"It's time to end this." The female ninja called Funen had some unique abilities, but Daniel wasn't particularly interested. Unlike Orochimaru, who wanted to study all ninjutsu in the world, Daniel preferred to focus on mastering techniques that were immediately useful. Other knowledge could wait for later.
After all, compared to ninjutsu, he also had technology and magic to study—his true priorities.
With the deaths of Kazuma and the others, the resurrected bodies of the Four Lightning Guardians, revived by Kazuma's Earth Style Resurrection Technique, crumbled into dust and scattered in the wind. The large electrical ball created by the Raimei Renmen technique flickered briefly in the sky before dissipating.
At the same time, the barrier that had sealed off the entire Rain Village collapsed.
The change was immediately apparent to both sides. The attacking ninja and samurai from the allied nations saw this and their morale plummeted. On the other hand, the Rain Village forces were reinvigorated.
In that moment, Nagato unleashed a deadly assault, wiping out the remaining ninja and samurai surrounding him without letting a single one escape.
Konan did the same. Being on her home turf, she held the advantage of knowing the village inside out, leading to more enemy casualties at her hands than anyone else's.
"Sigh, I shouldn't have dispelled the barrier so early. I could have let it remain while stopping Raimei Renmen, and that way, none of them would have escaped," Daniel muttered, realizing that a few attackers had managed to flee by crossing the village lake.
Once the battle was over, Daniel left the task of cleaning up to others. Kakuzu was particularly eager about it, as many of the invaders had bounties on their heads that could be cashed in.
As for the bounty system, Daniel wasn't planning to dismantle it just yet. The black market for bounty hunters would remain for now, only to be dealt with once Akatsuki had unified most of the ninja world. Even then, there would be no complete eradication—just driving it further underground.
"All the nations except for the Land of Water participated in the attack. Issue them a demand for reparations. Whoever compensates us first, we can promise not to attack them first," Daniel suggested after reviewing the identities of the invading forces.
Despite the current alliance among the Five Great Nations, Daniel knew that betrayal was always a possibility, especially with the weak leadership of the daimyo from the Land of Wind and the Land of Water.
When it came to incompetence among the Five Great Nations, the daimyo of the Land of Wind was undoubtedly the worst. The relationship between the great nations and their hidden villages was supposed to be mutually dependent, but the daimyo of the Land of Wind constantly slashed funding for Sunagakure, diverting the money for his own lavish lifestyle.
He was like the King of Han from The Legend of Qin, who squandered his nation's wealth on his own birthday celebration while his people starved and suffered from natural disasters.
In terms of extravagance, Daniel might be richer than all the daimyo combined, but he didn't match them in terms of sheer luxury. Despite his immense wealth, Daniel wasn't interested in ostentatious displays. He didn't own any private planes, yachts, or luxury cars—those that he did use were gifts from Tony Stark.
Tony, on the other hand, owned more than four private jets, nearly a dozen yachts, and a fleet of luxury cars. Many of the cars were parked in his garage, collecting dust, as Tony simply bought them for the novelty of owning them.
Daniel could afford to buy such luxuries but found them unnecessary. Instead, his focus was on practical assets. For instance, though he didn't have a private plane, he had several Quinjet fighters and even an airborne aircraft carrier. Few knew about these, as Daniel preferred to remain low-key in the Marvel world. Most people only knew him as a brilliant biochemist, not as a wealthy tycoon.
"Also, release a series of reports about the zombie incident. Spread it across the newspapers and news outlets in multiple installments," Daniel instructed Red Queen. He wanted to ensure that the public learned about the horrific crimes committed by the daimyo, showing their disregard for human life.
Unfortunately, Daniel had failed to locate the hiding places of the daimyo from Kazuma's memories, or he would have taken the fight directly to them.
"Next, we need to decide on retaliation. For the Wind Temple, Deidara, Sasori, you two handle it," Daniel said, assigning the mission. The environment of the Land of Wind made them the best duo for the task, aside from Nagato and Konan.
