Lightning detonated from Sasuke's palm in a violent surge.
With a sharp flick of his wrist, the current scattered, splitting into a rain of brilliant senbon that shrieked through the sky.
Akahoshi's heart lurched.
Hand seals flashed.
A massive chakra wolf materialized in front of him as a shield—but the next instant, a blinding burst of white-blue light consumed it.
The wolf was shredded midair, pierced through and through by lightning needles.
It bought him only a heartbeat.
Akahoshi beat his chakra wings desperately, barely escaping the lethal range of the Chidori senbon.
Uchiha Sasuke vanished—then reappeared directly in Akahoshi's path, cutting off his escape in the open sky.
Their eyes met.
"Genjutsu: Unknown Fire!"
The Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun violently.
Akahoshi's vision warped.
The world tilted.
His body went rigid—and then he began to fall.
He was still a jonin. The moment he realized he'd been caught, he forced chakra through his coils, tearing apart the illusion—
—but he was too slow.
Sasuke descended like lightning itself.
The Thunder God Sword flashed once.
To Akahoshi, who had just broken free, the world narrowed to a single streak of white.
Then came the warmth.
Blood sprayed across the air.
Akahoshi's body crashed to the ground below with a sickening thud, lifeless and twisted.
Silence rippled outward.
Sasuke landed lightly, sheathing his blade.
He exhaled slowly.
The months of relentless beatings from Uzumaki Naruto…
The frustration.
The humiliation.
For the first time in weeks—
He felt lighter.
His gaze shifted immediately.
Yoruwashi, Shisō.
Natsuhi was holding her ground against the two of them, but neither side had gained the upper hand.
"Body Flicker!"
Sasuke cut into the battle without hesitation.
Only then did the two jonin glance toward where Akahoshi had been—and froze.
"He's… dead?"
Horror drained the color from their faces.
They hadn't even noticed the moment their leader fell.
"Genjutsu: Unknown Fire!"
Sasuke seized the opening.
Yoruwashi stiffened, caught instantly in an illusion.
Sasuke blurred forward.
A single slash.
The Thunder God Sword traced a clean arc across Yoruwashi's throat.
He collapsed without a sound.
"So fast…" Natsuhi whispered.
If Sasuke were thirty… even twenty…
But he was barely eleven.
This was not mere talent.
This was terrifying.
Shisō faltered, panic breaking his rhythm.
Natsuhi did not waste the opportunity.
Her chakra wings flared—
And moments later, Shisō fell beside the others.
The battlefield went still.
"Everyone—stop!"
Natsuhi's voice rang out.
The remaining Hidden Star shinobi hesitated... then lowered their weapons.
Akahoshi was dead.
Their will to fight had died with him.
Natsuhi stepped forward, raising her hand.
"Allow me to introduce them," she said clearly. "These two are Lady Tsunade and Lord Kitazawa of Konoha."
A collective gasp spread through the Hidden Star ranks.
They knew those names.
Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage.
And Kitazawa—the second Wood Release user since Senju Hashirama.
Had they known that earlier…
Not one of them would have dared raise a blade.
After the introductions, Natsuhi stepped forward once more.
Calmly and clearly, she recounted how Akahoshi had assassinated the Third Star Kage.
This time, the Hidden Star shinobi listened in silence.
Every detail aligned.
Every motive made sense.
And more importantly—Akahoshi and his two accomplices now lay dead at their feet.
Whether they liked it or not, the future of the Hidden Star Village rested in Natsuhi's hands.
Kitazawa and Tsunade did not interfere. They simply observed.
Only after stabilizing the situation did Natsuhi approach them again.
"The Third Star Kage's revenge has been fulfilled," she said quietly. "And the crisis of Hidden Star Village is over."
She unsealed a summoning storage scroll.
From it, she carefully withdrew a dull, dark meteorite—the star.
"This belongs to Konoha now."
Kitazawa accepted it.
The moment his fingers touched the surface, he felt it—
A strange energy pulsing within.
It resembled chakra.
Yet it wasn't chakra.
Curious, he activated his Byakugan.
His vision pierced through the meteorite's outer shell—and his eyes narrowed.
Inside was something disturbingly organic.
A faint, flesh-like structure embedded deep within the stone.
His thoughts immediately drifted to the Gedo Statue.
Before Uchiha Madara summoned it with the Rinnegan, the Gedo Statue had remained sealed on the moon.
Meteorites fell from the sky.
This one reacted to chakra.
If a fragment of that statue had broken off long ago and fallen into the Shinobi World… it wouldn't be impossible.
Still—
It might not be flesh at all.
Kitazawa thought of Samehada, the strange blade connected to the Three-Tails.
The Shinobi World had no shortage of peculiar relics.
And beyond the Gedo Statue, the Ōtsutsuki Clan had once lived on the moon as well, divided by war and ideology.
If their conflict had shattered something that fell to earth…
That, too, would explain the Star.
He deactivated his Byakugan.
"Lady Hokage," Natsuhi said respectfully, bowing to Tsunade. "Please grant me one day. I will draft the alliance treaty today. Tomorrow, we can formalize it."
Tsunade nodded.
