Chapter 138: The Sarutobi Clan's Trump Card
"Li Yao has dispelled his shadow clones."
A hundred kilometers away, Dan Kato and the others who were tracking Li Yao sensed that only one soul signature remained. Dan let out a breath of relief.
"Looks like he's let go of his suspicions," Inuzuka Akira said with a light smile.
"Li Yao really does possess a terrifying genjutsu that can instantly render a jōnin helpless," Biwako said gravely. She wasn't focused on whether or not Li Yao had suspected them — her concern was the genjutsu that Dan had mentioned.
"That genjutsu is indeed frightening," Dan nodded. "Unless we have three or more teams surrounding him from different angles, we won't be able to catch him. If he decides to flee, we won't be able to pursue."
That's the danger of a powerful genjutsu.
If it weren't for Li Yao's genjutsu, Dan thought their current team could at least surround him, hold him off, and wait for the Hokage.
But now, against someone with such a powerful genjutsu…
He might be okay — the Spirit Transformation Technique gave his soul form strong resistance to genjutsu, preventing genjutsu chakra from invading him.
But the others? Unless it was the Hokage himself, they would struggle against a genjutsu capable of controlling multiple targets simultaneously.
They'd need several elite jōnin-level teams, at minimum.
"This is a problem," Biwako sighed heavily, a troubling thought forming in her heart.
Could they actually kill Li Yao?
Involuntarily, Biwako began to doubt herself.
Given Li Yao's current strength, even her husband might struggle to kill him — unless he used the Reaper Death Seal and took Li Yao down with him.
But that was not an outcome Biwako wanted.
And even the Reaper Death Seal might not be feasible if the opportunity to use it never arose.
"...We should report Li Yao's current status."
With a sigh, Biwako summoned a small monkey with a summoning technique. She quickly wrote a report and passed it to the monkey.
The monkey, after dispelling the jutsu, reappeared in the backyard of the Third Hokage's home — where it had been stationed to receive Biwako's updates.
Very quickly, an ANBU delivered the message to the Hokage's office.
As Hiruzen read through his wife's report, his brow furrowed and remained tense throughout.
"Li Yao… just who is this guy really?"
He muttered under his breath, his wise eyes full of puzzlement.
First Black Lightning, now Super Beast Imitating Drawing — how had Li Yao learned all these techniques?
Could Biwako be right? That he possessed a reincarnation or soul-possession technique similar to the Spirit Transformation Technique, and had previously reincarnated in both Konoha and Kumogakure?
"No matter who he really is, his growth is too rapid — he must be eliminated."
"But..."
As he recalled the details of Li Yao's evolving strength described in the letter, Hiruzen hesitated. Could he still kill Li Yao?
He might have been able to before...
But now — after that battle with the Third Raikage — Li Yao had grown far more powerful. He had defensive techniques capable of withstanding terrifying explosions, and that's not to mention his Vajra Chains and Wood Release.
Hiruzen quietly admitted to himself... he probably couldn't win anymore.
In the end, he arrived at a conclusion that left him frustrated.
Without using the Reaper Death Seal to die alongside him, there was no other way to deal with Li Yao.
He might not even be able to withstand Li Yao's genjutsu.
The thought made him even more anxious.
"No, Li Yao must be killed."
Hiruzen put the letter away and laid back against the ample bosom of his secretary, Chiba Megumi, eyes closed, pondering how to kill Li Yao.
First, to counter Li Yao's chakra sensing and flight-based escape abilities, he could request support from Mito Uzumaki to use the Four Red Yang Formation barrier — trapping Li Yao completely, leaving no room to flee.
Combined with Dan Kato's soul sensing ability, Li Yao would have no chance to run and would be securely trapped.
That left only one problem: how to actually kill him.
He couldn't do it alone.
It would require multiple Kage-level shinobi.
But how could they resist Li Yao's genjutsu?
If they couldn't, even sheer numbers would be useless.
"Could Dan Kato possess me with Spirit Transformation and block the genjutsu that way?"
Suddenly, Hiruzen thought of this workaround. The Spirit Transformation Technique offered strong genjutsu resistance — if Dan used it to possess him, the spiritual form might shield him from genjutsu intrusion.
"Let's find out."
Without delay, Hiruzen sat up and wrote a letter to his wife, instructing her to ask Dan Kato whether his spiritual form could block Li Yao's genjutsu.
Ten minutes later, Biwako summoned the monkey again and sent it off.
After reading her husband's reply, Biwako immediately turned to Dan and asked, "Can your spirit form block Li Yao's genjutsu?"
"Yes," Dan replied with confidence.
Though he had never actually blocked Li Yao's genjutsu before, he reasoned that as long as he could directly perceive the genjutsu chakra in his spirit form, he could prevent it from invading.
"Good."
Biwako smiled and immediately wrote back.
"Excellent," Hiruzen also smiled upon receiving the reply.
This way, he wouldn't have to worry about Li Yao's genjutsu.
Without that burden, even if he couldn't win, he could at least protect himself. And in a desperate moment, he wouldn't hesitate to use the Reaper Death Seal and take Li Yao down with him.
But… he wasn't ready to die just yet.
"I'll need at least three other Kage-level shinobi working with me to guarantee Li Yao's death."
Without using the Reaper Death Seal, Hiruzen estimated they would need at least three Kage-tier allies.
And among them, at least one needed the power to break through Li Yao's defenses and kill him directly, while also being immune to his genjutsu.
Only one ninja in Konoha met both conditions — and he belonged to the Sarutobi clan.
"Looks like I'll have to rely on Tsukishi."
Sarutobi Tsukishi — a secretly trained jōnin from the Sarutobi clan, specialized in taijutsu and master of the Eight Gates.
Once the Eight Gates Formation was activated, his power would exceed even the Hokage's by dozens of times.
Additionally, the violent chakra generated by the Eight Gates prevented genjutsu chakra from invading — not even Mangekyō-level illusions could affect him.
During the Warring States Era, there were recorded instances of users of the Eight Gates Formation defeating powerful Uchiha with Mangekyō Sharingan and advanced genjutsu in direct combat.
The Sarutobi clan had cultivated Eight Gates specialists in secret precisely to counter the Uchiha's visual jutsu.
Unfortunately, while learning the Eight Gates was easy with dedication and time, opening the final Gate of Death required a perfect physical body and an indomitable will.
After many years of training in secret, only one among them — Sarutobi Tsukishi — had succeeded in unlocking the Eight Gates Formation and attaining a power that could surpass the Hokage many times over.
Originally, Tsukishi's mission was to eliminate Uchiha with Mangekyō Sharingan.
But now, he'd have to be used against Li Yao — and that irritated Hiruzen deeply.
Still, there was no other choice.
He was the only one in Konoha who could both pierce through Li Yao's defenses and resist his genjutsu completely.
And so, though reluctant, Hiruzen had no choice but to bring Sarutobi Tsukishi into the operation.
(END CHAPTER)
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