"Damn it! How did he even get away?"
"He actually took my spoils while I wasn't paying attention!"
Gekko Chizan activated his Insect Eyes, but there was no sign of the other party anywhere nearby. He couldn't accept it.
He had clearly put in a huge effort to capture Hōzuki Mangetsu and had rightfully won his prize—yet the prize was gone! Infuriating.
"Forget it. As long as I've caught Hōzuki Mangetsu, that's all that matters."
"I know you can still hear me. You'd better keep your chakra flowing at all times—if you die, I'll be in quite a bind."
"From now on, your days probably won't be so pleasant."
"Hahahahaha!"
Gekko Chizan looked at the massive crystal before him, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes.
In the original story, Hōzuki Suigetsu had been captured by Orochimaru. Now that he had caught Hōzuki Mangetsu instead, this was an even better research subject. He believed Orochimaru would be delighted.
The only question was—what could he trade such a grand gift for?
[Ding! Host has captured Hōzuki Mangetsu, turning him into both a prisoner and an experimental subject, dealing him a severe psychological blow. Special reward granted: Ninjutsu – Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes (Summoning Technique version, Beginner). Note: Given the host's distaste for spitting snakes from the mouth, this technique has been modified to be released via summoning. This technique has strong growth potential—Beginner: 5,000 snakes, Intermediate: 10,000 snakes, Advanced: 50,000 snakes—all poisonous.]
Oh? Now this was a good reward.
Gekko Chizan had always liked the Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes technique, but Orochimaru's method of using it was far too… well… disgusting…
So he had never bothered to learn it. But now, with the system's improved version, it retained all the power while discarding the disgusting parts. Perfect! Absolutely perfect!
"Alright, next up…"
"Summoning Technique!"
The battlefield had long since shifted away from its original location; now they were deep in the forest, still some distance from the three little ones.
Gekko Chizan needed to send Hōzuki Mangetsu away first. After all, taking someone as an experimental subject was far too cruel—no need to expose his disciples to such a thing.
"Jinlin, take this crystal back to Ryūchi Cave. And have the snakes notify my teacher."
"These two things shouldn't be a problem, right?"
Jinlin coiled herself up, her serpent eyes full of helplessness. She was a battle-loving type, and she had thought she'd be fighting when she came out.
But looking around at the trees—half of them destroyed—it was obvious the fight was already over.
"Fine, fine. But when are you going to deliver those snake berries?"
"You've been putting it off for ages now."
Gekko Chizan nodded—of course he remembered the promises he'd made to these snake ladies.
"Don't worry. I'll be heading back to the daimyo's castle shortly. I'll bring the snake berries to Ryūchi Cave then."
"And make sure you inform my teacher."
"I need to get in touch with him as soon as possible."
Keeping Hōzuki Mangetsu served no real purpose for him; handing him over to Orochimaru in exchange for something valuable was the better deal.
Waste not, want not.
Once Jinlin left with the crystal, Gekko Chizan suddenly felt an overwhelming fatigue.
He had been fighting for two days straight—he was exhausted.
Returning to the edge of the forest, he found the three little ones still standing guard. When they saw their teacher emerge, their faces lit up with joy.
"Chizan-sensei, you're back!"
"How did it go? What about the Kirigakure ninja?"
Obito, as usual, was the first to speak.
Rin quickly stepped forward and began treating Gekko Chizan's wounds.
In truth, his injuries were already healed—after all, using a tailed beast's chakra did wonders for physical recovery.
"The enemy's been dealt with. Kakashi, Obito, Rin—you've all shown clear improvement on this mission."
"I'm very pleased."
Gekko Chizan looked at the three of them with satisfaction. Kakashi was naturally mature beyond his years—he hardly needed guidance.
The real improvement was in Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin. Their progress was obvious—though, to be fair, most of the credit went to Pakura's training.
Still, they were his disciples, after all.
"Chizan-sensei, what was that kekkei genkai of yours?"
"It looked amazing."
Obito completely ignored his teacher's praise, his curiosity about the kekkei genkai taking over.
His question made Kakashi's and Rin's eyes light up as well—they were curious too.
"Tch, that's my trump card, you hear? You know what a trump card is?"
"If I tell you, it's not a trump card anymore, is it?"
Gekko Chizan smiled faintly at their disappointed expressions before finally giving in.
"I created it myself by combining chakra—it's a brand-new kekkei genkai."
"A kekkei genkai that belongs solely to me."
"I'm telling you this, but you must keep it secret. This is my ultimate trump card."
"If anyone dares to leak it—watch out for this!"
At the sight of that familiar Tiger seal, Kakashi and Obito shivered violently and nodded furiously.
The trauma of the Thousand Years of Death was just too great.
Rin also promised she would never tell a soul.
"Chizan, spare me—you and your trump cards."
"To this day I still have no idea how many you actually have."
"Tch, you're a crafty one!"
Chōmei couldn't resist mocking him.
But Gekko Chizan ignored him. What was wrong with having a lot of trump cards? The more, the safer!
"Sensei, kekkei genkai can be created? I thought they were inherited."
But Rin still voiced her doubt.
"Mm. It's very difficult to create a kekkei genkai, but not impossible—it takes talent."
"Your teacher here spent many years developing mine."
"Hahahahaha!"
When it came to shamelessness, no one could match Gekko Chizan.
Even though the system had given it to him, he took full credit himself.
"Alright, let's go. We need to get back to the daimyo's castle quickly."
"The daimyo's still waiting—once we hand in the mission, we can head home early."
They had already been away for days—if the daimyo got displeased, their mission could fall through.
The group set out toward the daimyo's residence.
...
One day later, at the daimyo's castle.
"Daimyo-sama, the Kirigakure shinobi who infiltrated have been eliminated."
"One of them escaped, but overall, the threat to the daimyo's domain has been removed."
"Here—this is the Lightning Blades: Kiba, the swords of Kurosuki Raiga of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. My spoils of war."
Gekko Chizan stood before the daimyo, twin blades in hand, reporting on the mission's progress.
A hint of surprise appeared on the latter's face.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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