They Came to Die!

Generally speaking, these kinds of barrier techniques were used to carry out secret missions or to keep a battle from being discovered by a third party.

They had no direct combat power, but their support capabilities were extremely strong, helping avoid all sorts of trouble.

Takizawa Dan had already realized that these two Anbu Ninjas really intended to kill him today!

Sure enough, after casting the barrier technique, the two Anbu Ninjas seemed much more relaxed. They began forming Hand Seals on the spot, apparently preparing to unleash a large-scale destructive ninjutsu!

After all, even if their battle caused a disturbance, it wouldn't reach the outside. That put their minds at ease.

Takizawa Dan sneered. "Do you think you've backed me into a corner? That there's no way I can escape, and I can only die under your ninjutsu attacks?"

The two Anbu Ninjas didn't answer. The nature of their mission, combined with their regular training, had made them accustomed to silence.

But their eyes unmistakably confirmed what Takizawa Dan had said.

They had him surrounded from both sides. If Takizawa Dan wanted to escape, he'd have to move several dozen meters away in an instant. Otherwise, with the speed of these two Anbu Ninjas, stopping him would be easy!

Today, this arrogant brat would die here!

"You think you've got me cornered, but unfortunately, you've underestimated my abilities."

"If I dared to let you finish your Hand Seals, it's because I'm not afraid of your jutsu's power. In fact, this is exactly what I was hoping for!"

As he spoke, Takizawa Dan began forming Hand Seals at lightning speed!

His hand signs were incredibly intricate, yet astonishingly fast. The two Anbu Ninjas stared in disbelief.

Since when did Konoha have such a strange set of Hand Seals?

"Don't pay attention to him. That brat doesn't have any chakra in his body. Lord Hokage personally confirmed it. Do you think that could be wrong?"

At last, the Anbu Ninja on the left couldn't hold back and spoke to his partner.

His partner wasn't a combat specialist, but focused on support, so he naturally wasn't as levelheaded as an ordinary Anbu Ninja.

Still, Danzo had thought that sending the two of them would be more than enough to deal with Takizawa Dan, just a mere kid, so he hadn't given the matter much thought.

Now, seeing that his partner might be losing his nerve, he had to offer a few words of encouragement.

"Understood... He's probably just putting on an act. He's no threat at all."

The two Anbu Ninjas nodded, each convinced by the other's reasoning.

As far as they were concerned, Takizawa Dan couldn't possibly know how to form Hand Seals. His movements were probably just an imitation of someone else's, mixed with some weird gestures of his own invention.

From nearby, Takizawa Dan naturally heard their discussion. A mocking look appeared in his eyes.

How pitiful. The people of Konoha had even forgotten the Hand Seals of the First, Senju Hashirama.

The Will of Fire that the First had left behind—how many people could still remember it now? In the original story, probably only Naruto would think of it...

Since that was the case, he'd open their eyes.

While the two Anbu Ninjas stood stunned, Takizawa Dan had already finished forming his seals!

Then he spoke in a deep, powerful voice:

"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"

"What?!"

The Anbu Ninjas, who had been watching the show, shuddered at his words and stared at him in disbelief.

Wood Release?!

H-how could this be?

No one had used Wood Release since that lord!

Impossible! He was just putting on an act!

But then the constant "crack, crack" sounds coming from underground left the two Anbu Ninjas stunned!

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

One towering tree after another burst from the earth, transforming the entire area into a primeval forest in an instant!

The two Anbu Ninjas exchanged bewildered glances.

What kind of joke was this? Someone could actually use real Wood Release?

The Anbu Ninja on the left couldn't help touching the smooth tree trunk beside him. He even scraped at it with his fingernail.

The bark peeled away, and pale green sap oozed out, bringing an ant with it!

At the sight, both men were horrified!

Th-this was a real forest!

It was nothing like Yamato's temporary summons, the little trees he could barely manage to produce. These were all towering trees that had already grown to full size.

And what they had just felt proved that none of this was an illusion. It was real!

But how was that possible?

How could a useless nobody like Takizawa Dan have mastered such a profound ninjutsu as Wood Release?

They had no time to think about it any longer.

The two nearest trees had already transformed into enormous mouths, lunging at them to devour them!

In the darkness, the Anbu Ninja on the right suddenly burst into loud laughter!

"Ha ha ha ha! We were all wrong. All of Konoha was wrong!"

"What did you discover?"

The Anbu Ninja on the left knew he was going to die. He had already prepared himself to face death.

But hearing that his partner had something to say in his final moments, something he was willing to give up his life to reveal, filled him with curiosity.

"Ha ha ha... No wonder Takizawa Dan suddenly became so powerful, even crushing everyone here all by himself!"

"He didn't unlock some Gene Lock, and it wasn't because he'd secretly been working hard. For some unknown reason, he inherited Senju Hashirama's legacy!"

"First... I'm sorry. We failed to understand what you meant... and acted disrespectfully!"

The Anbu Ninja on the left felt his heart sink at those words.

Indeed, the First's death had always been a mystery.

After the First fought Uchiha Madara, Madara was supposedly dead. Yet not long afterward, news of the First's death came as well.

If someone died, then they died. It was sad, but there was no need to grieve too much. The First's achievements had been so great that even if he had truly died, he would live on in everyone's hearts!

But for some unknown reason, the First hadn't died in the village!

He had left the village and was said to have lived in seclusion in a valley. Even after all these years, no one had ever found his body, which was why he had been declared dead.

But for many years, a rumor had persisted in Konoha.

The Hokage hadn't actually died!

Instead, he was protecting Konoha in another way—for instance, by passing his Wood Release abilities on to a young Konoha Ninja.

Of course, this was little more than a legend. No one had ever been able to prove it.