Kakuzu: So Your Surname Is Senju, Huh?

In the dim forest, Diejian kicked off a thick tree trunk, leaping and darting between the trees.

From the blind spot of Diejian as he sprinted through the air, a wooden kunai came hurtling toward him.

Diejian twisted in midair and knocked the kunai away with the wooden sword clenched in his hand, but he lost his balance and fell toward the ground.

However, just before he hit the ground, Diejian righted himself and landed safely, quickly ducking into a gap between the tree roots.

"Just as I thought. Sakumo still has the edge when it comes to weapons and perception."

After letting out a breath, Diejian set off running again.

The three of them were now engaged in a mock battle that used the entire forest.

The rules were to split up and prepare for battle. After a set amount of time, the fight would begin. Being captured, surrendering, or losing the ability to fight counted as defeat.

Not long after the battle began, Diejian was attacked by Sakumo.

Though Diejian thought he had hidden himself well this time, the sudden attack had thrown him into a panic. He lost his chance to counterattack and could only keep running.

No matter how he hid or how far he ran, Sakumo doggedly kept him in his sights.

Senju Diejian had inherited the bloodline of the Uzumaki clan, known for its enormous Chakra reserves.

At the same time, he was a direct descendant of the Senju, who were rightfully regarded as the strongest in the Shinobi World. The depth of his potential Chakra reserves was unfathomable.

Among his peers, no shinobi had more Chakra than Diejian. Even among all the shinobi of Konohagakure, the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, there weren't many whose Chakra reserves surpassed his.

That was precisely why Diejian's position was as clear as day to Hatake Sakumo, a "sensor type" skilled at detecting and tracking Chakra.

Ina, meanwhile, was lying in wait beneath the trees, quietly sensing the other two so she could swoop in and claim victory.

Neither Diejian nor even Sakumo could detect or find Ina while she maintained her concealment so thoroughly.

The Yamanaka were originally a clan skilled in "sensing" and "concealment." That might be different once Sakumo's skills matured in the future, but as an inexperienced boy at present, even with all his talent, he couldn't track Ina.

What's more, "sensing" and "concealment" were indispensable when learning and using the secret techniques passed down through the Yamanaka bloodline.

These were the first things Yamanaka children were thoroughly taught.

With both her bloodline-given talent and the techniques she'd diligently trained in, Ina far outstripped the other two in "sensing" and "concealment."

That was precisely why Sakumo had chosen to deal with Diejian first.

Ina was indeed far better at concealment than the other two. On the other hand, because she had focused her training there, she lagged several ranks behind Sakumo in other areas—especially Taijutsu. Diejian, who placed more importance on Ninjutsu, was another matter.

If Ina fought Sakumo hand to hand, the odds would definitely favor him. The same went for a Ninjutsu duel.

The only thing Sakumo had to watch out for was the Yamanaka secret technique, the Mind Body Switch Technique.

He knew it could control another person's mind and take over their body. Compared with "Genjutsu" and the "Transformation Technique," which sensor-type shinobi could more easily see through, it was a more insidious and vicious technique.

It was a technique he'd rather not face.

But perhaps because it was so practical, there was a brief delay between when the Yamanaka secret technique was activated and when it took effect.

It also had a weakness: if it failed, it left the user wide open.

No matter how skilled Ina was at concealment, she couldn't stay hidden while performing a Ninjutsu.

The moment she tried to activate the technique, Sakumo would sense her.

And if he noticed in advance, it would be easy for him to dodge the Mind Body Switch Technique, which required such a large movement.

In other words, to sensor-type Sakumo, Ina was just a girl who was good at hiding.

As long as she didn't leave herself badly exposed, Sakumo wouldn't lose to her.

The Nara Clan had prospered through teamwork with their secret techniques that restrained enemy movements. It was undeniable that their techniques weren't suited to fighting alone.

On the other hand—to put it bluntly, Ina was the one Diejian needed to watch out for most.

Against Sakumo, he could use his vast Chakra reserves and endurance as weapons, launching wave after wave of attacks.

When Diejian and Sakumo fought, the battle would inevitably turn into hand-to-hand combat. The outcome depended on how quickly Diejian could bring Sakumo within range of his Ninjutsu, and how much of Diejian's stamina Sakumo could wear down before then.

