The Root headquarters was not a place; it was the absence of one.
Located in the lightless depths beneath Konoha, there was nothing in it reminiscent of the surface world. There was no smell of damp earth from the tunnels, no warmth from torches. The air was cold, sterile, circulated by an invisible ventilation system that stripped it of any scent, of any humanity. The walls were smooth, gray stone, cut with a precision that absorbed sound. The hallways were identical, a deliberate labyrinth designed to disorient anyone who did not belong there. It was a tomb for emotions.
In the center of this geometric nothingness, in an austere office lit by a single lamp casting a white, clinical light, Danzō Shimura sat behind a cold metal desk. He was meditating, or what passed for meditation for him: a state of absolute control over his body and mind, a systematic suppression of everything that was not purpose and will.
A swirl of air, an almost imperceptible change in pressure, was the only sign he was not alone. A Root operative, wearing a featureless porcelain mask and the standard gray uniform, was kneeling in the center of the room. He had made no sound upon arrival; he was simply not there, and then he was.
Danzō did not open his eye. Immobility was a weapon, and he was its master.
"Report," his voice was a harsh whisper, the sound of dry leaves on concrete.
"The commotion in the chunin exam arena has been confirmed," the operative said, his own voice as empty of emotion as his mask, a perfect product of Root training. "The source has been identified."
A silence stretched. Danzō waited. Information was not to be offered; it was to be extracted. It was a fundamental principle.
"The name," Danzō ordered, his tone unchanged.
"Tsunade Senju."
The name seemed to hang in the sterile air, an anomaly. Danzō remained motionless, but inside his mind, the gears turned at a dizzying speed. Tsunade. After all these years. Here. Now. Coincidence was a luxury he did not believe in.
"Her intervention. Describe her combat status."
"She entered the arena to stop the Sand's Jinchuriki. Her speed was considerable. She showed no signs of hesitation. She stopped the subject with a single finger. Her physical strength appears intact, consistent with historical reports. She used no medical ninjutsu or summons. Her appearance is anomalous; it does not match her chronological age."
"A transformation jutsu, no doubt. To hide her decay," Danzō muttered, more to himself than to his subordinate. "Did she exchange words with anyone?"
"Negative. Her focus was solely on the Sand's Jinchuriki and, subsequently, on Konoha's Jinchuriki. Once the situation was contained, she was escorted directly to the Hokage Tower."
"On whose order."
"The Third's own. He was present in the stands."
Of course, he was. Hiruzen, always the sentimental spectator. Danzō felt the first flicker of cold anger begin to coil inside him.
"Continue. The meeting with the Third Hokage."
"Our sources within the tower confirm the content of the conversation. It was a private meeting. Just the two of them."
"I'm not interested in protocol. I'm interested in results," Danzō hissed, his patience finally wearing thin.
"Lord Hokage has formally offered her the position of Fifth Hokage."
The silence that followed was different. It was heavier than the stone that surrounded them. The Root operative remained kneeling, his head bowed, his breath so shallow it seemed nonexistent. He knew this was the most dangerous moment. Danzō's stillness was a harbinger of violence.
Slowly, Danzō gripped the armrest of his chair. The thick metal groaned under the pressure, a sharp, tortured sound in the office's quiet. A small dent began to form beneath his bandaged fingers, the only external manifestation of the fury burning within him.
Hiruzen.
The word was poison in his mind. Old, sentimental fool. Had the decades taught him nothing? For years, he, Danzō, had been the root that sustained Konoha in the harsh reality of the world. While Hiruzen preached from his tower about the Will of Fire, he had done the dirty work in the shadows. He had purged spies. He had eliminated internal threats before they could blossom. He had sacrificed his own men, nameless and faceless, to protect a peace the rest of the village took for granted. He had ripped out the weeds so Hiruzen could sit and admire the flowers.
And now, right now, when the village most needed an iron hand for the coming storm, his old rival was offering power to a deserter. To a gambler. To a woman so broken by loss that she had abandoned everything she swore to protect.
Danzō's fury wasn't hot; it was a glacier—slow, heavy, and unstoppable.
"Her answer?" he asked, his voice now dangerously calm.
"Unknown. The source could not confirm."
"Unacceptable. Improve your network. I want to know the color of the tea cup she was served," Danzō said, finally opening his one eye. It was a dark, hard orb, devoid of light. "Call Fu and Torune. Prepare my escort."
The operative vanished in another swirl of air.
"I am going to have a talk with my old friend."
****
The light filtering into the Hokage's office was warm, gilded by the sunset, but it failed to dispel the chill that had settled in since Tsunade's departure. Hiruzen Sarutobi watched the village from his window, smoke from his pipe rising in lazy spirals. The commotion in the arena had subsided, but the ripples of Tsunade's return were just beginning to be felt. And he knew, with the certainty that decades of experience bring, who would be the first to react.
