Amamiya Ruri

As the major nations established ninja villages one after another, the Land of Waterfalls, despite its tiny territory, refused to be outdone. In the third year after the founding of Konoha, it finally established Takigakure.

Today was the day Amamiya Ruri, hailed as the strongest ninja in the Land of Waterfalls, was to take office as the first Takikage.

Ruri had met the current daimyo of the Land of Waterfalls five years ago and helped him overthrow a tyranny to ascend to his position. However, in terms of prestige, he was merely average, on par with the other elders.

Therefore, the daimyo's appointment of him as the shadow of Takigakure was met with some resistance.

Ruri looked at the few people in the conference room, feeling somewhat agitated. When he helped the daimyo take power, he had indeed intended to foster a connection and gain support, but he never expected to end up as the Takikage. Even if it was a small ninja village, it was still a shadow.

In truth, the daimyo had his own agenda. With the village newly established, the position of leader—the shadow—had to be given to his own people to be safe. Who knew if those miscellaneous ninjas might harbor selfish motives? He had funded the village for the sake of the Land of Waterfalls, not for these ninjas who might not be truly loyal.

Just as Ruri was worrying about how to handle the situation, a "ding" suddenly echoed in his mind.

[Host has assumed the position of Takikage. Village Leader System activated.]

What? My cheat has arrived? Ruri was stunned for five seconds. He had been in the Naruto world for nearly ten years without any system or golden finger; everything he had now was earned through his own cautious efforts. The sudden arrival of a system left him unable to react.

[Name: Amamiya Ruri]

[Overall Strength: Elite Jonin]

[Talent: Jonin]

[Nature Transformation: Wind, Lightning]

[Special Abilities: None]

[Evaluation: Reaching the strength of an Elite Jonin with the talent of a Jonin—young man, you have done very well.]

Looking at his attribute panel in his mind, Ruri had to sigh; the system was quite accurate. If he hadn't plagiarized ninjutsu like the Rasengan and Chidori, and secretly borrowed many secret techniques to push his strength to the Elite Jonin level, he would have been stuck at the Jonin level, just like his talent. He had clearly felt his growth stagnate over the past two years; it seemed his talent was indeed limited.

System brother, you've arrived so late. You should at least give me a beginner's gift pack or an activation reward, right? Ruri secretly hoped. If he could further improve his strength, he would be confident in suppressing everyone present through sheer power alone. After all, the ninja world was a place where strength was respected.

[Congratulations to the host for gaining the recognition of the daimyo and the village high-ups to become Takikage. The reward has been issued; please check it.]

It just issued the reward directly? Ruri was taken aback. On second thought, it made sense. Since the daimyo had already made the appointment, even if everyone in the conference room opposed him, he, Amamiya Ruri, had to be the Takikage—unless they didn't want the support of the Land of Waterfalls. Without the material and financial backing of the Land of Waterfalls, trying to support a ninja village with just a few ninja clans was nothing but a pipe dream.

Even clans as powerful as the Uchiha and the Senju had to rely on the support of the Land of Fire to establish a ninja village.

Where do I check the reward? As Ruri's thought flickered, a space seemed to appear before his eyes, with a pitch-black sphere floating in mid-air.

Truth-Seeking Orb?! Ruri recognized the sphere at a glance. Although it was different from the ones hanging behind the Sage of Six Paths—there was only one—even a single one was a massive weapon of destruction possessing Six Paths-level power! Even a body reanimated by Impure World Reincarnation would be reduced to dust if it touched it. In an era where no one possessed Six Paths-level power, this was a presence that could kill gods and Buddhas alike!

With such an heaven-defying item, he wouldn't even fear the God of Shinobi, Senju Hashirama, let alone Uchiha Madara. After all, he could just turn it into a shield; no Wood Release or Susanoo could break through it. However, Ruri was skeptical—would the system really make him invincible right from the start?

[Host, rest assured. The Truth-Seeking Orb is authentic.]

The system seemed to sense Ruri's thoughts and provided a timely reminder. Yet, this only made Ruri more suspicious. He had never heard of a system so generous as to grant a world-destroying divine artifact after the very first task.

