Chapter 133 - The Daimyō of the Land of Fire (Part 3)
Although Orochimaru was now Konoha's de-facto leader, he still wasn't officially Hokage. By protocol, he was expected to wait outside.
Even though the Daimyō had already been placed under Uchiha Fugaku's genjutsu, the samurai guarding the halls didn't know Orochimaru's identity. Naturally, the Daimyō wouldn't know he was here either.
Hiruzen Sarutobi gave Orochimaru a small nod, then led the two former elders into the reception hall.
But the moment Hiruzen entered, one of the oddly dressed individuals standing nearby suddenly sneered and said:
"That scrawny old man is the Hokage of Konoha? Looks like they really have no one left, hahaha!"
The others beside him, also clad in flamboyant and bizarre attire, burst into laughter, their eyes filled with mockery as they stared provocatively at Orochimaru and Kazane.
Even the samurai guarding the door joined in with amused chuckles.
Only one man, a plainly dressed monk, merely lifted the corners of his lips but didn't mock them aloud.
Among this group, only that monk came from the Temple of Fire—he had already been preselected as the next head priest. The rest were rogue Jōnin from various minor villages, who had defected for one reason or another.
What they hated most were shinobi from the great villages.
Compared to the Five Great Shinobi Villages, they had no formal guidance, no structured training systems. Even their strongest Jōnin only managed that rank by forcibly cultivating twisted forbidden techniques passed down in their clans.
If these so-called "Jōnin" were placed in Konoha, they might barely qualify as Special Jōnin.
If only their forbidden jutsu were as potent as Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear technique—it would've been forgivable.
But most of their abilities were techniques that burned blood for speed, or traded lifespan for temporary strength.
Konoha, on the other hand, was a different world entirely. Even civilian children could attend the Ninja Academy and be formally taught how to refine chakra.
They had teachers for everything—even the Three Basic Techniques, which were borderline cheat codes.
As their strength grew, students could exchange service and merit for jutsu of different chakra natures.
The volume of jutsu in Konoha was so immense that even Orochimaru—master of all five chakra natures—once sighed and said:
"If I didn't have eternal life, I could never hope to learn it all."
And that was Orochimaru speaking. If even he admitted that, it spoke volumes about how vast Konoha's arsenal was.
(Author's note: If any of you readers really transmigrate into the Naruto world, and don't have a cheat, your top priority should be getting into a great village.)
(Translator's note: I'll surely do, but don't expect me to be a ninja. I'll make sure to be filthy rich in Naruto)
To these rogue Jōnin, it was an unattainable dream.
So upon encountering shinobi from a great village like Kazane and Orochimaru, they couldn't resist taunting them.
They were confident that, here in the Daimyō's palace, even Konoha's ninja wouldn't dare lay a hand on them.
What they didn't know was—they had messed with the wrong people.
Both Kazane and Orochimaru were precisely the kind of shinobi who didn't give a damn about the Daimyō's authority.
Orochimaru merely chuckled at their mockery. Today was a day of triumph for him—he had no need to waste time on fools. Once the Daimyō officially confirmed his title, these people could be dealt with accordingly.
As for Kazane, he was too busy enjoying a skewer of takoyaki to bother.
He figured he'd finish his food, then deal with them afterward. They weren't going anywhere.
"Hmph! Eating street food in the Daimyō's palace? Konoha shinobi really have no manners."
Another garishly dressed ninja, emboldened by the lack of response, targeted Kazane and mocked him openly.
"Such ignorance… truly fearless," Orochimaru mused, watching the man with a sympathetic gaze. How bold he must be to provoke that guy…
But as the saying goes—those who don't court death won't die.
These few rogues, who might've lived a bit longer, had sealed their fate by provoking Kazane.
Finishing the last ball of takoyaki, Kazane's eyes flashed red.
Boom!
A violent aura burst forth, crashing down on the room like a tidal wave.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The rogue shinobi who had only reached Jōnin-level by relying on forbidden techniques couldn't withstand Kazane's Conqueror's Haki. They collapsed instantly, eyes rolled back, completely unconscious.
The samurai guards held out a little longer thanks to stronger willpower—but one by one, they too dropped under the mounting pressure.
What surprised Kazane was that the plain-clothed monk still remained standing, resisting the overwhelming aura with sheer willpower.
For Kazane, that was impressive.
Even Jōnin from the great villages couldn't usually last more than a few seconds under his Conqueror's Haki.
Even Orochimaru, who had been lamenting the rogue ninja's recklessness a moment ago, turned to glance at the monk with renewed respect.
To withstand Kazane's pressure at such a young age… in a few years, this monk might become an elite Jōnin—or even one of the top shinobi.
Meanwhile, the loudmouthed rogue ninja—the one who had just insulted Kazane—was the only one Kazane deliberately left conscious.
As he watched everyone around him collapse, realization dawned on him—he had kicked an iron wall.
He tried to speak, to beg for mercy.
But Kazane was already walking toward him, blade in hand, a murderous aura crashing down like a tsunami, drowning him in fear.
His lungs seized. His voice was gone. He couldn't breathe.
Terror flooded his heart and soul.
"Ittō-ryū: Grand Tatsu Tremor."
(One-Sword Style: Great Dragon Quake)
Kazane raised Shūsui high above his head and brought it down—slow and deliberate, like the swing of an executioner's blade.
But just before it struck the man's head—it stopped.
Yet in the man's mind, he was already dead.
Thud.
He collapsed, breath stopped.
He died… from pure fear.
Kazane re-sheathed Shūsui. Trash like that wasn't worthy of staining his blade.
Then he turned his gaze toward the lone monk.
Thud!
The monk—who had been resisting until now—promptly fainted the moment Kazane's eyes landed on him.
Orochimaru couldn't help but nod again in approval.
This monk has a firm will and knows when to yield. If nothing derails him, he'll surely become a top-tier shinobi one day.