Chapter 613: The Death of Danzo Shimura! (8.2k)

“How did he do that?” Hanzō looked at Danzo Shimura with a surprised expression.

He was hit by Sōsuke’s Super Combination Ninjutsu and only lost his mask. Could it be that Sōsuke’s Twin Dragon Annihilation just looked impressive but was actually just for show?

Noticing the messy ground, Hanzō shook his head. This was clearly an incredibly powerful Combination Ninjutsu.

The correct answer should be that Danzo Shimura used a special secret technique to avoid this attack.

“Sōsuke, he cannot die,” Hanzō said, shaking his head as he looked at Sōsuke.

Sōsuke could defeat Danzo Shimura, and even cripple Danzo Shimura, but he just couldn’t kill Danzo Shimura.

If Danzo Shimura were killed, Konoha would surely seek revenge for Danzo Shimura, and even if the Shinobi Sect and Amegakure merged, it might not make Konoha wary.

If it were Hanzō before the Second Shinobi World War, he would have killed Danzo Shimura without hesitation.

But Hanzō, having experienced the Second Shinobi World War, knew the power of the Five Great Ninja Villages.

Even if Sōsuke could defeat the Yellow Flash, defeat Raging Sun Mu Yue, and even defeat Hiruzen Sarutobi, it would still end with Konoha’s victory.

The difference in their foundations was too great. The Rain Ninja were not only inferior to Konoha in Ninja quality, but even in numbers.

In this situation, even if Sōsuke kept winning alone, he couldn’t win the entire war; he could only make Konoha suffer more losses.

“He can die,” Muzuki said, shaking his head.

In Hanzō’s eyes, Danzo Shimura represented Konoha coming to the Land of Rain, and at this moment, Konoha was at the peak of the Five Great Ninja Villages, having achieved great victories in successive battles with other great Shinobi Villages, unrivaled for a time.

But Muzuki knew that Konoha could only enjoy its glory for a little longer; soon, the various great Shinobi Villages would let Konoha know what it felt like to be ganged up on.

At that time, Konoha would find it difficult to even defend the Land of Fire, let alone attack the Land of Rain.

By the time Konoha survived the Third Shinobi World War and recovered its vitality, Muzuki would likely already possess the strength to influence a Shinobi World War.

At that time, Konoha would naturally reconcile with the Amegakure, as they were not in the right to begin with.

“You’re a bit too radical,” Hanzō said, looking at Sōsuke with a headache.

In his vision, Sōsuke should have integrated the power of the Land of Rain, then secretly developed, and then waited for the next great war to make a surprising debut.

Now, it seemed Sōsuke had the idea of intervening in the Ninja World’s grand scheme right now.

Their conversation made Danzo Shimura, who was condensing Chakra, look incredibly gloomy.

What was he, Danzo Shimura’s life, to them? A vegetable at the market?

“Hanzō, if you don’t act now, it will be too late!” Danzo Shimura roared, suppressing his inner rage.

Hanzō’s neutral stance made Danzo Shimura believe that Hanzō was still hesitating and hadn’t made up his mind.

So, even though he wished he could send both of them away, he still maintained the posture of Hanzō’s ally.

Sōsuke’s power exceeded his imagination, and their side’s strength had been significantly reduced due to various unexpected events.

Hanzō was indecisive and didn’t help, “Uchiha Madara’s” power was nowhere to be found, and Muzuki, who should have arrived last night, was still missing.

Danzo Shimura felt like his side was full of incompetent teammates, with no one capable of doing anything but him.

Hanzō ignored Danzo Shimura’s shouting and instead showed a thoughtful expression on the spot.

“Lightning Release: False Darkness!”

Nagato quickly formed hand signs and spat out a sharp Lightning Release spear at Danzo Shimura.

The Root Ninja brought by Danzo Shimura had already been taken out by Muzuki’s Fire Release, so Nagato was free to deal with Danzo Shimura.

“Damn it!” Danzo Shimura cursed inwardly when he saw Hanzō doing nothing, and burst out Chakra to quickly dodge.

Boom!

The lightning struck the ground where Danzo Shimura had just stood, leaving a charred crater.

