10:00 a.m.
Kitazawa and Tsunade had fully left Konoha's borders. Unlike the Land of Wind's endless deserts, the Land of Fire had four seasons and every kind of terrain.
"Where do you think Shimura Danzō will ambush us?" Tsunade asked, calm as ever.
"I don't think he'll ambush us," Kitazawa said, shaking his head. "He'll probably come straight up to us."
"Why?"
Because of Kotoamatsukami. Of course, Kitazawa couldn't say that outright.
"Because Tsunade-sama is too strong," he said with a smile. "If I were Danzō, I'd approach under the pretext of a Hokage order—then strike."
In the original story, Danzō used Kotoamatsukami to control Mifune of the Land of Iron, brazenly doing it right at the Five Kage Summit. If not for Kirigakure's Ao, no one would even have noticed. That's how silent and seamless Kotoamatsukami is.
"Makes a certain kind of sense," Tsunade said, the corner of her mouth lifting. She didn't mind the flattery up front.
They kept walking.
"Tsunade-sama, please halt!"
A voice sounded from behind.
"Looks like you called it," Tsunade said, glancing at Kitazawa as she turned.
The speaker was an Anbu. Three more stood with him—an even four-man squad. Their leader, conspicuously, was Shimura Danzō.
"Danzō, what are you doing here?" Tsunade asked, not bothering with courtesy.
"You think I wanted to come?" Danzō's face darkened. "Hiruzen asked me to relay an extremely urgent mission to you."
"Oh?" Tsunade didn't buy a word. "With so many jōnin available, why send a 'retired' one?"
"I'm not retired!" Danzō snapped. "I am still the Hokage's advisor!"
"Not anymore. Consider yourself retired," Tsunade said coolly, radiating authority.
"You go too far!" Danzō shook with anger. "You aren't Hokage yet. What gives you the right to retire me?"
"Only a matter of time," Tsunade said. "If not me, is it supposed to be you?"
"So arrogant before you even wear the hat. I'll teach you a lesson for Hiruzen today!"
"You and what strength?" Tsunade stared him down. "Show me."
"Gladly!"
Danzō didn't hesitate. He fired Kotoamatsukami.
Tsunade's eyes went blank for a heartbeat—then clarity returned.
"Tsunade, who do you support for Hokage?" Danzō asked, smug.
"Whoever it is, it won't be you." Kitazawa stepped forward and took Tsunade's hand.
Kotoamatsukami's effect is monstrous, but breaking it isn't that hard. In the original, even Ao managed it—let alone Kitazawa.
Danzō's expression tightened. What was this? How did Kitazawa notice he'd used Kotoamatsukami?
He reacted fast, switching to his Mangekyō on Kitazawa—not Kotoamatsukami; it can't be used twice in quick succession—just a standard Mangekyō genjutsu.
[Mangekyō Sharingan resistance activated.]
A line of text flickered across Kitazawa's vision. He blinked, unsurprised.
[Shimura Danzō intends to assassinate your teacher. Stop him.]
[Current Mission: Kill Shimura Danzō.]
[Reward: Four Symbols Seal & Reverse Four Symbols Seal.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa's spirits lifted. Finally,
Given Danzō's power and notoriety, a system task was inevitable. He'd been waiting.
He checked the reward and couldn't help but think: worthy of "Blame-Kage"—two S-rank sealing techniques.
The Four Symbols Seal, an Uzumaki technique that uses the cycle of the four symbols to seal a target. Minato used it to seal the Nine-Tails into Naruto; two Four Symbols Seals together become the Eight Trigrams Seal.
The Reverse Four Symbols Seal is its counterpart, the inverted version—forcing the target inward, sealing it within the user, and dragging the sealed thing to the Pure Land upon death. That cost makes it a forbidden technique. In the original, Danzō used it—trying to guard Shisui's eye and take Sasuke with him—but Obito saved Sasuke, and Danzō ended up sealing half a bridge.
