AN : There are limited time discounts running on my Patreon page. Check it out and enjoy the story further!! - CODE - 4D172!!
There is also an Early bird offer for first 5 buyers of the whole story!!!
--------------------------------
"Sasuke and I will head to the village entrance," Kitazawa said casually.
"I'll leave it to you, Lord Kitazawa," Shibuki replied with a nod.
"Sasuke, let's go."
Kitazawa grabbed Sasuke's shoulder and activated the Flying Thunder God.
In the next instant, they reappeared before a towering waterfall.
This was the entrance to Takigakure.
Behind the curtain of water lay a long, intricate tunnel system; only by passing through it could one reach the hidden village.
Kitazawa opened his Byakugan.
In the distance, his gaze locked onto two familiar figures—Kakuzu and Hidan.
An unsurprising pairing.
Takigakure was easy to defend and hard to attack, and it was located in a remote region; naturally, only a former Takigakure rogue ninja like Kakuzu could find it.
And Hidan had become Kakuzu's permanent partner thanks to his immortal body.
As for Kakuzu's previous teammates, they had all been killed by him and traded in for bounties at the underground black market.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin, considering how to deal with Kakuzu and Hidan.
Because the system had given him a mission to merge the Akatsuki organization into Konohagakure, killing them wasn't an option.
At least Kakuzu needed to be captured alive.
Hidan, however, held no appeal for him.
The man was a fanatic of some evil cult, obsessed with blood and slaughter.
In the original story, his behavior was utterly deranged; letting someone like that into Konoha was absolutely impossible.
[Current Mission: Capture Kakuzu alive.]
[Mission Reward: Master-level Earth Release Chakra Nature Transformation.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa's eyes narrowed slightly.
Was it because Earth Release was Kakuzu's original chakra nature?
He chose to accept.
Once this mission was completed, out of the seven chakra natures, only Fire Release would remain below Master-level Chakra Nature Transformation.
Kitazawa felt it was a bit ironic.
As the next Hokage of Konoha, his weakest nature was actually Fire Release.
[Current Mission: Break Hidan's immortality.]
[Mission Reward: Cursed Technique: Death Controlling Blood.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa let out a quiet sound of surprise.
Cursed Technique: Death Controlling Blood was Hidan's unique secret technique.
Its effect was straightforward: injury for injury.
Any damage the target inflicted on the user would be reflected back onto the target in equal measure.
At first glance, it sounded powerful, but to Kitazawa, it wasn't very useful.
With his current strength, being injured at all was already difficult.
Compared to that, the mission triggered by Kakuzu was far more practical.
Even so, Kitazawa accepted both missions.
"Kakuzu, I heard you're from Takigakure?" the silver‑haired Hidan asked curiously.
"That's in the past," Kakuzu answered without slowing down.
"Good, then don't stop me later," Hidan said with a wicked grin. "I'm going to sacrifice all the ninja in Takigakure to Lord Jashin!"
"Do as you wish," Kakuzu replied, then added after a brief pause, "but don't forget our mission."
"Yeah, yeah, the Seven‑Tails' jinchūriki," Hidan said, his face twisting with regret. "It's a shame I can't offer her to Lord Jashin."
The Seven‑Tails' jinchūriki, Fū, had to be captured alive and brought back to the Akatsuki.
If the jinchūriki died, the Tailed Beast inside would die as well.
Although a Tailed Beast would eventually revive, the time it took would delay the Akatsuki's Eye of the Moon Plan.
"The waterfall ahead is the entrance to Takigakure," Kakuzu reminded him.
"Lord Jashin, your offerings are coming right now!"
Hidan whipped out his Triple-Bladed Scythe and charged straight ahead, cackling.
Kakuzu followed right behind.
Before long, they arrived at the base of the roaring waterfall.
"Who?"
Kakuzu's head snapped to the side on reflex.
Two figures stood beneath a tree not far away.
His expression changed instantly. Without a word of warning, he spun around and bolted.
"Kakuzu, what are you running for?"
Hidan froze for a second, shouting without thinking.
Kakuzu didn't look back once, pouring everything into his escape.
"Sasuke, you go deal with Kakuzu," Kitazawa ordered.
