This Danzo Is Weird!

For the next few days, Danzo focused on helping Ryoma adapt to the power of the Tailed Beast within him.

"How are you feeling now?" Danzo asked Ryoma, who was in the lab.

At that moment, Ryoma was carefully tending to his Parasitic Insects.

However, the insects lay motionless in the petri dish, looking completely drained of life—almost as if they were dead.

Hearing Danzo's question, Aburame Ryoma immediately paused his work and replied:

"The results aren't great. Ordinary Parasitic Insects can't withstand the Tailed Beast's chakra."

"After countless experiments, only one insect has survived so far. I'm planning to use it as a parent specimen and try breeding more."

After saying this, Ryoma released a fresh batch of Parasitic Insects from his sleeve.

The insects swarmed into the petri dish, devouring the corpses of those that had died from exposure to the Tailed Beast's chakra.

This method helped reduce the amount of chakra absorbed per insect, increasing the chances of developing a strain that could adapt to the Tailed Beast's power.

Ryoma's main research goal was to find a way to merge his insects with the Tailed Beast's power.

His first approach was to see if the insects could acquire abilities from the Five-Tails by feeding on its chakra.

This idea came from Danzo himself.

After all, Parasitic Insects naturally fed on their host's chakra—and now that Ryoma was a Jinchuriki, it only made sense for them to consume the Tailed Beast's chakra as well.

Danzo patted Ryoma's shoulder and said:

"Keep working on it. Also, take this."

He pulled out a mask, decorated with white and blue patterns resembling a horse.

"From now on, you are officially part of the Earthly Branch Squad. Your codename is 'Noon Horse'."

Ryoma didn't seem surprised—as if joining Danzo's elite squad was an expected outcome.

And in truth, it was.

There was no ninja in Konoha more loyal to Danzo than Ryoma.

As for why he was given the codename "Noon Horse"?

It was simple: Ryoma's name contained the character for 'horse' (马), and the Five-Tails, Kokuo, had the appearance of a white horse.

Thus, the name was perfectly fitting.

With Ryoma's addition, Danzo's Earthly Branch Squad had now reached four members, completing one-third of its intended size.

After assigning Ryoma to continue training and mastering the Five-Tails' chakra, Danzo headed to a deeper section of his underground lab.

This laboratory was originally dedicated to Wood Release experiments.

However, after the test subjects were released to the orphanage, it was repurposed for three major research projects:

1. New Agricultural Crops

2. Modern Weaponry

3. Tailed Beast Chakra Studies

These were Danzo's current research priorities.

1. Agricultural Development

Using his upgraded Wood Release and its Plant Manipulation ability, Danzo was experimenting with ways to enhance crop yields.

His goal was to genetically modify grain and cash crops, then conduct field trials to see if Konoha's agriculture could be improved.

2. Industrial & Weapons Research

This project was based on the Asura Path's mechanical abilities from the Rinnegan.

Over time, Danzo had absorbed all industrial knowledge available to Root, bringing him to the research and development stage.

However, this project wasn't just about weapons—it involved creating an entire industrial system to support Konoha's technological advancement.

This was an immense project, and at this stage, Danzo was just getting started.

The third area of research focused on Tailed Beasts.

Using Orochimaru's beast-cell cultivation techniques, Danzo's team was working on growing and harvesting chakra from various Tailed Beast cells that had been collected by Root.

The goal was to extract and utilize Tailed Beast chakra for other applications.

None of these three projects were simple.

Given their massive scale, Danzo was already considering whether he should split them into separate research divisions—or perhaps establish a larger research institution altogether.

As he pondered this, he stepped into the lab.

Two researchers in white coats immediately approached him.

These were specialists that Danzo had gathered from across the world to assist in his experiments.

All of them had signed strict confidentiality agreements, prohibiting them from leaving Root or Konoha freely.

If anyone broke the rules, Danzo would make sure they learned the true meaning of darkness.

"Lord Danzo! The first-quarter results from Test Field #1 are in!"

"The #16 wheat seed you provided has demonstrated incredible vitality, with a yield that is twice as high as regular wheat!"

The two researchers delivered the good news right away.

Danzo's eyes lit up, and he quickly grabbed the report to examine it closely.

After upgrading his Wood Release talent to S-rank, Danzo had gained a special ability called [Plant Manipulation].

This ability allowed him to control plant growth and alter their properties.

The moment he obtained this power, something deep in his soul was awakened—

The desire to farm!

After the battles against Kirigakure and Sunagakure—Danzo returned to the village and immediately began modifying Konoha's wheat seeds using his new ability.

Through extensive research and testing, he developed 32 new wheat varieties.

He then instructed his research team to plant these seeds in various test fields, waiting for the results.

And now, the results had exceeded all expectations.

