He was absolutely certain his opponent had never had a chance to hide anyone along the way, and no second person had come into contact with the target.
With the absurd observational power of thought acceleration, he could not possibly have missed a single detail.
Yet how had Naruto, a full-grown living person, vanished so abruptly?
After searching the entire area, Lei Dou sent out more than twenty clones to turn the forest inside out.
The result was despairing. They still found nothing.
Had Naruto really vanished into thin air?
Was it Space-Time Ninjutsu?
If his opponent really possessed such an advanced technique, why bother running out of Konoha?
Why not simply teleport away the moment he caught Naruto?
Besides, Lei Dou did not know Space-Time Ninjutsu. Even if his opponent had used it, he would have no way to follow.
Lei Dou refused to accept it. He spent a full half hour searching, using his clones to comb every inch from deep within the forest to Konoha's outskirts.
He tore through every corner where someone might have been hidden.
There was still no sign of Naruto. He had also thoroughly searched the dead ninja, but found nothing resembling a sealing scroll.
How could a living person simply disappear?
If he ruled out Space-Time Ninjutsu and special sealing tools, the only remaining possibility was-
Right under his nose! Naruto was still in Konoha!
Lei Dou had only activated thought acceleration when he left the Konoha Gate. The only possible gap in his observations had been while he was inside Konoha.
At that thought, Lei Dou hurried back to Konoha, using Transparent Release to deftly evade the Anbu Ninja arriving to provide support and conduct searches.
Just as Lei Dou slipped back onto Konoha's streets, he spotted a squad of Anbu Ninja talking in the shadows beside the road.
"How did that demon fox brat suddenly pass out here by the road?"
"Lord Hokage told us to take him home. We don't need to concern ourselves with anything else!"
Lei Dou's heart jolted. Naruto really was in Konoha!
Hidden in a dark corner, Lei Dou could not make sense of it.
They went to all that trouble to capture Naruto, then casually dumped him by the road like garbage?
What kind of bizarre move was that? It made no sense!
If Naruto meant nothing to those three kidnappers, then... there was only one conclusion. Those three had been after Lei Dou all along!
At that moment, Danzo was hiding in Root's dark, damp underground base, a place much like a rat's burrow.
His back was turned to a Root ninja kneeling on one knee, and the atmosphere was terrifyingly oppressive.
"Lord Danzo, the operation failed. All the men we sent were wiped out. All three were killed!"
"Oh?" Danzo paused, then slammed his cane against the floor. "They killed three of my Root ninja? All three were elite operatives with Chunin-level abilities!"
How could a brat who had not even graduated from the Ninja Academy possess such overwhelming combat power?
"Lord Danzo, ANBU has recovered two of the bodies. The third remains missing!"
"According to the ANBU medical examiner's preliminary report, both were killed instantly by a sharp weapon to the throat. Clean and precise!"
Instantly!
To the throat!
Danzo's half-closed eye snapped open, revealing a chilling gleam.
It was impossible. The boy was merely a brat with a slightly exceptional talent for swordsmanship.
How could he have the strength to kill elite Chunin in an instant? Although ANBU belonged to Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo usually looked down on them, their intelligence investigations were unlikely to contain any major errors.
"It seems I underestimated that brat!"
"Also, the ANBU ninja reported personally witnessing Shimozuki Raito transform into countless streams of water in an instant and rush out of Konoha at astonishing speed!"
"The remaining missing Root operative was probably caught outside Konoha and disposed of by Shimozuki Raito as well!"
That was almost certain.
But transforming into countless streams of water in an instant?
Was it the Body Flicker Technique?
Or some special fluid-based Body Flicker Technique?
Now that was interesting.
How had a boy who had not even received his Ninja Academy diploma mastered such a difficult fluid-based Body Flicker Technique?
Danzo was far from unfamiliar with that technique.
His old rival, Hanzo of the Salamander, the man known as the Demigod, was equally proficient in it.
To master such a fluid-based Body Flicker Technique, one first needed an unbelievably profound understanding of water release nature transformation before one could possibly grasp that kind of shape-transforming ninjutsu.
