Chapter 670: Sosuke VS Sarutobi Hiruzen

Land of Rain, Six Paths City.

Shinobi Sect Office Building, Leader’s Conference Room.

“Sōsuke-sensei, I’d like to accompany you to the border as your guard,” Yahiko stated his purpose.

Konoha had approached the Shinobi Sect for negotiations twice, and with Danzo Shimura’s actions already widely known in the Ninja World, the tense relationship between the Shinobi Sect and Konoha was no secret within the Shinobi Sect.

Furthermore, Muzuki hadn’t specifically ordered the negotiation results to be kept secret, so most of the Shinobi Sect’s high and middle-ranking members knew about Muzuki’s impending battle with Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Upon hearing this, Yahiko instantly became agitated. The fact that the Danzo Shimura incident would be concluded after the battle made it seem as if Konoha intended to use this as bait to assassinate Sōsuke.

However, Yahiko believed that with Sōsuke’s wisdom, he wouldn’t fail to see Konoha’s intentions, and there must be a reason for him to agree to this condition. Therefore, Yahiko didn’t question the negotiation itself, only wishing to go along.

Yahiko didn’t doubt Sōsuke’s abilities, but circumstances are uncertain, and who could guarantee what Konoha would do?

Although he was not as monstrous as Nagato, he was considered outstanding among Jonin.

Before Muzuki could speak, there was a sudden knock on the door.

“Enter,” Muzuki said, looking towards the door.

Receiving Sōsuke’s response, Kakuzu pushed the door open and entered.

Seeing Yahiko, Kakuzu wasn’t too surprised and asked Sōsuke:

“Have you arranged the accompanying Ninja? Add me in. I want to witness your full power.”

Sōsuke had displayed such strong confidence, and had even said that he hadn’t used even two-tenths of his strength when he defeated him, making Kakuzu very curious about how strong Sōsuke truly was.

Kakuzu was a well-traveled Ninja; he had even fought the God of Shinobi, Senju Hashirama. Although he was easily defeated by Senju Hashirama, it still counted as having fought.

Currently, Hayate Mugetsu of Konoha shook the Ninja World, and was considered by many Ninja to have the potential to become the second God of Shinobi.

Kakuzu wondered if Sōsuke could be the second Uchiha Madara? Purely in terms of strength.

Just as Muzuki was about to speak, another knock sounded at the door.

“Enter.”

Nagato pushed the door open and entered, pausing slightly when he saw Kakuzu and Yahiko standing inside.

“Sōsuke-sensei, I wish to accompany you to the border.” Seeing that neither of them spoke, Nagato closed the door and explained his purpose.

Nagato was the only one who knew about the connection between Sōsuke and Hayate Mugetsu.

Nagato wasn’t worried that Muzuki would lose to Hiruzen Sarutobi; Muzuki’s strength in any of his identities was astonishing, indicating that Muzuki’s true strength would be even greater than what was displayed in those identities.

But he felt that Muzuki would be very uncomfortable caught between the Shinobi Sect and Konoha, and was somewhat worried that something might go wrong, so he wanted to go along.

Knock, knock.

Just as Nagato finished speaking, another knock sounded from outside the door.

Yahiko and Kakuzu’s expressions became subtle. Could it be another one?

“Enter,” Muzuki said.

Konan and Roshi walked in together.

Seeing the three people standing in the office, their steps faltered slightly, and they showed expressions of surprise.

“You first,” Roshi said to Konan.

They had met on the way to the leader’s office and weren’t looking for Sōsuke together for the same reason.

“Sōsuke-sensei, I want to go with you to…”

As soon as Konan spoke, all four people in the office showed strange expressions.

Konan couldn’t help but look puzzled, subconsciously glancing at her clothes, finding them as neat and clean as usual, with no abnormalities.

“It’s not that I don’t want to agree, but if all of you leave, who will handle the Shinobi Sect’s affairs?” Muzuki said with a helpless smile.

Two or three leaving was fine, but if too many high and middle-ranking members left, who would do the work?

Just as Kakuzu was about to say something, the knocking on the door sounded again, and again, and again.

Subsequently, several more elders from the Shinobi Sect’s founding period successively entered the office, expressing their desire to accompany the leader to the battle site.

Soon, the office was packed with people, astonishing the last person to arrive.

“How about this, we’ll draw lots,” Muzuki finally decided to draw lots to take four people, and then select five Ninja from the Shinobi Sect who had performed well in the past to gain experience.

After all, these people were elders who had traveled the Ninja World with him, and he couldn’t show favoritism.

Muzuki’s decision was approved by everyone.

They also knew it was impossible for everyone to go together; they were all high and middle-ranking members of the Shinobi Sect, and if they all left, what would happen?

The drawing method was also very simple: put numbers into a box and let everyone draw. Only those who drew numbers one, two, three, or four could go with Muzuki.

“Son, do you have a way to see through things?” Roshi wanted to cheat.

