Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

[Chapter 42. Konohana Sakuya (Seeking votes! Seeking investment!)]

The patterns on the Mangekyou Sharingan are absolutely unique; it is impossible for two different patterns to exist.

Zongxian was no exception.

Using Danzo's pupils as a mirror, Sogen saw the six-leaf windmill-like pattern in his own eyes, similar to Shisui's four-leaf blade pattern, except that it had two more leaves, and the blade was also thinner and longer, with a greater curve.

"Aren't they beautiful eyes?"

A pleased smile appeared on Zongxian's face.

However, that smile was more repulsive to Danzo than any demon. Those crimson Sharingan eyes, shaped like a windmill with six blades, awakened long-buried memories in him. Uchiha... has this evil power reappeared?

He opened his mouth to shout,

However, by the time he witnessed the dramatic change in Zongxian's eyes, it was already too late.

Welcome to my world.

The voice abruptly entered Danzo's ears, interrupting his thoughts. His eyes flickered, and he realized he was no longer in the chaotic corridors of the Hokage Building, but instead in a beautiful courtyard garden with stone lanterns, a pond, a small hill, and a bamboo grove…

Looking up, you can see the boundless blue sky, and the endless emptiness seems to swallow you up.

This is fake.

With his mind clear, Danzo looked down at his unharmed body, a feeling of being looked down upon and humiliated surged within him. Even if the Uchiha clan's genjutsu was powerful, there was no need to humiliate him like this, was there? Did they really think he couldn't break this inexplicable genjutsu?

Ok!

He tried several times and had to admit that he really couldn't break this seemingly harmless illusion.

Danzo surveyed the courtyard, which had no exit or path in sight, pondering what kind of illusion this was. It didn't seem to be an illusion that directly harmed people, meaning it was an illusion used to trap people, similar to the 'Fox Mind Technique'? No, that's not right. The Fox Mind Technique makes people mistakenly believe they've entered a maze, causing them to keep moving around and thus exhausting the enemy's stamina.

He's currently completely out of control of his body, so is this some kind of technique similar to the Mist Servant's Technique? Or perhaps a technique of non-existent existence? Neither feels quite right...

"With Danzo as Hokage's assistant, don't you feel this courtyard is missing something?"

The sound I had heard before rang in my ears again.

In the blink of an eye, Danzo saw Uchiha Sogen sitting on a fallen blue stone slab on the grass, three or four steps in front of him. This extremely despicable guy was smiling at him with a disgusting, deceitful smile on his face!

Zongxian sat on the rock, his posture leisurely and relaxed.

He pointed his finger down at the courtyard, saying, "There are mountains, water, bamboo groves, meadows, stone lanterns, and a small shrine here, but there's no beauty in the flowers and trees... So, please lend me a hand! How about adding a beautiful cherry blossom tree here?"

"Uchiha Munen, what exactly are you up to?"

Danzo watched Uchiha Sogen with utmost vigilance, wary of this genjutsu whose true nature was unknown... Huh? Watching Uchiha Sogen suddenly stand up and approach, for some reason Uchiha Sogen's height seemed to be increasing, as if Danzo was kneeling at Uchiha Sogen's feet, looking up at Uchiha Sogen's chin?

"Haven't you noticed yet? You're so oblivious! With Danzo as your Hokage's assistant, and you being a master of sealing techniques, why haven't you realized that something's wrong with your own condition?"

Sogen looked down at Danzo, whose body was half buried in the ground, and his smile grew even more delighted!

He is certainly not some mentally deficient person who can only feel happiness from the suffering of others. He simply finds pleasure in seeing Danzo suffer. In essence, he is a good person who hates to bring pain to others!

On the battlefield, to make sure everyone is completely dead and to avoid them suffering while alive, he would kindly provide a one-stop service for cremation and scattering ashes!

Like waking from a deep dream,

Danzo finally noticed that he was buried in the ground.

To be honest, the old man wasn't worried at all. There was nothing to be worried about. This was Uchiha Sogen's genjutsu world, so it wasn't surprising that anything happened. In fact, it would be strange if Uchiha Sogen didn't make a move at all!

