In Konoha: I will spread the will of conquest throughout the ninja world.

"No wonder I couldn't find it. One-Eyed Dragon really went all out." Leaning against the thick tree trunk, Wu Shixian looked down at the entire hill.

The wind slowly penetrated deeper, transmitting the internal situation to the brain, drawing up a precise map in the mind that even Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't know.

In the eyes of Fifty Strings, there is no absolute privacy in any area where the air circulates.

The wind is everywhere.

Upon closer inspection, he also discovered why he couldn't find the root base before.

Barrier, seal.

The entire base was protected by a powerful barrier, the method of which revealed traces of the Uzumaki clan.

This is only natural. Not to mention that Uzumaki Village has been destroyed, just the fact that when Mito Uzumaki married Hashirama Senju, and Konoha and Uzumaki formed an alliance, the Uzumaki clan made a considerable investment in Konoha.

His Wind Without a Trace technique is indeed powerful, but Konoha is also very large, and the Forest of Death, as a barrier for Konoha, is so large that a Jinchūriki could dance inside it.

With the outer barrier providing protection, it's normal that Igarashi couldn't find the base due to multiple factors. After all, Danzo knew how many things he was hiding that he couldn't let his best friend know. If the base were located near Konoha, it would just be a waste of Hiruzen Sarutobi's time.

Previously, such tight defenses at the Root base would have been a major headache for Isogen, who couldn't find his target. But now...

That's right, privacy must be protected well. We absolutely cannot let some lecherous old man with a crystal ball who spends all his time investigating hot spring hotels find us.

call--

A gentle breeze blows, and the explosive tags are deployed.

Even though explosive tags are regulated ninja tools, it cannot change the fact that, as ninja tools, explosive tags are essentially soft paper. At most, the paper used to make explosive tags is even rarer.

Even the most heavily fortified base still needs oxygen.

The evening wind tirelessly carried the precious strategic materials to the roots.

Time and time again, like ants carrying food.

Based on the actual situation, the mind continuously simulated the situation of the personnel inside the base, bypassed the defenses, and delivered the explosive tag to the appropriate location.

Explosive tags have always been a key strategic resource for all parties to stockpile. Even Danzo, with his dual identity as the Dark Lord of the Ninja World and Hiruzen Sarutobi's best friend, didn't have much left over.

He'd probably be very happy to see so many explosive tags piled up in his base.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

root base.

A dark, cold world, seemingly isolated from the living.

"Lord Orochimaru, he asked me to tell you that he expects to see results in another half month."

A sneer.

"You also told Danzo that research is not about killing people, and that killing people doesn't mean everything is fine."

Orochimaru had no respect for his clients, even though Danzo was his nominal superior.

After the war, he joined Root and was nominally under Danzo's direct command, but as everyone knows, the Sannin of Konoha never obeyed orders.

For Orochimaru, the advantage of being transferred to Danzo's command was that someone would cover for him when he conducted experiments that his teachers didn't want to see, and he could also get free access to Root's resources. Those sophisticated instruments were incredibly expensive, and even his own resources couldn't sustain him for long.

Despite his numerous tasks and substantial savings, he was actually the most financially strapped among them.

Even Tsunade has more time and resources than him.

Jiraiya, needless to say, didn't have any extra large expenses; his mission rewards, after deducting necessary expenses, were all profit.

Orochimaru waved for the others to leave and then fell back into thought.

The research has reached a bottleneck, and there is no hope of a breakthrough in the short term.

He is considering whether to increase the output of human experiments.

The limited amount of material available at this stage is simply insufficient to meet the ever-growing research demands.

But the war is over. Where can we get more materials? We can't just take out the villagers, can we?

Although he vaguely guessed that Danzo's base wouldn't only target captured enemy ninjas, he still had reservations about targeting innocent villagers of Konoha.

His Will of Fire is protesting.

A stain like wanting to become Hokage is unacceptable.

but……

Orochimaru was undecided.