“Uchiha Madara, what are you waiting for? I know you’re here!” Danzo Shimura, fighting alone, shouted into the void.

He looked at the surrounding Rain Ninja; he believed that Uchiha Madara’s subordinates were definitely here.

If not, it would be impossible for Uchiha Madara to know his actions so thoroughly.

No one responded to Danzo Shimura, only some Ninja who knew Uchiha Madara looked at Danzo Shimura with strange eyes.

Uchiha Madara had been dead for a long time, killed by Konoha’s First Hokage, Senju Hashirama. Did Danzo Shimura, a high-ranking Konoha official, not even know this?

White Zetsu, secretly observing, sneered. His mission was to help Danzo Shimura kill Sōsuke when both sides were at a stalemate, or to wipe out both sides.

Now that Danzo Shimura was completely at a disadvantage, there was no need for him to go out.

“Wind Release: Vacuum Consecutive Wave!”

Facing the approaching Nagato, Danzo Shimura retreated while rapidly spitting out Wind Release that could easily cut through giant rocks.

Nagato expressionlessly raised his hand, generating an invisible shield around his body.

The Wind Release spat out by Danzo Shimura disappeared without a trace when it hit Nagato’s shield, like a mud ox entering the sea.

“Is this the power of the Rinnegan?” Danzo Shimura felt a little unwilling in his heart.

If the plan hadn’t gone awry, this power would have been his!

Danzo Shimura constantly flickered, shifting positions. He didn’t want to kill anyone now; he just wanted to buy time, until Muzuki arrived.

Hanzō and Uchiha Madara might betray him, but Muzuki absolutely would not.

As long as Muzuki arrived, even if they couldn’t get the sage art inheritance and the Rinnegan, their combined strength would allow them to retreat safely.

“Wood Release: Great Forest Technique!”

Danzo Shimura quickly formed hand signs, condensing Wood Release Chakra to create a large amount of wooden vines around him, surging outwards.

Wood Release: World of Trees Advent consumed a lot of Chakra. To conserve strength, Danzo Shimura could only use a slightly weaker Wood Release to maintain his state.

“Shinra Tensei!”

Nagato did not maintain the Preta Path, but instead used the Rinnegan to unleash a repulsive force, deflecting the incoming wooden sticks.

The Preta Path could absorb Wood Release Chakra, but it couldn’t absorb the wood produced by Wood Release Chakra.

At this moment, Muzuki also stopped refining Chakra and attacked again.

It wasn’t that he had no Chakra, but Muzuki had just wanted to fish, to see if he could get an unexpected harvest. Since he was idle anyway, he might as well refine Chakra.

Judging by the current situation, Uchiha Madara probably wouldn’t make a move, so Muzuki wouldn’t waste any more time.

“Fire Release: Fire Dragon Dance!”

Blazing dark flames were continuously spewed out by Muzuki, rapidly forming a spreading sea of fire.

The hard wooden vines created by the Wood Release were instantly burned to black ash upon contact with the sea of fire.

The terrifying heat wave that once again rushed towards Danzo Shimura left him with no desire to fight head-on.

The previous use of Izanagi had already made Danzo Shimura understand the terror of this Fire Release.

In terms of Fire Release alone, Sōsuke was far more terrifying than Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Whoosh, whoosh!

Danzo Shimura unleashed all his Chakra, generating powerful Wind Release currents.

He had to escape the range of the Ninjutsu before the fire dragons split, otherwise his last Sharingan would also be lost.

Losing the Sharingan was a minor issue for Danzo Shimura; he could still acquire them if he wanted to.

But on the battlefield now, with both eyes, he was still no match for Sōsuke. His fate after losing both eyes was imaginable.

“Bansho Tenin!”

Nagato flashed forward, unleashing a terrifying suction force from his right hand towards Danzo Shimura, pulling in Danzo Shimura, who was about to leave.

Despite Danzo Shimura’s desperate resistance, he still couldn’t escape the control of Bansho Tenin.

At this moment, the sea of fire rapidly split into several enormous fire dragons, completely sealing off Danzo Shimura’s position.

Nagato quickly withdrew his power and retreated backward.

Boom!

