"Cough cough… Who exactly is this guy? With such abilities, there's no way he's a nobody!
"But his mannerisms and some of his abilities look suspiciously similar to Leader Pain!
"Could he be the Leader's clone in Konoha?"
Kisame climbed out from the shattered ground, face covered in dirt and blood as he complained bitterly.
During his complaints, he coughed out several liters of blood.
Normally, coughing out even one liter of blood meant certain death, yet Kisame somehow managed it multiple times.
"If this is the same person I saw several years ago, he should be in the same generation as my younger brother Sasuke," Uchiha Itachi quietly recalled.
"He recently started taking the Chunin Exams. Now, since the Hokage position is vacant without official updates, I suppose he's technically still a genin."
Itachi remembered the time, years ago, when he accompanied Sasuke to his entrance ceremony at the Ninja Academy, seeing the child whose appearance surpassed even theirs.
That was undoubtedly this young man before him.
"What? Someone this powerful is still a genin? Are those old geezers in Konoha blind or something?" Kisame spoke incredulously.
Konoha was known for producing geniuses.
Yet, it was also notorious for crushing those same geniuses.
For someone so immensely talented to remain merely a genin was absurd.
If he hadn't witnessed it firsthand, Kisame would never believe that the number one shinobi village had become so narrow-minded.
No wonder Konoha had been steadily declining.
If even this kid eventually defected, Konoha's collapse would become inevitable.
With this realization, Kisame's eyes lit up. If he could recruit this powerful kid into the Akatsuki, it would be a tremendous achievement.
At that point, sweeping aside all Five Great Ninja Villages would become easy, and they wouldn't have to hide in the Land of Rain any longer.
Besides, the Leader had been issuing more and more missions recently, seemingly ready to emerge from the shadows.
It wouldn't be long before the entire shinobi world acknowledged Akatsuki's power.
Otherwise, Kisame and Itachi wouldn't have dared appear openly in Konoha wearing Akatsuki robes.
Though he felt the chances were slim, Kisame decided to try anyway, it could at least stall the boy's attacks, and there was no harm in trying.
He raised his voice and shouted, "Hey, kid! over here! We acknowledge your strength!
"Want to join our organization? We're committed to bringing true peace to the shinobi world.
"We don't have any cumbersome restrictions; you just have to complete occasional missions, and the rest of the time you're free to do whatever you like.
"Our Leader is insanely strong. Even if all of us joined forces, we'd still lose to him."
After this speech, the brilliant golden radiance in the sky gradually began to dim.
It worked! the boy stopped his attack.
Kisame secretly rejoiced.
"And become rogue ninja like you, hiding in every corner and getting chased by the entire shinobi world?" A furious voice suddenly thundered from afar.
"And who gave you the audacity to come to Konoha and recruit our future Fifth Hokage?"
It was Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, Shimura Danzo, Yuhi Kurenai, and a group of ANBU, all rushing over after receiving the alert from the Hokage Tower.
"F... Fifth Hokage?"
Even Itachi nearly popped his eyes out at this.
Just moments ago, they had been talking about the kid being a mere genin, and now they planned to directly promote him to Hokage?
Could a person of such age truly take the mantle of Hokage?
Was this really something power-hungry old foxes like Homura and Danzo would do?
Had they all collectively fallen under a Kotoamatsukami?
"That's right! Natsuki has saved Konoha from disasters numerous times over the years. He's loved and revered by all the villagers. Even the Ninja Academy teaches about his heroic deeds. Whether it's strength or reputation, he stands unrivaled," Mitokado Homura explained cheerfully. "There's no one more suitable in the world to become Hokage."
Danzo deliberately gave a cold snort at these words.
"You insects should consider yourselves fortunate to have witnessed this radiant heavenly might," Natsuki calmly stated, hovering high above with a cold, indifferent gaze.
"With your pathetic strength, you probably can't even defeat my little subordinates. Yet you dared attempt to recruit the Supreme Lord of Dimensional End.
"Since I'm in a good mood today, I'll forgive this offense without punishment. But if you dare err again, I'll unleash divine retribution, obliterating your bodies and souls completely."
Uchiha Itachi: "..."
Hoshigaki Kisame: "..."
Mitokado Homura: "..."
