Chapter 584 I Shadow You Regret

Land of Earth.

Near Iwagakure.

“Finally, I’m back.”

An Iwagakure Ninja with a weary face looked at the Village surrounded by tall mountains, a hint of relief appearing on his face.

Having gone through such a crisis, he was content to have survived.

“Sigh, this time we really made fools of ourselves, losing so badly.” An Iwagakure Ninja couldn’t help but lament.

A Ninja force of two thousand was reduced to just over three hundred, which was probably one of the most tragic losses in recent wars.

Facing their homeland within reach, most of the Iwagakure Ninja in the Iwagakure Ninja Force felt extremely complex emotions.

Even the Jinchuriki Roshi was the same.

“I hope they send a more reliable commander next time.” Roshi sighed inwardly.

Roshi was usually reclusive, with few friends; he didn’t know most of the Iwagakure Ninja who died, and those he did know, he mostly only knew their names.

However, the more than sixteen hundred Iwagakure Ninja who perished were, after all, fellow villagers born and raised in the same Village as him; it was impossible for him to feel nothing.

The Ninja guarding the gate of Iwagakure seemed to have been notified in advance, showing no surprise at the approaching Iwagakure Ninja Force, and after a brief inspection, they let them pass.

Normally, when a Ninja force returned to the Village, it would be the Ninja force’s commander or other important management personnel who reported, and the remaining Ninja would be directly dismissed.

This time, many Jonin holding important positions, including the commander, had mostly died, and the few remaining people didn’t have high enough positions or much experience.

Roshi saw them discussing, looking conflicted and unable to come up with anything, so he directly helped Han and walked towards the Iwagakure Ninja Hospital.

Although they were the highest combat power of the Iwagakure Ninja Force, their positions were not high; they were purely enforcers.

Roshi thought that since there was nothing for them to do anyway, it was better to take Han to the hospital for treatment as soon as possible.

After all, Han was so heavily injured, and he was partly responsible.

His Tailed Beast Ball was indeed meant to help Han, but it was also a fact that he blew Han up.

Someone noticed Roshi leaving the group and opened their mouth to call out to him, but then thought of the scene where Roshi’s Tailed Beast Ball simultaneously engulfed both Iwagakure Ninja and Konoha Ninja, and closed their mouth again.

When Roshi was halfway there, suddenly several Iwagakure ANBU-dressed Ninja stopped him.

Roshi frowned slightly and asked, “What do you want? Han is injured, I need to take him to the hospital.”

“You don’t need to worry about Han; our people will ensure he gets the best treatment as soon as possible,” the leading Anbu said indifferently.

Immediately after, the two Anbu behind him walked towards Han.

Although Roshi was a little displeased, he didn’t stop them in order not to delay the treatment.

Then Roshi turned to go home, and the Iwagakure ANBU also disappeared from the main road.

After walking a certain distance, the Four-Tails’ voice sounded in Roshi’s mind.

“They are following you.”

Roshi’s brows furrowed even more; he was a bit confused.

Shouldn’t Anbu be very busy during wartime, needing to conduct espionage activities in various countries to gather intelligence, and also needing to prevent intelligence from being stolen by spies from other Ninja Villages? Why were they wasting manpower to follow him?

A Jinchuriki like him, who could freely use Full Tailed Beast Transformation, wouldn’t suddenly lose control for no reason.

Roshi returned home, cleaned up, and rested for a while, then went out to buy groceries and cook lunch.

After eating, Roshi asked the Four-Tails, “Are they still there?”

“Still here,” the Four-Tails replied.

Roshi, while washing dishes, grew increasingly displeased.

Although they had lost the battle, what did that have to do with him?

He had fought his best; if it weren’t for him, that two-thousand-man Ninja force might not have had only three hundred left; it could have been a hundred or so, or even completely wiped out.

When it was almost time to sleep at night, Roshi asked again.

“That group left, but new ones came,” the Four-Tails truthfully said.

Roshi couldn’t hold back; they were monitoring him with twenty-four-hour shifts, weren’t they?

Roshi suppressed the anger in his heart and went to sleep.

Although he was in a very bad mood, it was too late now, and making a commotion would greatly disturb others.

The next day.

Roshi washed up and made himself breakfast, and upon learning that he was still being monitored, Roshi directly asked the Four-Tails for the location.

“Just underground to the west of your house,” the Four-Tails replied.

