(T/N: Please consider reviewing this Fanfic, Thanks and appreciate all who support me)
(T/N: Enjoy!!)
<><><><><><>
"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
The ground rumbled violently, and in an instant, a massive wooden dragon burst forth from the earth, roaring as it lunged straight at the Fourth Raikage!
"Huh?" The Fourth Raikage's expression changed drastically, but there was no time to adjust his move.
He had no choice but to throw a heavy punch straight at the wooden dragon's head.
A deafening roar shook the earth, and the sheer impact created a storm-like shockwave. However, in the clash, the Fourth Raikage was sent flying!
"Is this... Wood Release?" As he was hurled backward, his mind went blank for a moment.
But the instant he crashed into the ground, demolishing the surrounding buildings, he regained his composure.
"This brat... is from the Senju Clan." The thought alone intensified his killing intent. Wood Release was something he had heard about since childhood.
He had even studied records of it, and the man who wielded it best, Hashirama Senju, was hailed as "the one who ended the Warring States period."
But he refused to believe this young brat could reach Hashirama's level. Strength alone meant nothing—it depended on the wielder.
At most, this only proved the boy had potential. Besides, he had never truly believed that Hashirama was as powerful as the legends claimed.
People often exaggerate the past, glorifying the dead while dismissing the present.
The Fourth Raikage had never experienced that era and could not confirm if the stories were true.
Who knew if Konoha was simply inflating its prestige? He was not one to believe in old legends, nor did he think he was any weaker than those long-gone shinobi.
A ninja needed confidence, and he had plenty of it.
"So it really is Wood Release..." Not far away, Tsunade ignored the approaching shockwave, her eyes locked onto the roaring wooden dragon in disbelief.
She never expected to see Wood Release again—especially one brimming with vibrant life energy. "Damn it... I can't let anything happen to him!"
The blast whipped against her face, stinging her skin, but it snapped her back to reality.
No matter what was happening with this boy, someone who possessed Wood Release could not fall here.
At the very least, she had to understand his situation. "Shizune, take them and leave! That's an order!"
Without waiting for a response, Tsunade charged forward, giving Shizune no chance to argue.
"Yuugao, go with Shizune-senpai. I'll provide backup." Shisui didn't hesitate—he immediately followed after Tsunade, making her frown.
"Brat, what do you think you're doing? Ignoring my orders?"
"Tsunade-sama, Shuuzawa is my teammate, and I believe in my abilities." Shisui shook his head, his voice calm.
His Sharingan began to spin slowly. "Besides, if I were incapable, the Hokage wouldn't have sent me on this mission. Please, trust me."
"Tch, you and that brat are both nothing but trouble." Tsunade scoffed but didn't argue further.
Just then, the ground trembled violently once more. When she looked up, both she and Shisui were momentarily stunned.
A thunderous roar filled the air as the wooden dragon went on a rampage, relentlessly attacking the ground.
With a single sweep of its tail, it caused a massive quake, sending dust, debris, and countless shattered fragments flying in all directions.
Entire buildings collapsed in this area and even in the distance.
Civilians began fleeing the town in panic, while a few rogue ninjas and wandering samurai, too reckless to back away, climbed to higher ground, dumbfounded as they watched the battle unfold.
The soaring wooden dragon continued its relentless destruction, leaving nothing but ruin.
On the ground, a towering man wreathed in lightning weaved through the attacks, leaping high as if searching for an opportunity to strike.
The onlookers had no idea what level of battle they were witnessing. Meanwhile, the Fourth Raikage's face darkened at the heart of the battlefield.
This fight was turning out to be far beyond his expectations, and the strength of this Wood Release was higher than he had anticipated.
"I told you I'd bring you back to Konoha. You thought I was just saying that?" A voice suddenly rang beside him.
The Raikage instinctively dodged to the side. Sharp wooden spikes from the Wood Release: Cutting Technique barely grazed past him.
"Die!" He spun around, ready to counterattack, but by the time he turned, the figure had already vanished.
The next instant, the wooden dragon came crashing toward him again!
Smoke and dust filled the air as the ground caved into a massive crater. The Raikage barely managed to evade, but he found no reason to celebrate.
