Naruto: I Roamed the Ninja World as a Woman

Chapter 90 The Familiar Shadow of You and Me...

Hokage Building.

Even though it was already past the end of the workday, Hiruzen Sarutobi was still holed up in his office, smoking over the crystal ball on his desk.

With a creak, the door was pushed open.

Danzo coughed as soon as he stepped across the threshold, choked by the thick smoke.

"Ahem...Quickly open the window!"

He expertly issued orders to the ANBU ninjas hidden in the corner.

The Anbu members, already intoxicated by the smell, hesitated for a moment, but seeing the Third Hokage wave his hand as well, they obeyed the order.

Danzo glanced at the other person, feeling somewhat annoyed by the ninja's hesitation earlier.

But we can't worry about those minor issues right now.

He took a few steps closer and looked at the Hokage, saying, "Hiruzen, the people from Kirigakure have just arrived."

He then added, "The people from Kumogakure are still on their way, but by tomorrow afternoon at the latest, all the ninja villages participating in the Chunin Exams will have arrived!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his pipe: "Who's coming from Kirigakure?"

"None of the elders or advisors in charge came; the team was led by a few guys from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist."

Danzo snorted: "They're all old acquaintances and old rivals we encountered back when we were on missions."

The current generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist are close in age to Danzo and Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Like them, they were all born a few years before the establishment of the Five Great Ninja Villages.

"I see..."

'

Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi narrowed his eyes slightly behind the smoke.

Seemingly touched by Danzo's words, she recalled the time when she followed her teacher on missions.

I really miss that carefree time I spent...

Danzo Shimura couldn't stand seeing him reminiscing about the past.

It wasn't for any other reason than that he himself didn't want to recall that heartbreaking scene.

If only I hadn't hesitated back then...

"Hiruzen!"

He growled, "The Chunin Exams are about to begin, so it's time you told me your secret weapon, wasn't it?"

The third generation leader paused, puzzled, and asked, "Huh? So I didn't tell you?"

Upon hearing this, Danzo secretly clenched his fist.

Dead monkey!

You're such a good actor!

He had previously paid attention to all the ninja geniuses in the village because of the Root clan's recruitment.

But it remains unclear who exactly gave Hiruzen Sarutobi the confidence to hold the Chunin Exams.

Under Danzo's resentful glare, the Hokage laughed and took a document from his drawer: "It's him!"

Minato Namikaze...

'

Danzo was momentarily stunned upon seeing this, then quickly realized, "A commoner ninja?! Are you crazy?"

If Minato Namikaze had simply changed his surname to Uchiha, he wouldn't have reacted this strongly!

Ironically, Danzo was single-mindedly focused on eliminating the Uchiha clan.

However, he also deeply acknowledged the immense power of the Uchiha clan...

"What's wrong with civilian ninjas?"

The Third Hokage took a drag of his cigarette and boasted with no small amount of pride, "Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Sakumo—they all came from humble backgrounds, but weren't they all incredibly reliable ninjas?"

Danzo laughed: "Reliable? Heh...."

'

I can't even be bothered to talk about that Jiraiya guy!

As a ninja, it's one thing to spend all your time writing.

What's most unbearable is that they have no respect for their elders and completely disobey my orders!

"Fine, I don't care where your confidence comes from..."

'

Danzo paused for a moment, then stated directly the purpose of his visit: "Hiruzen, the Anbu suffered heavy losses in the war. After the Chunin Exams, I need to replenish our ranks with fresh blood!"

He took a document from his pocket: "Looking at the people on this list, they are all quite talented and very suitable for the Dark Division!"

The Hokage took it and looked at it.

Goodness, they're all familiar faces!

At first glance, they are basically all ninjas participating in this Chunin Exams!

That's normal, since this exam was a joint effort by the four villages, with only the Iwagakure family absent.

Those old fogies in the ninja clans all wanted to bring glory to their ancestors and show off, so they sent out almost all the best geniuses in their clans!

"Replenishing manpower for the Dark Division is the right thing to do."

The Hokage put down the list and chuckled, "But, is your body still able to handle it?"

"Um?"

Danzo was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

He's in great health!

Danzo is in his forties and still unmarried.

He doesn't smoke, drinks only in moderation, and even maintains a distant attitude towards women.