He didn't have to wait long.
There was no knock on the door. No request for an audience. The door simply opened.
Danzō Shimura entered.
He moved with an unnatural stiffness, his dark wooden cane striking the floor with a dry, rhythmic sound. Tap. Tap. Tap. His face, half-hidden by bandages, was a mask of cold disapproval. Two of his Root bodyguards, in their familiar porcelain masks, flanked the door from inside, as still as statues.
"You should improve the security of this tower, Hiruzen," Danzō's voice was a harsh whisper. "It has become permeable."
Hiruzen didn't turn around. He continued watching the rooftops turn orange and purple.
"You've always had a habit of showing up where you're not called, Danzō. Some things never change."
"I go where Konoha's security is at risk," Danzō retorted, stopping a few feet from the desk. "And your recent decisions are the greatest risk of all."
Hiruzen finally turned, exhaling a cloud of smoke. His face was tired, lined with the wrinkles of countless crises, but his eyes were firm.
"Speak plainly. I have no time for your riddles."
"My shadows have kept you in that chair for thirty years," Danzō replied, his one visible eye locked on Hiruzen's. "But I've heard a rumor. A whisper crawling through the roots of this village. A rumor so absurd it must be true: that you have offered the Hokage's hat to Tsunade."
"She is one of the Legendary Sannin and the granddaughter of the First Hokage," Hiruzen answered, his tone deliberately calm. "Her lineage and power are undeniable. There is no one more qualified."
Danzō let out a dry laugh, a short snort full of disdain.
"Qualified? You bring back a deserter, Hiruzen. A ninja who abandoned her duties over a decade ago. A compulsive gambler who has spent the last several years running from her responsibilities. And you offer her the position I have defended from the shadows for decades? Have you lost your mind, or has age finally softened your brain?"
"She has the Will of Fire, Danzō," Hiruzen countered, his voice gaining a quiet strength. "Something you lost long ago. The village needs a symbol of hope, a leader who inspires, not a shadow who controls through fear."
"Hope is an emotion for times of peace!" Danzō hissed, striking the floor with his cane. "And we are not in a time of peace. Orochimaru, your beloved student, is at our walls. The Sand watches us with greedy eyes, waiting for the moment to betray us. And you respond by bringing in a sentimentalist who will place the emotions of a few above the survival of the many. She is weak. Her heart is weak. It was when her brother died, it was when her lover died, and it still is."
"That 'weakness' is called humanity, Danzō. It's what separates us from the soulless weapons you create in your tunnels. It is the reason we fight."
The tension between them was a palpable force, decades of rivalry and opposing philosophies clashing in the room.
"Humanity is a luxury a Hokage cannot afford," Danzō said, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous whisper. "I sacrificed my eye, my arm, my name… everything for this village. What has she sacrificed? I would have dealt with Orochimaru years ago, when he was still your student and already showing signs of his corruption, but you wouldn't let me. I would have secured the Jinchuriki's unconditional loyalty, instead of letting him run free as a risk. I would have strengthened this village with discipline and difficult decisions, not empty hopes. And you know it."
He leaned over the desk, his face inches from Hiruzen's.
"You offer her the hat because you fear me. Not my power. You fear the Hokage I would be. A Hokage who would do what is necessary."
"I do not fear you, Danzō," Hiruzen replied, his gaze steady. "I fear for the village you would create. A village without a heart, without compassion. A fortress. And a fortress is just a prison with thicker walls. Tsunade is the right choice because she understands the value of life. You only understand the price of death."
Danzō looked at him for a long moment, his eye filled with cold fury and a hint of pity. He straightened up slowly.
"We will see how long your choice lasts when the snake shows its fangs and its venom spreads through our streets," he said, his voice returning to a whisper. "And when this village is burning because of your sentimentality, when the people cry out for a strong leader, remember this conversation. Remember that I was here, ready to save it."
He turned and left. His bodyguards vanished with him, and the door clicked softly shut.
Hiruzen sighed deeply, the weight of the conversation sinking him into his chair. He rubbed his temples. Danzō's threat was real, but there was another, more immediate one that required his attention.
He addressed the shadow in the corner.
"Bring me Kakashi Hatake," he told the ANBU who appeared from nowhere. "Now."
****
By the time Kakashi entered the office, the sun had set. The only lights were from the village spread out below them and the lamp on the Hokage's desk, which cast long shadows. The atmosphere was heavy, formal.
"Lord Hokage," Kakashi said, bowing his head.
