Summary: Danzo act super sketchy.
Notes: Here's chapter 6. I'll probably be posting a little faster now (I'm aiming for once every week or so). Hard to tell, FFN keeps crashing my browser and posting stuff on mobile is a nightmare.
Danzo long ago acknowledged his place as the shadow protector of Konoha. After the debacle with Namikaze and his paramour, after Hiruzen retook the hat, he came to terms with the fact he would never become the Hokage. And in a way, he realizes it's better this way. While the Hokage only answers to the Daimyo in theory, in truth he does not have such absolute power. There are many political machinations that go on behind closed doors. Danzo, however, has ruled Konoha uncontested from the shadows since Hiruzen first took the hat. While the Hokage stands in the light of hopeless idealism, he stands in the dark greys of reality, protecting the Hokage and governing Konoha behind the scenes. Danzo has done many things that would turn entire villages against him if they knew. He no longer bothers to feel guilt over what must be done. Konoha's safety always comes first, even over the temporary wellbeing of her people.
He is out of the village, brokering an agreement with the Traitor Sannin, when he first hears of Hiruzen's folly. A single scrap of paper reading "The third chose an Uchiha to succeed him" arrives by messenger bird. He wants to rush back, to take care of Hiruzen's mess with all the tools at his disposal. He wants to find out who manipulated the old fool into this. He had not thought even Hiruzen was blind enough to trust the Uchiha with more power. But he cannot. It is imperative that he and Orochimaru come to an understanding. The village can ill afford to lose more of its bloodlines to the traitor's labs, and if that means they must turn a blind eye to his experiments on civilians? So be it. Konoha must survive.
It takes weeks to finally reach an agreement. Orochimaru has always been an intelligent and slippery individual. Danzo would like nothing better than to slit his throat, but the time is not right. As distasteful as it is, the man still has a role to play.
It is not until Danzo is within a day's walk of Konoha that he learns more. One of his agents kneels before him, holding a single scroll above his head. Danzo takes it and dismisses the child.
It could be worse, he supposes as he reads the scroll. While Hiruzen did chose an Uchiha, he did not chose an entirely unknown entity. Uchiha Shisui has been a jonin of the village since he was a young teenager and has earned notoriety in a number of the weaker shinobi nations. He may be a strong enough ninja to keep the other Kages in line, though Danzo suspects his reputation comes more from the sharingan than any effort on the Uchiha's part. Though, if this Uchiha is more open minded, he may even be able to strengthen Konoha in ways Hiruzen was too soft to do. He has always admired their militant efficiency, even as he recognized the threat they posed the village. Though, should the worst come to pass, Uchiha are not so hard to dispose of. With their tendency towards madness, he knows it will not be difficult to arrange an accident. Regardless of Hiruzen's wishes, Danzo will not allow anyone to jeopardize the village.
It takes only a few talks with the council to determine that it is not bribery, blackmail or mind control that gave Uchiha Shisui his position. Unless there is a technique that can blend seamlessly within the host mind, Hiruzen and the council have all been considering the boy for some time. Danzo's lack of knowledge on this matter is just that, a shortcoming on his own part. This entire debacle is purely Danzo's fault, he realizes, feeling his age for the first time in years. He never should have left the village in such a delicate state. Especially not to deal with as petty a threat as Orochimaru. This is what happens, he thinks, when one allows hubris to get the best of them. He had left the village, secure in the knowledge that he had put all his pieces in play and all that remained was watching them fulfill their parts.
The Uchiha have always been predictable in their ire. He had known years ago that they would need to be eliminated. Hiruzen was actions are similarly easy to anticipate. He had known the man's distaste for spilled blood and so set up his countermeasures in absolute secret. Even without his direct supervision, everything had been planned out meticulously. The Uchiha were a boil that had needed lancing. Once they finally rebelled the wound could be cleansed. He had known the coup would force both Hiruzen's and little Itachi's hands. He had trusted Hiruzen to react his usual weak way and he knew the child would carry out his orders well enough. While the boy was willful, he broke to the bit with little real effort. Genius or not, it was in his blood to bend to a firm guiding hand. He had assumed that by the time he returned from Orochimaru, the incident would have blown over and the village would finally have been given a chance to heal.
But no, somehow he had completely misjudged the situation. Somehow he had missed that Hiruzen was contemplating a far more disastrous plan. Less straightforward and certainly less likely to succeed. He could not see why the man was willing to risk the existence of the entire village on the whims of single clan. While he hated to waste an entire bloodline, what was the continued existence of such an arrogant family against the entire future of Konoha?
Before he can do anything though, he must gather more information. Danzo has been out of the village for nearly three months and he knows that much has changed. After his mishandling of the Uchiha problem, he is unwilling to act on flawed assumptions again. He has learned his lesson. Never again will he leave such delicate work unsupervised. After all, even the best forged blade can miss.
He has already spoken to Hiruzen, Koharu and Homura, but now he speaks with his spies. They have little to add, saying only that the Uchiha is loved. He has had little opportunity to show his true colors, but his talent for showmanship has easily won the masses. Civilians are excited at the energy a new Hokage represents and even the shinobi are willing to extend the benefit of the doubt. While there are still many grievances he has yet to address, the Hyuuga and Uchiha relations chief among them, the village retains an optimism eerily reminiscent of Namikaze's early days.
