Combining these abilities with the Shuriken Throwing Technique, Xing Ran discovered that he was actually an expert with shuriken. He could hit whatever he aimed at and even calculate with perfect clarity the trajectories of shuriken after they collided with one another.
Thud, thud, thud.
After several dull impacts, Xing Ran inspected the results. Behind tree trunks, behind rocks, and on targets outside his line of sight, a shuriken was firmly embedded in each one. The effect was no different from the shuriken throwing art Itachi had demonstrated before Sasuke in the original story.
"Mm, not bad. Super Brainpower really is the most powerful of all abilities." Seeing the results he had achieved after just half a day of training, Xing Ran nodded in satisfaction. At the same time, he came to a new conclusion.
There were many types of geniuses in the shinobi world, but the easiest kind to recognize were those who learned everything quickly. Itachi, Sasuke, and Orochimaru were prime examples.
After collecting the kunai he had thrown, Xing Ran sank into thought. What should I learn next? With Super Brainpower, he learned everything quickly. It would be far too wasteful not to make full use of such a great ability.
Over this period, he had adapted to many things. After awakening Superman's abilities, the physical enhancement brought by Steel Body had been extremely obvious, as could be seen from his explosively increased Chakra. Chakra was the product of physical energy and spiritual energy combined. Now that his physical energy had suddenly become stronger, it was only natural for his Chakra to increase as well. (Xing Ran's spiritual energy had not weakened; only his spiritual resistance had been reduced. It could be understood like a balloon—the volume was still the same, but the inside was filled with air of extremely low density.)
The drastic changes in his Chakra also meant he needed to readapt to many things. There were the basic Three Body Techniques, the Mind Body Switch Technique—the only family secret technique he could currently show off—and then the Konoha Style Taijutsu, Konoha Style Swordsmanship, and the Shuriken Throwing Art he had begun practicing today, all specifically trained to better control his own power.
Xing Ran did not want to end up like Izuku Midoriya in My Hero Academia, possessing tremendous power but not knowing how to use it, hurting both himself and others.
After a round of adaptation training, Xing Ran finally felt that he could control his new strength. Yet he was no longer sure what he should do next.
Hai Yi had not returned yet. Once he came back, perhaps Xing Ran could obtain more Yamanaka Clan secret techniques from him. In the past, he had not paid much attention to training methods that strengthened the mind and soul. It would be best if he could get solutions directly from Hai Yi.
Whoosh, whoosh.
A burst of wind suddenly sounded beside Xing Ran.
"Yamanaka Xingran, Lord Hokage wants you to come over." An Anbu suddenly appeared where the sound had come from. After delivering the Hokage's order concisely, he did not wait for Xing Ran's reply. With a Body Flicker Technique, he vanished again.
Xing Ran swiftly glanced at him. Before the Anbu left, he had already memorized his face. It was entirely an instinctive reaction. In truth, an Anbu who delivered an order and promptly departed like this was the least likely to be an impostor. This was different from the previous summons for interrogation; no escort was needed. He simply had to follow the order and visit the Hokage himself.
At the center of Konoha, in the Hokage Building, the Third Hokage helplessly took a hard drag from his pipe, repeatedly signaling for the person beside him to leave.
"Hiruzen, demanding compensation from the Tsuchikage is what benefits us most in this matter. The real culprit can be dealt with later. Why can't you understand that?" Shimura Danzō was growing angry as well. This Hiruzen Sarutobi had become more and more soft-hearted with age. Only benefits secured in hand were real. Was the true culprit really that important?
"Danzo, show some magnanimity. It does not matter if we gain no benefits, but as Konoha's decision-maker, I will not allow anyone to deceive us like this, much less use us." The Third Hokage's tone was utterly resolute.
Ever since Morino Ibiki had reported the results of Yamanaka Xingran's interrogation, the Third Hokage had thought about many things.
What he said to Danzo on the surface might have sounded like angry words, but there were deeper considerations behind them. Impersonating Iwagakure ninja to kill Konoha's shinobi was deception. In the end, whether they acted for profit or genuinely failed to uncover the truth, the true mastermind behind the scenes would achieve his goal of using Konoha against Iwagakure. The worst outcome would be dragging the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth back into the quagmire of war. Even at best, it would create enormous cracks in the peace they had just obtained.
Based on Ibiki's analysis, the Third Hokage was highly confident that Kirigakure was not behind this matter. Kumogakure was.
The Third Raikage had died while surrounded by ninja from the Land of Earth, and the two sides had yet to reach an agreement over the return of his body. Meanwhile, the Land of Fire was the target the Land of Lightning had always wished to surpass. Stirring up two enemies and making them exhaust each other was the strategy that benefited Kumogakure of the Land of Lightning the most.
However, the Third Hokage could not state this openly. Since the Battle of Kannabi Bridge had ended, there had been no more large-scale wars between the nations. Instead, they had shifted into sporadic, small-scale regional conflicts.
The Third Hokage could foresee that if they held on for a while longer and let the nations—more precisely, the Land of Lightning, which still refused to give up—see that continuing the war had no meaning beyond increasing losses, then the complete end of the Third Shinobi World War and the arrival of true peace would be within sight.
Therefore, the Third Hokage intended to suppress the entire matter, maintain peaceful diplomacy with the Land of Earth, remain silent toward the Land of Lightning, and buy time to achieve peace at the smallest cost.
But Danzo represented the Radical Faction. If Danzo shifted his attention toward Kumogakure, a new wave of war might flare up again and bury this favorable situation entirely.
After hearing the Third Hokage's words, Danzo remained silent for a long time. He had also considered that Kumogakure was very likely responsible, but the Hokage of the Conservative Faction had not mentioned it at all. Even provoking the Hokage with the issue of peace with the Land of Earth had failed to make the Third Hokage bring up the Cloud Ninja first. Danzo felt like a rat trying to drag a turtle—completely at a loss.
He was part of the Radical Faction, yes, but that did not mean he liked doing thankless work. If they were to fight the Cloud Ninja, it would definitely not be a small affair. Regardless of victory or defeat, there would inevitably be numerous casualties and heavy losses.
If this matter were brought up by the Third Hokage, Danzo would once again have an excuse to raise a motion of no confidence against him. It was not impossible to find a way to force the Third Hokage from office, just as he had done back then.
That way, he could both help the village punish its true enemy and make this increasingly incompetent Hiruzen Sarutobi step down and yield his position. Such a good opportunity was far too rare.
Thud, thud, thud. Just as Danzo was considering how to make the Third Hokage mention the Cloud Ninja first, a knock sounded at the door.
"Come in."
This time, the Third Hokage did not spare Danzo any consideration. The knock had come at exactly the right time. If Danzo continued pestering him like this, there was no telling what he would eventually be forced into doing.
Before you continue