Sasuke immediately accelerated, giving chase.
"How weird…" Hidan scratched at his hair, then turned to Kitazawa with a twisted grin. "Fine, I'll sacrifice you to Lord Jashin first!"
He didn't recognize Kitazawa, but even if he had, he wouldn't have run.
He had an immortal body.
To be fair, that so-called immortality, paired with his blood-based Secret Technique, was genuinely troublesome—especially for anyone who didn't have intel on him.
For Kitazawa, though, the only real nuisance was Hidan's immortality.
And even that wasn't much of a problem. Shikamaru had already shown a solution in the original story.
Besides, Hidan wasn't truly immortal; if he went too long without nutrients, he'd still die.
"Die for me!"
Hidan lunged, Triple-Bladed Scythe in hand, rushing Kitazawa head-on.
When he was within three meters, he jerked his arms, hurling the weapon.
The scythe's shaft extended instantly, the three blades whipping toward Kitazawa along the rope.
Byakugan: Pressure.
Kitazawa didn't move from his spot. A crushing force burst out, and Hidan was flung backward even faster than he'd charged.
The massive Triple-Bladed Scythe was ripped from his grip and hurtled back toward him.
Hidan couldn't dodge in time. The blades slammed into him.
Blood sprayed.
"Hahahaha!"
Hidan staggered to his feet, laughing wildly through the pain. "Lord Jashin will definitely be very satisfied with an offering like you!"
Kitazawa had shown terrifying strength, but that only made Hidan more ecstatic.
He yanked his scythe free and, drenched in blood, rushed in again.
But just a meter away from Kitazawa, the scythe stopped.
More accurately—Hidan's entire body stopped, frozen.
Kitazawa had activated the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
There were very few shinobi in the entire Ninja World who could break a Genjutsu cast by the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
Hidan certainly wasn't one of them.
He relied on "lack of intel" not raw ability; there was no way he could withstand the Eternal Mangekyo's illusion.
Once Hidan was restrained, Kitazawa calmly began to dig a pit on the spot.
After finishing, he tossed in a large bundle of exploding tags.
With a casual wave, he flung the immobilized Hidan into the hole.
He formed a series of hand seals. Earth flowed back into place, burying the pit, and a massive tree burst forth from the ground, roots drilling deep.
The exploding tags went off underground, the blast making the earth shudder.
A moment later, everything fell silent beneath the towering tree's tranquil shade.
[Current Mission: Break Hidan's immortality.]
[Mission Reward: Cursed Technique: Death Controlling Blood.]
[Host has completed the mission; reward issued.]
Kitazawa brushed off his hands.
The exploding tags had blown Hidan to pieces, and with the giant tree rooting into what was left of his body, the two-pronged approach would make sure he died soon.
Kitazawa glanced at the three lines of text floating before him, then used the Flying Thunder God.
In the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Sasuke.
Because Hidan had been dealt with so quickly, Sasuke and Kakuzu were still in the middle of their chase.
"Kakuzu, I've mastered the Flying Thunder God. You can't escape. Why don't we make a deal?" Kitazawa said plainly, looking him in the eye.
"…What deal?"
Kakuzu came to a stop, his expression dark.
He knew very well what the Flying Thunder God meant.
Back then, Namikaze Minato had used it to become untouchable, earning the title of Yellow Flash.
More importantly, even without the Flying Thunder God, Kakuzu understood he couldn't get away from Kitazawa.
He had already fought him once—with Konan's help, no less—and knew his power all too well.
The gap between them was like heaven and earth. If Kitazawa used Wood Release: Wood Dragon right away, Kakuzu wouldn't even have a chance to resist.
"This is my student, Uchiha Sasuke," Kitazawa introduced.
An Uchiha…
Kakuzu's eyes narrowed as he thought back to the pursuit just now.
He'd started running the moment he saw them, yet he hadn't managed to shake Sasuke at all.
There was no doubt—the kid was strong.
"The deal is simple," Kitazawa continued with a faint smile. "You two fight. If you win, I'll let you go."
Kakuzu unconsciously let out a breath of relief—only for his chest to tighten again.
