Peerless in the West, Tachibana Muneshige (Part 1)

The sound of footsteps slowly approached, and thirteen or fourteen figures appeared from around the corner.

The man leading them had a somber expression, a scar across his jaw forming an X, and a bandage covering one eye. His face was ashen, veins throbbing on his forehead.

It was the Pot Kage, Shimura Danzō.

After Danzō and the Root arrived at the scene, he glanced at the devastated area and at Bing San, whose left hand was dripping blood, standing in the center.

The accumulated water on the ground had receded, leaving only a large, clean, washed-out open space.

Jiraiya, with Gamaken to his left and right, protected Bing San and Asuma in the middle. Asuma was bleeding from his left shoulder and side ribs.

Although Bing San was disheveled, his eyes were bright, filled with cold killing intent!

Tachibana Muneshige waved his hand, signaling his subordinates to retreat.

"Sir, please let me cover your retreat," said the man who had originally held a sword, standing beside Tachibana Muneshige.

Tachibana Muneshige waved his hand again. "No need. You can't stop him. When you get back, tell the Chiyo Siblings I did my best. Go." With that, Tachibana Muneshige took two steps forward.

"Sir, then let me cover your retreat with you."

The swordsman pulled out a scroll from behind him and threw it to the remaining ninja behind him, saying, "You, hurry and leave. Plan B, retreat. Someone will meet you there."

Danzo's eyes reddened, his face ashen as he roared:

"Stop this act of master-servant affection, old man.

None of you will escape.

Come!

Let this old man see how much strength you have left."

With that, Danzo clenched his jaw and furiously began forming hand seals.

Danzo and Hiruzen quickly retreated, pulling Asuma with them. This was the peak era for the Third Hokage and Shimura Danzo, with Jiraiya only at the very bottom of the top tier. Danzo, meanwhile, was at least mid-tier.

Tachibana Muneshige wasn't angered. He brandished his spear and said:

"Youngster, let this old man teach you what Wind Release truly is."

Tachibana Muneshige then held his spear horizontally with his right hand, and with his left, he swept from the hilt towards the blade. A faint blue hue attached itself to the spear, and then, holding the spear with both hands, he vanished instantly.

The man who had been holding a sword also removed his headscarf, revealing a golden buzz cut, a hooked nose, slightly uneven eyes, and thin eyebrows, giving him a somewhat androgynous appearance.

He pulled out a kunai from behind him and blocked the pursuing Root Ninja.

Jiraiya quickly retreated with Bing San and Asuma. After handing Bing San and Asuma over to a vigilant Root Ninja, he returned to the front to attack the man blocking their path.

In the ninja world, there were no rules against ganging up on someone.

The moment he reappeared, Tachibana Muneshige thrust his spear directly at Danzo's face. Danzo sidestepped, turning his head as his hand seals were completed.

Wind Release: Wind Blade.

A barely perceptible wind blade flew towards Tachibana Muneshige. Tachibana Muneshige stopped and held his spear flat, using it to block Danzo's ninjutsu.

After expelling the Wind Release, Danzo casually pulled out a kunai from his back and thrust it at Tachibana Muneshige's right chest.

Tachibana Muneshige bent backward to dodge, simultaneously forming a hand seal.

Danzo's thrust missed. He turned and raised his leg to kick Tachibana Muneshige's shin.

Tachibana Muneshige completed his hand seals and let out a low cry: "Ninja Art: Great Whirlwind."

Tachibana Muneshige, in a very awkward posture, touched the ground with his short blade and began to spin with a gust of wind, looking like a fallen top.

A buzzing, piercing sound emanated from the faint blue chakra around his feet.

Danzo narrowed his eyes and, as soon as he raised his leg, leaped backward. He rapidly formed hand seals and shouted: "Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!"

Tachibana Muneshige followed suit, leaping back to dodge the incoming wind blade.

With a BOOM, the wind blade sliced through rows of houses before disappearing.

Amidst the rumbling sounds of collapsing houses, the two quickly changed positions and stood their ground.

A large portion of the civilian district had been flattened by Danzo and Bing San.

In a flash, the two exchanged a round of blows, a mix of ninjutsu, taijutsu, spear techniques, and weapon attacks, thrilling and dangerous.

Remarkably, after a round of combat, neither had made physical contact with the other.

The man in the rear was surrounded by multiple opponents, sustaining two more injuries, but two Root Ninja were also groaning on the ground. It seemed to be a trade of injuries.

Another Root Ninja brought over the person protecting San and Asuma.

Both of them were dead. One appeared to have died from a slit throat, while the other seemed to have been stabbed in the heart with a kunai.

The bodies of both were intact and undisturbed. It seemed they were killed instantly without even a chance to fight back.

Bing San didn't recognize either of the deceased. This was the first time Bing San and Asuma had been so close to death, and the first time they had seen dead bodies.

They stared blankly as the Root Ninja examined the bodies. Suddenly, Asuma collapsed onto one of the corpses and burst into tears.

"Brother Shinnoya, Brother Shinnoya, wake up! Brother Shinnoya, sob sob sob..." Asuma hugged the man who had been stabbed with a kunai, crying with snot and tears.

Bing San felt only fear, the fear of death. Power, Bing San's heart cried out incessantly, power. If I don't have power, I'll surely die, won't I?

At this moment, the Root Ninja who was examining the two bodies patted Bing San's head, looking at Asuma and the two bodies with complex emotions. It was Shimura Yujin.

"Yi Wu, take them back." After speaking, Yong Ren quickly charged towards the man who was intercepting them. In Yong Ren's retreating back, Bing San saw steadfastness, hatred, and sorrow.

Shimura Danzō and Tachibana Muneshige were still confronting each other, but Danzō's aura was growing stronger, while Tachibana Muneshige's sharpness felt increasingly faint.

"You're old, you should be enjoying your retirement at home. Why are you still risking your life out here?" Danzō began to speak to Tachibana Muneshige.

Tachibana Muneshige smiled bitterly and said, "Yes, I'm old. That's why the young ones can't wait for me to die."

He then shook his spear, flicked his left and right hands, and it transformed into two blades, one long in his right hand and one short in his left.

Then he said, "However, for the Land of Wind, this old bone of mine can still cut down a junior like you."

After speaking, he sheathed the short blade and charged at Danzō with the long blade in one hand.

Danzō pulled out a shuriken from behind him, spun it in his hand, and blew on it lightly with his mouth.

The shuriken transformed into a sharp, large Chakra shuriken, which he threw towards Tachibana Muneshige.

While charging forward, Tachibana Muneshige formed a hand seal and disappeared with a whoosh. He reappeared in front of Danzō.

Danzō's pupils constricted, and cold sweat instantly dripped from his forehead.

Danzō tried to dodge, but it was too late. With a shing, a cut appeared on Danzō's forearm, and blood spurted out instantly.

Only then did Tachibana Muneshige's voice ring out: Ninjutsu, One Flash.

Tachibana Muneshige then took a step forward, placed his left hand on the unsheathed short blade, and shouted again: Ninjutsu, Forward Slash.

Tachibana Muneshige drew his short blade with a solemn expression, and a cold crescent moon flew out from his chest, heading straight for Danzō's neck.

Danzō had no time to dodge. The glint of the blade reflected in Danzō's sweat-drenched eyes, lonely and cold.

"Sir..."

"Lord Danzō, be careful!"

"Clan Head, be careful!"

At the critical moment, a slender staff flew from above a house to the side, striking the incoming short blade.

It was the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, dressed in battle armor.