In the forest between Konohagakure and the borderlands of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain, four figures raced through the trees, following Matatabi's chakra at high speed.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The Hokage's aide, Danzō Shimura.
One of the Legendary Sannin, Tsunade.
And the Kage-level shinobi known as Konoha's White Fang, Sakumo Hatake.
After receiving the report from the Two-Tails that Kizaru had been attacked by a powerful enemy suspected to be Madara Uchiha, Konoha had mobilized nearly all of its top combat strength.
Three Kage-level fighters, along with the strongest medical-nin in the village.
In the current shinobi world, that was already a force close to invincible.
Kizaru…
You had better still be alive.
Danzō moved at the front, keeping pace with Matatabi. His face was tense, his single visible eye filled with a rare trace of undisguised worry.
Like Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzō had been a student of the Second Hokage. Because of that, he understood better than most just how terrifying Madara Uchiha truly was.
Why was Madara still alive?
Hadn't Lord Hashirama killed him?
Then, as if remembering something, Danzō's expression darkened.
Madara's body had disappeared after the Valley of the End.
A terrible possibility surfaced in his mind.
The forbidden technique created by Tobirama-sensei—
Impure World Reincarnation.
The moment that thought appeared, Danzō instinctively glanced toward Hiruzen.
Almost at the same time, Hiruzen turned his gaze toward him.
Their eyes met.
Neither of them said a word.
But both understood what the other was thinking.
If the forbidden technique had truly been leaked, then this attack might not have been a simple ambush.
There could be a traitor inside the village.
Someone did not want Kizaru to become Hokage in the future.
And based on that possibility, the first clan that appeared in Danzō's mind was naturally—
The Uchiha.
Uchiha…
If this is truly your doing, then do not blame me for being ruthless.
Boom!
Just as Danzō and Hiruzen were silently piecing together their suspicions, a deafening explosion erupted far ahead.
Blinding light burst through the forest.
Smoke and dust rose into the sky.
The ground trembled violently beneath them, and a powerful shock wave swept outward, forcing all four shinobi to halt at once.
They landed on the ground, their eyes fixed on the enormous column of smoke rising in the distance.
Matatabi narrowed her eyes, then spoke quickly.
"Kizaru's chakra is still there. The other chakra has disappeared."
Her tone carried a trace of relief.
Hearing that, Hiruzen, Danzō, Tsunade, and Sakumo exchanged brief glances.
The tension in their faces eased slightly.
"Move," Hiruzen said.
No one wasted words.
The moment the shock wave passed, all four of them leapt back into the trees and rushed toward the battlefield.
At the center of the devastated area, Madara Uchiha's expression twisted with anger.
"Shimura brat… you are indeed quite strong but just as naive."
After being refused, Madara looked at Kizaru's completely unmotivated appearance and felt his irritation rise even further.
Kizaru sat with one leg crossed over the other, still smiling lazily.
"Mm… is that so?"
His slow, careless tone made Madara's breathing grow heavier.
"You have no idea what kind of opportunity you just threw away." Madara's eyes were cold. "One day, you will regret the choice you made today."
After saying that, Madara turned around, preparing to leave.
Kizaru's smile did not change.
"Yasakani no… ah, no."
He slowly raised his finger, golden light gathering at his fingertip.
"That would be a little too noisy."
Then a blade of light formed in his hand.
"Ama no Murakumo Sword."
The moment Kizaru's lazy voice fell, Madara felt a sharp pain pierce through his chest.
He lowered his head.
A golden lightsword had pierced cleanly through his heart.
Slowly, Madara turned his head and looked back at Kizaru.
Kizaru stood behind him with his usual relaxed smile, one hand holding the sword, the other resting lazily near his cheek.
"If I let you leave just like that, it will be very troublesome later, you know?"
Madara stared at him.
Then, despite the blade through his heart, he smiled.
"Other than Hashirama, no one is allowed to strike me from behind."
His voice turned cold.
"You are still too young, brat."
The next instant, Madara's body distorted.
His flesh changed into wood.
A humanoid wooden figure collapsed to the ground.
Kizaru withdrew the lightsword and looked down at the fallen wooden clone.
"Wood Clone…"
He tilted his head slightly, smiling as if he had expected it.
"As expected of Madara Uchiha. How frightening."
First, Madara had used Izanagi to avoid his slash.
Then he left behind a Wood Clone to speak with him.
The older that man became, the more dangerous and cunning he grew.
Kizaru stepped away from the stone chair and walked over to the wooden clone lying at his feet.
His eyes lowered slightly.
Orochimaru would probably love this thing.
"Kizaru!"
Tsunade's voice rang out from above.
Kizaru raised his head and looked toward the edge of the massive crater.
There, Hiruzen, Danzō, Tsunade, Sakumo, and Matatabi finally arrived.
Seeing Kizaru standing alone inside the crater, apparently unharmed, they all felt the weight in their chests loosen.
But Hiruzen's eyes remained sharp.
"Do not lower your guard. We have not confirmed the enemy's condition yet."
Tsunade had already been about to rush down, but Hiruzen's warning stopped her for an instant.
Danzō, however, moved faster.
Before Hiruzen even finished speaking, he had already leapt into the crater, his eye scanning the surroundings while he rushed toward Kizaru.
He reached Kizaru first.
"Kizaru."
Danzō immediately looked him over from head to toe.
"How badly are you hurt?"
"Injured?"
Kizaru blinked, then smiled.
"Well… I don't think I was injured at all."
Danzō's gaze swept over him.
