Chapter 191: Hoshikawa 's Fame Shakes the Shinobi World
Konoha Village, Hokage's Office.
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a puff from his pipe and exhaled a ring of smoke. He glanced at the setting sun outside the window, then looked down at the documents on his desk.
These were the latest intelligence reports from the Kumogakure battlefield. Overall, the situation was quite positive.
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In particular, Sakumo Hatake's squad was performing increasingly spectacularly. Shisui Uchiha had even been nicknamed "Shisui of the Body Flicker" by Kumogakure's ninja, a title earned through his Three-Tomoe Sharingan and his illusionary Body Flicker Jutsu.
By comparison, his teammates, Asuma Sarutobi and Shizune, were performing only moderately.
Shinobi with Kekkei Genkai are truly formidable, Hiruzen mused to himself. He didn't blame Asuma. In fact, for his age, Asuma was already considered excellent, largely thanks to the consistent pressure Hoshikawa had placed on him since childhood. Asuma was a notch stronger than his counterpart in the original story. The only issue was that Shisui Uchiha was an anomaly; by awakening the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, he immediately possessed the strength of an Elite Jōnin.
Hiruzen then thought of Obito Uchiha. Compared to Shisui Uchiha, he seemed rather ordinary. But, truth be told, a little ordinary isn't bad. If Obito Uchiha were too talented, his status as Minato Namikaze's student would surely lead the Uchiha Clan to push for him to become Hokage.
Even if they did, he still couldn't beat Hoshikawa .
Hiruzen flipped to the intelligence report he had received yesterday from the Iwagakure battlefield. Although he had read it once, he couldn't help but smile upon seeing Hoshikawa use Water Release to critically wound the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Rōshi.
This is the future of Konoha and the Hokage lineage!
Furthermore, Hoshikawa used the Water Release of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. Hiruzen was deeply moved, never imagining that his master's jutsu would one day reappear in the Shinobi World. Hoshikawa certainly hadn't disgraced Tobirama Senju, as the feat of critically wounding the Four-Tails Jinchūriki was an illustrious battle record.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.
"Lord Hokage," Haru, an ANBU ninja, entered. "This is an urgent report from Lady Tsunade."
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow. He had already received one urgent report from Tsunade yesterday, detailing Hoshikawa 's critical wounding of the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Rōshi. Another one today?
Hiruzen guessed that they had likely repelled Iwagakure. After all, with the Four-Tails Jinchūriki critically injured, it was the perfect opportunity to launch a full-scale counterattack.
Hiruzen set down his pipe, took the scroll, and opened it. After reading for a few seconds, his eyes widened.
What in the world is this?
He had guessed the beginning but not the ending. Tsunade had indeed led the Konoha forces to drive back the Iwagakure ninja, chasing them back to the Land of Earth.
However… the part that read that they had captured the Four-Tails Jinchūriki Rōshi alive seemed too unbelievable.
Hiruzen instinctively blinked, confirmed he hadn't misread the text, and froze. This battle result had completely exceeded his expectations. He had only hoped for a victory, but they had delivered such a tremendous surprise.
"Good! Good! Good!" Hiruzen couldn't help but burst out laughing.
This was an unprecedented triumph! It was no exaggeration to say that this was the first time Konoha had captured a Tailed Beast other than the Nine-Tails since the era of Hashirama Senju.
Hiruzen carefully reread the narrative describing the battle process. How to put it? It felt both unexpected and yet completely reasonable. Hoshikawa was already able to critically wound Rōshi; with the addition of Tsunade and Minato Namikaze, escalating from "critically wounding" to "capturing alive" was entirely plausible.
Of course, the lack of interference from other Iwagakure ninja was also crucial. But that condition was achieved precisely because Hoshikawa had wounded Rōshi, leading Tsunade to immediately order a full counterattack.
This is the result of their combined effort as master and student! Hiruzen felt deeply gratified. However, Tsunade was merely assisting; the true credit belonged to Hoshikawa .
"Haru, disseminate this information." Hiruzen returned the scroll to Haru. A victory of this magnitude certainly couldn't be suppressed, and keeping it secret would be impossible anyway.
"Yes." Haru curiously glanced at the scroll, and her pupils instantly dilated. In all her years as an ANBU ninja, this was the most shocking intelligence she had ever received.
Although it was already dusk, Haru instructed the ANBU to work overtime, quickly plastering the news onto all the public notice boards.
