From Danmachi to God of Ninja

Chapter 69: Chapter 69

Konoha, Hokage’s Office.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, sat in silence as he looked at the intelligence report on his desk, quietly drawing from his pipe.

Beside him, Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane, and Shimura Danzo were just as silent, each of them still processing the news they had only just received.

After a long while, Hiruzen finally stopped thinking and tapped the bowl of his pipe lightly against the table.

"Well, then... let’s hear it. What do you all think?"

"Too fast," Homura said with a sigh. "His growth is simply too fast."

"Yes," Koharu agreed with a nod. "Who would have thought that in less than half a month, his strength would already reach this level?"

That had been a jinchūriki.

Not some unfinished product who could not even control Tailed Beast chakra, but an almost perfect jinchūriki who could wield that power properly.

And yet, even after entering partial Tailed Beast Transformation and fighting at full strength, that jinchūriki had still been defeated by Kiriya alone.

Her body had even been beaten into a mess of flesh.

That kind of performance was so exaggerated that it overturned their understanding of what was possible.

After all, every major ninja village had ways to suppress Tailed Beasts, but those methods were usually sealing techniques or targeted, powerful ninjutsu like Wood Release.

Beating a partially transformed jinchūriki into that state with pure taijutsu was almost unheard of.

"In half a month, he opened six gates in succession. I’ve truly never heard of talent like this before." Hiruzen smiled warmly.

"The Will of Fire has a worthy successor."

"Indeed. For a young genius like this to appear, it must be the blessing of our ancestors," Koharu and Homura said, both smiling and nodding.

"And it’s also thanks to your sharp eye, Sandaime. If you hadn’t chosen Jiraiya to guide him, he may not have reached this point so smoothly."

Everyone present knew very well that assigning Jiraiya as Kiriya’s teacher had not originally been Hiruzen’s idea, and that the true foundation of Kiriya’s current strength was Kiriya’s own talent.

But that did not stop them from flattering the Sandaime a little, while also turning the whole matter into a respectable political achievement for Konoha’s leadership.

"Not at all, not at all. That boy worked hard himself."

Hiruzen chuckled.

Seeing that pleased, almost grandfatherly expression on Hiruzen’s face, Danzo felt sharp pain stab through his chest again and again, as if a venomous snake were gnawing at his heart.

’That power should have been mine... It should have been mine!’

His face remained calm, but inside, waves of anger and regret surged violently, almost ready to erupt like a volcano.

If that accident had never happened, Kiriya would have become the sharpest blade in his hand, sweeping away all opposition and helping him ascend to the position of Hokage with unstoppable force.

Unfortunately...

All of that could only exist in his dreams now.

That blade had already developed its own will.

There was no longer any chance of bringing it back under his control.

When Danzo remembered the hatred he had seen in Kiriya’s eyes that day in the laboratory, a chill crawled down his spine.

’The First Hokage cell transplant project must be accelerated. I have to strengthen myself before that boy makes a move.’

Danzo’s mind raced.

’And... I can’t let him keep growing like this.’

After making up his mind, he slowly opened his mouth, his deep voice echoing through the office.

"Senju Kiriya has eliminated a jinchūriki and killed dozens of elite enemy shinobi. If such a great achievement goes unrewarded, it will damage our Shinobi morale."

"Hm?"

Hiruzen and the two advisers froze.

All three of them looked at Danzo with expressions that were difficult to describe.

"What?" Danzo remained perfectly composed under their strange gazes. "Is there a problem with what I said?"

’A problem? The problem is huge!’

The three of them muttered inwardly.

At first, Danzo had acted as if he would not rest until Kiriya was under his control, constantly trying to suppress him through every word and implication.

Yet now he suddenly seemed to be supporting the boy?

Had the man changed overnight?

Of course, those were only their thoughts. Outwardly, everyone remained polite.

Following Danzo’s words, Hiruzen asked, "Then in your view, how should we reward him?"

"First, ninjutsu," Danzo said in a calm, measured tone. "According to Jiraiya’s report, the boy is very interested in all kinds of ninjutsu. We can allow him to choose one high-level ninjutsu to learn."

The others nodded as they listened.

That suggestion was reasonable, there was nothing wrong with it.

