radiothebook Chapter 173 As expected of me!
Chapter 173 As expected of me!
Chapter 173 As expected of me!
The night passed quickly.
Its daybreak.
morning.
Konoha Village, Hokage's office.
Tsunade was buried in a huge pile of documents on her desk, her brows furrowed.
The Chunin Exams attack had only been over for a few days, and the village was already piled high with tasks to handle.
The interrogation of the Sunagakure prisoners by the interrogation department has ended. According to their confessions, Sunagakure was completely misled by Orochimaru.
How to handle the alliance with Sunagakure becomes extremely crucial.
"Phew," Tsunade sighed deeply as she looked at the mountain of documents piled up on the table.
With a click, she put down her pen and rubbed her slightly sore wrist.
She was thoroughly overwhelmed by the tedious official duties and felt extremely irritable.
Not to mention, she also had to find time to prepare medicine for Itachi Uchiha to help him recover. How could there be so many things to deal with in Konoha!
Beside her, Shizune, holding her pet pig Tonton, complained helplessly, "There's nothing I can do, the Hokage has a lot of work to do anyway."
Upon hearing this, Tsunade couldn't help but roll her eyes.
With a clatter, she slammed the last file shut, slumping her head heavily against the back of her chair. "Sigh," she sighed, "I only went back to Konoha to see that magical dream, and somehow ended up becoming Hokage, and now I'm this busy every day?"
She held her forehead, looking utterly hopeless, her whole body numb.
Just then, a few knocks on the door interrupted Tsunade's rambling.
Tsunade rubbed her temples and said in an annoyed voice, "Come in."
The door was pushed open, and a ninja in an ANBU uniform rushed into the office, knelt on one knee, and said anxiously, "Hokage-sama! Something terrible has happened! Orochimaru is dead!"
"What?!" Tsunade jumped up from her seat. "Dead?! How could Orochimaru be dead?! You—what nonsense are you talking about?"
She could hardly believe her ears.
She knew Orochimaru's abilities better than anyone else. Among the three legendary ninja, Orochimaru had the highest talent, and in pursuit of power, he researched a bunch of unorthodox and secret techniques for himself.
How could someone like that die silently in a dungeon?
The ANBU member lowered his head and reported truthfully, "It's absolutely true! Just now, when the interrogation department was preparing to interrogate him, they discovered Orochimaru's corpse in the dungeon!"
Upon hearing this, Tsunade frowned, a sense of foreboding rising in her heart: "Something's not right—maybe he's faking his death to escape."
She turned sharply to the Anbu, "You didn't rashly break the seal on him, did you?!"
The secret agent quickly shook his head: "We didn't touch his body! We came to report to you immediately the moment we discovered it."
"Alright." Tsunade waved her hand decisively. "Take me to see!"
The officers in the shadows responded immediately: "Yes!"
Tsunade strode after him, but just as she was about to leave, she suddenly remembered something and paused: "Oh right, while you're at it, send someone to inform the Third Hokage!"
Before long, Tsunade arrived at the dungeon in a flurry of activity, accompanied by Shizune.
In the center of the dungeon, a tall, thin body lay supine on the cold ground, firmly bound by several sealing chains.
The dim light of the oil lamp shone on the man's face, revealing that his eyes were closed, he was motionless, and his body was lifeless.
"Orochimaru?" Tsunade quickly stepped forward, squatted down, and carefully examined the condition of the corpse.
I checked his pulse; there was no beat. I checked his chakra flow—
There was absolutely no sign of life.
A moment later, Tsunade slowly straightened up, her expression solemn:
"...He's really dead."
Just then, a series of hurried footsteps sounded behind them.
Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived at the dungeon, panting heavily.
He had just gotten up and was having breakfast when he received the call and rushed over immediately.
At this moment, his gray hair was slightly disheveled, and his face still bore the lingering shock and doubt: "Orochimaru—is he dead?"
Tsunade turned to look at her teacher and nodded: "Dead!"
Upon hearing the confirmation, Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the corpse for a long time with a complex expression. His gray brows furrowed tightly and then slowly relaxed. "Orochimaru was once his most valued disciple, but ultimately went astray and betrayed Konoha."
How complex must Hiruzen Sarutobi's feelings be towards such a disciple?
On one hand, he hated Orochimaru for disregarding human ethics and conducting cruel human experiments, which brought great harm to the village; but on the other hand, that was, after all, a child he had watched grow up!
