C35 Exposure

Following the Shade operatives, Tenno swiftly reached the site where the Root Force ninjas were amassing Sharingan. Each eye, recently harvested from the dead, was immersed in a solution infused with Hashirama Senju's cells. The collection boasted dozens of Sharingan.

"Lord Danzou, we have gathered all the Sharingan available to date," reported the leader of the Root Force with the utmost deference.

"Very well," Tenno replied, his face betraying no emotion.

He then addressed the Shade captain, "I will personally safeguard these Sharingan."

The Root Force leader hesitated, finding Lord Danzou's conduct peculiar today. He cautiously inquired, "Lord Danzou, won't you need to report to Lord Hokage on this shortly? Shouldn't we first bring these Sharingan back to the base?"

Caught off guard, Tenno momentarily faltered but quickly composed himself. Staring down the Root Force ninja with a chilling gaze, he demanded in a frosty tone, "Are you defying my command?"

A tense silence fell. Fear gripped the Root Force leader, who immediately knelt before Tenno, his face slick with sweat, and hastily pleaded, "I spoke out of turn, please, punish me as you see fit."

Tenno snorted in contempt and ordered, "Deal with those bodies immediately! Should you hinder my tasks, expect a harsh penalty!"

The Root Force ninjas answered in unison, "Understood, Lord Danzou!"

No one dared to obstruct Tenno any longer.

Tenno was acutely aware that lingering in this place was unwise.

His time disguised as Danzou Shimura using the Concealment Mask was extremely limited; every second he remained increased the danger exponentially!

With a calm demeanor, Tenno approached the Sharingan.

A faint glimmer of silver in his hand, and the Sharingan were all safely tucked into his storage ring.

Tenno breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

With the Sharingan in hand, he was halfway to success.

Still, Tenno couldn't afford to let his guard down. How he would exit in front of the Root Force ninjas posed a severe challenge.

"I'll leave the rest to you; I'm off to see Lord Hokage," Tenno instructed the Root ninjas. He then turned and strode toward the horizon.

But as he neared the Uchiha family's gate, an unexpected twist occurred!

A signal flare soared into the sky from a distance!

All the Root Force ninjas inside the Uchiha territory were momentarily stunned.

Wasn't that the very signal flare that Lord Danzou carried, only to be used in critical situations?

With Lord Danzou standing right in front of them, how could the flare be launching from afar?

The Root Force ninjas' looks turned peculiar as they eyed Tenno.

Tenno tensed up.

Suddenly, his mind was flooded with a new memory, information from his dispelled Shadow Clone.

The clone he had left to delay Danzou had been killed by Danzou's guards!

Realizing the assassin was a masked Shadow Clone, Danzou quickly figured out someone was trying to detain him.

Their real target was the Sharingan within the Uchiha domain!

Danzou Shimura had immediately ignited his signal flare, alerting the Shade ninjas.

Now, they had Tenno surrounded.

The Leader of the Root Force realized that this Lord Danzou was indeed suspicious.

"Lord Danzou, one moment, please."

"Why was your signal flare set off elsewhere? Can you explain?"

"Or perhaps you could present your signal flare for us to verify."

The tone of the Root Force Leader had become distinctly unfriendly.

His gaze, fixed on Tenno's every move, was filled with suspicion.

Tenno knew his disguise was about to be uncovered.

Narrowing his eyes, he focused his chakra, shifting his Concealment Mask from disguise to invisibility.

"Lord Danzou disappeared?"

The Shade ninjas were rooted in place, dumbfounded.

The Root Force Leader, Danzou Shimura's trusted second-in-command, surpassed the others in both intellect and strength.

He was the first to comprehend the situation.

He deduced that the man they had just seen was certainly not the real Lord Danzou.

He quickly ordered the group, "Stay alert, everyone! He must have used a Secret Art to become invisible."

"He can't have gone far. Pursue him immediately. We must conduct a thorough search of the area!"

"Yes, Captain!"

The Shade ninjas immediately ceased their current activities and sprinted towards the forest that lay adjacent to the Uchiha family's territory.

A contingent of over a hundred elite Chionin-level ninjas from the Root Force swiftly surrounded the forest, diligently searching for any trace of Tenno.

"I've picked up on his Chakra; it's in the southwest direction!"

The three-minute duration of the Concealment Mask's invisibility had run its course.

With the mask now on a one-minute cooldown, Tenno was compelled to reveal himself.

The Shade's Perception Ninja, attuned to the Chakra signals, pinpointed Tenno's exact location almost instantly.

The Shade ninjas shouted, "Chase him down!"

They charged towards Tenno's last known position, their movement stirring the once peaceful forest with the sounds of rustling garments and leaves.

Dozens of Root Force ninjas, their faces obscured by animal masks, bounded through the trees, their figures blending into the night as they pursued their target with incredible speed.

Yet, as the chase unfolded, the Perception Ninja's face betrayed a growing sense of embarrassment.

The Leader of the Root Force demanded, "How much longer until we apprehend him? You claimed he was merely 500 meters away. Why haven't we caught sight of him after such an extensive pursuit?"

The Perception Ninja squirmed, clearly uncomfortable.

With a sinking feeling, he confessed, "Captain, he's now a full kilometer ahead of us!"