For Konoha

Ebizō continued leading the search team while pondering the possible involvement of Root in this whole mess.

During the reign of the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, the ANBU was created in Konoha—a unit composed of elite ninjas for missions involving infiltration, sabotage, and the assassination of important figures.

Over time, other villages also adopted this system and established their own ANBU to do the same.

Typically, ANBU ninjas were responsible for the village's most secret and critical missions, and the identity of its members was known only to a few at the top, often referred to by code names.

However, during the tumultuous period of the Second Great Ninja War and the Third Great Ninja War, a new force emerged.

A branch of Konoha's ANBU, led by the village's then-councilor, Shimura Danzo.

In essence, Root was just a subdivision of the ANBU and shouldn't have held much importance, but in practice, Ebizō knew it was quite the opposite.

According to information obtained during the Third Great Ninja War, Ebizō discovered that Root was far worse and far more dangerous than the traditional ANBU.

Its members were all elite ninjas from the village's main clans. Their minds were broken, knowing nothing but duty; they were perfect and deadly human weapons.

They were responsible for eliminating anyone who posed a threat to the village—or so he believed—but now, knowing the story of that Senju woman, he began to question the original intentions of such an organization.

"Do they protect the village or Danzo's interests?"

Ebizō frowned. The actions of Root, coupled with the cruelty and ruthless attitude of its leader, earned Danzo the nickname "the darkness of the Shinobi world."

Dealing with such a figure would undoubtedly be challenging, but even more concerning was something else that troubled Ebizō.

"The presence of Root means Danzo must be directing this operation, and the presence of Orochimaru..." The involvement of Orochimaru made Ebizō frown even more.

"Whether the Third Hokage knows anything or not is irrelevant now. The important thing is to gather as much information as possible." Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Ebizō refocused and continued running; at his speed, he should reach the base's location shortly.

---

While Ebizō was rushing toward the base, a figure strolled calmly through the corridors, observing with interest the carnage around them.

They had long hair, pale skin, and cold eyes that resembled those of a serpent.

This was, of course, the research director of the site, the Sannin Orochimaru.

Looking at the many twisted branches impaling the corpses, a glimmer passed through his eyes.

"Interesting..."

Suddenly, a figure appeared behind Orochimaru, but he said nothing and continued looking around.

"Lord Orochimaru, all important data has been collected, as well as the bodies of the test subjects that weren't too damaged."

Orochimaru remained silent, and after one last look around, he turned, went to the heart of the base, and activated a small mechanism before swiftly leaving the area.

Shortly afterward, a powerful explosion rocked the site, destroying any evidence of what had been done there.

Outside, Orochimaru watched as the desert sands covered what remained of the base before turning and leaving. His presence there had lasted long enough.

Shortly after his departure, Ebizō arrived at the scene with the Suna ninjas. Seeing that there was nothing left, he quickly ordered the Earth Style users to investigate, but in the end, they couldn't find anything of value.

"We arrived too late..." With a weary sigh, Ebizō signaled to the Suna ninjas and then headed back to the village.

---

Somewhere in Konoha

In a dark room with only a candle as a light source, a man leaned slightly over a table, examining a stack of scrolls containing various pieces of information.

He had black hair, an X-shaped scar on his chin, and bandages covering his right arm and right eye.

This was Danzo, the darkness of the Shinobi world.

While Danzo was absorbed in the information before him, a small snake appeared near him and vomited a scroll before leaving.

Danzo remained immersed in the information he had without moving, when from the shadows, a masked figure emerged, grabbed the scroll, placed it on the table, and then once again returned to the shadows, disappearing completely from Danzo's sight.

Seeing the figure leave, Danzo set aside the scroll he held and opened the one sent by Orochimaru.

Reading the information about the base in the Land of Wind being destroyed and with a possible test subject who awakened the Wood Release having escaped, Danzo couldn't help but feel slightly apprehensive.

He calmed himself a bit before continuing to read. According to Orochimaru, a search team formed by Root members who accompanied him had already been dispatched to find the possible fugitive, but he himself was returning along with the primary research data.

After finishing the scroll, Danzo leaned back in his chair, his single eye gleaming as he pondered his next move.

Objectively, the escape of one or two test subjects was irrelevant. Their minds were shattered, their bodies marked with chakra seals developed by the Uzumaki themselves.

Furthermore, that base was located near the border of the Land of Wind with the Land of Rain, far from any signs of life for miles.

Even if they escaped, they wouldn't survive, especially in the condition they were in.

Recalling the information about the type of experiments being conducted there, Danzo was more inclined to believe that one of the pregnant women had suffered a Yang energy overload and destroyed the place.

Even so, he didn't dismiss a possible escape, and the negative impacts it could bring to the village if, by some miracle, the test subject survived or was found by someone.

"The power of the Senju in the hands of another village..."

Thinking about this, a cold glint passed through Danzo's eye as he stood and left the scroll on the table.

"Activate our spies in Suna and send a team to Amegakure. Cooperate with Orochimaru and inform me of any updates," he spoke lightly as he left the room.

A group of masked figures then emerged from the shadows, and after glancing at each other, they swiftly disappeared from the place as if they had never been there.

In another room, Danzo stored the scroll with the information sent by Orochimaru. Then, he returned to the previous room and resumed his position, examining the other information. As the leader of Root, he had much to do, sacrificing a great deal of his personal life for the good of the village, but it didn't matter. After all, it was a small sacrifice he was willing to make.

"For Konoha."