Wanted: Kaedeji's Technique!

Konoha's White Fang was undoubtedly a highly reliable leader. Most importantly, he valued his comrades, which was good news for Kaedeji.

If it had been Orochimaru or someone else, they might very well have taken advantage of their comrades being in danger to bypass them and attack the enemy directly.

Kaedeji retreated to the camp in a rather bedraggled state. Though he seemed to have had an impressive moment in the spotlight, the entire process had lasted only a few dozen seconds—don't expect two zombies with less than half their strength in life to truly possess the combat power to turn the tide. Holding off one of Chiyo's Chikamatsu Collection puppets was already an exceptional performance.

But the others did not see it that way. Just looking at the Konoha Ninja lying all around Kaedeji, only Kaedeji had used such a surprising technique at that critical moment, preventing the deaths of even more comrades.

Medical Ninja were always respected and noticed. If that Medical Ninja also possessed a unique ninjutsu and had earned military merit, they would be even more sought after.

By the bonfire at the southeastern corner of the Konoha camp, Kaedeji wore a weary expression. Just as he was about to pick up a few pieces of charcoal to make the flames burn brighter, he quickly realized there was no need. Another ninja had already done it before him.

Status was revealed in the smallest details.

"Thanks. So, Lord Sakumo defeated the enemy leader in one battle and even cut off one of her arms?"

"That's right, exactly! Lord Hatake Sakumo's moves looked ordinary, but every strike always shattered every obstacle before him, whether puppets or people! The sight of the enemy leader fleeing while clutching her severed arm was truly pathetic. Too bad you didn't see it."

The others chattered away, surrounding Kaedeji in their midst. Their faces showed admiration, and when they occasionally looked at Kaedeji, there was also a trace of fear in their eyes.

It was not that they feared Kaedeji's strength. Kaedeji had not reached the level where he could use absolute power to force everyone to watch him dance.

It was simply the instinctive sense of alarm that arose when facing a Medical Ninja who played with corpses.

The ability Kaedeji had displayed during the day was simply too outrageous, surpassing everyone's understanding.

"It's like using the dead as puppets, and they can even use the ninjutsu they had in life... No matter how you look at it, this is a forbidden technique."

Tsume Inuzuka scratched her cheek and muttered, "Right, Kuromaru? You definitely haven't forgotten that smell, have you? This guy keeps insisting it's a kind of Medical Ninjutsu, which only makes it even more terrifying. I need to rethink what I know about Medical Ninja wearing white."

Kuromaru barked loudly beside her.

"Terrifying, but effective."

Morino Ise, wrapped in bandages, walked over. "Because of this technique, we killed several extra enemies and saved some comrades from the enemy leader's surprise attack. Adding that up and subtracting the losses, its significance is enormous."

He intended to give Kaedeji a full-body examination, but Kaedeji refused.

"Lord Morino, you may have forgotten that I'm also a Medical Ninja," Kaedeji said.

A trace of regret flashed through Morino Ise's eyes. In truth, he had wanted to take the opportunity to touch the scroll at Kaedeji's waist. Every corpse used in the Dead Soul Technique, whether destroyed or not, had ultimately been collected back into Kaedeji's scroll.

Very cautious, Morino Ise judged. He should have focused earlier on this unusual Dead Soul Technique. Perhaps Aburame Ryoma would be interested.

No, not just Aburame Ryoma. Even the legendary Lord Shimura Danzō might be interested. They said Lord Danzō was a man who gathered all darkness within himself. If he could offer up this brand-new Dead Soul Technique, perhaps he might gain an audience with Lord Danzō.

Morino Ise felt even more regretful, but the opportunity had already passed. A cautious fellow like Kaedeji was unlikely to give him a chance to pry any deeper.

Kaedeji sat among the crowd, conversing like a normal person. He did not put on the cold, unapproachable air that many Konoha Ninja had expected.

This sort of mingling with a crowd was extremely rare for Kaedeji. If he had done this in the past, he would have caught a large number of germs from so many people and died when his body collapsed.

From now on, I can be considered somewhat famous. Although I'm still unimaginably far from being a "genius" people sing praises of, I've at least taken this opportunity to display my particular talent, making future actions easier... Being able to achieve this on the battlefield against Sunagakure is truly ideal.