Shimozuki Raito actually knew that technique. Where the brat had secretly learned it did not matter. What mattered was that he possessed such incredible talent at his age!
"Hiruzen, oh, Hiruzen. It seems our boy with his extraordinary talent for swordsmanship has more to him than swordsmanship alone!"
"He's also a one-in-ten-thousand Water Release genius!"
Alongside his surprise, the greed deep within Danzo grew stronger. He even felt a flicker of excitement.
He had never expected such a hidden dragon to emerge from Konoha's stagnant waters.
Meanwhile, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the man on his mind, sat in the Hokage's office, studying the report in his hand with his brow deeply furrowed.
"Mysterious men in black killed instantly, Naruto inexplicably unconscious by the road, and a pursuing ninja who vanished in an instant!"
Hiruzen took a deep draw from his pipe. The smoke he exhaled obscured his grave expression. The backgrounds of the two dead men had already been investigated, and there was an eighty percent chance they were Root operatives prepared to die on their missions.
Although they were not officially registered ninja, their methods made it clear they were private soldiers Danzo had secretly raised.
But why had Naruto been unconscious?
And who was the ninja who had vanished in an instant?
What exactly was Danzo trying to do?
Whom had he sent those Root ninja to kill?
Hiruzen wanted to summon Danzo and demand answers, but since Danzo had chosen to act directly, he clearly had no intention of considering Hiruzen's opinion. He was probably even prepared for an open confrontation.
If Hiruzen questioned him, that old fox would most likely evade the issue and reveal nothing.
Danzo was growing increasingly outrageous. He had dared to act openly within the village. Whoever his target was, this showed a complete disregard for Hiruzen's authority as Hokage.
It even seemed that this operation had dragged Naruto, their jinchūriki, into it.
Perhaps Naruto had accidentally witnessed something, prompting them to knock him unconscious and dump him nearby!
Hiruzen decided to question Naruto personally once he woke up.
Elsewhere, the ANBU ninja took Naruto home, while Lei Dou returned to his own house silently under cover of night.
Their target had never been Naruto!
They had been after him from beginning to end!
They had dared to act inside Konoha, and when the incident occurred, all the nearby ANBU patrols had seemingly been inexplicably far away.
ANBU ninja were stationed throughout Konoha. There was no way an area would suddenly be left completely unguarded.
The situation was already obvious.
In Konoha, aside from Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, only Danzo, lurking in the shadows, could influence ANBU deployments.
Lei Dou smiled wryly. He had kept such a low profile and seemed so unremarkable. His sole moment in the spotlight had been displaying his Water Breathing swordsmanship at the training ground.
Had that single occasion been enough for the venomous snake to set his sights on him?
They had probably lured him out of Konoha because they feared a fight inside the village would cause too much commotion and become difficult to contain.
Their objective had likely been to capture him alive.
If they had merely wanted to assassinate him rather than capture him, there would have been no need to go to such lengths to lure him out of Konoha.
Would it not have been easier to kill him silently in his sleep?
Capture him alive?
"Could it be for my Water Breathing swordsmanship?"
That seemed to be the only explanation that made sense. That old bastard Danzo wanted to force him to reveal how to train in Water Breathing!
"Danzo, oh, Danzo! Does one little swordsmanship style really matter that much to you?"
"You think far too highly of me. Or have you become so desperate you'll take anything?"
From another perspective, though, perhaps Danzo had not taken this matter particularly seriously. Otherwise, he would not have sent just three Root small fry who were not even Jonin to deal with him.
Clearly, Danzo had dismissed him, believing those three would be more than enough to capture him with ease!
But whether Danzo had taken him seriously before or not, everything had changed after tonight.
If Danzo made another move, he would not send merely three Chunin-level pieces of cannon fodder.
Lei Dou lifted the curtain just enough to leave a narrow gap and warily checked outside.
There are noticeably more ANBU ninja watching me!
Danzo probably won't make any more rash moves tonight. In fact, he won't dare act again for a while!
Hiruzen still had the final say in Konoha, after all. Danzo's brazen troublemaking could enrage him completely.
