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Kakashi followed the lead Anbu into the Root headquarters.
The moment they stepped inside, two Root operatives blocked their path.
"Halt! State your business!"
The lead Anbu stepped forward. "The Hokage has summoned Lord Danzō. Relay that His Excellency demands his immediate presence." He produced a sealed letter.
A Root operative took the letter, his voice ice. "Lord Danzō is not here. I will convey the summons upon his return."
"Where is he now?" the Anbu pressed.
"We do not know. It is not our place to speculate on Lord Danzō's movements." The reply was flat, dismissive.
"This is the Hokage's command. We don't care for excuses. Lord Danzō must report immediately."
"This is Root. The Anbu have no authority here."
The lead Anbu glanced at Kakashi. "Kakashi. Use genjutsu."
Kakashi's Sharingan spun. One Root operative crumpled to the floor, mind ensnared.
The other lunged. Kakashi moved faster. A flash of steel. His blade pierced the attacker's shoulder, slammed him to the ground, pinning him like a specimen. A second flick of the Sharingan, and he was out cold.
"Kakashi!"
The Anbu team stared, shocked. They hadn't expected blood. This could escalate things. Fast.
Kakashi wrenched his blade free, wiped the blood clean against his elbow, and sheathed it. "He attacked first. That was me holding back. His throat would be open otherwise. They're under. Ask your questions."
The lead Anbu gave Kakashi a heavy look, then knelt before the ensnared Root ninja. "Where is Kinoe?"
Before the man could answer, a shrill alarm shattered the silence.
Ahead, Danzō emerged from the shadows, a dozen Root operatives flanking him.
"Lord Danzō," the lead Anbu's voice was gravel. "Do you intend to defy the Hokage's direct order?"
Danzō scoffed. "This is Root. Hiruzen's orders hold no power here. My word is law. You dare trespass, harm my men… do not think I will let this stand." His gaze fixed on Kakashi.
The Sharingan in Danzō's right socket was not his own. It was one of the many Qianyu had gathered for him years ago. A standard three-tomoe, not a Mangekyō. And unlike Kakashi, whose body bore the drain but not rejection, Danzō's transplanted eye was dying. Cell by cell, it was going blind from incompatibility.
Seeing Kakashi's vibrant, native Sharingan… a perfect replacement flickered in Danzō's mind.
"Apprehend them all," Danzō commanded.
"Yes, sir!"
The Root ninja surged forward—or tried to. Kakashi was already among them, a blur of crackling blue lightning. He stood within their ranks, hand on his sword hilt, voice colder than the underground air.
"You want to catch me? Let's see if you can."
"Thunder Breathing, Second Form: Chidori-Kai — Inazuma!"
He channeled the Chidori into his blade. Blue-white lightning coated the steel. With the exhale of his Breath, he struck—five jagged, lightning-shaped slashes in an instant. The Chidori-energy magnified the power, expanded the killing arc.
Four Root operatives fell before they could blink.
'Your Chidori is still immature,' Qianyu's voice echoed in his memory. 'It has room to grow. Develop it.'
Kakashi had tried. For years. He'd created variations, but none surpassed the raw efficiency of Thunder Breathing's forms. If they weren't better, they were useless.
Then, the spark: don't replace Thunder Breathing. Augment it. Use Chidori as the fuel, the Breathing as the engine.
Thus, the Chidori-Kai sword forms were born. His alone.
Neither Danzō nor his operatives had expected such audacity. For Kakashi to not only trespass but to strike first and kill their own… The remaining Root ninja charged as one.
Seeing the swarm converge on him, a mocking smile tugged at the corner of Kakashi's mask.
"Thunder Breathing, Sixth Form: Chidori-Kai — Denkō Raigō!"
He became the eye of a storm. Countless lightning-like slashes, each chirping with the sound of a thousand birds, erupted from his center, striking everything in a circle.
"Argh!"
The Root ninja were thrown back, their bodies convulsing, utterly defenseless against the onslaught.
It was painfully obvious. They had studied Thunder Breathing, but only a castrated version—the sword forms without the actual Breathing Method. Otherwise, they would have known. Swarming a master of this style was suicide. A perfect setup for an area-of-effect attack.
Danzō's face darkened. In his own base, his men were being cut down. This was an insult.
His cane struck the stone floor. Thud.
More operatives flooded the chamber. Elite ones this time.
As Danzō opened his mouth to order the kill, he stopped. Looked up.
The upper walkways were lined with black masks. Anbu. Dozens of them.
A figure dropped silently, landing right beside Danzō.
Danzō's gaze hardened. "Hiruzen."
Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, his voice calm but leaving no room. "I know you dislike Kakashi. Do not let that justify killing one of the village's finest. And you did defy my order."
Danzō's tone was pure, practiced ignorance. "Dislike? I bear him no ill will. He attacked my men first. I merely sought to detain him. And I defied nothing."
Hiruzen's eyes slid toward him, sharp. "Attacked first? No. I issued a summons. You pretended absence. My men acted on my authority."
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