As Yagami Yue’s reputation continued to grow, it inevitably attracted the attention of the various countries.
“Yagami Yue, nearly eight years old.
Civilian background.
Konoha chūnin.
Nicknamed ‘The Beast Sword God.’ Specializes in swordsmanship.
Ninjutsu unknown.
Extremely high resistance to genjutsu.
Possesses beast-like sensory abilities, allowing him to evade danger in advance.
Confirmed kills: 41 jōnin, 103 chūnin, 321 genin…
“Relationships: Father was a Konoha jōnin and missing-nin, now deceased.
Mother is an ordinary civilian.
Currently resides in Konoha…”
Yagami Yue’s basic profile had been placed on the desks of the leaders of the major shinobi villages.
His kill count was simply too terrifying.
As a result, it immediately attracted the intense attention of figures such as Rasa of Sunagakure, A of Kumogakure, Ōnoki of Iwagakure, Yagura of Kirigakure, and Hanzō of Amegakure.
“This is another Konoha genius!”
The first reaction of every village was the same:
Kill him!
They had to eliminate this Konoha genius while he was still in his infancy, before he could grow into a major threat to their villages.
However, some perceptive individuals quickly noticed Yagami Yue’s family background.
His father had been publicly branded a missing-nin by Konoha.
And Yue himself came from a civilian family with no powerful clan ties or other major connections.
This was practically an opportunity delivered straight to their doorstep.
If they could persuade Yagami Yue to defect, they might be able to deal a devastating blow to the powerful Konoha.
Kumogakure, Iwagakure, Kirigakure…
One after another, they began taking action.
They dispatched people to infiltrate Konoha and look for opportunities to make contact with Yagami Yue.
As for Sunagakure, Rasa had absolutely no intention of recruiting Yagami Yue after reading his profile.
Instead, his killing intent intensified.
“This man cannot be allowed to live!”
…
…
KonohaHokage’s Office
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was reading the intelligence concerning Yagami Yue, along with the latest letter sent by Orochimaru.
His expression was dark.
“I never expected a student who ranked at the bottom of the Academy to possess such extraordinary talent in swordsmanship.”
“Hatake Sakumo… even after your death, you still have to cause me trouble.”
“I really didn’t expect this…”
Back then, he had merely thrown away a disposable pawn to take the blame.
He also never expected a seven-year-old expendable soldier who should have died on the battlefield to suddenly rise to prominence and gain such an enormous reputation.
Most surprising of all was the speed of his rise.
In only one month, Yagami Yue had already grown to this level.
Hiruzen hadn’t even had enough time to make the necessary preparations.
“Kill him?”
Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly shook his head.
It was too late.
Yue’s strength was already too great.
They couldn’t kill him.
And with the war raging at full intensity, if news of Konoha killing its own battlefield hero leaked out, it would deal a devastating blow to the morale of the forces at the front.
“Reassure him?”
Hiruzen fell silent.
“Perhaps we can try…”
“But how do we reassure him?”
At this moment, the only thing Hiruzen could hope for was that Yagami Yue did not know the truth about his father’s fate.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was a legendary shinobi of the ninja world.
His intelligence and political instincts were exceptional.
Whether through legitimate methods or schemes and manipulation, he could normally employ whatever means were necessary with ease.
But this time…
He had a headache.
Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind.
Kill with a borrowed blade.
“The Sand shinobi should be unable to hold themselves back much longer.”
“If the Fourth Kazekage makes a move personally, he should be able to kill Yagami Yue.”
“Then we’ll use both methods at once.”
“If he can be killed, excellent.”
“If he survives, then we reassure him.”
…
…
The Wind–Fire Nation Battlefield
For some unknown reason, the Sand forces suddenly stopped their attacks.
It was as though they were preparing something.
The battlefield fell into an unusual calm.
The Konoha shinobi finally gained some precious time to rest and recover.
Yagami Yue, however, had a feeling that a storm was approaching.
Danger was drawing near.
Therefore, Yue did not rest.
Instead, he trained his chakra day and night while simultaneously practicing genjutsu and swordsmanship, attempting to integrate the abilities of Roronoa Zoro and Kurenai Yūhi into his own fighting style.
The results were pleasantly surprising.
And that figure was still slowly increasing.
Aside from improving his own strength, Yue was also eagerly anticipating the arrival of the second month.
He needed a new Character Card.
A more powerful character.
He had a feeling that he was about to face a formidable enemy.
A major enemy from Sunagakure.
Most likely, someone who surpassed the jōnin level.
Perhaps it would be Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage.
Perhaps the old monsters Chiyo or Ebizō.
Those three were the three strongest shinobi of Sunagakure, all of them possessing Kage-level strength.
If one of those three really came—
Even just one of them—
Yue’s strength, even with Zoro’s abilities, would still not be enough.
And Rasa’s Magnet Release was particularly troublesome.
He could control metal and potentially interfere with Yue’s swords, crippling his swordsmanship and causing his combat strength to plummet by ninety percent.
Yue had already experienced the terrifying chakra presence of the Fourth Kazekage.
It was as vast as the sea and as deep as an abyss.
Even from a great distance, Yue could sense the overwhelming danger contained within it.
The days passed one after another…
The calm before the storm became increasingly oppressive.
Many Konoha shinobi also realized that something was wrong.
They became increasingly vigilant and began strengthening their defenses.
And then, on this day…
A new month arrived.
“Ding!
June 1st.
A new month has arrived.
The host has obtained one Character Card draw opportunity.
Would you like to draw?”
“Draw!”
Yagami Yue had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
He immediately began the draw.
Chinese carp, bless me!
“Drawing… Congratulations, host!
You have obtained the Character Card [Railgun — Mikoto Misaka]…”
“Character Profile: Academy City’s strongest ‘Electromaster,’ code-named ‘Railgun.’ She can freely manipulate high-voltage electricity reaching one billion volts, electromagnetic waves, and magnetism.
“Abilities: Railgun, Scattershot Railgun, Super-Giant Railgun, Thunderbolt Spear, True Lightning Strike, Iron Sand Sword, Electromagnetism, Electromagnetic Waves…”
Late that night…
A burst of loud laughter rang out from inside Yagami Yue’s tent.
“Hahahahaha!”