If he could, he would rather believe that everything happening before his eyes was just a dream.
Tsunade carefully examined the corpse, feeling that something was amiss.
Her gaze sharpened, and she suddenly reached out and forcefully wiped Hu Ti's face: "What is this?!"
With a soft ripping sound, a human skin mask was peeled off.
Beneath the mask was the face of a strange woman—a woman with beautiful features, yet her lips still held the eerie smile of someone dying moments before death.
"This is-?"
Tsunade and Sarutobi were both surprised, their eyes widening in surprise.
Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned down to examine the woman's face closely, his expression full of doubt: "Fake?"
Tsunade shook her head, placed her hand on the woman's forehead, closed her eyes to sense for a moment, and said with certainty, "Chakra doesn't lie. Judging from the chakra remaining on the corpse, she is Orochimaru."
"It seems Orochimaru's forbidden technique has been successfully developed! The body can no longer restrain Orochimaru; he must have escaped."
She kicked away the eerie human skin mask, unable to hide her anger—this guy had actually managed to get away!
Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent for a moment, then slowly exhaled a long breath, his back relaxing slightly.
For his master, this ending might be better than actually seeing Orochimaru die in front of him.
Seeing the changes in Sarutobi's expression, Tsunade guessed what he was thinking and gave a soft hum, saying nothing more.
She turned and ordered her secret service: "Investigate everything unusual around the dungeon immediately! Also, keep it a secret, don't let a word leak out!"
Then he looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi and said, "Old man, let's go back and make some plans."
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, took a deep look at the female corpse, and followed Tsunade out of the dungeon with a complicated expression.
The Land of Rain, the Hidden Village of Rain.
Shortly after dawn, the sky was covered with dark clouds, and the light rain continued to fall as always.
On the deserted streets, a few rain ninjas strolled about, while a young man wearing a black robe with red clouds wandered aimlessly in the rain.
Itachi has returned to Amegakure.
He changed back into his Akatsuki uniform, his straw hat hanging low, obscuring most of his slightly pale, handsome face.
The cold rain slid down his dark hair, but Itachi seemed oblivious, continuing to walk slowly forward step by step.
At this moment, he was expressionless, his dark eyes were unfocused, and he seemed to have lost his soul, letting the rain soak his whole body.
He felt somewhat numb—so much had happened in just a few days that he still couldn't process it all.
Just then, the raindrops beside Itachi suddenly froze in a strange way.
The torrential rain pouring down from above seemed to be pushed aside by something, and not a single drop fell on him.
At the same time, a slightly teasing, deep voice came from behind: "Big Seven, with your current body, this might not work!"
Upon hearing the sound, Itachi immediately turned around.
Suddenly, a tall figure appeared behind him.
The newcomer held a large black umbrella, which covered most of his body. The face exposed outside the cloak was strange and ferocious—a shark-like grin that stretched almost to his ears.
"Kisame—," Itachi whispered, his voice hoarse.
Kisame grinned, revealing his sharp teeth, and gave his companion what he thought was a friendly smile.
He tilted the large umbrella slightly towards Itachi and chuckled, "Getting wet isn't good for your health, Ooshichi-san!"
"New mission! Come on, follow me!"
Itachi nodded quietly, without saying anything more.
With a soft whoosh, the two dark figures disappeared into the rain one after the other in the next moment.
In the dead of night, in a mansion in Konoha Village.
Danzo Shimura rolled over and lay down on the bed, pulling the blanket over himself and resting his head on the soft pillow, but he couldn't fall asleep for a long time.
He was preoccupied with worries, and a resentment lingered in his heart that he couldn't shake off.
In the dim candlelight, a cold glint flashed in his single eye, and his expression shifted between anger and uncertainty.
"That Hiruzen Sarutobi!" Danzo muttered under his breath, his brow furrowed. "I told you long ago I'd handle Orochimaru! Now look what's happened, he's run away!"
Thinking of the news he had received during the day, he was furious—if the Third Hokage had listened to him and handed Orochimaru over to Root, this foolish thing would never have happened!
"Hmph!" Danzo snorted coldly, turned over, still indignant.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He lay there for a long time with a livid face, his mind filled with resentment towards Hiruzen Sarutobi. Finally, he closed his one eye wearily and fell into a deep sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, Danzo's eyelashes trembled slightly twice, and then he suddenly opened his eyes.
