Root base.
Danzo never expected Sarutobi Miroku to come.
He sat in his chair, quietly watching the man standing before him.
The Anbu Commander—Sarutobi Miroku, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eldest son, and this meant that something big needed to be done. Thinking of how Hiruzen Sarutobi had just been so hypocritical, telling him not to act recklessly, but now?
I've seen your attitude.
"Lord Danzo!"
Sarutobi Miroku's attitude was very good.
Only because he knew that his old man needed the person in front of him to do some unsavory things, especially now that he was asked to eliminate Uchiha Bai Mu. So, who in Konoha was most suitable to do this?
It was the man in front of him; only he was the most suitable for this task. Sarutobi Miroku had to admit this, he absolutely had to.
"Speak. What does Hiruzen want you to come for?" Danzo didn't waste words, telling Sarutobi Miroku to get straight to the point and not talk nonsense.
"Uchiha Bai Mu should be eliminated."
"He is even more unyielding than the hawk faction Uchiha. Such a person poses too great a threat to Konoha."
Danzo snorted coldly upon hearing this: "I said long ago that the Uchiha were a threat. Now you're afraid, so why did you oppose my plan before? But why did Hiruzen change his mind, and even ask me to act…?"
Originally, the plan was to let Kumogakure take action, but now Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly changed his mind. This wasn't even a day, not even half a day, so why?
To Danzo, this matter was very strange.
Originally, Bai Mu's journey north was heading towards Kumogakure, and Danzo supported this. But at that time, Hiruzen Sarutobi still opposed it because of Tsunade.
However, it ultimately failed, but this guy wanted to transfer Minato Namikaze there, which would make it difficult to kill Uchiha Bai Mu. And now he's changed his mind again, which is really strange.
"Is there something that needs to be hidden from me?"
Danzo wanted to understand. Not letting the Uchiha fall in battle against Kumogakure, but instead having me personally take action—this is truly urgent.
So, what caused him to change his mind?
Hiruzen, what did you find out?
Danzo was very curious about this.
Facing Danzo's question, Sarutobi Miroku replied in a deep voice: "Lord Danzo, the Hokage-sama's intention is that Uchiha Bai Mu is extremely dangerous, and it's best to eliminate him now. His meaning is to do it cleanly and decisively!"
"How many people can you bring?" Danzo saw this and knew he wouldn't get any answers, but he didn't mind taking action against Bai Mu, because the opponent's eyes were very useful.
If that's the case, should I personally… No, that won't do. Let Ryoma lead the team.
Danzo considered leading the team himself, but then he thought better of it and decided to let his confidant, Aburame Ryoma, lead the team. The Root's elites would be enough to deal with one Uchiha Bai Mu.
Sarutobi Miroku replied: "Four squads, including myself, seventeen people!"
Danzo heard this, pondered for a moment, deemed it feasible, and immediately nodded: "Alright, I will have Aburame Ryoma lead four squads, also seventeen people. You will jointly intercept and kill Uchiha Bai Mu!"
He paused, then added: "As for how to do it, you decide yourselves. In short, do not expose yourselves. It's best to frame Kumogakure, so it's best not to act within the Land of Fire!"
"Lord Danzo, aren't you taking action?"
Sarutobi Miroku hesitated, but finally asked.
Danzo's face darkened, and he said coldly: "How this old thing acts is not for you to say. Ryoma is enough."
"Then I'll go prepare." Seeing this, Sarutobi Miroku didn't say anything more, but said he would go prepare and come back later.
Danzo certainly didn't want Sarutobi Miroku to come here frequently, so he immediately instructed: "You don't need to come again. Ryoma will come find you."
"Understood!"
…Night.
At Tsunade's doorstep.
Bai Mu appeared here.
A Ninja sword was at his waist.
He slowly walked in, and Shizune was standing in the courtyard.
Clearly, Tsunade had arranged for Shizune to wait here in advance.
"Lady Tsunade is ready and waiting inside. Please follow me!"
Saying this, she led the way. Bai Mu glanced at the courtyard, then followed her.
In the living room, Tsunade lay casually on the sofa, her feet dangling, her toes, painted with red nail polish, full and round.
"It's time to go."
Bai Mu looked at her and said indifferently.
"Hmm, I know, but you still need to tell those two. They're still bathing!" Tsunade hadn't had any alcohol, so she was quite annoyed, and casually responded to Bai Mu's words.
Not letting me drink is really a bit hard to bear.
