Chapter 167: Kurotsuchi Raiga: Did I Violate the Laws of Heaven?
Shiromo and his group landed on the small island. Following Shiromo's plan, they prepared to find Kurotsuchi Raiga on the mountain and reclaim the Lightning Blade as a meeting gift for Terumi Mei.
"By the way, why don't we just capture that Kurotsuchi Raiga as well and send him to the Mizukage? Kirigakure should be pretty short on manpower right now, right?"
Senju Hashirama voiced his confusion.
It wasn't because he knew about the Blood Mist policy that he thought of this, but rather because he remembered the recent situation with Tsunade and Shizune.
Even Konoha was short on people. Kirigakure would surely be even worse.
"If we send Kurotsuchi Raiga back, this 'gift' might end up having a negative effect instead."
Shiromo began explaining Kurotsuchi Raiga's situation.
First of all, just look at his name. It's completely unworthy of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
His name doesn't even include a fruit. He directly uses the word 'blade' in his name so perfunctorily, and he still has the nerve to call himself one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?
Of course, maybe it was because he used to be called things like Kurotsuchi Little Tomato, Kurotsuchi Banana-kun, or Kurotsuchi Yogurt Fruit Bowl, names that completely lacked dignity, so he secretly changed it himself.
Second, there's something wrong with Kurotsuchi Raiga psychologically.
He likes holding funerals for people.
Every time he holds a funeral, he cries his eyes out, even if the person being buried was killed by his own hands.
"The lightning disturbance just now was Kurotsuchi Raiga's technique, Lightning Burial. The 'Lightning Blade' can generate lightning and also attract it. That move just now was a weakened version of Kirin."
"From what you're saying, aside from being a bit of a psychological freak, his strength is actually decent?"
Senju Hashirama stroked his chin and nodded slightly.
Hashirama had one good point: when he judged someone, he didn't use his own standards, but those of the general public.
Just like how he thought, "The Nine-Tails' power is too strong."
And now, based on Shiromo's description, he felt that Kurotsuchi Raiga's strength was passable.
"Uh, Kurotsuchi Raiga's strength…"
Shiromo could only say that it was hard to judge.
In the original story, Kurotsuchi Raiga was defeated by young Naruto.
Biwa Juzo might also have died fighting a jinchūriki, but at least he used the Executioner's Blade to furiously slap a Tailed Beast Ball.
Kisame beating Eight-Tails jinchūriki half to death.
But could Yagura, Killer B, and young Naruto even be compared in terms of strength?
Kurotsuchi Raiga liked holding funerals so much. Then why, when Might Duy opened the Eight Gates and was on the brink of death, did Raiga run so fast instead of holding a funeral for Duy and enjoying himself?
In summary, Kurotsuchi Raiga belonged to the category of being weak in strength but flashy in style.
And just like Zabuza, he also had a little boy at his side.
Shiromo and his group reached the mountainside and just happened to run into Kurotsuchi Raiga and Ranmaru coming down from the peak.
Seeing Senju Hashirama dressed oddly in strange, cracked armor, the two immediately became alert.
"Who are you people? What's your purpose here?"
Even though Senju Hashirama was wearing a Konoha forehead protector, who knew if it wasn't Kirigakure ANBU pretending to be something else to capture them?
"Oh, we're here looking for the Three-Tails. Do you know where the Three-Tails is?"
Shiromo spoke up.
"Don't know. Get lost."
Kurotsuchi Raiga frowned, his tone unfriendly.
"If you don't know anything, then you're useless. Completely worthless."
Shiromo said this casually, but he noticed Ranmaru beside Raiga glancing around nervously. It seemed they actually did know.
So he gave a hand signal to Uchiha Hikari behind him.
As for Senju Hashirama, hand signals were something he couldn't understand at all. Shiromo had no choice but to speak plainly to him.
"Use the Wood Golem."
"Huh?"
Senju Hashirama froze for a moment, but still followed Shiromo's instruction. He clapped his hands together, and a massive wooden giant emerged from the ground.
At the same time, Hikar8 activated her uniquely crimson-colored Susanoo skeletal stage for the first time.
"Useless? Who are you calling useless? You're looking for…."
