"Someone's coming… it's Kitazawa-sensei's shadow clone," Aburame Torune said after a brief pause.
As a member of the Aburame clan, he was exceptionally skilled at sensing and reconnaissance—no exception here. He didn't keep kikaichū, but rather nano-scale venomous rinkaichū. Even smaller and more covert than kikaichū, they're perfect for sensing and scouting.
A moment later, Kitazawa's shadow clone walked in with Ranmaru. Seeing them, Kitazawa dispelled the clone.
"Why'd you bring back a little girl?" Yūhi Kurenai asked, puzzled.
"It's a boy," Kitazawa corrected with a smile.
"Huh?" Kurenai looked Ranmaru over again and couldn't help sighing. "He really does look like a girl."
"He's not simple." Kitazawa told them Ranmaru's story and about the Red Eye.
"There's actually a bloodline limit called Red Eye?" Kurenai looked stunned. Yakushi Kabuto and the others were surprised too. The Byakugan is famous across the shinobi world—no one expected a 'natural enemy' to the Byakugan.
"The ninja world is huge—there's nothing it doesn't have," Kitazawa said after a beat. "And the Hidden Mist has always had a lot of bloodline limits."
"That's true," Kurenai agreed.
"But after the Fourth Mizukage took office, he started hunting down and killing people with bloodline limits," Kabuto said, recalling the rumors he'd heard.
Kitazawa nodded. In reality it wasn't truly the Fourth Mizukage Yagura's fault—it was on Uchiha Obito. And Obito did it to avenge Rin Nohara. During the Third Great Ninja War, Kirigakure implanted the Three-Tails into Rin, intending to have her return to Konoha and self-destruct.
To protect the village, Rin chose to die on Hatake Kakashi's Lightning Cutter. Of course, Kitazawa knew the one pulling the strings behind it all was Uchiha Madara.
"I still don't get why the Fourth Mizukage would do that," Kurenai said. "Most shinobi with bloodline limits are strong—wouldn't their existence be good for the village?"
"Who knows?" Kitazawa spread his hands. "Get some sleep. We have a mission tomorrow."
"Mm." Kurenai glanced at Ranmaru. "What about him?"
"Sending him back to Konoha with a shadow clone isn't very safe. We'll bring him along," Kitazawa said, forming hand seals. "I'll use a Four Limbs Weighting Seal to keep him from moving for now."
He placed his hand on Ranmaru's forehead. Black sealing marks spread from his brow across his whole body.
"Kabuto, take care of him," Kitazawa stood and said. "If anything comes up, come to me."
"Got it," Yakushi Kabuto replied immediately.
Kitazawa and Kurenai went to another tent.
"Your strength should be about the same as Kakashi's by now, right?" Kurenai asked suddenly, sitting down on the carpet. Hatake Kakashi and Kurosuki Raiga were both fairly well-known. In her view, their power should be about equal.
"Haven't fought, so I don't know," Kitazawa said, lying down. "But it shouldn't be far off." Kakashi hadn't trained hard in a while and his body was a bit run-down. Unless he'd awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, odds were he wouldn't be a match right now.
"This feels like a dream," Kurenai said, a little dazed. She knew Kitazawa had been improving fast, but she'd never had a clear benchmark. Now that one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen—Kurosuki Raiga—had been killed by him, she finally had a concrete sense of it. Outside of the five Kage, Kitazawa's power was among the very top tier of jōnin.
The next second she yelped and glared at Kitazawa. "Still think it's a dream?" His hand had already slipped under the hem of her clothes and disappeared up along her thigh.
"We've got a mission tomorrow!" Kurenai quickly scooted back two steps. "No funny business tonight!"
"I wasn't planning on it," Kitazawa laughed. "Sounds like you were."
"I was not!" Kurenai's cheeks flushed.
"All right, come to bed." Kitazawa patted the carpet. Because they were camping in the wild, they slept in their clothes to be ready for anything. Kurenai nestled into his arms, rested her head on his arm, and closed her eyes. The corners of her lips lifted. "Good night."
Kitazawa lowered his head and kissed her on the forehead.
The night passed without incident.
Morning came. Ranmaru was awake, but the Four Limbs Weighting Seal left him unable to move, his whole demeanor dull. Kitazawa didn't waste time trying to talk him around; once they were back in Konoha, someone would just erase his memories.
Cruel, perhaps, but in a way it was best for him. Ranmaru had met the wrong person at the right time. Without Raiga he probably wouldn't have survived—but following Raiga was never going to end well either.
They arrived at the metropolis of the Land of Rivers.
"Here's the target's location," Kitazawa said, handing Kabuto a map. "Get in and take him out as fast as possible."
Kabuto nodded. With the map in hand, he entered the city with Aburame Torune and Uchiha Izumi.
"We're just going to watch?" Kurenai asked.
"The target isn't strong—not even jōnin. They can handle it," Kitazawa said, unconcerned.
"This mission has no challenge. Boring!" Kurenai clenched her fist. "Next time, give me something I can actually fight!"
"You'll get your chance," Kitazawa said with a smile.
