"Construction bro…"
Ren looked around at the nearby three-bedroom-one-living-room wooden house and nodded quietly.
Other people refined chakra in an instant.
Yamato? He built a house in an instant.
And the key point was: it was actually nice—three bedrooms, one living room, and even a huge private balcony.
If you told anyone about this, who wouldn't praise him?
Most importantly: pure wood, all-natural.
No additives, no formaldehyde.
After appreciating it for a moment, Ren offered some professional feedback:
"Yamato… Kinoe, I think you should add a bathroom inside the master bedroom."
"Also, the coffee table is kinda stingy—make it bigger."
"And put a hammock or lounge chair on the balcony. In summer you can sunbathe and nap. Super comfy."
As he tossed out suggestions, a new notification slowly surfaced before his eyes.
[Talked with Kinoe for ten minutes. Attempting to copy trait…]
[Copy failed.]
No surprise.
With that kind of success rate, there was rarely any joy.
Beating someone up really was more reliable.
Ren shook his head. The stream of words that had been going nonstop abruptly stopped.
That, instead, made Yamato lift an eyebrow.
"Why'd you stop talking?"
He'd listened to Ren ramble for more than ten minutes—he was almost getting used to it.
Too bad Ren wasn't in the mood anymore.
He went limp, lying on the ground like he'd lost all energy and methods, eyes empty.
Across from him, Yamato frowned—but sensing his own stamina recovering enough, he didn't hesitate.
"Come on. I'm taking you to see Lord Danzo."
As he spoke, his arm transformed into massive wood, wrapping around the cage like a thick layer of binding.
In the blink of an eye, the prison became a sealed wooden "egg," nearly five meters tall—tight and airtight.
But just as he turned to carry the egg away—
Something inside shifted.
"Hm? Still resisting?"
Yamato's expression didn't change. He spoke evenly:
"This is the Kekkei Genkai inherited from the First Hokage!"
"Don't think that just because you're an Uchiha— even Kakashi-senpai, trapped by this, would have to wait—"
CRACK!!
In an instant, the heavy wooden egg exploded again—like a firework bursting apart.
Countless splinters blasted outward, showering the air and turning the sky a dusty brown.
Yamato… froze.
"B-B-Blown up again?!"
He couldn't believe his eyes. Two decades of worldview and common sense were collapsing.
"This is a secret technique descended from the First Hokage… and it broke that easily?!"
"Am I… training wrong?!"
For normal people, it would be hard to break.
But—
In the center of the wood-shrapnel storm, Ren lowered his gaze to his palm.
A jagged piece of brown wood was wrapped in evil, crimson chakra.
He clicked his tongue lightly.
"Nine-Tails power plus Wood Release…"
"When those two stack and burst at once… the output is kinda ridiculous."
Then he raised his right hand and casually slapped toward Yamato, who was still standing there stunned just three meters away.
WHOOSH—
A massive crimson chakra hand formed—three meters wide—and the surrounding temperature spiked.
The splinters still floating in the air caught fire instantly.
Pffft—pffft!
Flames bloomed everywhere.
"What… what jutsu is that?!"
Yamato's heart jolted. He threw signs fast.
"Wood Release: Wooden Lock Wall!"
SHHHK—
A row of wooden pillars rose from the ground, bending and stacking into an arched barrier to shield him.
A real eggshell now.
But before he could even exhale—
The giant hand slammed down.
BOOM!!
The Wooden Lock Wall—capable of blocking A-rank techniques—didn't last even a second.
It shattered into chunks.
Yamato had no choice but to leap away.
But the red hand chased like it had tracking installed.
Forced again, he formed more signs.
"Wood Release: Tree-Bound Wall!"
KRAK-KRAK-KRAK!
A mass of woody vines erupted from the ground, forming a shield in front of him.
CRACK—
The vines snapped, but at least—
The crimson hand finally dispersed, its energy spent.
"I… I blocked it."
Yamato wiped sweat off his forehead, his whole body locked tight.
Only then did he realize his back was drenched.
He hadn't expected a mere Academy-aged Uchiha kid to pressure him this hard.
"This is harder than an S-rank mission…"
He forced a strained smile—rare emotion slipping through even behind the mask.
If other Root members saw that, they'd call him an apostate.
Root members weren't supposed to have expressions.
"No wonder Lord Danzo wants you brought back…"
"It's not because of status—"
"It's because of strength."
An Uchiha who still hadn't even graduated… making a Root operative with elite-jōnin-level combat power feel fear?
Absurd.
But—
This was the so-called "retirement match."
Yamato took a deep breath, crushing down the trembling fear.
His eyes hardened into resolve.
"I'm retiring right here, today!"
THUD!!
Before his words even finished, a massive force smashed into his abdomen, blasting him straight into the ground.
BOOOOM—
A crater five meters wide appeared.
CRACK—
The faint sound of ribs breaking followed.
At the crater's edge, Ren calmly lowered his left foot and sighed.
"Yeah… you really are retiring on the spot."
Yamato was one of the few Wood Release cell carriers in the shinobi world.
Ren couldn't remember exactly when this guy would leave Root and enter ANBU.
But whether Root or ANBU, both were fundamentally at odds with the Uchiha clan.
Ren might have been lying around for years, but that didn't mean he'd let "Konoha's black ops squad" keep pointing their knives at the Uchiha.
So if Yamato didn't retire—
He'd only have one other option: a tombstone.
A fresh notification popped up.
[Defeated Root · Kinoe. Attempting to copy trait…]
[Copy success. Congratulations: acquired Rare Trait "Wood Release: Wooden Lock Wall" (Blue): A defensive ninjutsu that summons a row of wooden pillars forming an arched barrier to protect the user.]
"Defensive type?"
Ren shook his head and spoke immediately:
"Fuse it into the 'Wood Release Cells · Fragment (Blue)' trait."
For someone who already had Light-Gold Body, defensive ninjutsu didn't matter much.
As for "protecting teammates"—
That would just become his weakness.
[Trait fusion in progress…]
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