A dazzling blaze soared into the sky again, engulfing everything within fifty meters of Danzo Shimura in dark flames.

Just when Nagato thought Danzo Shimura would be utterly annihilated by this attack, his excellent perception instantly revealed something: Danzo Shimura’s Chakra had not disappeared.

Nagato looked in the direction of the perceived Chakra, and Danzo Shimura appeared near the ground swallowed by flames, his body showing no burn marks.

“Both pupils turned white, is that why?” Nagato noticed the change in Danzo Shimura’s eyes.

The blood-red color of Danzo Shimura’s Sharingan was gone, replaced by a dull white.

“Lightning Release: False Darkness!”

Nagato converted the Chakra he had already condensed into lightning and spat it out.

He had originally prepared this Lightning Release for the Rain Ninja, but since Danzo Shimura hadn’t died, he would give it to Danzo Shimura.

At this moment, although Danzo Shimura was blind, he was still a battle-hardened Ninja. He noticed Nagato’s attack immediately, but he didn’t dodge right away; instead, he began to condense Chakra.

Finally, to Nagato’s surprise, the sharp lightning spear struck Danzo Shimura directly, yet caused him no harm.

Izanagi can nullify unfavorable events that occur within a certain period, not just a single attack.

However, Danzo Shimura, who withstood the Pseudo-Darkness unscathed, still had a gloomy face. His Izanagi’s effective time was not long enough to support his escape from here.

What was more critical was that Danzo Shimura was now blind. In a battle of the same level, losing one’s eyes was a major disadvantage.

Whoosh!

Danzo Shimura used Body Flicker Technique to flash towards Konoha’s direction in his memory, based on his vision before using Izanagi.

With his vision gone, Danzo Shimura was extremely nervous, but his mind was still clear: wait for Muzuki to arrive.

Muzuki had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, so saving him alone would not be difficult.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

“Shinra Tensei!”

Nagato threw out several Kunai, then unleashed a powerful repulsive force to accelerate the Kunai, blocking Danzo Shimura’s path.

Danzo Shimura heard the sound of the Kunai cutting through the air, and unable to guarantee the trajectory of all of them, he had no choice but to use a defensive Ninjutsu.

“Wood Release: Wood Golem Wall!”

Rows of wooden pillars curved out of the ground, forming a wooden archway that protected Danzo Shimura within.

Just as Nagato was about to approach and use Bansho Tenin, Muzuki spoke.

“Nagato, leave the rest to me. You’re on alert.”

Danzo Shimura, that old schemer, had indeed mastered many secret techniques. If he were truly pushed to desperation and fought with his life, Nagato might suffer a great loss.

Muzuki had prepared extensively to ensure Danzo Shimura’s demise today. Knowing all of Danzo Shimura’s information beforehand, he had rehearsed various scenarios, making failure impossible.

Nagato immediately stopped, no longer approaching Danzo Shimura.

Muzuki would not harm him; doing as Muzuki said would ensure no problems.

“Wood Release: World of Trees Advent!”

Danzo Shimura, knowing that he couldn’t escape from Sōsuke without his eyes, gritted his teeth and once again condensed a large amount of Wood Release Chakra to activate Wood Release: World of Trees Advent.

Boom!

Saplings rapidly burst from the ground and quickly grew into thick, giant trees. Soon, a small forest had formed around Danzo Shimura again.

All the trees in the small forest clawed and danced with their branches, as if warning Sōsuke not to approach.

If it were the Wood Release: World of Trees Advent performed by Senju Hashirama, Muzuki would naturally retreat wisely, but its caster was Danzo Shimura.

Various Ninjutsu were casually unleashed by Muzuki, easily shattering all incoming vines and wooden stakes.

Danzo Shimura continued to output Wood Release Chakra without hesitation, causing dozens of trees to twist together, forming an incredibly thick giant tree that rushed towards Sōsuke.

“Wind Release: Vacuum Hurricane!”

Muzuki calmly switched to Wind Breathing and quickly formed a Dragon hand sign.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Vast currents of Wind Release were spewed out by Muzuki, cutting apart the surrounding trees.