Utatane Koharu: "..."
After this speech, everyone—friend or foe—stood frozen on the ground, staring blankly at each other for a long, awkward moment.
"Ahahaha, sorry about that! My little brother has loved joking since he was a child. He was just kidding with you all!"
Kurenai's cheeks flushed deep crimson as she quickly laughed it off, desperately explaining on Natsuki's behalf.
In front of so many prominent figures, Natsuki had once again lost control.
As his older sister, she wished she could dig a hole in the ground to hide in right now.
The Elder Council members were all here; if he offended them, Natsuki would have a tough time in the future, let alone becoming Hokage.
Besides, with Natsuki's reckless personality, he absolutely couldn't become Hokage.
Otherwise, those crafty old foxes would sell him out without him even realizing it.
"Hahaha… Natsuki sure loves to joke around.
"As his sister, you should make him restrain himself more in the future. Such childish behavior won't be appropriate once he becomes Hokage."
Mitokado Homura forced an awkward smile, gently advising Kurenai.
Yuhi Kurenai nodded earnestly, quickly taking responsibility and apologizing on behalf of her younger brother.
"Is this really the same guy who was overwhelming us earlier?" Kisame asked gloomily.
"Seems so," Itachi replied, equally confused.
"According to them, he'll probably become Hokage soon. Who knows what those old foxes are scheming.
"We should retreat quickly. It'll be trouble if we're surrounded."
"Understood, Itachi-san!"
Kisame nodded firmly, his hands swiftly forming numerous seals once again.
"Watch out! Those rogue ninjas are launching another attack!"
The ANBU ninja who had been watching from a distance shouted a warning as they swiftly encircled Kisame and Itachi in a semicircle formation.
"Water Style: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!"
An enormous surge of water erupted, instantly turning the entire area into a vast lake.
Without pausing, Kisame immediately unleashed another powerful ninjutsu.
"Water Style: Thousand Feeding Sharks!"
Countless sharks emerged within the turbulent waters, rushing frantically toward the ANBU ninja.
"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu!"
"Wind Style: Wind Cutter!"
The ANBU ninja retaliated, using their signature techniques to fend off the incoming sharks.
Yet, overwhelmed by sheer numbers, they were quickly forced back.
Kisame's full-power assault finally forced the Elder Council and the ANBU to realize the terrifying strength of their enemies.
Just Kisame alone possessed the strength to annihilate dozens of elite ninja.
Not to mention the infamous Mangekyo Sharingan wielder, Itachi, standing at his side.
Most importantly, this fearsome duo had just recently been suppressed by Natsuki.
Regardless of anything else, the strength this boy demonstrated was undoubtedly on the level of a Kage.
"Great Radient Light Fist!"
A voice resounding like heavenly judgment echoed through the sky as a blazing golden fist slammed downward.
With a thunderous roar, nearly a hundred sharks were pulverized into dust instantly, carving out a temporary circular void in the water's surface.
At that moment, instead of retreating, Itachi surged forward, swiftly lunging toward a dozen ANBU ninja attempting to encircle them.
"Danger! Retreat immediately!"
An ANBU ninja in the rear shouted urgently, his Byakugan fully activated.
But it was already too late.
Itachi's body suddenly erupted with a violent surge of chakra.
His form exploded spectacularly, sending out a shockwave powerful enough to tear apart the surrounding waters and engulf the nearest dozen ANBU ninja.
Universal Pull!
Natsuki raised his hand..
In an instant, the ANBU ninja felt an irresistible pull, forcibly dragging them backward, narrowly avoiding Itachi's Shadow Clone explosion.
This brief distraction allowed Itachi and Kisame to disappear completely from everyone's sight.
"We… we survived."
"It was Natsuki-sama who saved us."
"Th-thank you, Lord Natsuki."
"Sigh, we came to help but ended up causing more trouble instead."
The surviving ANBU ninja breathed sighs of relief, offering their sincere thanks to Natsuki.
Without him, they would have surely perished in that blast.
The Shadow Clone explosion was one of the cruelest, most unexpected techniques—harming the enemy significantly at immense personal cost.
Afterward, the caster must endure absorbing the memories and sensations of their Shadow Clone being violently torn apart.