Though he'd been losing to Sakumo more often lately, Diejian's seemingly endless Chakra reserves rarely ran dry, giving him a slight advantage.

In other words, because he had such enormous Chakra reserves, Ina's concealment was terrifying to Diejian, who wasn't good at the delicate work of sensing other people.

Diejian couldn't dodge a secret technique launched from a distance using that skill; he wasn't a sensor type.

He'd lost to Ina countless times after defeating Sakumo, when she took advantage of the opening. But whenever he watched out for Ina, Sakumo would beat him instead, trapping him in a vicious cycle.

If she'd used a technique with a nature transformation, he could have sensed it through the air currents, smell, or sound. But that wasn't the case—and every time he lost to Ina, Diejian ground his teeth in frustration.

Diejian wanted to use their elemental matchup to put Ina to sleep. Sakumo wanted to eliminate Diejian, the one more likely to defeat him. Ina wanted Diejian and Sakumo to fight each other and wear themselves out.

"No helping it. Things will only get worse if this keeps up. Looks like I'll have to reveal my trump card."

This magnificent three-way standoff had lasted only until yesterday.

After suffering repeated defeats, Diejian had finally acquired a decisive weapon that could end the stalemate.

That was why he'd made a point of preparing thoroughly before inviting the other two to this forest.

"Water Release: Water Wall!"

While running, Diejian formed Hand Seals, then leapt into the air and spun around as he performed a Water Release Ninjutsu.

A concentrated stream of water erupted from Diejian's pursed lips. It struck the ground, then surged violently into the air, defying gravity.

Diejian immediately turned his head, creating a wall of water around him.

The wall of water deflected the kunai Sakumo had thrown from behind Diejian. For an instant, Diejian vanished from the sight of Sakumo and Ina, who'd been watching from her hiding spot.

Diejian used that opening to quickly form Hand Seals.

Boar, Dog, Rooster, Monkey—

As his consciousness began to fade, Sakumo was filled with shock.

He had no idea what had happened.

He could hardly believe that the roles of hunter and prey had been reversed.

When had Diejian awakened his sensor-type abilities? Sakumo had thrown a kunai, then immediately left his position and hidden himself, waiting for a chance to perform Ninjutsu. Yet Diejian had found him with ease.

No, Sakumo wasn't even sure whether Diejian had really found him.

He'd thought Diejian had simply grown impatient with their usual game of hide-and-seek and started carelessly unleashing Water Release Ninjutsu everywhere, relying on his Chakra reserves.

After all, when they reached this kind of stalemate, Diejian had no choice but to use the tactics best suited to his existing abilities.

That meant overwhelming them with numbers through Shadow Clones.

Sometimes he'd managed to suppress Sakumo, but other times Sakumo had spotted an opening and defeated him.

But after several battles, Sakumo had learned how to counter the numbers game. Of the three, he had the best chance of winning.

This time, too, Sakumo had entered the fight determined to win. He'd thought he could.

He'd let his guard down.

As Diejian seemed to cast Ninjutsu at random, in completely different directions, multiple solid clones suddenly appeared—Shadow Clones—and launched a massive Water Dragon at Sakumo.

Without him noticing, Earth Release had raised barriers along his escape route. Where there were no barriers, several Diejians were waiting.

It wasn't that he didn't regret losing, but Sakumo couldn't hide his excitement at seeing his friend develop a new tactic.

How did he know where I was...? He'll tell me later, I'm sure...

Looking forward to their next battle, Sakumo's consciousness sank into darkness.

After confirming that Sakumo had been swallowed by the Water Dragon Bullet Technique, Ina thought this was bad.

If things went as they had before, then at this point Ina's victory was all but certain.

She only had to use Genjutsu and clones to lure him in, then take over his body with the secret Mind Body Switch Technique.

She could probably still defeat Diejian with that strategy, even now. But she had to be more careful.

"Just as I thought. I figured someone as determined as you wouldn't stay the same forever."

At first, Diejian had truly suppressed the other two with his overwhelming numbers. But after Ina mastered concealment and Sakumo learned to use tactics, Diejian started losing often.

Ina knew Diejian had formally become a pupil of his great-uncle, Senju Tobirama, the Hokage Advisor. He was also the junior fellow student of Sarutobi Hiruzen, who served in the Hokage's personal guard. Still, she hadn't expected Diejian to keep a technique this "sharp" hidden until he was certain he could win.