The Land of Rivers' capital was much smaller than the Land of Fire's. With the map guiding them, the three quickly reached the target's house.
"Torune, use your poison insects first," Kabuto said after a brief think. "If he somehow survives, Izumi, use your Sharingan."
"Okay." Uchiha Izumi opened her two-tomoe Sharingan. Torune raised his hand without a word, and nano-poison bugs drifted in through the window.
A moment later, a scream rang out.
Izumi pushed the door open at once. The target turned his head on instinct and met her Sharingan. His face went slack for a heartbeat.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Blade!"
Kabuto drew a kunai and slashed across his neck. The target fell into eternal darkness.
"Torune, pack up the body," Kabuto said calmly, putting his kunai away. The target was too weak to interest him.
Aburame Torune produced a sealing storage scroll. After sealing the corpse, the three withdrew quickly.
"Sensei," Torune handed the storage scroll to Kitazawa once they were outside the city.
"Let's go—back to Konoha," Kitazawa said, taking the scroll and turning away.
They retraced their route and made it back to the village by afternoon.
"You three go rest. I'll see the Hokage," Kitazawa said with a smile. "Come find me at nine tomorrow morning—I'll hand out rewards then."
A mere B-rank mission wouldn't normally warrant reporting to Hiruzen Sarutobi—but adding Kurosuki Raiga definitely did. One of the Seven Swordsmen was worth a lot. And in the shinobi world, corpses talk. With Raiga's body, Konoha could likely pry out quite a few secrets about the Mist's leadership.
Kitazawa brought Ranmaru to the Hokage's office. He knocked, got permission, and pushed the door open.
"Kitazawa?" Hiruzen looked puzzled. "Why'd you bring a comatose kid?"
He'd met all the Genius Class students and could be sure this wasn't one of them.
"Hokage-sama, our squad just returned from a mission in the Land of Rivers," Kitazawa said directly. "We ran into Kurosuki Raiga—one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen."
"Did you fight?" At the name, Hiruzen's expression turned serious.
"We killed him," Kitazawa replied.
"What?" Hiruzen froze, surprise on his face.
"Here's Raiga's body," Kitazawa said, taking out the storage scroll.
Hiruzen hurried around his desk to the open floor, then unsealed the scroll. A moment later, Raiga's corpse appeared.
"It really is him!" After confirming it, Hiruzen broke into a laugh. "Well done!"
Raiga was already a Mist rogue, so killing him wouldn't risk war with Kirigakure. And news that he'd died at Kitazawa's hands would put a spotlight on Konoha—a good hit of prestige. Kitazawa's reputation would grow as well.
In Hiruzen's view, Kitazawa's fame didn't yet match his power—and outside of wartime, fame is harder to earn. Tsunade, Namikaze Minato, Kakashi, and the others all made their names in the wars.
"Bring Inoichi," Hiruzen said, unable to wait.
Raiga had counted as Mist upper-echelon once; Kirigakure had closed itself off and cut contact. Hiruzen had long wanted to know what was going on inside; now they could learn something from Raiga.
"Since you ran into Raiga, I'm upgrading the mission to S-rank. Reward: 1.2 million ryō," Hiruzen said, returning to his seat.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Kitazawa said, unsurprised.
"But money alone isn't enough. Kitazawa, what do you want—tools, cash, or a jutsu?" Hiruzen asked with a broad smile.
Kitazawa lifted an eyebrow. It was the first time he'd seen Hiruzen hand the choice to him. Raiga really had fetched a good price. He thought it over. Ninja tools? He already had Zangetsu from Hinata, and with Raiga's Kiba blades, he didn't need more.
Money? He wasn't short right now. Jutsu were the most practical: he knew a lot already but lacked something with overwhelming firepower. Trading Raiga for an S-rank technique should be fine.
"I choose a jutsu," he said.
"Which one? You can pick one S-rank technique," Hiruzen said generously.
His first impulse was the Flying Thunder God Technique, but he thought better of it. No need. He knew himself—leaving the 'system' aside, his natural talent was only average; learning FTG on his own would be difficult. Better to let the system handle that later. He could also get it through Tsunade once he became her student, much like Minato had.
Konoha didn't have many S-rank techniques, and quite a few were forbidden: Reverse Four Symbols Sealing, Impure World Reincarnation, Reaper Death Seal, Eight Branches Technique, and the like.
They're the sort you learn and can't really use, or aren't worth the cost. He wanted a massively destructive offensive jutsu. Wind Release: Rasenshuriken and Lightning Release: Kirin weren't in Konoha yet and would have to be created by him and Kakashi.
Aside from FTG, the most practical was the Spirit Transformation Technique—leaving the body as a spirit to attack or possess—but it requires teammates to guard your body.
Tsunade's Yin Seal and the medical S-rank Creation Rebirth: Strength of a Hundred he could get from her anyway.
Then it came to him: an S-rank combo technique—Hiruzen's ace, the Five Release: Great Combo Jutsu, which fires off fire, lightning, water, earth, and wind at once for a devastating blast.
"Hokage-sama," Kitazawa decided, "I pick the Five Release: Great Combo Jutsu."