Filled with excitement, Danzo rushed to Test Field #1 with his researchers.

The so-called test field was actually just a small plot of land that Root had cultivated near the village.

While this had been officially reported to the Konoha leadership, neither Hiruzen Sarutobi nor the village elders had paid any attention to it.

To them, it was just a tiny piece of farmland—hardly worth their concern.

But now, this seemingly insignificant plot of land had created a miracle.

A wheat variety that produced twice the yield!

If this breakthrough could be widely implemented, how many people could it feed?

Despite the bustling capital and Konoha's prosperity, the truth was that most of the Land of Fire's population lived in rural areas.

The real strength of the Fire Nation lay in its people—those who lived outside the grand cities.

Only when the common folk had enough to eat and lived without hardship could the Fire Nation truly be considered wealthy and powerful.

Danzo, having come from a poor background, understood this better than anyone.

He plucked a golden stalk of wheat, his eyes filled with excitement.

And in the future, once industrialization was complete and fertilizer became widely available, just how much higher could the yields grow?

Would this be the first step toward an era where no one in the Fire Nation ever went hungry again?

Danzo rarely showed such excitement.

"We must protect these seeds at all costs. Until I give my permission, no one is allowed to enter here or take them. Understood?"

The two researchers nearby remained silent.

Because it was clear that this order wasn't meant for them.

As expected, the moment Danzo finished speaking, two masked Root ninjas appeared and respectfully responded:

"Yes!!"

Feeling the satisfaction of a fruitful harvest, Danzo was in high spirits. He was already contemplating the best way to spread these seeds.

However, as if someone deliberately wanted to go against him, he had barely returned to the Root base when he received some unpleasant news.

"The Daimyo has cut a third of our funding?"

Danzo frowned, his squinting eyes deep in thought.

Shisui nodded.

"Yes, Sensei. The reason given by the Daimyo's side is that the invasions from Kumogakure and Iwagakure have affected tax revenues in the north, so there are no extra funds to support Konoha."

Danzo scoffed at this explanation.

"The north never contributed much tax revenue to begin with. The majority of the Land of Fire's taxes come from the southern regions."

"It seems our honorable Daimyo has other intentions behind this move."

Danzo picked up the teacup beside him and took a slow sip.

Then he looked up and asked,

"How is the village reacting?"

Shisui's tone grew heavier.

"With the funding cut, the village's already strained finances have become even more difficult to maintain."

"There are also rumors that the Daimyo's real reason for reducing military spending isn't about tax revenue—it's to punish you for your lack of respect toward the nobility."

"As of just now, quite a few people in the village have started complaining about your decisions."

Shisui reported honestly.

Upon hearing this, Danzo didn't get angry. He merely let out a cold chuckle.

"Who's saying this? The higher-ups? The clan leaders?"

Shisui shook his head.

"Neither. It's mostly just ordinary villagers, as well as some middle-aged genin and chunin."

Hearing this, Danzo didn't bother to hide his scorn.

"I knew it. They don't have the guts to challenge me directly, so all they can do is try to disgust me with petty complaints."

Shisui nodded and added a warning:

"Although these voices aren't a real threat, the Hokage has already used this situation as an excuse to cut funding for several of Root's projects."

"Even the orphanage reconstruction has been postponed, citing a lack of funds."

Danzo narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flashing through them.

"As expected, you're behind this, Hiruzen."

He wasn't particularly surprised by Sarutobi Hiruzen's actions.

After all, it was Danzo himself who had pushed for the war against Kumogakure and Iwagakure.

Although Konoha had won, the village had paid a heavy price.

The ninja clans, shinobi, and even the villagers had all sacrificed a great deal for this war, yet they received no corresponding rewards. It was only natural that resentment had built up.

Objectively speaking, the Daimyo's sudden withdrawal of funding was the main reason Konoha failed to gain the expected benefits.

But the common people wouldn't care about such details.

All they knew was that they had fought a hard battle, won the war, and yet saw no rewards. Instead, the village's budget had been cut even further.

In that case, wouldn't it have been better not to fight at all?

Thus, someone had to take the blame.

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't want to play the villain, so the role was being pushed onto him instead.

As Konoha's military budget continued to shrink, more and more village projects would be halted.

And when those projects failed, the villagers' resentment would only grow stronger.

At that point, with just a little manipulation,

Konoha's undefeated war hero might suddenly be transformed into a war-mongering criminal…

__

Patreon.com/rashta

1. 330 adv ch of Talent System In Naruto

2. 560 adv ch of Qian Renxue's Younger Brother

3. 270 adv ch of Uchiha Madara's Cousin

4. 163 adv ch of WDQK: Divorcing Ling Qingzhu (Complete)

5. 487 adv ch of This Danzo Is Weird