Chapter 3: Eyes are the True Royalty of Ninjutsu!
The unexpected triggering of a mission and the unlocking of a new panel function brought Nara Keisuke great joy.
More importantly, it seemed this B-rank mission could be effortlessly cleared by being carried by an expert! A Sannin versus a Jōnin—the advantage was clearly on his side, wasn't it?
Nara Keisuke looked with great expectation at Tsunade beside him. Her side profile, illuminated by the faint moonlight, glowed like that of a powerful, invincible Valkyrie...
However... it seemed this wasn't going to be an easy win after all.
The blonde beauty's unparalleled charm hadn't completely clouded Nara Keisuke's judgment. At this stage, Tsunade's overt strength and prestige were indeed formidable. But one could not ignore her weakness—hemophobia!
During the Second Great Shinobi War, Tsunade had experienced the deaths of her younger brother, Nawaki, and her boyfriend, Dan Katō. Even the most exquisite medical ninjutsu could not save two bodies that had completely lost the breath of life. This incredibly painful personal experience left deep scars on Tsunade's psyche, to the point that she developed hemophobia—a condition that was fatal for a shinobi.
Even the slightest sight of blood would cause the "Number One Medic-nin of the Shinobi World" to become weak, tremble all over, and completely lose her ability to fight. This was top-secret information known only to a very small number of people in Konoha.
'Can Tsunade completely deal with the Iwagakure Jōnin before her hemophobia kicks in?'
Nara Keisuke looked at Tsunade, then at the empty road ahead, with no clear answer in his heart.
At this moment, Tsunade, who appeared confident and fearless, was also rapidly pondering this very question in her mind. If it weren't for her hemophobia, she could have taken on an entire squad of enemies like the one they were facing, pounding them into flat cakes one by one like a game of whack-a-mole.
But she just had to have hemophobia! The moment the enemy bled, Tsunade would likely lose all combat capability. The same would happen even if an ally was injured and bleeding.
'I have to kill him without causing any external wounds!'
Tsunade's gaze was firm.
'Or, a one-hit kill!'
Normally, when encountering a spy, the value of capturing them alive far exceeded that of killing them. But Tsunade right now had no confidence she could capture a Jōnin-level enemy alive without injury. The risk in battle was simply too high!
When facing an enemy, if you can't capture them alive, the only option is to execute them on the spot. For Tsunade, who was proficient in medical ninjutsu, a "no-wound kill" wasn't a particularly difficult maneuver. By using the A-rank medical ninjutsu "Chakra Scalpel," she could sever the muscles, blood vessels, and even bones inside the enemy's body without leaving an external wound, thereby causing a fatal injury.
But the real difficulty lay in the fact that the enemy spy was no ordinary shinobi and possessed an extremely rare "advanced invisibility jutsu." Tsunade's sensory abilities couldn't accurately perceive the enemy's position or posture. Whether it was healing or offensive medical ninjutsu, both required extremely high precision. Attacking an invisible enemy with a Chakra Scalpel could easily lead to striking the wrong part of the body. If she was lucky, she might still achieve a "one-hit kill." But if she was unlucky, she would instead cause a minor, bleeding injury to the enemy, and the battle situation would instantly reverse...
'It seems I can only continuously adjust my battle strategy based on the actual combat situation.'
As she thought, Tsunade basically finalized her battle plan.
'What a pain! If only I wasn't with this kid next to me...'
Tsunade turned to look at Nara Keisuke beside her and saw him staring intently at the empty road ahead with a serious expression. She couldn't help but sigh in her heart.
Forget it! Who asked me to voluntarily accept his B-rank mission?
"There's no such thing as a perfect ninjutsu in this world. As long as it's a jutsu, it will have a weakness."
Tsunade reached out and gently patted Nara Keisuke's head.
"Kid, let me teach you how to break this invisibility jutsu that's similar to the Transparency Release!"