Konoha Village, which should have been quiet in the evening, inevitably became lively. The universal impression of Tailed Beasts was that they were evil, powerful, and invincible. Now, the news that Hoshikawa and Tsunade's group had captured the Four-Tails shook everyone, from ordinary villagers to the ninja themselves.
Many ninja clans were already considering how to support Tsunade as the next Hokage. If given a choice between Hiruzen Sarutobi and Tsunade, most would choose Tsunade. After all, Hiruzen was too cunning; after so many years as Hokage, he was utterly seasoned in political maneuvering. Even the clans found it hard to gain any advantage over him.
Tsunade, however, was different. Everyone understood her temperament: straightforward and direct, never engaging in shadowy schemes. Furthermore, her becoming Hokage would firmly suppress Danzō Shimura.
Land of Earth.
A group of people sat on the ground, deeply saddened. They were the Iwagakure ninja who had survived Konoha's pursuit. The leading Jōnin was named Māhiro. In the original story's Kannabi Bridge battle, he had wounded Kakashi Hatake. But now, due to Hoshikawa 's Butterfly Effect, he hadn't participated in that battle. His current fate was arguably more tragic.
Māhiro looked around and saw nothing but despair. When they had launched the raid on Konoha, they numbered over 1,500 people, but now less than 500 remained. Over a thousand comrades had died at the hands of Konoha ninja. This was an undeniable rout.
But the worst part wasn't the casualties; it was the live capture of the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Rōshi. This was an unbearable loss for Iwagakure.
Māhiro sighed. The information must have reached Iwagakure by now. He dreaded to think how disappointed Ōnoki must be in them.
Iwagakure, Tsuchikage's Office.
"This… how is this possible?!" Ōnoki looked at the intelligence report and slumped into his Tsuchikage chair, utterly devastated.
Kitsuchi was startled; this was the first time he had ever seen his father so distraught. He quickly stepped forward, picked up the scroll, and read it.
"Did the ANBU make a mistake with the intelligence?" Kitsuchi couldn't help but blurt out. A Jinchūriki, powerful to the point of being invincible, captured alive? Was this some kind of colossal joke?
"I wish they had made a mistake." Ōnoki recovered, pressing his hand to his forehead, feeling only exasperation. It was supposed to be a feint on Konoha. How did it escalate into such an uncontrollable situation?
"Hoshikawa !" Ōnoki slammed his hand on the desk, unable to restrain his anger. "That brat ruined our plan!"
Kitsuchi was silent, feeling a sense of unreality. He had met Hoshikawa while executing the Mōryō Sealing Mission in the Land of Demons. At that time, Hoshikawa was merely a promising genius. Who would have thought that in just a few short years, his power would reach such a terrifying level?
"It's Rōshi's bad luck; he was countered by Water Release," Kitsuchi said, setting down the scroll. He asked with a serious expression, "What should we do now?"
Ōnoki calmed down upon hearing his son. In his long life, he had faced even greater setbacks. One time, he and his master, the Second Tsuchikage Mū, went to Konoha to ally with Hashirama Senju, only to encounter Madara Uchiha and be soundly beaten and humiliated.
"Rōshi has been captured. Stealing him back is incredibly difficult unless we can fight our way to the gates of Konoha," Ōnoki said gravely.
Kitsuchi nodded slightly. Rōshi, having been captured alive, would certainly not be held in the Land of Grass but transferred to Konoha. Trying to forcibly take him back would be nearly impossible. The other option was to capture key figures who could be traded for a Jinchūriki, such as Tsunade, Minato Namikaze, or Hoshikawa . But this was also extremely difficult. One had the Flying Thunder God Jutsu, and the other two had the Reverse Summoning Jutsu.
"Besides, Konoha is not so easily defeated," Ōnoki sighed. "Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki haven't even mobilized yet."
"Then only one option remains," Kitsuchi said with complex emotions. "Negotiate peace with Konoha."
"It's fine. The losses we incurred at Konoha, we can recover from Kumogakure," Ōnoki said slowly. "Kumogakure will certainly misjudge the situation now, thinking we're about to launch an all-out war with Konoha."
"You're right!" Kitsuchi's spirits lifted.
"Send a thousand ninja to rendezvous with Māhiro's group and establish a garrison at the border of the Land of Earth to prevent a surprise attack from Konoha," Ōnoki stood up. "I will lead ten thousand ninja into the Land of Lightning. After conquering Kumogakure, we'll negotiate with Konoha."
Land of Frost.
Samui, having just experienced a fierce battle, returned to the Kumogakure main camp. Kumogakure and the allied forces of Konoha and Sunagakure were currently locked in a stalemate. Neither side could gain a decisive advantage over the other. In fact, before Sakumo Hatake's squad arrived, Kumogakure had the upper hand. But after that, the situation rapidly declined.