It's just a little drink, what's the big deal?
Tch, how boring.
"Alice will be like this, Esdeath won't." Bai Mu knew very well that Esdeath wasn't very interested in bathing, only Alice Lize liked to bathe, so it was obvious who it was.
"Oh?"
Tsunade was quite surprised to hear this.
She glanced at Bai Mu and said softly: "That's very correct, so you really understand."
Bai Mu looked at her and said indifferently: "You should make some preparations. We need to hurry to the front line as soon as possible. By the way, where is Konoha's main base on the front line? Is it at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Water, or within the Land of Frost?"
Tsunade pouted and said casually: "Why can't it be the Land of Waterfalls?"
Bai Mu shrugged, and said: "The Land of Waterfalls at least has a Ninja Village, but the Land of Frost… it's a small country among small countries, it can only be a battlefield between Konoha and Kumogakure. This is the tragedy of small countries."
"So you want to unify?" Tsunade heard this, put down her legs, and stepped her fair feet onto the floor, asking softly.
After all, Bai Mu's ambition was grand; he was eyeing the entire Ninja World. So, wasn't this so-called reform simply about unification?
To this, Bai Mu said softly: "You know very well that to achieve peace, this is the most basic approach. Otherwise, there will be endless wars like this. This Ninja World War is already the third, do you think there will be a fourth?"
Saying this, without waiting for Tsunade to answer the question, Bai Mu continued: "You know the answer. War is inevitable, it's just a matter of time. It might be pushed back a bit, perhaps a few years, but maybe more than ten years, depending on how much the Five Great Nations recuperate and recover."
"Let's go, let's end this war first. I'm full of confidence now." Tsunade was now brimming with confidence. Thanks to the power of Wood Release, she naturally had no fear of Kumogakure.
If they come, I'll kill them.
"Alright, let's go."
Seeing this, Bai Mu didn't say much, just smiled slightly, and then walked into Tsunade's bathroom.
Of course, before he even entered, Alice Lize came out fully dressed.
And when she saw Bai Mu appear, her face immediately flushed.
"You came so fast?"
Just as Alice Lize spoke, Esdeath's figure appeared at the edge of the corridor. Bai Mu saw her and said nothing, just a single sentence.
"Hmm, let's go."
…Bai Mu, Tsunade, Alice Lize, and Esdeath, just the four of them, set off together and left Konoha Village.
And not long after they departed, Sarutobi Miroku of the Anbu had already assembled four squads and rendezvoused with the Root squads. After exchanging greetings, both parties quickly followed.
Sarutobi Miroku and Aburame Ryoma led the elite Anbu and Root squads, following from a distance, prioritizing secrecy to ensure they wouldn't be discovered.
As for whether they would lose track?
With the Aburame Clan's reconnaissance abilities, they naturally wouldn't fail to track. Among the Aburame Clan's Secret Techniques involving insects, there was a reconnaissance-type Ninjutsu.
Because of this, they were not in a hurry to follow closely behind, but maintained a certain distance to prevent being discovered.
However, Sarutobi Miroku and Aburame Ryoma did not know that their so-called covert operation was completely useless; Bai Mu already knew everything clearly.
On one hand, Bai Mu's abilities had already detected this group of trackers, and on the other hand, someone in the Anbu had passed on information, because Bai Mu had planted a chess piece in the Anbu.
Although Sarutobi Miroku had maintained absolute secrecy, a tiny oversight allowed Bai Mu's secretly planted chess piece to transmit the information.
After Bai Mu learned this, combined with the Chakra of Sarutobi Miroku and others he had detected, he naturally understood the situation—they were planning to ambush him.
If that's the case, that old thing Hiruzen Sarutobi is quite decisive. If it were only Root members, then it could be Danzo acting on his own, but if it also included the elite Anbu led by Sarutobi Miroku, then it must be Hiruzen Sarutobi's order… Is it because he's afraid?
And Bai Mu quickly understood the situation, guessing that Hiruzen Sarutobi must be wary of him, so he chose the simplest method: eliminating him.
However, they certainly wouldn't act within the Land of Fire, but outside it, meaning they would make their move on the battlefield with Kumogakure.
This way, they could naturally frame Kumogakure, which was a win-win approach.
If one lacked strength, they would certainly suffer.
But Bai Mu was different, and… using this incident to create some leverage was not impossible.
What Sarutobi Miroku was doing was conspiring to harm a fellow Konoha Ninja, but everyone knew who was behind him. So, how should Hiruzen Sarutobi choose?