[Truth-Seeking Orb: A black sphere containing all five elemental natures and Yin-Yang power. It transcends Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tōta, can nullify all ninjutsu in the world, and erases anything it touches. It can be transformed into any shape for attack or defense according to the user's will. Since the host only possesses Wind and Lightning natures, you cannot control it for long, nor can you change its form.]

Ruri read the information about the Truth-Seeking Orb with a face full of skepticism. He had been so excited he could barely contain himself while reading the first half, but he calmed down after finishing it. As expected, there were limitations.

The Truth-Seeking Orb was inherently a product of seven natures combined. Since he only possessed two, it was already a stroke of luck to obtain it. Using it flexibly was simply impossible. Think about it: could a ten-year-old child swing a three-hundred-kilogram hammer? It would be a miracle if they could even lift it, let alone expect them to perform various techniques with it.

"Lord Takikage, what do you think of our proposal? We will form the Takigakure Elder Council to handle the village's affairs, sharing your burden. It would be easy and convenient, and you would also have an answer for the daimyo."

An old man sitting below Ruri spoke up. They had reached a decision while Ruri was busy researching the system.

An Elder Council? And they want to handle the village's affairs? Ruri hadn't been listening carefully while he was distracted by the system, and he hadn't expected them to make such a proposal.

Establishing an Elder Council was fine; even Konoha had one. It could distribute power and put the major clans at ease. Otherwise, it would be too heartless to ask them to hand over their vast family estates without any guarantees.

But an Elder Council that handled all the village's affairs? That was unheard of. The council could offer suggestions, propose specific measures, or even impeach the shadow, but the true person in charge of the village was the shadow!

By doing this, they were undoubtedly transferring all the power belonging to the shadow to the Elder Council, leaving Ruri as nothing more than a figurehead Takikage. If not for the need to secure the support of the Land of Waterfalls, he probably wouldn't even be needed as a figurehead.

Trying to turn me into a puppet, are you... Ruri narrowed his eyes. It seemed these people had been prepared for a long time; otherwise, they wouldn't have launched a coordinated attack during the elder meeting. If the system hadn't activated, he would have been in a real bind today, given his insufficient strength. But now, everything was different.

[Name: Kubi Ichiro]

[Overall Strength: Elite Jonin]

[Talent: Jonin]

[Nature Transformation: Water, Wind]

[Special Abilities: Summoning - Lizard]

[Evaluation: Although his stats are only at the Jonin level, he possesses a powerful summoning technique. Even if he slacks off in battle, he can play a huge role.]

Surname Kubi? It seems his summoning is the Kubi Giant Lizard. The Kubi Giant Lizard, Chubimaru, from the Naruto series was definitely not weak—at the very least, it reached the level of Gamabunta. With such a giant summon, his overall strength being rated as Elite Jonin was no surprise, and it wouldn't be strange if he could exert quasi-shadow-level destructive power on the battlefield.

"Lord Takikage, why don't we just decide on this..." Kubi Ichiro continued to pressure Ruri. But before he could finish his sentence, a black sphere appeared out of thin air in the next second, flashing past his side and covering his entire left leg.

It vanished.

Kubi Ichiro's left leg seemed as if it had never existed; the portion from the knee down was completely gone. Not even a drop of blood remained; only the smooth, severed edge of his trousers proved that something had been there.

"This..." Everything happened in a split second. Kubi Ichiro stared at the mysterious black sphere in the air, unable to speak. He hadn't felt a shred of pain, yet his left leg had simply disappeared.

The conference room was deathly silent. Their gazes were fixed on the position of the Truth-Seeking Orb. That mysterious and powerful aura was a force they could never hope to touch! And yet, he...

For the first time, everyone present turned serious. They realized they had severely underestimated this young Takikage. They had thought he was at most an Elite Jonin, but it appeared that wasn't the case. Although most of Kubi Ichiro's strength relied on his summon, he himself was a formidable Jonin, and yet, not a single person had reacted when Ruri made his move.

It was too fast—so fast that it left no trace. It was hard to imagine what would happen if such an attack landed on them.

