Chapter 109: The Cautious Third Raikage
"Black Lightning!"
"Vajra Chains!"
"Water Release!"
"Wind Release!"
"Who is Li Yao really?"
Four thousand meters above the sea, Sarutobi Tenchu stood with his wife on the Ink Bird, his expression more serious than ever, eyes fixed on Li Yao, who stood seven kilometers ahead on the back of a Black Iron Giant Eagle.
From beginning to end, Li Yao had not noticed the couple's presence.
They were perfectly coordinated with the Third Raikage's team.
Whenever Li Yao split into two paths, they followed the one the Raikage didn't.
That's why, no matter how Li Yao tried to shake off the pursuit, he never succeeded.
With both paths monitored, how could he escape?
"Exactly… who is he?" Sarutobi Ayase's beautiful eyes were filled with unease.
Throughout the chase, Li Yao's repeated exchanges with the Raikage had not only revealed the true Vajra Chains unique to the Uzumaki Clan, but also the Raikage's signature technique—Black Lightning.
The Vajra Chains were one thing. Given Li Yao's mastery of black chakra chain sealing techniques, they had already suspected he might be a lesser-known powerful member of the Uzumaki Clan. That part still made sense.
But Black Lightning was a different story.
It was the Raikage's personal invention, and to date, no one else in Kumogakure had ever learned it.
So how had Li Yao learned it?
How had he even gotten into Kumogakure?
Or… could he actually be a native of Kumogakure?
Too many questions.
Too much that didn't add up.
Tenchu racked his brain trying to understand how Li Yao could have mastered top techniques from both Kumogakure and the Uzumaki Clan.
Until Ayase suddenly said, without thinking:
"What if Li Yao has possessed more than one body?"
Hearing that, Tenchu's eyes lit up.
"Yes, that's it!"
He nodded firmly. "Li Yao must've possessed more than one person. That's how he knows the Uzumaki's Vajra Chains and the Raikage's Black Lightning—and other jutsu as well."
That would also explain how someone who supposedly spent years in a lab knew so many techniques.
But… if Li Yao could repeatedly possess others, that meant he could abandon Kimura Yao's body at any time and escape into another host. That thought made Tenchu feel powerless.
If that was true, Li Yao would be almost impossible to kill. He didn't know whether his father's contingency plan would even work.
…
Konoha.
While Li Yao was being forced into desperation by the Third Raikage—
Kato Dan, who had been studying the Reaper Death Seal in secret for over a week, walked into the Hokage's office looking discouraged.
"I'm really sorry, Lord Hokage,"
He said with a guilty face. "It seems I don't have much talent for sealing techniques. After all this time, I still haven't learned the Reaper Death Seal."
It wasn't just that he hadn't learned it—
He didn't even understand it.
The scroll contained detailed explanations and notes from predecessors.
But while Kato could understand the text, the sealing formulae might as well have been written in an alien language. He couldn't grasp their meaning, much less draw them with chakra.
It was like asking a total layman to forge a legendary sword—he could only rely on the most basic understanding of sealing to try and comprehend it.
But the Reaper Death Seal was a supreme, advanced sealing jutsu. Its intricacies were beyond his shallow knowledge.
After more than a week, Kato had to admit—he probably couldn't master it even with a year's time.
"This... makes no sense!"
The Third Hokage set down his pipe and stood up, frowning. "You've learned Spirit Transformation—your soul perception is sharp. You should have no trouble with a soul-targeting seal like this. Why can't you learn it?"
Kato Dan bowed his head, ashamed. "I… I'm sorry. I've let you down."
Could he just be afraid to die? The Third Hokage briefly wondered.
But when he saw Kato's guilt-ridden expression, he shook his head.
No. Dan had a strong Will of Fire. He wouldn't feign incompetence to escape death.
So maybe he really did lack talent for sealing techniques.
But regardless of talent—he had to learn it.
Because only someone with soul perception like him could locate Li Yao's spirit and ensure the Reaper Death Seal hit its target.
Anyone else—
Even the Hokage himself—
Even if they mastered the technique, if Li Yao abandoned Kimura Yao's body at the critical moment, and they couldn't sense his spirit, the jutsu would fail.
They'd die sealing an empty shell.
Once the jutsu was activated and the Shinigami appeared, the user's soul was forfeit.
Whether the target was sealed or not, their soul would be taken.
It was a "kill-or-be-killed" technique with a tremendous cost.
To make it count, Kato had to succeed.
"I'll teach you personally," the Third Hokage said.
Ironically, although he couldn't perform Spirit Transformation, and should have struggled with a soul-targeting technique like the Reaper Death Seal—
He had mastered it in half a day.
They didn't call him the "Professor of Ninjutsu" for nothing—his talent in all forms of ninjutsu and sealing was real.
Unfortunately, he no longer had the will to sacrifice himself. Or perhaps he believed it wasn't the right time.
After all, the Sarutobi Clan hadn't risen yet.
Uchiha Madara's prophecy hadn't come true.
How could someone who inherited Tobirama's ideology sacrifice himself now?
If he truly wanted to, he could've caught Li Yao off guard and sealed him while he still hesitated to abandon Kimura Yao's Wood Release–capable body.
But in the end, he chose the safest option.
Believe in the younger generation.
Believe that those who inherited the Will of Fire would surpass their predecessors and become Konoha's foundation.
And so, Kato Dan began learning the Reaper Death Seal under the Hokage's direct guidance.
Meanwhile, Li Yao—who had no soul techniques or possession ability at all—was already facing true desperation.
It might not even be necessary for the Hokage to act.
Soon…
Two days later.
In a mountain-encircled valley on the border of the Land of Earth—
Li Yao, physically and mentally exhausted, descended from the sky and landed on the hard, reddish-brown rocky ground. He looked around.
Nothing but rock. Not even a blade of grass.
This was typical of the Land of Earth—no greenery, just barren stone.
No wonder the village was called "Iwagakure" and not "Tsuchigakure." It was truly a land of rocks.
"I wonder if this terrain will block my Wood Release?"
He focused, sending Wood Release chakra into the earth—
A small sapling immediately sprouted from the rocky ground.
"Good. It still works." He smiled in relief.
Then he stood still, quietly regulating his chakra, preparing for a final, desperate battle.
He had fled from sea to land, hoping to use Earth Release to hide underground and escape pursuit.
But the Raikage's team had come fully prepared.
Besides flight and long-range vision, they had specialists in both Water and Earth Release sensing.
Even when he went underground, they still found him.
Now, Li Yao understood—fleeing was no longer an option.
He had to fight. At least kill the Kumogakure ninja controlling the summoned eagle.
Only then would he have a chance to escape.
He had chosen this small valley as his battleground specifically to increase the odds of killing that eagle handler.
(END CHAPTER)
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