Boom!
With a single punch, Senju Haruto blasted apart Danzo's Tree World Burial and emerged from the splintered mass, then cast a brief glance at the towering giant before him.
The trunk's diameter was easily five to six meters—utterly massive. The density it had achieved in the midst of that wild, explosive growth was equally staggering.
"If I hadn't used chakra to defend myself, that move would have crushed my body completely," Haruto thought, scanning the remains.
Given the situation just moments ago, Danzo hadn't even had a chance to summon the Baku. Otherwise, with that beast present, Haruto might not have come out so unscathed.
What Haruto hadn't expected was Danzo's reaction to the killing intent he'd unleashed. He'd assumed Danzo would either beg for mercy… or keep running.
Yet in the face of death, Danzo had chosen a full-on suicide strike—activating Tree World Burial in an attempt to drag Haruto down with him.
"Would rather die than let me live, huh?" Haruto muttered inwardly, a trace of wry amusement in his thoughts. He stored away Shisui's eye and noted that he could no longer sense Danzo's chakra.
Looks like… he might really be dead.
Just as Haruto was about to activate his Byakugan to confirm, another powerful, oppressive chakra signature suddenly descended from above.
He instinctively turned toward it—and saw none other than the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, accompanied by his personal ANBU unit.
Haruto even spotted familiar figures like Kakashi and Yamato among them. Of course, both were wearing their ANBU masks, but he recognized them easily by their hair.
Hiruzen landed without speaking, instead sweeping his gaze across the area—only to be utterly taken aback by the scene before him.
The moment he'd felt that overwhelming chakra surge earlier, a bad feeling had gripped his heart. He'd immediately mobilized the ANBU and rushed here.
Now, the Senju Clan's compound lay in near-total ruin, its landscape swallowed by a sprawling, tangled Tree World—clearly Haruto's doing.
And within that forest of wood release still lay the bodies of several Root operatives.
Hiruzen's eyes darkened. The last time Danzo had tried to assassinate Haruto, Hiruzen had warned him clearly. Yet here he was, repeating the same crime.
What baffled the Hokage most…
Haruto had inherited the legendary Wood Release of Lord Hashirama himself. With proper guidance and nurturing, this boy could surely inherit the Will of Fire and become a truly exceptional elite jonin.
So why did Danzo harbor such deep hostility toward him?
It wasn't just Hiruzen—Kakashi, Yamato, and the other ANBU members were equally stunned by the destruction.
Unlike Root, ANBU did conceal their emotions behind masks, but only concealed—they didn't erase them entirely.
"What kind of terrifying jutsu… could a kid really do this?"
"This is monster-level power…"
"Kakashi's gaze narrowed as he studied the boy before him. He had already seen Haruto use Tree World Descent and the Wood Human Technique before.
But today's attack was different. Though the area of Tree World was smaller, its offensive power was far greater.
In other words—if yesterday Haruto had merely demonstrated his strength, today he had used that strength to decisively win a real battle.
No wonder he'd been confident about clashing with the Hidden Cloud.
It wasn't ignorance of war's brutality—it was sheer confidence.
A lone man, strong enough to rival an army.
"If he keeps growing at this rate… just how powerful could he become?"
Kakashi's throat tightened, and he swallowed hard. Relief flooded him that Haruto stood with the Leaf rather than against it—yet there was also a strange, almost uneasy feeling in his chest.
That overwhelming strength… that unshakable presence… could surely protect those he treasured most.
"Wood Release…"
Yamato, too, was in shock—his eyes wide, his body frozen in place.
Before seeing this, Danzo had always told him that he was the only one to inherit Lord Hashirama's power, the one destined to become the Leaf's perfect Root, the guardian of the village.
But Haruto's Wood Release… eclipsed his entirely.
Another Wood Release user.
And as one himself, Yamato knew exactly how terrifying Haruto's control was.
Wood Release wasn't like ordinary ninjutsu—it was a kekkei genkai born from combining Water and Earth chakra through advanced nature transformation.
That required near-perfect chakra control—and vast chakra reserves.
Yet after unleashing such a massive technique, Haruto's expression was as relaxed and smug as ever, without the slightest hint of fatigue.
Just that fact alone meant—conservatively—his chakra reserves had to be at least a hundred times greater than Kakashi's.
Yamato cast a quick glance at Kakashi.
"…Hm? What is it?" Kakashi noticed and asked.
"Ah, nothing," Yamato replied, shaking his head—yet in truth, Haruto seemed more unfathomable than ever.
But still…
Looking around, Yamato also noticed the Root operatives scattered about. Judging from the scene, these had to be Haruto's attackers.
And Root answered only to Danzo.
Root's will… was Danzo's will.
"Danzo-sama…" Yamato's brows knit. Back when he'd followed Danzo, the man had ordered him to assassinate the Third Hokage and even Kakashi, to steal his Sharingan.
And now, he had targeted Haruto.
Why did Danzo always turn against Leaf shinobi? Against his own comrades?
"Hokage-sama." Haruto took a deep breath and stepped toward Hiruzen.
"It was Danzo."
"This morning I woke up, ready to admire my own unparalleled good looks in the mirror before heading off to the Academy."
"But then that guy barged in with his men and attacked me without a single word."
Haruto's gaze flicked toward the Root ninja nearby.
He could sense their desire for vengeance, mixed with fear—too afraid to rush in.
"And these guys—first thing they do is throw a storm of shuriken at me. I mean thousands, blotting out the sky. You've gotta understand, I haven't even graduated from the Academy yet—when have I ever seen something like that?"
"I was terrified! So, of course, my chakra just… exploded out of me."
Hiruzen was momentarily speechless. If Haruto hadn't mentioned Danzo by name, he might never have imagined Danzo himself had come here.
Danzo? Here?
A bad premonition hit him hard. He lifted his head sharply, expanding his sensory range—
And found nothing. No chakra from Danzo. Only the Root operatives remained.
Danzo had been here… but now there was no sign of him.
Haruto…
Had killed him?!