Beneath Naka Shrine lay a newly constructed underground base.
The facility had only been completed recently, yet its sleek interior looked every bit as advanced as the experimental complex in the Land of Rivers.
Rows of monitors lined the eastern, southern, and western walls.
Their feeds covered the Land of Rivers, Akatsuki’s headquarters, Kumogakure, Sunagakure, Kirigakure, and countless other locations, giving the base surveillance coverage across nearly the entire shinobi world.
On the largest monitor in the northeastern section, everything happening inside the Hokage’s office was displayed in perfect clarity.
“Well?” Riku asked around the yogurt pouch between his lips.
“Now that you’ve seen all that, what do you think?”
“Konoha is rotten.”
Uchiha Itachi sighed quietly.
Root had experimented on ordinary civilians and even fellow citizens of the Land of Fire, yet Shimura Danzō’s punishment amounted to little more than being confined to his home.
No matter how Itachi looked at it, both the village and the people making its decisions were deeply disturbing.
The corruption had spread so far that it felt less like a flaw in the system and more like a disease eating away at it from within.
“Although…” Itachi frowned at the monitor.
“Why did the art in My Childhood Sweetheart from Root look strangely familiar?”
“Isn’t it obvious?
Your uncle drew it.”
‘I knew it.’
Itachi exhaled.
“So you created that manga to drive a wedge between Konoha’s leadership and the daimyō?”
“That was only a secondary benefit!”
Riku’s eyes lit up with enthusiasm.
“The real reason is that I intend to fulfill my dream of becoming the greatest creator in the entire shinobi world!”
Itachi’s mouth twitched.
“I thought your dream was to liberate the shinobi world.”
“It is.
Why would those two things conflict?” Riku spread his hands.
“Besides, my work is part of that liberation.
Stripping away the mystique surrounding powerful people and teaching everyone that those so-called great figures are still just people—that’s intellectual liberation too.”
Itachi thought about it for a moment before slowly nodding.
“Perhaps you have a point.”
“Want to give it a try?
Your uncle can teach you personally.”
“No, thank you.
I don’t think I have the talent for it.”
Itachi rejected the offer instantly.
Something told him that if he ever seriously studied under his uncle in this particular field, he would lose something important that he could never get back.
“Fair enough.”
Riku nodded as though this conclusion were perfectly reasonable and rested a hand beneath his chin.
“Being hailed as the clan’s greatest young genius doesn’t mean you can be as talented at everything as your uncle.”
A vein bulged on the back of Itachi’s hand.
For one fleeting moment, he felt an intense urge to punch those glasses straight off Riku’s face.
Riku ignored him and opened the chat interface again.
[Doujin Artist] [Private]: Bastard!
Get out here!
[Doujin Artist] [Private]: You set me up!
I’m remembering this!
[Doujin Artist] [Private]: STUPID BOYFRIEND!
[Merc with a Mouth] [Private]: Hey!
My beloved boss!
Have mercy!
Big Sis Eriri already forgave me!
I swear it’s true!
Riku closed the stream of private-message windows and quietly began lurking in the main chat instead.
[Deathwish Count]: Dreamweaver?
For an anti-human terrorist organization, they certainly chose an artistic name.
[Doujin Artist]: Based on what we know so far, the organization is huge.
They apparently have members embedded in all kinds of industries.
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: Infiltration, then.
There might even be members inside the council!
[Deathwish Count]: Then why not conduct a purge?
[Doujin Artist]: Apparently there’s too much resistance and no concrete evidence.
They think starting a purge recklessly might make everything worse.
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: Interesting.
And allowing the problem to worsen gradually is somehow preferable?
[Doujin Artist]: How should I know?
I’m just a normal student.
I don’t have the big-picture perspective you monsters do.
[Deathwish Count]: Neither do I.
I once ruled a country, but you already know how that ended.
[Doujin Artist]: I still don’t really understand that.
Why did Van Helsing manage to defeat you back then?
[Deathwish Count]: I can kill individual humans, but I can never kill humanity’s will.
Perhaps that was the reason.
[Doujin Artist]: That answer somehow became philosophical.
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: Some things are easier to understand instinctively than explain in words.
