While I could say that I expected it, at the same time I didn't.
I'm not saying that I wasn't looking forward to this type of mission; after all, I need some test subjects to experiment with their chakra and other aspects, but I don't know exactly what to expect when fighting them.
First of all, I must prepare myself, because fighting a ninja is obviously different from fighting a simple bandit.
I go to my cave where I keep all my research-related stuff.
I take some vials of toxins extracted from the violin spider and extracts from hallucinogenic mushrooms converted into aerosol.
I recently found some very interesting ants. At first, I was going to ignore them, but their color and appearance gave me a hint of what they were.
"AAAAAHHHHH, IT HURTS, IT HURTS LIKE HELL, AAAAAGH," the bandit screamed through tears as he tried to writhe in pain.
I watched him in that state to see how long it would take for the effect to wear off... I didn't think it would last so long. The area around the bite swelled up, and after a while, I noticed that he stopped moving his limb.
Is it the paraponera clavata? That's when I decided to get stung myself, because I need to know firsthand what it feels like in order to use it properly.
1 day later.
FUCK, I didn't think it would hurt so much and last so long, it hurts like I've been shot, the intense burning and the limb completely paralyzed, another symptom detected is intense dizziness that I felt when I used the Flying Thunder God the first few times.
Confirmed, it's the fucking Paraponera clavata ant, better known as the "bullet ant."
I'm torn between regretting and not regretting testing this ant on myself, because with this I confirmed what it was and it helped me decide to try to capture a princess or queen and create my own ant colony like they do in the modern world.
I won't recount the whole process, but I can say that everything is ready, now I just have to wait for them to reproduce after capturing their princess and a few more ants.
Just as a little test, I took a few ants from another colony and put them in a jar with a special storage seal so they can live in good conditions inside.
I forgot to mention that I've been practicing ninjutsu all this time, as my interest was fully focused on poisons and other subjects.
Because of the Sharingan, I had to go with Kushina to have her make me some special glasses.
Since I don't need prescription lenses, she just had to put some seals on the lenses that changed the color of my eyes and suppressed the Sharingan, as if deactivating the Sharingan like the Uchiha do.
It was also because I want to avoid Danzo's gaze. If he discovers that I have a pair of Sharingan, he will not hesitate to rip them out or try to trick me into joining the Root division.
Speaking of Kushina, she and I came to an agreement: she provides me with the sealing work and I take care of forging the tools, so she gave me the materials and I made Minato's characteristic three-pronged kunai, so you could say it's a barter.
Now, with my creations, I managed to sell several blueprints for new weapons or improvements to existing ones, such as explosive kunai that replace the tags, making them careless and exploding when they least expect it.
I also managed to create tools for the Konoha hospital, as there aren't many ninja doctors skilled enough to learn the chakra scalpel, so I made some scalpels and showed the doctors how to use them, because it's not like you just cut and that's it, you first have to disinfect it with fire or some agent like ethyl alcohol, which I'm not sure exists here.
Due to the sale of blueprints and obtaining patents so that each craftsman has to pay me even a small commission for the manufacture of my products, I have a fairly stable source of income.
The products sold seem to have been successful, as I have managed to amass a good amount of money to even buy other buildings and start a new business, which would be to renovate those establishments to rent them to those who want to open a business, since it's not like I'm going to be able to devote myself to the store I open.
That's just beginning, so I'll see the results of that investment in a few years, perhaps.
Apart from scalpels, I also made some variations with lightning chakra-conducting metal, which can cut more efficiently and also cauterizes the cuts, preventing accidents involving heavy bleeding during surgery.
I also made surgical forceps and suture needles that I know from my previous world.
You wonder if I was some kind of doctor in my previous life? No, at least not me, but I had an uncle who, wanting to show me his profession, let me into the operating room to see up close what goes on, but in the end I got bored and just didn't feel like pursuing medicine.
Author's note: The above paragraph is something that actually happened to me in real life.
My uncle's medical knowledge, gained from his large collection of books and my frequent questions, gave me a foundation to start from, which is why I am now dedicated to research in this field.
As for ninjutsu... eh, I can't say if I've improved, because the fireball grew to 2.5 meters and the flame of great fire annihilation looks like something that would come out of a flamethrower from World War I or II from our world.
Another thing I've been training is my wind and lightning release, but since there aren't many techniques for those releases in Konoha, I had to settle for mixing some jutsu to enhance them with fire techniques.
How unfortunate.
I wish I had the Raikage's lightning armor, with that thing I would be quite strong with my fighting technique.
Although, as I recall, World War III is coming soon, in about three or four years, so I might be able to steal their techniques if I'm lucky.
"There they are."
Master Sakumo points to the bandits' hideout, but the difference is that in this hideout there are rebel shinobi of at least chunin or jounin level.
"Is it confirmed who they are, or at least their chakra nature?" I say as I land on the branch near where Master Sakumo is.
"No, we only know their former rank and origin. They are deserters from Kusagakure, so they are not that strong, but you still shouldn't underestimate them. However, they had the idea of dressing like bandits, so without a sensor, we would have to guess which one is which."
Kusagakure... I have some hatred for that shitty village, because that's where they killed Karin's mother, but I think Karin isn't even born yet, because it's still 8-9 years before Naruto is even born.
As for knowing which ones are shinobi, I had the idea of using my arthropods and arachnids for this.
I take one of my jars where I kept my bullet ants and violin spiders, so I open it, allowing them to come out.
I give them the order to infiltrate the base, with the bullet ants going after the rebel ninjas and the violin spiders going after the bandits.
