Squelch!
The sound of a sharp weapon piercing flesh.
Minato Namikaze only felt a cold flash of light stabbing toward his head.
The instinct honed through years of war made him reach out to block immediately; a sharp Kunai pierced his forearm from behind until it was stopped by the bone.
Ugh!
Intense pain flooded Minato Namikaze's brain; with no time to react, he immediately used the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Swoosh!
With a flash of golden light, Minato Namikaze appeared beside the Kunai he had first thrown at Danzo Shimura.
Looking up, what Minato Namikaze saw shocked him beyond measure.
The head that had just been staring with eyes wide in death was back on the body, looking as if it had always been there, with not a single wound remaining.
Danzo Shimura wore a stiff sneer, looking quite pleased with himself.
How is he not dead?
How did he come back to life?
Countless questions surfaced in Minato Namikaze's mind, but now was not the time for thought.
For Danzo Shimura's Ninjutsu was already hurtling toward him again.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere!"
Danzo Shimura spat out a continuous stream of wind spheres like a machine gun.
Enduring the pain in his arm, Minato Namikaze had no choice but to form hand seals with one hand and use a Body Flicker Technique to move toward Kakashi, who was rushing to support him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kakashi Hatake, Kunai in hand, sliced through the incoming wind spheres and shielded Minato Namikaze behind him.
"Sensei, are you alright?"
Kakashi Hatake asked with concern.
"I'm fine, I was careless."
Minato Namikaze frowned as he pulled bandages from his Ninja tool pouch to wrap the wound on his forearm.
He had indeed been careless just now, leading to a mistake.
Minato Namikaze had encountered plenty of battles during the Third Great Ninja War where enemy Ninjas faked their deaths in unexpected ways to launch a sneak attack.
But back then, with his high level of vigilance, he had never once fallen for such a trap.
This was why he had been able to survive the meat-grinder of a battlefield unscathed.
Just now, his sharp reflexes allowed him to quickly sense Danzo Shimura's sneak attack.
However, on one hand, he hadn't realized Danzo Shimura might still have a hidden trump card, leading to a rushed response.
On the other hand, he had only recently acquired the fire god sword; facing the sudden sneak attack, he couldn't use the blade to block the Kunai's thrust and had to use his arm instead.
Fortunately, Minato Namikaze hadn't been Hokage for long; his strength and sharp instincts were still intact.
Otherwise, that strike would have sent Minato Namikaze to the afterlife.
On the other side, Danzo Shimura looked utterly resentful.
He had set this trap from the very beginning of the battle, gradually lulling Minato Namikaze into a false sense of security and constantly showing openings, all for this final, sudden sneak attack.
He hadn't expected to only wound Minato Namikaze's arm while exposing his own trump card.
This was the gap in their combat experience.
Danzo Shimura, after all, had been away from the front lines for a long time; while his idea for a sneak attack was good, he underestimated Minato Namikaze's reaction speed, and the Kunai aimed at the head only wounded an arm.
Now, with his trump card exposed, Minato Namikaze wouldn't give him a second chance.
And by the looks of it, Kakashi Hatake and all the Anbu wouldn't give him a second chance either.
"You bastard! How dare you harm Hokage-sama!"
Kakashi Hatake was like a furious young lion, his expression suggesting he wanted to swallow Danzo Shimura whole right then and there.
"You deserve to die, Danzo Shimura!"
"Hokage-sama, are you alright?"
"Danzo Shimura! How dare you do such a thing!"
The Anbu swarmed forward; except for the four maintaining the barrier formation, they all rushed to Minato Namikaze's side.
That moment just now had nearly scared them half to death.
If the Hokage had been killed by Danzo Shimura's sneak attack right under their noses...
Then this group of Anbu wouldn't have to be Ninjas anymore—they would all be charged with crimes!
What kind of Ninja lets the Hokage be killed right in front of them while serving as Anbu?
They might as well go home and raise pigs!
The lingering fear turned into pure rage for these Anbu; every one of them looked at Danzo Shimura with eyes ready to devour him.
"Hmph!"
Danzo Shimura knew he couldn't press his advantage anymore. He first released the summoning of the severely injured Baku and then asked Minato Namikaze with a look of disdain:
"Are you going to have them all gang up on me?"
"The dignified Fourth Hokage, actually resorting to such tactics?"
Danzo Shimura completely ignored the anger and accusations of Kakashi Hatake and the Anbu, instead questioning Minato Namikaze.
Frowning, Minato Namikaze was about to speak when he was interrupted by Kakashi Hatake:
"Hokage-sama! Stop being so stubborn!"
"Danzo Shimura committed insubordination! He dared to harm the Hokage—should we, the Anbu, just stand by and do nothing?"
"If so, we might as well just disband the entire Anbu!"
Kakashi Hatake's face was full of solemnity as he stared intently into Minato Namikaze's eyes.
Hearing Kakashi Hatake's words, all the Anbu nodded in agreement.
No joke, the Hokage was almost killed just now; were they supposed to just stand there and watch the show?
If they didn't hack Danzo Shimura to death and mince him into meat sauce, their hatred would never be appeased!
He's a villain anyway; there's no need for any code of honor with someone like him—everyone just needs to jump in and finish it!
"This..."
Minato Namikaze hesitated for a moment.
Even though his life had just hung by a thread, he didn't feel that Danzo Shimura was that difficult to handle.
Now that he understood Danzo Shimura's trump card, as long as he remained cautious, Danzo Shimura wouldn't pose the slightest threat to him.
But seeing Kakashi Hatake's expression, Minato Namikaze knew.
If he still stopped them now, he would likely demoralize his subordinates.
Very well.
In any case, Danzo Shimura had effectively harmed the Hokage; from any angle, it was a crime of treason against the village.
Letting the Anbu act now was perfectly justified and aboveboard.
"Be careful, don't get hurt."
Having made up his mind, Minato Namikaze pulled out a Kunai marked with a Flying Thunder God seal, placed it in Kakashi Hatake's hand, gave him a word of caution, and granted the request.
"Yes!"
Kakashi Hatake nodded solemnly, gripping the Kunai tightly as he shouted to Danzo Shimura:
"Danzo! Today, you will surely die here!"
"I swear it on the name of my father, the White Fang of Konoha!"
At that moment, The white-haired boy suddenly exuded a sharp aura, like an unsheathed sword.
The other Anbu all responded in unison, drawing their weapons and pointing them straight at Danzo Shimura.
"Hmph! Sakumo Hatake was a sinner and a coward!"
"The son he sired is also a piece of trash who defies his superiors and knows no rules."
"You think you can take my life?"
"My life is right here; if you have the ability, come and take it!"
Danzo Shimura actually looked down on Sakumo Hatake, even though the latter had once earned a great reputation, with prestige that nearly rivaled the Third Hokage.
But Sakumo Hatake's act of abandoning a mission for the sake of his teammates, resulting in the mission's failure...
...as well as his cowardly act of committing suicide in the face of rumors and accusations...
...all earned him Danzo Shimura's contempt.
Even if those rumors were his own doing.
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