87 Chapter 87: New Year in the Ninja World

After the New Year.

The Anbu welcomed a newcomer.

Uchiha Itachi arrived early to report.

The circle of Konoha was not large.

Many Anbu members also knew that Uchiha Itachi's identity was different, a member of the distinguished Uchiha clan of Konoha, the eldest son of the Head of the Konoha Police Force.

However, the Anbu did not condone malpractice, but there was a tradition of valuing seniority by age, and being too young, one inevitably faced skepticism in the Anbu.

But the Anbu also had young members.

Akihara Kagura, after the New Year, was just eleven years old.

Yet, Akihara Kagura, being a ninja with Wood Release Kekkei Genkai and extremely strong abilities, and coming from the Root, the Anbu ninjas did not think of questioning Akihara Kagura. Moreover, everyone knew this young member looked down on the Anbu and thought about returning to the Root every day.

This newcomer named Uchiha Itachi, the other Anbu ninjas planned to wait and see, with no one really willing to take the initiative to deal with Uchiha Itachi.

Akihara Kagura was an exception.

As a seasoned member of Hatake Kakashi's squad, Akihara Kagura enthusiastically took Uchiha Itachi to the logistics department to collect equipment, helped him to get a locker, and introduced him to his colleagues in the Anbu.

"This is Uchiha Itachi."

Akihara Kagura seemed worried that Uchiha Itachi would be questioned by his colleagues in the Anbu, and introduced Uchiha Itachi's background: "Uchiha Itachi is here in the Anbu for further training recommended by Lord Danzo, who plans to cultivate him as a future leader of the Root."

...

The Anbu ninjas immediately dared not underestimate Uchiha Itachi.

Even if these Anbu ninjas thought that Uchiha Itachi, an eleven-year-old, might not be reliable, it was not appropriate to question a future leader of the Root to his face.

"I am not... I haven't..."

Uchiha Itachi waved his hands repeatedly, a look of unease appearing on his small face, fearing being misunderstood: "I am just an ordinary ninja who was recommended by Lord Danzo to join the Anbu for training..."

"It's more than that..."

Akihara Kagura shook his head and continued: "The Third Hokage personally instructed Captain Kakashi to place Uchiha Itachi in our squad and asked Captain Kakashi to take care of him in the Anbu."

Hearing Akihara Kagura's words, Uchiha Itachi seemed more like a background figure sent by the higher-ups to gain experience, and indeed he was sent here for that purpose.

"The Anbu does not condone those malpractices."

Hatake Kakashi put his hand on Akihara Kagura's shoulder, soothing the bewildered Uchiha Itachi: "Don't mind it, Kagura just likes to talk nonsense."

"Yes!"

Uchiha Itachi immediately relaxed.

Compared to Akihara Kagura, Hatake Kakashi truly is a good person.

"Team Six, head out on the mission!"

Hatake Kakashi waved his hand, signaling everyone present to head out together, and then looked at Uchiha Itachi: "First, change into the Anbu gear. The Hokage has ordered that, just like Kagura, you are to stay by my side."

"And you."

Hatake Kakashi then looked at Akihara Kagura, his face showing a bit of helplessness: "We have completed missions with Itachi before. You should get along well with him during this period..."

"I got it, I got it."

Akihara Kagura replied perfunctorily with a great face, turning his head to look at Uchiha Itachi: "Did you hear that? You have to get along well with me during this time."

"..."

Uchiha Itachi didn't know how to respond.

At that moment, an Anbu suddenly burst into the changing room! "Captain Kakashi!"

"The Hokage has an important matter and summons you!"

"He wants you to bring Akihara Kagura and Uchiha Itachi to the Hokage's building immediately!"

Inside the Hokage's building.

The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, looked solemn.

The two Hokage advisors, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, furrowed their brows tightly, while the Hokage's assistant, Shimura Danzo, appeared somewhat eager.

"It's really unexpected..."

Homura Mitokado sighed, looking at the intelligence passed by the spy from Rock Village: "Just the start of the year and such a big incident happened, Uchiha Obito controlled the Five Tails Jinchuriki of Rock Village, attempted to assassinate the Third Tsuchikage Onoki, nearly causing a Tailed Beast disturbance..."

"This incident has become known to everyone..."

Koharu Utatane pondered the impact of this event and said: "How did Rock Village not try to suppress this matter, could there be a trap?"

"This is also a good thing for us…"

Shimura Danzo was indifferent to the chaos in Rock Village and even thought that more of such chaos would be better: "It's a pity that the Jinchuriki of the Five-Tails didn't kill that Onoki fellow…"

"It may not be a good thing…"

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head, bringing up the deeds of Uchiha Obito: "Uchiha Obito has become a dangerous rogue ninja. He once controlled Konoha's Nine-Tails, killing Minato, controlled the Three-Tails of Cloud Village, and now he has controlled the Five-Tails of Rock Village…"

"Is he deliberately using the Tailed Beasts to weaken the power of these major ninja villages?"

