The Price of What Lurks in Plain Sight

"Shadow-level?"

Utatane Koharu suddenly turned her head, the anger on her face replaced by shock.

Mitokado Homura pressed down on the casualty report on the table and read it over twice.

They were no strangers to Uchiha Lieyang's record.

Twenty years old, a special jōnin, Three-Tomoe Sharingan, skilled in Fire Release, genjutsu, and ninja tool throwing.

Among ordinary shinobi, that already counted as exceptional.

But between special jōnin and Shadow-level stood an insurmountable gulf.

"Hiruzen, are you sure you're not overestimating him?"

Mitokado Homura said gravely, "The complete annihilation of six Root squads and three regular shinobi squads is indeed an astonishing record. But he possesses the Shadow Clone Technique and has mastered many jutsu Konoha has never recorded. Taking them apart one by one by exploiting an information gap doesn't mean he truly has Shadow-level strength."

Utatane Koharu came to her senses as well.

"Exactly."

"If those squads had known beforehand about his Lightning Body Flicker, one-handed seals, and five chakra natures, the outcome might not have been the same."

"Classifying a twenty-year-old Uchiha directly as Shadow-level would have too great an impact."

She did not say the rest aloud.

The Uchiha Clan had already produced one Shisui.

Body Flicker Shisui's strength, talent, and Mangekyō Sharingan had always made Konoha's higher-ups wary.

Now another Shadow-level powerhouse had emerged—an Uchiha who had hidden himself for years before defecting without warning. That was enough to disrupt the balance of power within the village.

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not immediately refute them.

He pulled several pages from the files on the table and placed them before the two elders.

"The first Root squad: one jōnin and three elites. The battle lasted no more than fifteen minutes."

"The second Root squad: after two were wounded and one died, the entire squad was slaughtered."

"The following three squads had twelve members in total, including three jōnin. They had received the latest intelligence in advance. They knew the target had mastered Lightning Release, Earth Release, and Water Release, and that his Shadow Clones possessed independent combat ability."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's finger landed on the final report.

"The result did not change."

"All twelve were wiped out. They did not even force out his real body."

Utatane Koharu's breath caught.

Mitokado Homura stared at a line in the report.

"So the ones who killed those three elite squads were still only Shadow Clones?"

"Correct."

Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly nodded.

"Based on the intelligence currently available, Uchiha Lieyang's real body kept his eyes covered the entire time and never entered the battle personally."

"His Shadow Clones alone could kill jōnin in succession."

"That level of power can no longer be measured by the standards of an ordinary elite jōnin."

The office fell silent once more.

Utatane Koharu looked at Danzo.

"You knew all along?"

Danzo's expression was grim.

The loss of six Root squads was enough to leave a glaring hole in the elite force he had built up over many years.

"The initial intelligence was all false."

"Uchiha Lieyang deliberately concealed his chakra natures, jutsu, swordsmanship, and true taijutsu level."

"Every time Root updated its intelligence, he revealed even greater strength."

Danzo paused, his voice cold and devoid of warmth.

"Even now, no one can say for certain whether he has shown his full strength."

Utatane Koharu's pupils constricted.

That was the most terrifying part.

So many had died, and Konoha had paid such a terrible price, yet they still had not uncovered Lieyang's true capabilities.

Mitokado Homura lowered his voice.

"Where is his limit?"

Danzo did not answer.

But Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up another combat analysis report.

"At the very least, it is no lower than White Fang's was."

"What?"

Utatane Koharu cried out.

Mitokado Homura abruptly rose to his feet as well, the chair legs scraping sharply against the floor.

If he were merely an ordinary Shadow-level shinobi, they could barely accept it.

But Konoha's White Fang was entirely different.

With unparalleled Lightning Body Flicker and supersonic swordsmanship, Hatake Sakumo had carved out a fearsome reputation during the Second Shinobi World War that made the four great shinobi villages tremble.

In one-on-one combat, there were only a handful of people in all of Konoha who could contend with him.

Before the Legendary Sannin had reached their peak, they were no match for him.

Even the younger Hiruzen Sarutobi would not have dared claim he could overpower Hatake Sakumo in close-quarters combat.

Later, the only person in all of Konoha capable of facing that kind of lightning-fast swordsmanship head-on was the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, who had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique.

The four great shinobi villages had even issued special orders regarding White Fang.

If Konoha's White Fang was encountered during a mission, the mission could be abandoned unconditionally, with no punishment whatsoever!