The currents quickly formed a white giant dragon, and a terrifying hurricane instantly swept across the entire area.

The giant tree created by Danzo Shimura instantly shattered into unevenly sized pieces of wood under the impact of the white giant dragon, and a large number of tree branches were also cut at this moment.

Even Danzo Shimura, who was far away, was cut by the scattered airflow when the giant dragon dissipated, leaving many small, bleeding wounds on his body.

“Am I really going to die in the Land of Rain?” Danzo Shimura felt the coldness of death.

Sōsuke was simply too strong; his Wood Release Ninjutsu had no advantage against Sōsuke.

“If only I had a few more months to train…”

Danzo Shimura was extremely unwilling. If he had a little more training time, the outcome would definitely not be like this.

But the constantly approaching Sōsuke made Danzo Shimura realize that there was no ‘if’ in this world.

“Summoning Technique!”

Danzo Shimura quickly formed hand signs and slammed his hand onto the ground.

This was his last resort to buy time. He had a Nin-Beast named Baku, which was huge but relatively ordinary in strength.

A thick white smoke flashed, and a slightly strange-looking Nin-Beast appeared in front of Danzo Shimura.

Baku opened its large mouth, sucking everything in front of it into its mouth to devour, then sprayed airflow from a part resembling an elephant’s trunk.

“Wind Blade!”

Muzuki extended his right hand, straightening and joining his thumb, index, and middle fingers, while bending the other two fingers downwards.

Whoosh!

A gust of strong wind erupted from Muzuki’s fingertips, blowing away the surrounding broken branches and wood chips.

The next moment, a thin red line appeared on Baku’s huge body.

Pfft!

A massive amount of blood gushed out, staining the ground around Baku red.

Bang!

White smoke flashed, and Baku disappeared directly.

What’s the point of fighting? Although its intelligence was average, it knew that Danzo Shimura summoned it to its death.

“Why isn’t Muzuki here yet!”

Feeling that his Nin-Beast couldn’t even last a minute, Danzo Shimura was incredibly anxious.

He really didn’t want to die. If he died, what would Konoha do? Who would make up for Hiruzen Sarutobi’s indecisiveness? Who would become the new God of Shinobi? Who would make Konoha great again?

Danzo Shimura struggled to make his last stand. He controlled the remaining trees to extend their branches and block Sōsuke, trying to prevent Sōsuke from advancing further.

The merciless high-temperature flames devoured Danzo Shimura’s hope of survival.

Crackling!

The tree vines controlled by Danzo Shimura acted like accelerants in front of the flames spewed out by Muzuki, helping the flames grow even more intensely.

With the help of a large number of trees, the flames continuously spread and grew, eventually transforming the forest into a sea of fire.

Although high temperatures and flames were everywhere, the temperature was unbelievably high, but at this moment, Danzo Shimura only felt his hands and feet turn cold.

Because he might really die, and not at the hands of some Kage from the Five Great Ninja Villages, but just the leader of a minor Ninja Organization.

“Fire Release: Flame Vortex!”

Muzuki quickly created several rings of fire from the sea of flames, trapping Danzo Shimura, and controlled the fire rings to continuously shrink.

“Wood Release: Wood Golem Wall!”

Danzo Shimura used Wood Release to defend, but the fire rings were incredibly hot, burning through the wooden wall and still leaving a lot of flames.

Along with a barely noticeable faint Azure Flame that hit Danzo Shimura with the remaining flames, a scream appeared in the sea of fire.

Danzo Shimura felt as if his soul had been ignited, an unprecedented burning pain spreading throughout his body.

He was in so much pain that he couldn’t even straighten his body to face Sōsuke, who was walking towards him.

As if to make him suffer more, Sōsuke did not directly use Body Flicker Technique to kill him, but slowly walked towards him step by step, his footsteps clear and distinct.

Thump! Thump!

Each powerful footstep seemed to pound Danzo Shimura’s heart, almost making him unable to breathe.

Danzo Shimura tightly clenched his fists, using all his strength to drag his heavily injured body towards Konoha.

Even though Muzuki wasn’t using the exaggerated speed of a Ninja, Danzo Shimura was too heavily injured, and the distance between them was rapidly closing.