Homura Mitokado also realized there was something problematic with these actions; one does not simply do these things without a reason. There's always a purpose.

"Unknown."

Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't too clear about it either, most of his intelligence came from Hatake Kakashi: "Kakashi mentioned some things. It seems Uchiha Obito has gone astray, aiming for eternal peace in the ninja world, attempting to resurrect the hero of the village, Nohara Rin…"

"If he wants to achieve so-called peace in the ninja world, then one can understand why he would come up with such a fanciful idea…"

Koharu Utatane nodded, speculating based on Uchiha Obito's actions: "The Tailed Beasts are powerful, he must believe that by using the Tailed Beasts to kill the Kage of a village and placing a Jinchuriki in the Kage's position, he could directly control the Five Great Village!"

"But what's the use of that?"

Homura Mitokado voiced his doubts: "For example, Uchiha Obito controlled Mist Village but did not bother to replace Yagura and govern the village, instead letting Mist Village become even more chaotic under the Blood Mist Policy. That's not a peaceful approach, is it?"

"And...how is he planning to resurrect Nohara Rin?"

Homura Mitokado brought up the biggest confusion, even beginning to seriously contemplate: "In the ninja world, the techniques that can resurrect the dead are extremely rare. Even with talents like the Second Hokage, he only managed to research an imperfect Impure World Reincarnation technique…"

"Could it be…"

"Uchiha Obito wants to use the Impure World Reincarnation technique to resurrect Nohara Rin?"

"Perhaps…"

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head, mentioning a few things about the Impure World Reincarnation technique: "According to the records left by the Second Hokage in the Scroll of Seals, the Impure World Reincarnation technique requires the sacrifice of the living. The stronger the sacrifice, the closer the resurrected dead are to their original strength…"

"Desecrating the dead, harming the living…"

Koharu Utatane quickly closed the potential leak of the forbidden technique: "This is an absolutely forbidden technique that should not be practiced, as personally decreed by the First Hokage and Teacher Tobirama!"

"We have always been acting in accordance with the will of the Second Hokage."

Sarutobi Hiruzen did not believe anyone could successfully learn it, as the technique was still imperfect, and the difficulty of learning it was very great. Now, he was more concerned about the matters involving Uchiha Obito.

Knock, knock, knock...

A knocking sound came from outside the Hokage's office door.

Hatake Kakashi, along with Akihara Kagura and Uchiha Itachi, two young ones, walked in, only to see the top brass of Konoha present, all with somewhat serious expressions.

Clearly...

Something significant must have happened again.

Sarutobi Hiruzen did not hide much, speaking of Uchiha Obito's great achievements in the Rock Village, solemnly saying, "Kakashi, the harm caused by Uchiha Obito is increasing. I believe it is only a matter of time before he poses a threat to the safety of Konoha, and we must intensify our efforts to track him down…"

"You three have been to the Mist Village before, thwarting Uchiha Obito's plot to control it. Now, I want your team to scout in the Land of Earth for Uchiha Obito's whereabouts. Whatever Uchiha Obito intends to do, you must stop him!"

"Understood!"

That was exactly what Hatake Kakashi intended to do.

As for Akihara Kagura and Uchiha Itachi, these two youngsters, one with extremely strong abilities and the other representing the Uchiha clan, were quite suitable for tracking Uchiha Obito.

"Be careful."

Sarutobi Hiruzen picked up his smoking pipe and cautioned again, "When you scout in the Land of Earth, be sure to avoid attracting the attention of the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki…"

That old man's strength was formidable, especially his Dust Release Kekkei Genkai, which was even more terrifying than the average Kekkei Genkai!

"Understood."

Hatake Kakashi had also heard of Tsuchikage's reputation.

"Get ready."

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded, then glanced at Shimura Danzo next to him, "Danzō, have the personnel from the intelligence department cooperate with them."

"..."

Shimura Danzo remained silent for a while, his gaze slowly shifting, stopping on Akihara Kagura for a moment before finally settling on Uchiha Itachi.

"Itachi."

"Come with me."

Shimura Danzo, touching his cane, slowly said, "I'll give you the list of intelligence department members from the Rock Village. Contact them when the time comes."

"..."

Akihara Kagura seemed to lower his head in disappointment.

Hatake Kakashi keenly sensed that his subordinate was somewhat displeased. After leaving the Hokage's building, he planned to comfort him, suggesting that staying away from Shimura Danzo was not a bad thing.

"I know who the spy from Rock Village is."

The voice of Akihara Kagura was somewhat forcefully subdued, as if he was deliberately bringing up something that upset him: "On the day of the Chunin Exams last year, after Yakushi Kabuto treated me to ramen, he went on a mission to Rock Village…"

"I remember that guy…"

Hatake Kakashi recalled the person who insisted on paying.

