"Swish, swish, swish…"
Five figures landed one after another atop the ruins of the Root headquarters. As they looked at the giant trees among the wreckage, four of them turned their eyes to Jia.
Jia shook his head slightly and said, "No one in Root could use Wood Release on this scale, not even me. If I'm not mistaken, it should be the person the Anbu have been tracking."
Yun, who had just joined this small gathering today, wasn't quite sure who Jia was referring to, but he could guess. It had to be the clone, Ku.
Standing to the side, Minato Namikaze nodded, his expression serious.
'Was it Uzumaki Ku? Flying Thunder God, Wood Release, and that ominous, chilling chakra he just felt, was that another new ability?'
Even as the Fourth Hokage representing Konoha, he didn't want to provoke Uzumaki Ku, especially now that Root was apparently wiped out. As for Danzo...
Boom!
A massive tree pushed aside falling rubble, revealing a branch that carried the completely unharmed Uzumaki Ku into the air.
"Yo? You guys got here fast. Quite the lively crowd today, huh?"
Minato ignored Ku's teasing and frowned. "Was it you? Did you kill Danzo too?"
Ku shrugged. "He's dead. To prevent that old dog from pulling any resurrection tricks, I minced his corpse and burned it to ashes with Fire Release."
He glanced at the nearby ruins and scratched his head. "You probably won't find the ashes; everything collapsed. Even I don't know where they are now."
'So he really did die...'
Minato frowned. "Uzumaki Ku, you've killed a senior figure of Konoha. That means you'll be hunted by Konoha. I didn't want to fight you before."
Ku understood what Minato was really saying: Use Flying Thunder God and get out, now.
But then...
Swish!
Three more figures arrived with several guards, landing on the ruins.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped forward and looked at Ku floating in midair. "Where's Danzo?!"
Ku pointed at the rubble. "That old dog? I chopped him into pulp and burned him to ash with Fire Release. Used Uchiha's Izanagi a few times, he was a pain."
"You bastard!!" Hiruzen roared and slammed a hand to the ground. "Summoning Jutsu!"
A cloud of smoke dispersed, revealing Enma the Monkey King. Upon seeing the giant tree and Ku, Enma asked sternly, "Hiruzen, what's with this Wood Release?"
Floating above, Ku waved dismissively and said to Hiruzen, "No need to rush into a beating... who knows? I might just accidentally kill you."
Then, Ku locked eyes for a second with someone in the crowd and turned to gesture with his hand.
Rumble...
A massive wooden sphere appeared, suspended in the air by the giant trees. The sphere contracted, revealing a grotesque, monstrous ball of flesh inside.
Ku turned to the two Uchihas present and asked, "I think you two might recognize this guy."
The only remaining face on the meatball-monster looked up, opening eyes that were now just hollow, bloody sockets.
Uchiha Yun reacted in shock. "Hika?! Uncle Tesho's son! How could he…"
Prompted by that comment, Shisui also recognized him. This was once a renowned Uchiha prodigy, a hero of Konoha. How could he have ended up like this?
Shisui looked at Ku and asked coldly, "Who did this? Danzo?"
Ku nodded, glanced at the furious Hiruzen, and replied: "Konoha's rotten Root. Because he coveted the power of the First Hokage and Uchiha Madara, Danzo conducted many experiments."
"And experiments need test subjects. At first, it was ninja and civilians from other villages, but due to one specific case, he turned his gaze inward, back to Konoha."
Then Ku turned toward Jia, who stood behind the Fourth Hokage, and smiled. "As the only surviving Wood Release experiment, you should know how many Konoha citizens Orochimaru and Danzo's experiments killed, right?"
"Impossible!!" Hiruzen shouted angrily. "I ordered Danzo to shut down all Wood Release experiments long ago because of the high casualty rate! How could he…"
He stopped mid-sentence, interrupted by Ku, who asked Jia directly, "Tell the Third how Danzo ordered you to kill Kakashi and take his Sharingan."
Hiruzen turned to Jia, who confirmed it with a silent nod.
Though he didn't know the full truth, Hiruzen's body swayed, clearly shaken.
At this point, Koharu spoke up. "Uzumaki Ku, no matter what Danzo did, this was Konoha's matter. It wasn't your place to kill him."
Homura Mitokado nodded and looked up. "Even with Wood Release, you won't leave Konoha today."
Floating above, Ku smiled mockingly. "You two really are just like that old dog Danzo. What gave you the courage to say something so arrogant? Strength? Authority?"
Swish!
Before they could react, Ku used Flying Thunder God to instantly appear before Homura, slashing down with his longsword.
Whoosh… Bam!
Two kunai appeared mid-air, barely deflecting the blade. What should have been a decapitation landed instead on Homura's shoulder.
Splurt!
The deep wound nearly cut Homura in two. Ku vanished again, reappearing on the giant tree above.
Thud!
Homura collapsed in a pool of blood, unmoving.
Hiruzen's eyes turned red with rage, but Minato held him back.
Ku waved a hand dismissively. "If we're going to talk, let's talk. No need to run your mouth, especially you types, weak and yet love to yap. Want me to visit you at midnight sometime?"
He turned toward Minato. "Fourth Hokage, why don't you explain to them whether someone with Flying Thunder God can, for example, destroy half of Konoha and still leave unscathed?"
Minato locked eyes with him. "If you do that, then we'll see if your soul can be revived too."
'Dead Demon Consuming Seal, huh?'
Ku scratched his head. That technique couldn't actually kill him, but... would the sealed soul be Uzumaki Ku's or Uchiha Yun's?
He couldn't afford to lose this disguise.
With that in mind, Ku waved his hand and sent the near-dead Uchiha Hokaku in front of Shisui.
"His life is barely hanging on. If the Yamanaka clan comes, they should be able to read his memories. Danzo probably didn't plant a self-destruct seal in such a prized test subject."
Hearing this, Shisui looked down at his indescribable clansman, eyes flashing with gratitude.
Danzo deserved to die.
At this point, Hiruzen let out a deep sigh, looked to Shisui, and then turned to the Fourth.
"I'm already old. Danzo, as one of Konoha's elders, is now dead. Could we at least let him rest in the memorial with dignity?"
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
p@treon.com/DaoistJinzu