This Danzo Is Weird!

"Congratulations, everyone. You have successfully passed the second round of trials."

Danzo's words left everyone stunned once again.

What did he mean by "successfully passed the second round"? Could there be a third round? A fourth round?

Seeing their faces instantly turn pale, Danzo gave a faint smile.

"Don't worry. You are only one step away from becoming true members of the Root."

"Next, you will learn the various rules and regulations of the Root, the key points to remember when carrying out missions, the correct way to execute covert operations, and the unique codes used exclusively by the Root."

"Remember, the Root is Konoha's most important special unit."

"The missions you will undertake are of the utmost importance, some even directly tied to the safety of the entire village."

"Therefore, it is crucial that you engrave everything you learn into your mind and fully comprehend it."

After finishing his speech, Danzo was joined by Aburame Ryoma, who appeared beside him at the perfect moment.

"The upcoming lessons will be taught by Jōnin Ryoma. When the time comes, I will personally conduct an assessment. The timing of this assessment will be unpredictable."

"Only those who pass will be officially accepted into the Root."

After saying this, Danzo turned his gaze toward Kakashi.

"Kakashi, you don't need to take the assessment. Come with me."

No one, including Kakashi himself, was surprised by this special treatment.

After all, Kakashi's reputation as a genius was known throughout the entire village. He had even completed multiple S-rank missions on his own.

For someone like him, Root's training was unnecessary. He was already capable of carrying out classified missions, so there was no need for him to waste time on additional training.

In the blink of an eye, both Danzo and Kakashi disappeared from sight.

After they left, Aburame Ryoma, his face hidden beneath his black hood, became noticeably more serious.

"Since Lord Danzo has entrusted you newcomers to me, I will not betray his trust. I will do everything in my power to mold you into qualified Root shinobi."

"Prepare yourselves for the upcoming training."

His voice was devoid of emotion, as cold and mechanical as a machine—an unmistakable trait of a Root ninja.

Then, his gaze settled on one individual standing at the edge—Shiranui Genma.

"If anyone tries to slack off during training, they will learn firsthand what it means to suffer the agony of a thousand insects devouring their heart."

"Remember, the Root has an annual quota for accidental deaths. This year's quota is still quite sufficient. I suggest you all ensure you don't become one of those statistics."

This blatant threat sent a shiver down everyone's spine.

Especially Shiranui Genma, who silently removed the senbon he had been chewing from his mouth.

——————

On the other side, Danzo had already brought Kakashi to the equipment room at the Root headquarters.

"Since you've joined Root, choose a new codename. While you're at it, collect your mask and equipment."

As Danzo pushed open the doors of the equipment room, rows of standard-issue gear were neatly arranged on both sides.

On the left were weapons, and on the right were protective gear.

"There are various models of equipment here. If something doesn't suit you and you need a custom piece, just let me know."

While introducing the room, Danzo walked past the rows of equipment and stopped in front of the innermost wall.

This wall was covered with a variety of masks.

Compared to the standard Anbu masks, Root masks had more intricate and fearsome patterns.

Danzo reached out and pressed a section of the wall.

The central row swiftly flipped around, revealing a full set of twelve animal masks.

"The Twelve Earthly Branches?"

Kakashi observed the masks and quickly noticed the pattern.

They were arranged in the order of the Twelve Earthly Branches—Rat (Zi), Ox (Chou), Tiger (Yin), Rabbit (Mao), and so on.

Danzo gave a slight nod and said,

"That's right. I plan to form an elite squad based on the Twelve Earthly Branches. You may choose one."

Kakashi studied the masks before him.

Since this was a newly formed Root unit, and it was using such significant codenames, the level of importance was obvious.

"Is it really okay to give me a position like this?"

Kakashi looked at Danzo and asked hesitantly.

He hadn't forgotten the mission the Hokage had just assigned him before coming here.

In response to his question, Danzo simply answered calmly,

"Every member here has been carefully selected."

"Since I chose you, it means I believe you won't disappoint me, Kakashi."

