The situation on the ground left Shinji no time for further thought.
From the cliff tops on both sides of the valley, a dense barrage of whistling sounds erupted.
Countless kunai and shuriken intertwined into a metallic torrent, raining down like a storm upon the four figures at the valley floor.
Judging by this scale, the enemy was determined to wipe them out completely, leaving no survivors.
"Watch out!"
Someone shouted a low warning.
The four of them moved almost simultaneously, each employing their own methods to withstand this sudden assault.
Shinji's eyes narrowed sharply, his Sharingan quietly activating.
His right hand shot out, drawing the short sword from his back and holding it horizontally before him.
The blade spun rapidly in his hand, creating an impenetrable defense around him. The constant clang of metal on metal rang out as all the shuriken aimed at him were deflected.
Beside him, Fugaku, who had also activated his Sharingan, handled the attack with ease, though his expression grew increasingly grim.
Though not as composed as the other two, Nagato and Yahiko gritted their teeth and held their ground.
After all, they were Jiraiya's disciples, with solid foundations, and having detected the ambush in advance, they barely managed to stabilize the situation.
After the first wave of attacks, a large number of ninja surged onto the edges of the rocky cliffs on both sides of the valley.
With a single glance, Shinji saw that most were Amegakure ninja, while the rest were all dressed in the attire of Root Anbu.
The crowd automatically parted, making way as Hanzō and Danzo stepped forward slowly, taking their positions at the cliff's edge.
Hanzō walked at the front, looking down from above at the four in the valley.
With one hand, he firmly restrained a woman, while the other held a kunai pressed against her neck. The slightest pressure would result in bloodshed on the spot.
This captive woman was none other than Konan.
Nagato and Yahiko had come here precisely to rescue her.
Konan struggled continuously, having spotted the two in the valley below. She shouted with all her might, "Yahiko! Nagato! Get out of here! Don't worry about me!"
"Stay still!"
Hanzō grabbed her pale purple hair and barked.
Konan let out a pained gasp, her neck forced upward, yet she showed no sign of begging for mercy. She continued shouting toward the valley below, "Nagato! Yahiko! Don't worry about me! Get out of here!"
Down in the valley, Yahiko and Nagato watched Konan in peril, their faces filled with anxiety.
"Konan!"
At this moment, they could no longer concern themselves with Shinji and Fugaku beside them, their minds solely focused on rescuing their companion.
Just then, Fugaku stepped forward, his face filled with anger as he glared up at the cliff. His Sharingan reflected the figure of a certain someone on the cliff as he demanded, "Danzo! What exactly are you trying to do?!"
Danzo looked down at him expressionlessly, offering no explanation. Instead, he directly issued an order: "Fugaku, kill those two beside you immediately."
He pointed at Nagato and Yahiko.
As his words fell, Nagato and Yahiko's expressions changed abruptly. They quickly retreated, putting distance between themselves and Shinji and Fugaku, gripping their weapons tightly as they stared warily at the two.
Nagato said gravely, "You're from Konohagakure? So you're enemies too?"
It was no wonder he felt suspicious.
On this battlefield, the only ones he could trust were Yahiko and himself.
From the man who called himself "Madara Uchiha," he had already learned that a large number of Konohagakure's Root had recently infiltrated Amegakure.
These Root ninja had been secretly assassinating civilians, and their leader was none other than Danzo, who now stood beside Hanzō.
Though Nagato could see that Shinji and Fugaku were at odds with Danzo, with Konan's life at stake, he dared not gamble on whether this was all an act.
Seeing this, Shinji cursed inwardly: That old bastard, stirring up trouble again!
He immediately stepped forward and explained to Nagato and the others, "I know Lord Jiraiya! I'm Tsunade's disciple! We came to Amegakure because Danzo tricked us!"
Then he raised his head and looked toward Danzo at the cliff's edge. All the pent-up frustration and rage he had accumulated along the way erupted completely at this moment.
Shinji roared, "Danzo, you @#$%&&@!"
With his ancestors as the center and eighteen generations as the radius, every curse word he could think of from his past life was now hurled at Danzo all at once.
The more he cursed, the more satisfying it felt. Only one thought remained in his mind: Rather than coming to this godforsaken place to suffer, he should have stayed in Konohagakure with Kurenai and Rin, properly studying Medical Ninjutsu under Tsunade.
At the end of his tirade, he coldly spat out one last sentence: "Danzo, you will never become Hokage in this lifetime."
The noisy valley instantly fell silent.
For a full three minutes, everyone stood frozen in place, watching Shinji curse Danzo one sentence after another.
The scene became eerily bizarre—not a single person spoke up to interrupt.
All eyes were fixed on Shinji, each person lost in their own thoughts.
"So that's how you can curse someone... I've really broadened my horizons today."
Down in the valley, Fugaku, Yahiko, and Nagato all stared at Shinji—who had finally stopped—with extremely peculiar expressions.
"I never knew Shinji had this side to him."
"He says he knows Teacher Jiraiya... seems he might not be an enemy."
"Is this what Konohagakure ninja are like? Even their cursing is extraordinary."
Shinji slowly let out a breath, feeling much more relieved.
He wasn't particularly worried about the current crisis. At the critical moment, he could always use the Heavenly Stone Gate to escape.
This was the confidence that came with strength!
Meanwhile, at the edge of the cliff, Danzo's face turned green, then purple. The corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably, and he nearly lost his temper on the spot, but ultimately forced himself to hold back.
In his eyes, Fugaku and Shinji were already dead men. There was no need to get worked up over such trivial matters.
Although he didn't truly take Shinji's insults to heart...
Except for that final sentence—"Danzo, you will never become Hokage in this lifetime"—which once again struck a deep, painful nerve.
Remembering how Shinji had said something similar when he tried to recruit him before, rage churned violently in Danzo's chest.
"Uchiha Shinji, I will definitely kill you!"
Danzo gritted his teeth, the murderous aura around him so intense it seemed almost tangible.
"Hahahahaha!"
Hanzo, however, threw his head back and laughed heartily.
As the Demigod of the Shinobi World, he had seen countless ninja, but this was the first time he had encountered someone as interesting as Shinji.
He looked at Shinji and said, "You're Princess Tsunade's disciple? How interesting."
He had once fought Tsunade, and now, seeing the disciple of an old acquaintance, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of nostalgia.
But even if Shinji was Tsunade's disciple, if he posed a threat to Hanzo's position in Amegakure, Hanzo would not hesitate to eliminate him.
Hanzo turned to Danzo, his tone laced with sarcasm: "It seems these two really don't take you seriously."
Danzo's face instantly darkened like the bottom of a pot.
These were the exact words he had used earlier to brush off Hanzo, and now they had come back to haunt him in the most literal way.
Hanzo sneered, then took a step forward, dragging Konan with him. His gaze shifted between Yahiko and Nagato, as if weighing a choice.
Finally, he fixed his eyes intently on Nagato and said coldly:
"You're called Nagato, right? As long as you kill Yahiko, I'll let this woman go."
Hanzo yanked Konan in front of him and said, "Now make your choice! Choose between Yahiko and this woman!"
Nagato's heart sank completely, a flicker of despair rising in his eyes.
--Enjoying the story? Want more chapters? Check out my Patreon and support me for 40+ advance chapters.
Just search for "LegendaryTL" on Patreon!"
Thanks!