Two days had passed since the day Tsunade returned to the village, and in that short span, the Senju clan compound had turned into the noisiest place in Konoha.

From morning till late in the evening, the villagers could hear sounds of fighting echoing out of the compound, walls shaking, ground cracking, windows rattling from the sheer force of the clashes inside. It wasn't just once or twice either, it was constant, like a storm that refused to die down.

But no one dared to wander close enough to see what was actually happening. The villagers weren't idiots; curiosity could only get you killed or beaten to a pulp if you picked the wrong person to spy on. Everyone knew who was inside.

One of them was already infamous for her terrifying temper back in the day, a woman whose fist could break through solid stone and who never hesitated to make an example out of people. And the other, well, the other one was Ren. He was young, new, and supposedly "just a kid" compared to her, but the rumors about him had already spread far and wide.

People were whispering about the way he fought, the way he talked back, and how he somehow kept slipping away from punishment no matter what kind of mess he caused. A menace in the flesh.

The whole thing with the wall paintings was proof enough. Everyone in the village had seen them by now, and some even knew it was Ren's handiwork. It wasn't exactly subtle either, but he'd somehow walked away untouched while the paintings still stayed up for everyone to gawk at.

The Fuinjutsu Department had been tearing their hair out for days trying to undo the seals on the walls, but nothing had worked so far. That alone had caused half the village to descend into gossip and chaos. And yet, instead of lying low after stirring up such a storm, Ren had the leisure to spend his time fighting Tsunade nonstop for two whole days.

That fact alone made most people in the village decide it was better to leave him alone. If he could pull something like this and still strut around like it was nothing, then clearly he wasn't someone ordinary folks should go poking at.

Even the clan leaders, who usually tried to keep track of every disturbance in the village, didn't bother interfering. They had their own problems piling up. Just one day after Ren, Tsunade, and Utakata had discussed rentals, the clan heads found themselves dealing with a brand-new headache.

The 50% increase in rent had been announced, and while some of the bigger clans had simply gritted their teeth and accepted it, others were still struggling to figure out how to handle it. For a wealthy clan with plenty of resources, fifty percent wasn't pleasant but it was manageable.

For the smaller clans though, ones already scraping by, it felt like a boulder had been dropped on their shoulders. There had been heated arguments and tense meetings behind closed doors, and some were even considering pulling strings just to buy time.

But there was a loophole. Instead of flat rent, there was also the option to hand over a percentage of profit in place of it. That meant if they played their books right by twisting numbers, moving profits around, maybe burying things under fake losses, they could dodge a big chunk of the burden. Some of the minor clans were already scheming in that direction.

The major clans, on the other hand, were almost relieved. They'd all known some kind of increase was bound to happen sooner or later, and a fifty percent bump wasn't as bad as it could have been. Some were even thankful, if only quietly, that it wasn't doubled twice over.

The real sweetener was the surprise that came with it, the Senju clan shops. The clans who had control of those prime-location shops were told they could keep running them on their own. Sure, the rent was steeper now, but shops in those locations basically printed money on their own. Even doubled rent couldn't eat into profits too much, and that alone kept most of the complaints at bay.

Meanwhile, Ren had other plans brewing in the back of his head. One of his bigger targets was reclaiming the medical department, but he didn't act on it right away. It wasn't time yet. Before he could pull something that bold, the pharmacies had to be set up and running properly. If they couldn't cover patients themselves, then trying to cut them off from the hospital would only create a bigger mess.

