Chapter 172 – Untitled Draft
"Come on, Little Tsunade. That was your first time using Mokuton. Stuff like this happens. I messed up too, the first time I used Summoning Jutsu," Hatake Yusuke said casually, arms still crossed.
"Hmph, just let me go already!" Tsunade's anger began to subside after hearing his words, though she still looked clearly annoyed.
"How would you even know I messed up the hand seals? You don't even use Mokuton! And don't lump me in with you! I actually need proper seals when casting ninjutsu!" she snapped, clearly not enjoying the comparison.
"Of course I'd know. I fought your ancestor firsthand, remember?" Yusuke replied, lifting his sunglasses slightly. "Don't forget what these eyes can see."
(Don't ask why it's sunglasses instead of a blindfold. He just prefers them.)
"Hmph," Tsunade huffed.
She didn't know all that much about Mokuton's seals, and in truth, Mokuton's hand signs were notoriously complex—some had unique patterns that even required overlapping movements. While her ancestor could conjure forests with a simple palm clap, even he needed full seals at the beginning.
"Anyway, Tsuna-chan. Let's go see Kurenai. I've got something prepared for her too," Yusuke said, switching topics.
"I'm not going. I've still got things to do. You go. And don't even think about vanishing again tonight. You're staying home and cooking," Tsunade replied without missing a beat.
"Why not just ask Dad to cook?" Yusuke asked, genuinely confused.
"No way! Your father's cooking always tastes the same! I'm so done with it," she groaned in frustration.
After living with Yusuke for quite some time, she'd finally grown used to calling Sakumo "Dad," though it had taken her a while.
"Alright, alright. I'll be home tonight and I'll cook. But you're really not coming? You'll miss out on being lazy~" Yusuke teased.
"Tch. Not interested. Even if I'm following in Grandpa's footsteps, I still want to be a real Hokage," she said firmly, straightening her back.
"Got it. I'll be back later." And with those words, Yusuke's body flickered and vanished from her sight.
— — —
"Kurenai, what are you guys doing up in a tree?" Yusuke appeared out of nowhere, speaking up at the group of shinobi perched above.
"Careful, Yusuke-sensei!" Hinata shouted in alarm.
Several kunai came flying toward him, but just before they could touch his body, all of them suddenly lost momentum and clattered harmlessly to the ground.
"What's going on? I thought you were on a mission?" Yusuke asked, looking up at Kurenai.
"That's right. But what are you doing here? You haven't been home in days! Tsunade-senpai is furious, you know!" Kurenai said as she jumped down. With Yusuke here, there was no longer any need to remain in hiding.
"Relax. Everything's fine now. I just came back from Uncle Shinku's place, and I teleported straight here. Didn't expect to run into you guys outside the village," Yusuke explained.
"Yeah, we're on an escort mission. But we've been surrounded... by three Jōnin," Kurenai said calmly.
Although she was strong enough to deal with them, she had her three students to protect.
"Oh? From Iwagakure, huh?" Just a glance at their uniforms and Yusuke could tell where they were from.
"Correct. We're boxed in now," she confirmed.
Her students stayed alert, eyes scanning their surroundings seriously.
"Who's that extra guy? Wasn't there only supposed to be four of them?" one of the Iwa shinobi asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Doesn't matter. You heard the order. Kill them all!" barked one of the Iwa Jōnin.
Yusuke didn't move just yet. He decided to let the kids have a chance to grow.
He glanced toward Kiba and Shino, nodding slightly. His eyes paused longer on Shino—who had now surpassed Sasuke's strength during the Chūnin Exams. Even compared to Neji, the difference wasn't much.
But when his gaze landed on Hinata, Yusuke sighed softly and shook his head.
"She's too kind... too gentle," Kurenai said quietly, having read his thoughts.
"That kind of heart can be a fatal weakness. She could end up getting herself—or others—hurt because of it."
Right as he finished, the enemy shinobi Hinata had knocked out earlier suddenly sprang back up and lunged at Kiba from behind.
"That's enough training. All of you… are free to die now," Yusuke said coldly.
In an instant, his body turned into streaks of light and disappeared from Kurenai's view. Before the enemy could land a blow on Kiba, Yusuke reappeared behind him and delivered a kick so fast and powerful that the man dropped lifelessly in an instant.
"S-So fast?! Who the hell is he?" one of the enemy Jōnin stammered, finally realizing who they were dealing with.
"You three, fall back," Yusuke commanded. The three students obeyed immediately, retreating without question.
He floated up, hovering slightly above the ground. He didn't want to unleash his system's full powers here—nor did he want to use the Gura Gura no Mi recklessly in the forest.
Instead, he planned to test a new Rinnegan ability… one he gained from Indra's lineage—a different kind of Devil Fruit.
The Iwagakure shinobi shifted into defensive stances, eyes locked onto Yusuke's floating form. One of them began trembling uncontrollably.
"It's you… it's really you?! You're that Konoha shinobi?!" the man screamed, horrified.
He recognized the white-haired man with sunglasses and hands casually in his pockets—the living legend who once appeared in their village over a decade ago.
"Who is he?" another asked, confused by his comrade's panic.
"It's hopeless... just forget it. No matter what we do… we're dead." His eyes hollowed out as he fell to his knees.
"Coward," his companion spat.
"Kurenai-sensei… they're scared of Yusuke-sensei…" Hinata murmured in awe.
"As they should be," Kurenai replied with quiet pride.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bomb!"
"Earth Release: Earth-Cave Core!"
"Earth Release: Sky-Falling Clay!"
"Fire Release—!"
Several ninjutsu techniques came flying at Yusuke from every direction. Still, he stood still, both hands tucked calmly into his pockets.
"Kurenai-sensei… shouldn't we help?" Kiba asked, worried.
"There's no need. Nothing will happen to him," she said with absolute certainty.
When the smoke and debris cleared… Yusuke was still standing, untouched. Not even his clothes had a speck of dirt.
"T-This can't be…"
"Run!"
Their strongest attacks had done nothing. Which meant…
None of them would survive.
"Going somewhere?" Yusuke muttered, finally pulling one hand out of his pocket and raising a single finger. The earth beneath them began to rumble unnaturally.
"Earth Release: Lion Earth Coil."
The ground twisted and surged, forming giant lions made of soil that rushed toward the Iwa shinobi. One by one, the lions devoured them, crushing their bodies into the ground.
"Amazing…"
"So strong…"
"Unbelievable…"
His students could only stare in awe. With just a wave of his hand, he had wiped out the entire enemy force.
But it wasn't over yet.
One of the strongest Jōnin had used Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique, escaping underground.
Yusuke had sensed it from the beginning. He raised his finger again, and the ground began to quake.
Soon after, the ninja was forcibly ejected from the earth, fear in his wide eyes.
"Wind Release: Lion Sky Coil."
Lions formed from spiraling air encircled Yusuke—then launched at the target with blinding speed. The man exploded midair, torn apart by compressed wind pressure.
"It's done. Let's head back to Konoha," Yusuke said calmly, opening a portal in midair.
Then, without looking back, he stepped through it.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Join my Patreon here:
🔗 patreon.com/FaaanzKun
✅ Enjoy 85+ chapters ahead of WebNovel
✅ 2 new chapters every day (Monday–Saturday), exclusive on Patreon
🌙 Note: Sunday is a rest day, so there will be no updates tomorrow. Regular uploads resume as usual on Monday.
Join now and dive deeper into the story—weeks ahead of public release!
Thank you for your amazing support 💖
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —