Chapter 49: Escape from the Hidden Yuzu Village
Soon—
November 30th arrived.
At night.
Inside a tavern, 200 meters from the inn where the Kumogakure alliance delegation was staying, on the third floor by the window, three Kumo shinobi—who had "coincidentally" shaken off Uchiha surveillance earlier in the day—slipped out silently, heading toward Kushina's residence.
At the same time—
Root Base, Lab Zero.
Inside the glass chamber, Li Yao—who had long been floating in nutrient fluid with eyes shut—suddenly opened them. His curled-up body stretched out.
Bang… clang!
Eight black chakra chains burst from his back, shattering the glass tank. Four of them stabbed into the ground, lifting his body into the air.
At the same moment, the sealing formation connected beneath the glass tank fractured, triggering a signal.
The seal left on Li Yao's heart by Danzo heated briefly—then was instantly erased by Li Yao.
The moment the seal was wiped—
Far away in the Land of Rain, Danzo, traveling under heavy rain, suddenly paused, his expression shifting drastically.
He held out his burning right hand. The dark seal mark of the Reverse Five Elements Formation flickered into view in his palm—then vanished.
"The Reverse Five Elements Seal… was broken!"
"Who did it?"
"Could it have been Hiruzen?"
Danzo's expression darkened. He couldn't believe Li Yao had broken the seal himself.
Even if Li Yao had awakened a Wood Release constitution, there was no way he could undo that level of sealing.
Which meant only one thing—
Someone else had removed the seal.
Whoever it was—Hiruzen or another—Danzo realized something had gone wrong at Root. His Wood Release test subject was no longer under control.
"No. I can't let Li Yao fall into someone else's hands—and I absolutely can't let him die, not yet."
Until he obtained Wood Release, Danzo wouldn't allow anyone—even Hiruzen—to eliminate Li Yao. He had to return to the village immediately to find out what had happened.
And so… Danzo abandoned his Rain Country army on the spot.
He left behind only a vague "fallback" order and a completely baffled command staff.
What?!
Even if he had urgent matters in Konoha, shouldn't he at least assign someone else to lead?
Now the command authority was still his—but he had vanished, and the only order he gave was "fallback"?
Fallback where? How? Against whom?
If something went wrong, who would be held responsible?
Everyone was stunned by Danzo's abrupt and reckless decision.
But beneath the shock, a quiet tension spread.
What could have happened in Konoha that made Danzo abandon everything to return immediately?
With no word from Konoha, unease spread among Rain Country commanders. Their battles with the other three villages slowed.
The other hidden villages, sensing Konoha's shift, also began withdrawing and reinforcing, unsure what the Yuzu was planning.
And the cause of it all—
Li Yao, feeling the disappearance of the seal on his heart, smiled faintly and floated out of the glass chamber.
The eight black chakra chains held him aloft like spider legs.
In that moment, he looked just like Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man—his eight chakra chains acting as mechanical limbs, fully under his control.
He lifted his head. The four rear chains writhed behind him like living tentacles.
He stared at the ceiling—even though he couldn't actually see anything.
The only light came from the faint glow inside the broken glass chamber. The rest of the lab was pitch-black.
But Li Yao gazed as if he could see beyond the roof, through the secret base, through Konoha itself—into the vast world outside.
"Is this the beginning…"
"Or the end?"
Heh…
Li Yao spread his arms, as if welcoming either a new life or death—no fear, no excitement, just a transcendent calm.
He chuckled lightly. Whether his journey through the Naruto world was starting or ending—it would be decided tonight.
There was no time. Danzo surely noticed by now. He had to act fast.
With a thought, countless thin black chakra threads condensed over his body, intertwining rapidly.
Within moments, from his neck downward, his entire body—except his head—was wrapped in a tight suit woven from chakra threads.
If he put on a Spider-Man mask now, he'd look like the black-suited version of the superhero.
But Li Yao wasn't into heroes. He didn't like Spider-Man. His favorite was the moon-slashing "national man" from his past life.
Soon, shoes formed. Then pants, a black T-shirt, and finally, a short-sleeved black coat.
"Hmm… what's this?"
Catching his reflection in the broken glass chamber, Li Yao grinned again.
"Well, well, my dear friend…"
"Minato!"
"Looks like I still miss you. Even my subconscious chakra outfit is modeled after your future Hokage robes."
"If this isn't true love, what is?"
His grin twisted into a manic, deranged smile—then returned to normal.
No rush.
Once he got out—he'd have all the time in the world to play.
Retracting his chains, Li Yao landed softly on the floor and walked toward the chakra-metal bed.
This was the last piece of the lab he hadn't fully analyzed.
The sealing formation beneath the bed emitted fluctuations eerily similar to those of the devouring Wood Release chakra. Li Yao wanted it.
If he could integrate it into his black iron chains, their power would increase drastically.
When he had been restrained here, he was focused on analyzing the Wood Release chakra. He hadn't had time to study this seal.
Now that he was leaving—he wouldn't miss the chance.
He placed his hand on the bed, releasing chakra, which the metal absorbed.
Taking the opportunity, Li Yao used chakra perception to begin analyzing the nature and form transformation of the sealing formula.
Simultaneously, inside his acupoints, he began replicating its traits.
Currently, all chakra in his acupoints had been shaped into black iron chains.
In truth, Li Yao had completed his version of the Adamantine Sealing Chains a year ago.
But his version was black, fully self-developed, and so he renamed it: Black Iron Chains.
These had more than twice the sealing strength of regular Acupoint or Eight Trigrams chakra.
Li Yao's hard work had paid off—he had truly achieved a "greater than the sum of its parts" effect.
He didn't believe they were any weaker than the Uzumaki clan's Adamantine Chains—though he wasn't sure how they compared in physical durability.
Originally, he had wanted to use Wood Release chakra to replace the normal threads within the Black Iron Chains and further enhance their toughness.
But for two years, Danzo hadn't returned.
Li Yao knew how much Danzo craved Wood Release.
Which could only mean—something major had happened in Konoha.
Something big enough to keep Danzo too busy to continue his Wood Release experiments.
What kind of event could keep Danzo away for two whole years?
Li Yao put it together quickly, based on his current physical age.
It must be the Second Great Ninja War.
Only a full-scale war could keep Danzo from researching Wood Release.
Realizing that—
Li Yao knew he had no choice.
He had to escape.
(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Kira1997