Danzo : This Time I Want to Be a Good Person

[Detected Konan's gratitude. Skill point +1. Acquired skill package: [Dance of the Shikigami] ]

The swift arrival of the reward brought a faint smile to Danzo's face beneath his mask. Staying behind to cover the retreat had been worth it.

'With Konan's flying abilities, those Rain-nin should find it quite difficult to catch them,' he thought.

Nagato turned his head, standing beside Danzo as they both observed the surrounding enemies.

"Sorry," Nagato said suddenly, his voice heavy with guilt.

"Hmm?" Danzo cast him a puzzled look.

"Even though we let down Lord Danzo's goodwill, you still chose to help us. Dragging you into this mess... I truly feel ashamed," Nagato explained solemnly.

Disguised as a Root member, Danzo offered a faint smile. "There's no need to apologize. We, members of the Root, live to uphold the will of the Root and preserve peace. Since Lord Danzo has declared you the future of peace, I would lay down my life to protect you."

This declaration left Nagato stunned.

To sacrifice oneself for the ideal of peace—what an incredibly noble character!

If a mere member of Root possessed such a conviction, how much more extraordinary and selfless must the Root's leader, Lord Danzo, be?

By comparison, Hanzo of the Salamander wasn't even fit to clean Danzo's shoes!

The thought filled Nagato with renewed guilt over having disregarded Danzo's warnings.

Overwhelmed by this emotion, Nagato said earnestly, "Rest assured, I will do my best to hold Hanzo off. If an opportunity arises, you should escape without me!"

Danzo, his face hidden by a mask, shook his head. "I, Hikaru, could never abandon a comrade to save myself."

Once again, Nagato was moved to tears.

However, Hanzo was not about to let them continue their heartfelt exchange. Wielding his chained sickle and flanked by Rain-nin, he approached the two of them.

"Although those two brats managed to escape, capturing your Sage Eyes will suffice. As for the remaining members, I'll wipe them out one by one!"

Hanzo's words ignited a fierce anger within Nagato.

But Danzo spoke first. "Enough talk, Hanzo. If you're so capable, come at us yourself!"

Hanzo narrowed his eyes, a flicker of hesitation crossing his face. Truthfully, he was wary of the legendary Sage Eyes and hesitant to act rashly before fully understanding their power.

Danzo's taunt hit home. Hanzo snorted coldly. "Kill them!"

"You spineless coward," Danzo sneered mercilessly.

Turning to Nagato, he said, "One in front, one behind. Don't leave any openings."

"Understood."

Not skilled at verbal sparring, Nagato could only focus on the impending battle.

Shh, shh, shh!

Under Hanzo's orders, the Rain-nin launched a dense barrage of kunai and shuriken, creating a deadly rain of steel that enveloped the two of them.

"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"

Nagato acted without hesitation. With a wave of his hand, a powerful gust of wind scattered the incoming kunai.

Danzo moved simultaneously.

He exhaled a concentrated stream of Wind Release chakra, infusing it into a kunai in his hand.

Wind Release: Vacuum Blade!

The sharp blade emitted a terrifying shriek as it cut through the air.

In the next instant, Danzo performed the Body Flicker Technique. Before several Rain-nin could react, their heads were already severed.

The ground spun, and four ninja attempting to close in fell to the ground.

On the other side, Nagato also demonstrated his terrifying strength and ninjutsu talent.

"Earth Release: Earth Spike Technique!"

"Fire Release: Flowing Fire Technique!"

"Lightning Release: Thunder Fang Stream!"

"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"

Nagato unleashed a variety of ninjutsu, and what was most dangerous was his mastery of all elemental ninjutsu. He could easily counter the enemy's attacks by using corresponding ninjutsu to restrain them.

With Nagato's ninjutsu bombardment and Danzo's close-range lethality, the Rain-nin found it impossible to close in on them.

Hanzo surveyed the battlefield.

The power of the Sage Eyes was indeed formidable, and that brat's chakra reserves seemed alarmingly vast. Thankfully, he had brought enough subordinates this time.

Once they wore Nagato down, Hanzo was confident he could capture him with ease.

As for the ninja claiming to be from Root...

The use of Body Flicker Technique by this man felt strangely familiar. After all, Water Body Flicker was one of his signature techniques. Although not unique, few could perform it with such speed.

In all the people Hanzo knew, he alone was capable of it.

"Where did this guy come from?"

The more Hanzo looked, the more he doubted the man's claim to be from Root, especially since Danzo, that old fool, certainly couldn't use such a technique.

As time passed, Nagato, having fought for so long, began to show signs of exhaustion.

He leaned heavily on his knee, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

However, the damage they had caused together with Danzo was also significant.

In just the roughest estimate, at least thirty skilled Rain-nin had already died by their hands.

These were all carefully selected elite guards, and even Hanzo felt some pain in losing them.

But as long as he could get his hands on those Sage Eyes, it would all be worth it.

Seeing the Rain-nin begin to waver, Hanzo knew it was time to make his move.

In a flash, he silently appeared behind Nagato.

The sharp scythe sliced through the air, heading straight for Nagato's head.

Although Nagato sensed Hanzo's presence with his superior perception, his body was unable to react in time. He could only lunge forward in an attempt to dodge.

Just as Nagato thought he would be grievously wounded by the sudden attack, the masked figure appeared once more in the nick of time.

Danzo used his Water Body Flicker to match Hanzo's movements and blocked the powerful strike aimed at Nagato with his Vacuum Blade.

[Detected Nagato's gratitude. Skill point +1. Acquired skill package: [Earth Release · Earth Flow Wall] ]

"Annoying pests!"

Hanzo retreated, throwing the meteor hammer connected to his scythe toward the masked figure with a sharp whoosh, aiming to crush him.

However, Nagato had already recovered. He approached Danzo's side and launched a [Gale Palm], the powerful air current swirling back the meteor hammer toward Hanzo.

Seeing this, Hanzo was forced to use his Body Flicker again to distance himself.

But Danzo was relentless. Wielding his Vacuum Blade, he performed another Body Flicker and closed in on Hanzo, engaging in a fierce close-range battle.

The battlefield became a blur of two figures, with sparks occasionally flying from their clashes.

Through his mask, Danzo carefully observed Hanzo's every movement.

He had to admit that, over the years, Hanzo had lost much of the aura of the once legendary "demigod."

His combat style had grown more cautious. If he had once been an untamed lion, now he was nothing more than a careful old fox, focused on deception and scheming.

His once-sharp claws had dulled.