Didn't he speak of the will of fire?
So, what crime is it for Sarutobi Miroku to lead the Anbu to assassinate the Uchiha Clan head during wartime, and even attempt to frame Kumogakure Village?
Interesting, this is too interesting!
Thinking of this, Bai Mu's lips unconsciously curved into a smile… Tsunade noticed this and wondered what Bai Mu was smiling about. This smile was too strange, so she couldn't help but ask:
"What's wrong? What are you smiling about?"
Bai Mu smiled faintly, looked at Tsunade, and asked softly: "The Anbu is taking action, and not just the Anbu, even the Root has been dispatched. Who do you think it's targeting?"
Tsunade's face registered surprise, her delicate brows slightly furrowed. "You even know about Root?"
"I know so many things, so knowing about Root isn't strange, is it?" Baimu shrugged, saying indifferently.
"That's true."
Tsunade pursed her lips, not disagreeing. She knew that given the things Baimu had revealed, it wasn't strange at all for him to know about Root. In fact, it would be strange if he didn't!
After a pause, she dropped her smile, looking at Baimu with a serious expression and asking, "So, what are you going to do?"
Baimu curved his lips, asking in a playful tone, "What do you think?"
What do I think?
Does that even need to be said?
Hearing this, Tsunade couldn't help but roll her eyes.
She knew that Baimu's meaning was definitely to kill them all.
Realizing this, Tsunade pondered for a moment, then said faintly, "You have to understand that if you really kill Sarutobi Mirei, the situation will truly be irreversible, leading to an endless war."
Hearing this, Baimu waved his hand, scoffing disdainfully and saying nonchalantly:
"It was always an endless war. That's how it is between the Konoha higher-ups and the Uchiha. I'm only targeting the Konoha higher-ups, and what they want is our Uchiha clan. Whose problem do you think this is?"
"Tsunade, the village is the village, and the higher-ups are the higher-ups. You need to distinguish between them. Not all ninja clans want the Uchiha clan gone. The Uchiha clan is annoying, but that doesn't mean they wish for the Uchiha clan to disappear. The Konoha higher-ups are different; they truly harbor deep-seated animosity towards the Uchiha."
"Of course, this is influenced by the Second Hokage, but the Second Hokage was different from them. Sarutobi Hiruzen and those people only inherited the Second Hokage's animosity towards the Uchiha clan, but they don't possess his magnanimity. That's the problem."
Hearing Baimu mention the Second Hokage, Tsunade's expression became a bit awkward, unsure what to say.
"When do you plan to make your move?"
She didn't want to ramble; she still needed to clarify Baimu's intentions. When exactly would he strike? This was extremely important, so she needed to understand it clearly.
Baimu said softly, "You all go to the front lines first. I'll wait here."
You'll wait?
This is within the Land of Hot Water. Is he planning to resolve the issue in the Land of Hot Water?
Tsunade's brows furrowed slightly, her eyes narrowed. She didn't know what to say; it was truly difficult. She couldn't stop Baimu from acting. If he felt that he should act within the Land of Hot Water, then it was up to him.
"We have no objections, but what about her?" Alice Lizer stated that she and Tsunade had no objections, but the question was whether Esdeath had any objections.
That was hard to say.
Tsunade's mouth twitched upon hearing this, thinking, *What do you mean 'we have no objections'? Where do I not have objections? I just can't voice my opinion.*
Esdeath quickly replied, "I'm definitely not willing."
What kind of joke is this?
I'm not planning to retreat.
Is it appropriate for a battle to happen without me?
"Esdeath, obey orders!" Baimu said indifferently, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
No, don't!
For Esdeath, this was certainly unacceptable. Why wouldn't he let her stay? If he was worried about Tsunade, Alice could just go with her.
Besides, didn't Tsunade receive your origin's blessing?
Her strength has undergone a qualitative leap. Do you still need to worry about her safety? Honestly, there's absolutely no need, I don't think it's necessary!
"I said, obey, so let's go." Alice Lizer supported this. She didn't object to Baimu's approach, so Esdeath's objection was naturally invalid.
Tsunade: "..."
No, do you really take me for air?
Please, at least ask for my opinion, right?
"Are you not taking me seriously?" Unable to bear it, Tsunade had to speak up and ask what was going on.
"Let's go, Tsunade. The front line is more important." Regarding Tsunade's opinion, Baimu had only one thought, and immediately said with a serious expression.