No matter how much Danzo Shimura didn’t want to die, facing the approaching footsteps, he had to admit one thing: he was going to die, and it was useless even if he wanted to escape.

At this moment, countless memory fragments flashed through Danzo Shimura’s mind.

There were carefree times in his childhood, going to school and training with Hiruzen Sarutobi and other good friends, and also memories of his struggle to become the Darkness of Konoha after becoming the leader of Root.

Ultimately, only two memory fragments remained in Danzo Shimura’s mind.

The first was the memory of Senju Tobirama taking them to sign a peace treaty with the Land of Lightning when they encountered the Gold and Silver Brothers attempting a coup.

They were pursued by Kumogakure’s elite team, and when the team needed a decoy to draw out the enemy, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the first to volunteer, stating that he was the strongest apart from Senju Tobirama.

“So, at that moment, I actually felt a sense of relief…?” Danzo Shimura closed his lifeless eyes.

Before, he only remembered that he also offered to be the decoy, but he was one step slower than Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Only just before his death did Danzo Shimura clearly recall everything.

When Hiruzen Sarutobi said he would be the decoy, a wave of relief surged within him; it was to avoid being looked down upon by others, and to compete with Hiruzen Sarutobi, that he also followed suit and said he wanted to be the decoy.

The real him did not have the courage to be the first to step forward; Hiruzen Sarutobi was the rightful Third Hokage.

The second memory fragment was a meal with Hiruzen Sarutobi before leaving Konoha.

Danzo Shimura had once been just one step away from becoming Hokage, and had also fought against many now-famous Shinobi World powerhouses; his life could not be called perfect, but it could definitely be considered magnificent.

At this moment of impending death, what Danzo Shimura thought of last was not one of his glories, but the scene of him treating Hiruzen Sarutobi to a meal for the first and last time.

The relationship between Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura was extremely complex; as children, they were good friends with shared ambitions.

After becoming Ninja, they were good friends who trained together and competed for the position of Hokage.

When Hiruzen Sarutobi became Hokage, their relationship changed; due to differing political views, they often opposed each other, and Danzo Shimura sometimes even thought of overthrowing Hiruzen Sarutobi through a coup.

“We shouldn’t have discussed politics back then,” Danzo Shimura sighed in his heart.

If they hadn’t discussed politics, they wouldn’t have argued, and his last impression on Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn’t have been so bad.

Putting work aside, Hiruzen Sarutobi was indeed his best friend in this life, and his only friend now.

Thump! Thump!

The footsteps gradually approached, and Danzo Shimura silently gathered Chakra.

He had mastered a Ninjutsu called Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique, a mutually destructive Ninjutsu that could seal everything in his surroundings.

Due to its limited range, Danzo Shimura had to wait until Sōsuke was close enough before activating it.

“Let me protect Konoha one last time,” Danzo Shimura thought silently.

At this moment of impending death, he thought of many things.

He boldly guessed that Sōsuke and “Uchiha Madara” were in league!

Otherwise, why would “Uchiha Madara” disappear at this critical moment?

As for why “Uchiha Madara” would use Wood Release as bait to have him help kill Sōsuke and seize Nagato’s Rinnegan, Danzo Shimura believed it was a conspiracy, a conspiracy against Konoha.

If “Uchiha Madara” really wanted to kill Sōsuke, he would have acted long ago; clearly, “Uchiha Madara” was scheming to deplete Konoha’s strength, and possibly even using him to test the results of his Hashirama cells experiments.

Danzo Shimura even believed that “Uchiha Madara” and Sōsuke might be the same person.

Where did so many nameless powerhouses come from in the Ninja World? Plus, “Uchiha Madara” always wore something completely opaque whenever he met him, which clearly indicated a big problem.

“No matter who you are, you won’t have another chance to harm Konoha.”

Danzo Shimura was very confident in his mutually destructive Sealing Technique; unless Sōsuke had prior intelligence, it would be impossible to evade this move.

But even in Konoha, only a few people knew this move, let alone Sōsuke.

Just as Danzo Shimura was about to activate the Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique, a yellow-haired figure flashed in like lightning.

“Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!”

