Konoha's Genius is a bit Ordinary?

"Tsunade-sama, you are the Hokage," Natsuro remarked, a bit speechless as Tsunade tossed the question back to him.

"Well, Natsuro, you're the future Sixth Hokage," Tsunade replied with a grin.

"Besides, you brought back this intelligence. I'm sure you've already thought of countermeasures on your way back. Let's hear them."

Natsuro looked at Tsunade's smiling face and suddenly felt like she'd picked up some bad habits. But who could she have learned them from?

After a moment's thought, Natsuro said, "These pieces of evidence can't be used directly. Surely, Tsunade-sama, you understand that?"

"Of course," Tsunade nodded.

"That's why, on the surface, we need to continue investigating Danzo, forcing him to remain in hiding. Meanwhile, we'll assign an experienced ninja to quietly investigate these matters within Konoha."

"An experienced ninja… Kakashi?" Tsunade considered for a moment and landed on a suitable candidate.

Natsuro nodded and continued, "We can assign Kakashi a public mission that requires him to leave the village, preferably an S-rank mission. At the same time, we'll give him a new ANBU identity with the authority to secure cooperation within Konoha."

"That can be arranged," Tsunade agreed.

"This way, even if the advisors question the source of this evidence, they won't be able to deny its authenticity. And of course, we'll involve the Third Hokage."

Natsuro's eyes glinted. If the Third Hokage wanted solid proof, he would give it to him.

"The old man, huh…" Tsunade sighed but didn't object.

"As for the older evidence, while it's relatively substantial, investigating something from so long ago within Konoha won't be easy. Still, we can have Yamato give it a shot. If he finds something, it'll be a bonus. If not, it doesn't matter. So long as the first investigation pans out, we can pin the rest on Danzo," Natsuro added.

Tsunade sighed in agreement. "Yamato, huh? He's also one of the orphans from that time, isn't he?"

"Yes, and that makes him even more motivated to dig into this. He was once part of Root and is familiar with its workings. He might surprise us," Natsuro said.

"Alright, we'll go with your plan," Tsunade said, waving her hand as she instructed Shizune to summon Kakashi and Yamato.

Shizune, fully aware of the seriousness of the matter, adopted a grave expression and immediately went to carry out her task.

"Tsunade-sama, shouldn't you give this a bit more thought?" Natsuro asked, a little exasperated.

"What's there to consider? Your suggestions are already solid. Time is of the essence, we don't know how long Danzo will remain in hiding, but he won't stay tucked away forever. We need to act quickly," Tsunade replied.

Natsuro could only nod in resignation. It felt like Tsunade just wanted to avoid extra work.

Before long, Kakashi arrived, still as lazy-looking as ever. Tsunade briefed him on the mission and handed him the scroll.

Kakashi's demeanor grew serious as he reviewed the contents of the scroll. He glanced at Natsuro, a flicker of respect in his gaze.

Kakashi had known Natsuro wouldn't let things slide, but he hadn't expected him to act so swiftly or to obtain such comprehensive intelligence.

The source of this information was undoubtedly not from Danzo himself. Was it from Orochimaru?

"Well, do you think you can handle it?" Tsunade asked once Kakashi finished reading.

"Of course. With the investigation this far along, there's no excuse for failure," Kakashi replied, his eyes gleaming.

Kakashi, too, had his reasons to want Danzo brought down. He'd previously investigated White Fang's demise and found little evidence. The voices criticizing White Fang back then had been few but strategically concentrated around him, creating the illusion of widespread condemnation.

If Danzo fell, Kakashi wouldn't mind giving him an extra push.

He even regretted not having proof of when Danzo had ordered him to assassinate the Third Hokage. That could have been useful now.

"Alright, Shizune," Tsunade said with a nod.

Shizune handed Kakashi a mask and an insignia representing Hokage-level authority.

During this mission, Kakashi's authority would extend beyond mere investigation. Even Kakashi couldn't help but glance at Tsunade, surprised by the level of trust she placed in him.

At that moment, a knock came at the door, and a masked figure entered. It was Yamato (Tenzo).

"Hokage-sama, you called for me? Kakashi-senpai and Natsuro are here too?" Yamato noted upon entering, surprised to see the two of them.

"Hmm? Oh, it's Yamato," Kakashi greeted lazily.

"Yamato-taichō, it's been a while," Natsuro added with a nod.

"Yamato, I called you here to investigate Root's past activities." Tsunade cut the small talk and handed Yamato a scroll.

Yamato opened the scroll and froze. He hadn't expected to ever confront something like this.

Not only had Orochimaru been involved back then, but Danzo as well, and it had been Danzo who initiated it all. Even the children used in the experiments had been provided by him.

Yamato's hand tightened around the scroll, catching Kakashi's attention. Whatever was written inside clearly had personal significance to Yamato.

After a long silence, Tsunade spoke again. "This happened a long time ago, so if you can uncover something, great. If not, we'll move on."

"Hokage-sama, my memories might be the best lead," Yamato said unexpectedly.

"If Orochimaru and Danzo worked together deeply, then it's likely I saw something as a baby, even if I can't consciously remember it now."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Tsunade asked, surprised. Most people were unwilling to have their memories probed, especially memories buried so deeply.

For Yamato to offer such access meant exposing everything about himself.

According to Inoichi Yamanaka, it was possible to retrieve memories from infancy if the subject cooperated fully, but it was extremely difficult.

"Yes. All these years, I thought Orochimaru was solely responsible for what happened, and that he was the only one to blame. But now I know there was another... Danzo, the mastermind.

"For the sake of those like me, who were used as experimental subjects and died in agony, my memories are a small price to pay."

Kakashi understood what Yamato was referring to. But even he hadn't realized Danzo had orchestrated the events surrounding the Wood Release experiments.

On second thought, though, it wasn't entirely surprising. Danzo had always coveted the power of the First Hokage's Wood Release.

"Then prepare yourself. Natsuro, will you do it, or should we call Inoichi?" Tsunade asked, knowing Natsuro's mastery of the Spirit Transformation Technique could serve the purpose.

"Inoichi-ojisan should handle it. My history with Danzo might lead to the results being questioned," Natsuro replied.

"Fair point. But you know as well as I do that even if Inoichi handles it, people will still question the results." Tsunade smirked, giving Natsuro a knowing look. Everyone was aware of Natsuro's ties to the Yamanaka clan.

"True, but it's still better optics," Natsuro shrugged.

"Alright, Shizune, call Inoichi here. Yamato, wait in the adjacent room in the meantime," Tsunade instructed.

With that, Kakashi left to begin his mission, and the room was soon empty save for Tsunade and Natsuro.

"Well, I'd better head out too. I've got other things to take care of," Natsuro said, standing to leave.

"What could be so important?" Tsunade asked curiously.

"Finding a place to train," Natsuro replied simply.

Tsunade stared at him, exasperated. "Why are you pushing yourself so hard? You're already strong enough."

She genuinely didn't understand what drove Natsuro. The more she learned about him, the more she realized he had put just as much time and effort into training as someone like Rock Lee.

Unlike Rock Lee, whose intense training was visible to all, Natsuro's training was mostly unseen. But as Hokage, Tsunade knew exactly how much time Natsuro dedicated to improving himself.

Why couldn't he take a break?

Natsuro had anticipated this question and answered calmly, "Tsunade-sama, you know about Jiraiya-sensei's prophecy, don't you?"

"The prophecy? Of course. But surely you don't believe in it?" Tsunade frowned.

"I wouldn't say I fully believe in it, but to completely dismiss it would also be foolish..."

Check out the patreon and get 55 chapters in advance -> SaintXI

Currently on Chapter 273 - Amenotejikara?