"Bwahahaha.... Never thought someone in this new era would still remember an old relic like me."
Garp, hearing this, couldn't help bursting into loud laughter.
But that laugh nearly squeezed the life out of Higashi, who was still dangling helplessly in his hand. The poor kid almost suffocated right then and there.
"You ended the Warring States Period with your own two hands. You were hailed as the greatest of the Three Heroes. Even if the world changes, no one could possibly forget you."
Although Kitsuchi had already been certain of Garp's identity, actually hearing the man admit it himself still sent a violent tremor through his heart.
He had never imagined that a legend of the previous era would appear alive before him today.
And not just any legend, but Garp the Fist, the foremost of the Three Heroes of the past era.
A man who once made even Madara and Hashirama pale in comparison.
"Brat, don't try to butter me up. Like I said, you need to go back to where you came from."
Garp shot him a glance, easily seeing through every thought in Kitsuchi's head.
"Lord Garp, even someone like you… have you also joined Konoha? Are you working under Hiruzen Sarutobi?"
Kitsuchi felt a chill crawl up his spine under Garp's gaze.
As expected from a man who once dominated the shinobi world, before him, he felt like he was completely transparent.
But after finally forcing the Sannin into a corner, giving up such a perfect chance to heavily wound Konoha… of course he was unwilling to let go of this opportunity.
"The Senju brothers and Uchiha Madara weren't worthy of my loyalty. That Sarutobi rat? He thinks he is?
Enough talking. Choose!
Do you want me to beat all of you …. or will you all retreat on your own?"
Garp, let out a derisive snort.
The reason he came out of retirement at all, aside from boredom, was mostly because of Tsunade.
After freeloading off the Senju clan for so many years, he couldn't just stand by and watch the last Senju bloodline die in front of him.
He hadn't known the situation before, but now that Hiruzen himself had come begging, he couldn't just pretend nothing was happening.
"Since you have already given us the warning, we will retreat ."
Kitsuchi's expression flickered between dark and uncertain, but after a fierce internal struggle, he still backed down.
He had never seen Garp's power with his own eyes, but since childhood he had constantly heard stories from his father.
The one he heard the most was the legend of how Garp once kept tailed beasts like livestock.
That was the last thing Garp did before disappearing from the world. And it was something his own father, Onoki, had personally witnessed.
A man who could treat all nine tailed beasts like barnyard pets, he couldn't even imagine how strong such a monster must be.
"Lord Kitsuchi, wait…."
Just as Kitsuchi was reluctantly leading hundreds of Iwa shinobis away, his aide, Taiseki, suddenly grabbed him and lowered his voice.
"Lord Garp… fell asleep?"
Following Taiseki's gaze, Kitsuchi saw that Garp, while still holding Higashi in midair, had actually dozed off.
"He may be a hero of the shinobi world, but he's still old. And now he's asleep. Let's be honest, at the end of the day he's just an ancient remnant of a bygone era.
Lord Kitsuchi, think about it. If even Garp dies by our hands… would Konoha still have the right to call itself the strongest village?"
Taiseki spoke cautiously, suppressing the excitement trembling in his chest.
The surrounding Iwa-nin heard his words, and one by one their hearts began pounding uncontrollably.
Yeah…
So, what if he's Garp the Fist? This is no longer the old era. Standing in front of them was just an old, aging shinobi.
"Lord Kitsuchi, this is definitely a rare chance."
"He's old, he's asleep, he has zero vigilance, what's there to be afraid of?"
"He's just a relic of the past. He should've been eliminated long ago. One handful of shuriken and we're done."
Soon, more and more Iwa-nin were swayed by Taiseki's words. In the end, the temptation of killing a legendary hero was simply too much.
To kill the strongest hero in history. Who could resist such a prize?
Not even Uchiha Madara.
"Is he really asleep?
But something feels wrong… Garp looking like this… I feel like I've heard a story about it somewhere…"
Kitsuchi frowned deeply, not answering yet.
For one, Garp's fame was far too great. Even after an entire era had passed, people still remembered him vividly.
And secondly, Garp's sleeping posture… he had definitely heard of something similar, but he couldn't recall it for the moment.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
Before Kitsuchi could decide, Higashi, still held aloft by Garp, grabbed the opportunity and cast an Earth Release jutsu.
"We can't wait any longer, Lord Kitsuchi."
Seeing this, Taiseki and the others knew Kitsuchi no longer had the luxury to hesitate.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
Almost at the same moment Higashi attacked, Taiseki and nearly a hundred Iwa-nin launched their jutsu simultaneously.
"No! You must never wake a sleeping Garp!"
Kitsuchi's mind suddenly exploded with clarity.
He finally remembered. The legendary hero had a very unusual habit.
Whenever he talked to someone, he would often fall asleep mid-sentence.
And although this seemed absurd, a massive exploitable weakness… countless shinobi during the Warring States Period had paid in blood to confirm one thing.
A sleeping Garp is the most dangerous Garp.
It was said that the younger brother of Madara, a Mangekyo Sharingan user whose strength rivaled Tobirama, once tried to attack Garp in his sleep.
Not only did he fail to kill Garp, Garp broke both his arms.
In the end, Madara himself had to come forward and nearly burn out his own Mangekyo's power just to barely save Izuna's life.
He survived, but the brothers paid a terrible price.
Afterward, both brothers were nearly blind, and they remained bedridden for half a month before they could even stand.