"As for the Fire Temple, Kisame, Hidan, and Itachi, you'll take care of that," Daniel continued, glancing at Itachi and adding Hidan to the group.
"What about Kakuzu?" Hidan asked curiously.
"I'm too busy to deal with that right now," Kakuzu responded curtly. As the Akatsuki's finance minister, Kakuzu was indeed swamped with work.
"Remember, safety comes first. If things get out of hand, retreat immediately," Daniel reminded them.
"Hmph, it's just a temple," Deidara scoffed, clearly unconcerned.
"Next time, don't call me. I've got important research to conduct," Sasori grumbled, displeased at being interrupted during a crucial stage in his work.
"I need you for this one. You know the Land of Wind better than anyone else," Daniel explained. Even a powerful shinobi could be endangered by the harsh desert terrain if they weren't careful.
The desert of the Land of Wind was treacherous—similar to the dangers faced by pirates in the open sea in the world of One Piece. Without a skilled navigator, a ship could easily be lost at sea, just as a ninja could easily get trapped in a desert without a capable guide.
"Let's go." Daniel's real reason for sending Deidara and Sasori was so that Sasori could guide him to Roran. After pinpointing the general location, Daniel had decided it was time to investigate Roran's legendary Ryūmyaku, the Dragon Vein.
While Daniel could find Roran on his own, it would be more efficient to have Sasori lead the way.
"Is there really something there worth your time?" Sasori asked. As a former Suna shinobi, he knew some of the legends surrounding Roran, but he had always considered it a desolate ruin located deep within the desert.
"There's something I need to investigate," Daniel replied cryptically, unwilling to reveal the truth about the Dragon Vein. In reality, ever since arriving in the Naruto world, Daniel had been researching Roran. The power of the Dragon Vein had the potential to manipulate time, and as a student of the mystic arts at Kamar-Taj, Daniel knew that time could be manipulated just as much as space.
Thus, the power of the Dragon Vein was something Daniel was determined to claim.
After Sasori and Deidara dropped Daniel off at the Roran ruins, they flew away on Deidara's clay bird.
"Fourth Hokage's kunai, huh?" With the help of his shadow clones, Daniel soon located an underground structure beneath the ruined city of Roran. Inside, he found a kunai embedded in a strange, ancient seal. It was larger than a typical kunai and marked with the Fourth Hokage's signature Flying Thunder God Seal.
"Sealing jutsu, huh?"
The magic of Kamar-Taj was designed to absorb external energies, whether from other dimensions or directly from people. Just as Daniel had absorbed Mordo's powers before, in theory, he could absorb any form of energy, including chakra. However, this method wasn't as easy as using the Rinnegan's chakra absorption ability—it required specific circumstances where the target couldn't resist.
Normally, Daniel wouldn't bother absorbing someone's chakra, as it was similar to using a philosopher's stone. The process required purification and refinement, and most people's chakra wasn't worth the effort. But the power of the Dragon Vein was something else entirely.
"Breaking this seal would be difficult for most, but not for me," Daniel mused. The Fourth Hokage's sealing technique was formidable, but Daniel had a simpler solution—overpower it with brute force.
Boom.
With Daniel's overwhelming strength, the Fourth Hokage's seal began to crack and crumble. As the kunai was dislodged from its place, a massive surge of energy erupted from the ground. A giant dragon made entirely of chakra burst forth and immediately charged toward Daniel.
"So chaotic," Daniel thought, realizing that the Dragon Vein's energy was in a state of violent turbulence, likely due to being sealed for so long. His original plan to absorb the energy would have to wait, as the wild energy was now disrupting the surrounding environment and even threatening to pull him in.
"This is the power of time," Daniel thought. His hands formed a series of seals, and the Eye of Agamotto on his chest began to glow. A green magic circle appeared on his left arm, and with the power of the Time Stone, he gradually stabilized the Dragon Vein's energy.
While the Dragon Vein possessed the ability to manipulate time, its power was nowhere near that of the Time Stone.