Hokage... that's a position every Konoha ninja has ever longed for, and he was no exception.

If he had never aspired to that position, he wouldn't have earned the title of "Cold Lord".

But since that day, he has found that his longing for the Hokage is no longer as intense.

Instead, there is an endless exploration of the subject of life.

For this reason, he lived almost entirely in the laboratory and research institute for the year, and only occasionally went on missions to earn some research funding.

It turns out that it's really unfriendly to have a research project that isn't your own.

"Danzo, huh."

Orochimaru, having presented Danzo with a condition based on his intelligence, turned and walked towards the laboratory.

Making the most of every spare moment to accomplish one's own goals while the benefits from the sponsors are still available is a basic quality of every scientific researcher.

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, as if a nerve string in his mind was constantly throbbing.

Orochimaru slowly narrowed his eyes and silently released his senses.

The base of the root system was vast, and even he would find it difficult to thoroughly investigate every corner in a short time. His senses were completely empty, just like any ordinary night.

But Orochimaru dared not slack off.

His intuition, honed over many years on the battlefield, made him particularly sensitive to danger.

Both teammates agree on this point.

I vaguely remember that Jiraiya, that idiot, once said something like that while chatting by the fire.

"If the three of us encounter danger, Orochimaru will definitely be the last one standing. Even though he's not good at medical ninjutsu, he has a higher survival rate than Tsunade."

Although Jiraiya was an idiot, Orochimaru agreed with this statement.

Only the living have a future; the dead must stay away.

Without hesitation, following the warning in his heart, Orochimaru quickly left along the fastest escape route he had set on the day he joined the company.

Before anyone at the Root Base could react, Orochimaru had already leaped onto the steep branches of a towering ancient tree, looking down at the Root Base that had put him in danger not far away.

"The sense of crisis has lessened." Orochimaru's vigilance remained.

He hasn't figured out the current situation yet.

This is the Root base located near Konoha. If any disturbance occurs, the Anbu will arrive in a matter of moments. Even the brutes of Kumogakure would not choose to attack here.

Do you really think Danzo is just a freeloader?

So what exactly is it?

There's some kind of dangerous item in the base that I don't know about, and now that dangerous item is about to go berserk?

Or is there really an invasion by foreign enemies?

Recently, I heard that the Four-Tails Jinchuriki from Iwagakure was captured alive and brought back. Danzo went to the Hokage's office that same day.

It is said that he argued with the Hokage inside, trying to take ownership of the Four-Tails, but was sternly rejected by the Hokage.

He slammed the door shut in a fit of rage before leaving.

sizzle.

Orochimaru heard the faint, almost inaudible sound.

then.

Boom!!

A deafening explosion occurred simultaneously with scorching flames and intense heat!

In the wide-open pupils, the root base, which was in darkness and not illuminated by sunlight, seemed to come alive, swallowing countless foods in one gulp, then its belly swelled up and then burst open.

Finally, there was a dazzling white light and a piercing red.

The smell of gunpowder mixed with the aroma of roasted meat filled the air, which he, who was closely connected with snakes, noticed.

His pupils contracted sharply, and even Leng Jun was speechless for a moment, his mind automatically calculating.

The process involves using enough detonators to blow up the entire base, transporting that number of detonators to every corner of the base, and finally activating the detonators by bypassing the heavily defended base.

Even with Orochimaru's intelligence, he had no idea what the mastermind behind the scenes was planning.

If you have that ability, why don't you just go and blow up Danzo?

What a waste!

Taking a deep breath, Orochimaru kept his senses sharp, surveying his surroundings.

Detonating such a large number of explosive tags at such close range would make it impossible for even a Kage-level powerhouse to instantly leave Konoha's search area, especially in front of him.

But finding them won't be easy, since someone who does something like that would definitely try their best to hide themselves...?

Orochimaru blinked, his face full of suspicion.

What does it mean when someone is clapping above my head?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.