"How can you guarantee that you'll really let it go?" Although Kubisaki Koza was tempted, he still didn't dare trust Kitazawa outright.
"My strength is my guarantee." Kitazawa raised an eyebrow and quickly formed hand signs.
Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!
He spun around and unleashed the jutsu at the Shiromari's flesh, which was battling Hinata and the other two not far away.
Because he wanted to show his true power to Kubisaki Gonza, he uncharacteristically went all out.
Terrifying chakra surged forth. Flames roared into the sky, casting a blazing glow across the battlefield.
In the next instant, three colossal fire dragons erupted, unleashing a sea of fire that engulfed the Shiromari's flesh.
The entire castle—no, the Shiromari itself—convulsed violently under the scorching flames.
Dull, agonized roars echoed without end.
Hinata, Ino, and Tenten stood before the inferno, their small faces damp with sweat and frozen in shock. The towering flames gave them the illusion of stepping into hell itself.
"Enough! Enough!" Kubisaki Koza's eyes widened as he shouted, "Stop it! It'll die if you keep burning it!"
He had met many ninja in his lifetime, but never had he seen a Fire Release of such devastating force. With power like this, Kitazawa could have simply killed the Shiromari outright without asking for help.
Because of that, he believed him. If he didn't, the Shiromari would certainly perish.
Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu!
At once, Kitazawa formed new hand signs. A massive water dragon appeared out of nowhere, plunging from the sky into the sea of fire.
A thick mist spread outward. Under the clash of elements, the flames quickly died down, though the Shiromari had suffered severe burns inside its body.
Fortunately, Kitazawa knew medical ninjutsu. He created nine Shadow Clones, and together the ten of them treated the Shiromari.
When the treatment was complete, Kitazawa realized in surprise that he had just finished a highly complex surgery. That brought his total to eight difficult surgeries—only one more before he would gain a Medical Forbidden Technique.
"Thank you." Kubisaki Koza breathed a deep sigh of relief.
"It's nothing." Kitazawa chuckled and asked, "Can you tell me where the contract scroll is now?"
"Go straight down this path. At the end, turn left into the fourth room." Kubisaki Gonza bowed deeply. "Please!"
He had become a ghost because he couldn't bear to see the Shiromari guard him to his death, yet he couldn't persuade it to stop. That was why he had stayed here for fifty years.
Now Kitazawa's arrival fulfilled his last wish. Once the Shiromari left, he too would fade away and go to the Pure Land.
"We'll treat it well," Kitazawa promised.
He believed that with Tenten's personality, she would never mistreat the Shiromari—especially since she was wealthy enough to give it a life of comfort.
"Kitazawa-sensei, you're amazing!" Ino's eyes shone with admiration.
"Kitazawa-sensei has always been amazing." Although Hinata was equally excited, she tried not to show it.
"Alright, no need for extra words. Let's go find the contract scroll." Kitazawa reached forward and lightly tapped Hinata's forehead with his finger.
Hinata covered her forehead and smiled at Ino, but Ino didn't notice—she was already hurrying after Kitazawa.
Perhaps because of that Fire Release earlier, the Shiromari didn't attack again. They reached the room with the contract scroll without incident.
The scroll wasn't hidden; it lay openly in the center of the room. Kitazawa stepped forward and unrolled it.
It was filled with names—the Shiromari's past masters. Among them was Masashi Kishimoto.
"Tenten, write your name." Kitazawa moved aside.
"Kitazawa-sensei…" Tenten hesitated for a few seconds. "Such a precious summoning beast—shouldn't you take it yourself?"
"No matter how precious it is, it can't compare with the summoning beasts of the Three Great Sage Lands," Kitazawa replied with a smile. "I already have a better one."
Tenten blinked, startled. The Three Great Sage Lands hadn't been so famous before, but with the rise of Konoha's Sannin, even ordinary ninja now knew of them. After all, the battle of the Toads, Snakes, and Slugs against the Salamander had become a Konoha legend.
