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On this day, the name of the earth and stone "Lava Troll" spread throughout the ninja world.
The battle against the Eight Tails was a spectacle. Earth and Stone, without losing ground, not only interrupted the Eight Tails' chakra control twice, but also severed all of its tails for the second time. Ultimately, they split the body of the Eight Tails in two.
This terrifying strength sent shockwaves through all the Shinobi villages.
It turned out that the Earth and Stone who fought against the Three Tails three years ago was not the strongest ninja in existence. As for whether Earth and Stone have reached the peak of power, that is still uncertain.
Could he be stronger?
Perhaps.
It is said that Earth and Stone developed a fusion ninjutsu similar to the ancient gods of the ninja world, and no one can be certain whether he has reached his limits.
After all, both the God of Ninja, Senju Hashirama, and the God of War, Uchiha Madara, were able to summon giants as tall as 300 meters to fight. These feats are well documented across the villages.
The lava giant summoned by Earth and Stone is only 50 meters tall. No one knows if it can continue to grow or if it has already reached its peak—though it has yet to be revealed.
"Yanyin Village… It's time to check and balance."
The leaders of the four major Shinobi Villages—Yunyin, Sunagakure, Kirigakure, and Konoha—came to the same conclusion.
They would not tolerate the appearance of a second Senju Hashirama, and especially not if he appeared in another Shinobi village.
This is an intolerable situation for them—particularly for Konoha.
They understand the power of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara better than anyone. Among the current generation of Konoha's leaders, some are direct descendants of that era, and they are the most aware of the immense power wielded by Senju Hashirama.
With the support of the Hokage, the Root organization received significant funding and began infiltrating Iwagakure.
This operation had begun from the formation of the Root itself. When Earth and Stone first made his appearance three years ago, they had increased their efforts. But after three years of silence and no concrete information, they never expected such a monumental event to shake the ninja world.
"Tushi, what will the future of the ninja world look like?"
The Third Hokage couldn't help but worry.
It wasn't only the Third Hokage who was concerned; the Raikage, Mizukage, Kazekage, and Tsuchikage all shared the same mood. They were all deeply troubled.
If Earth and Stone had been from their village, it would have been a different matter.
The problem was, he wasn't.
Ten years ago, Tushi had been a rogue ninja wanted by their villages, but there had never been any evidence to suggest his involvement in any covert plans. After that, they lost all contact with him. Yet now, they were faced with the overwhelming power of the "Lava Troll."
At this moment, Tsuchikage Onoki could only sit silently, his mind racing with thoughts of how to explain this to his fellow leaders.
Damn, I can't keep lying to them.
The Earth and Stone ninja had never been a part of their village; he was a rogue ninja from the start. But no one seemed to understand this, and his silence only further confirmed their suspicions. Onoki could feel the metaphorical weight of their gazes.
What was he supposed to say to explain this?
How could he deny it now?
Onoki winced internally, realizing he was caught in a web of his own making.
When Earth and Stone left the battlefield, Minato Namikaze was the first to react.
Realizing that the Eight Tails was now just an empty shell, he quickly informed the other Konoha ninjas and initiated a strategic retreat.
Although they had been involved in a skirmish with the Yunnin forces, they had gained the upper hand. However, with the Eight Tails now in full tailed-beast mode, no one could predict when it would shift back to its human form.
It was better to leave the scene immediately.
By the time the Yunnin forces had realized what was happening, it was too late.
Minato, utilizing his Flying Thunder God technique, had already made his escape, leaving the Cloud ninja in a state of confusion and fury.
In the Land of Rain, the Akatsuki organization was keenly aware of these developments.
Though the Akatsuki had been dissolved for two years, they still kept a close watch on global intelligence. They were quick to hear of Earth and Stone's actions. After all, many black markets existed on the borders of the Land of Thunder, and rumors spread fast—especially about something as explosive as a 50-meter-tall giant fighting against a 100-meter-tall tailed beast.
When Yahiko read the report, he was stunned.
"Earth? Can a ninja have such power?
If the Akatsuki had someone like that, we could truly achieve peace in the ninja world."
