Just when Uchiha Miyuki decided to go alone to gather information
Konoha
Within the village, chaos erupted.
Shimura Danzō, leader of Root, unleashed overwhelming power. Alone, he had crushed almost all of Konoha's high-ranking shinobi.
When the delayed reinforcements from the village and ANBU finally arrived, the scene before them was horrific:
Jōnin Namikaze Minato's body nearly torn in half, his blood pooling across the ground.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, unconscious and barely clinging to life.
And in the middle of the carnage, only Danzō remained standing—calm, unscathed, his face as expressionless as stone. His aura carried a chilling arrogance, the kind of presence that made him seem almost divine.
The first thought that struck the Konoha shinobi and ANBU was:
Has Lord Danzō… rebelled?
But no—could this really be possible? He shouldn't be that strong, right?
Before they could process it further, Root operatives poured into the area, swiftly seizing control. The unsuspecting Konoha shinobi and ANBU, caught off guard by comrades from their own village, were subdued with alarming ease.
"I am Shimura Danzō, leader of Root."
His voice was calm, yet domineering enough to crush the hearts of everyone present. "Some of you know me, some of you do not. It matters little. I once served as guardian to the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama. I was a candidate for Hokage myself, and I have quietly dedicated my life to protecting this village!"
He lifted a hand, gesturing toward the fallen. His expression shifted into one of false grief.
"Sarutobi sought to master Sage Mode, recklessly drawing in natural energy. He lost control. The result… was the death of Namikaze Minato and others. I tried to stop him, but it was too late. Truly… heartbreaking."
"This…"
The Konoha shinobi exchanged uneasy looks. His words rang false. Few believed such an excuse. Hiruzen's prestige in the village was far greater than Danzō had ever anticipated, and the story didn't add up.
Danzō's face darkened, fists tightening.
Why?
He and Hiruzen had both served Tobirama. Yet Hiruzen became the Third Hokage, revered by all, while he remained in the shadows. He had given his entire life to Konoha—yet most chūnin, even many jōnin, didn't even know his face. Not to mention… respect.
"Lord Danzō!"
A silver-haired ANBU stepped forward, wearing a fox mask. His voice carried sorrow as his gaze lingered on Minato's broken form. Then his sharp eyes locked onto Danzō.
"Is it true? Was it really the Third Hokage who killed Minato-sensei?"
Danzō nodded firmly. "That's right. I saw it with my own eyes."
But the ANBU pressed on. "Then surely, Lord Danzō, we can have a member of the Yamanaka clan examine Minato-sensei's memories? Their clan head is injured, yes, but we must offer proof. We owe the people of this village an explanation."
Danzō's eyes narrowed dangerously, his pale-blue irises—completely unlike before—burning with an unnatural glow.
"Hatake Kakashi," he said, venom dripping in his tone. "Do not think I fail to see your ties to Hiruzen. You stand here to shield him, don't you? To question me, to cover for the real criminal?"
The surrounding shinobi froze.
Kakashi's teacher was Namikaze Minato. Minato's master was Jiraiya. And Jiraiya was Sarutobi Hiruzen's disciple. In the eyes of many, Kakashi was practically a direct heir of the Hokage line.
"You recognize me so easily… as expected of Lord Danzō."
Knowing his silver hair had betrayed his identity, Kakashi removed his mask. His gaze was unwavering, his voice calm.
"My identity doesn't matter. The Yamanaka's jutsu to recover memories from the dead—it's a standard shinobi duty. Or…" He paused, narrowing his Sharingan eye. "Is it that you fear their examination will expose your lies?"
Danzō's glowing eyes—"Eyes of the Sky"—emitted a crushing aura, enough to make many of the surrounding shinobi stiffen in unease.
Kakashi felt it too, a cold pressure crawling across his skin. His doubts sharpened.
Danzō's eyes… were they always like this?
No. Absolutely not. This man's eyes had never been so… beautiful. So wrong.
"Danzō Shimura!" Kakashi roared. "You're lying!"
His Mangekyō Sharingan spun to life, blood streaking down his cheek. Obito's transplanted eyes burned with a terrifying power.
"Kamui!"
The space around Danzō warped instantly, swirling into a crushing vortex. His entire form was swallowed, the distortion threatening to erase him completely.
"Eh…?"
Kakashi froze, vision blurring. His intent had been only to banish Danzō into the Kamui dimension, not to kill him outright. But—
Wrong. It's an afterimage!
"Boom! Boom! Boom——!"
