Most of the Jōnin had already taken action, subtly surrounding Danzo.
As a ninja, someone like him—who sacrifices his own comrades for selfish gain—was despised the most, especially when dealing with outsiders.
The Third Hokage clenched his fists, his face filled with inner turmoil. Danzo noticed his hesitation, sighed, and said:
"Hiruzen, you're still too soft-hearted."
"If you were truly Sarutobi Hiruzen, the right decision now would be to order my arrest, sever ties with me completely, and avoid being dragged down."
But he knew—Hiruzen wouldn't do it.
He was still the same indecisive Third Hokage.
Danzo stood firm, turning to Simu with a calm expression.
"It's true. I was the one who instructed the Rain Shinobi."
His cloudy eyes suddenly flashed with determination.
"If Hanyu Simu isn't eliminated, Konoha will be destroyed."
"If not for you, the Fire Country Daimyo wouldn't have turned against Konoha!"
"You are the root of Konoha's instability—the one who has betrayed the Will of Fire!"
Faced with Danzo's accusations, Simu only responded with a mocking smile.
"If sacrificing your comrades is what you call the Will of Fire, then Elder Danzo, you can uphold that spirit yourself."
With that, Simu stopped wasting words. In a flash of light, he appeared right in front of Danzo.
The moment he moved, the wall behind Danzo exploded. Thick smoke filled the entire meeting room.
"Light-Speed Kick!"
A golden light flashed as Tong Mu struck, sending a figure flying.
But it wasn't Danzo.
It was a masked Root ninja.
"The Root is really relentless."
Every time Simu clashed with them, he couldn't help but admire Danzo's brainwashing skills.
With the meeting room in ruins, a dozen Root ninjas, led by 103, quickly withdrew along their planned escape route.
Seeing this, the Third Hokage's expression darkened.
It wasn't just Orochimaru plotting to leave Konoha.
Even Danzo, who controlled the Root, was ready to make his move.
Standing behind the Third Hokage, Uchiha Bakugo was the first to lead the guards in pursuit.
Now that Danzo had admitted his crimes, capturing him became the duty of every Konoha shinobi.
As the Uchiha launched attacks in all directions, the other Jōnin quickly followed.
But Simu was faster.
In an instant, a flash of light appeared above Danzo and his men.
Several Root ninjas moved to intercept.
"Earth Style: Earth Spike Technique!"
Suddenly, jagged spikes shot up from the ground, aiming straight for Simu.
"Tch. Don't bother with weak tricks like this."
With a single step, Simu shattered the spikes into dust.
Another Root ninja swiftly formed a hand seal, extending his palm toward Simu.
With a flick of three fingers, a powerful surge of Wind Style chakra condensed, creating a razor-sharp blast of compressed air.
"Wind Style: Wind Blade!"
Simu, expressionless, dropped straight down.
Blue scales emerged along Simu's arms, coated in a layer of Armament Haki tougher than steel.
He threw a powerful punch.
The wind blade left a trail of sparks as it slashed against his fist, but Simu's strike was like a ten-thousand-ton hammer, shattering the razor-sharp blade in front of him.
With a stomp in midair, his falling speed surged. In an instant, he was right in front of a Root ninja.
His other arm swung down.
The masked ninja's faceplate, adorned with eerie patterns, shattered on impact. His body was slammed deep into the ground.
As Simu landed, the earth beneath his feet suddenly softened into a swamp.
"Earth Style: Underworld Swamp!"
A Root ninja had already completed his hand seals.
At the same time, another Root operative unsheathed his blade, releasing a surge of lightning.
A bolt of crackling energy struck the sword, enhancing its speed and sharpness to a whole new level.
In response, Simu's body swelled as he instantly shifted into his human-beast form.
With a swift motion, he pulled a huge mace from a scroll.
Countless muddy hands stretched from the swamp beneath Simu's feet, trying to restrain him.
But his sheer strength made the attempt meaningless.
With a swing of his mace, the air trembled as he struck the incoming ninja sword, his attack infused with powerful Haki.
The fragile blade stood no chance.
The moment they clashed, the sword shattered into countless shards of metal.
As for the Lightning Style chakra coursing through it? Useless. Simu, who wielded the power of thunder, was completely unfazed.
The force of his strike didn't stop at just breaking the sword.
The shattered fragments rained down on the enemy, while the sheer impact sent the Root ninja hurtling toward Danzo like a cannonball.
Without missing a beat, Simu turned and crushed the Earth Style user with a single devastating blow.
Just then, Uchiha Bakugo arrived with the other Jōnin.
All they found was a lifeless body.
