Chương 134

The atmosphere inside the Amagi household gradually relaxed as conversation drifted from politics to food, from upcoming missions to amusing stories from New York. Laughter replaced tension, and for a brief while it almost felt as though the unpleasant scene at the training ground had never happened. Even Tsunade's expression softened considerably after finishing another bite of her sandwich. Rei quietly placed his cup down before looking directly at Tsunade.

"There is one thing I want to make perfectly clear, Tsunade-sama." His calm voice immediately drew everyone's attention. There was no anger in his tone, no irritation, only quiet certainty.

"This is the first and the last time I will allow Danzo to interfere with your decisions regarding me. I accepted today's outcome because it prevents unnecessary conflict during your first days as Hokage. You and quite clearly us too, need stability more than another political battle." His eyes remained completely steady.

"But once I officially become one of your bodyguards... if Danzo attempts something like this again..." Rei paused briefly before finishing in the same composed voice.

"... I will kill him." The silence became suffocating. Naruto nearly dropped the sandwich in his hands while Sakura stared at Rei in complete disbelief. Even Sasuke blinked once before quietly studying Rei's face. The frightening part wasn't the words themselves. It was the complete absence of emotion behind them.

"Rei..." Hana spoke softly.

"Calm down, son." Daichi added immediately. Tsunade placed her sandwich onto the plate.

"Don't let anger make decisions for you." Shizune nodded in agreement while Kakashi watched Rei carefully, trying to find even the slightest hint of rage hidden beneath his expression. Rei slowly shook his head.

"... This isn't anger. When I fought Baki during the invasion, he said something that has bothered me ever since. He mentioned that Konoha had traitors. Not ordinary spies... someone high within the chain of command. Someone important enough that Sunagakure and Orochimaru trusted the information they were receiving." Jiraiya's whose smile had already disappeared said.

"He actually said that?" Rei nodded.

"Not directly enough to identify anyone, but enough that I started thinking. Orochimaru successfully infiltrated the Chūnin Exams, coordinated an invasion involving another great village, and even managed to isolate the Third Hokage. Yet one particular person remained completely absent throughout the entire crisis."

"I have no proof," Rei admitted honestly.

"Only suspicion. But Danzo benefits far too much from Hiruzen's death, and Baki's words haven't left my mind since."

"Then why didn't you tell the council before?" Kakashi asked, and the moment he said those words, he knew he had just uttered bullshit. Why would the council even suspect Danzo, because he was just another member of the council. The others too realized that fact and didn't question why Rei didn't reveal this before. Meanwhile Tsunade was still a bit skeptical, as she had been around Danzo the longest and though his teacher and Danzo went head to head, they cared about Konoha more than ever.

"Suspicion isn't evidence." She said.

"I know, but the other reason why I am kind of sure that Danzo was involved is because I could sense Wood nature chakra around the body of Danzo. You know what that means right?" Rei asked. The words struck the room harder than any explosion. Tsunade's eyes widened before narrowing into a sharp glare.

"... Rei." Her voice had become dangerously serious and trembling.

"Tell me you're joking." Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"You really think I will joke around regarding your grandpa?" Everyone around the table unconsciously straightened. Even Naruto, who usually interrupted first, remained completely silent as he was a bit confused with the deal with Wood chakra. The atmosphere that had been filled with laughter only moments ago had turned heavy once again.

"Then how certain are you?" Tsunade asked.

"About 90%." That answer only made Tsunade's expression darken further.

"... Ninety percent?" Rei nodded.

"The chakra surrounding Danzo carried a very faint but unmistakable vitality. It wasn't ordinary Yang chakra. It felt... alive." He paused briefly while searching for the correct words.

"And there was something even stranger. His original old chakra was still there and then there was this vitality. An old person like him shouldn't have such contradicting chakra nature." Tsunade and the others were now speechless. Those who knew what it meant gave everyone chills down their spine, while the rest though confused didn't utter a single word.

"He isn't a Senju." Rei continued.