For Kumogakure, the most troublesome enemy wasn't Sakumo Hatake, but Shisui Uchiha. In the ambush that targeted Sakumo Hatake's squad, Yugito Nii was severely wounded. Many didn't know the details, but Samui did. The crucial factor was Shisui Uchiha using his Sharingan to momentarily control Yugito Nii. Although it didn't last long, it was enough for Sakumo Hatake to inflict critical injuries. This deprived Kumogakure of a Jinchūriki, preventing them from maintaining a decisive advantage and plunging the war into a period of calm but brutal attrition.
Samui was deep in thought as she arrived at Yugito Nii's tent. As soon as she entered, she was hit by a strong medicinal smell. Sakumo Hatake's swordsmanship was deadly. If Yugito Nii hadn't possessed the immense defense and recovery of Tailed Beast Chakra, she wouldn't have been merely severely wounded but killed on the spot.
"What's the situation?" Yugito Nii sat up and asked. Although she was naturally proud, she was deeply concerned about Kumogakure.
"No change," Samui said, shaking her head.
"Once my injuries heal in a few days, I will definitely seek revenge against Sakumo Hatake and Shisui Uchiha!" Yugito Nii snorted.
"Focus on healing first," Samui said calmly, looking at her. "Lord A and Lord Killer Bee will decide the next steps."
"How is that guy doing now?" Yugito Nii suddenly remembered something, asking with a complicated tone.
"He is in the Land of Grass, dealing with Iwagakure ninja," Samui knew she was referring to Hoshikawa . Ever since she was defeated by his Shadow Clone, Hoshikawa had been a thorn in her side, and she paid extremely close attention to him.
As for the news of Hoshikawa critically wounding the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Rōshi, it hadn't reached the Land of Frost yet since it had happened yesterday. Hiruzen Sarutobi only knew because of Tsunade's urgent report.
"He better not die!" Yugito Nii clenched her fist. "He can only die by my hand!"
"With his strength, ordinary Jōnin can't touch him," Samui reminded her. "He did kill Kushimaru Kuriarare, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist."
"So what?" Yugito Nii said confidently. "I can kill Kushimaru Kuriarare too!"
Samui didn't argue, as it was indeed true. With her status as a Jinchūriki, killing Kushimaru Kuriarare would likely be easier for her than it was for Hoshikawa .
"As things stand, it's unlikely we'll encounter Hoshikawa ," Samui said coolly. "You should focus your attention on the enemy right in front of you."
"I know," Yugito Nii muttered, pouting.
Just then, a knock sounded.
"Lord A's orders. You are to attend a meeting in the main tent." An ANBU ninja entered, getting straight to the point.
"Did Konoha and Sunagakure launch another major operation?" Samui and Yugito Nii exchanged a look and quickly left the tent.
"This is the intelligence we just received." As soon as they entered the main tent, A tossed a scroll to them.
Samui took the scroll and opened it. Yugito Nii leaned closer, reading it with her.
Soon, both were stunned.
"Hoshikawa captured the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Rōshi, alive?" Yugito Nii instinctively looked at A and asked, "Is this true?"
"It is true," A nodded. "This matter cannot be fabricated. Iwagakure has been defeated and retreated back to the Land of Earth."
"This… this…" Yugito Nii was momentarily dazed.
She had lost to Hoshikawa 's Shadow Clone before. Although she was unhappy, she could still rationalize it, arguing that as a Jinchūriki, she hadn't used her full power. If she had used the Tailed Beast's power, she could have easily defeated him.
But now, to be told that Hoshikawa could capture the Four-Tails alive she simply couldn't accept it. Doesn't this mean that even if I transform into the Two-Tails, I still can't beat him?
Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Yugito Nii bit her lip, refusing to believe it.
"We shouldn't have sent him to Konoha in the first place," A sighed.
"Brother, someone like that doesn't deserve to be a ninja of Kumogakure!" Killer Bee said, clearly annoyed.
Samui's red lips pressed into a thin, straight line, her mood extremely complicated. She remembered their meeting long ago, when she had a very good impression of Hoshikawa . Alas, much had changed since then.
"Hoshikawa capturing Rōshi is a good thing for Kumogakure," Samui said, regaining her composure. "Iwagakure will inevitably start a war with Konoha to get Rōshi back."
"That's exactly what Father thinks," A laughed heartily. "Next, we will join Iwagakure in striking a hard blow against Konoha!"
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