"Danzō, what did you do to me?" Tsunade snarled, instantly realizing she'd been genjutsu'd.
"Impossible!" Danzō involuntarily stepped back, incredulous. "Kitazawa, why didn't my genjutsu affect you?"
More than Tsunade shrugging off Kotoamatsukami, what rattled him was Kitazawa ignoring a Mangekyō-class genjutsu. Most shinobi can't withstand it. Why was Kitazawa untouched?
"'Kotoamatsukami'—a Mangekyō ocular jutsu," Kitazawa explained to Tsunade. "It comes from Uchiha Shisui's eye."
Tsunade's face darkened. She'd never seen such a quiet, undetectable genjutsu. Without Kitazawa, Danzō would have forced her to back his bid for Hokage. The fallout would be unimaginable.
"Mangekyō? Shisui's?" Tsunade's eyes sharpened. "Was he killed by Danzō?"
When Shisui died, she'd been wandering the shinobi world. She'd heard rumors but not the details.
"Itachi told me Danzō ambushed him and stole one of his Mangekyō eyes," Kitazawa said solemnly. "Leave Danzō to me, Tsunade-sama. Itachi taught me how to counter Kotoamatsukami."
He was increasingly grateful for how handy "Itachi" was as cover. Tsunade didn't have the intel on Danzō; if she took point, she might run into unknown danger—and Kitazawa still had a system task to clear. As for Itachi calling him out? He wouldn't cross Tsunade.
"Can you handle it?" Shock aside, Tsunade was worried.
"I am your student," Kitazawa smiled. "I've got it."
"Arrogant!" Danzō barked. "You think I'm like those Mist Village weaklings?"
Neither of them spoke of him with any respect. It burned.
"Yes, I took Shisui's eye," Danzō said, ripping off his bandages to reveal the Mangekyō. No more pretense.
"Shimura Danzō," Tsunade said coldly, "you harmed a comrade of Konoha. Under our laws, I'm placing you under arrest."
In the shadows, Uchiha Itachi rose half a step, a long-lost thrill running through him. At last, the truth of Shisui's death was out—and the man who killed him had just been condemned by the next Hokage herself. Shisui's name would be cleared. He wasn't a coward who took his own life.
"Perimeter checks?" Itachi asked quietly.
"Checked. Aside from the four Anbu who've revealed themselves, eight more are hidden nearby," an Anbu beside him replied.
"Watch them. If they move, stall them," Itachi said. He had to stay to guard Tsunade. Danzō had Shisui's Mangekyō. If it went south, Itachi would burn his cover and use his own Mangekyō and Susanoo to kill Danzō and pull them out.
"You've no idea what the Mangekyō can do," Danzō said, brimming with confidence. "None of you are leaving alive."
"Kitazawa," Tsunade said, pausing just a beat. "Be careful."
Since he'd insisted, she would let him try. If it turned, she'd step in—and give Itachi the signal.
"Mm." Kitazawa drew Zangetsu with an easy smile. "Please—teach me."
The Mangekyō is terrifying—but Danzō had only one, and not his own. And unlike the fight with Sasuke in the original, he lacked Wood Release; he wasn't at full strength.
"If you're that eager to die, I'll oblige," Danzō said. He needed Kitazawa gone before he could seize Tsunade.
Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!
He inhaled, then snapped his breath out. His wind chakra became a razor current, sweeping forward like a loosed arrow.
Uchiha Style: Sword Jump Blaze!
Kitazawa vanished. He reappeared behind Danzō, blade cutting in a flaming crescent. Heat rippled.
"Shisui's kenjutsu?" Danzō said coolly. "It's useless before his eye."
With a flicker, he evaded. The Mangekyō's insight rivaled the Byakugan.
"You hate the Uchiha—yet how different are you now?" Kitazawa asked with a faint smile.
"Shut up!" Danzō snapped. "The Uchiha are evil by birth. Don't you dare compare me to them!"