The reason was simple: he felt he was the strongest, and if something went wrong, he could help Sōsuke. This was well-intentioned cheating.

“I don’t have that ability,” Four-Tails shrugged, indicating his helplessness.

Fighting was no problem for him, but for drawing lots and cheating, he truly couldn’t find a corresponding ability.

Roshi had no choice but to draw honestly, but to his surprise, his luck was unexpectedly good today, as he drew number four.

In addition, Nagato drew number one, Kakuzu drew number two, and Ikechou drew number three.

“Ah, my luck is bad precisely today,” Yahiko sighed, scratching his hair.

He drew number five, just one number off.

“Even if you don’t go to the site, you can still cheer for Sōsuke-sensei in your heart,” Konan comforted him.

After speaking, Konan walked up to Sōsuke, presenting him with a paper flower, “I wish Sōsuke-sensei all the best.”

“Thank you,” Muzuki smiled as he accepted it, placing the flower on the office desk.

…

On the day of departure, the Ninja who hadn’t drawn lots gathered to see Sōsuke off.

Some of the more emotional Ninja even had tears in their eyes.

They weren’t sure how strong Sōsuke was, but they knew that the Third Hokage was one of the pinnacles of the Ninja World.

So, from many people’s perspective, Sōsuke was forced to agree to this extremely dangerous battle to preserve the Shinobi Sect.

“We must work diligently and cultivate hard, to strengthen the Shinobi Sect as soon as possible, so we no longer have to bow to the Five Great Ninja Villages!” This was the thought in the hearts of many of the departing Ninja.

In their hearts, Sōsuke was the greatest Ninja in the Land of Rain, even Hanzō couldn’t compare to him.

Seeing their leader, the person they admired, endure such hardship, how could they not feel distressed?

“At most, I’ll only be gone for a few days; why do you act as if I won’t be back for a long time?” Muzuki said with a smile, trying to reassure everyone.

When Muzuki said this, the Konoha Ninja were even more moved. As expected of their great leader Sōsuke, even at a time like this, he could maintain such composure to comfort them.

Muzuki was at a loss. In this situation, even if he said he could surely win against Hiruzen Sarutobi, it would be useless; these people had already preemptively decided that he was making a sacrifice for the Shinobi Sect.

“Sōsuke-sensei, please come back safely! I still want to hear you talk about Shinobi Sect philosophy,” a Shinobi Sect Ninja said with reluctance.

These words instantly stirred the emotions of the departing Ninja, who all followed suit and shouted.

The nine Ninja who were able to accompany Muzuki to the border also became solemn, feeling the heavy burden on their shoulders.

The importance of Sōsuke to the Land of Rain and the Shinobi Sect was self-evident.

Could the Shinobi Sect maintain such vitality without a pivotal figure like Sōsuke? No one dared to give a definitive answer.

“Everyone, rest assured, I will be back very soon,” Muzuki gave all the Shinobi Sect Ninja a warm and confident smile.

After speaking, Muzuki led Nagato and the others eastward.

During the journey, Muzuki’s main body arrived and found an opportunity to replace the Shadow Clone.

As Muzuki approached the mountain where the battle was to take place, he activated his Kenbunshoku Haki to sense his surroundings, discovering that Hiruzen Sarutobi and his group were just starting to climb the other side of the mountain.

As for Orochimaru and the negotiation team he led, they were already halfway up the mountain due to their earlier arrival.

Ultimately, Muzuki and his group arrived at the mountainside around the same time as Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The two sides stood opposite each other, sizing each other up.

However, on both sides, most people’s gazes were focused on their respective leaders: Hiruzen Sarutobi for Konoha, and Muzuki for the Shinobi Sect.

Kage were the pinnacle of the Ninja World, and it was very difficult to meet a Kage unless they were from the same village.

As for Sōsuke, in the perception of Konoha Ninja, he was also a powerful figure shrouded in mystery.

He suddenly appeared in the Land of Rain, established the Shinobi Sect, stirred up the Land of Rain, and quickly became famous throughout the Ninja World.

“Is this the Third Hokage of Konoha? What an imposing aura!”

Some of the less powerful Shinobi Sect Ninja felt immense pressure just from Hiruzen Sarutobi’s sharp gaze.

“A Ninja Master against the Professor of Ninjutsu, it’s hard to imagine the coming battle,” Kakuzu thought to himself.

Kakuzu had seen the First Hokage, but he had not seen the Third Hokage.

Although he hadn’t seen him, Kakuzu had heard many stories about the Third Hokage.

It was rumored that this Hokage had mastered most of Konoha’s Ninjutsu and secret techniques, possessing more methods than anyone could imagine, and no one could counter him in battle; instead, it was very easy for him to counter others.

However, Kakuzu believed that Sōsuke should not be countered by Hiruzen Sarutobi. Based on Sōsuke’s level in theoretical classes, Sōsuke’s Ninjutsu of other attributes wouldn’t be bad.