Compared to his peers such as Mitokado Hō and Utatane Koharu, Danzō was the most energetic!

"We're all getting old; it's time to leave the opportunities to the younger generation."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed deeply and said with concern, "The Anbu's affairs are heavy. When we were fighting against Kumogakure, I heard that Danzo didn't sleep for three days and three nights. That made me very worried!"

"Now that the war is over, you should get some rest."

Danzo finally understood the unspoken meaning in his words.

I'm going to have to give up my position as head of the secret service!

Although I had long anticipated this day.

but...

"My body can still hold up, and I can continue to contribute to Konoha..." Danzo tried to refuse.

But Hiruzen Sarutobi's attitude was firm: "Once you've finished recruiting, Danzo, you should take a break for a while!"

"I'll leave the Anbu's affairs to Shinnosuke."

"I will promote you to the position of Hokage's First Advisor."

He promised a new pie: "I've been feeling a bit low on energy lately, so I need your help."

This is an unspoken exchange.

Use the talents on the list to exchange for the position of head of the secret service.

of course.

Hiruzen Sarutobi could have simply forced Danzo to step down from his position as department head, but he was unwilling to damage the relationship between friends.

"Danzo, this is the last chance I'm giving you." The Third Hokage sighed inwardly.

Danzo gritted his teeth, making a grinding sound.

"Shin-chan is still young; he may not be able to handle the complex situation in the ninja world."

"These are not problems. We must give young people opportunities to develop."

"And he was completely unaware of the numerous spies and informants in the secret service!"

"This part of the handover can be done gradually. After the Chunin Exams, the war won't come so quickly, so there's plenty of time."

Danzo tried to find excuses many times, but the Hokage refuted them all without leaving a trace.

"I need to preserve the root."

Having exhausted all other options, Danzo simply dropped the pretense: "This is my life's work! I cannot entrust it to anyone else!"

"Can."

The Third Hokage hesitated for a moment: "But I need Orochimaru to oversee everything at Root and report back to me regularly!"

He could not possibly hand over such a highly sensitive intelligence force entirely.

Even before, Sarutobi Shinnosuke was one of the captains of the Anbu, a mole planted by himself.

Danzo flew into a rage: "You monkey, you'll regret this!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi rose from his chair, refusing to budge an inch: "Danzo, I am the Hokage!"

There was no response to this statement.

As Danzo turned and left, he slammed the door shut as he stepped over the threshold to vent his dissatisfaction.

Bang~!

Hearing the loud slam of the door, Hiruzen Sarutobi calmly sat down once again, showing no sign of anger.

The timing of the leadership change in the Dark Division was actually something he deliberately chose.

The current Ninja War has just ended, and there will be no further fighting in the near future.

At the same time, Minato will also win the Chunin Exams, greatly increasing the prestige of the Hokage system.

A two-pronged approach.

Shinnosuke's speed in receiving information from dark areas will be greatly improved.

"Shin-chan, don't let me down." Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the crystal ball on the table, slightly lost in thought.

Danzo's anger didn't completely disappear until he returned to the familiar Root.

"Tell Ryoma to speed up the process of dividing the roots."

Danzo gave a command into the darkness beside him: "Move away all the remaining funds, equipment, and inventory of the Anbu!"

He understood his old friend's mindset very well.

Now it's the other party making the demands.

So, if you take advantage of the situation, the Hokage will just pretend not to see it.

The Root ninja hidden in the shadows replied, "Yes!"

Danzo then asked, "By the way, how's the experiment going?"

"We are currently gathering suitable test subjects. Lord Orochimaru took the previous experiment logs, saying that preparations are still underway."

"6

'

Danzo wanted to urge him as usual, but after thinking about it, he held back.

We can't afford to fall out with Orochimaru right now.

He waved to signal the Root ninjas to leave, and then sat down in a chair.

Shinnosuke...

How could a mere young man manage the complex affairs of such a large secret service?

As for Hiruzen Sarutobi's suggestion of a gradual handover, with experienced members mentoring new ones...

funny!

At her age, why would she want to be Shinnosuke's babysitter?

Danzo sneered inwardly, determined to lie low, while preparing to watch Hiruzen Sarutobi make a fool of himself.

A rift slowly spread between the two familiar faces.

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