Chapter 408: The reincarnation of the Six Paths Sage’s Chakra?

Ninja Master Sōsuke gained fame again, becoming known to many Ninja in an extremely short period.

This time was different from before; previously, it was because the experiences of his Sōsuke persona were too legendary and easily sparked discussion, but this time, it was purely due to his strength.

The Ninja World is a world where strength reigns supreme. The fastest way to become famous is to defeat a renowned strong individual. The stronger and more famous the defeated opponent, the greater the impact.

Before participating in the Third Shinobi World War, Minato Namikaze was only slightly known within Konoha.

But after the war began, it was different. The New AB Combo proved their strength by defeating veteran Ninja of the Ninja World, while Minato Namikaze proved his strength by fighting the AB Combo to a standstill alone, becoming the Yellow Flash, a terrifying presence on the battlefield.

Of course, defeating someone doesn’t guarantee fame; it depends on the timing, circumstances, and personal intentions.

It’s hard not to become famous by achieving great deeds on the battlefield. If Muzuki encountered and defeated Pakura, and neither side publicized it, then it wouldn’t have much impact.

Although Muzuki didn’t deliberately market his persona this time, due to the ‘sage art inheritance,’ too many people were watching him. And when he fought Kakuzu, it was an open and honest battle, with both sides fiercely clashing, so the outcome of Muzuki’s battle with Kakuzu quickly spread.

The first to know, naturally, was the Amegakure, the strongest local force in the Land of Rain.

“He defeated Kakuzu, and he maintained the advantage throughout the victory,” Hanzō revealed a thoughtful expression.

There aren’t many strong individuals in the Ninja World. Aside from those who hide in deep mountains and old forests and don’t come out, even if their names aren’t particularly well-known, everyone knows a little about each other.

Hanzō had heard stories of Kakuzu in the black market and knew that Kakuzu’s strength was far from simple.

After all, Kakuzu specifically targeted those with high bounties. Ninja with high bounties are either exceptionally strong themselves or have special identities. If Kakuzu had no ability, he would have been counter-killed long ago; it would be impossible for him to dominate the black market for decades.

Hanzō had previously had a clash of aura with Muzuki and knew that Muzuki was not a simple Ninja, but he hadn’t expected Muzuki to be able to defeat Kakuzu so quickly.

“It’s a pity he’s not a Ninja of my Amegakure,” Hanzō shook his head with some regret.

Hanzō currently had a somewhat troublesome problem: the Amegakure was experiencing a generational gap.

By the standards of a normal small Ninja Village, the Amegakure had no problems, but Hanzō had always aimed to be on par with the Five Great Ninja Villages, and the next Rain Ninja leader also had to be a top-tier strong individual in the Ninja World.

But unfortunately, Hanzō had not seen any Ninja with the potential to become a top-tier strong individual among the younger generation of the Amegakure.

Although Kurosaki Ichigo, who recently joined the Amegakure, was good, he couldn’t be trusted for now.

“I should be able to hold on for another twenty years; the Amegakure still has time,” Hanzō’s expression returned to its usual composure.

As one of the pinnacles of the Ninja World, Hanzō had enough confidence in himself.

Even though Muzuki defeated Kakuzu, Hanzō still only considered Muzuki an excellent junior, not his opponent.

Hanzō was not being arrogant without reason. According to the combat data of Muzuki and Kakuzu, Muzuki was most skilled in Fire Release Ninjutsu, while Hanzō’s most skilled Ninjutsu happened to be Water Release, which countered Fire Release. Coupled with his superior combat experience, Hanzō was very confident in his Taijutsu. Considering everything, Hanzō did not believe Muzuki would be his opponent.

Besides the Amegakure, several large and small countries bordering the Land of Rain, as well as various Ninja Organizations, also learned that Kakuzu had been defeated.

Konoha, Root base, Danzo Shimura, after reading the latest intelligence from the Land of Rain, cursed Hiruzen Sarutobi’s shortsightedness in his heart.

If they had strengthened their Ninja forces in the Land of Rain, they could have acted directly.

“I must find a way to get my hands on the sage art inheritance,” Danzo Shimura began to think about how to smoothly obtain the sage art inheritance from Muzuki.

At that time, he would have both Wood Release Ninja and the sage art inheritance, becoming Fourth Hokage would be a matter of course.

However, Danzo Shimura currently had a very difficult problem, which was insufficient power.

The forces he had deployed in the Land of Rain were insufficient to seize the sage art inheritance from Muzuki.

Muzuki was not only a strong individual who could defeat Kakuzu but also had seventy-two Ninja following him, which was truly a considerable force.

But this didn’t stump Danzo; he quickly thought of a countermeasure through empathy.

“I can ally with Hanzō to deal with Sōsuke,” Danzo Shimura thought to himself.