"Is that all the tricks you have, Uchiha Mugen?"

Danzo looked up at Sogen with a contemptuous gaze.

"This is just the beginning! Danzo, the Hokage's assistant."

Zongxian chuckled and pointed, saying, "Look! It's already sprouting!"

A vibrant green shoot broke through the skin and flesh of Danzo's left shoulder and began to grow larger at a visible rate.

"Ahhhh!!!"

Danzo, who hadn't uttered a sound even though his right leg was smashed into a bloody mess, let out a heart-wrenching scream. The roots of the flowers and trees burrowed into his body, wriggling around like small snakes, while the roots on his body, as thick as pythons, turned over the soil and coiled around his body in layers.

Before long, a towering cherry tree stood gracefully in the courtyard, its branches adorned with thousands of delicate pink buds.

"Uchiha Mugen!! What...what exactly did you do?"

That's a good question.

What did Zongxian do?

Looking down at Danzo, who was shriveled up like a dried-out mummy, entangled by the dense tree roots, Sogen's eyebrows and eyes were filled with endless pleasure. "Let me tell you something. When all the cherry blossoms on this cherry tree bloom, that will be the moment you declare your death. All your spiritual energy will be drained and transformed into resources to make me stronger."

Danzo struggled violently.

However, having failed to break free from the restraints before, he was now tightly entangled by the dense tree roots. All his struggles were in vain. This was Sogen's Mangekyou Sharingan eye technique. Unless one possessed eye power or mental strength that was nearly equal to or even surpassed Sogen's, there was no way to break free from this illusion technique called [Kohana Sakuya].

Sakuya Konohana —

This is one of the two eye techniques that Sogen awakened after unlocking the Mangekyou Sharingan. Rather than a genjutsu (illusionary technique), it's more accurately described as a Yin Release (shadow-based) eye technique. As Sogen stated, this technique allows towering cherry trees to grow from the recipient's body, continuously draining their spiritual energy as the trees bloom… This is no longer a genjutsu in the ordinary sense; it has reached the level of genjutsu becoming a true form. This is—

Yin Dun (a type of escape technique)

A Yin-style eye technique.

Sōgen bent down, approached Danzō, and said with a smile:

"But don't worry, I won't kill you right now. After all, you are the Hokage's assistant, Lord Danzo. It's fine to find an excuse to fight you, but before I have enough evidence to ruin your reputation, killing you will cause me a lot of trouble... Of course, I won't let you live to continue causing me trouble."

"A few cherry blossoms from this tree... will be reserved for you, to prolong your life for a month or two before you die peacefully of old age. At that time... your death will not have any direct connection with me."

"Snapped!"

Zongxian snapped his fingers, and all the flower buds on the tree began to bloom enthusiastically, except for a small number of buds in the corner that remained quiet and unmoved!

[Chapter 43: The World of the Strong! (Seeking votes and investments!!)]

The heavy blossoms bent the branches, and the cherry blossoms in full bloom began to wither. The light in Danzo's eyes also dimmed little by little, as if his soul had been taken away. If it weren't for his eyes still twitching instinctively, he would have been a dried-up corpse.

The spiritual energy that returned compensated for the consumption of activating the [Konohana Sakuya] eye ​​technique, and even had a small surplus, giving Sogen, who was also in the illusion space, an indescribable sense of pleasure!

Zongxian flicked his fingers at the few unopened flower buds on the branch.

Looking at the dumpling-like creature entangled by tree roots,

He laughed happily.

He slowly closed his eyes, dispelling the pupil technique.

The time it takes for the flowering tree to grow seems long, but in reality, it's only a moment. Zongxian was still standing in front of Danzo. He looked at Danzo's lifeless eyes, stepped back, and because of the somewhat violent movement, blood gushed from the wound on his thigh, which was then slowly stopped by the power of Yang Release.

"Hey! It hurts!"

Zongxian let out a somewhat fake scream.

However, few people were there to support him at this time. After all, this was not the Uchiha's home turf. Neither Shisui nor Fugaku came over to support Sogen. Everyone's attention was drawn to Danzo, who had silently collapsed to the ground like a corpse.

