Konoha, reported by the Fourth Hokage at the start.

Chapter 77 Pain! It hurts so much!

"Lord Tianzhu, an A-level fluctuation has appeared in the Yellow-Green Forest in the Northeast District. Please go and check it out."

In the sky, Sarutobi Tenjuro and his wife, who were returning from the valley to expand their search for Li Yao, sat on the ink-wash bird. Suddenly, the voice of the mountain noga in Sarutobi Tenjuro's head rang out.

With the help of the massive barrier at the center of the barrier and the device that amplifies chakra perception, Shanwu Jia can have telepathic conversations with ninjas with chakra marks within the barrier's perception range.

When Sarutobi Tenjutsu heard the A-rank ninjutsu chakra fluctuations coming from the Yellow-Green Forest, which wasn't far from where they were, a thought immediately struck him.

"Is that Li Yao?"

Sarutobi Tenju thought to himself, then looked up and said "Received," replying to Shanwu Jia.

"Do you have any information about Li Yao?" Sarutobi Ayase asked.

"Information from the barrier center indicates that an A-level fluctuation has appeared in the Yellow-Green Forest. Let's go take a look," Sarutobi Tenjuro replied.

"Is that Li Yao?" Sarutobi Ayase asked.

"I don't know, let's go check." Sarutobi Tenjuchi shook his head and said.

Sarutobi Ayase immediately maneuvered the ink-wash bird to change direction and head towards the yellow-green forest.

They've confirmed that the Li Yao they're tracking is a shadow clone; now it's up to Jessica and Ryoma to confirm whether the Li Yao on the other side is the real one.

If not... then this is troublesome.

The couple thought to themselves.

at the same time.

Leaf.

Danzo, who had been rushing back as soon as he realized the sealing technique on Li Yao's heart had been lifted, finally arrived back in Konoha this morning after two nights and one day, thanks to the sensory barrier near the Root underground base.

Danzo formed hand seals and quickly passed through the sensory barrier.

As a close friend of the Third Hokage of Konoha, Danzo naturally knew the secret formula for the technique of freely sensing the barrier.

When Danzo returned, the perception barrier remained completely still.

soon.

Danzo arrived at the entrance to the Root Base with a heavy heart.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"

Three ANBU ninjas suddenly appeared and surrounded Danzo. They mistook him for an enemy, but when they saw that it was Danzo and looked up, the three immediately said respectfully, "Lord Danzo."

Seeing the three members of the Anbu appear, but the Root squad that was left behind did not, Danzo frowned and realized that there was a problem with the Root base, and a big problem at that.

"Inside... never mind."

Danzo stopped himself as soon as he opened his mouth, shook his head, too lazy to ask any more questions, and strode into the Root underground base.

Two ANBU ninjas followed Danzo inside.

The remaining one quickly left to report to the third generation.

Upon entering the Root Base, passing the large hole created by Li Yao, Danzo glanced at it, his face darkening, and quickly headed towards Laboratory Zero.

soon.

Lab Zero was right in front of him. Through the oil lamps still lit in the corridor, Danzo saw the broken door of the lab and three black and red bloodstains in the corridor. His pupils contracted slightly. He used Shunpo to get to the door and looked inside. His heart clenched instantly.

pain!

It hurts so much!

Danzo took down the oil lamp beside him and walked heavily into Laboratory Zero.

The equipment inside was completely destroyed, and the ground was like a field that had been plowed through, with rubble everywhere.

Danzo then carried an oil lamp to the original culture medium used to cultivate the first generation of Wood Release cells.

The glass equipment inside was shattered, and the original Wood Release cell solution was also gone.

This is the original Wood Release cell essence that he has painstakingly cultivated over the years!

It should be noted that the First Hokage's Wood Release cells need to consume a large amount of chakra and nutrients to survive. Over the years, he has spent countless resources and chakra to cultivate just this small amount, and now it's all gone.

"What exactly is going on?"

Danzo's forehead veins bulged as he turned and roared at the two Anbu ninjas who had followed him.

The two ANBU ninjas lowered their heads and looked at each other, wondering what was going on with Danzo.

After all, Li Yao came from the Root Base.

However, Danzo treated the Root base as his private property, with layers upon layers of barriers inside and out. Even after Li Yao broke through a large hole, many barrier traps were still in operation.

Anyone who enters without knowing the secret formula faces a high risk of death.

