The raging flames blackened the Hokage Office. Empowered by the Flame Fan, Uchiha Ran's Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation didn't just engulf Danzō Shimura—it shattered the floor-to-ceiling windows and surged outward.
Wherever the fire spread, it raged out of control.
The sky above Konoha was illuminated, and several nearby buildings were ignited.
Ran's heart skipped a beat. He had gone a little too far.
At that moment, heavy rain poured down from the sky. The flames that had only just begun to spread were quickly extinguished.
He let out a breath of relief. If it hadn't rained tonight, half the village might have burned down.
Before he could relax, a presence appeared behind him.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Waves!"
Hand seals flashed. Several sharp wind blades were unleashed in rapid succession, striking directly at a single point on Susanoo.
Danzō understood clearly—if he wanted to break Susanoo, he had to focus all his power on one point and shatter it from within.
That strategy would have worked against Uchiha Sasuke.
But his opponent now was Uchiha Ran.
Ran's Susanoo, fused with the Uchiha Madara (Founding of Konoha) template, far surpassed Sasuke's in stability and quality. Combined with the System-granted Unyielding Body, its damage resistance had already reached its peak.
At this point, even Hashirama Senju, the God of Shinobi, would have had trouble harming him.
Ran yawned.
"Honestly, Danzō does have ability and brains. Too bad the plot halo screwed his judgment."
Danzō said nothing and continued attacking relentlessly.
At first, his Wind Release caused ripples across Susanoo's surface.
Soon, however, the attacks stopped having any effect at all—as if an invisible barrier had formed, completely blocking the damage.
"This is impossible!" Danzō gritted his teeth.
He immediately used Wood Release again to restrain Susanoo, then turned to retreat.
Ran saw through his intent instantly.
With a violent surge of chakra, the wooden restraints shattered.
Susanoo grasped its massive tachi and brought it down.
Danzō Shimura was cut apart.
His body disintegrated into dust and vanished.
Ran closed his eyes and spread his chakra in all directions.
Less than two seconds later, he smiled.
"Found you."
He dismissed Susanoo. Its sheer size was too destructive—every step or swing was on the level of a tailed beast attack.
Three hundred meters away from the Hokage Building, Danzō reappeared.
He didn't hesitate. Chakra flared as he fled toward the Root forces.
He knew Ran would catch up quickly.
He glanced at his right arm. Of the five Sharingan embedded in it, two had already gone dark.
His heart ached.
This wasn't the Danzō of the post–Uchiha Massacre era. His supply of Sharingan was limited, and Shisui's Mangekyō—once taken from Uchiha Kagami—had already been lost.
What allowed him to survive assassination after assassination was a single forbidden technique—
Izanagi.
A reality-altering dōjutsu activated by forming the seals of Tiger, Boar, and Ox, allowing the user to turn unfavorable events into illusions and rewrite reality for a brief period.
Injuries—even death—could be undone, but the Sharingan used would go permanently blind.
Because of its cost, Izanagi was strictly forbidden by the Uchiha Clan.
In the distant past, clan members abused it during internal power struggles, until Izanami was created to force them to accept reality and end the cycle.
Danzō's arm trembled violently. The imbalance between Yin and Yang chakra caused the Hashirama Cells to run rampant.
He forced himself to move faster.
Then a voice sounded behind him.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Danzō's pupils shrank. Without turning back, he unleashed Wind Release toward the sound.
The attack missed—only slicing several trees cleanly in half.
The next instant, the Flame Fan descended from the sky.
Danzō was smashed into a bloody pulp.
Ran searched again.
Found him again.
Killed him again.
Danzō gasped for breath when he reappeared, despair flooding his eyes.
Uchiha Ran was relentless—leaving him absolutely no way out.
Two minutes later, Ran appeared once more in front of him.
"Lord Danzō, stop running. Save your strength. Your Root forces have already been taken into custody."
"You're trapped now. If you expose Hiruzen Sarutobi's crimes, I promise—life imprisonment only."
For a moment, Danzō wavered.
Then he roared, "As the Fifth Hokage, I will never become a tool to attack the Third Hokage!"
He bit his thumb and slammed his palm to the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Sealing formulae spread outward.
A massive spirit beast appeared—orange-furred, with an elephant's trunk and boar tusks.
The Baku.
Seeing it, Danzō finally felt a sense of security return.
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