Hatake Kakashi had never seen Akihara Kagura so dejected and softly comforted him: "It seems you two had a good relationship. That person named Yakushi Kabuto must be safe and sound in Rock Village."

"Not really."

Akihara Kagura shook his head and sighed deeply: "The main thing is that I've always wanted to kill him. I couldn't do it in the village, so I had to take the opportunity during this trip to the Land of Earth. How can I kill him if Lord Danzo doesn't tell me his contact information?"

"Don't think about killing a fellow villager!"

Hatake Kakashi's forehead twitches, regretting his attempt to comfort Akihara Kagura, and he helplessly massages his forehead: "You are no longer a member of the Root; you are an Anbu ninja. Correct your thoughts quickly…"

"This time…"

"Shimura Danzo actually did a good thing."

"Don't make contact with spy members on your own."

"Without the permission of our superiors, we cannot casually make contact with members of the spy department, lest we expose their identities and put them in danger."

Hatake Kakashi then remembered the surname Yakushi, asking: "Speaking of which, the surname Yakushi seems familiar. What is the relationship between Yakushi Kabuto and Yakushi Nono?"

"You should know by the name…"

Akihara Kagura looked at Hatake Kakashi speechlessly: "Of course, Yakushi Kabuto, like me, was an orphan adopted by the Dean Yakushi Nono!"

"You, this guy…"

Hatake Kakashi felt the way he spoke was rather breathless, massaging his forehead again: "Since you both are children from the orphanage, why do you always think about killing him? Did he bully you in the orphanage when you were younger?"

Akihara Kagura shook his head and said solemnly: "To allow Yakushi Kabuto to leave Root, Dean Yakushi Nono accepted Lord Danzo's request and stayed in Root, unable to leave, and also carried out dangerous spy missions outside…"

In front of Hatake Kakashi, Akihara Kagura updated his own character script: "To enable Dean Yakushi Nono to leave the dangerous work of Root, it's simpler to kill Yakushi Kabuto, eliminating the person that ties the Dean Yakushi Nono to Root!"

Although the script is different…

But the ultimate outcome will surely converge.

After all, presenting oneself as someone consumed by jealousy to the point of madness in front of Hatake Kakashi does not align with one's image and might even impact Hatake Kakashi's favorable impression of oneself.

If one day Hatake Kakashi were to share this script with Yakushi Kabuto or Yakushi Nono, it wouldn't matter, because the outcome of the script is certain not to change, and it might even increase Yakushi Kabuto and Yakushi Nono's favorable impression of oneself.

"I actually think Yakushi Kabuto is quite friendly towards you."

Hatake Kakashi frowned, sensing that the situation was not simple, and boldly speculated, "Is there a possibility that Shimura Danzo could use you or Yakushi Nono to threaten Yakushi Kabuto, use Yakushi Kabuto to threaten Yakushi Nono, and use Yakushi Nono to threaten you..."

"..."

Akihara Kagura suddenly fell silent.

How could Hatake Kakashi come up with such an idea, even considering a logical loop that actually fits well with Shimura Danzo's character! "Don't be influenced by Danzo's thoughts, always wanting to kill in an extreme manner."

After Hatake Kakashi summarized, he instructed, "Let's pack up! We're leaving for the Land of Earth tomorrow."

"Understood."

After parting with Hatake Kakashi, Akihara Kagura suddenly spoke up, "Hey, Awei, go keep an eye on Uchiha Itachi, see what he talks about with Lord Danzo..."

"Understood."

White Zetzu Awei quickly popped up his head, then quickly submerged again.

At the Root Base.

Uchiha Itachi knelt on one knee before Shimura Danzo.

"You should know what we want you to do, right?"

Shimura Danzo narrowed his eyes, slowly continuing, "Over the years, thanks to your father, peace between Konoha and the Uchiha has been maintained. However, this is not a long-term solution for Konoha and the Uchiha..."

"The Uchiha clan has been granted a high degree of autonomy by the village. We need an informant to intervene in the hostile attitudes between the Uchiha and Konoha and to eliminate those who pose a danger to the relationship between Konoha and the Uchiha..."

"The path of a spy is destined to be dark."

Shimura Danzo looked down at Uchiha Itachi and continued, "Itachi, to protect the peace between Konoha and the Uchiha in the darkness, one must have an extremely resilient will, ready to sacrifice everything, even oneself, at any moment. Have you really thought this through?"

"Yes!"

Uchiha Itachi's attitude was very firm.

As he grew older, Uchiha Itachi became aware of the conflict between the Uchiha clan and Konoha, and like Uchiha Shisui, he was also seeking peaceful solutions.

This time, being recommended to join the Anbu by Shimura Danzo was a huge opportunity for him, even allowing direct access to the higher-ups of Konoha.