So, even after Li Yao's escape, the Root base remains exactly the same. The Third Hokage shook his head when he saw it, leaving only them to guard the base entrance and cave, waiting for Danzo to return and inform him.

It seems the Third Hokage had known all along that Danzo would return ahead of schedule.

As it turns out, the third generation really did understand his best friend's methods and character.

Danzo's return allowed them to follow him into the Root base for the first time.

So Danzo asked them what had happened here, which really put them in a difficult position.

And even if they knew something, they couldn't tell Danzo.

Danzo's Root organization belongs to the Dark Department, but it is also independent of the Dark Department.

Danzo wasn't their superior, so they couldn't say anything to him carelessly.

At this moment, they remain silent.

Faced with the silence of the ANBU ninjas, Danzo roared and then fell silent. He knew that these ANBU ninjas certainly did not know the detailed information.

"Hmm... what is that?"

At that moment, Danzo noticed out of the corner of his eye that there seemed to be a large hole under the broken chakra metal bed. Then, as if he had thought of something, his expression suddenly changed, and he instantly rushed to the hole to take a look.

Although the oil lamp light was dim and not very bright, it was difficult to see clearly.

But Danzo knew that the Devouring Seal Orb buried underground was already broken.

This means that the entire culture medium circulation system at the facility will collapse as a result.

"Li Yao..."

"what!"

"not good!"

Danzo roared angrily, then his expression changed, and he turned and ran away.

Upon arriving at the door of Laboratory Number One, Danzo was about to push the door open when he suddenly calmed down, glanced at the two Anbu ninjas who had followed him, and did not open the door to go in.

"Forget it, by now, the Sharingan inside must be broken."

Despite his reluctance, Danzo knew that without the chakra provided by the Devouring Sealing Orb, the culture medium in the entire base laboratory would run out of energy and lose its nutrients within a single night.

Another day has passed, and his Sharingan in Laboratory One is now broken and unusable.

"Let's wait for Hiruzen."

Danzo turned around and leaned against the gate without saying a word. He had already partially opened the barrier around the Root base, allowing Hiruzen to come here along the path he had taken.

The two ANBU ninjas glanced at the door of Laboratory Number One and understood that there were secrets inside that they could not know.

Neither of them were curious, nor did they say anything.

Some secrets can only be known at the cost of one's life.

Neither of them wanted to die young.

After waiting quietly for two minutes...

A series of hurried footsteps echoed in the corridor, quickly reaching the passageway of Laboratory One.

In the dim light, the third generation's face, suppressing his anger, was the first to appear.

"Lord Hokage," said the two Anbu ninjas who followed Danzo.

The Third Hokage nodded, then glared fiercely at Danzo before saying to the two Anbu ninja, "You two can leave now."

"Yes, Lord Hokage." The two immediately walked past the Third Hokage and left.

Once the two men's footsteps were completely out of earshot, the Third Hokage could no longer suppress his anger, but before he could say anything, Danzo struck first.

"What on earth happened, Hiruzen?"

Why is there a large hole at the base of my roots?

"Why is my test subject gone?"

Danzo immediately launched into a barrage of three questions, his expression even more furious than the Third Hokage's. He was practically asking the Third Hokage how he could become Hokage, letting an experimental subject from a Root base escape.

Seeing the Third Hokage's expression, Danzo knew that Li Yao had escaped Konoha, so he took the initiative to attack.

However, Danzo was unaware that Li Yao possessed sealing techniques, and he even briefly clashed with Mito Uzumaki without being at a disadvantage, causing the danger level to rise sharply.

He underestimated the anger of the three generations towards Li Yao's escape.

"you……"

The third generation's eyes widened in fury, his mouth agape, and he was momentarily speechless.

He was shocked by Danzo's shamelessness.

Let's not even talk about how this guy abandoned his position as a frontline commander and came back on his own.

He didn't believe Danzo was unaware of the reason for his anger regarding Li Yao's matter.

They actually dare to challenge him now!

"Danzo..." The Third Hokage, burning with rage, stared intently at Danzo with eyes that seemed to devour him.

"Uh..." Under that terrifying gaze, Danzo finally realized that he had really touched Hiruzen's sore spot this time, and could no longer get away with it as before. So he immediately lowered his head to admit defeat and stopped resisting Hiruzen's gaze.

(End of this chapter)