Chapter 47: Sakumo Hatake?
Renji was gentle. To everyone in Konoha, he was a warm presence—patient, answering even the most trivial questions with care, meticulous in remembering details others overlooked. Being around him felt like being wrapped in care, cherished in a way that sparked quiet happiness.
So, don't treat Renji like this. Don't do this to him!
Shikamaru, usually calm and collected, lost all composure. His shadows writhed wildly, lashing out at the silver-haired ninja like a storm unleashed.
The ninja leaped back, creating distance, but the black tendrils chased him, coiling around his ankles. He seemed fed up with the interference, his patience fraying.
With a sharp motion, the silver-haired ninja raised his hand. Bang! A silver blade light erupted around Shikamaru, a blinding explosion of intent.
Shikamaru's heart pounded, the sound of his own blood gushing deafeningly clear. His veins felt like they'd burst, his body on the verge of collapse. There was no pain—only the chilling realization that death was closing in too fast. His mind went numb, unable to process.
Was this it? His short life ending here? All he'd wanted was a simple, quiet life, but that seemed impossible. Too many things—too many people—were worth dying for.
Green chakra enveloped Shikamaru's body. A rush of searing pain from countless wounds hit him like a tidal wave. His face paled, but he could feel his injuries slowly knitting together.
His eyes locked onto Renji's blood-streaked face. Renji's gaze was intense, his voice low. "Take them and go."
A thousand thoughts raced through Shikamaru's mind, narrowing to one: Renji was going to sacrifice himself to hold off the ninja.
Rationally, it was their only shot. But how could Shikamaru do it? How could he live on the ashes of a friend? How could he keep going, carrying that weight?
"Hmph!" The silver blade light roared like a beast, sinking into Renji's neck. Renji gritted his teeth, blood dripping from his mouth onto Shikamaru's cheek.
One hand clamped the ninja's sword arm, while the other morphed into a meter-long blade, piercing the opponent's shoulder.
"Hurry and go!" Renji shot Shikamaru a final look, his eyes burning with resolve. His sacrifice couldn't be for nothing.
That look sent ice down Shikamaru's spine. His father's words echoed: as a strategist, you face choices harder than death. Duty versus heart. Hesitate, and you lose both.
His mind blanked. Shikamaru moved like a puppet, soulless. He scooped up Naruto, Choji, and Kiba, dragging them toward Konoha. He didn't dare look back, blood and tears streaming down his face.
He felt split in two. One half carried his teammates to safety; the other had died with Renji.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +5,000,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +5,000,000!]
[Chakra (17,410,000 / 100,000,000)]
...
Shikamaru and the others were gone. Renji casually flicked the knife from his neck to the ground, his wounds sealing instantly. He grinned at the figure before him. "Nice acting."
The silver-haired ninja gave a shy smile, radiating a timid warmth. "Not really."
Renji's face twisted in mock disgust. "Shut up."
Silver-haired ninja: "…"
Renji strolled to the wooden barrel. Poor Sasuke, crammed into such a tiny space. Orochimaru was too cheap to spring for a bigger one.
He tossed the barrel to the silver-haired ninja. "Let's go deliver Orochimaru's gift."
"Wait, hold on." Renji paused after two steps, glancing at the dense jungle. "I took out all the Otogakure ninja. How do we find Orochimaru now?"
The silver-haired ninja's eyes widened slightly, his smile unchanged. "Oh, right."
Screech! A grayish-white bone spike tore through the air toward Renji, the sound sharp and explosive.
Renji shook his hand, the airflow swirling like a hurricane. Kimimaro felt the punch rip a scar through space itself, the surging power overwhelming, almost suffocating.
But at less than a centimeter from Kimimaro's chest, the black-red light fizzled out. Renji stared at him, explaining, "We're delivering Sasuke to Orochimaru and healing his hands." He nodded at the barrel in Kimimaro's hand.
Kimimaro took the barrel, his eyes still cold. "You lead the way," Renji ordered.
Kimimaro glanced at their Konoha headbands, his gaze unyielding.
"Tsk." Renji clicked his tongue at Kimimaro's vigilance and slapped a hand on his shoulder.
Blue flames erupted, engulfing Kimimaro. Moments later, they faded, and he froze, stunned. His illness… was gone? He stared at Renji, disbelief flickering in his eyes.
"Don't waste time. Konoha's reinforcements could show up any second," Renji said, glancing at him.
Kimimaro, convinced by the miraculous healing, nodded. Renji could definitely fix Orochimaru's hands. Barrel in hand, he led the way swiftly.
...
Land of Rice Fields. Otogakure.
Dust swirled as three figures appeared at an underground entrance.
"It's in here," Kimimaro said, descending the steps, his form swallowed by darkness.
Renji and the silver-haired ninja followed. Orochimaru's base was massive, a labyrinth of identical rooms designed to disorient. After countless turns, Kimimaro stopped at a door.
It swung open from the inside. Renji met Kabuto Yakushi's face.
Kabuto smiled, his tone overly familiar. "You're here."
Renji ignored him, brushing past into the room. Kabuto's smile widened, unfazed by the snub.
