"We won!" Uchiha Izumi immediately cheered.
This mission was a world of difference compared to the last one. The three of them, plus Kurenai, had been completely helpless against Shinno before.
"That was a truly thrilling battle." Torune couldn't help but exclaim.
His Phosphorus Destruction Bugs had lost their intended effect for the first time. On the other hand, he also recognized his own shortcomings.
If his insects were ineffective, it would be difficult to contribute, relying solely on his personal strength. It seemed he needed to work even harder in the future.
"With Kitazawa-sensei here, it was thrilling but not dangerous." Kabuto adjusted his glasses.
After this battle, he re-evaluated Kitazawa's strength. He felt that only a handful of people in Konoha, such as Hiruzen Sarutobi and Tsunade, could confidently defeat him.
"What's wrong with him? A side effect of the forbidden jutsu?" Kurenai glanced at Shinno and frowned.
There was no helping it; Shinno's appearance was now terrifying, like a withered skeleton pulled from a tomb, clinging to his last breath.
"Yes." Kitazawa squatted down, extended his hand, and said, "The more powerful a forbidden jutsu, the greater its side effects." A pale green chakra glow emanated from his palm.
"Izumi," Kitazawa called out without turning his head. Shinno's condition was worse than he had imagined — but he couldn't let him die yet.
"Kitazawa-sensei." Izumi immediately stepped forward.
"Use your Sharingan to control him," Kitazawa instructed.
Uchiha Izumi's eyes flashed, two tomoe spinning in each. She stared at the dying Shinno. At this point, he was at his last gasp.
Although he still had the strength of a Jōnin, he could no longer resist the Two-Tomoe Sharingan. His expression immediately went vacant, showing he had been caught in the Sharingan's control.
"Izumi, ask him where his three Medical Forbidden Techniques are," Kitazawa said after a pause. "If there are no ninjutsu scrolls, have him write them down."
"Okay." Uchiha Izumi relayed Kitazawa's words.
"In… the control room of the Ancor Vantian," Shinno said weakly.
The Ancor Vantian was the city beneath the Land of the Sky Village. Powered by the Zero-Tailed, it could fly in the original story.
Not only could it fly, but it also had a super chakra cannon comparable to a Tailed Beast Ball. Shinno and the Land of the Sky Village were planning to take revenge on Konoha using the Ancor Vantian.
But interestingly, this seemingly invincible fortress had been easily dismantled by Shino Aburame — the Aburame clan's kikaichū could destroy its mechanical parts, causing it to crash directly from the sky.
"Kabuto, maintain his life," Kitazawa ordered after a moment's thought. "Izumi, have him write down the three Medical Forbidden Techniques. Kurenai and I will go to the Angkor Fortress."
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei." Kabuto and Uchiha Izumi answered in unison.
"Let's go." Kitazawa withdrew his Mystical Palm Technique and moved to the passage where the Land of the Sky ninja had come up earlier. He leapt down.
Seeing this, Kurenai quickly followed.
"There should only be a few Land of the Sky ninja left in here," Kitazawa said as he walked.
"How do you know so much about this place?" Kurenai asked with curiosity.
"I sent a Shadow Clone ahead to scout it out," Kitazawa explained.
"I see." Kurenai nodded. She looked around and found they were in a metal passage, faintly hearing the sound of gears turning.
"What is this Ancor Vantian?" Kurenai asked again.
"A large flying weapon," Kitazawa said casually. "It's the origin of the Land of the Sky Village — they possess a flying fortress."
"That amazing?" Kurenai suddenly felt the ninja world was vast and full of wonders.
"It's useless," Kitazawa shook his head. "In front of true powerhouses, the Ancor Vantian can only be a living target."
"True." Kurenai agreed. "If it were really that powerful, the Land of the Sky Village wouldn't have been destroyed."
"Someone's ahead," Kitazawa stopped and said.
"I'll take care of them!" Feeling she hadn't contributed much during the fight with Shinno, Kurenai volunteered.
Kitazawa nodded.
Kurenai immediately rushed out.
"Who's there?" The two Land of the Sky ninja at the entrance noticed her.
"Ninja Art: Hundred Flowers Chaos!" Kurenai raised her hands, and a large number of petals danced in the air. She vanished from her spot.
When she reappeared, she was already behind the Land of the Sky ninja on the left. With a flick of her hand, the petals instantly accelerated, slicing open his throat. Blood sprayed.
The other Land of the Sky ninja was shocked, panic on his face. But he looked around and couldn't see Kurenai.
The sound of wind breaking filled the air. The ninja subconsciously looked up. Kurenai kicked him, knocking him unconscious.
"A clean and decisive fight." Kitazawa praised her, then opened the door in front of them.
What came into view was a group of emaciated villagers. When they saw them, the villagers all showed fear and dared not speak.
"What's wrong with them?" Kurenai hadn't expected a prison cell behind the door.
"They are… batteries used to replenish the Zero-Tailed," Kitazawa said as he formed a hand sign and created a Shadow Clone.
Kurenai couldn't help but frown. Although she didn't know what the Zero-Tailed was, she understood the word "battery."
In other words, these villagers were providing some kind of energy for this so-called Zero-Tailed.
"They are all villagers from nearby." Kitazawa gave a crisp instruction. "Shadow Clone, take them away."
"Are you here to save us?"
"Thank you!"
"Your great kindness will never be forgotten!"
At the word leave, the villagers seemed to come alive. Gratitude filled their faces; some even cried tears of joy.
"Shinno truly deserved to die!" Seeing the villagers' reaction, Kurenai immediately cursed.
"Kurenai, let's go to the next level." Kitazawa sighed. "The energy here will be transported to the next level — the control room where the Zero-Tailed is located."
The two continued downward. All the Land of the Sky ninja along the way were easily handled by Kurenai.
"This is the control room."
Kitazawa felt an extremely chilling chakra emanating from beyond the door. He raised his hand and lightly tapped the button. The door slowly opened.
A giant transparent cylindrical container appeared before Kitazawa and Kurenai.
Inside, a snake-like creature was coiled. Its body was murky, its face mask-like. Upon seeing them, it slammed into the container, but the vessel remained unmoving, clearly very sturdy.
"This is the Zero-Tailed? It looks quite ugly." Kurenai's tone carried obvious disgust.
"Ugly as it is, Shinno creating the Zero-Tailed truly shows his talent." Kitazawa studied it carefully.
He had never seen a Tailed Beast and didn't know how this Zero-Tailed compared, but one thing was certain — it was far inferior.
In the original story, the Zero-Tailed had been torn apart by the chakra of Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke. In other words, it had a chakra limit.
"What do you plan to do with it?" Kurenai frowned.
"Leave it for now." Kitazawa thought for a moment.
The Zero-Tailed fed on the dark power of people's hearts — in plain language, negative emotions. The simplest way was to do as Shinno had done: capture people, torment them, and harvest their darkness. But there was no need.
Not only did Kitazawa have his own moral boundaries, but the Zero-Tailed's chakra limit stripped away most of its value. No matter how much it grew, it couldn't reach the level of a Tailed Beast.
Even if it could, where would he find so much dark power? Shinno had fed it for over twenty years. How much time and effort would he have to spend?
Kitazawa had a system and didn't need such trouble. Still, even if he didn't feed it, he wouldn't waste it.
His plan was to learn the Four Symbols Seal, seal the Zero-Tailed into a scroll, and use it as a power bank. Created by Yin Release, its chakra was naturally suited for genjutsu and various Yin Release secret techniques.
Withdrawing his gaze, Kitazawa began searching nearby for Shinno's three Medical Forbidden Techniques.
"Here!" Kurenai found the three scrolls first: Medical Forbidden Technique: Flesh Regeneration, Forbidden Technique: Body Revival Technique, and Medical Forbidden Technique: Destruction and Rebirth.
Kitazawa took the scrolls and immediately read them. When he finished, he nodded. At least the Body Revival Technique was similar to the one rewarded by his system.
At the same time, he understood why Shinno's Eight Gates felt like a pirated version: the real issue was his body. Built up by Destruction and Rebirth, it looked powerful but was inwardly rotten.
In contrast, Might Guy and Might Duy had forged their bodies through years of intense training, making them naturally resilient and far more powerful than Shinno's.
"Let's go out." Kitazawa put away the scrolls.
The two retraced their steps to the surface.
"Kitazawa-sensei." Izumi handed him a scroll. "These are the three Medical Forbidden Techniques written by Shinno."
Kitazawa opened it and compared. It was exactly the same as the three he had obtained — proof Shinno hadn't tampered with them.
"Kabuto, that's enough. End his sinful life." Kitazawa closed the scroll.
Kabuto immediately stopped pouring chakra. Without Medical Ninjutsu, Shinno soon breathed his last. Just in case, Kabuto still stabbed him through the heart.
"Finishing blows are a very good habit." Kitazawa praised him upon seeing this.
"Kabuto looks more like a ninja than I do." Kurenai smiled.
"Then you'd better work hard and not be outdone by my student." Kitazawa nudged her with his elbow.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei!" Kurenai rolled her eyes at him.
