The Uchiha clan, which was wiped out entirely, lacked vision.

Chapter 6 It was you!

The roots are forever hidden from the sun, shrouded in eternal darkness.

The pitch-black passageway, the tightly packed room, and the faint screams coming from somewhere... made it impossible to tell whether this was reality or a ghost town.

Danzo sat cross-legged on the faded tatami mat, his hunched back resembling a rusty knife.

A dim lamp on the table cast a faint light on him, pinning his shadow to the wall where it seemed to dart about.

Half of his face was shrouded in shadow, making his emotions difficult to discern. His single eye was half-closed, its murky light gleaming in the shadows, like a crocodile lurking in a swamp.

A ninja stood at the edge of the lamplight like a withered tree trunk, devoid of any sign of life. Only the occasional rustling sound from the insect jar behind him hinted at the presence of life.

Despite the dim lighting, he was still wearing sunglasses, with half his face covered by a mask. He was dressed in standard Root attire, with only the unique insect jar behind him revealing his Aburame family lineage.

"Have you confirmed that it wasn't done by anyone from our Root?" Danzo asked in a deep voice.

"Yes, Lord Danzo." Aburame Torune tucked his hands into his sleeves, his tone flat and cold, just like the other Root members. "I have taken stock of all the Root members and confirmed their locations at the time of the incident. None of them could have committed the crime."

"Furthermore, the Root members are absolutely loyal to Lord Danzo and do not have their own independent thoughts. Without Lord Danzo's orders, they would never attack the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

"I see!" Danzo sighed as if chanting, raising his head, a fierce glint in his single eye. "So, I was framed by the enemy this time!"

"That's really a rare thing!"

His withered fingers tapped his knees, his voice devoid of any frustration or anger, but rather tinged with excitement.

"As expected, the enemy has finally realized that to destroy Konoha, they must first eliminate me and Root!"

"It's a pity that Higanbana is old and senile, and his understanding is even less clear than that of the enemy!"

"Sigh!" Danzo sighed, lamenting, "Since the Hokage is incompetent, we Root will have to put in more effort!"

"Nara Shikaku is a smart man. He will only investigate the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and won't ask about anything else. But it's not convenient for him to know too many of Root's secrets."

"You deal with him. Let Yamanaka Fu lead the team to track down the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

After hesitating for a moment, he gave the following instructions:

"Once we have identified the enemy, we must immediately report the information to our incompetent Hokage, and then bring back the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki before the people sent by the Hokage arrive."

"I understand!" Aburame Torune bowed and vanished in an instant, leaving only Shimura Danzo behind, who confidently touched his eyes beneath his bandages.

Ah, everything is getting better!

The evil Uchiha clan has finally been eliminated, and that senile old monkey has finally made an undeniable mistake.

Next, all he needs to do is turn the tide, capture the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, reveal the truth, and then stir up trouble by agitating the emotions of the victims' relatives. Even if the monkey wants to continue to hold the position of Hokage, it will be impossible for him!

Ha ha……

Naruto... it's finally my turn to be the hoodee!

Danzo laughed triumphantly, as if he could already hear the Hokage robes fluttering in the wind.

The dry laughter echoed through the room, but was quickly absorbed by the tunnel at the base, unable to spread out at all. Just like all the ambitions he had devoured over the years, ultimately buried deep underground in this place where the sun never shines.

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On the other side, Uchiha An carried Naruto as they ran through the forest, watching the trees rush past them, his heart as still as water, undisturbed by anything.

Only the bloodstains on his sleeves indicated that his journey had not been peaceful.

The Land of Fire is the strongest nation in the world, and Konoha is the strongest ninja village. Even within its own borders, it remains heavily guarded, with patrols everywhere to prevent enemy surprise attacks that could suddenly strike at its doorstep.

Although Uchiha An was very familiar with the security forces in these villages and could easily bypass them, he knew very well that he only had a few hours left. Once Konoha discovered that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was missing, they would definitely come after him.

So to save time, he went straight without taking any detours.

As a result, he would inevitably run into the Konoha village patrol.

He had already killed several patrols along the way.

Although the patrol team was led by a Chunin at most, and was no match for him, they did not engage in direct combat. Instead, they used various traps and poisons to buy time. Their ninjutsu techniques were varied and numerous, which did delay him somewhat.

Moreover, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki has such strong regenerative abilities that he would suddenly wake up from time to time, making all sorts of noise, acting recklessly, and causing him trouble.

If it weren't for the fact that it wasn't the right time yet, he would have chopped this brat to pieces!

He had to kill the patrol team to silence them, suppress the unruly children, and be careful not to go too far, lest he accidentally kill the Jinchūriki and release the Nine-Tails.

With so many factors involved, his speed of travel was inevitably affected.

As he was running, Uchiha An's ears twitched slightly. He heard a faint rustling sound coming from the forest on his left. Suddenly, the weight in his palm increased again, and the Jinchuriki began to struggle restlessly once more.

"Ugh, what a troublesome brat..."

Uchiha An suddenly stopped, his knuckles striking Naruto precisely on the back of the neck to prevent him from waking up again during their battle and causing trouble.

Too light and it will wake up; too heavy and it will unleash monsters—finding the right balance is more dangerous than walking a tightrope.

Then, holding Naruto in his left hand, he formed a hand seal with his right hand, moving so fast that he left afterimages, the flames surging in his throat illuminating the killing intent in his eyes.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

A huge fireball spewed from his mouth, distorting the air, and flew rapidly toward the woods on the left.

With a loud "boom," trees shattered and collapsed, and flames shot into the sky, but six dark figures shot out from the burning tree canopy and lined up in front of the forest, completely unharmed.

Upon seeing the familiar attire of these six people, An knew that the window of opportunity for his safe escape had finally closed.

"Ah, the pursuers have finally caught up!"

"It seems Konoha Village is as quick to react as ever!"

An pursed his lips, glanced at the group, and immediately discerned their identities from their demeanor.

"What the heck! It's not the Anbu, it's the Root instead?"

"As expected, Shimura Danzo was Hiruzen Sarutobi's true love!"

"Even after his own grandson was killed, he still trusted him?"

"Even something as simple as hunting down the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Hiruzen Sarutobi actually entrusted Danzo with the task?"

"Or did Shimura Danzo suppress the news again and send people here to carry out the mission on his own?"

The five completely ignored An's platitudes.

Yamanaka Fu and Aburame Ryoma exchanged a glance, then tacitly deployed into formation and approached An, simultaneously demanding:

"You're not Kakashi Hatake. Who are you? Which village are you from?"

"Are you trying to declare war on Konoha by doing this?"

"Hehe..." An chuckled twice, made a hand seal, and with a "poof", changed his pose again.

The Konoha headband, the Uchiha fan, the blood-red eyes, and that familiar face caused Yamanaka Kaze to stop in his tracks and exclaim in surprise:

"It was you!"

"Uchiha Itachi!"