From Danmachi to God of Ninja

Chapter 79: Chapter 79

With Kiriya’s healing magic, the poisoned and injured Konoha shinobi recovered quickly.

Before long, they had all fully regained consciousness.

When they learned from Hizashi that the person who had saved them was actually Kiriya, complicated expressions appeared on many of their faces.

They had never imagined that the boy who had once acted timid and awkward in the village, almost like a clown people could laugh at, would grow to this level in such a short time.

Especially when they heard that Kiriya had defeated dozens of Sunagakure shinobi by himself, cutting them down as easily as chopping vegetables, the shock in their hearts became impossible to describe.

Looking at Kiriya’s handsome face now, they only felt as if a thick wall had risen between them and him.

Wood Release.

Flying Thunder God.

Swordsmanship as swift as wind and lightning.

Kiriya was no longer the boy they could casually tease, the boy whose existence had once brought them easy amusement.

"M-Milord..."

Some shinobi from civilian backgrounds looked at Kiriya with eyes full of awe.

Even the chūnin and jōnin from famous clans lowered their proud heads and respectfully called out, "Kiriya-sama."

"Hey, no need to be so polite. Just call me Kiriya like before."

Kiriya smiled cheerfully, as if he did not care about any of what had happened in the past.

Kiriya could make jokes, but these shinobi would not be stupid enough to take him seriously.

Everyone knew that when someone had power but did not show off, it was like wearing fine clothes at night.

The satisfaction dropped by ninety percent.

People who suddenly became strong always hoped for some villain to appear and give them a chance to slap faces.

That way, they could settle old accounts naturally and show off in a way that seemed low-key but elegant.

These shinobi had already taken enough blows on the battlefield.

They had no desire to become Kiriya’s stepping stones too.

Seeing that these sharp-minded shinobi refused to take the bait, Kiriya clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction.

"You people are no good. You don’t have the practical, truth-seeking spirit of proper shinobi at all! You should spar with me just so you can figure out what I’m capable of! What if Hizashi was fooled by me and teamed up with me to trick all of you?"

"Hehe..."

The group of jōnin and chūnin laughed dryly in unison.

In their hearts, they were all thinking the same thing.

Did he really think they were fools?

A whole pile of Sunagakure shinobi had been turned into sashimi and barbecue right in front of them.

They were not blind! How could they still doubt it?

They also understood Hizashi’s strength and fighting style. He was absolutely incapable of doing something like this.

So, one by one, they looked up at the sky and started discussing topics like, "The weather is nice today," "Isn’t your wife about to give birth?" and "Once this war is over, I’m going home to get married."

"Ahem. Kiriya-sama, since everyone’s body is fine now, I think we should set off and return."

Hizashi wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and quickly spoke up.

He had heard a little about Kiriya’s previous treatment in the village.

Young people were naturally proud and sensitive, so there was probably a lot of resentment built up in his heart.

Logically, Hizashi should not have gotten involved in this muddy water.

But on this battlefield, where danger lurked everywhere, it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble whenever possible.

"Oh. Then let’s go."

Kiriya did not insist, agreeing readily.

His straightforward response made everyone breathe a sigh of relief. They quickly called to one another and began preparing to move out.

Guy, Ebisu, and Genma watched the whole scene with their hearts full of yearning.

"Kiriya-sama is amazing. Those adults don’t even dare speak loudly to him."

"Yeah. We’re all kids, but the gap is way too big."

"A real man should be like this! Ah, my motivation to train is surging again!"

The words of the three children made some of the shinobi’s faces turn ugly.

But because Kiriya was there, they did not dare show even a hint of dissatisfaction, so they simply marched in silence.

Not long after they started moving, they ran head-on into Konoha’s reinforcement force.

The one leading them was also a member of the Hyūga clan.

After all, those Byakugan were far too recognizable.

Because of that, both sides had sensed each other in advance, so there was no ridiculous friendly-fire incident.

"Hizashi!"

"Takashi!"

When fellow clansmen met, there were no tears, but both sides were still clearly excited.

"How are you? Are you all right?"

Hyūga Takashi’s face was full of concern.

"Lord Orochimaru received your request for aid earlier and immediately sent me with reinforcements. What exactly happened? How many enemies did they send?"

"Ah, it’s embarrassing to say. There were only about forty enemies, but they used an extremely troublesome poison. We were careless for a moment and fell into their trap. We almost..."

Takashi’s expression changed dramatically.

"What? You were poisoned? Come on, hurry back to camp with me. We need to find the medical-nin."

As he spoke, he tried to pull Hizashi along, only for Hizashi to stop him.

"If we were still poisoned, do you think we could have made it back like this?"

Hizashi pointed at his own face.

"We’re fine. Someone already healed us."