She was already working hard, but the gap in talent wasn't something effort alone could close.
"Kabuto, the three of you go complete this bandit suppression mission now. Kurenai and I will clean up the Ancor Vantian." Kitazawa took out the B-rank mission scroll he'd accepted earlier to divert attention.
"Yes." Kabuto glanced at it, confirmed it had no difficulty, and then took Uchiha Izumi and Aburame Torune to a nearby mountain.
"Kill all the Land of the Sky ninja in the Ancor Vantian and then seal the entrance." Kitazawa showed no mercy.
The ninja world was like this — a matter of life or death, every ninja's hands stained with blood.
Therefore, many like Jiraiya sought true peace. But clearly, they had not yet found the true path. Jiraiya had even placed his hope for peace in the Child of Prophecy.
After cleaning up the Ancor Vantian, Kitazawa and Kurenai sat where they were, waiting for Kabuto and the others to return.
The bandit suppression was only a B-rank mission, so Kabuto and his teammates didn't take long before reappearing before them.
"Return to the village!" Kitazawa waved his hand.
---
Morning came the next day, Monday.
They finally returned to Konoha Village.
"You all worked hard this time. Go back and rest," Kitazawa said, patting Kabuto on the shoulder.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei," Kabuto and the other two replied in unison.
Although they wouldn't be paid for the S-rank mission on this trip, their gains were significant. Fighting strong opponents like Shinno had greatly increased their experience and knowledge.
"You go back first, too," Kitazawa said to Kurenai. "I'm heading to the Mission Hall."
"Mm." Kurenai nodded obediently without saying much.
Kitazawa bid her farewell and went to the Mission Hall.
Since this was only a B-rank mission, there was no need to meet with Hiruzen Sarutobi. After submitting the mission, he returned home.
Kitazawa sat on the sofa and took out Medical Forbidden Technique: Flesh Regeneration.
Medical Forbidden Technique: Destruction and Rebirth had too many side effects, so he didn't plan to learn it—at least not yet.
After all, he still had quite a few other Ninjutsu to study.
However, Medical Forbidden Technique: Body Activation Jutsu[Body Revival] was quite promising.
Kitazawa had always had a question: Both techniques involved activation, so why didn't the Fourth Raikage suffer such severe side effects like Shinno?
Now that he had read Medical Forbidden Technique: Cellular Activation, he understood.
Shinno had taken a shortcut. He used Body Activation to temporarily push his body to its peak state, then maintained it with Forbidden Technique: Flesh Regeneration Technique.
Simply put, Shinno was like a balloon that constantly needed to be inflated. The Fourth Raikage, on the other hand, was like a solid lead ball—he didn't need extra inflation.
Although they looked similar outwardly, they were fundamentally different.
This was also why Shinno's Eight Gates was far inferior to Might Guy's and Might Duy's Eight Gates Formation.
Kitazawa stroked his chin, lost in thought. He didn't want to directly learn Medical Forbidden Technique: Body Activation Jutsu. Instead, he intended to modify it into a Yang Release Chakra Mode.
The difficulty of this modification would be simpler than transforming Forbidden Technique: Body Revival Technique into a Ninjutsu for limb regeneration.
After all, the method was clear: activate the entire body using Yang Release Chakra.
[Current Mission: Complete the modification of Medical Forbidden Technique: Flesh Regeneration.]
[Mission Reward: Water Release: Water Severing Wave.]
[Do you accept?]
Kitazawa couldn't help but let out a soft exclamation. This mission had appeared unexpectedly, but he absolutely had to accept it.
After all, the mission reward was Water Release: Water Severing Wave.
The Second Mizukage—no, the Second Hokage Tobirama Senju—had mastered many Water Release Ninjutsu.
However, Water Severing Wave was considered one of the most powerful Water Release techniques among them, with its difficulty maxed out at S-rank.
Its effect was to emit a super high-pressure linear water jet from the mouth, forming a sharp water blade capable of continuous long-range cutting.
In the original work, it had even cut through the roots of the Divine Tree.
---
Nine A.M.
Kitazawa headed to Konoha Village's gate. Many Ninja and villagers were there as well, all eager to see the Hidden Mist Village Ninja delegation.
Kitazawa was different—he wanted to try and find Obito. Of course, this depended on whether Obito had truly sneaked into Konoha during these negotiations.
Following the crowd to the gate, Kitazawa found that the Hidden Mist Village Ninja delegation had yet to arrive.
However, Tsunade was already in position. Besides her, there were also Nara Shikaku and several others.
In total, there were twelve members of the negotiation team—ample respect for the Hidden Mist Village.