Spirit Transformation was good, but he didn't like putting his life in someone else's hands. And the combo's other perk: learning it would make him half a student of Hiruzen.
"The Five Release: Great Combo? You're sure?" Hiruzen was taken aback. "Combining five natures is far harder than most S-rank techniques."
"I understand, but it suits me. I want to try." Thanks to the system, he was one of the rare all-nature shinobi, with several nature transformations already at proficient or master level.
"You've already completed training in earth and lightning nature change?" Hiruzen was even more astonished. Shinobi are born with one or two natures; with luck, they can learn more later—hence the expectation that a jōnin should command at least two elements. But talent and time are limited; few master all five.
In Konoha right now, only he and Kakashi could do that—maybe add the defector Orochimaru. Hearing that Kitazawa had mastered all five was hard to believe. As for fire, wind, and water, Kitazawa had already used them in front of him.
Frankly, three elements already make you outstanding among jōnin. He hadn't expected Kitazawa to have all five—actually seven, counting genjutsu and medical ninjutsu.
"More or less at the entry level," Kitazawa said modestly. With his current status he wasn't worried about hiding it.
"Kitazawa, you never stop surprising me," Hiruzen laughed. Kitazawa was Tsunade's student—part of the Hokage line—and having another all-nature shinobi in that line pleased him. "If I were twenty years younger, I'd definitely take you on as a student."
The Five Release combo was his proudest creation, unique in the shinobi world. His three students hadn't inherited it for various reasons. He'd thought there would be no successor—never imagined Kitazawa would appear.
"Thank you for your kindness, Hokage-sama," Kitazawa answered at once.
"The Five Release combo is my technique. If you have time, come find me," Hiruzen said after a moment.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Kitazawa said, eyes lighting up. Being taught beats self-study by far.
"This is the scroll," Hiruzen said, taking one out.
Kitazawa stepped forward and accepted it.
"The scroll lists the requirements for training the Five Release combo," Hiruzen reminded him. "Read it first. Train once you meet the standard. If anything's unclear, come to me."
"Understood." Kitazawa put the scroll away.
"After all this talk, I still haven't asked—what's with this kid?" Hiruzen looked at Ranmaru on the sofa.
"His name is Ranmaru. He has the Red Eye bloodline," Kitazawa said, then explained its function.
"What a peculiar bloodline!" Hiruzen mused. The Red Eye's ability wasn't weaker than the Byakugan. With cultivation, he could become a powerhouse—and if luck held, even found a new clan.
"We'll do as you suggested: erase his memories and place him in Konoha's orphanage," Hiruzen said with a smile. "Once he's settled, he can enter the Academy."
Kitazawa nodded. He'd originally planned to put Ranmaru straight into the Advanced Class, but given his age and lack of basics, the orphanage came first.
Just then, there was a knock.
"Come in," Hiruzen said, looking toward the door.
"Hokage—" Yamanaka Inoichi started to greet him, then saw the body on the floor and asked, "Kurosuki Raiga?"
"That's right," Hiruzen said with a grin. "Have the Analysis Unit extract every scrap of useful intel from his mind."
"Yes, Hokage-sama." A flash of anticipation crossed Inoichi's eyes. He rarely got to analyze a powerhouse like Raiga.
"Kitazawa, are Raiga's swords with you?" Hiruzen suddenly asked.
"Yes. These are Kiba—the Thunder Swords," Kitazawa said, taking out the twin blades.
"I recall the Mist has a summoning contract scroll for those seven swords," Hiruzen said after a moment's thought. "Just in case, I'll place a Contract Seal on these."
Kiba were Kitazawa's spoils of battle. And as Tsunade's student, there was no need to confiscate them.
Surprise flickered across Inoichi's face as he looked from side to side. So Kitazawa had killed Raiga—otherwise he wouldn't have the Kiba blades. What was going on? Was Kitazawa already this strong?
His impression of Kitazawa had been twofold: excellent teacher and a capable medical-ninjutsu user. If he could kill Raiga, that meant his non-medical combat ninjutsu were already jōnin-class—there weren't many in Konoha who could best him now.
Inoichi quickly decided to update his assessment and convene with Shikaku and Chōza. With Kitazawa displaying this level of power, the Ino–Shika–Chō stance should shift accordingly.
"Hokage-sama, may I come back after a bit?" Kitazawa asked. "Kiba are twin blades and don't suit me. I plan to have them reforged."
"Mm. Come see me after the reforging," Hiruzen said, studying the swords. "Consider reforging them into two separate blades—no need to waste material."
Kitazawa blinked. He hadn't considered that, but it made sense. Kiba were a pair to begin with; there was plenty of metal. He only needed one. Who should get the other? Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Sasuke came to mind. A blade that attracts lightning is best in a lightning-style user's hands. Forging three would be stretching it. Forget it—let them figure it out themselves.
"Anything else?" Hiruzen asked.
"No, Hokage-sama. I'll take my leave." Kitazawa bowed and left. He went to the Mission Hall, filed the mission report, and collected the 1.2 million ryō for their squad. Leaving the Hokage Building, he headed straight to the commercial district to find a smith to reforge Kiba.
~~~
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