"What's so impressive about it? He's still just a brat."
Tsunade snorted, crossing her arms.
"Since he went to Sunagakure, that means he obtained the technique we talked about earlier."
Even as she said it, her brows knitted slightly.
As one of the Legendary Sannin and the Senju clan's princess—information naturally flowed to her. Getting access to high-level intelligence was never difficult.
What she couldn't understand was this:
How did Namikaze Kirito know?
How did that kid know that an old woman in Sunagakure possessed a ninjutsu capable of reviving the dead?
No matter how she thought about it, it didn't add up.
And whenever she tried to ask him directly, that brat would just brush her off.
Annoying.
"Lady Tsunade… what are you talking about?" Shizune asked, her clear eyes full of confusion.
"Nothing," Tsunade replied, waving it off.
She shook her head lightly and with the motion, her full chest swayed subtly. If anyone else had been present, they probably would've stared without even realizing it.
The courtyard still bore traces of recent training.
Cracked ground. Scattered leaves.
But the person who caused them was already gone.
Tsunade stood up, gazing at the fallen leaves blanketing the yard. She bit her red lips gently and murmured under her breath.
"Little brat… I hope you succeed."
"Be careful out there."
"You're still my… 'pillow,' after all."
The legend of the Enma spread rapidly through the ninja world.
Soon enough, it reached the ears of Konoha's civilians as well.
After so many years, news had finally surfaced about the orphan of the Fourth Hokage.
The streets buzzed with discussion.
"I heard the Fourth Hokage's son suppressed Sunagakure all by himself!"
"What?! I heard Sunagakure was completely destroyed!"
"I passed by near the Wind Country on a delivery—Sunagakure's gates are gone! The inside's a mess too!"
"As expected of Lord Fourth's bloodline!"
The civilians of Konoha felt no fear toward the name Enma.
After all, he was one of their own.
The son of a hero.
And if Sunagakure had suffered… well, that was their problem.
The two villages had been enemies for years. Deep grudges had piled up long ago. Hearing that the Wind Country had been crushed by someone from Konoha only filled them with pride.
At that moment, inside Ichiraku Ramen, a man and a woman sat facing each other.
The woman had long black hair cascading over her shoulders. She wore white and red, her beautiful face tinged with quiet melancholy.
The man opposite her had a rugged face, a cigarette hanging from his mouth. He held a bouquet of flowers, his face faintly red as he spoke awkwardly.
The people around quickly recognized them.
Aside from discussing the Enma, most of the attention in the shop shifted toward this pair.
After all, the man was Sarutobi Asuma, son of the Third Hokage.
And the woman—
Yūhi Kurenai, a renowned jōnin of Konoha, famed for her gentle demeanor and terrifyingly precise genjutsu.
She had countless admirers.
And now Asuma had shown up with flowers.
Anyone with eyes knew what this meant.
They waited quietly for the outcome.
"K-Kurenai… I, I…" Asuma stammered.
Normally, he was calm and decisive, a man who never hesitated on the battlefield.
But this was different.
Completely different.
"Asuma," Kurenai said softly, shaking her head, "thank you. I understand how you feel."
"But… I can't accept these flowers."
Asuma froze.
Kurenai's thoughts, however, were elsewhere.
News echoed in her mind.
Namikaze Kirito.
When the village declared Uchiha Itachi and Orochimaru missing-nin, her heart had tightened.
Only when Kirito's name was not mentioned did she finally breathe again.
Now, all she wanted to know was...
Where had he gone?
She and Asuma were childhood friends. She had long sensed his feelings and had gently rejected them more than once.
But this direct confession…
Instead of drawing her closer—
It made another figure surface in her heart.
That's impossible, she told herself immediately.
He's much younger than me.
Yet as she realized what she was thinking, a faint blush crept onto her cheeks.
The sight left Asuma stunned.
After a long pause, he snapped back to reality and spoke hurriedly.
"Kurenai… we grew up together. We've fought side by side. I know you've turned down everyone else. Can't you… give me a chance?"
"I'm sorry, Asuma," Kurenai replied gently. "I really don't feel that way."
There was regret in her eyes as she stood up.
After all, he was someone like a friend to her.
But feelings couldn't be forced.
She left the shop, leaving behind a dejected Asuma.
The onlooking civilians sighed and whispered among themselves.
Even the Hokage's son couldn't win Yūhi Kurenai's heart.
Just what kind of man would she end up with someday?
While the entire ninja world searched for the whereabouts of Namikaze Kirito and his companions—
They were already far away.
Deep beneath a small, unremarkable village, in a hidden underground laboratory.
Instruments filled the room.
Containers held unknown specimens suspended in fluid.
Orochimaru and a man with glasses carefully examined a vessel filled with blood.
Kirito sat casually in the only chair, while Uchiha Itachi stood behind him like a silent, loyal guard.
"Kirito-kun!" Orochimaru exclaimed excitedly, slithering closer.
"It's incredible!"
"Your blood only exhibits special properties while it's inside your body. Once removed, aside from increased vitality, it shows no abnormal reaction at all."
"This means that in the entire ninja world, only you can wield this power."
"Even if someone were to obtain your cells, they would never be able to reproduce that mysterious kekkei genkai."
"Oh?" Kirito raised an eyebrow, instantly interested.
"What else did you find?"
Orochimaru's expression grew serious.
"You're a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, yes but your physique and cellular strength far exceed any Uzumaki on record."
"The only one comparable…"
"…is the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama."
"I conducted countless experiments with Danzō using Hashirama's cells."
"Those cells are far too powerful. Transplantation almost always results in collapse. At best, only fragments of their properties can be used, granting incomplete Wood Release."
"But you are different."
Orochimaru's eyes burned with obsession.
"Your body can absolutely suppress Hashirama's cells."
"With enough experimentation…"
"You can obtain the legendary kekkei genkai itself."
"Wood Release."
Kirito's heart stirred.
Wood Release—
The power of the First Hokage.
The kekkei genkai that once suppressed Uchiha Madara.
Wood Dragon Technique.
Wood Golem Technique.
Sage Art: True Several Thousand Hands.
A ceiling of power beneath the Six Paths.
A ninjutsu capable of ending eras of chaos.
If he truly obtained Wood Release—
Then both the Tremor power and the Darkness power would surely evolve even further.
Kirito's gaze darkened.
His ambition burned hotter than ever.
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