A moment later, the Hidden Mist Village Ninja delegation slowly approached. Kitazawa immediately spotted Suikazan Fuguki.
After all, both his features and Samehada were highly distinctive. Among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Samehada had the most screentime in the original work.
Though called a sword, it was actually a special creature whose main function was to absorb the target's Chakra. Interestingly, it would betray its user if it found another target's Chakra more appealing.
For example, it had been drawn to the Eight-Tails' Chakra and thus got along very well with Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails' Jinchuriki.
Kitazawa's gaze swept slowly over the Hidden Mist delegation. But with everyone watching, he couldn't activate his Byakugan, so he had no way of knowing if Obito was among them.
In truth, he suspected that even with the Byakugan, he still wouldn't be able to tell.
Kitazawa wasn't disappointed. He had anticipated this outcome.
After Tsunade led Suikazan Fuguki and the others to the Hokage Building, Kitazawa also returned home.
Obito's Kamui was troublesome, but the original work had already shown many solutions. Besides, this was Konoha Village; at most, Obito would make a brief appearance and wouldn't dare to linger.
Kitazawa's mind stirred with another idea: Kakashi. Obito would definitely go see him when returning to Konoha. After all, this was their so-called bond.
But there was no need to rush today. If Obito truly had come with the Hidden Mist delegation, then he would be spending the day in the meeting room.
After all, these negotiations were destined not to reach an easy conclusion—especially since the Hidden Mist Village couldn't obtain the Lightning Blades: Kiba, which they most desired.
---
A new day—Tuesday.
Kitazawa was still eating when he heard a knock at the door. He stood up and went to open it.
"Tenten?" Kitazawa was a little surprised. "You came to find me so early? Could it be that the Lightning Blades: Kiba have already been reforged?"
"Teacher Kitazawa is truly foresighted!" Tenten beamed with a bright smile.
"Didn't you say one month?" Kitazawa asked curiously.
"One month was just an estimate. Plus, my dad gained some insights from the Lightning Blades: Kiba, so the time was cut in half," Tenten explained.
"I see." Kitazawa smiled. "That's a good thing—a double blessing."
"Teacher Kitazawa, I've brought the two Ninja swords." Tenten took out a scroll, opened it, and performed a summoning. Two sheathed Ninja swords immediately appeared.
"Thank you." Kitazawa took the two swords.
"Then I'll be going now, Teacher Kitazawa. Goodbye." Tenten didn't linger and turned to leave.
Kitazawa put away the swords.
After finishing breakfast, he headed to the Ninja Academy.
Since it was only 8:30 A.M., the students of the Genius Class hadn't started training yet.
"Kakashi, here you go." Kitazawa found Kakashi.
"Is this the Ninja sword reforged from the Lightning Blades: Kiba?" Kakashi drew the sword, examined it for a moment, and said, "It doesn't look like anything special."
"You'll know when you try it." Kitazawa tilted his head. "Let's go over there."
The training ground was full of students, and it wouldn't be good if he summoned lightning and struck someone.
"Mm." Kakashi led him to the place where he usually created Lightning Release: Kirin.
"It shouldn't require any special Ninjutsu; just channeling Lightning Release Chakra into it should summon lightning," Kitazawa recalled from Kurosuki Raiga's usage.
Kakashi raised the sword. Lightning Release Chakra surged out like flowing water, and in an instant, the blade lit up.
Brilliant lightning coursed around the blade, dazzling and fierce.
"What a good sword!" Kakashi couldn't help exclaiming in admiration.
He understood swords. He had also used one since he was a boy.
His father, Sakumo Hatake, was known as Konoha's White Fang for his exquisite swordsmanship—his fame rivaling even Konoha's Sannin.
After Sakumo Hatake's suicide, Kakashi inherited his short sword.
It wasn't until the Kannabi Bridge Battle—when the short sword broke and his comrades sacrificed themselves—that he stopped using Hatake Style Swordsmanship.
Kakashi raised the sword again. The lightning at its tip shot up into the sky. In a blink, dark clouds gathered above with flashes of lightning and rolling thunder.
"It's indeed much simpler and more convenient than summoning lightning with Lightning Release alone." Kakashi withdrew his Lightning Release Chakra and couldn't help but brandish the sword a couple of times.
"Is this perhaps the legendary Hatake Style Swordsmanship?" Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
"You know it?" Kakashi looked a little surprised.
"No, I've only heard of it," Kitazawa replied.
Kakashi glanced at the sword in his hand, a flicker of memory in his eyes. It had been a long time since he'd heard anyone speak of Hatake Style Swordsmanship.