The Transparency Release was a special Kekkei Genkai ability possessed by Konoha's Gekkō clan. Its basic effect was to "erase one's presence and turn the entire body transparent." Tsunade knew about it, partly because this Kekkei Genkai was rare and special, making it extremely difficult for ordinary ninja who weren't from the Uchiha or Hyūga clans to counter.
On the other hand, she had her good teammate who enjoyed peeking into women's bathhouses to "thank" for it. He had been pursuing these kinds of special abilities that allowed one to remain invisible since he was young.
For the reasons above, Tsunade not only knew how the Transparency Release worked but also roughly how to counter such invisibility abilities.
So what if you couldn't see through the enemy's invisibility jutsu? You just had to make it so the enemy couldn't be invisible!
'But then again, at special times like this, clans with special eyes like the Uchiha and Hyūga are really enviable...'
The blonde Senju sucker lamented inwardly.
At this moment, the Iwagakure Jōnin, Ōishi, remained in his original position, motionless, his body transparent and formless.
Ninja Art: Camouflage Concealment.
This was a high-level secret ninjutsu from Iwagakure that Ōishi had mastered. By forming hand seals and manipulating chakra, he could make his entire body transparent while simultaneously suppressing and isolating his presence, making his existence extremely faint. As long as he wasn't facing a dōjutsu clan like the Uchiha or Hyūga, Ōishi could basically avoid the observation and perception of most ninja with this technique. This secret art was his greatest asset for spying on Kikyo Castle.
Of course, just as Tsunade had said, Camouflage Concealment was by no means a perfect invisibility jutsu. One of its weaknesses was its inability to conceal the sounds of air currents generated when the user moved at high speeds.
While maintaining his transparent state, Ōishi continuously refined his chakra, changing its nature to Earth Release and temporarily storing it within his body. An ordinary ninja might not notice the faint sounds he made while moving at high speed in his concealed state. But the great Princess Tsunade, one of the Sannin, definitely would!
'I can only try to create an opportunity and escape using Earth Release.'
Ōishi wasn't arrogant enough to think he could deal with Princess Tsunade alone, even if she had a burden with her.
'Fortunately, the mission to spy on Kikyo Castle is basically complete. It's just that the director of that orphanage I just passed was so much like that shrine maiden... No, there's no need to dwell on that now!'
Ōishi cleared his mind of distracting thoughts, calmed himself, and stared intently at Tsunade and Nara Keisuke, not missing a single move they made.
The moment Tsunade raised her hand to pat Nara Keisuke's head, a sharp glint flashed in Ōishi's eyes.
"Now! Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"
The Earth Release chakra that Ōishi had been refining for a while was released from his chakra points, spreading and injecting into the ground before him. A rumbling noise suddenly came from within the flat ground, which began to tremble slightly.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The moment Ōishi completed the hand seals for the Earth Release jutsu, ferocious earthen spears, as thick as giant trees and sharply pointed, rose from the ground. They attacked Tsunade and Nara Keisuke with the speed of lightning, kicking up countless specks of dust in the process.
"An Earth Release of this speed is far from enough to hit me!"
Tsunade's hand, which was on Nara Keisuke's head, slid down and grabbed the collar of his shirt. With a powerful push from her legs, she leaped backward, deftly dodging the imposing Earth Flow Spears.
At the same time, Tsunade's gaze passed over the flying dust and the crisscrossing thicket of earth spikes, looking towards its endpoint. She knew very well that the point of origin for this Earth Release jutsu was where the enemy spy was located.
Should I attack? A thought flashed through Tsunade's mind.
No! She immediately rejected her own idea. At this distance, I'm not confident I can achieve a one-hit kill!
After a brief hesitation, Tsunade gave up the idea of attacking proactively, but she didn't forget the lesson she had just been teaching Nara Keisuke.
"Watch closely, kid!"
Tsunade, who had taken Nara Keisuke up into the air with her, also held up her index and middle fingers in front of her chest and refined her chakra. A rich, green light enveloped her entire body.
"Monstrous Strength!"
Monstrous Strength was Tsunade's most familiar frontal combat ability. Its essence was to use precise chakra control to erupt with powerful physical force. In the past, Tsunade didn't know how many enemies she had violently crushed with her "Monstrous Strength."
