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"Huh? What a cocky bastard. I'm gonna teach you a lesson today—" Tsunade scoffed at Hayato's words, finding them totally ridiculous. She was about to march straight up to him when Hiruzen Sarutobi reached out and stopped her.
Sarutobi stared hard at Hayato. At that moment, Hayato looked calm—completely unfazed. No tension, no fear, not even any other emotions. Just calm. Chill. Like he couldn't care less.
To face Konoha's full military might and still stay that composed… he was either a complete idiot or someone with real power. And thinking back on Hayato's track record, Sarutobi knew—it was definitely the latter.
"…Alright. I agree to your terms," Sarutobi finally said.
"What?! Old man—"
"Lord Hokage?!"
"Hokage-sama?!"
"Sensei—"
The people around Sarutobi couldn't help but shout in disbelief. The Hokage was giving in to one man? Seriously? It was like a bad joke—Konoha's entire ninja army, bowing to one guy. Yep. Just one.
The only person who sort of understood Sarutobi's decision was Orochimaru. He'd fought Hayato himself. He knew exactly what kind of monster they were dealing with.
After all, this was the Second Great Ninja War. Konoha was already fighting off attacks from both Iwa and Suna. They were in a terrible position. Now throw someone like Hayato into the mix… there's no way to win.
Of course, if it weren't for the war, Sarutobi would never have agreed to something like this—he was soft at times, sure, but not stupid. And Hayato had already killed a ton of Konoha ninjas, weakening their forces even further.
When Hayato saw Sarutobi finally give in, his expression relaxed just a little. Sure, things with Konoha were messy, but he really didn't want to fight them right now—especially not in his Hulk-like berserk mode. Because once he turned into the green monster, he'd completely lose control… and he had no idea what he might do in that state.
Without saying another word, Hayato turned around and left, ignoring whatever thoughts the Konoha ninjas were having.
But watching Hayato just walk away like that only made the Konoha ninjas even angrier—and more embarrassed. Their entire army had been pushed around by one guy. Just one guy! The shame was real. And they could already picture the mocking they'd get from the rest of the world.
Some of the ninjas even started looking at Sarutobi with resentment in their eyes.
Sarutobi, being the wily old fox he was, noticed their reactions right away. But he could only sigh to himself. He didn't really have a choice.
Meanwhile, Hayato had no idea what Konoha's people were thinking. But it didn't matter. After today, his name was definitely going to echo across the entire ninja world.
Still, Hayato wasn't thinking about fame. He had other things to take care of. After leaving Konoha, he headed toward the border of another country—one that bordered the Land of Rain.
Konoha was taken care of—for now. But there were still two more villages to deal with: Suna from the Land of Wind, and Iwa from the Land of Earth.
Hayato set his sights on the Land of Wind's border and moved quickly.
Just like with Konoha, he went straight up to the Sand ninjas. But unfortunately, the Suna ninjas hadn't seen what he could do. They had no idea how powerful he was. So when he asked to see the Kazekage, they flat-out refused—and immediately attacked him.
A jōnin, a few chūnin, and a bunch of genin launched their assault. They weren't trying to kill Hayato, but they were trying to capture him. What they'd do afterward—hand him to the interrogation unit or take him to the Kazekage—that could wait until he was caught.
"Wind Style: Wind Cutter!"
"Earth Style: Fissure Palm!"
Seeing them attack without a word pissed Hayato off—especially compared to Konoha's reaction. Suna's response was way more irritating.
"I'm warning you—back off now, or you'll regret it. I just came from Konoha. They already—" Hayato was mad, but he still tried to give them a chance. Too bad the moment he mentioned Konoha, the Sand ninjas only hit harder.
"You bastards… You'll regret this!" Hayato let his anger explode. No more holding back.
"....."