The first thing I saw was a somewhat unfamiliar ceiling.
Danzo frowned, instinctively sensing that something was amiss—
The color and texture of the ceiling were clearly not the bedroom decor he was familiar with.
Almost instinctively, Danzo sprang to his feet and reached for his cane, which he usually kept by his side, with his right hand.
However, what he touched was not a cold wooden cane, but a soft silk quilt.
"Hmm?" Danzo looked around warily, only to find himself in a bedroom that was both strange and familiar.
It felt familiar because the overall layout of the room was quite similar to his real bedroom.
The rooms are about the same size, and the beds are placed in the same locations.
But what was unfamiliar was that the interior decoration style was completely different. The room was filled with many novel items that he had never seen before, and it was filled with a strange atmosphere of life, which made Danzo feel a little uncomfortable for a while.
What caught his attention even more was that there were two small cribs placed on one side of the big bed!
There are two babies sleeping inside.
"Where is this?!" Danzo was filled with doubts, and his vigilance suddenly rose to the extreme.
He was about to get out of bed to check on the crib when he suddenly felt as if there was someone lying next to him!
Danzo's face suddenly darkened, and Shuji turned to look at his side.
On the other side of the bed, two figures could be vaguely seen curled up under the covers.
"Who goes there?!" Danzo narrowed his one eye and hissed sharply, grabbing the blanket and yanking it up!
brush!
The bedding was lifted into the air and fell heavily to the floor.
The next second, what came into Danzo's view was two white female bodies—two beautiful women who were completely naked!
"!!!!" Danzo's forehead veins throbbed, completely dumbfounded: "???"
Countless questions flooded my mind.
Two naked women sleeping in their own bed?
There were two babies nearby?
[Ding! Emotional fluctuations from Shimura Danzo have been detected! Emotional value +500!]
However, Danzo had learned from his previous experience, and he quickly realized that he had entered that strange dream again!
Thinking of this, Danzo quickly calmed down.
Just then, the two women, who had been awakened by Danzo's violent actions, discovered Danzo glaring at them. They were startled at first, but then, as if remembering something, their pretty faces turned pale, and they knelt down on the bed with a thud.
"My lord!" one of them said in a trembling voice, "I don't know if we have served you poorly, please forgive us!"
Another woman followed suit, kowtowing and admitting her mistake, her whole body trembling.
At this moment, the noise they made also woke up the baby in the crib next to them.
"Wow! Wow wow!!"
Two loud cries rang out, breaking the tranquility of the early morning.
The baby in the crib started crying loudly because of the noise, and the tender cries echoed throughout the bedroom.
However, the two women kneeling on the bed dared not make the slightest movement, remaining in their prostrate, begging-for-repentance posture, not even daring to glance at their children.
"It's so noisy!!" The incessant crying made Danzo's head throb and his heart even more irritated.
He had now basically figured out the situation—the strange arrangement of the bedroom, the two children…
Everything points to one possibility: he has arrived in Konoha Village, which is controlled by the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze!
Danzo was not stupid after all; he quickly deduced the timeline here based on the information around him.
His face turned extremely pale, his brows furrowing deeply: "It was actually this dream?!"
His voice was filled with disgust and disappointment.
To be honest, he already knew about the existence of this dream instance from his previous experience as a spectator.
What he disliked most was the "self" in this dream.
Lacking ambition and living a muddled life, he has become a useless person who only knows how to have children!
Standing in this scene, Danzo felt an overwhelming rage with nowhere to vent it.
His face was ashen as he stared at the two women kneeling on the bed, trembling, and the baby crying incessantly behind them. He could no longer suppress his irritation and disgust!
"Get out!" Danzo's face darkened, and he shouted sharply.
[Ding! Emotional fluctuations from Shimura Danzo have been detected! Emotional value +600!]
The two women felt as if they had been granted a pardon. Without even bothering to put on their clothes, they got up and ran out of the bedroom.
They stumbled out of bed, hurriedly picking up their kimonos from the floor and wrapping them haphazardly around their bodies.
Danzo stared at their flustered movements, a surge of inexplicable anger rising within him. He slammed his hand on the edge of the bed: "Wait—!"
His gaze swept over the two still-wailing babies, and he snapped impatiently, "Take these two nuisances with you!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" The two women trembled and nodded repeatedly.
One of them rushed to the crib and picked up a crying baby; the other quickly picked up another child.