"So, it's actually earth energy," Daniel noted as he absorbed the energy of the Dragon Vein. He quickly realized that the time-travel effect was the result of a unique combination of chakra and the land's special geography.
Daniel was disappointed by the discovery, but there was still something valuable to gain.
"This might be a chance. Should I go back and take a look at the past?" After pondering for
a moment, Daniel made up his mind. This was a rare opportunity to experience time travel firsthand, which could provide valuable insights into mastering the laws of time.
Time was an elusive concept. In the original story, both Naruto and the villain Mukade had been affected by the Dragon Vein, but they ended up arriving in Roran seven years apart, despite being caught in the same temporal distortion.
"So, this is Roran." Using the power of the Dragon Vein, Daniel arrived in the city at its prime. The once-ruined city was now a small but bustling town, with its residents dressed in clothing that seemed unusual to Daniel.
"It's really Roran. And this is during the Third Great Ninja War, which means Minato isn't the Hokage yet, and Kushina is still alive."
Upon realizing the time period, Daniel decided to put his study of the time laws on hold. Instead, he began flying toward the direction of Konoha, eager for a rare opportunity to meet Kushina. He wasn't planning to save Minato and Kushina, as doing so would alter the timeline and jeopardize Akatsuki's current progress. Daniel only intended to stay in the past temporarily, using the Dragon Vein's power for a brief visit.
If this had been during the Nine-Tails' attack on Konoha, Daniel might have considered rescuing the Fourth Hokage's family by using a body-switching technique. But with the current timeline several years away from that event, he had no interest in staying here as long as Mukade had.
"Found it." As this was during the war, many of Konoha's elite ninja were at the front lines. Although security had been tightened, Daniel's ability allowed him to slip past unnoticed by the village's middle-ranking shinobi.
"Who's there?" Kushina Uzumaki's voice was full of caution as Daniel approached.
"Looks like we'll need to talk elsewhere," Daniel said as he sensed her chakra beginning to flare. With a wave of his hand, he transported her into the mirror dimension.
"So, the golden Nine-Tails mode really is unique to Naruto. Could it be because of Asura's chakra?" Daniel mused as he observed the fiery red chakra surrounding Kushina. It reminded him of Naruto's later transformation, though Kushina's version was less refined.
"Such power, and yet they keep you here in the village. Konoha really knows how to waste its assets," Daniel commented, noting how the village kept Kushina sheltered while other villages deployed their jinchuriki to the battlefield.
Both Kushina and her predecessor, Mito Uzumaki, had enjoyed this treatment. Compared to them, Naruto's upbringing was downright tragic.
But then again, both of these women had powerful husbands. If Naruto had been a girl—let's say, Naruko—and had married someone like Sasuke, perhaps she would've received the same treatment. After all, Sasuke was incredibly strong.
In fact, if Naruto and Sasuke had ended up together, their child would have been even more powerful. Sarada Uchiha was strong, but not as much as Boruto or Himawari. Sakura was powerful, but her bloodline wasn't as potent. Sarada was even the first Uchiha to suffer from nearsightedness without awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Good thing it's not the Byakugan that's nearsighted. That would be interesting," Daniel chuckled.
"Who are you?" Kushina demanded, her tone wary as she surveyed her strange surroundings. She quickly realized that she had been pulled into some kind of barrier or dimension, but confident in her own strength, she didn't attack immediately.
"I'm from the future."
"The future? Hah, you expect me to believe that?" Kushina retorted. No sane person would believe a stranger's claim of being from the future.
With that, she wasted no time, summoning a massive hand of crimson chakra to strike at Daniel, her power as a perfect jinchuriki on full display. If anyone could give Minato a run for his money in terms of sheer strength, it was Kushina, whose chakra reserves far exceeded her husband's.
The red chakra hand surged toward Daniel, filled with lethal intent.
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! Only $5 per novel or $15 for all!!] [www.p@treon.com/Mutter]
[+50 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[+5 Reviews = +1 Extra Chapter]