Until now, Diejian had used only basic Ninjutsu such as Earth Release: Earth Flow Technique, Water Release: Water Wall, and Fire Release: Fireball Technique. But with his Chakra reserves, their range had been astonishing.

Now, however, he was skillfully using precise, direct techniques.

How could he have learned so many techniques and gotten stronger in such a short time? Ina figured he must have taken his teacher Tobirama's advice and kept them hidden until now.

But then—Ina turned to look at Sakumo, who was still lying there motionless.

Diejian was a kind boy.

Even though he was the Hokage's grandson, he never acted high and mighty. He even treated Ina's tendency to cry, which she herself found annoying, as part of who she was and accepted it.

It was different from Sakumo's kindness, which gently pointed out her flaws and could occasionally be sharp-tongued. Ina liked Diejian's broad-minded kindness.

But—

"D-did you actually have a pretty big grudge against him...?"

Honestly, by the time Diejian had used Earth Flow Walls to set up barriers and surround Sakumo with Shadow Clones, Sakumo had already lost.

Instead of urging him to surrender—the way Diejian normally would have handled things—he'd beaten him up thoroughly. That showed just how much frustration he'd built up from losing so often.

"Will I end up like that too?"

Watching Sakumo lying soaked in a puddle, eyes rolled back, Ina's mouth twitched. She hoped not.

Then she looked at Diejian, who was getting ready to flood the forest with a huge number of Shadow Clones, and decided to raise both hands in surrender.

"Is he going to be okay? His eyes are rolled back."

"Uh... hard to say."

After Ina emerged, drawing out the word "surrender," Diejian went to retrieve Sakumo, whose eyes were still rolled back.

Ina looked pityingly at Sakumo, who was lying on the ground, still covered in mud from head to toe. Diejian broke into a cold sweat.

He realized he'd gotten carried away and gone too far.

To keep the drenched Sakumo from catching a cold, the two of them laid him down beside a bonfire lit with Fire Release and carefully examined his pitiful, mud-covered appearance.

"Well, whatever."

After gulping down all the water in her canteen, Ina let out a breath and looked away from Sakumo, uninterested.

Diejian wondered what, exactly, she'd decided was "whatever" as he bit into an apple.

"Hey, Diejian. When did you learn so many Ninjutsu?"

"Uh, recently."

"Recently? You're kidding. We've practiced together so many times, and you never used this many techniques before."

"It's a secret, a secret. Shinobi have lots of secrets, right?"

"I guess. But there's no point keeping it a secret from me, is there? Hmm? I promise I won't tell anyone. Come on, tell me. Or else~!"

"Stop it! Fine, I'll tell you!"

The Yamanaka Clan specialized in techniques that affected the mind.

Diejian knew they even had techniques for peering into people's thoughts.

Ina wasn't the sort of girl who'd do that to a friend, but she made an exception for Diejian.

Diejian was doted on by his grandfather and was full of kindness and confidence. On top of that, his mental maturity as a reincarnated person had given him a soft spot for pampering children.

It was a kind of adult tolerance, but in the eyes of children his own age, it made him seem unfathomable.

And so Diejian doted on Ina, while Ina tended to act spoiled with him within reason. If she went too far, Sakumo would scold her. That was how their pattern had developed.

In the end, Diejian had no choice but to spill the secret.

"Also, that trick you used to find Sakumo's position—is it because of your Summoning Animal?"

Diejian's heart gave a sudden jolt.

He'd meant to keep it under wraps for a while, to give himself more options in battle.

He hadn't expected her to figure it out so easily, and couldn't help marveling at how terrifying the Yamanaka's sensing skills were.

"Don't worry. I'll keep it from Sakumo."

Looking at Ina's smile, Diejian let out a sigh of relief.

"How—"

"Is it Natural Energy? It feels a little animal-like—or maybe like there's another kind of Chakra in the mix. I know about the Summoning Technique, too."

Diejian had been about to ask how she knew, but Ina beat him to it.

Caught off guard, Diejian awkwardly moved his lips.

Ina pointed at Diejian as he awkwardly moved his lips and burst out laughing.

His face flushed bright red, Diejian jumped to his feet.

"Hey, you!"

"Eh?"

"Hm!?"