Besides those rather limited reports though, Danzo has nothing. He has never paid much mind to the individual members of any of the clans. The wheat has a way of separating from the chaff and for the rest? Clans breed true. Even the geniuses tend to fit into the same mold. Nara are lazy but smart, Hyuuga are arrogant and Uchiha are brash. With few exceptions, he has never needed to know much more.
Now that lack of foresight burns. He has already seen the Uchiha's file, both his public one and the secret one kept deep within ANBU, but neither are very enlightening. He already knows the boy's past. A product of the war, the boy rose quickly through the ranks, achieving jonin by thirteen. While standards are lower during active combat, Uchiha Shisui has always been considered something of a prodigy. Unlike most of his clan, he chose to master speed melee attacks, though he is by no means limited to them. But all this is useless. There are no notes on his mental stability, his character, his ability to lead.
Danzo himself remembers watching the boy shortly after he was admitted to ANBU; though the Uchiha's insubordinate attitude and constant absence made him ultimately abandon him. The heir had been far more docile and a more important piece, or so Danzo had thought. Apparently he has misjudged a number of things of late.
This is when Danzo realizes he will need to speak to the new Hokage sooner rather than later. He cannot rely on past observations moving forward.
He is not sure what he expected when he entered Hiruzen's old office. The room is much the same as it has always been. ANBU guards are stationed outside the doors and windows, and the desk sits in the center of the room, papers neatly stacked in towering piles. Uchiha Shisui sits on the chair, looking surprisingly comfortable with his role despite his youth. Behind him stands Uchiha Itachi, the only ANBU guard actually within the Hokage's office. Though, Danzo doubts guarding is the main reason for the younger Uchiha's presence.
While Danzo is old, he is not unobservant. He can tell how quickly the ANBU mask was shoved back on. And if that weren't enough, the ink stains on little Itachi's arms and small pile of papers hastily shoved under the desk make his more administrative role clear. Danzo smiles to himself. If the village were to find out just how much the Uchiha heir did for the new Hokage, there could be riots. No one wants one clan to have undue influence. The fact that Uchiha Itachi is more puppet than puppeteer is something Danzo will keep to himself.
The new Hokage looks up at him, his dark eyes clearly assessing Danzo. While Uchiha Shisui remains conspicuously relaxed, his face a mask of casual interest, Danzo has had enough dealings with Uchiha to see the hidden tension. Little Itachi stands behind, clearly at attention and not bothering to hide his wariness. It is time to see what this new Hokage is made of, to see how much of an obstacle he will be to Danzo's mission of protecting Konoha.
Danzo allows himself to smile in something approaching friendliness. "Good morning, Hokage-sama," he says, stopping the appropriate distance from the desk and bowing slightly. Uchiha Shisui narrows his eyes, but does not demand to know what Danzo is doing here, or why he hadn't come sooner. Danzo is not surprised, for he has built up no expectations of the Uchiha. He is, however, pleased. It is good to see the Uchiha display some signs of patience and tact.
When Danzo is sure he has the boy's full attention, he continues, "I wished to congratulate you on your appointment. I am gladdened to see your successes so far in appeasing the Uchiha." Danzo does not miss how both Uchiha tense, by this point he has little doubts both of them know what his solution for the Uchiha problem had been, and he wants to smile at their innocence. He is experienced enough to know that no friendship can survive such a crushing power imbalance as Lord and tool, but the fact they even try is... refreshing. Soon enough Uchiha Shisui will learn that the only thing that matters in the world is power and the will to use it, the will to turn even one's closest friends into pawns.
Uchiha Shisui remains polite for the duration of their meeting. And to reward him, Danzo imparts some of what he has learned about village sentiment. However, he listens and watches more than he shares. He is not ordered to leave when Hyuuga Hiashi comes in. There is nothing in the village he is not cleared to know, but he does not linger long.
He watches as the boys interact. Noting how effortlessly Itachi blends into the background, keeping watch on the Hyuuga even when Shisui is looking away. He sees how the new Hokage handles the petty complaints. His subtle redirections and mastery of working others to his point of view. After Danzo leaves he is not quite sure what to make of Uchiha Shisui. The boy is more complex than he had thought. His mind is sharp and he has no qualms controlling all those around him. Danzo decides he does not yet have enough information to form a comprehensive opinion.
Over the following weeks he drops in more and more often. Uchiha Shisui is never alone. Young Itachi stays behind him like a shadow, never speaking or appearing to give an opinion. Of course, that doesn't stop other forms of communication, and more than once, Danzo has seen the pair use a variation of ANBU handsigns. He begins to realize that despite appearances, their relationship is more equal than he had first believed. And for all that Danzo has always believed sharing power to be a weakness, he finds himself beginning to respect the new Hokage. He is not as ruthless as Danzo, but he is willing to listen to what Danzo says. He is willing to make hard choices.
Danzo realizes that he will never be Hokage, and Uchiha Shisui is far less tolerant of him than Hiruzen was. But despite that, he is happy. Although he will not be able to act with as much impunity as he has in the past, not without working directly counter to the Hokage's wishes, Uchiha Shisui can be taught. It will take subtlety and time, but Danzo recognizes a kindred spirit of sorts in this Uchiha. In some ways, Uchiha Shisui reminds him of himself. For all he pretends at kindness, Uchiha Shisui has the ambition and ruthlessness that will one day make him a great leader of men. So for now, Danzo bides his time, and plans. Once everything has settled down, he will work with his new Hokage, teach and shape him until nothing can stand in his way, in Konoha's way. And through it all, Danzo will rule from the shadows.