So, he decided to wait. Until the pharmacies were at least stable, he wouldn't move against the hospital. For now, he left it in the village's hands and let them handle the work.

~~~

In the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf Village, far away from the bustle of the main streets, there was an abandoned training ground that most villagers had long since forgotten.

Broken dummies, cracked stone pillars, and rusting weapon racks littered the wide field, giving it the atmosphere of a graveyard for old battles. In the middle of this field stood a small thatched wooden hut, weather-beaten and crooked, as if it could collapse with a strong gust of wind. From the outside, it looked like nothing more than a desolate relic from an earlier time.

But appearances were deceptive. Hidden in the trees, buried under the soil, and crouched behind broken walls were multiple ANBU operatives, each one carefully watching every possible entry and exit point of the hut. Their presence wasn't loud or obvious, but it was undeniable.

To the common eye, the place was abandoned. To those who knew the truth, this place was practically a prison. After all, the man inside wasn't just some old shinobi living in isolation, he was someone who might very well become the greatest traitor the Leaf had ever produced.

Inside the hut, Danzo Shimura sat in complete darkness. There was no candle, no lamp, no window cracked open to let in light. The gloom pressed against the walls, heavy and absolute, but he didn't seem disturbed by it in the slightest. To him, darkness was not an enemy; it was a companion.

He had lived in it, shaped it, and hidden behind it for more than half of his life. Darkness was where he thrived. Now, ironically, the same shadows that had shielded his deeds for decades were closing in to become his cage.

Everything he had done, every dirty secret, every corpse buried quietly, every betrayal justified in the name of the village was being twisted and used against him. His own past had finally become the blade meant to cut him down.

Danzo was not a man easily shaken. He had seen too much, killed too many, survived through wars and conspiracies. He didn't fear battle, didn't fear reputation, didn't even fear being hated. But there was still one thing that gnawed at him, one fear he could never quite silence.

The fear of death.

It was that fear that had kept him away from claiming the Hokage's hat when he once had the chance. It was that same fear that had driven him to make his body into the warped, half-experimented form it was now.

His gaze shifted downward, and he let his eye linger on his right arm. For a long moment, he simply stared at it in the darkness, his face stiff and unreadable. But behind the facade, his thoughts stirred.

Ren.

The boy had mentioned his arm more than once, casually, as if he knew something. And that was what bothered Danzo the most. No one was supposed to know. No one.

'How could that brat know?' Danzo frowned, his mind ticking through every possibility. 'Nobody knows about this arm other than Orochimaru. And that snake… he doesn't speak without profit. Unless someone is dangling something enormous in front of him, there's no way he'd leak it. And besides, I already took care of everyone else who might've known. The Root operatives who escorted me when I went to Orochimaru, they're long dead. There should be no loose ends.'

The line of thought only deepened the crease between his brows. His frown tightened into something darker.

'Unless…' A new idea crept in, one that he didn't like. 'Unless the Senju can actually sense it. Hashirama's cells. Could it be that? Could it be possible that the Senju bloodline carries something that lets them feel his chakra?'

The thought made his stomach tighten in a way that little else could. If that was true, then Ren knowing was one thing, but Tsunade? The moment she so much as looked at him, if she caught the faintest whiff of her grandfather's stolen cells… then it would be over.

Unlike Ren, who seemed to be dragging things out for his own mysterious reasons, Tsunade wouldn't hesitate. She would rip his arm off with her bare hands, and probably his head with it.

Danzo let out a slow, controlled exhale and shook his head, trying to push down the unease.

'No. No, that's impossible. Even the Senju can't be that mystical. There has to be another explanation.' His thoughts shifted again, circling. 'Could it be Yoru? Could he be the one who told Ren?'

The possibility hung there for a moment, before he dismissed it with another sharp shake of his head.

'No. Yoru wouldn't wait. If he knew the truth about my arm, he wouldn't sit still. He would've acted already. He doesn't hesitate like that. It has to be something else… something I haven't seen yet.'