Wind Release: Vacuum Spheres!
Shaken, he formed signs. Wind chakra spat like bullets in a dense barrage.
Rasengan!
Kitazawa raised his left hand and smashed the gusts apart, then flooded Zangetsu with lightning.
Lightning Release: Supersonic Shock Blade!
He shot forward like a bolt, thrusting at Danzō's heart.
Wind Release: Vacuum Blade!
Danzō breathed across a kunai; wind coated it into a short sword. He slashed and caught Zangetsu—but the trembling impact numbed his arm, and the kunai almost slipped.
He gritted his teeth and held. His Mangekyō pulsed. He flooded the area with invisible ocular power—testing if Kitazawa truly ignored his genjutsu.
For a moment, the pressure from Zangetsu slackened.
"Die!" Danzō laughed as Kitazawa's gaze seemed to glaze over. So earlier was a fluke—or some trick that worked once. Not this time.
"Kitazawa!" Tsunade started forward—then stopped.
Chirps like a thousand birds split the air. In Danzō's moment of triumph, Kitazawa one-handed a sign and drove his left hand into Danzō's heart. Dazzling lightning filled Danzō's vision. His smile froze. He looked down at the blood spray, stunned. "Why…doesn't my genjutsu work on you?"
Kitazawa didn't answer. He eased back. "Tsunade-sama, don't come yet."
"Your Chidori destroyed his heart. He's done," Tsunade said at once—the best medical-nin alive needed only a glance.
"Is your Izanagi still up?" Kitazawa asked Danzō.
"How…do you know?" Danzō's pupils shrank.
"Izanagi?" Tsunade's gaze tightened. She recalled the intel: while it's active, any injury—including death—reverses when the duration ends, at the cost of a Sharingan going blind. Duration depends on the user. In the original, each of Danzō's eyes lasted about a minute.
Disgust creased her face. If Danzō could use Izanagi, he must have several Sharingan—taken from corpses or from murdered Uchiha. Either way, in Konoha, those are grave crimes. "Old man, you indulged him far too much," she thought grimly. Best to haul back a corpse. Bring him in alive and Hiruzen might balk at an execution.
Kitazawa waited. Intelligence wins fights. Danzō didn't know Kitazawa could ignore Mangekyō genjutsu and one-hand seals; that's how he ate a Chidori to the heart. And Kitazawa knew about Izanagi, so he didn't relax.
Suddenly, Danzō's body vanished.
Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!
He reappeared behind Kitazawa and spat a high-pressure wind orb that tore up the ground.
Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole!
Kitazawa had prepped for this. At the first whisper of wind, he dove underground.
Danzō bit his thumb and slapped the earth. Summoning Technique!
A tapir-like beast with an orange-red body appeared—Baku. It gaped its maw and inhaled. The suction carved a pit in the ground.
Wind Release: Vacuum Shuriken!
Catching Kitazawa's movement, Danzō flicked a shuriken. Wind-infused, it hit with a boom—and the "Kitazawa" crumbled to dirt.
Danzō frowned. A roar sounded behind him. He whirled into the jaws of a snarling water dragon.
Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!
He reacted fast, slicing the dragon into chunks with layered gusts.
"Your Water Dragon is leagues beneath my teacher's," Danzō said, scanning for Kitazawa. He knew Kitazawa's Water Style came from his own teacher, Senju Tobirama.
"Is that so?" Kitazawa's voice fell from above.
Danzō looked up—and his face drained. Water filled his vision. An ocean spilled from the sky like a tsunami.
"Baku!" Danzō shouted. The tapir heaved, drinking in the flood—but there was too much, too fast.
Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!
Danzō blasted the water away—just as a storm of lightning filled his eyes again.
He clenched his teeth and didn't dodge, grabbing Kitazawa's wrist instead.
Self-Cursing Seal!
Cursed patterns crawled up Kitazawa's arm. Danzō meant to burn an eye on Izanagi and take Kitazawa with him. Kitazawa answered by lopping off both his arms with a single cut.