For Kaedeji, there was no opponent more suitable than Sunagakure.

This concerned his plan for Body Replacement. He had envisioned many theoretically viable methods, but the one most likely to give him a perfect body undoubtedly required starting with Sunagakure. This was the crucial second step.

The first step, naturally, was to display his Corpse Manipulation ability in an appropriate setting and use it to make a name for himself. At the very least, he could not be branded as some heretical path, lest ill-intentioned people purge or forcibly recruit him.

Kaedeji did not want some Tongue Sealing Technique planted on his tongue.

At this time, Sunagakure should have begun researching the forbidden technique of Human Puppets. Although the research would be forced to stop several years later, it still provided crucial help to Sasori of the Red Sands, the master of Human Puppets.

The trigger for the Second Great Ninja War had been Hanzō of Amegakure declaring war on the three great nations.

The trigger for the Third Great Ninja War, naturally, was Sasori of the Red Sands assassinating the Third Kazekage. Having lost his parents at a young age, Sasori of the Red Sands had deeply felt the fragility and fleeting nature of flesh and blood. He had embarked upon the path of Human Puppets without hesitation, even defecting from his village.

My Corpse Manipulation should have caught the attention of Sunagakure's upper ranks by now. It's dangerous, but it is indeed my opportunity... Flames danced in Kaedeji's eyes.

An Anbu ninja appeared before Kaedeji. "Genin Kaedeji, by Lord Sakumo's order, you are being exceptionally promoted to Chunin due to your outstanding performance on the battlefield. Report to the central command camp immediately."

Chiyo lowered her head and stared at her severed arm without saying a word.

"Sister, it's only an arm. With the village's technology, we can absolutely fit you with a prosthetic more useful than your original arm," Ebizo consoled her.

Chiyo frowned and viciously threw her handkerchief into the medicine before her. The filthy blood staining it slowly spread through the porcelain basin.

"I'm not worried about my arm. I led the development of Human Puppets, so of course I know I can make myself a puppet arm. I've even designed what mechanisms to install in the new arm and what type of ninjutsu to pair with it."

Chiyo suddenly swept her sleeve aside, overturning the medicine before her. "I only regret that I didn't use the opportunity when that arm was cut off to poison Hatake Sakumo! If I had injected deadly poison into my blood beforehand, then as long as a few drops had fallen onto that guy, everything would have been different. I would have had the opportunity to take revenge."

She was vexed, hating herself for not being ruthless enough. She had clearly had an opportunity. Even failure might have been another kind of victory, yet she had not seized it.

Ebizo remained silent. He no longer knew how to deal with his sister, who had become increasingly sinister, so he instead took out a report.

"Take a look at something that interests you. Kaedeji, sixteen years old, War Orphan, Genin, Medical Ninja."

The paper Ebizo unfolded was filled with question marks. "No Kekkei Genkai and no famous teacher, yet he can make full use of corpses. There have even been cases of him using corpses as explosive devices... They say this technique is called the Dead Soul Technique."

"The Dead Soul Technique? What kind of Dead Soul Technique is this? He's only a Genin. Could he have spent many years perfecting the Dead Soul Technique?"

Chiyo suddenly fell silent, frowning as she thought hard. Of course she knew what the true Dead Soul Technique looked like, but how was this possible? How had that Kaedeji done it? She had not seen him use Chakra threads to remotely control those corpses either.

Genjutsu? That was not right either. How could Genjutsu be used on the dead and make corpses move? No Genjutsu could possibly be that absurd.

Ebizo said, "We have also identified the Puppet Master he Summoned. Based on the limited physical characteristics, he should have been from our village. He was defeated and killed in a battle one month ago. During the retreat, our people failed to destroy the corpse in time, allowing the people of Konohagakure to take it away as a trophy."

Puppet Masters of Sunagakure were a high-level profession. Without exceptional talent, one did not even qualify to enter the field and could only honestly become a traditional ninja.

That meant there were only so many Puppet Masters in the entire ninja world, and those who had reached the level of Jonin were even rarer. A careful investigation would reveal clues.

"Pass down the order. List this Kaedeji as an A-rank mission target. I want him alive—or obtaining his Dead Soul Technique will do!"

Chiyo's voice was stern and fierce. "I must obtain his technique. It is crucial to the village!"