Extremely sensitive to the word "useless," Kurotsuchi Raiga was just about to explode when he saw this scene. The arrogant look on his face vanished instantly, replaced by pure shock.
The Lightning Blade slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.
"That Susanoo is like Uchiha Madara's Susanoo, and that's a Wood Release Wood Golem. Next, their attacks will either hit the Three-Tails, or they'll hit you. Choose for yourselves."
Shiromo calmly stepped forward, picked up the Lightning Blade, and tossed it into a sealing scroll he carried with him.
"No, wait, you just casually stole it?! Where's your dignity as a strong person?"
Kurotsuchi Raiga completely broke down.
Seeing the Susanoo and the Wood Golem, he had already been wondering whether he had violated some heavenly taboo to deserve this kind of treatment.
Then he lowered his head and saw something even more devastating.
In just the blink of an eye, his Lightning Blade was gone.
Brother, seriously?
You can command those two monsters, and you still need to steal my Lightning Blade?
Is there still justice in this world? Is there still law?
Kurotsuchi Raiga was filled with grief and indignation, completely forgetting that he was a missing-nin not protected by the law in the first place.
Ranmaru, on the other hand, didn't care about the Lightning Blade at all. He hurriedly stepped in front of Kurotsuchi Raiga.
"We know! We know where that huge monster, the Three-Tails, is! I'll take you there, just please let us go!"
Senju Hashirama's Wood Golem didn't move. He hadn't intended to do anything to the two of them anyway.
As for Uchiha Hikari, seeing yet another pair of men clinging together, Hikari trembled with anger again. Unfortunately, as a naturally kind-hearted Uchiha, she ultimately didn't make a move.
"Relax. Just take us there."
Shiromo flew up onto the Wood Golem's head and directed Senju Hashirama to lower its palm.
Ranmaru and Kurotsuchi Raiga, along with Hikar8 after she dispelled her Susanoo, stepped onto the giant hand and were carried up to the Wood Golem's head.
"Lead the way."
"O-Okay."
Ranmaru pointed the direction, and Hashirama controlled the Wood Golem as it began striding forward.
Kurotsuchi Raiga sat on top of the wooden giant, eyes dull and unfocused.
He was still unable to process what had happened today.
The last time he felt this shaken was when a Konoha genin inexplicably kicked four other Ninja Swordsmen to death.
That time, they had all arrogantly mocked that Konoha genin together, thinking about how to toy with him like a cat with a mouse before killing him, and then…
Had they been cursed or something?
Every time they showed off and tried to kill someone, they suffered backlash and ran into some terrifying existence instead?
"Kurotsuchi Raiga, you've started a family, right? Why are you always wandering around with a little boy and never think about going back to take a look?"
Shiromo suddenly spoke to Kurotsuchi Raiga.
"What family? …Uh, I mean, I haven't started a family at all."
Kurotsuchi Raiga answered instinctively, then realized his tone was wrong and hurriedly switched to a gentler one.
"Oh?"
This answer genuinely surprised Shiromo.
Based on the normal timeline, Raiga should have been about to get killed by Naruto around now.
And he still hadn't started a family?
Of course, Shiromo wasn't thinking about whether the future Lightning Blade successor, Kurotsuchi Buntan from Boruto, would fail to be born.
He had originally just wanted to remind Kurotsuchi Raiga that he might have been cheated on.
But now it seemed that Kurotsuchi Raiga was loyal to the little boy and didn't care about any particular woman at all.
In Boruto, Kurotsuchi Buntan was clearly about the same age as Sarada, at most two or three years older.
Kurotsuchi Raiga was defeated by young Naruto.
And before being defeated by Naruto, Raiga had wandered around with Ranmaru for several years.
The time gap was getting bigger and bigger.
And it had been mentioned before that Naruto's generation went for lightning-fast marriages and pregnancies. After Naruto got married, everyone else started having intense sessions within a few months and popped out kids.
So there was basically no margin of error.
Unless Kurotsuchi Raiga was resurrected with Impure World Reincarnation, or Kurotsuchi Buntan was Nezha or the Eternal Youth Granny, then Kurotsuchi Raiga must have been cheated on.
(End of this chapter)