Deep inside the Root training base.
"I don't want to become stronger anymore, let me out!"
"I'll do anything you want, just don't inject me with that!"
"No! Please, I'm begging you, let me go…"
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!"
The heart-rending screams from within made the two Root guards shiver at the same time. One of them glanced at his partner and tentatively whispered:
"What do you think they're doing in there? Damn, just listening to it gives me goosebumps."
The partner's face, hidden under the mask, furrowed tightly. With lingering fear in his voice, he muttered:
"Who knows? I heard it's a secret mission arranged by Lord Danzō. Best not to ask too much—or you'll lose your head."
As he spoke, both men flinched. They saw Danzō approaching with a sullen expression, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot. Terrified, they instantly shut their mouths.
Danzō had overheard their mutterings. After giving them a cold glance, he said lightly:
"Remember this well. A Root ninja is only allowed to have missions in his heart. If I hear this kind of talk again… then you can go inside and see for yourselves."
With that, he ignored the two guards whose legs had nearly gone weak with fright, and pulled open the heavy iron door. He deliberately swung it wide, revealing a glimpse of the scene within.
But the two guards didn't dare look—not even a glance..
With a loud bang, the iron door slammed shut. Hearing that sound, the two let out a long breath of relief, but not one of them dared muster the courage to speak another word.
This was the laboratory Danzō had set up for Hiruko, the greatest secret he held in all of Konoha. If even a shred of what was inside were to be exposed, Danzō would never again have a place in the village.
For example—the Hashirama cells.
And the shinobi, or children of all ages, who had mysteriously vanished during missions or everyday life in Konoha.
Along the long corridor, there were countless iron racks and large glass containers. The racks were filled with jars of various organs and human tissue. The large glass containers held children of all ages, all submerged in a yellowish-green liquid, with bubbles occasionally rising to the surface.
Danzō had no interest in observing them. He simply followed the direction of the screams. The cries were endless, but he acted as though he hadn't heard them.
Entering a room, he found Hiruko and a blood-soaked medical ninja working busily around a humanoid figure on the operating table.
That was the only way to describe it — because what lay there could hardly be called human anymore. Its face had turned green, half its body had become bark-like and brown, and from its shoulder sprouted a branch, tender green shoots unfurling from it.
With each inch the branch grew, the subject let out another scream, the brown bark spreading further across his body.
Seeing that the bark had already spread past half of him, the blood-covered medical ninja said:
"Lord Hiruko, medical ninjutsu isn't working anymore. His chakra has been completely consumed, and massive numbers of his cells are dying."
In other words, he was beyond saving and could be taken away.
Hearing this, Hiruko's expression turned gloomy. He raised the scalpel in his hand, ready to grant the tree-man before him a swift end.
But just then, Danzō's voice suddenly rang out:
"Wait. Let me take another look."
At those words, Hiruko turned to look at him. When he saw Danzō's face, a flicker of complicated emotion flashed across his own—something between joy and pain, gratitude and resentment.
He ultimately chose to obey Danzō's words, dropping the scalpel in his hand and leaving the test subject to live or die on its own.
Danzō stood by coldly, watching the shinobi slowly transform into a literal tree. By the end, half of the man's body had become a sapling barely half a man's height, while the other half had withered and shriveled yellow, a sight that sent chills down the spine.
Danzō's brows furrowed. After a long silence, he finally couldn't hold back:
"You've been researching for a year, and this is all you've come up with?"
Hiruko pursed his lips, a little helpless:
"The secrets within the Hashirama cells are simply too vast. A single year is only enough for me to barely begin to understand them."
This was a very routine exchange. Conversations like this had taken place almost every week. After asking his questions, Danzō would usually mutter a few things and then leave.
Hiruko thought this time would be no different — but Danzō's reaction was completely outside his expectations.
Danzō suddenly grabbed Hiruko by the collar, staring into his eyes as he roared:
"I built you this lab, brought you the Hashirama cells, provided you with all these test subjects—not to hear your useless nonsense!
It's been a year, an entire year! And every week I hear the same words from you. I'll ask one last time—has there been any progress with the Hashirama cells?"
Hiruko was startled by Danzō's sudden outburst. He couldn't understand why Danzō was so furious today, but he did understand one thing — his life was still in Danzō's hands.
He dared not show anger. Instead, he gestured for Danzō to release him, then spoke as calmly as he could:
"This year hasn't been without results. While I still cannot unravel the full secrets of the Hashirama cells, after so many experiments, I have at least formed a few hypotheses."
"Speak!"
Wiping the cold sweat from his brow, Hiruko signaled his medical assistant to bring over several files.
"Lord Danzō, here—these are the reports on the most representative test subjects this year: a 52-year-old civilian, a 23-year-old Konoha chūnin, and a 16-year-old descendant of the Senju clan."
Danzō skimmed through the reports, quickly growing impatient. Tossing them aside, he barked:
"Just tell me the results."
Straightening his collar, Hiruko explained:
"After the Hashirama cells entered their bodies, all three subjects showed signs of 'tree transformation. Their chakra spiked explosively for a brief period, and then their life force rapidly drained away… in other words, they became nourishment for the trees.
The difference lies in the speed of the transformation and the rate of life force consumption. For example, the 52-year-old civilian displayed the most extreme reaction. He transformed into a tree almost instantly—less than ten seconds.
But during this, something astonishing occurred: this elder, who had never once refined chakra in his life, suddenly erupted with chakra levels in the first fifteen seconds that were no less than that of a Chūnin."
Seeing Danzō's patience running thin, Hiruko quickly delivered his first conclusion:
"This is the first conclusion of my research: Hashirama's cells can drastically increase chakra reserves. The boost is explosive in nature!"
At that, Danzō's previously dark expression instantly softened.