"What a pity..."
Sensing that Danzo had only lost his hand and right eye, Lucian snorted coldly.
He wasn't proficient with any of his skills yet. Otherwise, a single small Heilig Pfeil would have been enough to kill Danzo instantly.
When the dust settled, the dungeon was in ruins, but there was still no sign of Lucian.
"Old fiend Danzo, I've helped you get your new eye and hand ahead of schedule. No need to thank me."
Although Danzo would have a Sharingan in his right eye socket some twenty years later when he attacked Shisui, even using Izanagi to ambush him, the current Danzo wore no bandages.
A youthful voice suddenly echoed from the depths of the ruins, shocking the Root ninja.
The infant can talk?
No, wait, it's not dead?
"Are you sure that was an infant..."
Sarutobi's face was also grave.
It was laughable. He hadn't even seen the enemy. He had faced the Asuras of the ninja world without flinching.
But never before had he faced an infant as if it were a formidable foe, an enemy he hadn't even laid eyes on.
"That attack just now? No, that energy, and where is he hiding..."
Orochimaru's golden, serpentine pupils began to shine.
In such a short time, Lucian had provided him with one surprise after another.
"Aaaaargh!"
Danzo's roar was filled with pain and fury, his killing intent overflowing as he bellowed, "Kill it! Kill it for me! It must die!"
"Take Danzo for treatment, seal the exit, and notify the Barrier Team to seal off all of Root!"
Sarutobi made a swift decision, ordering everyone to fall back.
When the power gap wasn't too large, ninja battles were battles of intelligence. But when the enemy's techniques were unknown, sealing the area was the best choice.
"A pleasure to meet you."
"You must be the Hokage of Konoha."
As they retreated, the group caught a glimpse of a figure flickering into existence, stunning everyone.
"..."
Sarutobi shot the enraged Danzo a look that said, "Are you kidding me?"
What happened to the infant? This boy looked six or seven years old. Where did he get the black robe? But most captivating was the brilliant blue sphere of energy in Lucian's right hand.
In the dark underground, it made him look like a demon child.
Sarutobi sighed heavily and said, "Child, no matter what happened, stop this now."
"Since you are here, you should know what happened..." Lucian replied with a cold gaze.
In the world of adults, there is no good or bad, only right and wrong.
In his eyes, Danzo wasn't a bad person... he was a person who deserved to die!
Moreover, Lucian had inherited the power of a "King," making him a natural enemy to Konoha, to everything.
Stay in Konoha? As a civilian? As a ninja? As... the village chief?
Don't be ridiculous.
The tiny village of Konoha could not contain Lucian's ambition!
"That power is what allowed an infant to grow so quickly..."
Orochimaru studied Lucian carefully. The boy seemed to have an aura... an aura that was completely out of place in this world.
"Hm?"
When his eyes met Lucian's, Orochimaru was surprised to find he understood his gaze.
Lucian: Don't mind that I'm small, I'll grow up fast. How about joining me?
Orochimaru smiled, his eyes replying: Interesting. Let's talk again after you've survived this.
Lucian: You understood? You're a smart one, indeed.
Orochimaru: Likewise!
"..."
Sarutobi's eyelid twitched. Were they flirting with their eyes right in front of him?
Danzo roared, "All of you, attack! Kill him!"
"Heh, too late. Accept my grand gift!"
The two sentences of banter were just Lucian stalling for time to gather spirit particles.
"First, I'll destroy your Root!"
"Condensed Spirit Particle Flame!"
This was the technique Lucian had been preparing ever since Danzo appeared.
By continuously compressing spirit particles, the super-concentrated particles would burn, releasing extremely destructive, high-temperature flames. Yhwach had once used these spirit flames to easily conquer Hueco Mundo and bring ruin to the Soul Society.
"Swoosh!"
Lucian could only use a crude version for now, simply projecting the highly concentrated spirit particles.
The moment Lucian made his move, Sarutobi acted, retreating while simultaneously performing a technique!
"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"
A massive wall of earth and rock rose from the ground, forming a barrier.
The instant the wall appeared, the spirit flame made contact with it. The wall was then effortlessly obliterated, and a blue flame erupted forth.
BOOM!!
Along with a massive explosion, a powerful shockwave swept out, blasting Sarutobi and the others away!
The blue flame shot towards the sky, becoming a towering pillar of fire that pierced through all the upper levels of the Root facility.
It set off a chain reaction, causing the entire underground base to collapse.
......
A few minutes earlier!
Although Konoha was on a war footing and the atmosphere was tense everywhere, the Ninja Academy still had classes.
The students, just let out of school, didn't understand the hardships of war. They ran into the arms of their elders with smiling faces, while others walked home in groups or alone.
Not far away, a carefree man with waist-length white hair was walking with a young blonde woman in twin pigtails.
"The new class of students is about to graduate. The sensei is preparing to make me a Jonin leader. I need to pick the good prospects as soon as possible. Who knows, I might be able to train a ninja as excellent as myself, hahaha..."
"BAM!!"
Before Jiraiya could finish his narcissistic speech, he was met with Tsunade's fist.
"Idiot!"
After sending Jiraiya flying with a single punch, Tsunade saw a red-haired girl of about ten years old running angrily, looking like she was about to beat someone up.
Tsunade immediately grabbed her.
"Who are you? Let me... ah, Auntie Tsunade."
The red-haired girl turned her head and her expression immediately turned to one of pleasant surprise.
She often went to the Senju clan's lands to see her clan's ancestors and play, so she was naturally familiar with the princess of the Senju clan.
Tsunade narrowed her eyes, "Hm? What did you call me?"
"Sorry, my mistake, Sister Tsunade."
The red-haired girl stuck out her tongue sheepishly, looking quite cute.
Her delicate little face was bright red, like a tomato that made you want to take a bite.
"Who were you about to hit just now, Kushina..."
"No one! I was just playing hide-and-seek with my classmates, yes, that's it."
Seeing Kushina Uzumaki lie without blinking, Tsunade rolled her eyes.
Everyone knew that Kushina was the big sister of the upper grades, the number one girl in the Ninja Academy!
"Huh? Sister Tsunade, look over there..."
Kushina pointed not far away, her face full of gossip, "What are that white-haired uncle and that effeminate-looking guy doing?"
"Ah, the world of adults is so scary!"
Tsunade turned to look, and her face immediately darkened.