Ina suddenly went pale at Diejian's furious embarrassment.

Her eyes darted about nervously.

Seeing how she seemed to be enduring her fear, Diejian grew anxious.

"Sorry—"

"No. That's not it. This is... no..."

"What's wrong, Ina?"

Interrupting Diejian as he tried to apologize, Ina's shoulders trembled.

Worried by her unusual behavior, Diejian reached out as if to put an arm around her shoulders.

Ina's trembling eyes met Diejian's.

"I think it's an enemy. And a very strong one."

"Sakumo, when did you—"

Sakumo, who had been unconscious, sat up.

He shook his head and lightly patted it with his palm.

"Just now. There's a strange Chakra heading this way at a pretty high speed."

"We have to run! This feeling... it's much stronger than us!"

Ina shouted, but Sakumo shook his head.

"Three of us can't escape in time. You understand that, right? They're already pretty close—we have no choice but to fight."

"Ah..."

Looking at Sakumo, whose expression seemed resigned, and Ina, who couldn't quite hide her fear, Diejian could vaguely understand, even without sensing anything, that they were in danger.

"Are they really enemies?"

"I think so. Their movements are too orderly. They don't seem like people who simply got lost. They're definitely shinobi."

"And they're terrifying. They're brimming with killing intent."

"I see. Understood. I'll figure something out. You two, get out of here."

Diejian stood up.

Unlike the other two, who could feel the monstrous Chakra drawing near, Diejian wasn't a sensor type. It was hard to say whether he truly understood the danger they were in.

Even if he did understand and was afraid, what he had to do was clear: if his friends were scared, he had to protect them.

"But..."

"Ina, use a concealment technique and retreat to call for reinforcements. Sakumo, protect Ina."

"Diejian, you should come with us too!"

"If I go with you, they'll find us right away, won't they?"

Diejian smiled and told Ina she was being silly. Ina fell silent.

"Besides, they might not be enemies. Maybe they're hunters or something."

"How could that be—"

"And besides, I'm the grandson of Senju Hashirama."

"...Understood. We're leaving. There are six enemies, so be careful."

"Uh... I'll make sure to bring the adults."

"Don't be late."

At the look on Diejian's face, Sakumo stood up, his expression pained.

He used his forceful presence to keep Ina from shouting, then hurriedly left with her.

Sakumo had said the three of them couldn't escape together.

So if one of them acted as bait, could the other two get away?

Sakumo had been so afraid that the approaching enemy must be a seasoned veteran.

Alone in the quiet world, Diejian watched as the leaves suddenly rustled.

"I thought the Hokage was coming, but it's just a child."

—They were here.

A distinctive, low, slightly nasal voice belonged to a tall man.

He wore clothes mostly in black and gray, and a mask covered half his face.

He looked suspicious.

But Diejian immediately understood who they were.

"That Forehead Protector... Are you shinobi from Takigakure?"

"You, with that Chakra... You're related to the Hokage, aren't you? I seem to have mistaken you for someone else."

A man who seemed to be one of his subordinates apologized.

The tall man replied that it was fine.

"I'm a direct descendant of Senju Hashirama."

"Oh. Then can you take us to meet the Hokage? We'd like to sightsee around Konoha."

"A six-man squad sneaking through a forest like this to sightsee in Konoha? Reinforcements are on their way. You can repeat that in front of the adults in Konoha."

At those last words, the man's demeanor changed.

The immense pressure of his Chakra forced Diejian to take a step back.

"Lord Kakuzu, we can't cause a scene right now!"

Sensing the change in the man—Kakuzu—a shinobi leaped down from a tree.

The presence of the four shinobi still lying in wait wavered.

Diejian couldn't sense them, but the four hidden shinobi were now worried about the man trying to stop Kakuzu.

His misfortune was that he was too young.

Talented and promising, he'd been selected for this mission.

Though young, if he'd been in peak condition, he might have been able to hold off Sarutobi Hiruzen for a while.

That was precisely why he'd misjudged Kakuzu, whom he was working with for the first time.

Kakuzu was quick to anger, but the young shinobi had thought he wouldn't kill a comrade.

That was perfectly reasonable, but his youth—and his failure to heed his senior's warning—became his misfortune and his "end."

Flesh scattered, and a scarlet firework signaled the beginning of the battle.