Muzuki was so strong and wanted to rebuild the Shinobi Sect. If Danzo Shimura were Hokage, and there was such a Ninja force in the Land of Fire, Danzo would be unable to rest. How could he allow others to sleep soundly in his bed?

The more Danzo Shimura thought about it, the more he felt his plan was excellent.

Hanzō would eliminate a major threat, and he would obtain the sage art inheritance. Everyone would have a bright future.

“I can also take the opportunity to deeply cooperate with the Amegakure, have them join the war, and build momentum for me in the future Fourth Hokage election,” Danzo Shimura nodded with satisfaction.

If his plan succeeded, it would be the best outcome for both him and Konoha.

After perfecting the plan in his mind, Danzo Shimura immediately issued a mission, ordering his subordinates to begin operations.

First, he had to investigate the relationship between the two parties. If it wasn’t as he thought, then he would need to stir up animosity between them.

Besides assigning tasks to Root Ninja, Danzo also began to figure out how to reasonably leave Konoha.

For such an important matter, he certainly had to meet Hanzō in person.

Land of Earth, Iwagakure Tsuchikage’s office.

Ōnoki saw the latest intelligence from the Land of Rain and showed an intrigued expression, “Ninja Master Sōsuke, Shinobi Sect, interesting.”

He didn’t care about the legendary experiences on Muzuki’s person. Ōnoki just had a feeling that this Ninja was someone who was very good at causing trouble.

In just over a month, he went from being unknown to being famous in the Ninja World, and he also gained a group of followers.

However, what Ōnoki found regrettable was that Muzuki was only causing trouble in the Land of Rain. If Muzuki were causing trouble in the other four great nations, Ōnoki would not hesitate to get involved and escalate the situation.

Ōnoki had little interest in the Land of Rain; weakening the Amegakure’s strength did not align with Iwagakure’s interests.

He was still hoping to use the Amegakure to annoy Sunagakure and Kumogakure.

Although the village’s Ninja forces already exceeded ten thousand, Ōnoki was not in a hurry to strike hard. He wanted to first deplete the strength of the other great Ninja Villages.

Therefore, Ōnoki consistently implemented his’stirring stick’ plan, inciting conflicts between various Ninja Villages and causing them to wage war.

In a dimly lit cave, listening to Black Zetsu’s report, Uchiha Madara frowned.

“Have you investigated this guy named Sōsuke?” Uchiha Madara asked in a deep voice.

Nagato held a crucial position in his resurrection plan, so the sudden appearance of a strong individual near Nagato greatly concerned Uchiha Madara.

“We investigated, but couldn’t find anything. Perhaps this guy really has been cultivating in seclusion as he claimed,” Black Zetsu said, shaking his head.

In fact, Black Zetsu was more concerned about Muzuki than Uchiha Madara, because Muzuki had brought up the name of the Shinobi Sect and claimed to have obtained the sage art inheritance.

If there was one person Black Zetsu feared the most, it was definitely the Six Paths Sage.

Black Zetsu could be said to be Ōtsutsuki Kaguya’s third child, making him the Six Paths Sage’s brother.

Black Zetsu had no way against the elder brother who sealed his mother. When the Six Paths Sage was alive, Black Zetsu dared not cause trouble.

If there truly was some sage art inheritance, Black Zetsu would only think it was a contingency left by the Six Paths Sage to prevent Kaguya’s resurrection, not the heritage of Indra and Asura.

Didn’t Black Zetsu know what kind of people Indra and Asura were? Those two foolish boys were nothing to fear.

So Black Zetsu very seriously dispatched White Zetsu to investigate Sōsuke’s past.

But Sōsuke seemed to have sprung from a rock; all the information Black Zetsu could find was what the other party had said himself.

Black Zetsu had considered whether this might be a fake identity, but there were no traces of transformation Ninjutsu on Muzuki. Even if the name was fake, something should have been found based on his appearance.

After a comprehensive investigation, Black Zetsu believed that Sōsuke might indeed have been cultivating in seclusion all along, which led to such investigation results.

“Strengthen surveillance on Nagato’s side,” Uchiha Madara said after pondering.

He didn’t have a very good solution right now. He couldn’t possibly go out and kill the guy himself, could he?

Although Uchiha Madara was confident in his strength, time had indeed eroded his body. The cost of killing Muzuki might be a shortened lifespan, which would affect his overall plan.

Uchiha Madara wasn’t too flustered. Previously, a strong Ninja had also appeared near Nagato. If Muzuki didn’t recognize the Rinnegan, or had no thoughts about the Rinnegan, then it wouldn’t greatly affect his plan.

Black Zetsu nodded.

In fact, he had already dispatched White Zetsu to keep an eye on Nagato’s side twenty-four hours a day. He was very worried that Muzuki was a contingency of the Six Paths Sage.