But what came next?

"Second, honor."

Danzo straightened his posture, finally revealing the blade hidden behind his words.

"Senju Kiriya has established merit after merit. His strength and talent are beyond doubt. We should spread this news widely. First, it will raise our morale. Second, it will intimidate the enemy."

Looking at Danzo’s righteous expression, Hiruzen and the two advisers all felt the corners of their mouths twitch.

’Like hell we believe you, you rotten old fox! You’re trying to praise him to death.’

"Cough... Danzo, we cannot rush this matter."

Hiruzen coughed lightly.

"A tree that rises above the forest is the first to be struck by the wind. Kiriya is still too young. There is no need to draw so much unnecessary attention to him. For him, this would be more danger than blessing."

"Yes, exactly," Koharu and Homura agreed.

"Hmph! soft-hearted nonsense."

Danzo snorted, showing no respect for their hesitation.

"True gold does not fear the fire. Steel is forged through repeated tempering. A true genius should face blood and the most brutal battlefields head-on. How can a towering tree be raised inside a greenhouse? You, me, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Orochimaru—we all came through that way, did we not?"

"Besides, with his current strength, the only people in the shinobi world who can truly threaten him are old monsters. As long as those people do not personally act, what are you afraid of?"

"And if such a person stands at the front and draws enemy attention, it will also make several of our strategic adjustments much easier. One move, three benefits. I honestly don’t know what you are all hesitating for."

Danzo’s words were sharp, logical, and forceful enough that Hiruzen and the two advisers found themselves unable to refute him immediately.

In the end, they were still political creatures.

After weighing the matter, they chose Danzo’s proposal.

The man was right about one thing.

Konoha urgently needed heroes.

Minato Namikaze had already begun showing his brilliance, but right now, the village could use as many heroes as possible.

After all, they were fighting on multiple fronts.

The pressure was enormous.

And so, under the approval of Konoha’s highest leadership, and with Danzo quietly pushing things from both the light and the shadows, a chain of news spread out from Konoha and sent the entire shinobi world into an uproar.

"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen wiped out — and the culprit is Senju Kiriya!"

"Six-Tails jinchūriki fights at full strength, only to fall before a pair of iron fists."

"One man cuts down a hundred elite shinobi — the stunning debut of an unrivaled genius."

When the higher-ups across the shinobi world saw the news, they could hardly believe their eyes.

Doubts, curses, and angry disbelief erupted everywhere.

"All of this was done by some teenage brat?"

"What kind of joke is this? Does he think he’s Hashirama Senju? Or Madara Uchiha?"

"Konoha has no shame left. They’re really pushing fake news now?"

"Where’s Kirigakure?"

"Exactly! This is the perfect chance to slap Konoha lies in the ass! I’ve never seen such ridiculous news in my life."

Very quickly, however, the people enjoying the drama realized something was wrong.

The shinobi world was noisy.

Kirigakure was quiet.

From beginning to end, Kirigakure’s attitude could be summed up in one phrase: no comment.

Forget launching a revenge operation against Konoha to show off their strength.

They did not even send the Seven Ninja Swordsmen out for a quick public appearance to prove the rumor false.

Faced with Kirigakure’s strange silence, the uproar across the shinobi world slowly quieted down.

Many shinobi felt the corners of their mouths twitch.

This matter might...

Possibly...

Probably... Be true.

At the very least, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were gone.

Suddenly, the credibility of Konoha’s news shot up, and gasps could be heard all across the shinobi world.

For a moment, the temperature of the world itself seemed to rise by 0.01 degrees from all the sharp inhales.

After the shock came the digging.

Everyone began trying to uncover the details of that battle.

Naturally, all sorts of "insiders" jumped out one after another, each claiming to possess exclusive information and making an absolute fortune.

As for whether their information was true...

Please.

They were just intelligence middlemen. How were they supposed to know?

And those who moved too slowly, or who lacked access to so-called insider sources, turned their eyes toward another field.

If they could not transport intelligence, they could at least process it.

Thus, for a time, all kinds of shocking, eye-catching stories appeared openly in street tabloids.

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Naruto arc is quite long, about 30 Chapters more before the mc go back to danmachi world.