She no longer protested. She stepped forward, wrote her name, and secured the contract scroll.
Rumble! Kubisaki Castle trembled violently.
It had been formed from the Shiromari's body, and now that Tenten had become its new master, the transformation was released.
"Be careful!" Kitazawa immediately grabbed Hinata's and Ino's hands.
The gate swung open, revealing an exit to the outside world.
"Go!" The four of them leapt out, landing outside the Shiromari's body.
A brilliant white light flared outward in all directions. Kubisaki Castle vanished, replaced by a gigantic chameleon lizard.
"Wow…" Tenten couldn't help but gasp.
Even though Kitazawa had described the Shiromari's size earlier, seeing it in person was still shocking.
Kitazawa observed it for a moment. He estimated the Shiromari stood just slightly smaller than a regular Tailed Beast—around twenty meters tall.
[Current Mission: Help Tenten find a summoning beast.
Mission Reward: Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu.]
[The host has completed the mission, and the reward has been issued.]
Kitazawa looked at the three lines of text that suddenly appeared before his eyes and felt a pleasant surprise.
The Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu was an A-Rank Ninjutsu developed by Hiruzen Sarutobi. Its effect was to make a single shuriken split into countless solid entities, forming a wide-ranging, area-of-effect attack. Simply put, it applied the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu to shurikens.
Kitazawa fell into thought. Perhaps because of Tenten, the A-Rank Ninjutsu he'd been given was related to tool throwing.
But it was hardly a loss—Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu was extremely powerful and offered excellent suppression in multi-person melees.
"Tenten, put it away." Kitazawa came back to his senses and spoke.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei." Tenten released the Summoning Jutsu.
The Shiromari turned into a white light and disappeared, returning to its original dwelling. Summoning beasts all had fixed dwellings.
Of course, only three Sage lands existed—Mount Myōboku, Shikkotsu Forest, and Ryūchi Cave. Other summoning beasts' homes were far more ordinary. For instance, the ninja cat clan that cooperated with the Uchiha Clan lived openly in the wild.
"Mission complete. Return to the village!" Kitazawa waved his hand.
The four retraced their original path and, by evening, had successfully returned to Konoha Village.
"Kitazawa-sensei, goodbye!" Tenten left first.
"Ino," Kitazawa called out and handed her a scroll. "This is for you."
"What is this?" Ino took the scroll and opened it. When she saw Ninja Art: Moonlight Beauty, her eyes widened.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!" Ino said excitedly.
"Take it home and read it for two days. I'll teach you next Tuesday," Kitazawa smiled.
"Mm!" Ino tucked the scroll away and skipped off.
Kitazawa turned his head and noticed Hinata looking at him with envy.
"Ki… Kitazawa-sensei." Hinata immediately lowered her head, embarrassed.
"Once you learn Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, I'll teach you other Ninjutsu."
Kitazawa pinched her cheek. "Go home."
"Kitazawa-sensei, goodbye." Hinata glanced at him one last time before leaving.
Although it had only been two days, she'd begun to enjoy doing missions—the freedom from strict rules was refreshing.
Kitazawa returned home, only to find the house empty.
"Is that mission not finished yet?" He remembered he had asked Kurenai to take a mission with Itachi Uchiha in his place. Most likely, the mission was far away.
He yawned, stopped thinking about it, and walked to the bathroom. With a team of Anbu plus Itachi, who had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, nothing bad was likely to happen.
The next day, a new week had begun. January had reached its middle, but the weather was still bitterly cold with no sign of warming.
Kitazawa changed clothes and went to the bathroom. As he was brushing his teeth, three lines of text appeared before his eyes:
[Current Mission: Help Uchiha Izumi become an outstanding Chunin.
Mission Reward: Demonic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Change.]
[The host has completed the mission, and the reward has been issued.]