"Close the door, Kakashi," Hiruzen's voice was quiet but devoid of its usual warmth.
Kakashi obeyed. The sound of the door closing seemed to seal the room.
"Kakashi Hatake," Hiruzen began, his hands clasped on the desk. "You are here to answer for several serious infractions. First: the unauthorized disappearance of Naruto Uzumaki, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Second: the falsification of a mission to cover up said disappearance. And third: withholding vital information from the Hokage. The coincidence that he returns with a legendary Sannin is… unlikely. Explain yourself."
Kakashi didn't flinch. His posture was relaxed, but his eyes were fixed on the Hokage. He had anticipated this conversation.
"There isn't much to explain, Lord Hokage. Naruto came to me."
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow. "He came to you? A twelve-year-old genin convinced you to let him embark on an unauthorized mission?"
"It wasn't a request, Lord Hokage.," Kakashi said, his voice monotone but precise. "I found him at training ground three. He told me, 'Kakashi-sensei, chasing cats won't make me stronger. It won't help me bring Sasuke back if he gets lost, or protect Sakura. I need something real. And if you won't give it to me, I'll find it myself.'"
Hiruzen listened in silence.
"Somehow," Kakashi continued, "he learned of the legend of Lady Tsunade, surely through Iruka. He became obsessed. He was convinced that she, one of the Sannin, was the key to reaching a new level."
"And you just let him go? A genin? Alone? That is a level of insubordination I have rarely seen, Kakashi."
"It wasn't that simple," Kakashi replied. "Of course, I refused at first. I explained the risks, the impossibility of the task. But he is... stubborn. Like his father. He looked me in the eye and said that if I didn't help him, he would go anyway. And I believed him. I knew it was true. At that moment, I had two options: let him run away from the village, probably to die in a ditch, or control the situation."
"And your idea of 'controlling the situation' was to approve a secret mission that you hid from me?"
"I made a bet with him, Lord Hokage," Kakashi said, and for the first time, a hint of pride was in his voice. "I saw the same determination in his eyes that I saw in Obito before he died. I couldn't forbid it, because that would have only pushed him underground. So I channeled it. I gave him an impossible goal and bet everything on his will."
Hiruzen leaned forward. "What was the bet?"
"I would give him a cover mission and the minimum resources to survive. If he managed to find Lady Tsunade and convince her to return, not only would he have proven his worth, but I would give him my word to respect his decisions as a shinobi in the future. To treat him not as a weapon to be contained, but as an equal, with the freedom to choose his own path."
"And if he failed?" Hiruzen asked quietly.
Kakashi's gaze turned icy.
"If he failed, if he caused an incident, if he simply disappeared or died... I would personally ensure his path as a ninja was over. I would bring him back, by force if necessary, and make sure he never left the village walls again. He would become a contained asset for the rest of his life. It was his dream against his freedom. He accepted without hesitation."
Hiruzen leaned back slowly in his chair. Kakashi's audacity was incredible. The recklessness, monumental. But the result... the result was in the arena, stopping a Jinchuriki with one finger. The result was the return of the last Senju.
"You entrusted the village's security to the luck of a child and the loyalty of a woman who abandoned her home."
"No, Lord Hokage," Kakashi corrected, his voice firm. "I trusted in Naruto's will. It's the most unpredictable force I have ever seen. And he has proven once again that underestimating it is the greatest mistake."
A long silence filled the room. Hiruzen closed his eyes, weighing everything. Kakashi's logic was twisted, but it made a terrifying kind of sense. He had channeled Naruto's indomitable energy instead of suppressing it. And it had worked.
"Your judgment does you credit, Kakashi," Hiruzen finally said, his voice tired but firm. "But your insubordination cannot be ignored. You acted outside the chain of command and risked an irreplaceable asset. Even though the outcome was favorable, the precedent is dangerous."
"I take full responsibility," Kakashi said, without faltering.
"I know. And for that, you will not be demoted," Hiruzen said, opening his eyes. "But I cannot let this go without consequences. From this moment on, you will be under direct ANBU surveillance. Every move you make will be reported. Every decision you make regarding your team, especially Sasuke Uchiha, must be approved directly by me. And your secret mission regarding Orochimaru's influence over him still stands and is now your top priority. Understood?"
"Understood, Lord Hokage."
"You are dismissed."
Kakashi bowed and left. Hiruzen remained alone, surrounded by the shadows of his office. Naruto's audacity. Kakashi's gamble. Tsunade's return. Danzō's simmering rage. The pieces on the board were moving at a speed that even he, the "Professor," could barely follow. And at the center of it all, an unpredictable blond boy with a power inside him that no one, not even himself, fully understood. The storm was coming.