The two women hurriedly grabbed their children, not even having time to put on their shoes, and rushed out of the door, practically running away from the bedroom.
boom!
The heavy wooden door was closed.
The room was finally quiet again; the baby's cries had faded away, and my ears could finally have some peace and quiet.
Danzo sat alone on the bed, his face dark, but his mind gradually calmed down.
"Tsk."
He snorted and stretched his stiff neck, finding it much easier to move.
Danzo was the only one left in the bedroom.
His face was still pale. He sat on the edge of the bed, lost in thought for a long time, his chest rising and falling slightly, still indignant about his own character in the dream.
"You bastard!"
Danzo clenched his fist and slammed it hard against the bedpost beside him, his anger still burning. "Why wasn't it earlier?!"
Why wasn't it a dream like the last one?!
He couldn't understand why the dream hadn't been set during the Second Shinobi World War this time.
In his view, compared to the petty and stagnant situation before him, earlier points would have been more conducive to him making his mark!
Now, place him within the context of Minato Namikaze's years in power.
What can he do here?
He recalled the powerful Minato Namikaze and his men in his dream.
Danzo's face was extremely grim.
"Damn it—" Danzo felt increasingly resentful, his chest tight with resentment.
He gritted his teeth and forced out a few words: "Such a dream! It's completely meaningless!"
"Um?"
Danzo stared down at his right hand, vaguely sensing that something was amiss.
My right arm was completely unharmed!
From the shoulders to the palms, the skin was warm and the flesh was intact.
Danzo subconsciously moved his fingers a couple of times; his right arm was flexible and strong, without the slightest stiffness or pain.
He then suddenly realized—oh, right.
The Uchiha clan in this world is alive and well, so the person in the dream naturally didn't obtain those Sharingan.
Without the Sharingan transplanted, the right arm naturally did not need to be sealed and suppressed, and thus returned to its normal human form.
"Hmph, that's true—"
Just then -
Suddenly, a bird's chirping came from outside the window: "Coo-coo-coo. Coo-coo-coo."
The bright morning sunlight streamed into the room through the window paper, accompanied by a few ordinary yet slightly special bird calls.
To the average Konoha villager, this was at most the usual cooing of pigeons in the early morning, but Danzo froze on the spot upon hearing it!
"What is that voice?!"
[Ding! Emotional fluctuations from Shimura Danzo have been detected! Emotional value +500!]
Danzo opened his one eye wide, his heart skipped a beat, and his emotions, which had just calmed down, surged up again in an instant.
"The Root organization's code?!"
For a moment, Danzo almost wondered if he was hallucinating.
To confirm, he suddenly held his breath, raised his hand to signal himself to be quiet, and listened intently like a stone statue.
If it really is a code, then wait three more breaths.
He silently counted in his mind: ".—.———.—"
Just as the count reached "1", the same bird call sounded outside the window again right on time!
"Coo coo coo. Coo coo coo."
Sure enough!
The familiar coded sound arrived as promised, and Danzo's anxious heart was instantly relieved.
His tightly furrowed brows suddenly relaxed, and an uncontrollable look of ecstasy appeared on his previously gloomy face!
He suddenly stood up, threw his head back, and let out a triumphant laugh: "Hahaha! So that's how it is—as expected! How could I have fallen to such a state! It was all a disguise! So cunning and shrewd! Truly worthy of me! Truly worthy of me!"
Danzo's hair and beard stood on end, and he was so excited that he seemed to have become ten years younger.
He waved his fist, his face full of arrogance and pride.
It seems that in this dream, although "oneself" appears to be a law-abiding stay-at-home dad, "oneself" is actually secretly maintaining the operation of the Root organization!
The coded message just now proved everything—he hadn't given up his ambitions in this world, and all his "ordinariness" was just an act to fool outsiders!
After his initial excitement, Danzo quickly calmed down.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, but his single eye still gleamed with barely suppressed shrewdness.
brush!
He nimbly got out of bed, walked to the clothes rack in a few steps, grabbed the dark kimono hanging there and put it on, then quickly put on the outer robe and wide-sleeved cloak.
In just a few breaths, he had tidied his clothes, completely changing his lazy demeanor from his bedroom and reverting to his efficient and capable self.
The unfathomable "Dark Tyrant".
Danzo moved swiftly, following the direction from which the coded message came.
He couldn't wait to see what the "roots" of this world really looked like!