Konoha Village.
Senju clan compound.
The originally vermilion walls had long faded and peeled away.
Weathered by wind and sun, the decaying, blackened wood grain within lay exposed.
And the clan crest representing the glory of the Senju clan was mostly covered by vines and moss.
Desolation.
Ruin.
Dead silence.
Chiba stood before the main gate, silently observing it all.
There was not a shred of anger in his mind, only the detachment of an outsider.
Decayed tree roots needed to be uprooted.
Since he inherited the surname Senju, this would be his first stop in taking over Konoha.
Chiba raised his foot, preparing to step over the weed-covered threshold.
“Halt.”
A cold voice suddenly came from the canopy above.
Swish!
Swish!
Swish!
Three dark figures dropped from the sky like phantoms, surrounding Chiba in a triangular formation.
Eagle mask.
Bear mask.
Cat mask.
All dressed in standard-issue Anbu uniforms, cold ninja swords strapped to their backs.
A thick aura of slaughter instantly locked down the surrounding space.
“Chunin Chiba. The Hokage requests your presence. Come with us immediately.”
The Eagle-masked Anbu took a step forward, his tone condescending.
In their eyes, this jacketless young man before them was completely cannon fodder from the lower ranks.
If not for the Hokage’s personal order, elite ninjas directly under the Hokage like them wouldn’t give trash of this level a second glance.
Dispatching three people to summon a single Chunin was practically using a cannon to swat a mosquito.
Chiba stopped.
He didn’t turn around, nor did he even raise an eyebrow, as if the three murderous Anbu around him were nothing more than an irrelevant breeze.
“I don’t have time.”
Three flat words spilled from Chiba’s mouth, completely devoid of inflection or emotion.
The three Anbu were visibly stunned.
They even doubted whether something was wrong with their ears.
Faced with an Anbu summons, a mere Chunin actually said…
he didn’t have time?
“You’re asking for death!”
The Bear-masked Anbu, who had the fiercest temper, roared angrily.
Utter humiliation!
How could the authority of the Anbu be trampled by a bottom-tier civilian ninja!
Pushing off with his feet, the Bear-masked Anbu launched himself toward Chiba like a cannonball.
He didn’t draw his blade.
Against trash like this, weapons were completely unnecessary.
He reached out his gloved right hand, grabbing viciously toward Chiba’s shoulder.
He wanted to crush this arrogant brat’s collarbone!
He wanted to make him realize who was truly in charge of Konoha!
Five meters.
Three meters.
One meter.
The Bear-masked Anbu’s fingers were less than ten centimeters away from Chiba, yet Chiba still hadn’t turned around.
The moment the Anbu’s hand was about to touch Chiba—
The chakra within Chiba’s body flexed ever so slightly.
With Chiba at the center, a terrifying surge of chakra pressure expanded outward.
In this instant, the air felt as though it had turned into solidified cement.
The Bear-masked Anbu’s charging body slammed into what felt like an invisible city wall.
Crack!
A crisp sound of shattering bone echoed.
The Bear-masked Anbu’s outstretched right arm instantly bent at a grotesque angle.
But that was only the beginning.
That terrifying pressure, like a raging tsunami, slammed violently against his chest.
Pfft!
The Bear-masked Anbu spewed a massive mouthful of blood, flying backward ten times faster than he had charged!
He crashed through three large trees along the way before slamming hard into a crumbling stone wall.
Shattered bricks and stones buried most of his body.
Seeing this, the expressions beneath the masks of the Eagle-masked and Cat-masked Anbu turned completely distorted.
What was going on?
Wasn’t this kid just a Chunin?
How could he possess such terrifying chakra?
Most importantly, he severely injured a Special Jonin merely by unleashing his chakra?
Was this really not a joke?
“Draw your blades!”
In the next instant, the Eagle-masked Anbu let out a shrill roar.
Although he still couldn’t understand what was happening and had no desire to face this monster named Chiba, to complete the task assigned by the Third Hokage, he could only bite the bullet and press forward.
Clang!
Clang!
Two ninja swords unsheathed instantly.
Yet even with swords in hand, they felt not the slightest sense of security in their hearts.
For that terrifying pressure had not vanished with the Bear-masked Anbu’s defeat; instead, it grew heavier and heavier!
So heavy that even breathing felt as if their lungs were tearing apart!
Chiba finally turned around.
He looked at the two Anbu who were facing a great enemy.
In those clear, dark eyes, there wasn’t even a ripple of emotion.
“Get lost.”
A single cold word spilled forth.
His vast, Late Beyond Kage-level chakra churned once more.
BOOM!
The Eagle-masked and Cat-masked Anbu didn’t even have time to scream.
Like kites with broken strings, they were blasted away by this horrifying pressure.
Mid-air, both of their masks shattered simultaneously as blood sprayed wildly.
They then slammed heavily into the mud dozens of meters away like tattered sacks.
Chiba retracted his gaze.
These three Anbu were far too weak—weak to the point that he didn’t even have the interest to raise a hand.
He turned, stepping over the moss-covered threshold of the Senju clan compound, leaving the three severely injured Anbu with nothing but his receding, aloof back.
Hokage’s Office.
The air was stifling beyond endurance.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood behind his office desk.
The pipe in his hand had fallen to the floor, spreading tobacco leaves everywhere, but he paid it no mind at all.
His gaze stared fixedly at the two Anbu kneeling on the floor.
Eagle mask and Cat mask.
The two were supporting each other, covered in blood, barely able to stand.
Beside them lay the unconscious Bear-masked Anbu, his right arm completely ruined.
These were elite Anbu!
One standard Jonin and two Special Jonin!
Yet now, they were reduced to such a miserable state.
What terrified Hiruzen Sarutobi most was the report Eagle mask had just given.
“Are you certain? Merely a release of chakra left you severely injured?”
Hiruzen Sarutobi’s voice was raspy in the extreme, like fingernails scraping across glass.
“Y-Yes. Hokage-sama, this subordinate can confirm. The target did not use any ninjutsu, nor did he move even half a step. Relying purely… purely on the aura of his chakra, he shattered Bear’s bone directly. If he hadn’t shown mercy at the very end… the three of us would already be dead.”
The Eagle-masked Anbu endured the agonizing pain in his chest, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
In all his years as a ninja, this was his first time encountering such a horrifying entity.
Hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi’s mind went blank.
Impossible!
Even for him, hailed as the “Professor of Ninjutsu,” the Third Hokage…
he couldn’t possibly severely injure three Anbu elites purely through a release of chakra!
And this Chiba—how could he possibly pull off such a feat?
One must realize that over a year ago, Chiba was merely trash who only knew three basic techniques.
Now, his strength actually stood above his own?
How was this possible!
What on earth had that crazy woman Tsunade done to him!
“Where did he go! Where did you intercept him?”
Suddenly, Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered something.
He grabbed the Eagle-masked Anbu by the collar, asking urgently.
“The edge of the village… the southeast corner… the f-former Senju clan compound…”
The Eagle-masked Anbu choked for air, answering haltingly.
Boom!
That answer struck Hiruzen Sarutobi’s crown like a bolt of lightning.
He released his grip, stumbling back two steps uncontrollably before slumping heavily into his chair.
The Senju clan.
Chiba went to the Senju clan compound!
Why would a civilian orphan go straight to that long-forgotten ruin instead of returning home after entering the village?
The answer was painfully obvious.
Chiba.
Senju Chiba!