Chapter 174: Danzo and Master Gennō

In the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

After the Nine-Tails' attack, many buildings in the village were severely damaged. Just as the reconstruction work began, the Great Ninja War erupted.

Konoha is now on the brink of destruction, with no energy or heart to carry on with the reconstruction, so most of the projects have been halted.

However, some particularly important buildings, such as the Leaf Hospital, the Ninja Academy, and the Hokage Building, still need to be repaired or rebuilt.

There's also the Hokage Rock.

Behind the Hokage Building, hundreds of carpenters and workers are standing on the scaffolding, busily repairing the Hokage Rock.

Among them, below the statue of the Third Hokage.

Clang, clang, clang.

The crisp sound of hammering resounded. An ordinary-looking old man, wearing a green headband and round glasses, was holding a hammer and chisel, repairing a crack on the statue of the Third Hokage.

His name is Master Gennō, an elderly carpenter who came to work in Konoha from the Land of Wind many years ago.

Master Gennō's craftsmanship is just average, and he doesn't hold much status in the construction team, making him somewhat inconspicuous. However, he is friendly and always has a smile on his face, making him quite likable.

After a whole day of busy work, it was already evening, and the sun was about to set.

"Knock off time, Master Gennō. Want to join us for a drink?"

Two workers shouted from below the scaffolding.

Upon hearing this, Master Gennō wiped the sweat from his forehead and replied with a cheerful smile:

"No, thank you. I have a small matter to attend to tonight."

After watching all the workers leave.

The smile on Master Gennō's face suddenly vanished, and a cold light flashed in his murky eyes.

He put down his hammer and chisel, took out an explosive tag from his bosom, and placed it in the crack on the Third Hokage's statue.

Whoosh.

With Master Gennō making a seal, the explosive tag disappeared into the rock, hidden inside.

"With this, it's almost complete," Master Gennō muttered to himself.

As the sun set and the moon rose, night fell.

In the deep of night.

A figure quietly approached the Hokage Rock under the cover of darkness.

It was Master Gennō.

He came alone to the interior of the Hokage Rock. This place was hollowed out when it was built, forming a huge cave.

As he walked, Master Gennō took explosive tags from his sleeve, accurately attaching them to the spots he had calculated.

Once all the explosive tags were hidden in the walls.

"Finally, it's done."

His gaze was intense, and he could hardly conceal his excitement.

Just then, "Who's there?!" He suddenly shouted, swiftly turning around, his eyes fixed on what was in front of him.

Click, click, click.

Danzo, leaning on his cane, emerged from the darkness. His single eye focused on Master Gennō as he greeted him:

"No wonder you're a master of explosive devices, to think of blowing up the Hokage Rock."

Master Gennō's face changed, and he hurriedly tried to explain:

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just an ordinary carpenter. I wasn't satisfied with the condition of the repairs to the Hokage Rock, so I came to check it."

However, his explanation seemed feeble.

Ignoring his explanation, Danzo stared expressionlessly at Master Gennō and continued:

"Once upon a time, in the Land of the Mountains, there was a village called Kagerō no Sato.

During the Second Great Ninja War over twenty years ago, Konoha waged war against Kagerō no Sato.

At that time, taking advantage of Kagerō no Sato's main forces being out, Konoha launched a surprise attack. A huge fire resulted in heavy casualties in Kagerō no Sato."

Pausing here, Danzo observed Master Gennō's reaction.

Master Gennō was indeed taken aback, his eyes wide. But under Danzo's scrutiny, he still pretended to be unaware:

"What does any of this have to do with me?"

Ignoring him, Danzo, expressionless, kept talking:

"After the war, Kagerō no Sato signed a ceasefire agreement with Konoha, but this was just a stalling tactic.

They sent you, a Jonin, to infiltrate Konoha under the guise of a carpenter.

You successfully evaded ANBU's surveillance, and in just two and a half months, you placed explosive tags all over the village. All you had to do was detonate them, and Kagerō no Sato's forces could counterattack Konoha.

However, during this time, the village leader of Kagerō no Sato, who was a warmonger, unexpectedly died. His successor was a pacifist, and he reached peace with Konoha again, rendering your mission obsolete."

By the time Danzo finished, Master Gennō was already sweating profusely, as if all his secrets had been seen through.

Lastly.

Danzo revealed why Master Gennō stayed in Konoha:

"You originally planned to end the mission and return home.

Unexpectedly, just two weeks after Kagerō no Sato ceased hostilities with Konoha, the village was attacked by other ninja villages.

It seems that because of the war with Konoha, Kagerō no Sato was greatly weakened, and that's why it was attacked and ultimately destroyed.

Everything I said, is it correct?"

After a long silence, Master Gennō finally showed a smile.

He no longer pretended, and sarcastically said to Danzo: "The fate of Kagerō no Sato, it's just like Konoha's current situation, isn't it?"

At the moment, Konoha, too, is seen as weak due to internal strife, and hence, is being attacked by all the major ninja villages.

What goes around comes around.

Danzo shook his head, not answering Master Gennō's question, but continued to ask: "Your son died during Konoha's attack on Kagerō no Sato. So, all of this, you're doing it for revenge, aren't you."

Hearing this, Master Gennō's eyes became sharp, and he suddenly became agitated: "Yes, I've been infiltrating Konoha for twenty years, all for revenge for my son, but I couldn't find an opportunity.

Who would've thought, who would've thought, Konoha has brought this upon itself.

It seems now that Konoha probably won't survive this crisis, it seems I don't even need to take action."

Even though he said this, he still secretly made a hand seal, ready to detonate the explosive tags on the spot.

The mountain behind Konoha is made of extremely hard rock, but these rocks are full of extremely small cracks. If you apply pressure to these cracks, they can easily shatter.

The Hokage Rock was carved using this principle.

Half a month ago, after Master Gennō infiltrated the team repairing the Hokage Rock, he had been looking for weak points in the rock, placing explosive tags in various locations.

Now, if he initiates the explosion, the entire mountain behind Konoha will slide and collapse. By then, the whole of Konoha will be buried under sand and dirt, leading to its destruction.

Especially now, in the middle of the night, with the villagers of Konoha asleep, few people will be able to escape the sudden landslide.

However, just as Master Gennō was about to act, a figure silently appeared behind him. A flash of a blade in the dark was followed by Master Gennō's scream.

His hands were cut off, then, an ANBU blade pierced Master Gennō's heart from behind, his pupils lost focus, and his eyes gradually dulled.

"Lord Danzo." With a cold voice, a ninja, like a black shadow and wearing a mask, walked out from behind Master Gennō and knelt on one knee before Danzo.

He is Danzo's last ANBU subordinate, codenamed "Shadow".

Thud, Master Gennō fell to the ground, showing a wry smile, murmuring:

"It's not a bad end to my long ninja career. It's just a pity... that I won't be able to witness the end of Konoha..."

He then closed his eyes and stopped breathing.