Kill You, Kill You—With Just a Clone?
Danzo Shimura—the mastermind behind Root and its foundation.
For his survival, even sacrificing comrades is a price worth paying.
That's why, in the current situation, Aburame Fukugen doesn't hesitate to unleash a forbidden technique, even if it means killing Root members.
As long as Danzo-sama survives, there's still hope for the cause.
"Hm?"
But Xu Fan quickly noticed what Fukugen was attempting.
"The Jar of Poison technique?" Xu Fan's gaze swept to the ground—splattered with flesh and blood from the disintegrated Root shinobi.
He instantly recognized it—a forbidden jutsu from the Aburame clan that unleashes poisonous spores and chakra-consuming insects, indifferent to friend or foe.
When paired with Danzo's Izanagi, a jutsu that rewrites reality, the technique becomes terrifyingly effective.
But…
I already knew this.
"You're loyal—and dangerous," Xu Fan said calmly, making no move to dodge or resist.
There was no need.
He had hundreds of ways to neutralize poison—but that wasn't even the point.
Because this wasn't the real Xu Fan.
It was only a Wood Style clone.
His true body wasn't even present.
His mission was clear: eliminate Danzo with the help of Uchiha Itachi.
No matter how deadly the toxin, it wouldn't matter to a clone.
Aburame Fukugen, watching closely, finally sensed something was off.
Despite the deadly cloud of poison spreading, Xu Fan remained unmoved. Calm. Indifferent.
"What…?"
Fukugen swallowed hard, unnerved by Xu Fan's composure.
Perhaps Xu Fan was just confident—maybe he could hold his breath, shield himself with chakra-infused clothing, or had a unique resistance to poison.
Or maybe…
He didn't care if he died at all?
"No…" Fukugen's eyes widened as a terrifying thought crossed his mind.
He's a clone.
A Wood Style clone, just like the ones created by Yamato—only far more advanced. A perfected technique of the First Hokage, even superior to Tobirama Senju's Shadow Clone Jutsu.
But…was that really possible?
After all, Xu Fan wasn't assassinating just any Jonin.
This was Danzo Shimura—Tobirama's own disciple, a war-hardened elite.
Xu Fan had clashed with Danzo before—and Danzo had retreated, alive.
Given Danzo's power and reputation, even a cautious shinobi would assume a real fight was needed.
But Xu Fan had sent… a clone?
"No…" Fukugen muttered, chills crawling down his spine.
Even the Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, wouldn't take Danzo so lightly.
Xu Fan's real body had to be nearby, hiding in the shadows.
Fukugen immediately released a swarm of kikaichu, desperate to locate him.
But Xu Fan spoke again, voice calm and deliberate.
"There's no need to look so hard."
"My real body is with Hiruzen Sarutobi and Yamanaka Kaze, en route to the Land of Iron for the Double Kage Summit."
"What?!"
The declaration sent shockwaves through every Root operative nearby.
To ensure all Root ninja outside the poison's reach heard it, Xu Fan amplified his voice with chakra, letting it echo far and wide.
It wasn't the real Xu Fan who had come to assassinate Danzo alongside Itachi.
Just a Wood Style clone.
Meanwhile, Aburame Fukugen's poisonous jutsu had formed a massive toxic hemisphere—trapping Xu Fan, Danzo, Uchiha Itachi, and several Root members.
All of whom were now collapsing, their flesh decaying from the inside in real-time.
Those outside the hemisphere dared not step in.
"Did you really think I needed to be serious to deal with Danzo?" Xu Fan sighed, almost apologetic. "My real self wouldn't even bother."
BOOM!
Suddenly, the tree behind him exploded with a thunderous crack.
Danzo's body flew out—shredded into chunks by a massive tree root.
But in the next instant, he reappeared—completely intact.
Izanagi.
Danzo had used it again. He had clearly heard Xu Fan's words.
"A Wood Style clone?!" Danzo's eyes widened in disbelief.
He had planned everything: a tree root detonation to kill Uchiha Itachi in a suicide move, resurrecting himself with Izanagi, while Fukugen's poison would finish off Xu Fan.
A brutal yet brilliant strategy—eliminate both enemies in one go.
Even losing a few Sharingan would be worth the price.
But Xu Fan…wasn't even real?
A clone had seen through all of this.
At that moment, Danzo's attention shifted again.
A giant, blood-red skeleton cloaked Uchiha Itachi, radiating intense chakra.
Susanoo.
And Itachi's Sharingan—three tomoe—had evolved into a Mangekyō Sharingan.
"A self-sacrificial attack exploiting Izanagi…" Itachi muttered.
If not for Susanoo, the root explosion might have killed him.
But the danger wasn't over.
"Poison."
Itachi scanned his surroundings, realizing he was still within Fukugen's poisonous field.
Lifting Susanoo now would mean certain death.
Keeping it active strained his eyes and chakra, but it was the only way to block the toxins from entering his skin.
Danzo's eyes were locked onto Itachi.
"Those eyes…" he whispered.
He recognized the power—the same Mangekyō technique once used by Shisui Uchiha.
He hadn't expected Itachi to possess it as well.
Danzo's gaze drifted to his right arm.
Nine of the Sharingan embedded in it had already gone dark.
And his right eye—Shisui's eye—could only sustain two more minutes of Izanagi.
Time was running out.
If he didn't finish this soon…he would die.
"Two minutes," Danzo muttered, narrowing his eyes. "That's all I need to end this."
He looked between Xu Fan's clone and Uchiha Itachi.
"Itachi… I will take your eyes."