In a canyon in the Land of Lightning.
Yami casually set the sealing scroll aside and washed up in the stream.
No wonder there are so many dark-skinned people in the Land of Lightning. It was only March, yet the sun was already scorching. After running for just a while, he was drenched in sweat.
"Eight Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb..."
"What a pleasant surprise."
Feeling the coolness of the stream, Yami let out a comfortable sigh.
Originally, the chaos he caused was at a limited level. After all, the ninjutsu he had mastered was far from enough to destroy an entire village on its own. Only those at the super Kage level possessed the kind of power that could obliterate a village with a single blow.
For example, Pain's Super Almighty Push, which leveled Konoha in one strike.
Or Uzumaki Naruto's Nine Tails Chakra Mode, and the Uchiha clan's complete form Susanoo.
With their immense size, every movement brought devastating destruction.
In addition, there were the tailed beasts.
In terms of combat power, even the eight-tailed beasts could not reach the super Kage level. But as incarnations of chakra itself, their energy was overwhelming. Once a Tailed Beast Bomb was fully charged, it could easily bring ruin to a village through sheer destructive force.
The last attack from the Eight Tails alone had caused more destruction than Yami's half day of effort.
[Host has established a "hospitality" bond with the Land of Lightning, earning 1,000 bond points and a special title: Public Enemy of the Land of Lightning.]
[Public Enemy of the Land of Lightning: Your arrival will surely be met with enthusiasm from the entire Land of Lightning. Damage dealt to shinobi from the Land of Lightning increases by 20 percent. Lightning Release training speed increases by 100 percent.]
"Why did I become the public enemy?"
Yami felt wronged. He had already planned to leave, but Eight Tails and Killer Bee insisted on sending him a Tailed Beast Bomb. So, of course, he returned the favor.
If anyone was the public enemy, shouldn't it be Killer Bee?
Besides, judging from the system notifications, not many shinobi actually died. Most of them were just a bunch of muscleheads. Why were they so petty about it?
However…
Seeing the bond points on the system panel climb past 11,000 again, Yami didn't hesitate this time. He invested more than 8,000 points directly into upgrading his chakra control talent.
Swish.
The young boy opened his palm, and a ball of chakra began to spin rapidly in his hand.
Soon, a Rasengan formed smoothly. The violently spinning chakra caused even the normally calm stream to ripple chaotically.
As he poured in more chakra, the Rasengan's size expanded, growing two times, four times, six times… until it reached nearly ten times the original size before finally exploding.
The violent airflow emptied the water from the stream around him, forcing Yami to jump away helplessly. He quickly got dressed again, but a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
The original Rasengan was the ultimate in chakra shape transformation, with extremely high demands on chakra control. With each level of mastery, the difficulty increased exponentially.
Without entering Sage Mode, even Jiraiya and Naruto found it hard to use the Big Ball Rasengan.
This was Yami's first attempt at the Rasengan, and not only did he succeed on the first try, but he also expanded it nearly ten times in size.
As expected, once talent was upgraded to the Limit Break level, it underwent a qualitative transformation.
Now, he could control chakra as easily as moving his own limbs, directing it however he pleased.
Next, let's try this…
Yami sat cross-legged, attempting to fuse earth and fire chakra according to the method he had used for Scorch Release.
Soon, blazing chakra surged from his body, and the boy opened his mouth, spitting out a ball of magma into the stream, instantly evaporating a large cloud of mist.
Lava Release, complete.
Like a child who had discovered a new toy, Yami played happily, continuously testing different chakra fusions.
Storm Release, combining lightning and water. Magnet Release, combining wind and lightning.
Although his lightning and water nature transformations had only reached the Mastery level and not Ultimate, making their fusion harder than Lava Release and Scorch Release, Yami still succeeded with his exceptional chakra control talent.
In just one day, he mastered several bloodline limits.
Unfortunately, when attempting to fuse Wood Release, he failed.
Clearly, he had refined both earth and water chakra at the same time, yet the result was still Lava Release—the highly corrosive Lava Release style used by Terumi Mei.
Land of Hot Water.
Konoha camp.