"It's a pity," Kitazawa said, shaking his head. "Whenever swordsmanship is mentioned in the Ninja World now, people immediately think of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
But you should know that before they became famous, Hatake Style Swordsmanship had already shaken the Ninja World."
"Are you saying all this because you want to witness Hatake Style Swordsmanship?" Kakashi turned to him.
"It would naturally be best if I could witness it." Kitazawa coughed lightly.
"Then let's have a sword-fighting competition." Kakashi gripped the sword hilt tightly.
"Go easy on me." Kitazawa smiled, drawing Zangetsu.
He had only learned Konoha Style Swordsmanship recently, so in a pure sword fight, he naturally couldn't compare to a true master.
Kakashi slowly exhaled. Holding a sword again after so long, he felt a power reawakening within him.
Kakashi's body flashed, and the Ninja sword in his hand suddenly thrust forward.
"So fast!" Kitazawa's eyes narrowed, and Zangetsu immediately rose to block.
Clang!
Kakashi retreated after failing to land a hit. He twisted his right hand, and the Ninja sword, gleaming with white light, quickly stabbed toward Kitazawa's eyes.
Kitazawa subconsciously squinted. What an assassin-like swordsmanship. No wonder Sakumo Hatake earned the title of Konoha's White Fang.
But he couldn't just give up. Although his swordsmanship was inferior, his physical abilities were stronger than Kakashi's.
Kitazawa leaned back, dodging Kakashi's stab. At the same time, the Ninja sword in his hand swept upward from below toward Kakashi.
"Good move!" Kakashi grew more excited as they fought.
He felt as if he were back in his youth, sparring with Obito. Every time, he had been able to defeat him with Hatake Style Swordsmanship.
The sun was rising. The two of them clashed, the rhythmic sounds of "clang, clang, clang" echoing through the training ground.
But to Obito, who was watching from afar, the sound was unbearably irritating.
After arriving in Konoha with the Hidden Mist Village delegation, Obito had been forced to sit through endless meetings.
He had thought the negotiations would end quickly, but Konoha stubbornly refused to hand over the Lightning Blade: Kiba.
On the second day, he found an excuse to skip the negotiations and instead came to the Ninja Academy.
He had just arrived when Kitazawa presented the reforged Lightning Blade: Kiba to Kakashi. Only then did Obito understand why Konoha had been unwilling to hand over the weapon—because it had been given to Kakashi.
Clearly, he had misunderstood, not knowing the full story. Obito subconsciously clenched his fists.
Why did Konoha still value such a self-deprecating "good-for-nothing"? Kakashi had always been the one to receive the most attention since childhood.
And him? He had nothing.
He had finally earned Rin's attention, but he wasn't the only one. As a boy, he hadn't thought much about it and had even become friends with Kakashi.
Yet in the end, the outcome was far beyond his expectations—Kakashi had personally killed Rin with Chidori.
He didn't understand. Was Konoha more important than Rin? And why had Minato Namikaze, the fastest ninja in the world, been late?
Because of this, Obito had immediately returned to Konoha after recovering from his injuries, triggering the Nine-Tails Incident. He wanted Konoha to feel his pain. He wanted Minato Namikaze to pay the price.
And incidentally, he would seize the Nine-Tails, complete the Eye of the Moon Plan, and create a new world with Rin in it.
"Good move!" Kakashi's voice startled him back to reality.
Obito subconsciously looked up. Kakashi's familiar figure entered his eyes, and he couldn't help but clench his teeth.
What are you doing? This isn't the reaction I want to see! Have you forgotten that you killed Rin?
"Kakashi looks so happy…" A sudden voice spoke at his feet.
"Shut up!" Obito turned and glared fiercely at White Zetsu.
"I have some information," White Zetsu said, unfazed. "Kakashi's teaching classes were because of Hiruzen Sarutobi's arrangement."
"Why?" Obito asked coldly. He had thought Kakashi would be drowning in guilt, but seeing him thriving now made it hard to accept.
"Genius Class." White Zetsu briefly explained the situation.
"What Genius Class? Just a bunch of little brats," Obito said disdainfully.
If such a class had existed back then, he definitely wouldn't have been accepted—he had always been dead last.
But being dead last hadn't stopped him from becoming one of the top powerhouses of the ninja world.
"I also found out something else," White Zetsu added with a chuckle. "Kakashi has taken on a student named Uchiha Sasuke."
"Uchiha?" Obito's expression immediately stiffened.
What did this mean? Why choose an Uchiha as his student when there were so many others? Was Kakashi trying to replace him with this boy?
Obito watched Kakashi sparring with Kitazawa, a surge of displeasure rising in his chest.