"Nor has anyone ever reported him possessing Wood Release. Yet I distinctly sensed chakra that should resemble close to it. Those two facts contradict each other." Jiraiya suddenly cursed beneath his breath.

"Damn it... I never got close enough to him today." His brows knitted together in frustration.

"Now that I've inherited the same Senjutsu constitution as you, I should've been able to sense something unusual too." Rei slowly shook his head.

"I'm not sure you could. My sensory perception doesn't come from Senjutsu alone." Rei looked toward Jiraya.

"I also possess the Uzumaki bloodline. Their life force and chakra perception are extraordinary to begin with. Senjutsu simply amplifies what was already there. Without that foundation, you might notice abnormalities, but distinguishing something as subtle as another person's chakra nature may still be beyond reach."

"I might not be the strongest shinobi alive..." Rei shrugged casually.

"... but when it comes to sensing chakra, I honestly don't think there's anyone in the world better than me." Nobody argued there, even Naruto knew how absurd Rei was now when it came to sensing, he could literally talks to birds and animals. Instead, everyone around the table slowly realized they had absolutely no evidence to contradict that statement.

He could identify chakra natures from a distance, perceive minute emotional fluctuations, distinguish foreign energies from another universe and even recognize natural energy with frightening precision. Compared to feats like those, claiming to be the greatest sensory ninja alive no longer sounded arrogant. Tsunade remained thoughtful for several moments before another question suddenly crossed her mind.

"If you're correct... then how does Danzo possess Wood Nature in the first place?... Don't tell me your Kekkei Genkai somehow produced another inheritor." Rei nearly choked on his drink.

"What?" He immediately waved both hands.

"No. That should be almost impossible."

"Then how come he has Wood Release?" Jiraya was thoughtful as were the others. Rei just shrugged his shoulders as he drank some cold drink.

"I really want to go and thrash his head on the wall now." Tsunade said.

"Tsunade-sama, you can't do anything like that."

"Not only you can't do anything like that, you can't even show it in your expressions while meeting him. If what Rei spoke is correct, then we have bigger problems inside Konoha." Jiraya said, as he had a feeling that this was more dark than he probably thought it was. Now he was almost sure that Danzo had dealings with Orochimaru. It made sense now how Orochimaru was able to get bodies of children when Orochimaru was first caught.

A prolonged silence settled over the dining table as everyone tried to digest what Rei had just revealed. The cheerful atmosphere from only minutes earlier had vanished completely, replaced by unease. Every possibility seemed to lead toward an answer none of them wanted to accept, yet none of them possessed enough evidence to dismiss Rei's suspicions either.

"... Actually." Kakashi suddenly spoke, his lone visible eye narrowing as though an old memory had resurfaced.

"There is... or rather was... someone within Root who could use Wood Release." Every head snapped toward him. Even Tsunade stared at Kakashi as if she had seen a ghost.

"... What did you just say?" she asked slowly. Kakashi let out a quiet sigh before setting his cup down.

"His current name is Yamato, although when he served under Root he was known as Kinoe. He wasn't born with Wood Release." The room grew even quieter.

"When he was a child, Orochimaru conducted experiments using the First Hokage's cells. Numerous children were subjected to those experiments in hopes of recreating Hashirama-sama's legendary Wood Release." Naruto frowned. He didn't understand but others did and were horrified.

"... Experiments?" Kakashi nodded grimly.

"Human experimentation." His voice carried obvious disgust.

"Almost every child died. Yamato... was the only known survivor. The First Hokage's cells fused with his body, allowing him to awaken Wood Release. Danzo later took him into Root, where he served under the codename Kinoe. He was raised as one of Root's emotionless operatives until circumstances allowed me to bring him out."

"You rescued him?" Kakashi gave a small nod.

"He was given a mission to kill me but he revolted as he didn't want to harm another person from Konoha. Later due to the interference of Third Hokage, he was taken under the normal ANBU wing." iraiya folded his arms, his expression becoming increasingly grim.

"So Orochimaru really succeeded..." He exhaled slowly.

"If Hashirama's cells can grant Wood Release to one survivor... then Danzo possessing traces of that same chakra is no longer impossible."