"The mission was completed directly?" Kitazawa thought.
It seemed that because Uchiha Izumi had activated her Two-Tomoe Sharingan, the system had determined her strength met the standard. After all, under normal circumstances, a Two-Tomoe Sharingan represented Chunin-level power.
"Very good." He smiled inwardly. "These two days are harvest days."
First, the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique, now Demonic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Change. Both were high-level Ninjutsu—especially the latter.
Its effect could be summed up in two words: reflect. It could reflect all genjutsu without hand seals, provided the opponent was weaker. In short, it was a genjutsu that could severely torment weaker enemies.
Since it was Monday, Kitazawa practiced Earth Release after breakfast.
"Teacher Kitazawa!" A familiar voice called from a distance. It wasn't Kurenai but Tenten.
"Tenten, aren't you going to class?" Kitazawa asked in surprise.
"Here!" Tenten took out a bankbook. "This is the reward for the Shiromari!"
"The Shiromari is ownerless; there's no need to pay for it." Kitazawa shook his head.
"No!" Tenten said firmly. "It's because of you, Teacher Kitazawa, that I have such a powerful summoning beast!"
"Alright then." Kitazawa wasn't one to be overly modest, so he accepted the bankbook.
"Thank you, Teacher Kitazawa!" Tenten waved and rushed off again, clearly having come only to deliver the money.
Kitazawa smiled and casually opened the bankbook. One glance made him freeze.
"Just casually giving away ten million ryō? It's good to be rich." His mouth twitched as he sighed.
With Tenten's ten million, his assets now exceeded twenty million ryō—he was quite wealthy.
Still, to be fair, the Shiromari was indeed worth ten million. After all, there were only a few powerful summoning beasts in the ninja world.
Time passed slowly.
In the afternoon, Kitazawa sensed something and immediately stopped practicing. He looked up and saw a familiar figure.
"Welcome home." He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Kurenai's waist.
"Going out was exhausting; you'll have to compensate me well." Kurenai leaned against his chest, speaking breathlessly.
"Where did you go?" Kitazawa bent down and picked her up.
"The Land of Wind border." Kurenai shifted her body, kicked off her sandals, and her long legs swayed lightly against his arm.
"No wonder you were gone so long." Kitazawa walked into the living room. "Do you want to go straight to sleep?"
"Mm." Kurenai closed her eyes. "Don't do anything bad."
"You're already so tired; I definitely won't drain your energy further."
Kitazawa gave a wry laugh. He went to Kurenai's room and gently placed her on the bed.
Soft, steady breaths filled the room — Kurenai had already fallen asleep. Leaning down, Kitazawa kissed her lightly before turning and leaving.
Time shifted to Tuesday.
The Genius Class's practical combat lessons had begun once again. However, after a week of training, the students were already on track and no longer required Kitazawa's constant supervision.
After teaching Ino the Ninja Art: Moonlight Beauty for half an hour, Kitazawa took Sakura to Konoha Hospital.
He was now only one high-difficulty surgery away from reaching his goal, and he hoped to complete it as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, even though he waited diligently at the hospital, no such case appeared. On the bright side, during his spare time, he managed to master Earth Release: Earth Wall.
Soon, good news finally arrived.
Thursday, 10 a.m.
Kitazawa and Sakura arrived at Konoha Hospital. Shortly after sitting down, they saw Yakushi Nono.
"Kitazawa, there's an emergency surgery; follow me," Nono said quickly and urgently.
A flicker of anticipation flashed through Kitazawa's heart. Emergency surgeries often meant high difficulty.
"Sakura, grab the supplies. Let's go," he said, waving his hand before following Nono.
"Today's patient is from Root, named Shigaraki Tanuki," Nono explained as they walked.
"Root Ninja are being sent to Konoha Hospital?" Kitazawa asked in surprise.
"Usually not," Nonou replied after a pause. "But his injuries are too severe; he had no choice but to come here."