Above them, Simu had already used Moonwalk to chase after Danzo from the sky.
"This kid... his strength is terrifying."
Uchiha Bakugo watched Simu's distant figure, his eyes filled with admiration.
By now, Danzo had successfully slipped past Konoha's perimeter defenses.
As a senior figure in the village, he had spent years studying every inch of Konoha.
Even the village's outer barrier—critical to its security—had secret escape routes only he knew about.
On top of that, under Sarutobi Hiruzen's silent orders, the Anbu had not been ordered to kill Danzo.
Instead, they deliberately allowed him to escape quickly.
"Tch, these old foxes."
A flicker of disdain crossed Simu's face.
Flipping upside down in midair, he locked onto Danzo's direction.
Gripping his massive mace in both hands, his Conqueror's Haki surged, crackling into violent arcs of lightning that coiled around its spikes.
His legs bent slightly—then, with a sudden stomp, he launched forward with explosive force.
"Sage Art – Raging Eight Trigrams: Triple Yin Abyss!"
A deafening roar tore through Konoha.
It was as if ten thousand explosive tags had detonated at once.
The sheer pressure caused the air itself to rupture in a thunderous blast.
The villagers were startled by the huge explosion, their heads quickly raised upward.
The sky had darkened.
A deep red bolt of lightning tore through the heavens with a deafening crack.
Meanwhile, Danzo had just stepped into the forest outside Konoha when a chilling sensation ran down his spine.
His Root ninjas reacted instantly, forming hand seals and unleashing Earth Style techniques.
Massive stone slabs erupted from the ground, rising to block Simu's path.
But it was pointless.
Thunder roared across the sky, and the moment Simu's mace came crashing down, all defenses crumbled.
Like the wrath of a god, his attack surged forward, tearing through everything in its path.
The stone barriers shattered like fragile paper.
And then—
Boom!
Like a meteor crashing to earth, the impact sent violent tremors through the ground, shaking every Konoha villager to their core.
The earth roared in protest, splitting apart beneath the force.
A massive surge of energy shot skyward, forming a pillar of crimson lightning that crackled like a beast with fangs and claws.
Everything caught within—the ground, the Root ninjas, and Danzo—was reduced to dust beneath the crushing power of the thunder.
Yet—
"As expected of Elder Danzo, you're still alive."
Simu's voice rang out through the thick smoke, carrying a hint of amusement.
He raised his hand, conjuring a gust of wind that instantly cleared the dust and debris.
At the edge of the massive crater, Danzo stood hunched over, panting heavily.
His trembling hands unwrapped the bandages on his arm.
Several scarlet eyes stared out from his flesh—Sharingan.
One of them slowly fluttered shut.
"So you've already taken the Uchiha's eyes?" Simu mused, slightly surprised.
His presence had clearly changed the course of events.
In the original timeline, Danzo had only obtained this arm through a deal with Orochimaru after his defection.
Danzo coughed, his last remaining eye flashing with a dangerous, eerie light.
"This trump card was prepared just for you."
Originally, he had planned to act more cautiously, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
But Simu's sudden arrival forced his hand.
To stand a chance in this battle, he had no choice but to make Orochimaru complete the experiment ahead of schedule.
It wasn't perfect—but it would have to do.
Danzo's expression hardened.
His hands moved in a blur, forming seals.
"Wind Style: Vacuum Sphere!"
With a sharp inhale, he compressed air into high-speed bullets and fired them toward Simu.
But Simu didn't move.
He simply covered his chest with Armament Haki and let the wind bullets collide against him.
Sparks erupted on impact, but he remained completely unfazed.
Danzo's face twisted in disbelief.
"Why?! Why were you born with such a powerful body?!"
"Why do you get stronger in the light?!"
Danzo's obsession exploded in full force.
With a fierce stomp, he vanished in a blur, reappearing right in front of Simu.
Refined Wind Style Chakra swirled around his kunai, sharpening it to a deadly edge as he lunged for Simu's face.
A faint tingling sensation spread across Simu's skin.
Danzo truly lived up to his reputation as one of Konoha's veteran powerhouses.
His Wind Style Chakra was incredibly refined—so much so that even Simu rarely encountered anything like it.
It could actually breach his defenses.
That was Simu's evaluation.
But against such an attack, Simu had only one response—
A direct counter.
The kunai shot forward, but before it could reach its target, Simu's huge mace swung down.
A surge of dark red lightning, crackling with Conqueror's Haki, exploded outward.
"Mighty Country!"
The terrifying energy engulfed Danzo in an instant.
.
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TO BE CONTINUED
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