Spoiler Danzo. A neutral perspective?

[Shikamaru Nara]

Danzo lived in a very dangerous and exciting time. War was basically a day-to-day regime for him. War was at hand and death was imminent. Basically, it wasn't uncommon to see it happening everyday. On the other hand, Konoha was passing from one of its finest moments with the 1st Hokage gaining total control over the village and paving the way to the will of fire and shinobi like Tobirama, Sarutobi and later Sakumo rising into prominence. And even possibly Naruto after the war is over or Tsunade dies.

Danzo vs will of fire

Some say that Danzo's ambition lead him to hate the will of fire. They're all certainly wrong in my opinion. Danzo loved the village and would have probably wanted it to become stronger then all the Hokages combined. Why do you think that his goal was to start an organization and ultimately take the village and do what he pleases with it? He obviously wasn't evil either considering the fact that the only reason he faught Sasuke was to eradicate Madara and thwart his plan, which was ultimately, again, for the village, correct? The problem with Danzo was that he placed his life at a higher priority than that of the village. When things got desperate, Danzo simply tried to find ways to escape from the situation. He did it when he refused to offer himself to save the group (Tobirama's last possible fight) and he did it again when he escaped the Kage's summit jeopardizing not only Konoha's credibility but also his chance of becoming Hokage. Such mentality made him incompatible with the will of fire which first became an obstacle for Danzo and then an obsession to destroy at all cost. This does not mean he was a bad character, just sometimes selfish. But that doesn't at all mean that he doesn't love and care for the village. In the situation that he was in, wouldn't you have done the exact same?

Rise to Power

People like Danzo rarely become strong if ruled with a iron fist. Unfortunately the 3rd was not that kind of man. (Which worked out pretty handily for Danzo I guess in the long run, with his five minutes of glory as Hokage.) Sarutobi's only weakness was that he was kind hearted and often closed an eye to what was going on especially if it may indirectly help the village at a later stage. He was always one step ahead of everyone. A true leader trying to look out for his brethren. Ya dig? Well keep reading. He did that with Orochimaru and he did the same thing with Danzo. In fact Danzo become stronger under the 3rd Hokage's rule. Also fortunate for Danzo.

Alliance with Orochimaru & Hanzo

In both cases it lead to Danzo's 2 main feelings. ie his ambition and his quest to survive at all cost. After his fight against Sarutobi it was perfectly evident that Sarutobi was stronger then him. So, Danzo was starting to find ways how to become stronger. His alliance first with Hanzo (a powerful warlord with enough potential to pose as a serious threat to the 3rd Hokage and then Orochimaru would have not only consolidated Danzo's power and plan but also (in Orochimaru's case) made him physically stronger (Sharingan eye). On the other hand, Danzo was no fool. Despite having some sort of agreement with both these S Rank killers he didn't hesitated twice to either abandon them (Hanzo's case) or try to destroy their project (kill Sasuke) when things got messy and his life/Konoha's future was on the line.

Such fear (of dying) made Danzo obsessive.

Uchiha

Ever since Madara fought Hashirama, the Uchiha clan were always Konoha's dark horse. With Hashirama gone and no one decent successor (with Mokuton) to take over, the chance of having another Madara within the Uchiha ranks to take over first the Uchiha clan and then Konoha were real. Danzo was able to see that threat (to his ambition) before anyone else. Itachi Uchiha was a genius and an Uchiha. It was only a matter of time before he would be spotted first as an inspirational leader within the Uchiha clan and then as a potential Hokage by Sarutobi. Taken them out was a priority, stealing their sinister power and make it his own was one sure way to become stronger then he ever hoped of becoming

The Sharingan arm - a great power and a curse

The sharingan arm (+ Hashirama's cells) has given Danzo great power. Yet despite such power, could, in theory, ensure him the 5th hokage's role (he had all the experience, influence and power needed to take such role). Danzo refused to reveal his true power. The reason to that is simple. Its true that the sharingan arm had the potential of making Danzo's Kage level. On the other hand, people would have questioned how come Danzo had ended up with so many sharingan eyes in his hands and who made such a freak experiment over him. Lets face it, the only one capable of such brilliant experiment was Orochimaru an S Rank criminal who was guilty of invading Konoha. That's why Danzo remained in the shadows, allowing Tsunade to become 5th Hokage.