Although Root's medical nin weren't bad, the most skilled healers in Konoha were stationed at the hospital.
"I guess this person is also very important." Kitazawa thought the name Shigaraki Tanuki sounded familiar.
"Indeed," Nono said. "He's Root's foremost researcher."
Researcher? Kitazawa immediately remembered.
Shigaraki Tanuki had been researching something called the Ox-Head Heavenly King — essentially implanting Hashirama cells into summoning beasts, leading to catastrophic explosions.
In the original story, Shigaraki Tanuki had succeeded, creating a summoning beast called Nue. Nue could absorb chakra and, after reaching a certain level, self-destruct with power enough to destroy the world.
Kitazawa's expression turned thoughtful.
It seemed Shigaraki had blown himself up during research. Root's medical nin couldn't save him, so they had no choice but to send him to Konoha Hospital.
"Danzo is also here," Nono added.
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow but didn't dwell on it. The three of them quickly arrived at the operating room.
"Why is it you?" As soon as Danzo saw Kitazawa, he frowned.
"Danzo," Nono said evenly, "he's Lady Tsunade's student. His medical-ninjutsu is even higher than mine."
Her words carried two meanings:
One — Kitazawa has powerful backing, so don't touch him.
Two — if you interfere with him, no one can save Shigaraki Tanuki.
"If you can't save him, you'll bear the consequences!" Danzo threatened after two seconds of silence.
Kitazawa ignored him and moved toward Shigaraki Tanuki. Examining him, he discovered all traces of Hashirama cells had been erased. He wasn't surprised.
Together with Nono, he began the surgery.
Time passed slowly.
Night fell.
Finally, Shigaraki Tanuki was out of danger. Danzo immediately asked Kitazawa and Nono to leave the operating room. Since they were both connected to Tsunade, he naturally didn't trust them.
Root's medical-nin performed another examination.
Kitazawa and Nono hadn't tampered with anything. There was no need.
Besides, tampering would mean harming a fellow Konoha shinobi, and if Hiruzen learned of it, they'd be at a disadvantage.
[Current Mission: As the primary medical-nin, successfully complete nine high-difficulty surgeries.]
[Mission Reward: Medical Forbidden Technique — Body Revival Technique.]
[Host has completed the mission. Reward issued.]
As soon as Kitazawa returned to his office, three lines of text appeared before his eyes.
He instinctively drew a deep breath.
The information flooding his mind was explosive — a forbidden technique was truly a forbidden technique.
Its effect: even if the body was torn into four or five pieces, it could reorganize and regenerate. It sounded almost like immortality.
Kitazawa thought of Hidan's "immortality" in the Akatsuki. Still, this Body Revival Technique was not quite on that level.
Its first limitation was the chakra. Using the Body Revival Technique consumed an enormous amount of it. With Kitazawa's current reserves, he could barely use them once.
In the original story, Shinno could easily use the Body Revival Technique because he had created the Zero-Tailed Beast. The Zero-Tailed Beast fed on people's inner darkness and was considered half a Tailed Beast.
Combined with the Sky Fortress Shinno built, it could unleash a super attack comparable to a Tailed Beast Ball.
The second limitation was severe weakness after regeneration, requiring a period of rest.
In addition, it shortened lifespan. The essence of Body Revival Technique was accelerating cell division and rapid healing, but cell division was finite.
Even so, Body Revival Technique could still be called a divine technique. After all, when facing death, who cares about lifespan?
Kitazawa steadied his thoughts and considered Shigaraki Tanuki again. He felt there was an opportunity to stir up trouble here and, at the same time, let Tsunade know about the continued existence of the Wood Release experiments.
Although the experiments had supposedly been canceled, Danzo clearly hadn't stopped developing Hashirama cells.
Even if Kitazawa couldn't directly kill Danzo, Tsunade's personality meant she certainly wouldn't let him off easily.