If the Anbu hadn’t used Earth Release Ninjutsu to infiltrate underground, the Four-Tails might not have known; it was a Tailed Beast with lava power in its Chakra, extremely sensitive to the energy of the earth.

Roshi walked with a stern face to the spot the Four-Tails mentioned, and said coldly, “Don’t hide anymore, I know you’re here.”

At this moment, a gentle breeze blew, carrying some sand and dust, but the ground in front of Roshi was still empty.

“Lava Release: Scorching Stream Rock Technique!”

Roshi condensed Lava Release Chakra and quickly formed hand signs, his aura erupting.

“What are you trying to do?!” The two Iwagakure ANBU quickly appeared to stop him upon seeing this.

Roshi had indeed killed many Iwagakure Ninja on the battlefield this time, and they dared not gamble whether Roshi would actually attack with Lava Release.

“That’s what I should be asking you! Why are you constantly monitoring me?!” Roshi said impolitely.

“Are you Anbu so idle? Can’t you put more effort into intelligence? If it weren’t for problems with intelligence, the front-line force wouldn’t have been defeated so badly.”

“That’s not something you should worry about; intelligence matters will naturally be handled by someone else, and we are protecting you,” the Iwagakure ANBU emphasized.

Their mission was to monitor, but this obviously couldn’t be stated directly.

“Protect? Protecting me, a Perfect Jinchuriki, within Iwagakure?” Roshi was so angered he laughed.

If his strength still needed protection within Iwagakure, then Iwagakure was truly finished.

The Anbu remained silent, quietly watching Roshi.

Looking at the silent Anbu, Roshi felt a wave of annoyance; he couldn’t possibly kill fellow villagers for no reason.

“Ōnoki, what exactly are you thinking…?” Roshi thought for a moment, then finally looked towards the tallest rock building in Iwagakure.

The Anbu were directly commanded by the Tsuchikage, so this must have been Ōnoki’s order.

Roshi was a man of action; he no longer paid attention to the Anbu and walked directly towards the Tsuchikage’s office.

He wanted to ask Ōnoki clearly, to ask him why he was wasting power like this, and why he was monitoring him.

The Anbu initially didn’t know what Roshi intended to do, but as he got closer and closer to the Tsuchikage’s office, they gradually guessed Roshi’s thoughts.

One of them went to report the situation, while the other tried to stop Roshi.

“Lord Tsuchikage is busy with official duties; you cannot disturb him casually,” the Iwagakure ANBU said.

“He has time to tell you to monitor me, but no time to talk to me personally?” Roshi ignored the Iwagakure ANBU and continued walking.

The Iwagakure ANBU tried to pull Roshi back, but he pushed them away with great force.

Immediately after, Roshi quickly walked into the Tsuchikage’s office, heading straight for the Tsuchikage’s office, not stopping for any Ninja he encountered along the way.

Bang!

Roshi heavily pushed open the door to the Tsuchikage’s office, staring intently at Ōnoki sitting in the office chair.

“Lord Tsuchikage, I apologize,” the Anbu said, bowing his head.

Inside the Tsuchikage’s office, they couldn’t actually fight, so they could only rely on strength, but with the Four-Tails’ enhancement, they couldn’t stop Roshi at all.

“It’s fine, you may leave,” Ōnoki said calmly, no emotion visible on his face.

The Anbu nodded and quickly walked out of the Tsuchikage’s office, closing the door behind him.

Once the others had left, Ōnoki’s expression instantly changed; he looked at Roshi with a serious face.

“Roshi, what do you intend to do? Attacking Anbu, forcing your way into the Tsuchikage’s office—these charges are enough to put you in prison for ten years!” Ōnoki said in a deep voice, his terrifying aura erupting.

If an ordinary Iwagakure Jonin were here, they would probably be uncontrollably trembling under Ōnoki’s might.

After all, this was the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, one of the pinnacles of the Ninja World, and the man who led Iwagakure to prosperity.

But standing before Ōnoki was the Jinchuriki Roshi, and a Perfect Jinchuriki Roshi who had communicated with the Four-Tails.

Roshi looked at Ōnoki without changing his expression and retorted:

“I’d like to ask you what you intend to do. As soon as I returned to the Village, you had Anbu monitor me, and you call it protection? Are the Anbu that idle?”

“This is the result of a collective discussion among Iwagakure’s higher-ups; your dissatisfaction is useless,” Ōnoki said bluntly.

After all, he had been discovered, and Roshi wasn’t foolish; how could he not know whether it was protection or surveillance?

