Tamura Zairo did not take the blade. Instead, he spoke to persuade him:
"Teacher, please accept it. I damaged your ninja blade earlier—consider this compensation.
And in the future, we'll inevitably have to leave the village on missions. If we encounter danger, having a good blade will allow you to protect me better.
So let's treat it as me lending it to you for now. When you no longer need it, you can return it to me."
Seeing that Fukai was still resolute, Tamura Zairo changed his wording, framing it as a temporary loan.
"Accept it," Yotsuki A said from the side. "We'll probably face great danger in the future—and war isn't far off."
Those words made Fukai hesitate. In the end, he accepted the ninja blade.
He could hear the implication in Yotsuki A's words. Clearly, there would likely be great danger ahead, and it would be tied to that student. Under such circumstances, strengthening himself was necessary.
"I swear I will protect my student. Anyone who wants to harm you will have to step over my corpse first!"
Fukai made the solemn promise. Although he still had many questions about this student, the importance shown by Yotsuki A and the Raikage earlier was enough to prove that this student was crucial and must not be lost.
Yet those words made Tamura Zairo's eyelids twitch. They reminded him of that infamous 'ultimate curse' from a certain neighboring world—on par with the legendary 'Daoist friend, please stay' curse.
Coincidentally, resurrection techniques also existed in this world, such as the Rinnegan. If he were to die in the future, would his teacher cry out something like, "Revive yourself, my disciple!"?
"I'll also borrow this blade for a while," Yotsuki A said, accepting the other ninja blade. "If you ever need it back, just say the word."
Tamura Zairo was very satisfied with this. A favor from the future Fourth Raikage was far more valuable than any single ninja blade.
After chatting with Yotsuki A for a while longer, and once his physical condition improved somewhat, Tamura Zairo finally supported himself with a cane and slowly made his way home.
Bone fractures were not injuries that healed easily, especially when the medicinal power still needed time to fuse deeply with the bones.
For now, the medical ninjutsu had only allowed the bones to heal superficially. Their strength was far inferior to before, so even walking required extreme caution.
Back at home, Tamura Zairo lay down on his bed and took out the scrolls from Yotsuki A and Fukai, opening them to study their insights on Lightning chakra nature transformation and shape transformation—exactly what he needed.
In the original Naruto story, the training method for Wind nature transformation was shown, but there was no explanation for how Lightning nature transformation should be trained.
The ninja academy and library also lacked specific methods. He had only been able to grope his way forward using scattered hints from various books, with very low efficiency—he hadn't even stepped through the door.
Now, with the cultivation insights of two jōnin who both specialized in Lightning Release and possessed inherited secret techniques, it was like receiving a pillow just as he was getting sleepy.
Lightning nature transformation was currently the only path that could rapidly increase his strength. He even wanted to see if he could use it to develop techniques like Kakashi's Chidori or Sasuke's Chidori system in the future.
Even if his chakra reserves prevented him from using the full versions, a downgraded version would still be fine.
This was where the effect of his golden finger—his (comprehension) buff—would truly shine, allowing him to achieve twice the result with half the effort.
However, before Tamura Zairo could even begin cultivating Lightning nature transformation, an uninvited guest arrived at his door.
"Ninja-sama, this is the ramen you ordered."
A middle-aged man stood outside, holding a large, sealed bowl of ramen. With his other hand, he subtly made a few hand signals.
After seeing those signals, Tamura Zairo understood—it was someone sent by Shimura Danzō.
No—by Lord Danzō.
"Come in," Tamura Zairo said calmly. He glanced around outside a few times, then stepped aside to let the man in and took the ramen from his hands.
The man said nothing and walked inside. When his foot stepped onto the carpet, Tamura Zairo noticed something unusual.
"A shadow clone? How cautious."
The man's foot did not depress the carpet at all, as if it had no weight. Clearly, he was either using some kind of levitation technique—or he wasn't flesh and blood. The latter was more likely.
