Chapter 124 (Patreon)

“Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!”

Naruto formed a hand seal, and a dozen shadow clones instantly appeared before charging at Kakashi from every direction.

The Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu was a forbidden technique, but Naruto had inherited the Uzumaki Clan’s extraordinary vitality and chakra reserves from his mother. That was why he had been allowed to learn it.

Kakashi watched the approaching clones with his usual listless eye.

With a few effortless movements, he disrupted their attacks and destroyed them one after another.

Naruto was already stronger than he had been at this point in the original story, but when it came to using his head, absolutely nothing had changed.

“As expected of you, Kakashi-sensei! You really are strong!”

Naruto took a deep breath and retreated more than ten meters.

“But next, I’m going to use a ninjutsu I invented myself!”

“What?”

Kakashi’s expression stiffened at those words.

Naruto had invented a ninjutsu at his age?

If that was true, then perhaps the carefree and impulsive boy was secretly a genius after all.

Kakashi closed the copy of Icha Icha Paradise in his hand, and his expression gradually became serious.

“Hehehe! Kakashi-sensei, I’ve never shown this ninjutsu to anyone else before!”

Naruto grinned as he formed another hand seal.

“Today will be its glorious debut!”

“Harem Jutsu!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Clouds of white smoke erupted all around Kakashi.

When the smoke cleared, one female version of Naruto after another appeared, surrounding him from every direction.

“What the—?!”

Even Kakashi couldn’t stop his visible eye from widening.

Hidden among the trees, Sasuke had been closely observing the battle. His face immediately turned red, and he gritted his teeth.

“That idiot… When did he come up with a technique like this?”

Sasuke stared intently at the scene.

“I’ll have him demonstrate it for me later. In private. Just once… maybe twice…”

Elsewhere in the forest, Sakura’s cheeks also turned crimson when she witnessed the scene.

Watching from farther away, Yujiro nodded approvingly. There were only four words he wanted to give Naruto.

As expected of you.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Kakashi immediately closed his eye and relied on his other senses to defeat the transformed shadow clones one after another.

When the final clone disappeared, he released a strained breath and clutched his chest. A layer of cold sweat had already formed across his forehead.

“That was close…”

“This technique is truly dangerous. An ordinary jōnin might have already fallen.”

Kakashi glanced at the ninja pouch where he kept his precious book.

“Unfortunately for you, Naruto, your opponent is me.”

“I’ve endured more trials than you can imagine. There’s no way a technique like this could defeat me!”

Kakashi proudly raised his chin.

“After all, I own at least three copies of every volume of Icha Icha Paradise!”

Naruto scratched his head, completely unable to understand what Kakashi was talking about.

“Now, it’s my turn to get serious.”

Kakashi’s expression sharpened.

In the next instant, he used the Body Flicker Jutsu and vanished without a trace.

“So fast!”

Hidden among the trees, Sasuke’s pupils contracted.

Sakura was equally stunned. Kakashi’s speed was far beyond anything either of them could follow.

“Where did he go?!”

Naruto frantically looked from side to side, but there was no sign of Kakashi anywhere.

“Watch out, Naruto!” Sasuke suddenly shouted from the right. “He’s behind you!”

Naruto finally reacted, but it was already too late.

Kakashi crouched directly behind him, bringing his hands together in the Tiger seal.

“Konoha’s Secret Taijutsu…”

Naruto’s entire body went rigid.

“One Thousand Years of Death!”

“GYAAAAAAH!”

Naruto’s agonized scream echoed through the training ground as he was launched through the air and plunged straight into the nearby river.

Sasuke felt an inexplicable chill run through his body. He instinctively swallowed and took another step back.

Sakura immediately closed her eyes, her face turning bright red.

Kakashi calmly pulled out Icha Icha Paradise again and opened it to the page he had left off on.

“Well then… back to reading.”

Watching from the distance, Yujiro couldn’t help laughing.

The same familiar move and the same familiar result.

That was Kakashi for you.

Time passed, and noon eventually arrived. Despite their efforts, none of the three had managed to take a bell from Kakashi.

Kakashi agreed to give them one more chance, but shortly afterward, he used Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique and defeated all three of them.

Over the following month, everything in Konoha continued to progress steadily.

The young shinobi of Konoha began their daily training while carrying out one D-rank mission after another.

However, while Konoha remained peaceful, the rest of the shinobi world was anything but calm.

In the span of only a month, the Akatsuki emerged and swept across the shinobi world with terrifying speed.

Beginning with the One-Tail, one tailed beast after another fell into their hands.

The jinchūriki of Iwagakure’s Four-Tails and Five-Tails were captured.

Even Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage and jinchūriki of the Three-Tails, mysteriously disappeared.

With Yagura gone, Kirigakure was temporarily placed under the leadership of Elder Genji.

Soon afterward, the Seven-Tails’ jinchūriki vanished from Takigakure. Before the other villages could even respond, reports began spreading that the Six-Tails’ jinchūriki had also disappeared.

Every major shinobi village except Konoha was thrown into a state of panic.

In just one short month, the One-Tail, Three-Tails, Four-Tails, Five-Tails, Six-Tails, and Seven-Tails had all been captured by the mysterious Akatsuki.

That left only the Eight-Tails in Kumogakure, along with the Two-Tails and Nine-Tails in Konoha.

During that time, Minato had approached Yujiro to discuss the situation. However, Yujiro’s answer had remained the same.

There was no need to worry.

Hearing that, Minato was able to set his concerns aside.

When he thought about it carefully, Yujiro’s unfathomable strength, combined with Konoha’s current military power, truly left them with little reason to fear the Akatsuki.

The Konoha of today was no longer the Konoha of the past.

Previously, it had possessed little more than the reputation of being the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

Now, however, Konoha was unquestionably the most powerful village in the entire shinobi world.

Its highest level of combat power was enough to overwhelm any of the Five Great Nations.

Minato, Jiraiya, and Tsunade were all Kage-level shinobi.

The village also possessed three wielders of the Mangekyō Sharingan—Uchiha Fugaku, Uchiha Shisui, and Uchiha Itachi.

Then there were Kakashi and Might Guy.

On top of that, Konoha still had the Nine-Tails and Yujiro, whose true strength remained impossible to measure.

With such overwhelming combat power, what reason did they have to fear the Akatsuki?

That was precisely why Yujiro remained unconcerned.

What interested him now was discovering how to obtain the other powers that existed within the shinobi world.

He already possessed chakra and the senjutsu of the three great Sage Regions. The only powers he had yet to obtain were the powers of Asura and Indra.

With that thought in mind, Yujiro picked up his blade and left the bedroom with a faint smile.

It was time to find his two young students.