Chapter 7 – Meeting Danzō
"That kid was taken by Root?"
Not long after Izaya was led away by the two Root chūnin, a dark figure materialized in front of his house. Had Izaya been there to see it, he would have recognized him immediately—it was Uchiha Itachi, whom he had met outside the village.
Itachi had originally intended to return directly to the Uchiha clan compound after coming back from outside the village. But he was still slightly worried that Izaya might talk about their encounter. He had planned to come and issue a final warning. However, before he could show himself, he witnessed Izaya being taken away by Root.
A flicker of caution passed through Uchiha Itachi's eyes. He knew all too well what the Root organization represented.
After a moment of contemplation, Uchiha Itachi finally decided to follow them and see what was going on.
On the other side, Izaya, blindfolded by the mask, slowly followed the footsteps of the two Root members. Part of his mind was busy scheming escape routes.
'Why would the Root organization come for me…' This question had been swirling in Izaya's mind since he left his house, and he still hadn't figured it out.
'Forget it. I'll just have to wait and see what that old fool Danzō wants.'
Although in the original Naruto story, Danzō was essentially Konoha's biggest villain and its perpetual scapegoat, Izaya wasn't actually panicking. Danzō was often involved in assassinations and investigations, but Izaya couldn't recall him indiscriminately killing innocent people. In other words, no one knew he was a transmigrator. In everyone's eyes, he was just a Konoha civilian. Danzō had no reason to target him specifically.
…
"Go in."
After about half an hour, the Root members leading the way finally removed the blindfold from Izaya's face and gestured for him to enter. Having been in darkness for so long, Izaya instinctively squinted as the light hit his eyes.
'So this is the Root headquarters?'
Rubbing his eyes, Izaya followed the two Root members, all the while observing his surroundings. The overall environment of the Root headquarters wasn't much different from ordinary Konoha buildings. The main structure was wooden, and the dim corridors were illuminated by scattered torches. The only difference was an inexplicable aura that permeated the place. It felt like killing intent… but different. It was like standing in the heat of summer, yet feeling an inexplicable, chilling draft.
Other than that, there was nothing particularly remarkable. Aside from the murderous intent that made Izaya deeply uncomfortable, if he hadn't been told in advance, he would have thought this was just an abandoned building.
"Kid, stop looking around!" Seeing Izaya's wandering eyes, the Root member on his right was the first to speak up, his tone serious. "If you want to live, behave yourself…"
"Okay." When under someone else's roof, one must bow their head. Faced with the murderous Root ninja, Izaya could only nod helplessly and follow closely behind them.
'I must become stronger!' Although he offered no resistance now, Izaya's resolve to grow stronger intensified. If he had Kage-level strength right now, would he need to fear a couple of chūnin?
Unfortunately, the current Izaya did not possess the power to overturn Konoha. But that didn't mean he never would. Silently memorizing the figures of the two men in front of him, Izaya made a secret vow. One day, he would make these two bastards pay.
…
"Lord Danzō, we've brought him."
After walking along the gloomy path for a few more minutes, the two Root chūnin led Izaya into a relatively spacious hall. The decor here hadn't changed much from the dark corridors—the same scattered torchlight, the same strange, oppressive silence. The only difference was the broader space.
And the presence of one more person.
Danzō.
"I see."
Realizing Izaya was before him, Danzō, who had been sitting with his back turned, slowly rotated his chair to face them. Danzō's appearance wasn't much different from how he was depicted in the original story. He still wore a white robe, his face was like a gloomy fish, and he exuded an aura that made Izaya deeply uneasy.
"Dismissed."
The cold command came from Danzō's lips. With a casual wave of his hand, the two Root members beside Izaya exchanged a glance and vanished from the spot using the Body Flicker Technique.
Suddenly, only Danzō and Izaya remained in the vast hall.
'What the hell does this old fool Danzō want?' Izaya wondered, watching as Danzō remained silent, his gaze fixed intently on him. Clearly, judging by the current situation, Danzō had summoned him for a reason. But Izaya couldn't, for the life of him, figure out what that reason was!
As Izaya was lost in thought, Danzō finally spoke.
"Izaya. Male. Orphan. The student with the longest repeating record at the Konoha Ninja School…" After reciting Izaya's information in a monotone, Danzō slowly raised his head. His dead-fish eyes, brimming with a cold killing intent, locked onto Izaya. "Is that correct?"
"Lord Danzō, if you already know, why bother asking me?" Izaya had originally intended to subconsciously answer 'yes.' But instead of passively accepting the interrogation, he decided to take the initiative.
Sure enough, as Izaya responded in a playful, almost impertinent tone, a weird, twisted smile appeared on Danzō's face. It was a smile, but it sent a chill down Izaya's spine, feeling worse than a scowl.
"Interesting. What an interesting kid…" Danzō slowly shook his head, the unsettling smile not leaving his lips. He pulled out a white document from his robe and walked toward Izaya. He handed the document to Izaya, then spoke proactively, "A dead-last… do you wish to become stronger?"
'What the hell?!'
Hearing this, Izaya, who had been feeling somewhat drowsy, instantly became fully alert!
'This Danzō is completely off-script!'
Izaya immediately started internally ranting about the man before him. Seriously, before coming here, even if you had killed him, he would never have guessed that Danzō would personally send someone to invite him to the Root headquarters, wait for him here in advance…
All for the purpose of actively recruiting him!
And, most importantly, judging from the undertone of his words…
Danzō seemed to want to help him become stronger!