Inside the headquarters tent.
Nara Shikaku stood in front of a map on the sand table, idly moving chess pieces. The other Konoha high-level shinobi in the room shared his distracted state.
The frontlines had been unusually quiet these past few days. Kumo's forces remained hidden. Konoha had launched a few token offensives, but they were mostly for show, ensuring Kumo didn't see through their strategy. There had been no actual casualties.
What weighed on their minds was Yami, who was still operating deep behind enemy lines.
Judging by the time, Yami should have completed his mission more than a day ago, but there had been no news.
"What a mistake."
Jiraiya slapped his forehead in frustration.
"I should have had the kid sign a contract with Mount Myōboku before he left. At least then he could have sent a message back quickly."
"Now we're just sitting here waiting like idiots."
Shikaku smiled. "Jiraiya-sama, no need to worry too much. With Flying Thunder God, Yami's safety should be assured. The only question is how much damage he managed to inflict."
"If—"
Before he could finish, a commotion erupted outside the tent.
A Hyūga clan shinobi rushed in, out of breath. "Master Shikaku! Master Jiraiya! Kumo forces… Kumo forces have withdrawn!"
"What?!"
Shikaku jumped up in shock. "Are you sure it's a withdrawal, not a tactical retreat?"
"It's a full withdrawal!" the Hyūga shinobi reported quickly. "They left behind supplies, didn't even dismantle their tents! I followed them all the way to the Canyon and confirmed their evacuation before returning to report."
"I see." Shikaku's expression shifted as he processed the information. "There must be unrest back in Kumo that forced their retreat."
"Send more Byakugan users to monitor the Canyon. We will hold our position for now in case this is a feint."
Jiraiya and the others agreed with Shikaku's cautious approach and felt somewhat relieved.
That night, a hawk delivered intelligence to the Konoha camp.
When Shikaku read the contents of the scroll, his expression changed dramatically. He stared at the scroll as if he had seen something unbelievable.
"What is it, Shikaku? Say something," Jiraiya urged anxiously.
After several seconds, Shikaku snapped out of it. He repeatedly checked the seals and codes on the scroll before finally exhaling.
"Yami… destroyed Kumo Village."
The tent fell into complete silence.
"What did you say?" Jiraiya's expression froze. He snatched the scroll, read it carefully, then stood still like Shikaku, speechless.
Yami… what on earth did you do?
The next morning, Yami returned to the Konoha camp, scroll strapped to his back.
Yugao and Kurenai stood at the entrance. The moment they saw him, they rushed over.
Kurenai immediately hugged Yami tightly, knocking the scroll off his back with the force.
"Hey, hey! That's the local specialty I brought back!" Yami shouted quickly, watching the scroll roll far away.
"Specialty? Are you out of your mind?! Going alone into Kumo Village, do you really think you're the Sage of Six Paths?"
Kurenai pinched his cheeks hard, her chest heaving with anger. Even Yugao, who usually spoiled him the most, didn't show any pity this time. Instead, she spoke seriously.
"Yami-kun, could you at least tell us before doing something so reckless next time?"
"I didn't tell you because I knew you'd worry," Yami replied as he struggled free from Kurenai's grasp. "You know how reliable Flying Thunder God is. This mission was no different from any other for me."
Yugao's expression remained serious. "Every ninjutsu has a weakness. There is no such thing as an invincible jutsu."
"I know."
Yami nodded. "That's why I was cautious. I just played around in Kumo for a bit, grabbed a souvenir, and left."
"You're lying to me!" Yugao's expression hardened.
"I'm not!" Yami protested, looking wronged.
"But the intel says you wreaked havoc in Kumo, destroyed half the village, and then left."
"Huh?" Yami was full of question marks. It felt like the information between the two sides didn't match at all.
Seeing Nara Shikaku and the others walking out of the tent, Yami quickly picked up the scroll again.
"It's too much trouble explaining one by one. Let's go."
Inside the headquarters tent, the place was packed with Konoha's Jōnin. Nearly all the Jōnin in the camp were present. Kurenai and Yugao were only able to join because of Yami, and they had good seats, ready to watch the show.