Black Zetsu even had a wild guess in his mind: perhaps Muzuki was the reincarnation of the Six Paths Sage’s Chakra.

This was possible; what normal Ninja would stay cooped up in the mountains cultivating without coming out, only to restore the Shinobi Sect upon emerging?

However, this conjecture was too bold, and Black Zetsu also felt the probability was very low. Although the methods Muzuki currently displayed were powerful, they were still within the normal range.

“It seems I need to speed things up a bit,” Uchiha Madara prepared to use his arrangements to further destabilize the Ninja World.

Plans couldn’t keep up with changes. To prevent major unforeseen circumstances, Uchiha Madara wanted to accelerate his plan so he could peacefully pass away and await resurrection.

Muzuki’s defeat of Kakuzu attracted too much attention. His bounty on the black market super-doubled, directly reaching an astonishing forty million Ryo.

This was an extremely terrifying number. If converted into S-rank Mission, it could fund 40 S-rank Missions in Konoha.

Although the bounty skyrocketed, Muzuki suffered fewer attacks instead.

Most Ninja of Fortune, upon hearing that Kakuzu, a legendary Ninja in the black market, had been defeated by Muzuki, dared not act rashly anymore.

Ninja of Fortune indeed loved money, but they also cherished their lives. After all, if a person died, no matter how much money they earned, they would have nowhere to spend it.

After defeating Kakuzu, Muzuki and their team’s pace of action didn’t change much, except for one more person in the team.

Because Kakuzu’s body was quite peculiar, Muzuki specifically bought him a long robe so as not to scare ordinary people.

“Why should we care about those ordinary people?” Kakuzu didn’t care what he wore but was puzzled.

“It’s just to give due respect. Everyone is just human; no one is nobler than anyone else,” Muzuki answered seriously.

Kakuzu sneered, “Easy for you to say. Then why do nobles exist? Aren’t nobles inherently superior?”

“Nobles are born with fiefdoms and privileges. What kind of equality is that?”

All the Ninja looked at Muzuki, curious about how he would answer.

Among Ninja, this question was actually fine. Clan Ninja at most had more resources and secret techniques than civilian Ninja, but the gap between ordinary civilians and nobles was huge.

“You’re right, so I think the system where nobles enjoy privileges should be abolished,” Muzuki replied with a faint smile.

Kakuzu stared at Muzuki with wide eyes. This was not quite the script he had imagined.

Muzuki didn’t refute him; instead, he said something so “treasonous.”

“Do you know what you’re saying? The Daimyō is the biggest noble,” Kakuzu scrutinized Muzuki. He felt as if he was seeing Muzuki anew.

The most privileged group of people in the Ninja World were the Daimyō. Their descendants didn’t have to do anything to enjoy wealth and luxury, and their every word and action could determine the life and death of a large number of common people.

The other Ninja also looked at Muzuki with shocked expressions. This was definitely the boldest thing they had ever heard.

“The Shinobi Sect I want to create is not exactly the same as the historical Shinobi Sect; it is a new Shinobi Sect that learns from past failures,” Muzuki brought the topic back to the Shinobi Sect.

Kakuzu thought Muzuki was going to avoid the main issue and was about to mock him, but then he realized Muzuki’s next words were even more explosive.

“Although the Six Paths Sage was far-sighted, the Shinobi Sect he created could not escape the limitations of its era. The most inappropriate aspect was the adoption of the hereditary system.”

Muzuki actually began to speak of the Six Paths Sage’s shortcomings.

The Ninja were all very surprised. It was known that Muzuki had previously always praised the Ninja Sect and glorified the Six Paths Sage.

“We must learn and absorb the good aspects of the Six Paths Sage and the ancient Shinobi Sect, but their dross must also be removed, and at the same time, we must dare to boldly criticize.”

“No matter who it is, a mistake is a mistake. Don’t blindly follow just because the other party is an authority. If one day you find that I am wrong, you can also point out my mistakes and let me correct them,” Muzuki said with a sincere expression.

Kakuzu was at a loss for words for a moment. He could only secretly note Muzuki’s words in his heart, waiting for the day Muzuki would go against his own words. He didn’t believe such a person truly existed in the world.

The other seventy-two Ninja also gained a new understanding of Muzuki.

“Uncle Sōsuke is right. If I make a mistake in the future, you must point it out immediately. Don’t be polite with me just because I’m the leader,” Yahiko said with a smile to his Akatsuki Organization members.

He felt that Muzuki was absolutely right, but if he were to think about it, he would never come up with such words in his lifetime. Yahiko’s respect for Muzuki grew even stronger in his heart.

After this day, the content of Muzuki’s lectures changed somewhat. In addition to Ninja knowledge, Muzuki began to explain some knowledge from his previous life, integrating it with the ancient Shinobi Sect and the reality of the Ninja World.