Chapter 158: Damn, That Blondie Is Back Again
Shimura Danzo's expression was grim.
He was starting to feel… betrayed.
He couldn't say exactly when it began, but lately, Hiruzen Sarutobi had been distancing himself.
Even the intelligence reports he submitted weren't receiving the same attention they once did.
This shift unsettled Danzo deeply. He even suspected that after Konoha's last mission to the Hidden Rain Village, Hiruzen had made direct contact with Hanzo the Salamander—his connection.
And that was dangerous.
After all, with Orochimaru gone, Hanzo had become his only remaining external leverage.
Now, without warning, he was losing Hiruzen's trust.
Even worse, he discovered Hiruzen was secretly investigating him.
"Why? What triggered this? Did Hanzo say something? Or is there another reason I'm not seeing?"
Danzo's chest tightened with frustration.
He didn't understand what was happening—but this covert investigation threw all his plans into disarray.
Sure, he'd been slowly reestablishing control over Root, but that still couldn't compare to the authority of the Hokage.
And if this probe continued, everything would come to a grinding halt.
How could he possibly pursue the position of Hokage like this?
"No. This can't go on."
Danzo slammed his fist against the desk.
He needed to act—now.
Otherwise, everything he had worked for would vanish, and his dream of becoming Hokage would slip away forever.
Especially now that Hiruzen had brought back both Jiraiya and Tsunade.
Just the thought of those two gave him a headache.
He had always assumed Jiraiya was his main obstacle and had been quietly sabotaging his efforts for years.
But to his surprise, Hiruzen didn't even glance at him—he simply brought Tsunade back as well.
It was as if he'd already made up his mind.
"Maybe I should reach out to Hanzo personally... or even speak directly with Orochimaru."
Danzo made up his mind.
He had considered confronting Hiruzen directly—talking it out like old comrades.
But now that he knew his "friend" had launched a secret investigation, he felt nothing but disappointment.
Sure, he had tried to assassinate Hiruzen before—but that was in the past, wasn't it?
"If this is how he treats me now, it's clear he never intended to trust me again. With Jiraiya and Tsunade back at his side, I have no chance at becoming Hokage."
"Which means... I have to take more drastic action."
Whatever Danzo had planned, it didn't concern Kitagawa Gen directly.
Gen, for his part, was doing quite well.
In fact, he had recently been testing his new jutsu: Chakra: Spirit Sphere.
"It works surprisingly well. Even though Kisame has a strong will, this technique scales with chakra strength."
Interrogating Kisame wasn't particularly difficult.
Yamanaka Inoichi was quite accommodating—probably because Gen was a frequent customer at the Yamanaka family flower shop.
Plus, since he was the one who had defeated Kisame, it made sense to grant his request for a one-on-one session.
But...
"Why did they even turn off the surveillance cameras for me?"
The technology in the shinobi world had always been kind of ridiculous—somehow primitive and advanced at the same time.
Surveillance cameras, for example, were once scattered all over the Uchiha district.
Gen had planned to disable them himself, but someone else had beaten him to it.
"Well... they clearly trust me. Or maybe they just read me right."
With no eyes on him, it was much easier for Gen to act.
He easily implanted the Spirit Sphere into Kisame's body.
He could immediately sense that Kisame's will was now subject to his control.
As for whether this technique was considered a genjutsu, even Gen wasn't sure.
"Regardless, as long as I wish it, I can control Kisame—or even access his thoughts?"
This jutsu was far more interesting than traditional puppet techniques.
He didn't know how far its range extended, but for now, there were no problems.
"So the Akatsuki really are planning something in Konoha… Perfect timing."
Gen rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
He had been planning to activate "Genshin" anyway—this just made things easier.
The Akatsuki were practically volunteering themselves as test subjects.
"Uchiha Obito is still playing it safe, though. He didn't say much—only hinted that they were targeting Danzo?"
That was… a strange excuse.
But Konoha had already begun preparing for all possibilities.
"Also… I can sense the Planetary Chakra more clearly now. It's time I finally make some real moves."
Gen had been eyeing the Planetary Chakra for a while.
But extracting it was proving to be far more difficult than expected.
He had tried using Alchemical Sacrifice to extract it, but with almost no success.
"Maybe it's because my bloodline development isn't high enough… or maybe it's the Divine Tree Source. Either way, I'm close."
He was confident.
But a few weeks later... things didn't go as expected.
---
At his home, Gen sighed in exasperation at the sight before him.
"What… are you two doing here?"
Naruto and Sasuke had shown up uninvited—again.
"Aren't you supposed to be on missions with Kakashi-sensei? Or training with the Pervy Sage?"