Much like how you and Riku-kun suddenly became a couple.
Eriri’s cheeks instantly turned crimson, and imaginary steam began rising from her head.
[Doujin Artist]: Th-That was because that stupid boyfriend kept flirting with me, okay?!
And I’m not very good at refusing people!
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: I see.
[Deathwish Count]: Mm.
Understood.
[Doujin Artist]: I swear I’m telling the truth!
If Eriri Spencer Sawamura is lying, may my boyfriend livestream himself chopping his balls off!
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: ?
[Doujin Artist]: Oh?
Finally decided to show yourself?
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Wait, WHY?!
Have you genuinely stopped caring about your own future happiness?!
[Doujin Artist]: Hmph.
Was anything I said a lie?
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Of course fucking not!
What else was he supposed to say?
Did he dare claim otherwise?
Absolutely not.
[Doujin Artist]: Exactly.
Anyway, I’m going to sleep.
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Fine, fine!
I’ll take the loss this time.
But this isn’t over!
[Doujin Artist]: Unmute Deadpool.
I’ve already forgiven him.
[Notification: Merc with a Mouth has been unmuted.]
[Merc with a Mouth]: AT LAST!
Uncle Deadpool has escaped alive!
That damn little black room will never imprison me again!
[Deathwish Count]: Congratulations.
[Doujin Artist]: I’m out!
Revenge accomplished.
Now I can finally sleep in peace!
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: I hope groceries cost twice as much tomorrow.
After sending the message, Riku turned back toward the monitors.
Inside the dimly lit Root headquarters, Shimura Danzō sat at the head of the chamber with a grim expression.
A young man wearing a Konoha forehead protector knelt on one knee before him.
“According to my investigation, there is substantial evidence that Uchiha Riku may have betrayed the village!”
“I see.” This chapter is updated first at novelping.com.
Danzō gave a slight nod.
“Uesugi Kaito.
How long have you served in Root?”
“Fifteen years, Lord Danzō!”
“Fifteen years already.
Time truly passes quickly.”
Danzō looked down at him with open disdain.
“And yet after fifteen years in Root, you appear to have learned nothing.”
Kaito’s expression changed sharply.
“Lord Danzō…
what do you mean?”
“Sarutobi Hiruzen received those documents five days ago.
Uchiha Riku was not even in the village at the time.”
Danzō’s voice grew colder.
“You tried to frame him without confirming something as basic as that.
Tell me, how did someone this incompetent ever become a squad leader?”
“I…”
“I’ll give you one chance.
Tell me the truth.”
Danzō’s visible eye narrowed.
“Why did you betray me?”
“Betray you?”
Confronted with evidence he could no longer explain away, Kaito finally abandoned the act and rose to his feet.
“No!
Everything I’ve done is for the village—for the future of Root!”
Danzō’s expression froze.
‘Why does that sound so damn familiar?’
His teeth ground together.
“Hmph!
A traitor like you still dares to spout such nonsense?”
Danzō raised his right hand and formed a seal with two fingers.
Hum—
The Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal activated.
Yet Uesugi Kaito stood completely unaffected.
“Seize him!” Danzō roared, humiliated and furious.
“Dead or alive!”
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The Root operatives stationed around the chamber moved instantly, surrounding Kaito from every direction.
“Danzō, you pathetic old fool!”
Kaito showed no fear whatsoever.
Instead, he stared at Danzō with mocking contempt.
“God’s Blood is completely wasted on someone like you.
I’m the only one worthy of mastering its true power!”
He raised a hand to his face and dragged it downward.
BOOM!
An oppressive wave of power exploded through the chamber.
A violent blast of wind hurled the approaching Root shinobi backward before they could even reach him.
‘What is that?!’
Danzō’s pupil contracted sharply.
A white, bone-like mask now covered Uesugi Kaito’s face.
“Goodbye, Danzō.”
His voice emerged with a faint metallic distortion.
Kaito drove one fist into the entrance of Root headquarters.
BOOM!
The reinforced doors shattered under the blow.
“Once I’ve mastered this power completely, I’ll come back for your life!”
His arrogant declaration continued echoing through the underground base long after his figure had disappeared.