"They went to the ninja tool factory?"
"Yes."
"…Let them be. How's ours progressing?"
"We've finished forging one prototype."
"Good."
Danzō rose to his feet and headed straight for the Hokage Building.
Outside the office, the corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly before he pushed the door open.
"Hiruzen. The ninja tool has been successfully replicated."
"Oh?"
The Third Hokage looked mildly surprised. With a calm motion, he dismissed the image floating on the crystal ball.
"Which tool?"
Danzō handed him a blueprint.
Hiruzen glanced over it.
A replica of the Peacock Twin Blades.
"Heh… this must be your work, right? To push Wind Release to this level—seems you haven't been idle all these years."
"Of course not,"
Danzō said coldly.
"I may have my own ambitions, but I've always acted for Konoha."
"Is that so? Your so-called 'Root'… I still can't agree with it."
Hiruzen paused.
"Especially after hearing something recently."
He spoke slowly:
"Roots are the foundation of everything. With roots, a tree can grow its trunk and leaves."
Danzō's brow twitched.
"Root does not mean darkness," Hiruzen said lightly.
"It is the unseen foundation beneath the soil—supporting everything that grows."
Danzō fell silent.
After a moment, he said, almost uninterested,
"I didn't come here to debate philosophy."
"How effective is the replica?"
"Seventy to eighty percent."
"That's quite good already. The master from the Craftsmen Village is indeed impressive."
Hiruzen couldn't help but sigh with admiration.
Even after so many years, the old man still stood at the top of the ninja-tool world.
Danzō nodded, then sneered.
"Impressive… but to think he could dominate the entire shinobi world with mere craftsmanship? Delusional."
Hiruzen didn't argue. He simply brushed the surface of the crystal ball.
"You came to see Souma and the kids, didn't you?"
Danzō spoke flatly.
Hiruzen sighed inwardly.
Ever since that boy learned about this technique, his Crystal Ball Jutsu had spread far more widely than he intended.
That was supposed to be one of the secrets he took to the grave…
With a helpless shake of his head, he activated the sphere again.
There was nothing about Souma's project that Danzō couldn't see—
because when it came to chakra-tool development, their interests were aligned:
To make Konoha stronger.
Inside the crystal ball, Yagyu Souma had finished arranging the barrier formation.
Kakashi, Kazane, and Tenten each stood at one of the cardinal positions, holding talisman seals.
In the center sat Kakashi's shadow clone.
"Begin."
Souma formed seals.
The talismans in the others' hands served as conduits—
a modified application of the Fire Temple's Iron Wall Seal—
increasing the pull of the chakra absorption array.
Four pairs of hands moved in unison.
Soon, chakra streamed toward the center.
The shadow clone meditated quietly as the energy poured in.
After a while—
"My chakra has increased by about thirty percent," the clone reported.
"Thirty?"
Souma frowned.
"What's everyone's loss?"
"Twenty percent."
"Forty!"
"Forty…"
Kakashi, Tenten, and Kazane answered in turn.
Souma nodded and reported his own number—
"Thirty percent."
Of course, he wasn't telling the truth.
His real loss was closer to twenty—
and with his rapid natural recovery, probably even less than that.
Meaning…
His chakra reserves were roughly on par with Kakashi's.
"Hm. The loss is a bit high."
Souma frowned.
Combined, his and Kakashi's contribution alone exceeded what the clone gained.
And that didn't include Tenten and Kazane, who had lent smaller amounts but still enough to matter.
"Chakra conversion and barrier maintenance always consume energy," Kakashi said.
"For a tool at this stage, this is already incredible."
Then he paused, and asked:
"Can it work in reverse? Can the tool release the stored chakra outward?"
"That's easy."
Souma formed another seal.
The absorption barrier instantly shifted modes. Streams of chakra flowed back outward—
each of the four receiving a portion.
After returning the excess, the shadow clone dispersed.
Kakashi touched his chin thoughtfully.
"We can optimize this from two angles—internal structure, and the barrier formula itself."
Souma nodded.
The internal path required cooperation from the shadow clone—easy enough to solve.
"I'll test something," Souma said.
"What if we nest a second, small absorption array inside? We can compare whether the internal chakra cost is more or less than what we save."
Kakashi froze for a second.
Then sighed quietly.
He had finally thought of a suggestion on his own…
but Souma had already reached the same conclusion.
The boy was terrifying.
"…All right," Kakashi said. "Let's try."
"Heh… that child always pushes for the limit. But personally, I already think the results are outstanding."
Hiruzen chuckled softly and dismissed the crystal ball.
Danzō stood in silence.
He and his subordinates had succeeded in replicating the Peacock Twin Blades—
but compared to what Souma had invented…
There was nothing to boast about.
After all—
They had only copied something.
Souma, on the other hand, had taken existing principles and created something entirely new.
A new type of ninja tool.
One that can restore chakra.
Even with its flaws, its value was unquestionable.
In battle, pooling several people's chakra into one fighter…
Could absolutely turn the tide.
If only…
If only Souma had been born ten years earlier…
Danzō's eyes flickered with heat and regret.
He had once believed that Orochimaru was the pinnacle of genius.
That no one could surpass him.
Yet Souma…
Souma was different.
Not merely brilliant—
but lacking even the obvious weaknesses Orochimaru had.
Such a person…
Not being usable by him was truly life's greatest pity.
Danzō concealed these thoughts behind a neutral expression.
"I'll send the data later."
"Good."
Hiruzen nodded.
Danzō left quietly.
But as an old friend, Hiruzen knew exactly what was swirling in his heart.
He drew on his pipe and looked out the window toward the village.
What is that child's "root," I wonder…?
"Lord Third."
"Nara Shikaku, haha—
I hear your boy has become surprisingly diligent lately. Good teaching!"
"Not at all. He was forced into it."
Shikaku sighed.
He knew his son.
Lazy, unambitious, unmotivated.
If Shikamaru was trying now, it was only because someone far ahead of him—
Yagyu Souma—
was dragging him forward.
He silently appreciated the boy, but did not mention it.
Instead, he handed over two folders.
"These are from the Medical Corps. One is the latest research on disease-source localization, the other is the progress on combined medical ninjutsu."
"Let me see."
Hiruzen skimmed the pages—
And suddenly clapped his hands in delight.
"Already applied to surgery? Excellent! Wonderful! Spread it. Make sure as many medical-nin as possible learn this technique!"
"Yes, sir!"
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
patreon.com/pikachu614