"Really? Who did it?" Takashi asked in surprise and delight.

"It was Kiriya-sama."

Hizashi gave a name, but that only made Takashi even more confused.

"Kiriya...sama? Which... one is that?"

Seeing his reaction, Hizashi could only smile helplessly.

This scene was far too familiar.

When he first heard Kiriya’s name, he had also been unable to connect him with that boy from the village.

He was just about to explain when a burst of hearty laughter came from the side.

"Hahaha! Kiriya-chan, when did you sneak into Hizashi-san squad? You didn’t cause him any trouble, did you?"

Hizashi’s expression changed the moment he heard that.

He abruptly turned his head and saw a boy patting Kiriya on the shoulder while laughing and teasing him with an almost ridiculous amount of boldness.

"Asuma..."

The corner of Hizashi’s mouth twitched, and he suddenly felt the urge to cover his face.

’Why did it have to be this kid who rushed over?’

"What’s wrong?"

Hyūga Takashi leaned closer and asked quietly, confused by Hizashi’s reaction.

"Nothing..."

Hizashi looked depressed, but in his heart, he had already made up his mind.

If anything happened, he would step in immediately and mediate, in case Kiriya hit too hard and things got out of hand.

After all, this was the son of a major leader. Hizashi could not afford to ignore him.

On the other side, Kiriya was slightly stunned by the sudden laughter.

He looked at the rough-looking boy who had walked over.

A full face of stubble, an air of hardship and age, and yet somehow he acted as if the two of them were very familiar.

Kiriya could not help asking, "Who are you, uncle?"

"U-Uncle?"

The newcomer’s body immediately stiffened. A

n indescribable low pressure gathered over his head before finally erupting.

"Look at me properly! I’m Asuma! Sarutobi Asuma!"

He was a fresh young teenager. How could anyone call him that old?

"Sarutobi Asuma?"

Kiriya froze for a moment, then remembered that there really was such a prematurely mature-looking guy.

If not for his height falling short, he could probably pass as Hizashi’s uncle with room to spare.

"Did you need something?" Kiriya asked.

"Hey, is that how you talk to your old friend?" Sarutobi Asuma said, clearly displeased. "Back then, you cried and begged me to take you in as my friend! It hasn’t even been that long, and now you’re pretending it never happened?"

Hiss—

A series of sharp inhales immediately sounded around them.

Guy, Genma, Ebisu, and the large group of adult shinobi behind Hizashi were all among them.

They stared at Sarutobi Asuma in shock.

"Has he always been this brave?"

Genma and Ebisu looked at Asuma with deep admiration, as if they were looking at a hero who had charged alone to challenge the Demon King.

By contrast, the shinobi on Hyūga Takashi’s side were confused.

They did not understand why the people across from them looked like they had seen a ghost.

Sarutobi Asuma, the son of the Sandaime Hokage, liked gathering little followers at school.

Wasn’t that common knowledge?

Standing at the center of everyone’s attention, Kiriya remained very calm.

He simply narrowed his eyes, his face carrying a faint smile that was not quite a smile.

"Oh? Is that so? Were we that close?"

"More than close. We were extremely close!"

Asuma spoke with flying spit and vivid detail, describing Kiriya’s old situation.

"Back then, your strength at the Academy was so bad it hurt to watch, but you still loved running your mouth. A group of people beat you until your face looked like a pig’s head, and I was the one who saved you!"

"At that time, I help you. One punch took out one, one kick sent three flying, i’m completely unstoppable! You were overwhelmed by my aura and cried your eyes out begging me to become your friend... Did you forget?"

Kiriya: ￣へ￣

He knew his previous self had been pathetic, and that his daily life had basically been either getting messed with or being on the way to getting messed with.

But the embarrassing history Asuma described still managed to break through Kiriya’s understanding of how low things could go.

Still, Kiriya was already an excellent shinobi now.

He did not get angry. Instead, he smiled slightly, showing broad-mindedness and tolerance.

"Asuma, was it? Sorry, but I’ve already grown past that age."

Bzzzt...

Although Hizashi was not the one directly receiving that gaze, when he saw Kiriya’s calm and tolerant smile, he felt as if an electric current had run through his entire body.

"A—"

He had just opened his mouth to give a warning when he heard Asuma speak in an utterly righteous tone.

"How can that be? You used to be so soft and girly that you’d fall over if someone pushed you. If I hadn’t protected you, who knows how many times you would’ve been pinned to the ground?"

Asuma’s words left Ebisu and Genma staring in awe, while Hizashi simply closed his eyes helplessly.

There was no saving him.

When Kiriya heard Asuma say that, his smile became even brighter.

"Fine. I actually have something I’d like to ask my friend for help with."

"Say it. I’ll handle it."

Asuma slapped his chest and agreed boldly.