“Besides Orochimaru, Konoha’s elder has also come,” Roshi noticed Homura Mitokado beside Hiruzen Sarutobi.

As a former enemy of Konoha, Roshi was not unfamiliar with this Konoha elder.

After becoming an elder, Homura Mitokado rarely took action, but before that, Homura Mitokado was also a famous genius Ninja of Konoha.

Roshi was glad he came; otherwise, with so many strong Ninja on Konoha’s side, if the battle didn’t favor Konoha, a one-on-one fight might be interfered with.

“Is that Sōsuke? He’s so young,” Homura Mitokado thought, looking at Muzuki’s transformed appearance.

Although Muzuki looked older after his transformation than his true body, to Homura Mitokado, who was nearing old age, this was still young.

“Former Ninja of Fortune Kakuzu, the Ninja World’s greatest genius Nagato…” Homura Mitokado then shifted his gaze to the other Shinobi Sect Ninja.

He didn’t believe that such a young Sōsuke could defeat Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Defeating Hanzō certainly showed strength, but it was limited to that.

With a prepared antidote, Homura Mitokado was confident he could defeat Hanzō, and Hiruzen Sarutobi was considerably stronger than him.

“The strongest combatants have all come, but I won’t let you interfere with Hiruzen’s battle,” Homura Mitokado estimated the strength of both sides, then felt completely at ease.

Their side was superior to the Shinobi Sect in both individual and overall strength.

“I hope it doesn’t get too ugly,” Shisui, standing beside Orochimaru, sighed inwardly.

He didn’t want to see the Shinobi Sect and Konoha stand against each other, but he was powerless to stop it.

Hiruzen Sarutobi’s gaze quickly swept over everyone in the Shinobi Sect, finally resting on the Ninja with short brown hair wearing a long robe.

“Senior Hiruzen, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” Muzuki said with a faint smile, taking the initiative to greet him.

Sōsuke’s action was somewhat unexpected to Hiruzen Sarutobi; he had imagined Sōsuke would be more anxious.

After all, he was about to face the Third Hokage, who shook the Ninja World, the leader of the strongest Ninja Village, a true pinnacle of the Ninja World.

“A pleasure to meet you,” Hiruzen Sarutobi responded indifferently.

One doesn’t hit a smiling person. He did harbor killing intent towards Sōsuke, but Hiruzen Sarutobi also knew that Danzo Shimura’s death was mainly due to his own actions; if he hadn’t attempted the assassination, nothing would have happened.

If one were to say what Sōsuke’s fault was, it was that his power was too weak, and his self-defense was excessive, leading him to provoke a force he couldn’t afford to offend.

“Shall we begin now?” Muzuki asked.

As he spoke, Muzuki gave Hiruzen Sarutobi an Appraisal Technique.

His Chakra was still roughly the same as the appraisal result from a few years ago, though there had been some progress in his skills.

【Name: Hiruzen Sarutobi】

【Skills: Combination Ninjutsu (Mastery: 14000/15000), Fire Release Chakra Nature Transformation (Mastery: 9000), Earth Release Chakra Nature Transformation (Mastery: 7500), Lightning Release Chakra Nature Transformation (Mastery: 6100)…】

The first time Muzuki used the upgraded Appraisal Technique to check Hiruzen Sarutobi’s panel, the dense array of skills left a deep impression on him.

At that time, he thought that if he had a panel that surpassed Hiruzen Sarutobi’s, he wouldn’t have to worry about survival and could do what he wanted.

Over four years, he had continuously worked hard, with a little help from the system, and now his skills were no less than Hiruzen Sarutobi’s, and he even had several Perfect-level skills that Hiruzen Sarutobi did not possess.

He was indeed doing what he wanted now, using his knowledge and abilities to bring some change to this tragic world.

“Now.”

Saying that, Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the Konoha Ninja, signaling them to retreat.

For ordinary Ninja, even the aftershocks of a strong Ninja’s battle were dangerous.

Muzuki also signaled the Shinobi Sect to retreat with his eyes.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was very strong, and in the current situation without any cheats, he was particularly outstanding, so Muzuki would show his true abilities.

Since Hiruzen Sarutobi had taken the initiative to cause trouble, Muzuki would not be polite. It just so happened that he had some powerful abilities that had not yet been tested in actual combat.

Orochimaru stared intently at the battlefield; he hadn’t seen Hiruzen Sarutobi personally take action in a long time.

PS: Modified some descriptions of Limitless in the previous chapter.

Xiao Ju accidentally made a mistake; it’s not that Limitless can’t defend against poison gas, but that when Gojo Satoru had just learned Reverse Cursed Technique and developed the fully automatic Limitless, he couldn’t effectively distinguish things like poisons.

Also, why teach Kakashi? Don’t you think they are very similar? ( )

Of course, Kakashi also lacked techniques, and it fits the setting in my book.