Chapter 14: The Stare of the Root
After the ANBU withdrew, only the agents of Root remained, silently surveilling Liumu and Jiraiya.
At this moment, Jiraiya, who was teaching Liumu chakra control, suddenly stiffened. He stood up and shouted coldly toward the jungle not far away, "If you want to know something, come out and ask properly. Don't lurk in the shadows like vermin."
The name of Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin, resonated throughout the shinobi world. Even members of Root dared not show the slightest hint of disrespect in his presence.
However, though they understood Jiraiya's might, they could not refuse the mission assigned by their superior.
Seeing no movement from the woods, Jiraiya shouted again, his voice carrying an edge. "I gave you a chance. You chose not to take it. But if you continue to spy on us like this… even if you are from Konoha, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Jiraiya made as if to sit back down. Just then, a man with curly hair, wearing a mask with horizontal slits, slowly emerged from the tall grass. He approached the two, cupped his hands in a formal greeting, and said, "Lord Jiraiya."
"Speak. What does he want to know?" Jiraiya's 'he' referred, of course, to Danzō. As a contemporary of his teacher, even if Jiraiya held no fondness for the man, he maintained the basic courtesy due to a senior.
The curly-haired man bowed slightly. "Our plans in the Land of Rain were sabotaged. The one who returned from that battlefield… was him." He pointed directly at Liumu, then continued to Jiraiya, "Traitors to the village must face the appropriate consequences."
"Traitor?" Jiraiya's expression turned icy. An invisible, palpable killing intent erupted from him instantly. "Do you have any idea what you're accusing him of?"
As Jiraiya's disciple, if Liumu were branded a traitor, it would reflect on Jiraiya himself. Not just in Konoha, but in virtually every hidden village, there was only one punishment for treason: death.
Even without knowing the full details of what Liumu had done in the Land of Rain, Jiraiya would not stand by and let his disciple be falsely accused.
The oppressive killing intent was as real as a physical force, causing the surrounding bushes to tremble.
At that moment, several more figures materialized beside the curly-haired man. Emboldened, the man spoke again. "Lord Jiraiya, the orders of Root are absolute. Whether he is a traitor or not will be decided by the higher-ups. By acting this way… are you intending to defect from the village as well?"
As he spoke, the agents behind him drew their long swords in unison. Cold steel glinted, radiating a frosty aura. It seemed that if Jiraiya gave the slightest affirmation, a deadly battle would erupt.
"Pfft…"
Faced with this scene, Jiraiya threw his head back and laughed—a loud, booming laugh that finally subsided into wheezes. He then fixed them with a cold, contemptuous sneer. "Danzō's ambition… it probably isn't just aimed at my disciple, is it? It's aimed at me, the Third Hokage's student."
Danzō and Sarutobi Hiruzen had been rivals for a lifetime. The title of Hokage had passed from the Second to Hiruzen, and Danzō had opposed the Hokage at every turn. The Hokage commanded the ANBU; Danzō recruited geniuses to form Root. After Root's brutal, almost inhumane training, its strength had long surpassed that of the ANBU. Danzō was not Hokage, but his power was in no way inferior to Hiruzen's.
As one of the Third's disciples, Jiraiya's suspicion was not unfounded.
"Let's be clear. I don't care what excuse you concoct for the old dog Danzō when you crawl back. But today… you are not taking Liumu."
As Jiraiya spoke, the long white hair atop his head began to rise and stiffen, standing out behind him like a halo of needles.
The two sides stood in confrontation. The atmosphere had plummeted to freezing point.
But Liumu, who was at the center of the dispute, merely narrowed his eyes. He walked lazily to Jiraiya's side, reached out a hand to stop him, and addressed the curly-haired man. "You just want to take me back, right? Fine. Do it."
Seeing the flicker of hesitation in the other's eyes, Liumu sneered. "Since you won't make the first move… then I won't stand on ceremony."
Before the words had fully left his mouth, Liumu's figure blurred. He shot into the group of Root agents like lightning. A swift chop to the back of the curly-haired leader's neck landed with a thud. The man collapsed straight to the ground, his eyes rolling back white, indicating he was completely unconscious.
"Attack!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball!"
"Earth Release: Earth Wave!"
...
Instantly, a barrage of ninjutsu shot toward Liumu. As Jiraiya watched with concern, Liumu stood his ground bizarrely, not moving an inch, as if intending to face the onslaught head-on.
Just as Jiraiya feared, Liumu's intention was precisely to test how Taotie's Gluttony absorbed ninjutsu.
"Dodge it!" Jiraiya shouted urgently, his hands already flying through seals. "Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
Jiraiya spat lightly, and a stream of water erupted at Liumu's feet, rising into a protective dome.
Inside the water shield, Liumu smiled faintly. Under everyone's stunned gaze, he slowly extended his right palm. Almost instantly, whether it was the incoming fireball or the protective water wall Jiraiya had created, all were drawn toward Liumu's palm, swirling into a tiny vortex before being completely swallowed.
"This…!"
The surging earth wave rose and fell like a tide. Liumu simply pressed his hands against the ground. Within moments, even the Earth Release: Earth Wave lost all potency and subsided.
Having finished his 'experiment,' Liumu looked at his palms with satisfaction, then clenched his fists, producing a series of crisp cracks.
"The test is over. You can take a nap now."
As soon as the words fell, Liumu vanished like a ghost. All that followed was a series of soft thumps. Without exception, every Root agent present slumped to the ground, unconscious.
Thanks to Gamawu's surveillance, Jiraiya had known Liumu was extraordinary. But witnessing it firsthand still left him utterly shocked.
He's only five years old.
Five!
Who were the members of Root? Jiraiya knew better than most. Without one-in-a-million talent or incomparable drive, they would never make it into Root's ranks.
And yet, a squad of them had been incapacitated in an instant by Liumu.
And that ability… to absorb ninjutsu…
"Master Jiraiya, let's go."
Liumu smiled, tugging at Jiraiya's sleeve, and the two walked back toward the village.
Having thoroughly offended Danzō now, and wishing to preserve their travel mood, Liumu figured it was best to depart sooner rather than later. Who knew if the narrow-minded old man would keep sending assassins?
Liumu's strength had always been a mystery to Jiraiya. While he was admittedly inept at ninjutsu, his taijutsu was destructively powerful. And now he possessed these incredible, inexplicable abilities…
"Could it be…?"
Jiraiya stared at Liumu, recalling the title the Great Toad Sage had once mentioned: the Child of the Prophecy.
"Was I… mistaken?"
(End of Chapter)
✨✨ I'll release an extra chapter for every 5 reviews! ✨✨🥳🥳 For every 50 power stones! 🥳🥳