Like a rampaging beast, Danzō's body flickered across the battlefield, slamming through several shinobi in the blink of an eye. Their bodies were torn apart, reduced to nothing but blood and shredded flesh.
"AAAAHHHHH!"
The battlefield drowned in screams. And then—
"Pop."
A hand clamped down hard on Kakashi's shoulder from behind. Danzō's grip was merciless, his touch radiating a frost that bit into Kakashi's very bones.
Kakashi's entire body stiffened. His back felt as if death itself had pressed its palm against him.
"Kamui… a spatial ability… and even the potential to break through my Infinity. Did you think I'd be unprepared?"
Danzō's voice oozed with pride as he appeared behind Kakashi, a cruel smile tugging at his lips.
From the soul he had inherited from another world, he knew well: the original wielder of Infinity, Gojo Satoru, had fallen once to a spatial slash. How could Shimura Danzō not guard himself against Hatake Kakashi, who wielded space-time powers of his own?
What he hadn't expected, however, was this: Kakashi possessing two Mangekyō Sharingan. A development utterly inconsistent with the "script" of this world.
So it's true… Uchiha Miyuki is a time traveler. His thoughts seethed with malice. She saved Nohara Rin, altered Obito's fate, and even placed Obito's Mangekyō in Kakashi's hands. If she won't submit as my pawn… then she must be eliminated. This world cannot tolerate another traveler.
"There's a flaw… he's distracted."
Kakashi's instincts sharpened. He didn't understand why Danzō knew of Kamui—or what he meant by "Infinity"—but hesitation meant death. With Body Flicker, he slipped free of Danzō's grasp.
"Kamui space will be your prison, Danzō!"
Blood trickled from his eye, his skull pounding, but he forced the Mangekyō open wider.
"Kamui——!!"
A swirling vortex consumed the air around Danzō, dragging at his form.
"Again? Then allow me to show you a different level."
Danzō's expression hardened. His hands moved deliberately, one radiating a crushing pull, the other a violent repulsion.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue!"
A sphere of negative attraction bloomed in his right palm, pulling everything toward it with irresistible force.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"
In his left hand, a surge of repulsion roared to life, pushing violently outward, splitting the ground beneath his feet.
The two orbs pulsed, one drawing, one repelling—then Danzō slammed them together.
"Hollow Technique: Purple!"
The fusion of Blue and Red birthed a spiraling beam of erasure, distorting the very air. Even Kamui's vortex was dragged into it, bent and shredded.
Kakashi's Sharingan dilated.
"What—!? Kamui's being overwritten?!"
"Too late," Danzō sneered. His hand rose like a child mimicking a pistol. "Hollow Purple!"
The condensed beam erupted forth, tearing reality itself. Wherever it passed, the world simply ceased to exist.
"Damn it! Everyone behind me!"
Kakashi's heart froze. Root operatives had bound Konoha shinobi behind him. If he evaded, they'd all be slaughtered. He clenched his teeth, forcing his Mangekyō again.
"Kamui——!!"
Blood streamed from both eyes, his body convulsing from the strain. He tried to drag the annihilating beam into Kamui's dimension.
"Hahaha! Useless!" Danzō's voice thundered. "This is Hollow Purple—a technique that cuts even through space! Your Kamui is nothing before it!"
And so it was. The erasure beam shredded his dimensional vortex, obliterating everything in its path.
"BOOM——!!"
A deafening explosion ripped through Konoha. A thousand-meter ravine split the earth. Entire districts of homes, trees, and civilians vanished into ash. The unlucky few left alive screamed in agony, limbs severed, bodies mangled beyond recognition.
Kakashi fell. His Susanoo flared in a desperate attempt to shield him, but it shattered beneath Purple's fury. His torso was ripped apart, his body nearly torn in two—his fate mirroring his fallen master, Namikaze Minato.
Danzō stepped forward, unshaken by the carnage. He crouched and, with merciless precision, tore free Kakashi's Mangekyō Sharingan, slipping them into his robes.
"Perfect. Stronger even than Gojo Satoru. My Infinity surpasses his—Kamui is powerless before me."
Turning to the survivors, he spread his arms, voice echoing across the ruined battlefield.
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, betrayed this village! He slew Namikaze Minato and Hatake Kakashi! But I—Shimura Danzō—have defeated him and saved Konoha! And now, I shall ascend as the Fourth Hokage!"
He wasn't asking. He was declaring.
"Who agrees? Who objects?"
The shinobi froze. Even hardened jōnin trembled, remembering the beam that erased reality itself. To oppose him was suicide.