"Too late!" Danzō laughed—and vanished.
Kitazawa started to dispel the Self-Cursing Seal…then decided to fake it instead. He'd already learned this seal from the system; he understood it better than Danzō. Clearing it took a thought—but Danzō didn't know that.
An instant later, Danzō reappeared—cautious, fresh from an Izanagi—driving a kunai at Kitazawa's back. Kitazawa turned, Zangetsu punching through his heart again. Blood geysered.
"How…could you…" Danzō stared, uncomprehending. Kitazawa ignored Kotoamatsukami, ignored Mangekyō genjutsu, shrugged off the Self-Cursing Seal—none of it made sense.
"Still got Izanagi in the bank?" Kitazawa asked mildly.
"You—!" Danzō spat blood. "I'll kill you!"
He died, and Izanagi triggered again. The body vanished. Kitazawa flicked Zangetsu; blood spattered the ground and the blade gleamed clean.
Tsunade watched, as baffled as Danzō had been moments earlier. In just minutes, a jōnin of Danzō's caliber had "died" three times. Ridiculous. In her own hands, killing him even once would be tough—she couldn't ignore Mangekyō genjutsu or Kotoamatsukami. And it wasn't just that; Kitazawa had read Danzō to the bone from the start.
Why did he know Danzō so well?
Questions or not, she was glad she'd brought Kitazawa. Anyone else—even Hiruzen—would have struggled, mostly because Danzō possessed Shisui's eye. Mechanically, that was an overwhelming edge.
In the shadows, Itachi felt awkward. He might as well not have come; between Kitazawa and Tsunade, Danzō and twelve Anbu were handled. Still, he was grateful Kitazawa had called him out. Seeing Danzō die with his own eyes—Shisui finally had justice.
Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!
Danzō reappeared and started forming signs, but Kitazawa was faster.
Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!
He flicked a single shuriken; it shuddered midair and multiplied into a storm.
"Damn it! Hiruzen taught you even that?" Danzō cursed, breaking off his jutsu to dodge, body blurring as the sky filled with steel.
Out of his sightline, Kitazawa created a shadow clone and slipped underground.
Shuriken hammered the earth, bristling from the ground. Danzō popped a smoke bomb with a crack, vanishing into the smog.
Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!
Unruffled, Kitazawa looked up and blasted wind chakra through the haze. In a blink, the smoke was gone.
"You learned my Vacuum Great Sphere too?" Danzō said, face sour.
"I know a lot of jutsu," Kitazawa said lightly. "I'll end this with the Second Hokage's techniques—and give a lesson to his wayward student."
"What did you say?" Danzō's killing intent exploded.
"So you do care about the Second," Kitazawa pressed. "If he saw you now, I doubt he'd regret choosing Hiruzen."
"Shut up!" Danzō snapped, flashing in front of Kitazawa.
Reverse Four Symbols Seal!
Blood surged from his body, becoming black formulae. The air trembled as everything nearby was dragged toward him.
Tsunade's pupils tightened. She recognized it at once. An Uzumaki forbidden art, powerful enough to seal everything within hundreds of meters. She was even more relieved she'd let Kitazawa lead.
"You really prepped the Reverse Four Symbols Seal?" Kitazawa felt the pull from every direction.
With a pop, he burst into smoke.
"A shadow clone?" Danzō choked on his rage—and life. The Reverse Four Symbols Seal is suicide; he was already at death's door. Seeing he'd traded his life to seal a clone merely made him die faster.
When he fell, the sealing runes ebbed, leaving a broad smear of blood and black script on the ground.
Kitazawa's real body appeared at a distance.
Boom!
A giant wind orb detonated behind him.
Leaf Body Flicker!
He scattered like leaves into the air, then scanned from above and found Danzō.
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!
Hands flashed. A water dragon roared down.
"You don't deserve to use my teacher's Water Style!" Danzō, still tilted by rage, infused a shuriken with wind and hurled it, blowing the dragon apart into glittering spray.