"I’ve recently felt that there are some problems with my training. I’d like you to give me some guidance."

"Hah, I thought it was something serious. That’s easy! Once we get back to camp, I’ll train with you properly."

Asuma agreed without hesitation.

"No need. We’re not busy right now, so this is a good time to spar."

As Kiriya spoke, he grabbed Asuma by the shoulder.

Seeing the playful smile on Kiriya’s face, Asuma immediately had a bad feeling.

But before he could say anything, his body involuntarily flew into the air. In the blink of an eye, Hizashi and the others disappeared from sight.

"Hizashi... this..."

Hyūga Takashi looked a little worried.

"It’s fine. That boy still knows restraint... probably," Hizashi said.

Genma and the other shinobi wanted to laugh but did not dare, and their faces turned red from holding it in.

"Ugh, ahrgggggggg—!"

Suddenly, Asuma’s very rhythmic screams rang out from the forest, making everyone’s expressions turn strange.

A few minutes later, Kiriya returned in a few leaps while carrying a beat up boy.

His whole face looked refreshed and satisfied.

"Sorry, I delayed everyone for a bit. Let’s set off now."

Hyūga Takashi looked at the unconscious boy on the ground, and the corner of his eye twitched hard.

The son of the hokage had been beaten.

Logically, he should step forward and address it. But before he could speak, Hizashi changed the subject.

"Then let’s go."

...

On the way, Hizashi had already heard from Guy and the others that Kiriya was now Jiraiya’s disciple, while also being someone whose name had been personally noted by the Sandaime Hokage and valued highly by Konoha’s leadership.

So the conflict between him and Asuma was at most a joke between friends.

There was no need to take it too seriously.

And so, the group set off again.

As for Sarutobi Asuma, Guy volunteered to carry him on his back.

While shouting about youth, he kept pace tightly with the group, overflowing with energy to an almost ridiculous degree.

Before long, the group arrived at the gates of Konoha’s camp and before they could even enter, they saw an unexpected figure.

"Oh, Hizashi, you’re back. I heard you encountered a Sunagakure ambush. How is the situation?"

The speaker had pale skin, long hair hanging past his shoulders, and purple eye shadow extending from the corners of his eyes down along both sides of his nose.

Paired with those vertical pupils, he looked like a walking human-shaped snake.

That’s right.

This was one of the most popular villains in the Naruto series.

Orochimaru, the man later nicknamed Pedomaru.

Of course, at this point, Orochimaru had not defected from Konoha.

He was still one of the famous Sannin, a respected and powerful high-ranking figure within the village.

So when Orochimaru appeared, Hyūga Takashi and Hyūga Hizashi did not dare be negligent.

They quickly bowed and saluted.

As for young kids like Might Guy, they were even more careful. In front of a legendary shinobi like this, they barely dared to breathe loudly.

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru. We encountered a Sunagakure attack. The enemy used poison, and at first, we were in a very passive position."

Hizashi reported the situation to Orochimaru in a proper and orderly manner.

His tone was somewhat heavy at first, but as he continued, his voice became noticeably lighter.

"However, we later received support from Kiriya-sama. Not only were we able to wipe out that Sunagakure force completely, but the poison in our bodies was also removed."

As he spoke, Hizashi stepped aside, allowing Kiriya behind him to appear in Orochimaru’s line of sight.

He did not know about the grudge between Kiriya and Orochimaru.

He was simply acting according to his usual thinking and wanted Kiriya to show his face in front of Orochimaru, the commander of this front line.

With Orochimaru’s clear rewards and punishments, perhaps Kiriya might receive quite a few rewards.

Yes.

Although in the eyes of some people who disliked him, Orochimaru was deep-minded, sinister, cunning, and willing to use any means to achieve his goals, that was not how shinobi like Hizashi, who served under Orochimaru, saw him.

Deep-minded?

That was called being resourceful.

Willing to use any means?

On the battlefield, you were supposed to use every method available. That was simply the right person for the right job.

Hadn’t this front performed brilliantly in both survival rate and mission completion rate because of Lord Orochimaru’s planning?

So in Hizashi’s view, building a good relationship with Orochimaru would absolutely bring great benefits to Kiriya.

But Hizashi had not expected things to develop in a direction completely outside his imagination.

"Oh my, isn’t this Kiriya-kun? It has been a long time."

Orochimaru spoke.

His voice was damp and slippery, like a snake sliding over the surface of someone’s skin, making goosebumps rise on many people nearby.

"Ah, I’ve really missed you to death, Orochimaru... sama."

Kiriya yawned.

His words were very polite, but the way he looked at Orochimaru was not the gaze one gave a superior or an elder.

It was more like he was looking at a corpse.

"Remembering everything from before?" Kiriya grinned.