Chapter 2: Ninja
A pair of round, curious eyes slowly opened, blinking faintly at the unfamiliar ceiling above.
Tachibana Kyūjō—though now no more than a newborn—took in the blurry sight of several men standing around him. Each wore a headband etched with a symbol that looked unmistakably like... a leaf.
That alone was enough.
Even without anyone explaining anything, he instantly understood where he had ended up this time.
This world… was the world of shinobi.
He closed his eyes again.
His body was still that of a fragile infant, barely a few days old. But while he remained still, Kyūjō began sending his consciousness throughout his tiny form—scanning its condition, testing what powers remained.
Hmm…
His sensory ability, Infinity, which had practically become second nature by now, was still intact. Though significantly weaker—about 76.84% weaker, to be exact—compared to when he had reached his peak in the world of pirates.
He could already guess the reason.
Back in that world, he had trained his Colorless Haki to the absolute limit. But after crossing dimensions as a soul without a body, most of his physical enhancements—those that had once supported his power—had vanished along the way.
Fortunately, his soul—having undergone reincarnation once before—was far more stable than before. In fact, his mental resilience had even improved a little. Thanks to that, he could still maintain Infinity... at least for now. If not, the technique might have regressed all the way back to its original form: Heart Aligned with Blade.
Still, a faint trace of Haki seemed to have tagged along with his soul. Sadly, with this infant body, it was utterly impossible to manifest Busoshoku Haki.
Perhaps a sliver of Haoshoku Haki pressure could be released—like a faint variant of Kenbunshoku Haki—but only barely.
And even then, judging from what he'd observed so far, these shinobi possessed a spiritual density far beyond any average human from the pirate world. Based on his calculations through Infinity, Kyūjō could only sigh in resignation.
The average mental fortitude of ninja here… was insanely high.
In his current condition, even the mental pressure he could release might only be strong enough to knock out kids in the Ninja Academy. Against full-fledged shinobi?
Forget it.
But that was only natural.
After all, chakra itself was a fusion of spiritual and physical energies, circulating in perfect harmony throughout the body.
Some might even possess natural energy passively absorbed from their environment, or mysterious remnants of inherited power from ancient beings like Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.
Setting aside those factors, Kyūjō realized the core concept of chakra wasn't that different from Haki.
The key difference lay in training methods.
Chakra cultivation leaned heavily toward spiritual growth—through meditation and inner reflection.
Haki, on the other hand, was forged through grueling physical combat, life-or-death struggles, and pushing one's body past its limits—a more brute-force approach.
As for ninjutsu, the shinobi's form of combat, it reminded Kyūjō of ancient legends—Daoist sorcery using charms, enchanted tools, and esoteric rituals to manipulate nature's forces and spiritual energy.
But here, they used hand signs and incantations, channeling chakra into complex, elemental techniques.
And when it came to the highest tiers of power in this world, no doubt about it—
The Ōtsutsuki Clan reigned supreme.
Compared to that world's pirate emperors, monsters, or devil fruit users, beings like Ōtsutsuki Isshiki or Kaguya were on an entirely different level—not just in destructive power, but in the absurd complexity and scope of their techniques.
Take Yomotsu Hirasaka, for instance—Kaguya's space-time technique that allowed her to leap between dimensions at will.
Or Infinite Tsukuyomi, capable of casting every living being on the planet into an eternal dream.
Then there was Amenominaka, which let her reshape reality, dragging enemies into dimensional spaces filled with lava, gravity wells, acid, or ice—each one under her complete control.
Yeah... nothing from the pirate world even came close.
Still, setting aside those god-tier bosses like Kaguya and Isshiki, Kyūjō wasn't too worried about facing even Kage-level or Super-Kage-level shinobi—as long as he could restore the full extent of his former powers.
But right now?
Even a Genin could probably one-shot him.
— — —
He kept his eyes shut, ignoring the ninja medics around him as they poked and prodded his newborn body.
He could sense their chakra signatures, hear their murmurs.
But he didn't move a muscle.
Instead, he focused on gathering what little mental energy he could muster.
Frankly, this whole check-up was pointless.
...Or was it?
Because ever since arriving in this world, Kyūjō had noticed something strange.
His new body…
It was born with an active Demon Slayer Mark already engraved on the skin!
Even stranger—his eyes had undergone a shift. Their color had changed, as if some trace of his old Rumble-Rumble Fruit power had seeped into this new vessel.
And in a world dominated by dojutsu, this was no minor thing.
He didn't know what was going on.
And honestly?
He didn't care.
He'd just assume this was some kind of mysterious "starter pack" tossed his way by the same unknown force that brought him here.
As far as he was concerned, even without this "gift," he would've still climbed back to the top eventually.
From what he remembered of the manga, even Kage-level ninja were child's play compared to the might he once held.
He remembered vividly—during his final battle with Azazel in the previous world, just one swing of his blade had cleaved Mariejois—the pirate world's greatest city—clean in half.
If he used that same swing here?
He could probably wipe Konohagakure off the map in an instant.
…Maybe even more.
Still, he had to admit—shinobi possessed certain abilities that posed real danger to him.
Genjutsu that could tamper with the soul.
Fuinjutsu that could trap, seal, or erase existence itself.
Rare Kekkei Genkai that defied logic.
These weren't threats he could ignore.
Which was why he needed to study the chakra system. Master its structure. Learn to manipulate it himself.
His long-term plan was already forming.
Step One: Regain his mastery over Haki.
Step Two: Simultaneously master chakra control and ninjutsu.
But until then?
One rule must be followed at all costs:
DO NOT DRAW ATTENTION.
If someone caught wind of him too early, placed him under Genjutsu, and started probing his mind…
It would be disastrous.
Especially in this village—Konohagakure.
There was one man in particular he had to watch out for.
The "Hokage 5.5."
Kyūjō didn't need to say his name to know who it was.
His legacy was filthy enough to fill volumes.
The kind of "villain" that only survived because no protagonist with real resolve ever took the initiative to slice first, ask questions later.
But Kyūjō? He wasn't one of those soft-hearted main characters.
Once he regained his full strength, the very first person he would erase from this world...
…was Shimura Danzō.
— — —
Just as Kyūjō's inner thoughts reached that grim resolve, a sudden commotion stirred the quiet atmosphere.
"L-Lord Third Hokage!"
A panicked voice rang out from the other side of the room.
"This child… his eyes! That's clearly a Kekkei Genkai!"
The speaker—a middle-aged medic-nin—was trembling, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Oh? Chūnin Ryōta, what makes you so sure?" a calm, commanding voice asked.
It echoed like the wind parting leaves.
Within seconds, Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped into the room, standing beside the stunned medic.
Ryōta's hands were still shaking as he replied, "Hokage-sama… it's my chakra…"
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