He thought of Uzumaki Naruto, who had recently made his name known.
Naruto was the same age as Uchiha Sasuke, and also Kitazawa's student.
More importantly, if Kitazawa was proposing this deal, it meant he had absolute confidence in Sasuke's strength.
But… did Kakuzu have any other choice?
"And if I lose?" he asked after a brief silence.
"We have a bit of a history, after all," Kitazawa said casually. "If you lose, choose to join Konoha Village, and I won't kill you."
Kakuzu was stunned.
Join Konoha?
It sounded absurd.
This was the village whose First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, he had once tried to assassinate.
"…I agree," Kakuzu said at last, nodding.
He really had no other choice.
Refuse, and he died. Accept, and he at least had a chance to live.
Kitazawa stepped back, turning into a silent spectator.
Sasuke walked forward at an unhurried pace to face Kakuzu head‑on.
His confidence was absolute, his mind already racing with ways to finish Kakuzu quickly and use this fight to cement his own reputation.
Kakuzu narrowed his eyes, seeing straight through him.
Young people are always so impatient.
Especially a prodigy among prodigies like Sasuke.
Earth Grudge Fear Mode.
Kakuzu flashed through hand seals, and countless black threads burst from his body.
To deceive Sasuke, he didn't even bother removing his cloak, going all out right from the start.
"What?"
A chill ran down Sasuke's spine as an intense sense of danger surged over him.
Instinctively, he activated his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan—just in time to see the mass of black threads twist and gather into eight enormous tentacles.
In the blink of an eye, the giant tentacles closed in, surrounding him.
Sasuke's expression tightened and he immediately leapt back.
But the eight tentacles, like a spreading darkness, had already engulfed the space around him.
At that critical moment, the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan showed its value.
Though he came out looking a bit disheveled, Sasuke managed to slip past all eight tentacles without being caught.
The opening exchange ended. Both of them now wore equally serious expressions.
Staring at Kakuzu, whose entire body was wrapped in black threads, Sasuke discarded his earlier contempt.
After all, he had almost been taken just now.
"What are these four masks?"
His gaze fixed on the masks embedded within the black threads.
Even if the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan couldn't see through solid objects, it could still trace the chakra flow behind each mask.
Kakuzu, meanwhile, stared at Sasuke's eyes and frowned.
This was his first time seeing the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
Judging from Sasuke's performance just now, it was definitely far beyond the three‑tomoe Sharingan.
A mutated Sharingan, perhaps?
Fire Release: Intelligent Hardwork.
Kakuzu formed hand seals.
The Fire Release mask promptly spewed out a massive fireball. The flames spread frantically, turning the battlefield into a sea of fire in an instant.
Sasuke couldn't help but be taken aback.
So these four masks can each use a different elemental release?
Without answering his own thought, he immediately drew the Thunder God Sword.
Violent lightning exploded from the blade, parting the sea of fire with Sasuke at its center.
Sasuke shot forward, his speed pushed to the very limit.
Kakuzu sensed the killing intent at once.
He slammed his hands together.
Earth Release: Earth Spear.
Clang!
His hardened arms blocked the Thunder God Sword.
Even so, cold sweat broke out on Kakuzu's forehead.
Sasuke's speed was so great that he had almost failed to react in time.
A moment later, lightning surged even more fiercely along the Thunder God Sword.
But Kakuzu made no move to evade.
Earth Release: Earth Spear had hardened his entire body.
Secret Technique: Heart Capture.
Enduring the lightning, Kakuzu thrust his right hand straight toward Sasuke's heart.
Feeling his lightning fail to break through, Sasuke's heart tightened. He immediately invoked his Mangekyō Sharingan dōjutsu.
From the very start of the battle, he had placed a Yin Release mark on Kakuzu.
Kakuzu, though powerful and adept in all five elemental releases, was no master of Yin Release and hadn't noticed a thing.
His grasp closed on empty air, leaving him momentarily stunned.
------------------
AN: Check out my P@treon For +80 extra chapters.
Thank You For your Support!!
[email protected]/noviceauthor777
-----------------------
To keep the chapters coming - Support with POWER STONES.
For Every 100 power stones - 1 BONUS chapter.