"Lord Danzō orders you to make every effort to investigate Yunshin Village's plans for the upcoming war, especially any strategic schemes targeting the Land of Fire.
Additionally, you must probe Yunshin Village's progress in utilizing tailed beasts. These tasks must be completed."
The middle-aged man wasted no words and conveyed the order from above.
"I want the Second Hokage's Sword of the Thunder God."
Tamura Zairo was equally blunt, stating his condition.
Lightning nature transformation was not easy to cultivate. Even Yotsuki A and Fukai had taken more than five years to master it.
In the future, Naruto would need countless shadow clones and an enormous chakra pool to brute-force his way through training.
Even with his golden finger boosting comprehension, Tamura Zairo couldn't expect miracles. He estimated it would still take at least a year of hard training.
That was too slow.
He wanted to succeed faster, which meant relying on external aids.
He thought of certain ninja tools—for example, the Banana Fan once possessed by the Gold and Silver Brothers, which could convert the user's chakra into all five elemental natures, essentially completing nature transformation for them.
Unfortunately, the fan had been sealed away by the Gold and Silver Brothers before their deaths. Unless they were resurrected via Edo Tensei, it was impossible to obtain. Back then, even the Third Raikage had only managed to seize the Kohaku no Jōhei.
That left the Second Hokage's Sword of the Thunder God. If he could obtain it, training Lightning nature transformation would certainly become far easier.
However, making such a demand caused the middle-aged man's expression to turn cold. As one of Lord Danzō's subordinates, how dare this brat make demands? Did he want to die?
"I need means to protect myself and to improve my strength. Only then can I climb higher in Yunshin Village and become more valuable to Lord Danzō."
Tamura Zairo remained calm, but his attitude was firm and resolute, all while rapidly devouring the ramen.
This explanation made the middle-aged man frown. He had no good way to refute it.
He didn't know the specifics of the Sword of the Thunder God, but since it was the Second Hokage's weapon, it was certainly extraordinary. Combined with the existence of the Senju clan, even with Lord Danzō's capabilities, obtaining it would not be easy.
"I will report your words to Lord Danzō. You'd better produce valuable intelligence."
After giving Tamura Zairo a long look, the man turned and left.
His current cover was a deliveryman. He couldn't stay here for long.
"Take this and the trash bag by the door and throw them away. You've stayed here too long—add some extra cover.
Also, I don't like your tone or your eyes. As punishment, bring barbecue next time."
Tamura Zairo finished the soup, handed over the empty bowl and lid, pointed to the trash bag by the door, and even specified barbecue for next time.
If there were a direct hotline to Lord Danzō, he would have skipped this guy entirely.
Using a cheap bowl of ramen as cover for a meeting—obviously pocketing the funds Lord Danzō allocated.
This kind of corrupt scum was a parasite within Root and an obstacle on Lord Danzō's path to becoming Hokage. He had to be eliminated.
The middle-aged man's forehead darkened, but he still picked up the trash bag and left.
He had never seen such an arrogant and stingy little spy.
But who could blame it? The kid had good luck, having already made contact with Yunshin Village's core figures. In Lord Danzō's eyes, he would definitely be far more valuable.
"Lord Danzō… don't disappoint me."
After the man left, Tamura Zairo muttered to himself, full of anticipation and confidence in his former superior.
After all, that was the Pot Shadow himself.
When night fell, Tamura Zairo put on his clothes and shoes and went out, heading toward a nearby bathhouse.
Since Lord Danzō had already sent someone to contact him and issued orders, he naturally couldn't let Lord Danzō down. He needed to obtain relevant intelligence as soon as possible.
For that, he needed to find Lord Tsuchidai. That bathhouse was the agreed-upon contact location.
He believed Tsuchidai would be very interested in this—perhaps even using it as an opportunity to scheme something further.
As an excellent half–double agent, he had to be absolutely clear about where he truly stood, without the slightest ambiguity.
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