"Tch. Don't even mention that old geezer. He's so annoying," Naruto grumbled.
"All he ever talks about is chakra theory—day in, day out. And we've made no progress at all."
Sasuke, more respectful than usual around Gen, added seriously:
"Since you stepped back, Kakashi-sensei's missions have been really simple. He gave us the day off, so… we thought we'd invite you to hang out."
"Huh?" Gen blinked.
"Today? Hang out? Why?"
"It's our first completed mission, remember? We never even got to celebrate—because you were off dealing with other things with Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said, pouting.
Sasuke nodded in agreement.
"So Naruto and I decided to invite our old classmates and have a small get-together. We figured you'd want to come too."
Gen finally understood and chuckled.
"Ah, I see. A little celebration, huh? Not a bad idea."
It was tradition, after all.
Teams always had a small party after completing their first mission together.
Thing was, Gen had been busy with other matters, and Kakashi had just gotten chewed out by the higher-ups. So they never organized it.
Then Naruto got caught up with his own situation, and Gen temporarily left the team — and it just dragged on till now.
"Naruto must be studying the chakra from his parents, right?"
Gen hadn't forgotten casually mentioning it to Hiruzen.
He hadn't expected them to act so fast.
"Fine. But why come to my place?"
"Tch, Karin's coming too! And since she always drops by here, it made sense!"
Naruto grumbled. He and Karin were always bickering, but he quickly grew curious.
"Hey, Gen, can you tell us about your missions?"
"Huh?"
Gen raised an eyebrow. Why the sudden curiosity?
Even Sasuke looked wide-eyed with anticipation.
"The Pervy Sage said you're incredible. But he told me to ask you directly."
Naruto scratched his head.
"So… would you tell us?"
"Yeah, and how do you train?"
Sasuke finally asked, unable to hold back.
"I want to kill Uchiha Itachi, so—"
"Hey hey, slow down."
Gen quickly cut him off.
"I've just been training with Kakashi this whole time. Ask anyone."
Everyone knew Gen had been "idling" under Kakashi's wing for years.
"As for my mission record, go ask the Hokage. I can barely remember anymore."
After everything he'd been through… the details blurred together.
Honestly, none of it felt all that difficult.
"Really?"
Naruto and Sasuke seemed a little disappointed, but quickly perked up.
Gen was right — they'd just graduated. There was still time to grow.
Besides, Gen was still in their squad!
"Waiting around like this is boring though…"
Gen rubbed his chin, then suddenly remembered something.
"Oh yeah, Karin left some laundry here — her washing machine's busted. Want to try on some of her clothes?"
"W-What?!"
"That's messed up!"
Naruto recoiled in horror, but Gen just pulled out three skirts and grinned.
"What's the big deal? Ninja sometimes rely on disguise, not just Transformation Jutsu. Didn't they teach you that?"
"I feel like you're up to something."
Naruto narrowed his eyes, while Sasuke looked conflicted.
But Gen remained unbothered.
"Come on, no pressure. Besides — wearing these will help you understand how to disguise as a girl better."
"No thanks."
"You sure? Don't you want to see Sasuke in one?"
"Huh?!"
Naruto's eyes lit up instantly, while Sasuke's face turned pitch black.
He realized — this senpai wasn't just strong. He was terrible.
"Fine! Let's do it!"
Naruto grabbed a skirt, laughing excitedly.
"I always wanted to see Sasuke try Sexy Jutsu, but he can't do it. This'll do!"
"Idiot…"
Sasuke blushed, hesitated, then finally accepted the skirt with a sigh.
"Find your own room to change in."
Gen stood and headed for the washroom.
Naruto skipped off to the other side, chuckling.
Sasuke sighed again, holding the skirt… then quietly picked a room to change in.
A breeze rustled the curtains in Gen's home.
"You guys done yet?" Gen called out.
"More or less…" Sasuke replied awkwardly.
"Then come on out!"
Naruto was the most excited. He threw the door open at the sound of movement.
The three emerged from their rooms — but…
Only Naruto had actually changed.
Gen and Sasuke just stared at him, deadpan.
The room fell into an awkward silence.
"YOU BASTARDS!"
Naruto turned beet red, grabbed a stool, and started swinging it wildly.
"Relax, relax! I just didn't think it suited me!" Gen said while laughing.
Even Sasuke cracked a smile.
"Gen! I'm here!"
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the window — followed by hurried footsteps.
Turning to look, they saw Deidara standing at the window… with several ANBU behind him.
"Eh? What's… this?"
Upon seeing the scene inside Gen's house, Deidara went silent.
So did the ANBU.
Everyone stared blankly, unsure what to say.
Gen sighed.
"Great… that blondie's back again."
---