He was a taboo existence whose name alone could make enemy shinobi abandon all resistance.

"Hiruzen!"

Utatane Koharu pressed both hands against the desk.

"Do you understand what you're saying?"

"How many enemy jōnin did Hatake Sakumo kill on the battlefield back then? Uchiha Lieyang merely wiped out a few tracking squads. How can he be mentioned in the same breath as White Fang?"

Mitokado Homura also stared fixedly at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"White Fang's swordsmanship was unmatched in Konoha."

"Even if Lieyang possesses Lightning Body Flicker, that does not mean he can reach the same level."

"This is not my judgment."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Danzo.

"It is Root's analysis based on the memories of the dead."

The two elders turned their heads at once.

Leaning on his cane, Danzo stepped forward.

"Uchiha Lieyang uses lightning-nature chakra to stimulate his entire body. His speed has already surpassed the limits of an ordinary jōnin's dynamic vision."

"Root's jōnin can only barely block the first strike through combat instinct."

"Once they block it, Lightning Release flows through their metal weapons and into their bodies, paralyzing them. Before the second strike falls, they have already lost the ability to resist."

"And that is only his speed."

Danzo pulled out an analysis chart that recorded the dead men's memories.

"His swordsmanship has no fixed forms."

"Every swing targets the weakest point in the enemy's force. Whether they block, evade, or counterattack, every follow-up movement is within his calculations."

"Root once used three people working together to bait him into attacking."

"When his blade was less than half an inch from the target's body, he forcibly stopped, avoided the wire, formed seals with one hand, and counterkilled them with Earth Rising Spears."

Mitokado Homura studied the battle routes on the analysis chart, his expression growing darker and darker.

High-speed movement alone was not terrifying.

Purely powerful swordsmanship was not impossible to restrain either.

What was truly terrifying was when both appeared in the same person.

The enemy could not see his movements, nor could they predict his blade.

Even if they were lucky enough to block the first strike, they would be paralyzed by Lightning Release.

How was that any different from Konoha's White Fang of old?

"There's more."

Danzo continued, "Hatake Sakumo primarily relied on Lightning Body Flicker and swordsmanship. Ninjutsu was not his core means of combat."

"But Uchiha Lieyang possesses all five chakra natures."

"He can use large-scale Fire Release to burn the battlefield, Hidden Mist Technique to deprive enemies of their vision, Earth Release from underground to launch surprise attacks, and he can complete streamlined hand seals with one hand."

"His ninjutsu and taijutsu have both reached extremely high levels."

"He is a versatile Shadow-level powerhouse."

"He is even harder to deal with than a Shadow-level shinobi who merely excels in close combat."

Utatane Koharu slowly sat back down.

She picked up Lieyang's original file and read it again.

Taijutsu, average.

Greatest achievement: killed two chūnin alone.

Fire and Wind chakra natures.

Every entry now seemed like a joke.

Mitokado Homura murmured, "Why would a twenty-year-old Uchiha be able to hide his strength to such an extent?"

No one could answer.

In times of peace, Shadow-level powerhouses were incredibly difficult to produce.

A shinobi's growth had never been separable from battle.

Especially for those at Shadow-level.

Talent, resources, inheritance, willpower, life-and-death combat—lacking any one of these could leave someone forever stuck at the jōnin level.

Among the missions Uchiha Lieyang had carried out in the past, there had been few truly dangerous experiences.

He had never entered a large-scale battlefield, never fought the top powerhouses of other shinobi villages, and never taken any renowned shinobi as his master.

Three years ago, he had merely been an ordinary chūnin with an unremarkable record.

Though he had grown rapidly afterward, he had always remained under Konoha's surveillance.

ANBU had investigated his missions.

Root had investigated his businesses and personal connections.

The Konoha Police Force also had complete records of his activities.

Yet none of the investigations revealed any trace of how he had become a Shadow-level powerhouse.

"He couldn't have become stronger out of nowhere."

Utatane Koharu's voice tightened slightly.

"Where did he learn his jutsu? And who taught him Lightning Body Flicker and swordsmanship?"

"Konoha's records show that he never received any such inheritance."

Mitokado Homura flipped to the list of Lieyang's past missions.

"Nor does he have any history of prolonged disappearance."

"He interacted with others, ran businesses, and handled Konoha Police Force affairs. Aside from missions and training, he had hardly any free time at all."

The two looked at each other, each seeing unconcealed alarm on the other's face.

They could not understand.