His clothes were not even stained with dust.
Only then did Danzō's tense expression finally ease.
"Uchiha—"
"Kizaru!"
Before Danzō could continue, Tsunade rushed in and grabbed Kizaru by both shoulders.
She did not say anything at first. Chakra gathered in her hands as she immediately began checking his condition.
"Tsunade-senpai," Kizaru said with a helpless smile, "I already said I'm not hurt."
"Shut up and let me check."
Kizaru obediently lowered his head and let her examine him.
Only after confirming that he truly had no injuries did Tsunade finally look up.
Her eyes were full of worry, and beneath it, anger.
"Why didn't you run?"
Kizaru smiled faintly.
"Because I wanted to confirm who the enemy was."
Danzō stood beside them, his voice low.
"Kizaru. Was it really Madara Uchiha?"
By then, Hiruzen, Sakumo, and Matatabi had also descended into the crater.
Kizaru glanced at them, then nodded.
"Yes."
The air instantly became heavy.
Hiruzen stepped forward.
"How did you confirm it?"
"He was an old man, but his face was very close to the portraits of Madara Uchiha from his youth." Kizaru's tone remained slow and relaxed. "And more importantly… he admitted it himself."
Hiruzen's expression darkened.
"His eyes?"
"Three-tomoe Sharingan," Kizaru replied. "But he also used that giant chakra construct recorded in the village archives."
"Susanoo…" Sakumo muttered quietly.
Hiruzen's face turned even more solemn.
An old man.
The Sharingan.
Susanoo.
Was Madara Uchiha truly still alive?
But Tobirama-sensei personally confirmed Madara's corpse back then.
He had been dead.
There should have been no mistake.
Kizaru noticed Hiruzen falling into thought and continued on his own.
"Madara seems to have mastered a ninjutsu that can make damage disappear. After taking my strongest attack, his chakra clearly weakened and vanished."
He raised one finger lazily.
"But not long after, it appeared again. One of his three-tomoe Sharingan had turned white, and his body showed no injuries."
Hiruzen's pupils narrowed.
Danzō's expression also turned cold.
"The Uchiha clan's forbidden dōjutsu…"
"Izanagi," Hiruzen said in a low voice.
The atmosphere became even colder.
"So Madara Uchiha is truly alive…" Hiruzen murmured, his voice carrying a complicated heaviness.
Danzō's gaze sharpened.
"Hiruzen. We cannot ignore the Uchiha clan after this."
Hiruzen did not answer immediately.
But his silence was already an answer.
He understood what Danzō meant.
After a brief pause, Hiruzen looked back at Kizaru.
"Kizaru. How did the fight end?"
Kizaru slipped both hands into his pockets and smiled.
"That old man was strong like a monster."
Then he added casually,
"But I chased him off."
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
Kizaru turned and looked at the wooden figure lying behind him.
"This is the Wood Clone he left behind."
"Wood Clone?"
Tsunade, Hiruzen, and Danzō spoke almost at the same time.
Their expressions changed instantly.
How could Madara Uchiha use the First Hokage's Wood Release?
Following Kizaru's gaze, everyone looked at the humanoid wooden body lying on the ground.
Hiruzen walked over, crouched down, and placed his hand against the wooden clone.
As the one known as the Professor, his understanding of ninjutsu was among the best in the shinobi world.
After examining it carefully with chakra, Hiruzen slowly stood up.
"There is no mistake."
His voice was heavy.
"This is the First Hokage's Wood Clone Technique."
Danzō's eye darkened.
"Madara may have transplanted Lord First's cells into himself."
He had once watched Tobirama-sensei research the First Hokage's cells.
Because of that, this possibility appeared in his mind almost immediately.
"That bastard…"
Tsunade's fist clenched.
Her voice was filled with anger.
"That bastard Madara!"
"Tsunade," Hiruzen said firmly. "Calm down."
Tsunade gritted her teeth but did not speak further.
Hiruzen looked around at everyone present.
"Everything that happened here today is now classified as an S-rank secret. No one is to speak of it outside this group."
Everyone understood the weight of those words.
"Yes."
Hiruzen took out a sealing scroll from inside his robes.
After opening it, he quickly formed seals and sealed Madara's wooden clone inside.
Once that was done, Hiruzen turned back to Kizaru.
"Kizaru. Since Madara Uchiha attacked you personally, you will return to the village with us. Your safety comes first."
Kizaru scratched the side of his face, his smile becoming a little troubled.
"Sarutobi-sensei…"
He glanced at the sealed scroll, then back at Hiruzen.
"Isn't it possible that the Madara Uchiha who just got beaten back by me is the one in more danger right now?"
Hiruzen froze.
Danzō also fell silent.
Even Tsunade's expression shifted slightly.
Only then did they suddenly realize something.
Because of Madara Uchiha's terrifying reputation, they had instinctively treated him as the greater threat.
But Kizaru had fought him head-on.
And Madara had retreated.
Even if Madara was old and no longer at his peak, Kizaru had ended the battle without a single visible injury.
Not even his clothes had been damaged.
Hiruzen looked at his student again.
For the first time, his understanding of Kizaru's strength became clearer than ever.
Shimura Kizaru…
Just how far have you grown?
--------------------------------------
Support me at patreon.com/Arthorain and read upto 50 Advanced Chapters and R-18 Content!
--------------------------------------
Update schedule: 7 chapters/week
Every 200 power stones = 1 Extra Chapter
By voting with [power stones], you can easily get double the number of chapters.