If you want to denigrate Danzo because he was ambitious, you might as well be saying that Naruto is also the bad guy in the story, because his dream is to save Sasuke and be Hokage and he won't shut up about it.

[zerosameri]

I really don't see the point of the whole thread, but I get were you're coming at.

I wouldn't really call him a 'neutral' more of 'he's just there'.

[Shikamaru Nara]

Dude do you know what neutral means? An impartial and uninvolved country or person.

[zerosameri]

Originally Posted by Shikamaru Nara

Dude do you know what neutral means? An impartial and uninvolved country or person.

Yes I do know what it means. He hardly done anything and he was 'just there'.

[Shikamaru Nara]

Emphasis on UNINVOLVED.

[zerosameri]

Originally Posted by Shikamaru Nara

Emphasis on UNINVOLVED.

Fine, fine! Dude no need to get flustered.

[Shikamaru Nara]

I'm not flustered you're just not smart. ;_; naw. well maybe...

[zerosameri]

Originally Posted by Shikamaru Nara

I'm not flustered you're just not smart. ;_; naw. well maybe...

It's 10 here and I had a long day. So I'm out of it. XD

Any who,

If you want to denigrate Danzo because he was ambitious, you might as well be saying that Naruto is also the bad guy in the story, because his dream is to save Sasuke and be Hokage and he won't shut up about it.

Danzou was 'power hunger ambitious.' Naruto is not.

[mrsticky005]

Originally Posted by zerosameri

It's 10 here and I had a long day. So I'm out of it. XD

Any who,
Danzou was 'power hunger ambitious.' Naruto is not.

Naruto wants to become Hokage. I'd say he's power hungry ambitious.

[PlatonicZombie]

Danzo isn't neutral, he used people for his own ends. Is Sai not a good enough example of that? I enjoy this thread because I was going to post about Danzo in my Naruto and Asian Philosophy thread soon, and this will help me organize my thoughts. So, thank you Shikamaru Nara for this thread. Danzo did care for the village, yes, but he was hardly neutral. That'd be like saying Kabuto is neutral because he likes playing both sides. No, Danzo wanted to become Hokage by any means necessary, for example: not helping the village when Pain attacked. Naruto wants to be Hokage based on his merit; these are two completely seperate means to the same goal.

Danzo was a man who was of a Legalist view. One of the best example of this is the seal placed on the tounges of Root members keeping them from freely speaking. To Danzo, everyone must be kept in place and void of emotions. To him, those ideals makes for a strong and ideal shinobi. Another example of this wasn't just his Sharingan arm, but the Sharingan in his right eye. This sharingan allowed for him to manipulate others thoughts leading them to think that their own thoughts were indeed theirs, but in reality were just thoughts Danzo wanted them to think. He made sure he was always in control of the situation. This is not a neutral shinobi. This is a shinobi who became corrupted by the thought of absolute power.

[victor kaegi]

I think what danzo made Itachi do was unforgivable. He is a monster. I also am very impressed in how much power saskue has obtained.

[victor kaegi]

I am a new member so i would to have friends. So anyone please add me. I am a long time naruto fan though.

[mrsticky005]

Originally Posted by victor kaegi

I think what danzo made Itachi do was unforgivable. He is a monster. I also am very impressed in how much power saskue has obtained.

Nah, the monsters are the Uchiha Clan (and ultimately Madara). If Danzo didn't do what was necessary the Uchiha Clan would have taken over and all of Konoha would be destroyed and everyone would be dead.
Itachi is the cruel one for letting Sasuke live AND killing the clan.
Itachi is the one who ruined Sasuke's life completely. Danzo would have
just ended it. Would it be immoral for Danzo to eliminate the entire Uchiha
Clan along with a little kid like Sasuke? Yes, of course. But like Danzo
said "niceties alone don't make the world go round".