With Flying Thunder God, returning to Konoha would take only an instant.
A week-long mission could be compressed to mere days. Even Shizune would have little to complain about.
Under Natsuhi's arrangements, they were given a quiet courtyard to stay in.
After settling in, Shion spoke hesitantly.
"Kitazawa-sensei… The Land of Demons is just north of here. I would like to visit home."
Kitazawa considered before nodding.
"Very well. Tomorrow I'll send Tsunade-sensei back to Konoha first. After that, I'll take you and the others to the Land of Demons."
It aligned perfectly with his own plans.
He still needed to leave Flying Thunder God marks across various nations.
This was the ideal opportunity.
Tsunade hesitated.
She wanted to go with him.
But she was the Hokage.
Responsibility outweighed desire.
"…Alright," she agreed softly.
Work awaited her.
Even if missions were exhausting, paperwork was worse.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!" Shion beamed.
"There's still time before evening," Kitazawa said lightly. "Go train."
"Yes, Sensei!"
Sasuke, Hinata, and Shion stepped out into the courtyard.
Kitazawa remained inside with Tsunade.
He placed the meteorite on the table between them.
Tsunade picked it up, examining it under the light.
"It doesn't look like much."
"It contains radioactive energy," Kitazawa said casually. "That's why Kujaku Myōhō shortens lifespans."
Tsunade gave a quiet hum and handed it back.
"That explains everything."
She leaned back slightly, studying him.
"So," she asked, eyes sharp again, the Hokage returning in full.
"What do you intend to do with it?"
"It can serve as a power source," Kitazawa said after a brief pause, weighing the meteorite in his hand. "For puppets."
"Ninja bodies suffer from its radiation," he continued calmly, "but puppets have no life. No cells to corrode. No lifespan to shorten."
Tsunade arched a brow.
"Puppets?" Her lips curved teasingly. "Don't tell me you're secretly a puppeteer too."
Kitazawa chuckled.
"I know a little."
He unsealed a scroll and revealed a finely crafted puppet—sleek and deadly, its joints seamless. A work of art and war combined.
Tsunade blinked in genuine surprise.
"You actually own one?"
"Research," he replied lightly. "When I had spare time."
He resealed it just as casually.
Tsunade shook her head with a laugh. "You really never run out of surprises."
"Is that so?" Kitazawa stepped closer, eyes glinting. "Would you like to see another new trick?"
Tsunade rolled her eyes—but her hand caught his collar and pulled him onto the bed without hesitation.
The next morning.
Under clear skies and resounding cheers, Natsuhi was formally declared the Fourth Star Kage.
On behalf of Hidden Star Village, she signed the alliance treaty with Tsunade.
With formalities concluded, Kitazawa and his team departed.
Outside the village gates, Kitazawa stopped.
He formed hand seals slowly.
"This time," he murmured, "let's test the limit."
Yang Release Chakra Mode erupted around him.
The golden chakra flared violently, a shockwave rippling outward.
Even Tsunade's eyes widened slightly.
She had always known he possessed monstrous reserves.
But this—
This was another level entirely.
"Tsunade-sensei."
Kitazawa extended his hand.
She took it without hesitation.
In the next instant—
They vanished.
They reappeared inside the Hokage office.
Tsunade stared around, momentarily stunned.
"Directly... from the Land of Bears?"
She knew the limitations of the Flying Thunder God.
Even Minato had required pauses when teleporting across such vast distances. Forcing it would have drained him severely.
Yet Kitazawa stood there—
Steady. Composed. Hardly winded.
Tsunade understood immediately.
In a future war, he would not simply be a weapon.
He would be a nightmare.
An unseen blade tore through enemy headquarters before they even realized the battle had begun.
The strategic value was immeasurable.
"Well?" Kitazawa grinned. "Impressed?"
Tsunade licked the corner of her lips slowly.
"I'll reward you properly tonight."
"Then I'll look forward to it," he replied.
Before temptation could delay him further, he vanished again.
After returning Tsunade, Kitazawa escorted Shion and the others to the Land of Demons.
He granted them a week of rest.
Then he began his true journey.
Across nations.
Across borders.
Across the Shinobi World.
With the Dragon Vein's power replenishing his chakra, Kitazawa moved like a phantom, leaving Flying Thunder God marks in every country he passed.
Mountains.
Capitals.
Battlefields.
Hidden shrines.
He carved silent anchors across the world.
Finally—
A familiar notification echoed in his mind.
[Current Mission: Tour the Ninja World — Completed.]
[Mission Reward: Spiraling Flash Super Round Dance Howl Three Styles.]
[Reward Issued.]
Kitazawa exhaled slowly.
The technique of the Yellow Flash himself—
A perfected fusion of Flying Thunder God and overwhelming burst offense.
Even with Dragon Vein support, the journey had pushed his reserves to the brink.
Without it, even his Yin Seal would have run dry.
But now—
The Shinobi World itself had become his territory.
With a final teleportation, he returned to Konoha alongside Shion and the others.
Thus, the midterm mission concluded.
And quietly—Kitazawa's invisible shadow stretched across the entire Ninja World.
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