Yami recounted the entire process in detail. After finishing, he took a big sip of water from the bamboo tube next to him and let out a contented sigh.
"So, it was Eight Tails who destroyed the village himself," Jiraiya stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"I was wondering if you had mastered some kind of super-large Forbidden Technique. But if it was a Tailed Beast Bomb, then it makes sense."
"Exactly," Yami replied helplessly. "They did it themselves. Why blame me?"
Suddenly, Yami thought of the old man back home.
Damn.
Could it be that the Shimura family's blame-absorbing physique had been inherited by him?
"But it was still tied to your actions," Shikaku sighed. "I didn't expect you to have already mastered the third stage of the Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God technique—lightning conduction."
The Jōnin were all impressed.
Many of them had witnessed the Nine Tails Rebellion firsthand, and the memory of that destructive Tailed Beast Bomb was still vivid.
Thankfully, the Fourth Hokage had arrived in time and teleported the Tailed Beast Bomb away, letting it explode safely in the forest. Otherwise, the losses would have been catastrophic.
At that moment, the Jōnin present felt a strong sense of reassurance.
They now had someone who could handle a Tailed Beast Bomb. If there were ever another tailed beast rampage, they would not be helpless.
"Our intel teams failed to uncover the details of the battle, which led to the misunderstanding," Shikaku admitted. He turned to the boy who was casually munching on an apple. "Yami, it was thanks to your plan that Killer Bee was stopped from reaching the front lines. Otherwise, the battle might have become a deadlock again."
"Agreed," Hyūga Hiashi nodded. "The Eight Tails Jinchūriki was deliberately hiding. Even the Byakugan would have struggled to locate him."
"The Fourth Raikage retreated?" Yami asked.
"Yes," Shikaku confirmed. "He withdrew with the main force yesterday. The war is essentially over. The next step is negotiations."
A sharp glint flashed in the strategist's eyes.
If they wanted a fight, fine. If they wanted to leave, fine. Did they really think Konoha would let them come and go as they pleased?
"Boy, what's in that scroll of yours?" Jiraiya asked curiously.
"Oh, just a souvenir I brought back from Kumo," Yami replied, opening the scroll and unsealing it.
Bang!
As the smoke cleared, the unconscious Samui appeared before everyone.
Jiraiya's jaw nearly hit the floor. "Wait… souvenir?!"
"So, the local specialty of Kumo… is a beauty?!"
In an instant, Jiraiya's ambition surged. "Shikaku! Let's go kill them all! Let's occupy Kumo Village!"
"Jiraiya-sama…" Shikaku's face twitched with black lines.
Yugao and Kurenai were visibly upset.
How could he go out and bring back some big blonde woman?
So big… Damn it. Fake, right?
It has to be fake!
"Old pervert, you're thinking too much," Yami waved dismissively, sighing. "There really aren't many pretty women in Kumo. You've seen them on the battlefield. I heard their female Jinchūriki is beautiful, but I couldn't find her this time."
"This one is Samui, the direct subordinate of the Fourth Raikage."
"He tried to kidnap me, so I kidnapped his subordinate instead. Consider it even."
"Ah? That's how it is…" Jiraiya's enthusiasm immediately deflated.
Thinking back to the Kumo shinobi on the battlefield, with their massive builds resembling the Akimichi clan, he shuddered.
Too scary. Kumo's beauties were best left to their own people.
The Jōnin around were secretly terrified.
This kid's desire for revenge was way too strong.
As expected from Danzō's grandson.
In the future, no matter what, they couldn't afford to cross the Shimura family. Otherwise, between that old schemer and this terrifying kid, they'd never know peace.
After Yami re-sealed Samui, Shikaku spoke up.
"Alright. Thanks to Yami, we're about to claim victory, but we can't let our guard down just yet. Everyone, stay alert in the coming days in case of a surprise attack from Kumo."
"Yes!" the Jōnin responded in unison.
With Shikaku's reassurance, Yami returned to rest with his scroll.
Soon, more accurate intel came from Kumo, confirming that the war was completely over.
(To be continued.)