Something prickled in his gut. Danger.
Those droplets were wrong.
He thought of one of Tobirama's techniques.
Water Release: Heavenly Weeping!
Four water needles hid in the spray and lanced in. Danzō's Mangekyō flared; he twisted aside in a blur.
"Before the Mangekyō, your attacks won't land," he said coldly.
"Is that so?" Kitazawa's hands blurred.
Bringer-of-Darkness Technique!
Invisible chakra spread. Darkness fell like a curtain.
"Bringer-of-Darkness?" Danzō froze—then panic surged. He looked around, but even the Mangekyō couldn't pierce it. For the first time, fear crawled up his spine.
Tsunade arched a brow. Seeing the Bringer-of-Darkness, her body eased. That genjutsu hard-counters the Uchiha. Barring surprises, this was over.
"It's time to end this, Shimura Danzō," Kitazawa said, clapping his hands and shifting into Senju Chakra Mode.
"There!" Danzō blasted a great wind orb toward the voice. It struck with a boom—no scream, only the roar of water as a waterfall crashed down and swept him away. He tumbled, fought up out of the flood, but the darkness left him blind.
Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!
Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!
Wind Release: Vacuum Spheres!
Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!
Madly, he hurled wind techniques in every direction.
Hands burst from the water at his feet. Kitazawa yanked him under and drove Zangetsu into his body. Danzō's mouth opened in reflex; water poured in, blooming red. A few seconds later, darkness took him for real.
Kitazawa waited, the Bringer-of-Darkness still holding.
The instant Danzō reappeared, Kitazawa flashed behind him.
Supervibrato Lightning Release Swords!
Uchiha Style: Sword Jump Blaze!
Zangetsu and lightning drove through him front and back. Danzō forced his hands to move for Izanagi—but this time, trapped in the darkness, he'd lost the initiative. His limbs weakened. He was truly dying. Izanagi required seals; earlier he'd always had that sliver of time. Not now.
His gaze went distant. He saw his teacher again: Waterfall Basin, Water Dragon, Heavenly Weeping—and the Bringer-of-Darkness. He had never imagined he would die to Tobirama's Water Style and genjutsu.
Teacher, is this your verdict on me?
Danzō closed his eyes and fell.
[Current Mission: Kill Shimura Danzō.]
[Reward: Four Symbols Seal & Reverse Four Symbols Seal.]
[Mission Completed. Rewards Granted.]
Seeing the three lines, Kitazawa finally exhaled. If the system said complete, Danzō wouldn't be getting up again.
Tsunade looked at the body, still disbelieving—until it didn't vanish. Then elation flooded in. The old pest was finally dead. Good riddance.
A weight lifted off her chest. As long as Danzō lived, she hadn't feared him—but he was a thorn in Konoha's throat. With him gone, the village would see far fewer filthy tricks.
"Danzō is really dead?" Itachi stood still, emotions tangled—joy at vengeance, hope for Konoha's future, and a pang for his dearest friend. If they'd only waited two more years, until Tsunade returned, Shisui didn't have to die. The two of them could have built peace together.
"Kitazawa, you okay?" Tsunade asked, coming back to herself and striding over.
"I—"
Before he could finish, the hiss of blades cutting air rose on every side. The eight hidden Anbu and the four with Danzō surrounded them.
"Danzō is dead. Are you really going to keep making the wrong choice?" Tsunade snapped.
At the same time, Itachi moved with his team, interposing themselves in front of Tsunade and Kitazawa.
The twelve Anbu faltered, faces wavering. The conditioning Danzō had drilled into them warred with the reality before them.
"Lay down your arms and you live," Tsunade said, ice-cold. "If you want to follow Shimura Danzō to the Pure Land, I don't mind sending you along."
After a long beat, they lowered their weapons. Since Root disbanded, they no longer bore the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal. They weren't compelled to obey Danzō. Seeing him had triggered old muscle memory—but with him dead, that training lost its hold.