“Higher-ups collectively.” Roshi clenched his fists, his eyelids twitching.

He had fought so hard on the front lines, only to be distrusted like this upon his return.

This is already the best outcome. What do you think you did on the battlefield? That was one of the most forbidden taboos!

Ōnoki emphasized. “Some people even suggested replacing the Four-Tails Jinchuriki. If I hadn’t strongly objected, what you’d be facing wouldn’t be as simple as surveillance by two Anbu.”

Indeed, some in the high-level meeting had brought up the idea of replacing the Jinchuriki, but it wasn’t as exaggerated as Ōnoki made it sound.

Ōnoki mainly wanted to use this opportunity to reprimand Roshi and make him change his personality.

Roshi was stunned, not expecting the higher-ups to have had such an idea.

For a Jinchuriki, replacing a Jinchuriki means the previous Jinchuriki must die.

After a Tailed Beast is sealed inside a Jinchuriki, their lives become linked to the Tailed Beast. If the Jinchuriki dies, the Tailed Beast dies; if the Tailed Beast is extracted, the Jinchuriki also dies.

“Both the full Tailed Beast transformation within the crowd and using the Tailed Beast Ball to break through were orders given by Iwakura,” Roshi explained.

He wasn’t that crazy. If Iwakura hadn’t provoked Roshi with his self-detonation, he might not have even carried out Iwakura’s orders.

“The intelligence that was transmitted back did not contain this information,” Ōnoki replied, shaking his head.

Roshi was stunned again.

He thought of something: the battlefield was so chaotic at the time that few Iwagakure Ninja could have heard Iwakura’s orders.

Plus, with Muzuki, that god of death, nearby, the chances of survival were slim to none.

“At the time, I was injured by Hayate Mugetsu’s Water Release. Iwakura, the commander, saw it and told me to use the full Tailed Beast transformation to cooperate with him and the Iwagakure Explosive Force in an attack…” Roshi tried hard to recall the details of the time and explained.

Although he somewhat admired Iwakura’s final self-detonation, Roshi didn’t want to take the blame for Iwakura.

As a Jinchuriki, he already endured various strange looks; if he also gained a reputation for slaughtering comrades, he would truly find it difficult to remain in Iwagakure.

“Is there anyone who can testify for you?” Ōnoki asked after listening.

“How do you prove that this was Iwakura’s order, and not you becoming tyrannical due to the influence of the Tailed Beast Chakra?”

Roshi opened his mouth but couldn’t speak.

He didn’t even know if any knowledgeable people had survived.

“I will send Ninja to help you investigate. If there’s nothing, then go. I still have work to do,” Ōnoki began to usher him out.

In fact, Ōnoki already believed Roshi’s words.

Because Roshi was a proud and stubborn person, such a person would disdain lying to shirk responsibility.

However, if no one could testify for Roshi, Ōnoki would still maintain the status quo.

Firstly, he couldn’t overturn the results of the high-level meeting based on his own feelings; that would be too autocratic.

Secondly, he wanted to use this to make Roshi suffer a bit and become more adaptable.

A Jinchuriki was the strongest weapon of a Ninja Village. A weapon should have the awareness of a weapon. Ōnoki was very satisfied with Jinchuriki like Han, who silently completed missions without complaint.

Roshi had nothing to say. As Ōnoki said, he walked out of the Tsuchikage’s office and out of the Tsuchikage Building.

As he walked down the streets of Iwagakure, Roshi noticed that the gazes of the surrounding residents and Ninja were unusually fearful.

Even in the bustling commercial street, wherever he passed, an empty space would form.

Roshi walked expressionlessly towards his home, vaguely hearing words like “monster” and “cruel” behind him.

As a Jinchuriki, Roshi had actually experienced this kind of treatment long ago.

He didn’t know why he felt so uncomfortable encountering this situation again today. Was it because he led the breakthrough but received the treatment of a war criminal? Or was it because he didn’t sleep well yesterday, making him extra sensitive today?

Roshi was unsure, but he only knew one thing: he was very uncomfortable.

Over the next week, Roshi rarely went out, staying at home all the time.

Once he felt that Ōnoki should have completed the investigation, he went to the Tsuchikage Building again.

This time was not as tense as the last; Roshi had applied in advance.

“I sent people to inquire with all the Land of Grass Ninja from your unit, besides yourself. Everyone said they hadn’t heard similar orders. Do you have anything else to say?” Ōnoki didn’t waste time and directly stated the result.