But what few people knew was that Monstrous Strength could be used for much more than just strong-fist taijutsu!
Whoosh—
The moment Tsunade unleashed her Monstrous Strength, a powerful gust of wind, comparable to a hurricane, erupted from her body, howling towards the mist and dust below and effortlessly sweeping it all away.
Ōishi, who had just created a precious opportunity and was about to escape using an Earth Release jutsu, was caught off guard and hit squarely by this ferocious blast of air!
Forced to form hand seals to perform the "Earth Flow Spears," Ōishi had already come out of his transparent Camouflage Concealment state. At this moment, the greyish-yellow figure standing in the fierce wind, covered in dust, couldn't have been more conspicuous! Both Tsunade and Nara Keisuke clearly saw his presence.
"Not good!"
Ōishi's brows furrowed tightly, and he decisively sped up his hand seals.
Tsunade accurately captured this scene but didn't immediately press her advantage. Instead, she first dropped Nara Keisuke, then deliberately took half a beat longer to rush over, stepping on the newly risen Earth Flow Spears, almost allowing the enemy to dive into the ground.
'Finally got my chance!'
Even though the enemy had escaped into the earth, Tsunade wasn't in a bad mood. This was one of the battle strategies she had considered.
Staring at the ground which faintly showed traces of the Earth Release, Tsunade raised her small fist again.
This time, it was with her full power:
"Monstrous Strength!"
BOOM!!
With a deafening roar, countless fragments of mud and rock shot out in all directions from the point of impact of Tsunade's fist. The forest of Earth Flow Spears that had just risen shattered like fragile reeds, breaking and collapsing. Deep, chiseled cracks spread out like a spiderweb, and the relatively flat ground was blasted into a terrifying crater nearly ten meters deep by Tsunade's single "Monstrous Strength Punch"!
Nara Keisuke raised his arms to shield his face from the flying sand and stones. In his peripheral vision, he saw the ground that had been ravaged by the monstrous sucker, and his eyelids twitched uncontrollably.
Is this the power of the Number One Medic-nin's little fist? It's simply terrifying!
Thick, dark red blood seeped out from the cracks in the broken earth, and a few drops stained Tsunade's fist.
'Blood...'
The glaring crimson color was reflected in Tsunade's clear brown pupils. The Monstrous Strength Princess, who had been so majestic a second ago, trembled all over. Her face instantly turned pale, and she fell weakly into the crater.
Nara Keisuke trotted over from behind, intending to help Tsunade up, but the ground suddenly made a strange sound.
Crack-crack—
At the edge of the ruined crater, a human-shaped mound of earth covered in cracks bizarrely rose up. The original color of the yellow mud was completely covered by the scarlet of blood, and a pungent, bloody smell wafted through the evening wind.
'That ninja spy isn't dead?'
Tsunade's pupils contracted violently. She struggled to squeeze some strength and courage from her trembling body, but the terrifying sight of blood seemed to have transported her back to the battlefield of the Second Great Shinobi War. Under the assault of this bloody smell, the heroic Princess Tsunade instantly became a delicate, withered flower, unable to withstand the wind.
'Nara clan's...'
"Don't look."
A small, fair, and slender hand covered Tsunade's trembling eyes, and Nara Keisuke's calm voice sounded in her ear.
"Leave it to me now."
As soon as Nara Keisuke's voice fell, the blood-soaked human-shaped mound shattered, revealing its true form.
The Iwagakure spy Ōishi was a bloody mess, with almost no intact flesh on his entire body. But in his ordinary black eyes, an incredibly terrifying light of life shone.
If he hadn't sped up his hand seals, if he hadn't used his most proficient Earth Release jutsu, if he hadn't fully unleashed his survival instinct... he would have been punched to death underground by that woman! Even so, Ōishi still had multiple fractures and was bleeding profusely all over his body. If he didn't receive timely medical treatment, he would certainly die.
This is one of the legendary Sannin? Such despairing power!