"…All hail the Fourth Hokage, Shimura Danzō!"
One ANBU, fresh to the ranks, dropped to one knee.
And like dominoes, the others followed. Within moments, more than ninety percent of the shinobi present knelt, their voices hollow but unified.
"What!? How dare you betray the Third Hokage! Can't you see Shimura Danzō is the real murderer!?"
A handful of shinobi loyal to Sarutobi Hiruzen shouted in defiance. But before their words had even finished echoing, Root operatives moved with merciless efficiency.
A wet sound split the air.
Shhk—!
Blood sprayed across the rubble. In an instant, the loyalists' heads rolled to the ground, their bodies collapsing lifelessly. The earth turned red.
Even with a few shinobi still outside the village on missions… they won't matter. The only real variables are Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Might Guy. If they return, there could be trouble…
Danzō's thoughts were cold calculation. His glowing eyes swept the battlefield. Then he turned toward the seemingly unconscious figures among Konoha's high council and sneered.
"No need to play dead, Uchiha leader… Orochimaru. Before my Six Eyes, every falsehood is laid bare."
Orochimaru's pale form slithered out from his own mouth, his golden eyes glinting with amusement. Beside him, Uchiha Fugaku slowly opened his eyes, the Mangekyō flickering faintly. Both men rose to their feet, shaken by the devastation around them.
When… did Danzō reach this level?
If not for Orochimaru's molting technique and Fugaku's newly awakened Mangekyō, both would have fallen like the others.
"Surrender to me, Orochimaru. Fugaku."
Danzō's tone was not a request but a command. "As Hokage, I'll grant you everything you desire. Orochimaru—your experiments will have full support. Fugaku—the Uchiha will rise to a higher standing than ever before. What say you?"
"…This…"
Fugaku's heart wavered. Danzō possessed overwhelming power, yet had spared him. Could his words be trusted?
Orochimaru, however, only licked the corner of his lips. "Fufu… interesting. To see you on the Hokage's seat instead of my teacher… far more entertaining. I accept."
"I agree as well!"
Fugaku's answer was quick, spurred by annoyance at Orochimaru's eagerness. Then his gaze hardened. "But you must promise the Uchiha will not face purges. We will stand as Konoha's foremost clan."
"No problem." Danzō's smile was thin, wolfish. "The Uchiha are Konoha's strongest wall. Why would I tear it down myself? Isn't that right, Chief Fugaku?"
"…It had better be so."
Fugaku dipped his head, though inside his chest burned with suspicion. He doesn't know the true powers of my Mangekyō. If he lies, I'll show him its terror.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"
Without warning, Danzō's hand flared. A surge of repulsive force struck—not at Fugaku—but at the unconscious Sarutobi Hiruzen, shattering his limbs with sickening cracks.
Fugaku stiffened, cold sweat sliding down his back.
"Take Hyūga Hiashi and Yamanaka Inoichi to the hospital," Danzō ordered flatly. "They may be useful later. But Hiruzen… throw him in the prison. Three days from now, we'll execute him publicly. On that same day, I will hold the succession ceremony for the Fourth Hokage. Let all of Konoha witness the traitor's end."
"…Yes, Lord Danzō!"
None dared oppose his command.
Danzō's strange azure eyes turned back toward Fugaku.
"What's wrong, Fugaku? Is the Fourth Hokage making you nervous?"
Fugaku's heart clenched. Did he notice I nearly activated my Mangekyō?
But Danzō only chuckled, his face curving into a mockery of kindness. "Relax. I said I won't turn my hand against the Uchiha, and I meant it."
Then his smile darkened. "That girl, Uchiha Miyuki… she's escaped with two Jinchūriki. Fetch her for me, Chief Fugaku."
"…That will be difficult." Fugaku gave a bitter smile. "She may be younger than me, but her strength far exceeds mine. Once, she beat me down and forced me to cancel my engagement with her sister, Mikoto. She isn't someone I can simply drag back."
"Is that so?" Danzō murmured. He recalled fragments from the traveler's memories, lips curling cruelly. "Uchiha Miyuki… fond of women, isn't she?"
A feral grin twisted across his face.
"Then threaten her. Use Kurenai Yūhi. Use Izumi Uchiha. Use her sister Mikoto. If she doesn't return by the time of Hiruzen's execution… kill them all."
Fugaku's throat tightened. He wanted to object—he did harbor affection for Mikoto—but one look into those eerie Six Eyes froze his voice.
"…Yes, Fourth Hokage."
He bowed, his words heavy as stone.
•••
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