Renji's eyes landed on Orochimaru, lying on a bed, looking like death warmed over. His pale face was ashen, his vitality drained. One might mistake him for a corpse.
Orochimaru's faint smile vanished when he saw the silver-haired ninja. His slit pupils narrowed, scanning every inch of the figure. Not Edo Tensei. Sakumo Hatake, resurrected? How?
Kimimaro handed the barrel to Kabuto, who left with it. Kimimaro knelt before Orochimaru. "Lord Orochimaru, my illness… it's cured."
Orochimaru froze for three seconds, then let out a rasping chuckle, like sawing wood. "Hahahaha… Your Medical Ninjutsu surpasses even Tsunade's…"
He'd studied Kimimaro's body extensively; the Kaguya clan's bloodline disease was incurable, a death sentence that plagued them for millennia. Even Tsunade couldn't touch it. Yet Renji had cured it? Hope for his hands surged. Orochimaru's gaze burned into Renji.
"I want Hashirama Senju's cells," Renji said, cutting to the chase.
Orochimaru's smile turned sinister. "That's a steep price."
Renji sneered. "You can say no."
Orochimaru couldn't refuse—not for his hands. He'd trade anything. "Not everyone can handle Hashirama's cells," he warned, knowing most would die from rejection. But that wasn't his problem. Heal his hands first, and Renji's fate was irrelevant.
"None of your business," Renji shot back. He had to move fast; Konoha's reinforcements were coming. The real show was yet to come.
His hand covered Orochimaru's withered hands. Blue flames ignited, and the dead muscles and meridians pulsed back to life. Vitality surged, the dark purple hue fading as his hands restored to their former state. The flames died out.
Orochimaru stared at his hands, breathing heavily. He slid off the bed and led Renji to his lab. A deal was a deal, and Renji's value made future partnerships tempting. Why not keep this going?
A syringe gleamed with a crystal-clear green solution. Renji extended his arm. The silver-haired ninja stood guard beside him.
The needle pierced his skin, the green liquid vanishing into his body. Renji felt Hashirama's cells immediately—wild, aggressive, a thousand times more active than normal cells. They tore through his system, shattering weaker cells.
He analyzed them instantly. Their self-renewal rate was a thousand times faster, their multipotent differentiation potential unmatched. These cells could become anything—cardiomyocytes, nerve cells, hepatocytes—perfect for repairing damage. Their stability and plasticity kept them from mutating malignantly while adapting to environmental shifts.
This was why Hashirama's body healed so powerfully. Renji adjusted his own cells, mimicking their properties. The Wood Release chakra within them was easy to isolate. His body began generating Wood Release chakra at a thousand, then ten thousand times the normal rate.
The process felt endless but took mere minutes. Every cell in Renji's body now pulsed with Wood Release chakra. With enough chakra volume, he could rival Hashirama's jutsu—or surpass it.
Orochimaru watched Renji's calm face, unchanged despite the cells' integration. No reaction, no struggle. He recalled the Cursed Seal he'd once placed on Renji—completely ineffective. Too many secrets hid in that body.
"I want to study you," Orochimaru said, his voice dripping with curiosity.
Renji didn't blink. "No."
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +1,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +1,000!]
[Chakra (17,411,000 / 100,000,000)]
Orochimaru sighed, setting down the empty syringe. Renji and the silver-haired ninja left the base.
...
"Shikamaru! Naruto! What happened?" Izumo and Kotetsu, on gate duty, spotted Shikamaru from afar, blood-soaked and dragging his unconscious teammates.
Shikamaru's eyes were bloodshot, the whites stained red. He released his grip, and Naruto, Choji, and Kiba collapsed. His strength was gone, held together only by a single, desperate thought.
"Save Renji! Save Renji!" His hoarse voice reeked of blood.
Izumo and Kotetsu grasped the gravity instantly. Izumo hoisted Shikamaru toward the Hokage Office while Kotetsu rushed Naruto, Choji, and Kiba to Konoha Hospital.
...
Hokage Office.
Might Guy and Kakashi had just finished a mission handover when the door slammed open. Kakashi raised an eyebrow, wondering who dared barge in so boldly.
Izumo entered, carrying the blood-drenched Shikamaru. Tsunade's pupils constricted as she shot to her feet.
"Shikamaru!"
Clinging to his last breath, Shikamaru spoke with eerie calm. "We encountered a silver-haired Konoha ninja with a short sword. He… heavily injured us. Renji held him off so I could bring Naruto and the others back for reinforcements!"
Tsunade's heart plummeted. Kakashi frowned. "A Konoha ninja?" How could one of their own attack them?
"Long silver hair, braided, skilled with a sword. Even Renji couldn't match him."
The description sparked a name in Tsunade's mind. "Sakumo Hatake?"
"Impossible!" Kakashi snapped. His father died over twenty years ago. Resurrection? No way.
"Kakashi, Might Guy, go rescue Renji. Now." Tsunade's voice was steady, but her trembling hands betrayed her.
As their footsteps faded, Tsunade clutched her head, her voice shaking. "It won't happen…" She knew if it truly was Sakumo Hatake, Renji didn't stand a chance.
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