Scroll of Seals Incident(Memories-IV).

In the calm yet unsettling night of the Hidden Leaf Village, the air whispered hidden secrets as it weaved through the houses. The shadows of the Anbu glided silently across the rooftops, invisible to the few passersby still roaming the streets. Some were men and women from the Red District, stumbling, either drunk or barely standing.

On the ground, the Konoha Military Police were also at work. The Uchiha patrolled with determination, receiving all kinds of looks: some fearful, others cordial, and some completely indifferent.

Near the Hokage's building, a solitary figure observed the village calmly. His white hair shone faintly under the moonlight, while a completely plain, white mask concealed his face.

Kenjaku stood still, analyzing the Hokage Tower. His senses spread out, scanning the area for any Hiraishin marks. Though several marks were scattered across the structure and throughout the village, the one he sought was near the Hokage's office. However, something caught his attention: he couldn't sense anything inside the office.

It was an unsettling detail. Despite the fact that Hiruzen Sarutobi had left the building a few minutes earlier, leaving only the Anbu and some Root members guarding the area, there seemed to be barriers blocking Hiraishin access to that location.

Kenjaku knew why he was there. Tobirama Senju had placed a seal on his body that would destroy his brain upon his death. It was a clever measure, fitting for the inventor of the Edo Tensei. Although Kenjaku had managed to use Hiraishin thanks to the residual reflexes and memories of Tobirama's body, he had yet to recover all the experience of the Second Hokage.

The Edo Tensei remained out of his grasp. Apparently, Tobirama considered the technique too dangerous and rarely used it, which explained the lack of that memory.

Kenjaku ensured his presence went unnoticed and, after forming a hand seal, teleported to the Hokage office's door. He opened it softly, stepping into the oppressive silence of the room.

His footsteps barely echoed as he approached the desk. He turned on his heels and looked at the portraits hanging on the wall. His attention fixed on Tobirama's. Something inside him reacted, as though the body recognized the figure in the picture. Slowly, he removed the portrait, but what he found wasn't what he expected.

Nothing.

His brow furrowed. 'Shouldn't it be here?' he thought, puzzled. The body's memories told him that the Scroll of Seals should be there—a relic containing forbidden techniques such as the Edo Tensei and others related to Hashirama's Wood Style. But apparently, Tobirama's death had prompted its relocation.

Only one option remained: Hiruzen Sarutobi's residence. It was a risk, but one he was willing to take.

As he turned to leave, something stopped him in his tracks. An unexpected presence became evident.

From the doorway emerged a hooded figure. His mere presence was heavy, imposing. He was someone the body recognized: Danzo Shimura.

The two locked eyes in tense silence.

Kenjaku moved first, throwing kunai with lethal precision. Danzo reacted swiftly, deflecting the projectiles with his own kunai, each movement as precise as clockwork. That distraction was enough for Kenjaku to activate his next move.

With a clap, he summoned a large amount of water that began swirling into a vortex around him. Danzo tensed, recognizing the technique.

"Water Style: Surge Wave," Kenjaku thought, focusing a significant amount of chakra.

The vortex exploded, releasing a wave of water that filled the confined space of the office. Danzo reacted quickly, forming seals at lightning speed.

"Earth Style: Earth Wall," he said, raising a barrier to contain the wave. However, the impact shattered the wall, sending both of them hurtling out of the office.

Boom!

The sound of the explosion echoed through the village, alarming both the Uchiha and the patrolling Anbu. The entrance to the Hokage Tower transformed into a waterlogged battlefield.

Danzo, trying to keep the intruder close, launched a palm strike, but Kenjaku raised water from the ground with a swift movement, briefly blocking his view. Taking advantage of the moment, he delivered a kick, but Danzo evaded it, replacing himself with a log and reappearing on the Hokage Tower's wall.

From above, Danzo observed the masked figure. "You're good, almost as good as the Nidaime. The fact that you can perform Water Jutsu without a nearby source only proves my point," he said coldly and analytically.

Kenjaku didn't respond. Instead, he formed the Shadow Clone seal, creating two replicas of himself. Without missing a beat, he began performing seals at maximum speed.

Ox → Monkey → Hare → Rat → Boar → Bird → Ox → Horse → Bird → Rat → Tiger → Dog → Tiger → Snake → Ox → Ram → Snake → Boar → Ram → Rat → Yang Water → Monkey → Bird → Dragon → Bird → Ox → Horse → Ram → Tiger →...

The tension in the air grew thicker as the events unfolded with breathtaking speed. Recognizing the seal pattern, Danzo charged at the masked figure to interrupt the jutsu in progress. However, the shadow clones stepped in, forcing him into fierce taijutsu combat, two against one, while Kenjaku continued the seals with near inhuman precision.