"Shameless..." he muttered angrily.
His opponent was using the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport in close.
If an attack missed, he would immediately retreat, leaving the wooden dragon to launch wide-scale assaults, giving him no room to retaliate.
What kind of shameless battle strategy was this? But frustratingly, he had no way to counter it.
He had no idea where the Flying Thunder God markers were placed and didn't dare directly clash with the wooden dragon.
The sheer toughness of that creature exceeded his expectations—if he tried to overpower it, he might injure himself in the process. But the most troubling part was...
"That wooden dragon... it can absorb my chakra!" The Fourth Raikage kept moving, unable to stay in one place for too long.
His gaze flickered toward the sky, where the wooden dragon hovered, and the young shinobi stood atop its head.
He had already noticed during his earlier attacks—every time he made contact with the wooden dragon, his chakra was being drained.
The amount wasn't overwhelming, but it happened every time he touched it. Even if he destroyed the dragon, it wouldn't matter because it could be repaired.
His only options were to defeat the caster or wait until the boy ran out of chakra.
"Damn brat... Damn Wood Release... Damn Konoha!" The Fourth Raikage cursed. But at that moment, he sensed something behind him.
"When I take you back, I hope you can keep cursing just like this."
The howling wind whistled past his ears as the Fourth Raikage swiftly spun away to create distance. He saw Shuuzawa lunging toward him, kunai in hand.
But as his feet touched the ground, the wooden dragon's roar swept over his head again.
Forced to leap aside to evade, he found himself in midair when Shuuzawa suddenly appeared again!
The kunai, coated in Wind Release chakra, slashed toward him, and in midair, he had no way to dodge.
However, he was fearless. Seeing Shuuzawa's attack, his eyes suddenly lit up.
"Coming at me head-on?" In the next instant, he swung his fist without hesitation, aiming straight at Shuuzawa's kunai!
"Lightning Release: Guillotine Drop!" Thunderous lightning engulfed his body, and his right hand crackled with terrifying power.
Even though he couldn't exert his full strength in midair, he had absolute confidence in his power.
"Just one hit... one hit is all I need!" He roared internally as the distance between them shrank.
But at the last moment, he caught sight of Shuuzawa's eyes—filled with nothing but mockery!
Just as his fist was about to connect, Shuuzawa's figure vanished again.
In his place, a tremendous force slammed into the Fourth Raikage from behind!
A deafening shockwave accompanied by a powerful impact sent his entire body crashing violently to the ground.
Even after hitting the earth, the sheer force kept him skidding forward, kicking up plumes of dust.
"Did you think I was going to take you head-on?" As the dust settled, Shuuzawa's voice rang out lazily.
The Fourth Raikage was half-kneeling in the rubble, the ground beneath him split open by a deep trench.
He looked battered, yet not as gravely injured as one might expect. However, his Lightning Armor was utterly tattered!
Raising his head, he stared at the young man who had reappeared before him, the raging wooden dragon looming behind him.
At that moment, he truly began to grasp the might of Wood Release.
"Alright, I think this battle is about over." Shuuzawa spoke nonchalantly as he leaped onto the wooden dragon's head, arms crossed and a smirk on his face.
"Of course, if you still want to fight, that's fine too. But this time, it won't be just me."
As his words fell, a surge of chakra erupted. In the ruins of the small town, a massive blue chakra construct suddenly materialized!
Simultaneously, on the other side, a colossal slug loomed within the lingering dust.
The three towering entities formed a circle surrounding the Fourth Raikage.
For the first time, his expression finally changed. Facing these three monstrous beings, cold sweat involuntarily trickled down his forehead.
"So this… is a true Konoha."
"You bastards completely destroyed an entire town!"
On the outskirts, Tsunade glared at the bound and chakra-sealed Fourth Raikage, who was wrapped tightly in Wood Release restraints.
She turned to glance at the town, now mostly reduced to ruins, her face dark with displeasure.
In her view, a shinobi should at least follow some principles—not recklessly involve civilians.
Not to mention, this town had so many casinos. When would they ever rebuild?
