Chapter 272: Nothing More Than a Little Hardship!

The Root shinobi under Shimura Danzō had suffered heavy losses not long ago, losing a large number of elite members. Even now, they had yet to recover their former strength.

Most of the forces he brought today were merely chūnin, completely incapable of matching Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others.

Although Koharu Utatane  was dressed in a kimono, her movements were astonishingly swift. Chakra gathered in her hand, forming a chakra scalpel, and with every flash of movement she took the life of another Root shinobi.

In just a short moment, more than half of the dozens of Root ninjas Danzō had brought were already dead.

BOOM!

"Manipulated Shuriken Technique — Storm of Weapons!"

A Root shinobi's body smashed through the ceiling and flew upward above the Hokage Tower. Before anyone could react, two storage scrolls suddenly unfolded beneath the falling body.

Countless ninja tools burst from the scrolls and shot out in every direction!

In an instant, more than a dozen Root shinobi were pierced through by flying kunai and shuriken, dying on the spot.

The next moment, Homura Mitokado, clad in combat gear and carrying numerous summoning scrolls across his body, leapt through the hole in the rooftop and landed beside Hiruzen Sarutobi and Koharu Utatane  with remarkable agility.

"Tsk tsk… these old guys are really hiding their strength," Uchiha Ren muttered from a distance.

"They look like frail old men most of the time."

Hiruzen's strength was already well known, but both Koharu and Homura usually appeared slow and elderly. Sometimes they even walked with canes, giving the impression of being weak and near the end of their lives.

Yet now that real combat had begun, their performance was not inferior to Hiruzen's at all.

Hearing Ren's remark, Shikaku Nara  explained,

"Don't underestimate Elder Koharu and Elder Homura just because they usually handle administrative duties."

"When they were young, both their strategic minds and combat abilities were on par with the Third Hokage and Elder Shimura."

"At their peak, the only thing separating them from Hiruzen was the title of Hokage."

Ren's eyes flickered slightly.

It seemed he really had underestimated the two elders.

Thinking about it now, the official Naruto databook 'Ren no Sho' had indeed described Koharu and Homura as possessing wisdom and power comparable to the Third Hokage.

Moreover, in the original story during the Nine-Tails attack, it was Hiruzen, Homura, and Koharu together who helped contain the Nine-Tails.

So even if the two elders could no longer perform at their peak, they were still far stronger than ordinary jōnin.

Ren then looked toward Shimura Danzō, who was still standing motionless.

A trace of doubt appeared in his mind.

Was Danzō really that confident?

"Summoning Jutsu — Monkey King Enma!"

Hiruzen bit his finger and summoned Enma, who transformed into the Adamantine Staff.

With a powerful swing, Hiruzen crushed the final Root shinobi into a pool of flesh.

"Danzō, surrender!" Homura shouted, pointing a strange kunai toward him.

"You've already lost!"

"Lost?" Danzō slowly twisted his neck and began unwrapping the bandages around his right arm.

"You've merely dealt with some disposable pawns meant to exhaust you."

"What makes you think this battle is over?"

"Danzō," Hiruzen said with a deep frown.

"Do you really intend to walk this path to the very end? If you turn back now, it's not too late."

His grip on the Adamantine Staff tightened as he tried to figure out what trump card gave Danzō such confidence.

"I am simply eliminating traitors and punishing evil," Danzō replied righteously.

"Why should I turn back?"

"On the contrary—you three have murdered Konoha shinobi without cause. Your crimes have only increased."

"Surrender immediately!"

His shameless words made the three elders feel a chill run down their spines.

"Hmph!"

Homura snorted and threw out a summoning scroll.

"Summoning Technique — Ninja Tool Barrage!"

The scroll unfolded, releasing a flood of kunai and shuriken that shot toward Danzō like a storm.

Yet facing this overwhelming barrage, Danzō didn't even raise his head. He continued calmly removing the bandages.

The air around him suddenly distorted slightly.

Every ninja tool flying toward him was mysteriously deflected away, missing him completely.

A complicated look flashed across Homura's face—followed by deep unwillingness.

"Heh… Homura," Danzō said mockingly.

"Have you forgotten? From childhood until now, you've never beaten me even once."

"My Wind Release completely counters your ninja-tool techniques."

"I am your natural enemy."

Homura was indeed powerful. According to the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju , Homura had once been the only one among their companions who possessed the talent to learn space–time ninjutsu.

Unfortunately, Homura had taken a different path.

Instead of mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique, he devoted himself to weapon-manipulation techniques, wasting that rare talent.

It wasn't that such techniques were weak.

But without powerful or unique ninja tools, their potential for growth was limited.

"That was the past," Homura replied coldly.

"Now it's three against one."

"And even back then… you often lost to Hiruzen."

He pulled out a summoning scroll marked with the character "Lightning."

With a one-handed seal, he summoned a weapon radiating intense lightning.

It was the personal sword of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju —

The Sword of the Thunder God.

This weapon didn't belong to Homura. He had simply grabbed it earlier from the Hokage Tower's storage vault during the battle.

"Today, I'll use our teacher's sword to teach you a lesson."

Homura gripped the blade in one hand and a summoning scroll in the other, his gaze turning sharp.

"Then let's see you try."

Danzō suddenly tore off the remaining bandages on his arm—

Revealing a pale right arm embedded with five Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

"?!!"

Hiruzen and the others were shocked by the grotesque sight.

It wasn't merely disgusting.

With a single glance, they could tell that the arm contained the power of both the Senju clan and the Uchiha clan.

"Danzō… you've already fallen into darkness," Hiruzen said grimly.

"Once this is exposed, there will be no place for you in Konoha."

Danzō merely laughed dismissively.

"Hiruzen… you've grown old."

"Your mind has slowed as well."

"History is written by the victors."

"With enough benefits, there is nothing that cannot be done."

"As long as you three die…"

"The entire village will belong to me."

"Human experimentation?"

He sneered coldly.

"That's nothing more than a little hardship along the way."

"Enough talk."

"Come fight!"

◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇

◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!

◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.

◇ Read 70+ chapters ahead on P@treon → /Sagamaster789