What a pity...
"Hahaha!"
Staring directly at Princess Tsunade, who had collapsed in the crater, Ōishi let out a terrifying, owl-like laugh.
"Is this Princess Tsunade? Such a powerful ninja, yet she's inexplicably lost her ability to fight? Exhaustion? Or... some other reason?"
Ōishi couldn't figure out the reason and decided not to bother. He struggled to pull a kunai from a hidden pocket in his clothes. The dark red iron tip, stained with a lot of blood, pointed directly at the heads of Tsunade and Nara Keisuke, his murderous intent completely undisguised.
"Let me be the one to take the head of a Sannin! Lord Third, my mission... is complete!"
Nara Keisuke stood behind Tsunade, his hands covering her eyes, and gazed calmly at the Iwagakure spy.
The expert had unexpectedly disconnected and couldn't carry him to victory, so he had to step up himself!
[Shadow Gathering Jutsu!]
A shadow tentacle silently emerged from under Nara Keisuke's feet, snaking up the back of his right leg towards the equipment pouch on his waist, and deftly pulled out a special kunai with a timed explosive tag attached.
Swish—
A glint of cold steel arrived first. The dark kunai, flashing with a chilling light, flew out from behind Nara Keisuke. The explosive tag, ignited at some point, left a trail of smoke and flames in mid-air.
"An explosive tag kunai?"
Ōishi didn't see Nara Keisuke's throwing motion, but with a simple turn of his body, the explosive power of a Jōnin still allowed him to easily dodge the special kunai thrown by Nara Keisuke.
"Too slow, kid!"
Even in his heavily injured state, the combat experience and reaction speed Ōishi displayed were still beyond what Nara Keisuke could follow.
But Nara Keisuke had never expected to kill a Jōnin with a single kunai.
BOOM!
A loud explosion roared behind Ōishi. The brilliant flash of fire illuminated his already blood-soaked body, making him look like a ferocious demon, while also invisibly stretching his shadow.
A scorching hot shockwave surged from behind. Ōishi only felt a slight heat on his back, and his heavily injured body was nearly knocked off balance by the impact of the explosive tag.
'A high-grade explosive tag! I must be careful! That kid might still have some tricks up his sleeve!'
Ōishi was very cautious. He didn't advance rashly and continued to probe with words.
"Is this your last—"
BOOM!
Before he could finish his sentence, Ōishi's voice was interrupted by another explosion from behind. But this time, it wasn't an explosive tag.
An intensely dazzling light was released from behind Ōishi, magnifying his already elongated shadow several times over.
What Nara Keisuke had just thrown was not just an ordinary explosive tag kunai, but an explosive flash kunai!
The instant the flashbang detonated, Ōishi's shadow completely overlapped with Nara Keisuke's!
A deep shadow flowed in the depths of Nara Keisuke's eyes, and dense shadow tentacles rose from behind him. The intense white light from the burning flashbang illuminated his cheeks. The black pupils and pure white sclera combined to form a pair of dark, demonic eyes that seemed to have come from hell.
"Listen. A corpse is speaking."
[A-Rank Jutsu: Lacquer Eye]
Jutsu Description: A self-developed jutsu by Nara Keisuke. A jet-black eye that perceives spiritual energy.
Jutsu Effect: 1. In the [Lacquer Eye] state, allows the user to observe the presence and flow of spiritual energy in an unobstructed field of vision. 2. In the [Lacquer Eye] state, allows perfect control over one's own spiritual energy and Yin Release chakra. Any mastered Nara clan shadow secret art can be cast instantly with a thought, without hand seals.
Jutsu Evaluation: Eyes are the true royalty of ninjutsu!
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Author's Note:
In the official databooks, the Nara clan's secret arts are basically [Secret - No Rank]. The only A-rank secret art is [Shadow Grasping Technique] (the shadow yo-yo that Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino used together in the Fourth War...). The jutsu ranks for the Nara clan's [Shadow Secret Arts] in this book have been altered by me, so I wanted to explain that.
(End of Chapter)