Chapter 105: Leaving Konoha, Savoring Freedom
Akiyama Makoto's brow was deeply furrowed. What was meant to come had come.
Did Danzō really hold that much of a grudge against him? This time, he had mobilized his entire force. It couldn't be that Shimura Taiji was his illegitimate son, could it?
A hundred questions popped into his head, and this time, the system answered them.
[Yamanaka Fū led a team to scan your memories. Regrettably, they found nothing strange. However, they easily discovered the Yin Seal and the Illusion-Breaking Seal on your body. Although they could not figure out the specific working principles of these two marks, it did not prevent them from identifying their general effects.]
[The fact that you possessed powerful ninjutsu without any corresponding memories aroused Danzō's curiosity. He defined your situation as follows: Your memories have been wiped by some powerful means, and you have been branded as a spy from a hostile village.]
[Sarutobi Hiruzen was puzzled by your situation and wished to ask Tsunade to return to the village to assist in the investigation, but Tsunade treated his letters as a flimsy excuse and refused to return. Thus, the decision on how to handle you fell back into Danzō's hands.]
[Hiruzen, pitying your talent in mastering the Yin Seal, rejected Danzō's decision to execute you. In the end, Danzō placed the Tongue-Cursing Seal on you and subjected you to an inhuman brainwashing education.]
[You managed to hide a part of your spiritual power, but the rest of your mind became Danzō's puppet. You became his most trusted right-hand man. After he became the acting Hokage, he even took you with him to the Five Kage Summit.]
[Later, Sasuke came to seek revenge on Danzō. In that battle, you were captured by Uchiha Obito. Subsequently, during the Fourth Great Ninja War, you became a human sacrifice for Yakushi Kabuto's Impure World Reincarnation. You died.]
[You left only a trace of your spiritual power in the world of the living, but without a body, it dissipated before long.]
[Regrettably, this simulation has failed. You will not receive a reward.]
Staring at the rapidly scrolling text, Makoto froze, and it was a long time before he came back to his senses.
Although he had been prepared from the beginning for failure one day, he hadn't expected this failure to be so spectacular. Never mind pursuing the simulation target, Kazematsuri Moegi; apart from Anko, he hadn't even managed to have a single heir before becoming Danzō's captive.
What was Danzō doing? Directly attacking a hot-shot author within Konoha? Alright, it was clear that the "author" status couldn't protect him. Even the fact that he knew the Yin Seal and might be Tsunade's disciple couldn't necessarily protect him either. Once Danzō decided on something, he would act no matter what. Once he was captured by him, no matter what his status or background was, it would all become meaningless.
So why had he made a move on him? The reason? The evidence?
It seemed there was none. And it was precisely this lack of anything, this baseless suspicion, that made him realize Danzō's operational logic. As long as he felt there was a problem with him, he would come to investigate his secrets. The lack of evidence didn't affect his actions at all. If he had to have evidence for everything, why would Danzō have established Root or become the Darkness of Shinobi?
Expecting a guy like that to play by the rules was a joke in itself. In his eyes, he himself was the embodiment of the rules. Even if he really did capture the wrong person, he probably wouldn't admit his mistake. In any case, everything could be explained away by the theory of "shadows under the sun." At worst, he could still have Hiruzen clean up his mess.
Seeing this, Makoto slowly closed his eyes, calming his agitated heart.
Losing a simulation attempt wasn't scary. What was most worth pondering was the view of the ninja world that this simulation had revealed. No matter how smoothly things had gone for him before, when faced with a guy like Danzō, a single failure could lead to a point of no return.
To deal with this, he could only continue to improve his strength and ensure he remained undefeated. Or—before Danzō made his move, find a way to take him out first.
But from a timing perspective, trying to take out Danzō before the plot began was almost an impossible task. As long as Hiruzen was alive, making a move on Danzō was tantamount to making a move on all of Konoha. No matter how much he improved, it was impossible for him to gain the strength to level a village before Naruto and the others graduated.