The first clone intercepted Danzo's advance, throwing a direct punch to his face. With sharp precision, Danzo deflected the blow with his palm while spinning on his axis, using the momentum to sweep the clone's legs. Before the body fell, Danzo grabbed its arm and hurled it forcefully toward the second clone already charging at him.

The flung clone regained its posture midair with inhuman agility, launching into a swift taijutsu exchange with Danzo. Their blows resounded in the air, movements almost a blur, each seeking an opening in the other's defense. Danzo, seizing a split second, blocked a blow to his torso and countered with an elbow strike that hit the clone's face, making it stagger.

The first clone recovered, attacking from a lateral angle. Danzo, with fluid motion, spun around, trapping the clone's arm and using it as leverage to slam it against the ground. In one swift move, he stabbed a kunai into its heart, dissipating it in a puff of smoke.

Now, only one remained.

The final clone launched a barrage of kicks, each one aimed at destabilizing Danzo, but he evaded them with an efficiency that revealed his experience. In an unexpected move, the clone spun to deliver a double-handed overhead strike, but Danzo read it clearly. He ducked, propelled himself forward, and landed a devastating blow to the clone's chest. The force of the impact disintegrated it into smoke, leaving Danzo standing, slightly winded but victorious.

... Snake → Rat → Monkey → Hare → Boar → Dragon → Ram → Rat → Ox → Monkey → Bird → Boar → Rat → Boar → Bird... The complex seals flowed like a river, and with one final movement, Kenjaku unleashed his technique:

"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu," he declared mentally.

A colossal column of water rose from the ground, forming a majestic dragon that roared as it spiraled in the small courtyard. Danzo, having defeated the second clone, quickly attempted to raise another earth wall for protection, but this time, the dragon didn't attack him directly.

In a surprising move, Kenjaku leaped onto the dragon, using it as transportation, much like Hashirama's Wood Dragon technique. The dragon raced across the rooftops at great speed, leaving a trail of water in its wake. But its advance was short-lived. A massive mud wall abruptly rose in front of the dragon, effectively blocking its path.

The water dragon exploded against the barrier, sending a rain of water and steam across the area. Atop the newly formed wall, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, stood firm, his penetrating gaze fixed on the masked figure. Surrounded by his Anbu guards, he appeared imposing under the moonlight.

Danzo quickly reappeared, positioning himself a few meters away to block Kenjaku's possible retreat.

"Who are you, and what is your connection to the Hidden Leaf Village?" Hiruzen demanded solemnly.

Before the masked figure could respond, a sensory Anbu appeared beside Hiruzen in a flash, whispering something into his ear.

"His chakra is extremely similar to that of the Second Hokage, Hokage-sama. I'd say 99% identical, but... there's something different about it."

Hiruzen's frown deepened, visible irritation flashing across his face. His eyes returned to Kenjaku, who remained unperturbed, his mask concealing any emotion.

"Well done, Danzo. Now we'll take care of him." Hiruzen offered a faint smile toward his companion.

Danzo, however, showed clear displeasure. "Shut up, Hiruzen! I can handle this on my own!"

Hiruzen ignored Danzo's protests, turning his attention back to the intruder. "Which village are you from, and why is your chakra identical to the Hokage's?"

Kenjaku didn't respond immediately. Instead, he calmly removed his hood, revealing an Anbu uniform from the Hidden Cloud Village. Then, he took a Cloud headband and tied it firmly around his left arm.

Hiruzen's fury became evident for a moment, but he managed to contain it, adopting a combat stance as he ordered his men:

"Avoid destructive jutsus. We need to force him out of the village while we fight."

The Anbu around Kenjaku began launching Wind Jutsus, performing their seals with speed and precision. At the same time, Kenjaku responded with his own seals.

Bird → Boar → Rat → Boar → Bird.

From the rooftops, walls of earth quickly emerged, enclosing Kenjaku and absorbing the impact of the Wind Jutsus. However, he leaped into the air in a counterattack move with inhuman fluidity, throwing multiple kunai that seemed to blanket the sky.

Before the Anbu could react, Kenjaku formed another one-handed seal, and the kunai multiplied into hundreds, creating a storm of steel. The Anbu, taken by surprise, hurriedly deflected the kunai as the masked figure vanished into thin air.

An instant later, he reappeared directly behind one of the Anbu, summoning a tantō from a puff of smoke and stabbing it into the Anbu's chest.

Hiruzen's eyes widened in shock as he recognized the move.

"Flying Raijin," he thought to himself, clenching his fists tightly.

The intruder had just used one of the Second Hokage's most iconic techniques.