A massive amount of water extinguished most of the sea of flames, and some of the water pushed back Muzuki’s main body, which was approaching Danzo Shimura.

A final glimmer of hope ignited in Danzo Shimura’s despairing heart.

Muzuki had arrived, Muzuki, who had become the strongest Ninja of Konoha’s younger generation under his and Hiruzen Sarutobi’s joint tutelage, had finally arrived.

“So Raging Sun Mu Yue has also come,” Hanzō, who was about to rescue Danzo Shimura, frowned.

He recognized at a glance that this was the most prominent young Ninja in Konoha in the past year.

Raging Sun Mu Yue’s most recent major victory was in Land of Grass, a neighbor of the Land of Rain; Hanzō knew that although Muzuki was young, his strength was no less than that of the Sannin.

Nagato, who was about to make a move, froze after seeing who it was.

As the only one who knew Muzuki’s dual identity, Nagato was a bit bewildered.

He never dreamed that Raging Sun Mu Yue could also confront Ninja Master Sōsuke.

“Lord Danzo, I’m sorry, I’m late,” Shadow Clone Muzuki said with an apologetic look at Danzo Shimura.

“Quick, take me away!” Danzo Shimura immediately shouted in a weak voice.

Although he had thought of testing Muzuki earlier, now Danzo Shimura only wanted to live.

Muzuki possessed Flying Thunder God Technique and had also mastered Medical Ninjutsu, making him an impeccable reinforcement.

Without needing to say more, the moment Shadow Clone Muzuki finished speaking, he activated Flying Thunder God Technique.

Whoosh! Whoosh!!

Danzo Shimura and Shadow Clone Muzuki’s figures vanished from the scorched, damp ground, causing Muzuki’s main body’s Ninjutsu to miss.

“Sōsuke, it’s time to settle our business,” Hanzō stepped forward and said in a deep voice.

Just now, when Danzo Shimura used Izanagi for the second time, Hanzō also wanted to act, but Nagato and Sōsuke cooperated too well, and Hanzō’s Water Release couldn’t counteract Fire Dragon Dance, so he had no opportunity.

Now that Danzo Shimura had been rescued by Hayate Mugetsu, a weight was lifted from Hanzō’s heart.

Danzo Shimura, as a person, was annoying, but his death would indeed be troublesome.

“After watching the battle just now, have your thoughts still not changed?” Muzuki patted the ash off himself and asked Hanzō.

In the past, he didn’t even need to go all out to deal with Hanzō; now, his strength had improved significantly.

It wasn’t that he looked down on Hanzō, but if Hanzō and Danzo Shimura were swapped, when Muzuki used Twin Dragon Annihilation, Hanzō would die without even leaving a complete corpse.

Hanzō pulled out his chained scythe, “Sōsuke, looking down on me could cost you your life.”

…

Whoosh!

As soon as Danzo Shimura finished speaking, he felt his body shift, and the surrounding temperature rapidly dropped, clearly indicating he had arrived at another location.

Danzo Shimura felt a wave of relief; this was the strongest Root Ninja he had nurtured, truly reliable.

“First, take me further away, then treat me,” Danzo Shimura said, enduring the searing pain.

Perhaps Sōsuke’s Fire Release was too powerful, as Danzo Shimura could still feel that burning pain that went straight to his soul.

Muzuki nodded, saying nothing, and teleported several times, laying Danzo Shimura on the ground, then aimed his green-glowing palm at Danzo Shimura.

After half a minute, Danzo Shimura frowned tightly; the searing sensation in his chest, near his heart, showed no signs of abating.

Muzuki looked at Danzo Shimura’s expression and knew what Danzo Shimura was thinking.

The answer was simple: Muzuki had secretly hit Danzo Shimura with a Azure Flame at the very end.

Even with Muzuki controlling its power, the Azure Flame was not something a heavily injured Danzo Shimura could withstand.

Now, Danzo Shimura’s injuries were extremely severe; unless a medical master like Tsunade came to treat him, he was doomed to die.

Under the stimulation of Muzuki’s Yang Release Chakra, some of Danzo Shimura’s minor wounds gradually healed, but to Danzo Shimura’s despair, he felt no signs of recovery, only that he was becoming weaker and weaker.

