The silver light shimmering across the surface of the lightning descending from the night sky gradually faded, slowly revealing what was inside.
The first thing everyone saw was the famous blade known as “White Fang,” the legendary weapon that had struck fear throughout the entire shinobi world!
Combined with the ninja blade and the Lightning Release covering his entire body, the destructive sword technique struck its target like heavenly lightning descending from the heavens.
Hatake Style Lightning Release Swordsmanship: Heavenly Thunder Attraction.
It was none other than Hatake Sakumo’s signature technique!
“Yusuke?!”
After clearly seeing the person inside, Sarutobi Hiruzen’s expression changed dramatically.
As the protagonist who had been rescued by White Fang, causing an S-Rank mission to fail, and who had beaten Sarutobi Hiruzen’s cousin Sarutobi Himura half to death two days ago, Yusuke’s fame might not have been particularly great, but it certainly wasn’t insignificant either.
As soon as he appeared, quite a few people present recognized him.
“What you just used was… Sakumo’s technique? What’s going on?!”
Sarutobi Hiruzen shouted in disbelief.
“Captain White Fang was kind enough to teach me a little of his Lightning Release and swordsmanship. It’s nothing worth mentioning.”
Yusuke smiled calmly.
Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others widened their eyes until they were practically as round as bells.
This was “a little”?
That move had completely reproduced Hatake Sakumo’s Lightning Release!
It possessed the full power of peak Kage level!
No.
In terms of sheer ferocity, it might even surpass White Fang’s!
“What exactly is going on? This kid isn’t just a Jonin?”
Danzo showed little joy or gratitude at being rescued.
His expression was filled with nothing but suspicion and vigilance.
That was Danzo’s personality—suspicious and jealous of the talented.
His own talent was not weak.
Otherwise, Senju Tobirama would never have taken him as a disciple.
But that was all it was: “not weak.”
In terms of bloodline, he possessed none of the innate powerful kekkei genkai of the Senju, Uchiha, or Hyuga.
In terms of talent, he was even less comparable to White Fang, who also came from an ordinary background, or Minato Namikaze in the future.
But Danzo’s solution wasn’t to work harder at cultivation.
Instead, he sought every possible way to eliminate those geniuses who might threaten his position.
Hatake Sakumo had died, only for another Yusuke to appear, practically a second version of White Fang.
Danzo naturally wasn’t happy about it.
“You brat… Where did you come from?!”
At this moment, the Nine-Tails had already gotten back to its feet.
Enraged, it swiped a claw toward Yusuke.
“Hatake Style Swordsmanship: Nine Yin Flash!”
Nine arcs of lightning flickered around Yusuke’s body.
He transformed into a bolt of lightning, dodged the Nine-Tails’ claw, and leaped onto its arm, rapidly charging upward.
Slash, slash, slash!
The skin on the Nine-Tails’ arm split open, and blood gushed out violently.
“So powerful!!”
“Awesome! It’s like White Fang has been reborn!”
“When did that guy Yusuke become this strong?”
After so many people had died in the battle, this was the first time they had seen the Nine-Tails injured.
The surviving Konoha shinobi below were all ecstatic.
Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others, however, showed little joy.
Their faces were filled with even more wariness and suspicion.
His strength was so formidable that he could completely rival the deceased Hatake Sakumo, and might even faintly surpass him.
If that was the case, why had he been hiding his strength all this time?
Moreover, Hatake Sakumo, Yusuke’s Jonin instructor, had seemingly committed suicide two days ago, but in reality, had died because of the rumors and slander surrounding him.
Under such circumstances, how loyal was Yusuke to Konoha—or, more precisely, to people like themselves?
That was what Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others were most worried about.
“You brat!”
With intense pain shooting through its arm, the Nine-Tails opened its enormous maw and fired several small Tailed Beast Bombs.
Every single one possessed astonishing power comparable to Naruto’s Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
Yusuke transformed into lightning and flashed away, allowing the small Tailed Beast Bombs to crash into Konoha’s land below.
BOOM!!
BOOM!!!
Konoha’s earth once again suffered devastating destruction.
And during the brief opening created by his evasion, Yusuke had already rushed to the bridge of the Nine-Tails’ nose.
The White Fang blade in his hand was about to pierce the Nine-Tails’ eyeball.
“Yeah!!!”
The Konoha shinobi below shouted wildly in excitement, seemingly already seeing the scene of the Nine-Tails being defeated.
However, just as the Nine-Tails itself believed its eye was about to be pierced, Yusuke stopped.
The White Fang blade in his hand halted less than a centimeter from the Nine-Tails’ eyeball.
The scene remained frozen for several seconds.
The Nine-Tails asked in disbelief, “Brat, what are you doing?”
“It’s enough, Nine-Tails.”
Yusuke moved White Fang away from its eye and said calmly, “When all is said and done, you’re just trying to vent the anger in your heart. Now that you’ve destroyed Konoha to this extent, that’s about enough.”
After a brief pause, Yusuke continued, “To be honest, I don’t have the confidence to defeat you. Why don’t we both take a step back? You leave now and live your life freely. I don’t feel like fighting you either. We can call it even. How about it?”
Against the Nine-Tails, the strongest Tailed Beast whose strength surpassed the Kage level, Yusuke might still be able to win if he fought with his life on the line.
But he had no intention of fighting desperately only to let Konoha benefit from the outcome.
If Konoha suffered such severe losses and then lost the Nine-Tails as well, the situation would become even more dangerous.
That was precisely what Yusuke was happy to see.
“What are you talking about?!”
Before the Nine-Tails could answer, Danzo angrily shouted, “We should immediately capture the Nine-Tails again and create a new jinchuriki! Yusuke! Defeat the Nine-Tails immediately!”
Hearing this, the Nine-Tails’ eyes hardened.
“Oh my, Lord Danzo certainly has quite the commanding presence~”
Yusuke looked down and sneered.
“If you want to capture the Nine-Tails so badly, why don’t you do it yourself? I won’t compete with you.”
With that, Yusuke leaped down from the Nine-Tails’ nose.
He gave Shimura Danzo and the others a mocking look, raised his chin, and smiled derisively.
“Please, go ahead~”
Danzo, along with Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and the others behind him, immediately turned deathly pale.
Damn it, asking people of their level to capture the Nine-Tails?
One swipe of the Nine-Tails’ claw would be enough to send them straight to the afterlife.