"Good," Tsunade said with a small nod.
With the fight over, Kitazawa drew a summoning storage scroll and sealed Danzō's corpse away. He likely still had Sharingan on him—most importantly, Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyō.
As for using it himself? No thanks. It was Shisui's eye. And Kitazawa had a system; odds were he'd awaken his own Mangekyō. Why swap when he could have his own originals? He'd stash it for now and follow Tsunade's lead later.
"Tsunade-sama, do we continue to the Fire Capital or head back to Konoha?" he asked.
Danzō might no longer lead Root, but he was still a Leaf elder. His death would rock the village. Given his reputation, though, aside from Hiruzen and the two advisors, most people would cheer.
"Itachi, take a team to the Fire Capital and invite the daimyō to Konoha," Tsunade said after a moment's thought. She'd planned to go personally only to spring the trap on Danzō. With him dead, there was no need.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama," Itachi replied. Part of him wanted to rush home and tell the clan, but Tsunade and Kitazawa returning would spread the news fast enough. He could carry out his mission with an easy mind.
"You lot, come back with me and give statements. The village will process you by the book," Tsunade told the twelve Anbu who'd come with Danzō. With him dead, they no longer fit Anbu.
"Let's go," Tsunade said to Kitazawa, and turned back the way they'd come.
By noon, they were back in Konoha. Tsunade went straight to the Hokage's office.
"Tsunade?" Hiruzen blinked. "You're back already? Where's the daimyō?"
"We were attacked by Shimura Danzō on the road," Tsunade said bluntly. "We killed him."
"What?" Hiruzen froze. "Danzō is dead?"
For a moment he didn't know what face to wear. Comrade of decades…gone. Shock hollowed him.
"Murdering comrades is a crime," Tsunade said, hard as iron.
"He brought it on himself," Hiruzen sighed, collecting himself. Danzō was gone; he couldn't scold Tsunade for it. If she stormed off in anger, who knew how long the village would wait for another Hokage? And Danzō had tried to assassinate her first. He got what he deserved. Still, Hiruzen had warned him. Why push it this far?
Weariness washed over him.
"I've already sent Itachi to invite the Fire Daimyō," Tsunade said. "How do you want to handle the Danzō matter?"
"You handle it," Hiruzen said after two seconds' silence. "As of today, you are the Acting Hokage."
"Wait." Tsunade frowned. "I refuse."
"Tsunade, don't be willful. A week early or a week late makes no difference to you," Hiruzen said, shaking his head.
"…"
She hesitated—then nodded. He suddenly looked so much older. Whatever else could be said, there was deep bond between him and Danzō. The news had hurt him.
"All right," she said softly.
"Haru," Hiruzen called.
"Hokage-sama," Haru said, entering.
"From today, Tsunade is Acting Hokage. She's in charge of everything," Hiruzen said.
Haru's heart jumped. With just a week left, Hiruzen was handing over early?
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" she answered.
Hiruzen stood, glanced around, then picked up his pipe and left alone.
"How did it come to this?" Tsunade rubbed her brow. Headache.
"Lady… Hokage," Haru said, bowing slightly. "Your orders?"
"Publish a notice. State that Shimura Danzō attempted to assassinate me and was killed by Kitazawa," Tsunade said after thinking a moment. "Include the specifics."
Haru's eyes widened. Now Hiruzen's fatigue made sense—Danzō.
"Yes, Hokage-sama," she said, drawing a deep breath. Danzō dead, Tsunade acting Hokage—from today, Konoha was a different place. Fortunately, Anbu's job was simple: obey the Hokage.
As news of Danzō's death spread, Konoha erupted—especially the major clans, who practically cheered. Danzō and Root had done plenty of vile things.
But no one was happier than the Uchiha. People said if you stood near the Uchiha compound or the Konoha Police Department, you could hear raucous laughter for a full half hour.
~~~
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