Just as the civilians of the Land of Waves were beginning to receive the massive influx of basic living supplies from the merchants with overwhelming joy, Kakashi finally returned to Konoha with one wounded casualty and two despondent disciples.
After rushing Sasuke to the hospital, he immediately headed to the Hokage Residence to report the events of the mission. He focused heavily on the mysterious individual wearing a Root mask who possessed a two-tomoe Sharingan, recounting every detail of their conversation. He also included the account of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki Naruto Uzumaki's rampage.
Upon hearing this, the Third Hokage's expression turned incredibly solemn. After a long silence, he spoke: "Do you truly believe those two attackers were Danzo's people?"
"I don't know for certain," Kakashi answered without hesitation. "But that man's Sharingan was undoubtedly real. Although it only had two tomoe, he used various ocular techniques with extreme proficiency. If he were to go all out, I might not be his match at all."
"Since when did Danzo have so many elites under his command..." The Third Hokage frowned instinctively.
He wasn't surprised by the attempt on Sasuke's life. As the instigator and mastermind behind the Uchiha Massacre, Danzo had always wanted to sever that family's bloodline entirely, ensuring they vanished from the ninja world forever.
The problem, however, was that Root members didn't just appear out of thin air. They were recruited from the village's existing ninja ranks or selected from the orphans Danzo adopted. Although Root's operations were highly secretive, the Hokage usually maintained some level of oversight. This was exactly why, in their decades of political maneuvering, Danzo had always been the loser.
But now, his old rival suddenly held several trump cards capable of threatening even him. It would be strange if the Third Hokage wasn't nervous.
Furthermore, ever since the incident where Naruto stole the Scroll of Seals, the Third's prestige in the village had plummeted. Many who previously supported the Hokage were now either defecting to Danzo or choosing to remain neutral to see how things played out. Absolute fairness might be an impossible ideal, but one must at least maintain appearances.
The fact that the Hokage allowed a mere Genin to view a scroll filled with Forbidden Jutsus, resulting in the boy learning the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu without facing any repercussions, was blatant favoritism. This double standard infuriated any ninja who still held hope for the village's integrity. Compounded by the fact that only a tiny inner circle knew Naruto's true identity (and were forbidden from speaking of it), the fallout was worsening by the day.
At this point, the Third Hokage was using all his energy just to keep his seat; he simply lacked the capacity to investigate whether Danzo truly sent assassins after Sasuke.
"Hokage-sama, if there is nothing else, I shall take my leave."
Kakashi was well aware of the Third's difficult position and knew how sensitive Sasuke's status was. It wasn't just Danzo who wanted Sasuke dead; none of the ninjas who participated in the Uchiha Massacre wanted him alive either.
As for innocence... Sorry, no one cared. Were the family members who knew nothing of the coup but died anyway not innocent?
"Mhm. Go then," the Third Hokage nodded helplessly.
On the other side of the village, Danzo received word of Kakashi and Team 7's return. Upon reviewing Sasuke's medical report, he couldn't help but marvel, "Missed the heart by less than a millimeter? That Uchiha remnant certainly has incredible luck."
"My Lord, I also heard that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki entered a rampage immediately upon seeing Sasuke Uchiha's chest pierced. The tail count on his Tailed Beast Cloak even reached four at one point," a Root ninja reported faithfully.
"Hmph, forget it for now. Our current focus is Orochimaru's 'Konoha Crush' plan. As for the Uchiha survivor, let him live a little longer," Danzo sighed with slight regret.
Exactly as Allen had predicted, Danzo did not vent his anger on anyone for the failed assassination. In fact, this was the most successful attempt on Sasuke since Itachi's "defection"—it had come within a hair's breadth of succeeding.
"Understood! Our people are ready, just waiting for the Chunin Exams to begin." The Root ninja looked up with fanatical eyes. In his view, only Danzo could lead Konoha out of its current state of cowardly concessions and return it to the glorious power it wielded during the first three Great Ninja Wars.
Danzo nodded in satisfaction. "Very good. Remind Allen to keep a close watch on Orochimaru's movements. That man won't strictly follow the plan."
"Rest assured! We have already dispatched two elites to handle communications. No matter what Orochimaru is plotting, it will not escape our grasp," the Root ninja guaranteed firmly.
With that, he backed into the shadows and vanished, leaving Danzo alone in the secret chamber. Surrounded by darkness and solitude, the old man, who had long since fallen into depravity, gently touched the eye beneath his bandages.
"Perhaps once I become Hokage, I should use it to turn that child into a pawn of absolute loyalty," he murmured in a voice only he could hear. "Only then can I truly feel safe entrusting him with the management of Root."
Kotoamatsukami, the ability within Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan, was Danzo's ultimate trump card. It was also the reason he dared to employ a dangerous element like Allen. At the thought of his dreams soon becoming reality, he couldn't help but laugh, a laugh that grew increasingly deranged.
Fortunately, there was no one else present; otherwise, even the Root ninjas who viewed him as a god would likely have questioned their leader's mental stability.
While Danzo's sanity remained private, the medical ninjas and nurses at the hospital were genuinely on the verge of a breakdown.
"Get out of my way! I'm checking out!" Sasuke Uchiha leapt from his bed like a madman, desperate to leave the place he loathed.
"Sasuke! Calm down! You were lucky the wound missed your heart, but you still need days of rest to heal," Sakura pleaded.
"Shut up! I've had enough of being weak! I must become stronger, I must become stronger at any cost!"
The brush with death had struck Sasuke's most sensitive nerve. Karin appeared to be the same age as him, yet she possessed such overwhelming power that she had effortlessly "ground them into the dirt." Even his pride, the Sharingan, couldn't track her movements. If he continued to waste time like this, he would never avenge his clan, let alone catch up to Itachi.
Just as Sasuke was about to cause a riot in the ward, Kakashi finally walked in, speaking in his usual lethargic tone. "Enough. Lie back and rest. I promise you, once your wounds are healed, I will teach you Chidori."
"Chidori?" The memory of that high-powered, lightning-flickering Jutsu flashed through Sasuke's mind. "Really?" he asked excitedly.
"Mhm. You have my word," Kakashi confirmed.
"Then it's a deal!"
"A deal."