Roshi silently looked at Ōnoki, saying nothing.

What else could he say? Blame the Ninja who heard the orders for dying? Or personally go find the Ninja who broke through and ask them one by one?

“You need to be more honest from now on, steadily follow orders and complete missions. Learn from Han, and you’ll be fine,” Ōnoki said to comfort him.

During wartime, Iwagakure couldn’t suddenly replace a Jinchuriki; that would be equivalent to cutting off an arm.

It was not a simple matter for a Jinchuriki to control the power of a Tailed Beast.

“Remove the surveillance on me,” Roshi said expressionlessly.

After hearing Ōnoki’s words, he finally understood what the higher-ups wanted to do. Killing comrades was just an excuse; the higher-ups just wanted to reprimand him.

If it were before, Roshi would have endured it and moved on.

After all, this was the Village that raised him, and he had to repay Iwagakure for its nurturing grace.

But this time, Roshi truly couldn’t endure it. He was already acting according to Iwakura’s orders, yet the higher-ups were still dissatisfied and wanted him to be more obedient.

Roshi felt that he had already done his utmost for Iwagakure. This time, if the Four-Tails hadn’t helped him, his outcome should have been death on the battlefield.

He had already repaid Iwagakure for his life; his current life was given by the Four-Tails.

Ōnoki frowned slightly. How could he not understand common sense at all?

“If you behave well in the future, no one will interfere with your life. I am the Tsuchikage,” Ōnoki reminded him.

As the Tsuchikage, he had immense power; whether to surveil or not was simply a matter of his word.

“If you don’t remove the surveillance on me, then you will surely regret it later.”

After speaking, Roshi turned directly and walked towards the office door, preparing to leave the Tsuchikage’s office.

The higher-ups wanted him to become a task-performing machine that only followed orders, but Roshi refused to grant their wish.

If Ōnoki still sent Anbu to monitor him, Roshi wouldn’t kill the Anbu, but he would directly leave Iwagakure.

He couldn’t bring himself to kill innocent Iwagakure Ninja, so he might as well go somewhere else to avoid the trouble.

Bang!

The door of the Tsuchikage’s office was slammed shut.

Ōnoki’s face darkened. After so many years as Tsuchikage, Roshi was the first person to show him such disrespect.

Just a mere Jinchuriki.

“Remove the Anbu currently responsible for monitoring him, and have the squad leader personally take over!” Ōnoki summoned an Anbu and ordered.

As the Kage of a Village, if he were truly threatened by Roshi, where would his Tsuchikage’s prestige be?

So, not only would he continue to monitor Roshi, but he would also send more people to monitor him, assigning elite Anbu to the task.

“Report to me immediately if Roshi makes any unusual moves.”

Ōnoki had previously thought Roshi was executing Iwakura’s orders, but now Roshi’s behavior made him think it might also be the influence of the Tailed Beast Chakra; his temper was too explosive.

On the other side, Roshi, who had walked out of the Tsuchikage Building, sighed.

Although he had just thought about leaving Iwagakure if there was still Anbu surveillance.

However, Iwagakure was ultimately his home, and Roshi became lost in thought at the idea of leaving Iwagakure.

Where would he go after leaving Iwagakure? What would he do after leaving Iwagakure?

He didn’t think about it before, but once he did, Roshi found his life to be exceptionally empty; he couldn’t even think of what he could do after leaving Iwagakure.

“Since I don’t know where to go, why not visit everywhere?” Roshi had the idea of traveling around the Ninja World.

Normally, when he went abroad, it was always for missions, and he never really took the time to carefully experience how life in other countries differed from the Land of Earth.

“In that case, the first stop could be the Land of Rain, to meet Ninja Master Sōsuke, who has thousands of disciples, and see what a country perpetually covered in rain looks like,” Roshi thought to himself.

The major deeds Sōsuke had accomplished were quite well-known throughout the entire Ninja World, and Roshi had heard many legends about Sōsuke.

There were very few people who could inspire admiration in Roshi, but if Sōsuke was exactly as the legends described, then Sōsuke could be one of them.

“I won’t think so much about it. Perhaps Ōnoki will respect me and withdraw the Anbu.”

Roshi realized he was thinking a bit too much, so he shook his head and returned home.

For him, the best option was, of course, to stay in Iwagakure, as it wouldn’t be so easy to return if he left.