Wuju

Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was handling documents in the Hokage's office. The situation was growing increasingly tense, and more and more matters required his decision.

Hatake Sakumo was not here.

As the ANBU captain, he commanded Konoha's most elite force: the ANBU.

As one of Konoha's two Kage-level fighters, Hiruzen Sarutobi, as Hokage, needed to remain in Konoha and could not act rashly. Hatake Sakumo naturally had to take on all the difficult missions that required leaving the village.

Some time ago, intelligence had reported that an elite Amegakure unit had infiltrated the Land of Fire.

Thus, Hatake Sakumo had set out to track down that group of ninja.

Just then, an ANBU member appeared in the office.

The ANBU answered directly to the Hokage, so they could meet him without needing to announce themselves.

"Lord Hokage."

"Ryōken was assassinated. The assassin was Asai Hane."

The ANBU ninja dropped to one knee and bowed to Hiruzen Sarutobi and Hatake Sakumo.

"Oh?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flickered. "How is he? Are Ryōken's injuries serious?"

Asai Hane had seriously wounded a jonin before.

In his view, Ryōken would already be fortunate just to survive.

"Uh... he was killed by Ryōken."

"What?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi abruptly raised his head, visibly surprised.

The ANBU ninja lowered his head. His expression beneath the mask was strange, and something unusual flickered in his eyes.

"Furthermore, according to the ANBU member at the scene, Asai Hane had likely already broken through and grasped part of nature transformation."

"Ryōken actually severed a genuine B-rank ninjutsu with a single sword strike!"

His voice trembled slightly as he spoke. Yet having inspected the scene himself, he had no choice but to believe it.

Even now, a lingering shock remained in his heart, impossible to erase.

"What did you say?"

"Nature transformation?"

"One strike?"

Those words completely stunned Hiruzen Sarutobi.

He asked three questions in a row, his voice rising higher and higher until it even became shrill.

Even as the Hokage, he could not remain calm. It was simply unbelievable.

Grasping nature transformation was equivalent to being a jonin.

Ryōken surviving had already been an incredible stroke of luck, yet...

"How is that possible..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi muttered, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly as shock appeared in his eyes.

After a long while, he shook his head with a bitter smile. "Truly... unexpected."

"White Fang, just what kind of monster disciple did you take in?"

The kneeling ANBU ninja nodded deeply in agreement. Geniuses truly could not be judged by common sense.

The ANBU ninja suddenly spoke again, his voice carrying several traces of concern.

"Lord Hokage, intelligence says Asai Hane was Hanzo the Demigod's most beloved student. Could his death trigger something unpredictable?"

Hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi recovered from his shock. He smiled faintly, his confidence towering over all.

"No."

"Because this is Konoha!"

"And I am Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage!"

With those words, the dominance of the strongest ninja village and the bearing of a legendary ninja hero were fully revealed.

It was the pride he deserved.

Konoha's advantages were simply too great.

Fertile land, exceptionally capable ninja, powerful bloodline clans, and so on.

A highly united Konoha was invincible.

Atop the high wall.

Everyone stared blankly at the scene, their eyes stinging as though they were dreaming.

The torrent, split into two halves, crashed against the high wall.

Rumble...

The wall groaned under the unbearable strain, reminding them that it was all real.

Fortunately, without its caster's control, Water Burial's power had dropped by more than a level. This wall could barely hold it back.

Looking at the crumbling wall beneath their feet, everyone finally came to their senses and completely accepted the reality before them.

"No way..."

The ANBU ninja muttered to himself. Perhaps many jonin could have blocked that move.

But he had never seen anyone cleave a B-rank ninjutsu apart with a single sword strike.

That kind of swordsmanship—or perhaps blade technique—he had only ever seen from the ANBU captain, the White Fang of Konoha.

But this was Ryōken.

"This is true swordsmanship!"

"The destination of a swordsman!"

"Invincible, capable of cutting through everything!"

A trace of fanaticism appeared in Honda Tadakatsu's eyes, as though he had glimpsed the truth itself.

Rather than saying samurai had declined, it would be more accurate to say that stubborn traditions had bound them, leaving them unwilling to seek a way forward.

At that moment, the flood swept over the earth and poured into the lava lake, sending mist soaring into the sky.

Through the haze, that tiny, ethereal figure was engraved deeply into everyone's hearts, impossible to erase for the rest of their lives.

It was as if they had already seen another god of the ninja world rising.

Much later.

After repeatedly explaining that he was not injured and refusing to go to the medical unit, Ryōken sent everyone away and entered the room reserved for the prison warden.

"Why won't they believe me?"

"I really wasn't hurt."

Ryōken did not know whether to laugh or cry. They were worrying over nothing.

He sat cross-legged on the bed.

Feeling that his chakra had been completely drained, he could not help but smile bitterly.

Still, he felt rather pleased with himself.

"Fleeting Light is so powerful. As expected of a fused skill."

"Although I can't upgrade it with Skill Points anymore, its power is still very satisfying."

He chuckled. The only drawback was that it consumed a bit too much.

After a great battle, it was naturally time to sort through the spoils.

Speaking of which, it was still somewhat regrettable.

Although Asai Hane had grasped nature transformation, he had only broken through temporarily and was not yet a true jonin.

A real jonin would not have taken so long to use a B-rank ninjutsu.

Still, that was better.

If Asai Hane had counted as a jonin, he definitely would have been considered a relatively weak one.

In that case, he certainly would not have triggered a Superior Lottery.

If he could not use a Superior Lottery, Ryōken would have suffered a huge loss.

In Ryōken's mind, it would be best to kill Tsuki Uchiha for a jonin-level target. Not only could he maximize his gains, he could also avenge that past contempt.

Because Asai Hane did not count as a jonin but was obviously far stronger than an ordinary Chunin, the system had judged him to be an extreme Chunin.

Not only had it rewarded ten Skill Points, but there was naturally also a Superior Lottery.

Thinking of that, Ryōken became a little excited.

"Legacy... a legacy!"

Fiora, the Grand Duelist's legacy had been immensely useful to him. Laurent Eye of the Mind, swordsmanship, and Duelist Eye were all miraculous techniques capable of turning the mundane into the extraordinary.

However, that legacy focused more on exploiting weaknesses and Sword Intent. In this ninja world, ninjutsu was the mainstream, and exploiting weaknesses was far too inconspicuous at his current stage.

The legacy contained far too little explanation of Sword Pressure, sword radiance, and Sword Qi.

Even now, he could only learn those things through his own exploration.

He desperately wanted a complete legacy.

Somewhere deep down, he had a feeling.

When he had drawn the Grand Duelist's legacy and chosen the path of the sword as his foundation, he had embarked on the road to becoming strong.

In future Superior Lotteries, he would definitely have priority in drawing legacies related to the sword.

That made him greatly anticipate it.

The familiar images flashed before his eyes. Ryōken felt both emotional and excited.

Ding!

Congratulations, Host. You have obtained the legacy of Master Yi, the Wuju Bladesman—The Wuju Way.