Not to mention the others, even Ruri himself hadn't expected such a result. The power of the Truth-Seeking Orb was simply unstoppable for ordinary ninjas!

Ruri soon regained his composure. After all, he was the one who had manifested the Truth-Seeking Orb, and just as the system description stated, although it was the genuine article, its usage time was limited. In just this short while, he had already exhausted nearly half of his chakra, so he had to finish everything before it ran out.

"Proposal rejected. Do any of you have any objections?" Ruri pulled the Truth-Seeking Orb to his side and said in a voice that hovered between audible and ethereal, "My aim was a bit off just now. If it were a hand, losing one should make it impossible to even perform summoning jutsu, right?"

After all, they were the combat strength of his own village. Takigakure was weak, and he would need them to develop the village in the future. Ruri could intimidate them, but crippling one of them directly would still have a negative impact.

Kubi Ichiro looked down at his pant leg and remained silent, his face dark as he glanced at the square-jawed man to the side.

[Name: Hagane Maomori]
[Overall Strength: Elite Jonin]
[Talent: Jonin]
[Affinity: Earth, Lightning]
[Special Ability: Steel Release]
[Evaluation: Possesses the Kekkei Genkai Steel Release and has achieved decent mastery in taijutsu, though his ninjutsu leaves much to be desired.]

Steel Release was a decent Kekkei Genkai. It was rare for Hagane Maomori to bring his clan to defect to Takigakure. A summoning beast could only strengthen one person's combat power, but a Kekkei Genkai could benefit an entire clan, providing a steady stream of elite ninjas.

However, all the famous Kekkei Genkai clans in the ninja world had already defected to the Five Great Ninja Villages. Hagane Maomori, who brought the Hagane Clan to Takigakure, must have had his own agenda.

"A Steel Release ninja, is it?" Ruri tapped the air in front of him, and the Truth-Seeking Orb drifted slowly toward Hagane Maomori. No one dared to stand in its way.

"Takikage, I think..." Hagane Maomori swallowed hard, seemingly wanting to say something. His intuition told him that even his Steel Release, which was touted as being able to withstand any ninjutsu, could not block this black sphere.

"Steel Release: Steel Hardening!" The pressure exerted by the Truth-Seeking Orb caused Hagane Maomori to instinctively activate his Steel Release. The skin exposed to the air took on a metallic luster; ordinary ninjutsu would be unable to break through such a defense.

Yet, it was all in vain. The Truth-Seeking Orb passed through Hagane Maomori's left palm without the slightest resistance. After pausing for a brief moment, it swept upward, and in the blink of an eye, an entire arm was gone.

This time, everyone saw it clearly: the so-called strongest defense of Steel Release could not hinder this black sphere in the slightest. Hagane Maomori, who could be called the strongest physical specimen in the Land of Waterfalls, could only watch helplessly as his arm vanished.

Terrifying.

Truly, terrifying.

Kubi Ichiro had already made a name for himself during the Warring States period, and Hagane Maomori was the head of the only Kekkei Genkai clan in the Land of Waterfalls. Neither of them was a match for Amamiya Ruri; they didn't even have the power to fight back, let alone the other small fry.

At this point, no one dared to mention the Council of Elders again. By crippling one arm and one leg of the two strongest men in the village, Ruri had displayed such a domineering style that it was now a question of whether Takigakure would even need a Council of Elders in the future.

"I don't suppose there's any issue with me wearing this hat, is there?" Ruri placed the Takikage Hat from the table onto his head. The Takikage Hat was modeled after the styles of the other major ninja villages, colored in the signature "gay purple" of Takigakure, with the character "Waterfall" emblazoned in the center—the symbol of a Kage.

Casually stowing the Truth-Seeking Orb back into his system space, Ruri breathed a slight sigh of relief under the cover of the Takikage Hat. In just this short time, his chakra had dropped to a mere tenth; the Truth-Seeking Orb was simply not something he could afford at his current level.

"Now then, let's talk business. Will the Five Great Nations sit idly by and watch a ninja village in another country claim the title of Kage?"