Being Followed

"I guess I have no choice but to use force..."

Seeing that Yun Xi had no intention of coming with him, a trace of regret appeared on Kakashi's face.

Judging by the strength Yun Xi had displayed so far, he was undoubtedly a genius who was every bit Kakashi's equal.

But to carry out the Third Hokage's orders, Kakashi ultimately decided to attack Yun Xi!

"Lightning Blade!"

As the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in Kakashi's eyes spun rapidly,

a pale blue glow appeared in his right hand.

This wasn't merely Lightning Release Chakra. It was a ball of lightning made up of countless bolts.

In both power and speed, it far surpassed ordinary Lightning Release Ninjutsu!

"Lightning Blade? The fastest Lightning Release technique..." Seeing Kakashi reveal his trump card,

Yun Xi showed no sign of panic. Instead, there was even a trace of regret in his expression.

"An excellent technique... but you're still too weak..."

Just as Kakashi was about to strike him, Yun Xi moved.

"Let me show you what real Lightning Style looks like!"

"Lightning Style: Furious Thunder Tiger!"

As Yun Xi appeared behind Kakashi, he gathered a massive amount of Lightning Release Chakra in his hand.

Then a huge blue tiger appeared, its body wrapped in lightning.

Its target was Kakashi!

"So fast..." Thanks to his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Kakashi caught a glimpse of Yun Xi's attack.

But Kakashi was in the middle of using Lightning Blade and couldn't dodge Yun Xi's attack.

"Boom!"

Yun Xi's Lightning Style: Furious Thunder Tiger collided with Kakashi's Lightning Blade.

A deafening crash rang out, kicking up a cloud of dust...

"Lord Kakashi!"

Seeing this, the three Anbu Chunin who had been watching from the side hurried into the cloud of dust.

They helped Kakashi up from the ground...

"You really are strong... but I still can't let you go after Danzo!"

Kakashi no longer looked as confident as before.

Although Lightning Blade had absorbed some of the impact, the remaining force had still left Kakashi badly injured...

Seeing how determined Kakashi was, Yun Xi could only ask, "What could possibly make you so determined to stop me?"

"Is it the Hokage's orders?" When Kakashi didn't answer, Yun Xi continued.

"Not entirely..."

At Yun Xi's words, Kakashi nodded, then shook his head.

"Then what is the reason?"

Yun Xi wanted to know why Kakashi was stopping him from going to Root Division.

He was even willing to risk his life...

"Because you can't beat Danzo..." Kakashi finally gave his reason.

"Cough, cough..."

After coughing twice, Kakashi continued, "Even though you beat me, I still can't let you go to Root Division. Danzo's trump cards are beyond anything you can imagine..."

"And even if you kill Danzo, you'll have to become a rogue ninja..." Looking at Yun Xi, Kakashi's eyes held a trace of regret.

"I don't want a Konoha genius to end up a rogue ninja... one is enough."

With that, Kakashi stared resolutely at Yun Xi...

"Thank you." Yun Xi hadn't expected Kakashi to be stopping him out of concern for his safety.

So this is the Jonin the Third Hokage chose to lead the protagonist's team...

Looking at Kakashi's expression, Yun Xi felt a little moved.

But he would never give up on his plan to kill Danzo!

Yun Xi had never thought of himself as the protagonist. Showing mercy to an enemy was simply being irresponsible to himself.

And Danzo was one of the most deeply hidden villains in the world of Naruto.

He was always claiming to act for Konoha, but in the end, he only cared about securing the Hokage Position for himself, even if it meant harming others for his own gain.

He brought countless talented children from civilian families into Root Division.

He trained ninjas in a way that was practically survival of the fittest...

When Pain invaded Konoha, Danzo killed the little frog responsible for sending out the message and prevented the Root Division ninjas from joining the fight against Pain.

Those were all Danzo's doing. Although the original story tried to whitewash him just before his death,

in Yun Xi's eyes, Danzo was still a rat hiding in the shadows.

He was useless at accomplishing anything and a first-rate failure at causing trouble!

At first, Yun Xi hadn't planned on getting involved with Danzo.

But he hadn't expected Danzo to make a move against him and Karin.

If Pikachu hadn't sent word and come to the academy to warn him,

Karin might already have been taken into Root Division and branded with the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal...

How could Yun Xi possibly let Danzo get away with that?

Ultimately, Danzo had brought this on himself!

"Get some rest..."

Seeing that Kakashi was about to say something more, Yun Xi went straight behind him.

He knocked Kakashi out...

Although Kakashi had tried to stop him, Yun Xi spared his life because Kakashi had been looking out for him.

Instead, he merely knocked him unconscious.

Before leaving, Yun Xi said to the three Anbu Chunin, "Kakashi's fine. Just take him to Konoha Medical Hospital."

With that, Yun Xi continued toward Root Division with Karin.

But after only a few steps, Yun Xi suddenly stopped at a corner.

"Let's see which little guy's been following me, shall we?"

Yun Xi had noticed a little tail behind him. He picked up a stone from the ground,

then tossed it into the bushes behind him. A child tumbled out.

"So it's you. Why are you following me?"

Yun Xi hadn't expected Uchiha Sasuke to be the one following him!

"I want to get stronger. I want revenge!"

Perhaps because his emotions were running high, and he had only just awakened his Sharingan,

as soon as he finished speaking, a Two-Tomoe Sharingan appeared in his previously black eyes.

"You want revenge?" Yun Xi hadn't expected Uchiha Sasuke to have already run away from the hospital.

"Yeah!" Meeting Yun Xi's gaze, Uchiha Sasuke nodded resolutely.

"If you want to get stronger, why are you following me?" Yun Xi was curious about why Uchiha Sasuke had followed him.

"Because you beat Kakashi earlier—the former genius of Konoha!"

When Yun Xi asked, Uchiha Sasuke answered frankly.

"As long as you help me get stronger, I'll do anything!"

After saying that, Sasuke's expression turned resolute.

"Did you see that?"

Yun Xi hadn't expected Sasuke to witness his fight with Kakashi.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Yun Xi...

It's not like it'd hurt to teach Sasuke a few things. It's not as though Itachi asked me to look after him for nothing, right?

Once he'd made up his mind, Yun Xi glanced at Sasuke and said, "You can get stronger."

"But... I won't take you on as a student. I'll only teach you some basic things."

Considering that Uchiha Itachi was already a full-fledged member of his organization, Yun Xi couldn't take Sasuke on as his student.

That would make things awkward for Uchiha Itachi.

So instead, he would teach Sasuke some basic ninjutsu and training methods...