What about leaving Konoha before Danzō made his move, to lie low for a while? That was a feasible option. He could make contact with Tsunade in advance. Regardless of what kind of relationship they formed, with his medical ninjutsu aptitude, it should be enough to gain her protection. When Hiruzen went offline and Tsunade became the new Hokage, Danzō would probably lose interest in him. His efforts would be focused on how to become the new Hokage himself. At that time, the resistance he would face in dealing with Danzō would be much smaller. Tsunade might even secretly help.
But he was very unwilling to do that.
He rested his chin in his hand, thinking about what other way there was to break the situation. This was clearly not a problem with an easy solution. He tried to restrain himself, not to rush into another simulation. Danzō's move was still a long way off. He could train while trying to come up with a plan.
But just in case, he could prepare a fallback plan now. In short, a way to flee Konoha.
For the current him, leaving the village was already a very simple matter. The only thing he had to do was to get a Flying Thunder God mark outside the village, or even to a more distant place. He had already thought of a countermeasure for this.
Early the next morning, he went to the market inside Konoha. There were many merchants coming and going, driving their horse-drawn carriages in and out of the village every day. He looked around, and occasionally placed his hand on the outer carriage of a wagon, silently leaving a Flying Thunder God mark.
By the time he closed his eyes that night to sense the carriages, many had already left the vicinity of Konoha, heading in all directions of the ninja world. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief. From now on, if he wanted to leave Konoha, it was just a matter of a thought.
With this basic condition, plus the Illusion-Breaking Seal, even Danzō couldn't dream of catching him again.
He waited for a long time, until midnight. He selected a few carriages that had been stationary for a long time, clearly having stopped for a rest. He first left a Shadow Clone to stand guard, then released his Yin Seal, and then activated the Flying Thunder God Technique.
In an instant, his figure appeared in a shed several dozen miles away from Konoha. There was no one around, only two tall horses tilting their heads and staring at him, as if to ask: Who are you? Where did you come from? Are you going to sleep in the same room as us?
He laughed happily. Having left Konoha, his mood was excellent.
He grabbed a large handful of fodder for each of the two horses, then shot out like an arrow from a bow, wandering aimlessly through the Konoha forests, like a firefly chasing the faintly visible lights.
Gradually, a small, brightly lit town appeared in his field of vision.
He casually left a Flying Thunder God mark on a tree, then deactivated his Yin Seal and used the Transformation Jutsu. He transformed into a 17- or 18-year-old noble scion, who looked about 70-80% like himself, and strode into the town's sole commercial street with a swagger.
Looking at the neon signs of the various shops and smelling the strong perfume from the approaching waiters, he felt that in this moment, he was truly tasting freedom. It would only be better if Jiraiya, with his white hair, "Oil" forehead protector, and a girl on each arm, weren't here.
"Hm? Little bro, what's a ninja like you doing in a nightclub at such a young age? Quite the life experience you're getting!"
Jiraiya had sensed his disguise but had no intention of exposing him. He was very confident in his own strength and wasn't worried that he was here for him. Besides, just seeing his seemingly suave but actually somewhat reserved demeanor, he knew this was his first time in a place like this.
"Well? Need me to recommend some of the services for you?"
"No need, sir. I'm just looking."
His answer made Jiraiya laugh heartily. "Then just look. If you really want to experience life, it's better to wait a few more years."
"At your age, it's more suitable to find a young girl and fall in love, to taste the wonderful flavor of romance."
Makoto blinked. "Then you must be very experienced, sir?"
"Of course!"
Jiraiya's interest was piqued. He struck his classic Toad Sage pose. "Back in my day—"
Looking at his boastful appearance, the lyrics of a tearful, nostalgic song suddenly appeared in his mind, sung in the AI voice of Senju Tobirama.
At a moment like this, how could one not have a drink?
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