On the other side.
Outside Konoha, within the Forest of Death training grounds, a figure moved at high speed.
"That's enough—you can release me now!"
Held hostage by this mysterious white-masked ninja throughout the Journey, Danzo finally had a chance to speak.
"Release you? Why?"
The masked stranger didn't care. With one hand, he carried the bound Danzō as he leapt forward, asking coldly.
"You broke the agreement! You killed several Sunagakure ninja!"
Danzō suppressed his anger.
He had suspected that White Zetsu's side wouldn't be completely honest. But he never expected the attack team they sent would be so ruthless and cruel—actually wanting to kill them.
Even his neck had been stabbed with a kunai. Though not deep, it made Danzō extremely uncomfortable.
"Broke the agreement? What agreement?"
The masked ninja's voice rose—he sounded slightly confused.
"You don't know?"
"Know what?"
Hearing these words, Danzō understood—the person before him was likely deceived by White Zetsu too.
Perhaps White Zetsu hadn't told him the truth at all.
This man truly launched an attack to seize the Rinnegan!
That's why his performance was so realistic, and he was so brutal toward Danzō—he had no idea this was all an act!
(Damn White Zetsu, I'll…)
Danzō cursed inwardly, furious and eager to slice White Zetsu into pieces.
Fortunately, he already had a backup plan.
He'd anticipated this possibility and prepared something within his own body.
Otherwise, Danzō wouldn't have dared to willingly be taken hostage by the enemy.
"Who are you really?"
"You don't need to know."
"Your enemy is Konoha, right? Let me go. I'm also Konoha's enemy! I can help you!"
"Hmph! Shimura Danzō, isn't it? Don't think I don't know your true identity. If you hadn't betrayed Konoha and sided with Sunagakure, I'd have killed you already!"
The opponent sneered coldly, showing no intention of releasing Danzō. On the contrary, his tone revealed deep hatred toward Konoha.
Clearly, this enemy must harbor deep grudges against Konoha.
"Why do you deliberately wear a mask?"
"This isn't a mask."
"You're deliberately hiding your face, afraid to show your real appearance—that proves your identity is highly unusual, doesn't it?"
"Silence!"
"Attacking the inn wasn't easy. Yet your assault was precise and well-trained. You even knew exactly which floor and room we were staying in. That had to be pre-planned. And only someone within Konoha could possess such planning capability. So—you're a traitor from inside Konoha!"
"Shut up!"
The masked ninja grew angrier. It seemed Danzō had struck a hidden nerve.
"An ordinary Konoha ninja wouldn't dare commit such a reckless act. You must have major conflicts of interest or deep grudges against Konoha."
"And your strength is extraordinary. Very few ninja clans have the ability to train someone as powerful as you. Combined with the fact you're deliberately concealing your identity—your origins are obvious."
"You're an Uchiha? Or an Uzumaki? Or someone from another clan originating from the moon?"
Danzō's meticulous reasoning enraged his opponent further. The man felt pain, as if being sharply stabbed.
His body trembled slightly from rage. His expression distorted behind the mask.
"I said—shut up!"
The masked ninja roared furiously, losing much of his composure.
He no longer held back. He swung his other hand and drove a kunai straight into Danzō's mouth, trying to destroy the annoying vocal organs of this man.
*WHOOSH!*
The masked ninja mid-leap suddenly froze. A cluster of black, flower-shaped curses erupted from his right hand, rapidly spreading across his entire body and halting his movements.
Jigō Jubaku no In! (Petrifying Curse Seal)
Another secret technique Danzō learned from his older self. He could plant a curse on an enemy through physical contact and activate it at the right moment.
Once activated, it completely bound the enemy's body and movement.
Danzō's earlier reasoning and guesses served two purposes: one, to uncover the enemy's identity; two, to provoke the enemy's emotions, accelerating the curse's activation.
And now, he had finally succeeded.
*BAM!*
The masked ninja, bound by the curse, fell from the air—crashing hard onto the ground.
Danzō also freed himself, regaining freedom.
He stood up and elegantly brushed the dust off his clothes.
"Fool. Did you really think I'd let you take me hostage without preparation?"
Don't forget who Danzō was a student of.
Knowing White Zetsu couldn't be trusted, if Danzō had no backup plan, he'd be utterly foolish.
And he wouldn't deserve the title "Sunagakure's Darkness."
"Alright, let me see—who you really are?"
Danzō reached for the head of the masked ninja, ready to tear away the disguise and reveal the enemy's true identity.
If the enemy was merely a foreign ninja, it wouldn't be a big issue.
But if the enemy was truly a major traitor—a high-level spy hiding within Konoha—then the matter would become serious.
It would prove that many within Konoha had secretly been incited by White Zetsu, becoming a major destabilizing factor threatening village safety.
As Tobirama's loyal student, as a Konoha loyalist, and as a future Hokage candidate, Danzō had to uncover the enemy's identity!
*SHUA!*
The outer white layer covering the enemy suddenly tore open from within. A figure burst out from inside the White Zetsu shell, appearing before Danzō.
Clearly, Danzō had miscalculated slightly.
He never expected the enemy's white mask wasn't a disguise—but armor formed by White Zetsu itself!
Therefore, the Jigō Jubaku no In used by Danzō only bound the outer layer of White Zetsu. It couldn't bind the body within.
This gave the enemy a chance to break free from White Zetsu and regain mobility.
"…"
Danzō instantly recognized the other party's identity.
"Uchiha Setsuna!"
"It's you!"
Danzō identified his opponent. The enemy was an Uchiha ninja of the same generation as Kagami—26 years old, a member of the Konoha Military Police Force, known for his cruelty and cunning.
Like many Uchiha with extremist views, he was deeply radical—having inherited the will of Uchiha Madara.
Therefore, he was highly dissatisfied with Second Hokage Senju Tobirama's policies toward managing the Uchiha Clan. He always wanted to reclaim power from Tobirama's hands.
Over half a year ago, during the First Great Ninja War, he took advantage of the village being surrounded and secretly incited Uchiha members to rebel and cause trouble.
Unfortunately, Tobirama already knew. He sent Anbu to suppress and capture him.
Afterward, Setsuna remained imprisoned, with no news.
Many even believed he had been secretly executed by the Second Hokage in prison.
Never expected—he was still alive!
Even escaped prison, appeared here, and became the leader of the inn attack!
No wonder the enemy was so familiar with the inn's layout. Because he was a thief within Konoha—he was a former traitor!