"Danzo?!"

The Third Hokage stared wide-eyed at Danzo lying on the ground in disbelief.

"Danzo? Someone, someone come here right now! Where are the medical ninjas? Get over here right now, what are you dawdling about for?" Mitokado Homura roared.

Akimichi Torifu couldn't sit still any longer. Whether he liked Danzo or not was one thing, but if Danzo were to die here at this moment... it would definitely be a very troublesome matter. Once Sarutobi chose to go to war with the Uchiha, then they would be destined to be unable to stay out of it!

Yamanaka Inoichi forms hand seals.

Although he wasn't a medical ninja, as a top-tier sensory ninja, he could see exactly what state Danzo was in. He used the Yamanaka clan's mental techniques to their fullest extent, almost to the point of stripping Danzo naked and taking a picture.

"How was it, Haiyi?"

"Hmm..."

Yamanaka Inoichi frowned deeply, looking quite troubled.

Not only Akimichi Torifu scratched his face in confusion, but Nara Shikaku also looked at Yamanaka Inoichi with a surprised expression. As two members of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, they were very close friends. They had known each other for so many years, and they had never seen Yamanaka Inoichi in such a predicament.

at this time,

The medical ninjas stationed at the Hokage Building arrived at lightning speed.

A group of experts dressed in white immediately surrounded Danzo and began to examine him using medical ninjutsu, while also treating his obvious external injuries. As for Sogen, who was also covered in blood and looked extremely miserable... no one paid any attention to him at all!

"Tsk!"

Zongxian smacked his lips.

Having lost the strength to feign screams, he simply took a few steps away, leaned lazily against the wall, and watched a group of medical ninjas arguing with Danzo.

Clearly, it wasn't just Yamanaka Inoichi who was conflicted; these highly skilled and knowledgeable medical ninjas were also caught in the chaos. Everyone held their own opinions, and no one could convince anyone else, resulting in a heated argument. The Third Hokage, Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and others who were not far away were thoroughly confused by what they were hearing.

"Enough! Shut up, all of you! Someone come out and tell me whether Danzo is dead or alive!"

The old lady, Koharu Utatane, was the first to lose her temper, shocking the medical ninjas who were caught up in a frenzy due to the unfamiliar illness.

The numerous medical ninjas exchanged glances, until finally the oldest stepped forward and respectfully said, "Elder Utatane, Advisor Danzo is still alive. Although his breathing is weak and he hasn't regained consciousness, there's no doubt that Elder Danzo is still alive..."

"So what exactly are you arguing about?"

"The main issue is that I have some disagreements with several of my colleagues regarding the reason why Elder Danzo remains unconscious..."

"Alright, I understand. Don't bother telling me any of that technical stuff, I wouldn't understand anyway. As long as Danzo is alive, that's all that matters. Go get Danzo to the hospital quickly. Your job is to get Danzo back to normal as soon as possible."

The medical ninjas were silent for a few seconds after hearing this. They looked at each other, clearly none of them wanted to say anything like "Elder Danzo has little chance of waking up" at this moment. If they accidentally got involved in some unpredictable risk, they would have no one to blame but themselves.

Just a short distance away diagonally opposite, Uchiha Sogen, covered in blood, was still watching this side!

There was no need to call a nurse. Two younger medical ninjas simply lifted Danzo on a stretcher and ran towards Konoha Hospital with him on their backs.

that's it,

Danzo, who had fallen into a deep coma, was sent to Konoha Hospital.

Once the medical ninjas disappeared from sight, the already ravaged corridor fell into a deathly silence once more. Aburame Ryoma had already ended his battle with Shisui when Danzo fell, and like Danzo's shadow, he quietly followed the medical ninjas to Konoha Hospital.

As one trending topic faded away, everyone's attention finally shifted to another.

The culprit who caused Elder Danzo to fall into a coma.

"Why are you all staring at me? By the way, are there any medical ninjas here? Danzo's Wind Release technique is really powerful! He almost cut my thigh off." One of the culprits sighed, reaching up to touch the bloody wound on his thigh, his face immediately showing a pained expression.