Lei Dou lowered the curtain and lay wearily on his bed.
He had never wanted to draw attention, yet he had still been targeted. It seemed his hopes of living quietly were thoroughly dashed.
Since he could not keep a low profile, he might as well become a little more conspicuous!
Bearing the label of "genius" was troublesome, but it was not entirely without benefits. At least it could earn him the attention and protection of the village's leadership.
Lei Dou glanced at Great Sage, which was still furiously processing calculations in the system interface.
There were a dozen or so hours left on the countdown.
By the time tomorrow's graduation exam ended, the calculations for Ice Release should be complete.
With Ice Release complementing Water Release, his combat power would take a qualitative leap. As long as he kept improving his strength, neither the scheming Danzo nor the powerful Akatsuki organization would matter.
With absolute strength, he would have nothing to fear!
The next morning, Lei Dou arrived at the Ninja Academy with the conspicuous Ninja Blade Zangetsu on his back.
Before this, Lei Dou had never brought a real weapon like that to school.
Shikamaru and the others looked at the strikingly designed Ninja Blade on Lei Dou's back. Surprise flickered in their eyes, followed by quiet smiles.
Shikamaru stared at Lei Dou and thought:
Is this guy finally done hiding his abilities? Is he ready to show off that terrifying swordsmanship?
As everyone gathered to chat, Naruto finally arrived at school with two enormous dark circles beneath his eyes, looking utterly drained.
The moment he spotted Lei Dou, his eyes brightened, and he was about to rush over to greet him.
Just then, Iruka strode into the classroom carrying the attendance register.
"All right! Quiet down, everyone, and get back to your seats. This graduation exam is being held early to assess your true abilities!"
"What comes next is the most crucial step in your ninja careers. If you pass the exam, you'll receive your forehead protectors and become official ninja."
"If you fail, you'll have to continue your education at an ordinary vocational school and learn other skills to make a living outside the ninja profession."
"I hope you'll all give it everything you have. Good luck!"
The exam officially began.
In name, it was a serious ninja graduation exam.
In practice, though, the process did not seem much different from their regular classroom tests.
First came a simple assessment of everyone's accuracy with thrown weapons, followed by the main event-the Clone Technique test!
The children formed a long line in the hallway, entering the examination room one after another for individual assessments.
Watching the child ahead of him emerge with his head hanging and looking ready to cry, Lei Dou took a deep breath, slowly pushed open the door, and stepped inside.
Iruka raised his head and looked at Lei Dou with a complicated expression.
"Lei Dou, you seem to have changed quite a bit lately. I've heard about what happened at the training ground!"
"So? Are you confident about today's exam?"
Judging by Lei Dou's usual bottom-of-the-class grades and performance, passing the exam would not be easy.
Yet Lei Dou seemed exceptionally relaxed and nodded confidently.
"Yes!"
"All right, then! Enough talk. Begin! Show me your Clone Technique!"
The instant Iruka finished speaking, Lei Dou gently raised his left hand and casually formed a Rat Seal!
There was a soft pop!
An identical clone instantly appeared at his side.
There was nothing special about the Clone Technique itself. Any ninja could use it. Yet Iruka's eyes widened as he stared at Lei Dou in shock, as though he had seen a ghost.
Just now!
Unless his eyes had deceived him, Lei Dou had formed the seal with only one hand.
One-handed seals?
Did this usually unremarkable Shimozuki Raito actually possess such astonishing talent?
One-handed seals were not something that could be mastered through rote memorization. They were an innate gift, much like a kekkei genkai. You either had it from birth or you did not.
Without that talent, an ordinary person could practice until their fingers broke and still never master it in their lifetime.
"Teacher, did I pass?"
Only upon hearing Lei Dou's calm voice did Iruka recover from his tremendous shock.
He stared at Lei Dou as though looking at a monster and nodded mechanically. "Y-yes... you passed!"
Lei Dou turned and left the classroom.
Watching Lei Dou's slightly lean figure retreat, Iruka dazedly felt that he had been something of a failure as a teacher.
He had taught them for so long, yet never realized there was such an unpolished gem among his students.