If we're talking about sacrifice...

Uchiha Itachi never cared about making sacrifices!

"Then let me see!"

Shimura Danzo took out a list from his hand and handed it to Uchiha Itachi: "This is the list of spy personnel and contact codes for Rock Village."

"Yes."

Uchiha Itachi took it with his hand.

"Itachi, this is an assessment for you."

Shimura Danzo then took out three sealed scrolls, pointing to the blue scroll, he said: "Give this blue scroll to Yakushi Nono, this is her last mission in the Root."

Shimura Danzo pointed to the red scroll, continuing his instructions: "Give this red scroll to Yakushi Kabuto, inside are the missions he is to carry out."

"..."

Uchiha Itachi nodded, indicating he had noted it down.

Uchiha Itachi was somewhat puzzled; could this assessment really be so simple?

"And this blue scroll..."

Shimura Danzo looked down at Uchiha Itachi, his gaze faintly exuding a chill, as if observing Uchiha Itachi's thoughts.

"Yes."

Uchiha Itachi quickly bowed his head.

Was the real content of the assessment coming?

Shimura Danzo's speaking pace gradually slowed down: "Itachi, this blue scroll is your assessment. After you return, come and tell me if you still have the determination to sacrifice everything for the future of Konoha and the Uchiha!"

"Yes!"

Uchiha Itachi thought that nothing was a problem.

The only problem was... probably another teammate in the squad.

"By the way, Lord Danzo."

After receiving the scrolls, Uchiha Itachi expressed his doubts: "Why kick Kagura-kun out of the Root? Because I joined the Root, Kagura-kun had to leave, and he has always been very hostile towards me..."

"..."

Shimura Danzo's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

Was it his own desire to kick him out?

That was forcefully snatched from my own hands by Sarutobi Hiruzen!

Now, I can't even make private contact with Akihara Kagura, and not long ago, Sarutobi Hiruzen even issued a specific ban against me, prohibiting any private contact with Akihara Kagura!

Shimura Danzo thought of the kid, Akihara Kagura, and felt a slight sense of relief in his heart, thinking that he still had a chance to use Akihara Kagura.

Unfortunately...

This opportunity is hard to find now.

"Don't mind these..."

After shaking his head, Shimura Danzo seemed to think of something and suddenly said, "Right, you need to keep a close watch on Akihara Kagura in the team..."

"Kagura has the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai within him, making him an extremely powerful ninja for Konoha, and also an extremely dangerous person."

Most importantly!

Akihara Kagura is an outsider I brought back!

This must not be known to others; this is the secret I can use to forever control Akihara Kagura!

"..."

Uchiha Itachi hesitated and then nodded.

At this moment, Uchiha Itachi understood the sorrow of a spy.

Even the teammates he would spend everyday with in the future must be watched as if they were enemies. In the future, he might even have to watch his own clan members...

Beneath the ground.

Another spy, however, did not feel sorrowful.

"Why do I always feel like Shimura Danzo has discovered me recently?"

White Zetzu Awei shivered from time to time, hurriedly moving beneath the ground: "Could Shimura Danzo's perception be so sharp? I can't carry out such dangerous missions anymore!"

White Zetzu Awei quickly moved back to Akihara Kagura's side, as if he had discovered something tremendously joyful: "Uchiha Itachi is here to monitor you! Konoha has never trusted you! Danzo's perception is too sharp! I might have been discovered by him! Kagura, when do you plan to defect from Konoha to Akatsuki?"

"I've guessed as much already."

Akihara Kagura rubbed his temples, finding it boring to always observe White Zetzu using the [Ninja in the Shadow]: "Tell me everything you know..."

Let me see first...

If this White Zetzu named Awei is hiding anything from me!

Unless it involves Uchiha Obito and the Akatsuki, White Zetzu Awei wouldn't hide any information, revealing all the information exchanged between Uchiha Itachi and Shimura Danzo.

"Sorry."

This White Zetzu named Awei, embodying the spirit of the Best Employee of the Month, said with some self-reproach: "I haven't found out the secret of those three scrolls yet. They didn't talk about the secret of the scrolls. I only know one scroll belongs to the Dean Yakushi Kabuto, one scroll for Yakushi Nono, and the last scroll for Uchiha Itachi..."

"It's okay, I didn't expect you to be that outstanding."

Akihara Kagura casually comforted it and continued, "First, go and look for Lord Orochimaru's whereabouts for me. When the time comes, I'll introduce you to Orochimaru and the Akatsuki organization so he can conduct a human experiment on you, allowing you to become even better."

"It doesn't matter if Uchiha Itachi is watching me..."

Akihara Kagura slowly tightened his grip on the Kusanagi Sword that Orochimaru had given him: "When we return, my origin will no longer be a problem."