### Chapter 41: It's Time to Consider Digging Up the Uchiha Clan's Ancestral Graves
A series of footsteps approached.
Several Root ninja escorted a figure.
Tsukasa Kaede's eyes narrowed, a look of surprise on his face as he watched the figure in the center, whose right half of his face was wrapped in bandages, slowly draw near.
At this time, Danzo had already tampered with one of his eyes, but his body was still normal.
"It seems a certain important person has been alerted. May I ask who you are? Perhaps I've heard your name before."
"This old man is Shimura Danzō."
"It's actually Lord Danzō? The renowned Shadow of the Leaf actually sought out a nobody like me." Tsukasa Kaede feigned surprise.
A Root ninja said, "As a Konoha Chunin, you should maintain proper etiquette when meeting Lord Danzō."
"There's no need. This old man is not a stickler for rules, especially with talented young people."
Danzo slowly opened his single eye. Although no emotional fluctuations were evident, the inherent savagery and cunning still exuded immense pressure. "Tsukasa Kaede, you are no longer a nobody. You can drop the attitude you showed to someone like Tsunade when you face this old man. For someone who excels at and enjoys manipulating corpses, acting overly humble comes off as too hypocritical. Such petty tricks won't fool this old man."
"Is that so? So that's what Lord Danzō thinks. That's quite direct... However, I'm surprised to receive a personal audience with Lord Danzō. It seems my Jutsu has pleased you. How may I be of service?"
"Your Secret Technique allows you to control the remains of bloodline limit ninja. This is very similar to the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu, but as no one is currently able to learn the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu, your talent is enough to attract this old man's attention. Moreover, your Jutsu also includes accompanying Space-Time Ninjutsu techniques, which makes it even superior to Impure World Reincarnation."
Danzo stated directly, "Ryoma made a mistake. He failed to select you from that group of War Orphans back then. This was a loss for Root, but not a loss for Konoha. Under Konoha's protection, you have successfully grown, and are now qualified to make greater contributions to the Village."
Tsukasa Kaede pondered for a moment, "I have been promoted to the head of the Corpse Disposal Unit, which allows me to access many enemy corpses. This is very useful for me to further develop my Secret Technique."
"Not enough. It's called a disposal unit, but it's essentially an incinerator. If you don't make the right choice, you'll never come into contact with truly valuable corpses. You just modified the Explosion Release ninja this old man sent you; you should be very clear about the difference between bloodline limit ninja and ordinary ninja."
Danzo said coldly, "A small portion of all bloodline corpses falls into Tsunade's hands for research by the Medical Department, but the majority are in this old man's possession! Tsunade is unlikely to give you the limited number of bloodline corpses, but this old man is different."
"I must admit, the conditions you offer are hard to refuse... Indeed, to enhance my strength, I require a large number of corpses for research, which makes it difficult for me to grow in the sunlight."
"The Root, buried deep underground, can provide you with shelter. Corpses, equipment, public opinion—this old man can solve all of these for you, as long as you hand over your Secret Technique."
Several Root ninja quietly shifted their positions, subtly surrounding Tsukasa Kaede and blocking any possible actions.
Whether attacking Danzo directly or attempting to escape, Tsukasa Kaede would be heavily struck immediately.
"I thought you came to recruit me. I didn't expect you to just snatch it directly? Truly worthy of the legendary Shadow of the Leaf, but you're still quite young, aren't you? Why do you give me such an impatient feeling?" Tsukasa Kaede remained motionless, looking at the other party in confusion.
Speaking of Danzo seizing Shisui's eyes and collaborating with Itachi to exterminate the Uchiha Clan, from another perspective, Danzo had reasons for doing so—at that time, he was already over sixty years old, having experienced three Great Ninja Wars, which was certainly a long life in the Shinobi World.
Being old and impatient, coupled with extreme hatred towards the Uchiha Clan, was very reasonable.
But now? Danzo was only in his fifties, and his body hadn't been corrupted by Orochimaru's modifications, yet he was openly trying to seize a village ninja's Secret Technique? Well, that's fine. Tsukasa Kaede had never placed his safety on Danzo's personal character.
Orochimaru could cooperate with Danzo primarily because Orochimaru's strength, research capabilities, and life-saving abilities were top-tier, plus Orochimaru had no interest in the Hokage position, leaving Danzo completely unable to control him.
But when it came to controlling someone young, talented but without Kage-level strength, a War Orphan, and someone who recognized the Will of Fire like Tsukasa Kaede, Danzo had many methods and couldn't even bother to put on an act.
Tsukasa Kaede asked, "Is it because of my War Orphan background?"
"No, even if you had undergone orthodox schooling, this old man would not trust you. Moreover, your Secret Technique makes it hard for the world to believe you are a sunny person. The more cheerful you appear, the deeper your intentions seem in this old man's eyes. Therefore, it's better for this old man to master your Secret Technique."
Danzo believed himself to be very benevolent. If he hadn't considered Tsunade and the Third Hokage's reactions, he wouldn't have bothered with so much talk and would have just taken it by force.
A negotiation? What was there to negotiate? He would have just tied the person up and brought them back to Root, planting a Curse Mark on their tongue.
Being able to control bloodline limit ninja corpses, and only needing one day—considering Tsukasa Kaede's act of devouring over ten corpses, Danzo suspected it wouldn't even take a full day! Such a Secret Technique was enough to move Danzo; he could certainly cultivate several Corpse Release ninja and then control an even greater number of corpses.
Danzo was already considering when he should dig up the Uchiha Clan's ancestral graves.
Madara, Kagami, all of them would be dug up in one go, preserved, and perhaps even made usable again.
"Orochimaru has always wanted to initiate Hashirama Cell transplantation experiments. Once there's progress, these long-decayed corpses can be transplanted and repaired..." Danzo mused.
Also, the ancestral graves of the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan could be utilized. So many renowned ninja—what a waste for them to just lie there in the ground! Get them all moving for this old man, to serve the Village! Just thinking about such a scene filled Danzo's cold heart with fervor. Tsukasa Kaede's Jutsu was simply too effective and had too much potential. As long as the constraints of morality, power, and public opinion could be broken, its value was immense.
Moreover, this Secret Technique still had potential for further development.
"This old man's patience is limited. As a successor of the Will of Fire, are you unwilling to make even this small sacrifice?" Danzo sternly asked.
"Moral blackmail? This style of action is truly undisguised. It's probably the cheapest way to get things done, allowing you to succeed again and again."
Tsukasa Kaede smiled, "But what if I have no morals, how would you blackmail me, esteemed sir?"
"Truly ungrateful. Attack!"
*Swish!* Several Root ninja moved simultaneously.
(end of chapter)