Root.
"Night Owl, report the investigation results for these past two months."
A short-haired Ninja sat in a chair, looking down with lowered eyes at the Ninja kneeling before him.
"Yes, Captain."
The Anbu wearing an owl mask below hurriedly replied.
"Three kilometers east of the Village, the second son of the Muto family. Neighbors say he's been sensitive to directions since childhood and can identify them without any tools."
"Hmm, I'll report this one; we can train him as a scout."
"A traveling merchant in the Village mentioned someone named Miyuki Ito in the Daimyo's Capital who can hear faint sounds from a distance."
"Report that one as well."
"A clerk at the Ninja tool shop said..."
Night Owl reported all the information collected over the past two months one by one.
Because of Danzo's obsession with collecting talent, Root had established a special team to scout for gifted individuals everywhere.
These individuals were gathered, categorized, and brought into Root for training.
Afterward, they would be assigned to various positions based on their abilities.
This was also why Root had a unique edge in intelligence gathering.
"Someone in the Village saw someone from the Hyuga Clan at the Training Ground who is very good with a bow and arrow."
"The Training Ground? I have people watching the Training Ground every day; why haven't I heard any reports about this?"
"That person saw them at night?"
"At night?"
The short-haired Ninja's face darkened upon hearing this, looking displeased. "You need to pay attention to accuracy when gathering intelligence in the future. How could anyone see someone shooting arrows at night?"
"Yes." Night Owl lowered his head and then added, "That person said the Hyuga was 500 meters away from the target and hit it with precision."
The short-haired Ninja's brow furrowed deeply, and he took a deep breath to suppress the anger in his heart.
"What is this Hyuga's name?"
"Hyuga..."
Night Owl took out a piece of paper with many names registered on it.
"Hyuga Aokawa."
"What did you say?"
"Captain, his name is Hyuga Aokawa."
The short-haired Ninja could no longer suppress his rage; he slapped the armrest and stood up abruptly.
He kicked out violently.
Bang!
Night Owl, caught off guard on the floor, was kicked far away by the sudden strike, rolling several times on the ground before barely coming to a stop.
His mask fell off from the impact, revealing a young face.
"Captain..."
Night Owl clutched his abdomen, his face full of shock, looking at the short-haired Ninja in confusion.
"Can't you use your brain when gathering intel? Fine, seeing someone shoot arrows at night is one thing, but seeing him hit a target 500 meters away?"
"I could even tolerate that, but then you tell me this 'talent' is named Hyuga Aokawa."
The short-haired Ninja's face turned beet red, veins bulging on his forehead and neck as he roared loudly.
"Do you have any idea how many things Lord Danzo and the Hokage have smashed lately because of this Hyuga Aokawa?"
"Are you trying to get me killed? Asking me to report this 'talent' to Lord Danzo."
Seeing Night Owl's aggrieved expression, the short-haired Ninja lost his temper again and stepped forward to deliver another kick.
"You're acting aggrieved? I practically have this guy's file memorized. He's been messing with bows and arrows since he was a kid, with a range of maybe ten-odd meters at most, and you're telling me 500 meters?"
Night Owl broke into a cold sweat; he hadn't expected the department to already have information on this person, let alone information so vastly different from what he had provided.
Seeing the captain approaching again, he hurriedly kowtowed, his head striking the ground with a heavy thud.
"Yes, it was my negligence."
"From now on, go to the Land of Water to gather intelligence."
"Captain..."
Night Owl wanted to say more, but seeing the short-haired Ninja's sharp gaze, he felt a jolt of fear and didn't dare speak again.
"Yes."
The short-haired man picked up a stack of documents from the table and turned to walk deeper into the facility.
After several twists and turns, he arrived at an empty room.
He bit his thumb, swiped it across his hand, and quickly formed hand seals.
"Summoning Jutsu."
Rumble!
A door appeared out of thin air on the wall.
He reached out and pulled the door open; a thick smell of blood mixed with medicinal chemicals wafted toward him.
The short-haired man's stomach churned instantly, and it took him a while to adjust.
Beneath his feet was a bottomless spiral staircase leading downward.
He took a deep breath, hesitated slightly, and finally took a step down.
This was the basement of Root.
Although it wasn't his first time, every time he stood before that door, he had to mentally prepare himself before daring to descend.
The staircase was very narrow; the stone bricks above almost touched his head, and the stone walls on either side only allowed one person to pass.
Walking through it naturally created a suffocating sense of oppression.
Occasionally, there were junctions leading to platforms that appeared bottomless from the stairs.
From the depths of the darkness, wails and screams echoed off the walls incessantly.
The short-haired man turned a deaf ear, keeping his head down as he descended all the way to the bottom floor.
It wasn't until he stepped onto level ground that the short-haired man realized his clothes were soaked through.
He turned a corner and finally found a figure guarding a room door in the middle of a long corridor.
His expression brightened, and he stepped forward quickly.
"Lord Ryoma..."
"Shh! Keep it down!"
Aburame Ryoma interrupted him, looking cautiously into the room.
The short-haired man's gaze followed.
The light in the room focused on an operating table where a figure with its back to the door was constantly performing procedures on the person on the table.
Even without seeing the face, from the long hair on the back and the cold aura radiating from the body, he was certain it was Lord Orochimaru of the Sannin.
Lord Danzo stood in the shadows to the side, his eyes fixed on the operating table. His eyes were wide, and the anger on his face was almost tangible, like a suppressed volcano.
The short-haired man caught a brief glimpse, didn't dare look further, and hurriedly lowered his head.
Seeing that the two in the room were not disturbed, Aburame Ryoma finally spoke.
"Come with me."
"Yes."
...Inside the room.
Beep... beep... beep... the rhythmic sound of the equipment operating normally continued to ring out.
Along with it, the intermittent sounds of scissors cutting thread and blades slicing through flesh echoed in the room.
Danzo's eyes occasionally swept over the empty chains on the surrounding walls, and he gritted his teeth.
He wanted to speak several times, but seeing Orochimaru's focused state, he feared affecting the experiment.
He could only suppress his anger and watch quietly, with only the occasional sound of teeth grinding.
Time passed bit by bit.
Suddenly, the curves on the monitor fluctuated abnormally, and the warning beeps accelerated frantically.
Beep-beep-beep!
Seeing this, Orochimaru hurriedly sped up his movements, but the warning beeps from the equipment grew faster and faster.
Soon, the intermittent warning beeps turned into a continuous alarm, and the heartbeat curve went from small ripples to a completely flat line.
"What a pity!"
Orochimaru put down the scalpel, took a clean cloth from the side to wipe the blood off his hands, his face full of regret.
Seeing Orochimaru stop, the long-suppressed Danzo finally spoke.
"Orochimaru!"
His eyes were cold, and the knuckles of his hand gripping his cane turned white from the force.
"Why are the chains empty? Where are the Test Subjects that were hanging there...?"