As the silence of the hut deepened, his mind kept clawing at the same question, how did Ren know?

Then, breaking the quiet like a knife cutting through cloth, a voice came from the darkness. Low, measured, and carrying a faint edge of amusement.

"You seem distressed, Danzo Shimura."

The sound didn't make him flinch. If anything, his expression shifted back into its usual blank indifference, all trace of his earlier unease hidden away. He tilted his head slightly toward the source of the voice and replied coldly, his tone flat and steady.

"You are late."

The figure finally stepped out of the shadows. It was a man whose face was hidden behind an orange mask with inverted fire patterns, his presence heavy enough that the air in the hut seemed to thicken. Danzo's single eye narrowed as he saw him.

'I didn't expect to have use of this man so soon. But right now, he's the only card I can play,' Danzo thought grimly.

The masked man's voice came, low but dripping with disdain. "I was observing the Leaf village for a while. Hmph… and it's still the same cesspool. That obnoxious stench of hypocrisy. Just like always." His words ended in a sneer, as if he was talking about a rotting corpse.

Danzo didn't even flinch at the insult. His tone was clipped, as if cutting through the theatrics. "Spare me your nonsense. I don't have time for brooding speeches. Tell me what you can do."

For a second, there was silence. Then the masked man tilted his head slightly, and his voice turned colder, sharper. "Heh… you come to me for help, yet your habit of barking orders hasn't died. Old dog."

Danzo snorted faintly. His shoulders stayed relaxed, his single eye sharp and steady.

"You aren't someone I need to be cautious of. All of Konoha's top brass already know of you, the killer of the Fourth Hokage. Even if I'm sitting here as a prisoner right now, don't mistake it. You are one of the village's greatest enemies. If I so much as raise my voice and shout your name… you wouldn't walk out of this village unscathed. You'd drown under hell itself.

Think carefully. In our current situation it's better to do something that benefits both of us. So drop these petty remarks and tell me what you can provide."

The words hung in the air like a blade. For a moment, the masked man was silent, his single eye staring. Then a chuckle escaped from behind the mask, low at first before deepening.

"Oh, Danzo Shimura… the so-called darkness of Konoha. Your reputation isn't undeserved, I'll give you that."

His voice grew colder with each word. "If I help you, fine. If I don't, you'd sell me out. You'd drag me into the open and claim the merit of luring the Fourth's killer into the village. A neat little trick. But tell me…" his tone dropped into a low growl, "…are you truly sure? Even if every shinobi in this village gathered together… do you honestly believe they can stop me?"

Danzo's fingers twitched against his cane but he did not rise to the bait. His eye stayed locked on the masked figure. He knew the man wasn't bluffing, at least, not entirely.

The masked man spoke again, smoother now. "I can do many things, Danzo. The question is, what do you need me to do?" He paused, letting his words stretch thin. "Of course, in exchange… there's something I want."

Danzo was silent for a long moment, weighing. Then he nodded, curtly. "Fine. Then I will ask one thing of you. Keep Tsunade and that brat Ren out of the village. Every time there's a hearing of my case, I don't want either of them here. The rest… I can handle."

His voice carried the confidence of a man who had puppeteered Konoha's shadows for decades.

Inwardly, Danzo reaffirmed what he already knew, he had the secrets of every clan in this village. Secrets that, if exposed, would plunge Konoha into rebellion. The elders, the clans, the jōnin and even the Daimyo himself, they were all bound by the web he had spun. As long as Ren wasn't present, Danzo could pull the strings and take back control of the village once again.

But Ren… that boy was different. He had little leverage over him, and people like Ren were not the type to bow to threats.

He pictured again the memory of that single devastating punch, his ruined eye throbbing in phantom pain. His hand nearly rose to touch it, but he forced it down and exhaled slowly.

No.

He would not let that brat corner him again.

~~~~~

{A bit of Danzo's side of things as I realised that I just glossed over Danzo the entire time without showing him do anything.

Also, you all know who the masked man is but I thought that it would flow better in the story using the Masked man so I used that.}

{Tomorrow will be the last chapter of the fic so show some love}

{If you want, you can support me on ko-fi}

{h t t p s : / / k o - f i . c o m / z e e n o n}

{You know what else}

{STONES!!!!}