Using his technique, Kazuyama returned to Konoha's original encampment.
But the moment he landed, he realized—everything had changed.
Where were the tents? The bonfires?
Everything was gone.
Not only that, but the entire area was littered with debris—clear signs of a fierce battle. The air reeked of gunpowder and scorched earth.
Then, all at once, he felt dozens of eyes lock onto him.
"Huh? A Konoha ninja? Kill him!"
"Wait—that face... It's Konoha's Ghost! Everyone, take him down!"
"Kill him!"
"Earth Release!"
Kazuyama looked up to see the sky filled with kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, rocks, and flames. He felt sick to his stomach.
He had only been gone for what—half a month? Maybe a little more?
What the hell happened here?
Facing the barrage, Kazuyama weaved through the attacks with swift movements.
As he dodged, he scanned the surroundings—and in the corner of his eye, he spotted a kunai.
His kunai.
He froze for a second. If memory served, he'd left that very kunai in Tsunade's care.
So why was it here, lying on the ground?
What the hell, Tsunade—You betrayed my trust!
"Die!"
"Konoha's Ghost!"
The Iwa shinobi kept yelling, their frenzied cries filling the air.
Then—
Boom!
Explosions erupted, and flames engulfed the spot where Kazuyama had stood. The blast scattered dirt and smoke into the air.
"Did we get him?"
"Not sure—where are the sensory types?!"
The smoke was too thick, and no one dared to charge in recklessly. Even though Kazuyama wasn't as renowned as the Yellow Flash, he was still known as one of Konoha's strongest younger generation shinobi.
No one was taking chances.
"Wait—he's not in the smoke."
"He's up there!"
In wartime, sensor ninjas were always part of the formation, and one had quickly located Kazuyama.
Everyone looked skyward.
Kazuyama had leapt high into the air, his hand gripping his own kunai.
It was clear—he'd wrapped his kunai in chakra and tossed it upward just before the explosion. Then, using the Flying Thunder God Technique, he teleported to its location.
"Damn it... looks like the front line was lost while I was gone."
"I have no idea where they could've retreated to."
Kazuyama's eyes swept toward the horizon. This was already within the Land of Fire.
He never imagined that even with Tsunade and Jiraiya leading the force, they couldn't hold the line against a bunch of Iwa shinobi.
What kind of mess was this?
"Oh? Hehehe... so you're Konoha's Ghost?"
"I didn't see you earlier. Didn't expect to run into you here. Let's see what the other half of the Konoha Twin Stars is capable of."
"Poison Cloud!"
A cold, cutting voice echoed from below.
Moments later, a thick, deep-purple fog began spreading across the sky.
The Iwa ninja scattered immediately, terrified of getting caught in the mist.
Kazuyama, now shrouded in the toxic haze, scowled.
This single move was enough to make everything clear.
Now he understood why Konoha's lines had collapsed.
Damn Ōnoki—he dragged Amegakure into this war.
There had to be some shady deal behind it.
Otherwise, knowing Hanzō of the Salamander's personality, how could he possibly be working with Iwagakure?
"Chōmei, hit me with some Scale Powder. Hanzō's poison gas is no joke."
"Hmph, a little poison's nothing. Don't worry about him, Kazuyama—just beat him down. Leave the rest to me!"
Chōmei released his chakra, coating Kazuyama's entire body in Scale Powder. The toxin worked as a countermeasure, using poison to fight poison, effectively blocking Hanzō's gas from invading his system.
"Wind Release! Great Breakthrough!"
A fierce gust blasted the poisonous cloud away. In that moment, Kazuyama caught sight of the man who had earned the title of Demi-God with nothing but his own strength—
The leader of Amegakure, Hanzō of the Salamander.
Wearing a gas mask, Hanzō radiated sheer intimidation.
"Oh? You withstood my poison? Impressive."
"I hear you're Orochimaru's disciple. I wonder how much of your sensei's skills you've actually inherited."
"Ibuse!"
Suddenly, the ground shook violently as a massive salamander burst from below. Hanzō leapt and landed squarely on its head, calmly staring down at Kazuyama as he dropped toward the earth.
When Kazuyama landed and faced Hanzō, his mood soured immediately.
"Tch. Aren't you old enough to be retired? Why are you still messing around on the battlefield?"
"What did Ōnoki offer you?"
"You're ancient. Couldn't you just stay home and enjoy your last few years? Why are you out here making a mess?"
"Fire Release! Hiding in Ash and Dust Technique!"
Blistering smoke spewed from Kazuyama's mouth, expanding outward in a cloud as vast as the poison Hanzō had unleashed moments earlier.
Hanzō's eyes narrowed slightly in surprise—he hadn't expected the kid to pull off a technique of this scale.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique."
A torrent of water surged up around him. As a so-called Demi-God, Hanzō's skillset clearly extended far beyond just poison.
His gas mask allowed him to breathe underwater, giving him full mobility. His control over Water Release was unmatched.
Fire and water clashed once again, and both poured chakra into their techniques to overpower the other.
"Damn, this old fossil's ridiculous..."
"His Water Release is on par with the Third Mizukage."
Kazuyama grimaced as he watched his high-temperature smoke slowly get pushed back. He didn't understand—why did he keep running into enemies who were absolute masters of Water Release?
"We're not done."
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
Hanzō formed another seal, summoning a colossal water dragon from the heart of the Great Waterfall. It tore through the ash cloud and lunged at Kazuyama with a roar.
"Old man, I'm done playing with you! Just wait—I'll personally send you back to Amegakure in a few days!"
"We're not done here!"
"Crystal Release: Crystallize! Jade Crystal Clone Technique!"
With a casual sweep, the charging water dragon was frozen into gleaming crystal. In that instant, dozens of mirror-like clones burst forth from the crystal mass, all rushing toward Hanzō.
Meanwhile, Kazuyama himself activated Transparent Escape Technique—vanishing without a trace before anyone could react.
"Sensor ninjas!"
"Find him!"
Though they couldn't engage in combat directly, the surrounding Iwa shinobi shouted in alarm upon seeing Kazuyama disappear.
But the reply they got left them all stunned.
"We can't sense him!"
"He's gone!"
In that instant, they finally understood why Kazuyama was called the Ghost of Konoha.
His Kekkei Genkai rendered all sensory techniques useless—leaving no chakra signature, no trace at all.
He vanished completely, just like their own Second Tsuchikage once had.
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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