"That's not our fault, is it?" Shuuzawa shrugged, glancing at the struggling Raikage before looking at Tsunade.
"We came here to find you and bring you back. We didn't expect to run into this guy. And let's be real—the one who attacked first was him."
Though Shuuzawa had been hardened through years in Root, his hands stained with countless lives, he never saw the point in targeting civilians.
Attacking them didn't bring him any sense of achievement. Besides, shinobi from major villages avoided harming civilians when possible—it tarnished their village's reputation.
Clients would hesitate to issue missions there if a village gains too much infamy, clients will.
A drop in mission requests could be devastating to an entire shinobi village. Even Root, under Danzo's leadership, ensured their actions left no traces.
"If no one can prove it was me, who dares to say it was? Maybe we should make Kumogakure pay for the damages?"
Shisui rubbed his eyes, feeling the strain, but still couldn't help but suggest, "Their Raikage started the fight, so it's only fair they compensate for the destruction."
"Let's deal with that later. Right now, our priority is this guy." Tsunade shook her head.
She had no interest in handling financial matters, so Hiruzen would take care of that.
But the real problem now was what to do with the Fourth Raikage. She hadn't expected Shuuzawa to capture him.
However, capturing him was just the start of a much bigger problem.
"Shizune, Yuugao, keep an eye on him." With that, she turned toward Shizune, who clutched Tonton, and Yuugao, who seemed rather intrigued by the pig.
Then, without warning, Tsunade grabbed Shuuzawa and shot a glance at Shisui. "You two, come with me."
"…" Shuuzawa glanced down at Tsunade's hand gripping his. Was this necessary? Still, her hand was… smooth.
It's not as soft as Yuugao's but surprisingly pleasant. Medical-nin did have its perks.
No matter how well they maintained their hands, regular shinobi always ended up with callouses from years of training. But medical-nin had ways to prevent that.
As he looked up, his gaze drifted toward Tsunade's pale, bouncing— "All right, this is far enough."
Tsunade suddenly stopped, snapping him out of his thoughts. She turned, fixing both him and Shisui with a serious look.
"You two don't seriously intend to take that guy back to Konoha, do you?"
"Huh? Tsunade-sama, what's the problem with that?" Shisui asked, confused.
They captured the Fourth Raikage, so they had to bring him back! Capturing the leader of an enemy village was a monumental achievement.
"Idiot." Tsunade sighed, shaking her head. If not for his exceptional abilities, she wouldn't have bothered explaining.
What surprised her, even more, was that Shisui had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. But the most unexpected thing was that Hiruzen had paired him with Shuuzawa.
"Are they trying to recreate my grandfather and Madara's partnership?" Or perhaps they wanted Shuuzawa to keep an eye on Shisui. Even outside Konoha, she knew Hiruzen was always wary of the Uchiha.
"You're being naive, Shisui." Shuuzawa finally spoke before Tsunade could. He shook his head and said flatly, "Capturing a Kage is great, sure, but have you considered the consequences?"
"Huh?" Shisui blinked in confusion. Wasn't Shuuzawa the one who wanted to capture him first? Even Tsunade seemed puzzled.
"A Kage represents the highest authority in their village. Capturing them can demoralize their people, but…" Shuuzawa shrugged. "It can also enrage them, sparking an all-out war."
"Oh." Shisui froze, realizing the implications. Had they just caught a ticking time bomb?
Letting the Raikage go seemed like a waste, but taking him back might start another war. Tsunade exhaled in relief. At least this kid was rational.
"More importantly, we fought in a populated area." Shuuzawa's voice turned serious.
"That means people saw us. Our techniques, our strategies—there will be traces." He smirked slightly.
"If this were an isolated location, killing the Fourth Raikage wouldn't be a big deal. Just like how Sasori of the Red Sand killed the Third Kazekage."
"Wait, what?" Tsunade's eyes widened. Where did that come from?!
If you want to support me, join my patr**on. Have 20 advanced Chapters for you guys.
patr**n.com/saitamablast > NTS NOVEL TIER (PLEASE DONT SUBS THROUGH IOS PLATFORM)