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Arc V Chapter 7

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The first rays of sunlight flooded her bedroom and ripped Asami out of her peaceful slumber. The sun killed her dreams without mercy, shattered her joyful illusions, a cruel deed that she despised the sun for. The bright sun smiled upon her, but she didn’t accept its hollow peace offer. Hell hath no fury like a girl deprived of her happiness. 

Asami snuggled under her warm cashmere blanket and turned away. She wanted to sleep. “Stupid sun.”

But sleep eluded her and now awake, Asami started to roll around in her fluffy canopy bed. Obviously, her bed was fluffy. Because good sleep was the foundation of a fresh mind and a sharp spirit. 

Asami rolled from one side to the other in a never ending cycle. Her body moved left, then right. Left, right, left, right, left, left, right, right, right, right, and then sharp left to not fall off the bed. Not a pleasant experience.

Her arms hugged her beloved silk pillow and enjoyed the rest of her morning in a state of eternal harmony and peace. She has to get up soon, but that moment hadn't come yet. Getting up was the problem of future Asami.

Asami ignored the nagging thought in the corner of her mind. She felt she had forgotten something, something important. But it couldn’t be that important, otherwise she wouldn’t have forgotten it. That sounded logical.

“Aaah ...” Asami yawned softly before hugging her plushy pillow

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There are normal days in the life of Shimura Danzo, and there are less normal days. Today was a normal day. Danzo spent his time with reading field reports, nothing out of the ordinary. He received them from his Root operatives, and they brought mixed news. Apparently, Iwa and Kumo were staging a major joint exercise near Konoha’s borders during the final portion of the chunin exams. Iwa and Kumo even announced partial mobilisation. Did they plan something?

Danzo continued to read in his office. It was located in Root's former headquarters. Root might have been dissolved, but their installations were never abandoned. Few people knew about this place’s existence, and even fewer knew about the secrets hidden behind these walls.  The thick concrete walls had seen much. They struck fear into the hearts of the knowing.

Many entered this place, but never left. Cold cells, iron shackles, closed steel doors, long corridors illuminated by pale artificial light lurked in the dark, hidden from the eye of the public. The silent walls witnessed everything, his failures, his successes, his defeats, his triumphs. He always acted behind the scenes. He pulled the strings from the shadows to assure Konoha's safety, Konoha's greatness.

Blood covered his hands, a price he was willing to pay. No sacrifice was too big for Konoha. He committed the acts Hiruzen was never prepared to. He hated Hiruzen and his empty idealism. Hiruzen stole from him the position of Hokage. His ideals corrupted Konoha. His false beliefs infected Konoha’s ninja like a cancerous tumour. Entire generations had grown soft under his rule, their potential wasted. Hiruzen's reign weakened Konoha and one day, the village would pay the price for his delusions.

Not a single day passed that he didn’t plot his demise, but claiming the title of Hokage proved exceedingly difficult. All his assassination attempts failed miserably. The old man didn't know how to lead a village, but he sure knew how to survive. 

But today, it wasn't Hiruzen who occupy Danzo's mind. He was occupied with another domestic problem, a problem called Asami. The girl gave him a headache.

Danzo knew her strength, and he wasn’t stupid enough to face her openly. Fighting her head on would be a risky affair. 

“...” Danzo clicked his tongue. His face distorted. Perhaps, he bit off more than he could chew this time. However, he didn’t see the entire cursed clan die only to be bested now by a single girl. There had to be a way. There was a way. All that he required was a few sacrificial pawns, but who? Powerful ninja were a limited commodity, not readily available. “Fu!” 

“Danzo-sama.” Fu arrived and knelt, heeding his call.

“...” Danzo acknowledged his presence. “Fu, summon Torune and Sai, We have much to discuss.” Fu, Torune, Sai, they had the privilege to work together with Asami during her ANBU time. They knew Asami better than him. Their experiences should prove useful.

“Understood, Danzo-sama.” Fu disappeared.

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