But… does the Akatsuki organization have such an individual?
No.
Even with Nagato and Konan's extraordinary talents, after two years of training, they were still at the elite Jonin level. The jump to the Kage (Shadow) level is no small feat. And even with life-or-death experiences, reaching the Shadow level in such a short time is impossible.
Yet Earth and Stone—with such power—was something else entirely.
Yahiko knew the Tailed Beasts were the most formidable creatures in the ninja world, each over 100 meters long and made entirely of chakra. For a single ninja to fight them on equal footing… it was almost inconceivable.
Still, Yahiko didn't linger on his doubts for long. His eyes became determined.
"If no one in the organization has this power, then why can't we?
We've trained for seven or eight years.
If we can reach such strength, then there's no reason we can't fight tailed beasts with our own hands."
Suddenly, Yahiko was full of energy.
This was the arrogance of a genius.
And just like that, Yahiko was filled with a new sense of clarity.
He understood the Shadow level now—it was about finding your own path.
The path of a ninja is different for everyone, and that's what separates a mere Jonin from a Kage.
Yahiko had found his way, and the Shadow level was now within reach. Of course, it would still take time and effort. But Yahiko was confident that if he kept working hard, his breakthrough was just around the corner.
At that moment, Tushi had no idea that his actions had inadvertently caused Yahiko to break through a mental barrier—finding his path toward the Shadow level.
Could this early realization change the course of history?
Would Yahiko become stronger and defy his original fate?
Would he avoid the death that was supposed to come?
None of that concerned Earth and Stone at the moment.
Instead, Earth and Stone was currently in a small cave in the Land of Taki, inspecting the spoils from his latest victory.
"Ten Tails… enough for the main body to study.
As for the Eight Tails…"
He paused.
"Wait, isn't the Eight Tails supposed to be bound by blood?"
Only then did Earth and Stone realize that the Eight Tails didn't follow the same rules as the others.
It wasn't bound by the same bloodlines, and its chakra didn't have the same unique properties he had hoped for.
The tail stand-in could be interesting, but it didn't seem to help with chakra-based studies.
"Well, I guess it's still useful.
The Eight Tails is stronger than most of the other Tailed Beasts, but it seems more reliant on its immense chakra reserves than anything else."
Tushi sighed in slight disappointment.
"But it still has its merits. It has the ability to use Water Style techniques. I'll leave that to the main body to study."
Tushi had made a decision.
As it stood, the Eight Tails' chakra was now in the possession of Earth and Stone. This brought his total Tailed Beast chakra collection to two, and though the Four-Tails' chakra was limited, it was still useful.
Now, the idea of collecting all the Tailed Beasts seemed more viable.
In time, he would gather all of their chakra and create a mini Ten-Tails. A small Ten-Tails would allow him to experiment with the Six Paths power, even if he didn't become the Jinchuriki himself.
Could a clone like himself become a Jinchuriki?
That remained to be seen.
But despite the uncertainty, Earth and Stone knew that this battle had granted him important insight into his own strength.
If he could fight against the second strongest Tailed Beast, the Eight Tails, and win, he could undoubtedly take on the first and strongest—the Nine-Tails—as well.
Of course, that didn't mean Earth and Stone sought conflict with the Tailed Beasts.
His intentions were not to provoke these creatures.
"I'm a good person!"
However, the recent actions had sent tremors across the ninja world. With every village now investigating Yanyin Village, Onoki would undoubtedly be busy for some time.
This would give Earth and Stone the opportunity to continue with his plans.
The technique of Light and Heavy Rock and the Chen Dun cultivation method… he had been longing for them for so long!
Having been outside Iwagakure for so many years, Earth and Stone was no idle observer.
He had gained intimate knowledge of the village's inner workings.
He had infiltrated and placed spies within the ranks.
With Onoki preoccupied, Earth and Stone could now carry out his plans more freely.
The infiltration had been years in the making.
For now, however, Earth and Stone had other matters to attend to.
"This is the Land of Taki, right?
Is there a village of Taki Ninjas here?"
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