
"Seems like Danzo-sama remembers."
He licked his lips, reached out, and pinched the spine of a Genin kneeling nearby.
"I wonder—do you feel guilty? Or just regretful?"
Leaving Nono's orphanage, being forced into life as a spy, living every day in fear of exposure, fighting enemies in the dark with nowhere to call home—Kabuto bore no hatred for that.
Even being silenced, discarded like trash when no longer trusted—that too, he could accept.
Spies die. Those who toy with others' trust will inevitably be betrayed. Kabuto had long accepted that fate.
But what he could never forgive was how Danzo had manipulated him and Nono into killing each other.
That cruelty—turning their bond into a weapon—was unforgivable.
Danzo's expression darkened.
"Regret? The only thing I regret is that I didn't kill you when I had the chance, you ungrateful bastard."
Back then, both Kabuto and Nono had been handed over to Orochimaru, who was still working in Root. Danzo had never expected Orochimaru to let Kabuto live—let alone take him in as an apprentice.
What shocked him even more was how far Kabuto had come in such a short time. He had gone from a no-name shinobi to this—mastering even Sage techniques, a domain Danzo himself barely understood.
"Hmph, how stubborn," Kabuto said coldly. "Good. If you'd started weeping and begging for forgiveness, I wouldn't know what to do with you."
As his smile turned sharp, Kabuto's hands blurred through seals.
A spear of earth exploded from the ground beneath Danzo, striking so fast even he couldn't react. It tore through his waist and abdomen, leaving a gaping wound.
"Danzo-sama!"
"You little—!"
The surrounding Root ninja stared in disbelief. Their leader—Danzo, the man who stood on equal footing with the Third Hokage—taken down so easily?
Fear crept into their eyes as they looked at Kabuto.
Kabuto was surprised, too. He hadn't expected the attack to land so cleanly. Sage Chakra was more elusive than normal chakra, yes—but this was Danzo. Even old, his instincts should've kicked in.
A feint? A trick?
Kabuto didn't trust it. He formed seals again. The earthen spear still embedded in Danzo's body began to move, dragging the corpse toward him.
"Stop him!"
Furious, the Root shinobi unleashed a storm of jutsu—shuriken, tags, elemental techniques.
But from the ceiling and floor, countless rock spikes shot outward, forcing them to scramble. Kabuto danced through the chaos and reached Danzo's corpse.
"Let's see if you're really dead."
Without hesitation, two serpents slithered from Kabuto's sleeves and yanked the body free of the spear. Blood gushed from the torn remains—entrails spilled across the stone floor.
And then the body vanished. A clone.
Kabuto's eyes narrowed.
Too late—he felt the kunai stab into his back. The pain hit immediately, blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
He twisted, smashing his elbow into the attacker's ribs and sent them flying. His other hand glowed green as it pressed against the wound.
Pierced lung. Grazed heart. But the Sage chakra surged—healing rapidly.
Danzo retreated into the shadows, unease building in his chest.
Izanagi had worked. But every use cost a Sharingan—and Danzo had only one implanted, like Kakashi. He had hoped to fake his death and kill Kabuto in the confusion. Both gambits had failed.
This Sage Mode... was far more dangerous than expected.
"What are you all standing around for?!"
Danzo barked orders, and the Root ninja snapped into formation. They attacked with renewed precision, covering each other as they moved.
Kabuto, still healing, moved less aggressively than before, weaving through lightning and flame. The battle reached a deadlock.
He parried and dodged without panic. Each time he struck back, a Root ninja fell.
But the situation wasn't sustainable. These weren't just Genin—if this dragged on, Konoha reinforcements would arrive.
"Tch... Not easy to kill, are you?"
He winced as pain stabbed through his arm. He didn't hesitate anymore. He raised his voice:
"Danzo-sama. Since you refuse to die—then live on with the ashes of your Root."
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation!"
As energy surged, all color drained from the faces of the Root operatives.
Danzo shouted, "Stop him! Now!"
The Root ninjas hurled everything they had. Water bullets, stone spears, fireballs—
But it was too late.
Kabuto had been gathering power this whole time. Even before he'd struck the first blow, he had already accepted that he might not kill Danzo tonight.
This had only been a test.
Danzo wouldn't die easily—not until his beliefs were shattered and everything he clung to was taken from him.
Tonight was only the beginning.
You want to be Hokage?
Then I'll tear apart the foundation you built.
Sage chakra exploded outward. The cave rumbled. Stone tentacles erupted from every surface, destroying the structure at its core. The ceiling began to collapse in chunks.
Dodging falling rubble with ease, Kabuto rose through the smoke like a phantom.
He looked down at the crumbling Root base and smiled.
"Danzo-sama... I wonder if you're satisfied now?"
Only the sound of crashing earth replied.
But Kabuto was satisfied either way.
The white snake at his cuff flicked its tongue—a warning. Konoha's forces were on the way.
He had to leave. Now.
After all, the other two Sannin were still in the village. He had no intention of facing them.
Slipping through a side path, Kabuto emerged onto the surface, dropped the white snake to cover his scent trail, and disappeared toward the northwest.
After tonight's chaos, he was a confirmed Konoha traitor. Just as Orochimaru had planned.
His next step: infiltrate the Akatsuki and gather intel.
Let the world burn one piece at a time.
_____________________
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