Under Danzo's sincere and trusting gaze, Kakashi felt something stir inside him.

In the end, he nodded. "I understand."

He once again examined the masks before him.

"Since my summoning beast is a dog, I'll choose this one."

Without hesitation, he reached for the eleventh mask— Inu (dog).

It was a pure white dog-shaped mask, with a single blood-red claw mark running across the left eye.

The same eye where Kakashi's Sharingan was.

Danzo's expression remained unchanged, but internally, he smiled faintly, as if he had anticipated this choice.

"Your codename will be Inugai."

"Now, go collect your equipment."

Once Kakashi had chosen his gear, Danzo officially assigned him his first mission—

To secretly assist Konoha's forces in escorting 800 Mist prisoners to the southern coast of the Land of Wind.

"A mission of this scale right from the start?"

Kakashi looked at the mission scroll in his hands, his expression growing serious.

Eight hundred prisoners—this was no small number.

Not to mention, the mission scroll explicitly stated that upon reaching the designated location, they had to provide these Mist prisoners with sufficient food and weapons.

This meant the operation would require even more manpower and resources.

"Don't worry. Shisui will be acting alongside you."

As Danzo finished speaking, another ninja wearing an Earthly Branch mask stepped forward from the shadows.

He was none other than Uchiha Shisui, who had just chosen his mask, with the codename Youtori

"Inugai-senpai, we meet again."

From beneath his mask, Shisui gave a slight nod toward Kakashi.

Kakashi stared at the mask on Shisui's face and said flatly,

"So, Youtori, huh? Nice to meet you."

Seeing that the atmosphere between the two was relatively harmonious, Danzo let out a faint smile.

"Anyway, this mission requires your full cooperation."

"Although, on the surface, a squad of ninja will be overseeing the prisoners, in reality, you two hold the highest authority over the operation. If you detect anything unusual, you have full control to take over command."

"The rest of the mission details are in the scroll. Any other questions?"

Both Inugai and Youtori shook their heads, indicating they had no issues.

"Good. From now on, your time is yours to manage."

As he finished speaking, Danzo instantly disappeared from the spot.

Left in the large equipment room were just the two newly designated Root members.

Both Shisui and Kakashi were well-trained shinobi.

Especially Kakashi—he had already completed many solo missions.

No matter how complex the task, he was always able to stay composed.

That was why, at this moment, he felt relatively calm.

This mission was primarily under his lead, with Shisui acting more as support.

Since they had already worked together before as Danzo's bodyguards during the Kikyo Mountain battle, their interactions were fairly smooth.

"I didn't expect you to choose that codename, senpai."

Shisui commented unexpectedly as they picked out their equipment.

"My summoning beast is a dog, so I just picked it randomly."

Kakashi replied nonchalantly, hands in his pockets, his tone indifferent.

"Is that so..."

"That's quite a coincidence. My reasoning is similar to yours."

Shisui chuckled, putting on the standard-issue Root vest, and explained:

"I like crows, but since the Twelve Earthly Branches don't include one, I chose the closest alternative—Youtori(Black Cock/Rooster)."

"Ah, what a coincidence indeed."

Kakashi gave a half-hearted response.

At this point in time, he had yet to become the laid-back teacher seen in the original story—he still took missions very seriously.

So he quickly steered the conversation back on track.

"Tomorrow at 9 AM, the transport convoy will gather at Konoha's main gate. We'll arrive at 7 AM to secretly inspect the personnel and overall situation. Any objections?"

Seeing Kakashi switch into mission mode, Shisui immediately responded,

"No issues."

"Alright, then. See you tomorrow at 7 AM. Go make your preparations."

"Dismissed."

— — — — —

After Kakashi and Shisui left, Danzo stood in front of the wall of masks, lost in thought.

There were still ten masks left.

Who would be worthy of inheriting them?

In the end, he let out a sigh.

"When will the heroes of this world all gather under my command?"

*

'Cao Cao reference'

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This Danzo Is Weird 370 advanced chapters: (5-10 ch updates everyday)

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