Konoha Anbu Underground Hospital.
The Third Hokage told Shimizu everything from his earlier conversation with Danzō.
For a moment, the two looked at each other.
This was probably no longer as simple as asking for his opinion or testing him.
After all, this was the full content of a conversation between two major figures in Konoha's Council of Elders.
Would his yes or no directly influence the Third Hokage's decision?
In that instant, Shimizu felt as though he had already been placed at a crossroads in this world.
Should he simply seize this opportunity to blacken Danzō's name as much as possible, making him completely lose credibility in the Third Hokage's eyes, so that when Shimizu targeted Danzō in the future, he would have the confidence to wrestle with him directly?
Moreover, if that succeeded, it would at least be a good beginning for completely resolving the hidden danger of the Uchiha clan's massacre.
Hiss…
Once this thought began to grow in his heart, it burned hotter and hotter like Amaterasu, impossible to extinguish.
A few years ago, Shimizu had only gone on missions as a subordinate with a modest degree of strength. Back then, he could only resist within the limits of what he was capable of.
But now…
"So, Shimizu, what do you want to say?"
The Hokage's gaze carried a trace of expectation and encouragement.
"I think… Lord Danzō's courage is commendable and worthy of admiration. He truly is a model for people like us."
The Third Hokage's left hand suddenly twitched, and the pipe in his hand nearly fell to the ground.
The conflict between Danzō and Shimizu had existed for a long time. After the mission to the Land of Rain four years ago, the proud young man before him had even acted in front of everyone in Konoha Village and killed Danzō's Root shinobi.
For him to dare commit such an audacious act, it could be said that the two of them had long since reached a point where fire and water could not coexist.
So what Shimizu had just said…
Was it sarcasm?
But the other party looked serious, and his expression was extremely sincere.
For a moment, the Third Hokage was confused.
"Shimizu, what do you mean by that?"
"I truly do admire Lord Danzō. Because whenever Konoha faces danger, Lord Danzō becomes extremely proactive and comes forward to help ease Konoha's worries."
In the original story, whether during the Nine-Tails' Night, the night of the Uchiha massacre, Orochimaru's attack on Konoha, or the day Nagato destroyed Konoha, during all of these major disasters, Danzō and the Root under him never actively appeared to share Konoha's burden.
He had protected himself wisely, preserved his strength, and for the sake of the ambition in his heart, kept himself hidden to such an extent. It was impressive in its own way.
Of course, the Shimura Danzō of this world was already very different from the Danzō of the original.
Not only had he taken the blame proactively, admitting that the main responsibility for the Land of Rain operation had been his, this time he had actually taken the initiative to find another burden for himself to carry.
That spirit was commendable.
"However, Konoha has already lost one elder. There is no need to let a second elder, especially one with such rare and valuable qualities, personally take the lead and risk his life by going to the Land of Rain."
"After all, he was nearly killed by a 'rogue shinobi' in the previous battle, and even lost one arm. How much strength can he still bring out now?"
"And yet the mission to support Hanzō in the Land of Rain is absolutely necessary… So dangerous matters like this should be left to us juniors."
At this point, Shimizu sighed lightly.
"Unfortunately, I still haven't recovered yet. Otherwise…"
Now, the Third Hokage understood the implication in Shimizu's words.
"You think Danzō has another motive?"
I said nothing. Don't slander me.
"Ahem… There is no one else here."
The Third Hokage tried to continue encouraging him.
"Shimizu, you can say what you truly think."
"Lord Hokage, in the end, I am only a shinobi. I no longer hold any official position in the village either."
"Although Teacher Kosuke is the person closest to me, he is only a genin. A little reputation from the past cannot play a decisive role in politics."
"So there are some things that are not suitable for me, someone who already has a rift with Danzō, to say right now. If I say them, who would believe me? Who would dare believe me?"
Even though Shimizu's reputation in Konoha could already be considered known to everyone, if he were to tell the Council of Elders, or even the public directly, that Danzō had some unspeakable motive behind this operation, who would stand up to support him?
Without decisive evidence capable of proving the other party's crimes, a root like Danzō, deeply embedded in the great tree of Konoha, had no possibility of being cut away.
Even with such evidence, perhaps it would still be extremely difficult.
"Even if you, Lord Hokage, choose to believe my one-sided words, considering Lord Danzō's high status and authority, as well as the concessions a Hokage must make for the sake of the village's stability and prosperity…"
"Whether you believe me or not is actually irrelevant, because in the end, it will not change anything."
"And besides… who knows whether my judgment is right or wrong? What if I mislead those who trust me?"
Hearing this, the Third Hokage opened his mouth as though wanting to explain, but in the end, it turned into only a soft sigh.
"If you truly wish to see the truth behind this fog, Lord Hokage, then you can have someone strong enough, and convincing enough, investigate everything."
Although the Anbu had not discovered anything wrong with Danzō's behavior so far, in fairness, if someone said Danzō had no ulterior motive at all, even the Third Hokage himself found that difficult to believe.
Indeed, Danzō had no absolute reason to risk his life personally going to the Land of Rain. Leaving such a task to capable young people would not make much difference, and this so-called revenge was only an excuse.
"Then do you have a suitable candidate?" the Third Hokage asked, following Shimizu's line of thought.
Shimizu blurted it out without hesitation.
"Minato."
Minato was indeed an excellent choice for this mission.
"If both Orochimaru and Minato are transferred away at the same time… it will likely be difficult."
The Third Hokage began considering the possibility of Minato carrying out this mission.
"Then don't let Lord Danzō replace Orochimaru in holding Kikyo Pass."
That way, the mission in the Land of Rain could proceed while also stabilizing the situation at Kikyo Pass.
After a brief moment of thought, the Third Hokage made his decision.
"Then we will do it that way."
Considering the Land of Rain mission more than four years ago, the fact that Danzō had dared to target Sawei for the Sharingan, and had even collected Sharingan in Amegakure, combined with the strange phenomenon during his battle with Obito where the Mangekyō Kamui had been blocked by an unknown spatial power…
Shimizu could draw a reliable conclusion.
At this point in time, Danzō already had a Sharingan arm.
And that precious Sharingan arm of his had been sent into another dimension by Obito's Kamui more than a year ago.
Now that the arm was gone, of course he would look for an opportunity to collect more materials and create another Sharingan arm.
In addition, Orochimaru's Wood Release had long since become famous throughout the shinobi world. It was not strange that Danzō would want to obtain Orochimaru's technique for creating the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai.
However, Orochimaru had been stationed at Kikyo Pass, busy with the war. The two of them probably had not had enough time to discuss this matter face to face before.
Looking at it this way, controlling Hanzō, conquering Amegakure, dealing with the Akatsuki, and finding Madara were all just smokescreens.
Danzō's true goals were the Sharingan and Wood Release.
Of course, perhaps there were other things Shimizu had not thought of, but these two matters alone were enough for him to become wary and obstruct Danzō's plan from proceeding smoothly.
Tsk, tsk.
Sorry, Lord Danzō.
Although I still cannot personally beat you up, I can thoroughly disgust you this time.