The glimmer of hope that had burned in despair shattered, and Danzo Shimura was furious, clenching his fists tightly.

He wanted to question, to question whether Muzuki had given his full effort in treatment, to question whether Muzuki had seriously studied Medical Ninjutsu.

As excited as Danzo Shimura was when Muzuki appeared, that was how desperate and painful he felt now.

He had originally thought he could continue to strive for Konoha’s renewed greatness, but reality was so cruel.

But Danzo Shimura ultimately did not speak.

He wouldn’t live much longer; Muzuki’s Medical Ninjutsu couldn’t save him.

His last moments of life shouldn’t be spent cursing his subordinate; they should be for making one last contribution to Konoha.

At this moment, Danzo Shimura was unusually calm.

“Stop the treatment, conserve some Chakra in case of an emergency,” Danzo Shimura ordered.

Since it couldn’t be cured, there was no need to waste Muzuki’s Chakra.

If Muzuki encountered danger and couldn’t bring his intelligence back, then his death would truly be meaningless.

Muzuki decisively stopped the Medical Ninjutsu, so decisively that Danzo Shimura was a bit displeased.

There was no other way; the Shadow Clone’s Chakra was limited. Even if Danzo Shimura didn’t say anything, Muzuki would have to silently reduce the output.

He had to at least hold out until Danzo Shimura died; if Danzo Shimura discovered that the one who came to save him was just a Shadow Clone, he would likely die with unclosed eyes.

“You must bring my body back to Konoha. My body holds the secret of Hashirama cells transplantation. Let Hiruzen restart the Hashirama cells experiment with my body,” Danzo Shimura continued.

Danzo Shimura knew the value of his body; compared to the lucky Yamato, the Hashirama cells technology on “Uchiha Madara’s” side was clearly stronger, and this might be Konoha’s opportunity to have a Wood Release squad.

“Also, tell Hiruzen not to let Orochimaru research me. In addition, there is some information about my cooperation with Orochimaru in secret room number six of the Root Base. You must keep it in your hands. Once Orochimaru has any ideas or actions that are detrimental to Konoha, give those materials to Hiruzen.”

As Orochimaru’s collaborator, Danzo Shimura understood Orochimaru perfectly; he was a person as cold-blooded as a snake.

When he was around, Danzo Shimura was confident he could suppress Orochimaru, but now that he was gone, Danzo Shimura worried that Orochimaru acting alone might spiral out of control.

Muzuki nodded, having obtained leverage over Orochimaru, which was a good gain.

“Be careful of Sōsuke and a Ninja who calls himself Uchiha Madara. They might be the same person, or they might not be. Regardless, if you have the chance, you must eliminate them and the forces behind them!” Danzo Shimura gritted his teeth.

Sōsuke and “Uchiha Madara” were both greatly involved in his death, and they were the two people Danzo Shimura most wanted to kill right now.

Muzuki continued to nod; the man was about to die, so let him go happily.

“You… after you go back, tell Hiruzen to give you Root. Just say it’s what I said. You must shoulder Konoha’s darkness like I did.”

Danzo Shimura became incredibly weak; even for a Ninja with sharp senses like Muzuki, he had to concentrate to hear clearly.

“You must be careful of the Uchiha; they are all inherently evil…”

At this point, Danzo Shimura’s voice was barely audible, and Muzuki could only tell that Danzo Shimura hadn’t completely died by his slight lip movements.

“Muzuki, protect Konoha!”

Danzo Shimura used all his strength to utter his last words, his mind filled with Senju Tobirama’s dying instructions to Hiruzen Sarutobi during their retreat.

After giving his final instructions, the tension in Danzo Shimura’s body released. His mouth closed, and his breathing became extremely faint.

“If I had been the first to step forward back then, what would the outcome have been…?”

“Hiruzen, I’m going ahead.” With that last thought flashing through his mind, Danzo Shimura’s consciousness plunged into endless darkness.

Muzuki quietly watched Danzo Shimura die, carefully checking and confirming that Danzo Shimura was truly dead before sealing Danzo Shimura’s body into a scroll.