I give the bullet ants orders to attack, prioritizing those with the highest chakra levels.
I wait a few minutes until I hear screams from inside the base.
"AAAAAHHHHH, IT HURTS, IT HURTS!!!
So that's the shinobi.
The ninja who seemed strongest falls due to the agonizing pain of being stung by bullet ants, which continue to sting him, so after a while he is completely paralyzed, but still writhing and shaking slightly, indicating the agony he is going through.
Although it won't kill him and the effect was being minimized with chakra, I didn't send a single ant, so they attacked him en masse.
His partner was trying to remove the ants, but in the end he was also stung, but since there were even fewer of them, it didn't go as far as with the first one.
Having immobilized the biggest problem, I order my little friends to retreat after completing their task.
Fire style: great fire annihilation.
I shoot a flame from my mouth, burning the tents where the bandits were resting, exposing them.
I make a shadow clone that will infiltrate and distract the enemies while I prepare a bow and arrow.
This is no ordinary arrow; it contains a very special mixture.
I release the bowstring and the arrow immediately explodes in the head of a bandit, causing his blood to splatter everywhere.
The ninjas who were not immobilized detect us immediately, so now I have to use my combat skills. I take out my axe and shield, this time without poison, as I must test something first.
One of the ninjas throws a kunai at me, so I block it with my shield.
The ninja takes advantage of my blocked vision and lunges at me, but the fool didn't think it was just me.
"No, Tsukishiro, he's not alone!" his companion shouted.
But it was too late, Master Sakumo had already ambushed him from another angle, cutting off his head cleanly.
"Kenji, take care of the chunin, I'll go after the rest."
A normal person would say that it would be more prudent for my master to take care of the ninjas himself, but this is to help me grow, so he will prevent anyone else from interfering, which I appreciate.
I see the hand seals they make, one of which releases wind blades that are thrown at me.
I get under the tree and take off my glasses, activating my Sharingan.
"Damn it, he's an Uchiha, don't look him in the eyes!!!!"
I'm not, but it's not like I want to correct him.
His partner heard that instruction too late, as he had already looked me in the eyes and was then paralyzed.
Genjutsu: Demonic Illusion, Blood Eagle.
Yes, I created my own style of genjutsu, and since I've already used this method, I can implant the illusion of what happened that night.
While his partner was stunned, being tortured in the genjutsu, the ninja who warned him noticed me approaching, so he raised his guard, and his arm was stabbed with the chain hook instead of his neck.
"Using your arm to protect your neck, well played!"
But I don't wait long before pulling him toward me.
The ninja tried to remove it, but because of the hook, he would have to sacrifice a large piece of flesh to free himself, so he decided it was better to cut off his arm.
"Wow, you've got some balls," I thought to myself as I ran towards him, throwing my imitation kusarigama at a tree, then raising my shield and charging straight at him.
Since the guy had cut off his arm to survive, he couldn't react much, so the shield smashed into him directly, knocking him to the ground.
But then his partner broke free from the genjutsu, tried to raise his guard, but ended up vomiting.
I guess he couldn't tolerate my genjutsu very well.
Taking advantage of the moment when he was vomiting, I stabbed the axe into the head of the ninja who was already lying on the ground, splitting his head in two.
Grey matter and blood splattered on the ground, now spilling out and forming a pool the color of my Sharingan eyes.
The ninja who had vomited recovered, so he charged at me, swinging his katana in anger, but I blocked it with my shield, causing his sword to get stuck. Then I turned my shield and broke his guard, using my axe to hook his leg and knock him down, then striking him in the face with my axe, also splitting his head in two.
The latter's expression was one of pure horror, as he saw his companion die and had time to see my axe coming down towards his face.
Unfortunate.
As for the other ninjas who had attacked Master Sakumo, I suppose they thought that those two would deal with me, so they decided to attack my master, thinking it was better to buy time for those two.
My clone uses one of my tomahawks, throwing it hard at the leg of one of them.
He dodged it, but my real self already had the kusarigama axe in hand.
So I throw the chain at his neck in a circular motion instead of just throwing it. I know he'll block it somehow, but this will take him more time and effort to avoid.
He avoided it, but that gave my clone time to grab a katana from a fallen shinobi and then charge head-on.
The more experienced-looking ninja threw a wind bullet at my clone, causing him to vanish in white smoke.
But what a pity, I have sharingan, so I copy his hand seal to throw the same wind bullet at him, but mine are more numerous, making it impossible for him to avoid them.
The wind bullets hit the experienced ninja squarely, but he doesn't give up and throws another wind bullet at me, then makes another hand seal.
Then he throws a fire bullet, which is enhanced after hitting his previous wind bullet.
I can't block it with my shield, so I throw a tomahawk at him, but it is deflected and does not hit the enemy ninja.
"Heh," the experienced ninja taunts, seeming to think it is my desperate effort to survive, but in an instant...
Flash
When the tomahawk had already passed him, I appear right behind him using the Flying God technique.
Then, using an axe, I strike him on the shoulder.
-AAAAAAAGH
Blood splatters from his wound, as it was a very deep cut of up to 10 cm.
It seems that I also broke his collarbone.
I leave the axe embedded there, as I can't waste time removing it, and with a special kunai, I embed it in his skull and move away again using the Flying Thunder God technique, appearing next to a tree.
Barely a second passes.
BANG
There was a small explosion, as if from a bullet.
What I embedded was one of the special kunai I made, which are hollow inside with explosive engravings and a steel needle that flies out when the explosive engravings are detonated, thus creating a kunai that shoots needles when it hits enemy bodies.
His brain must be shattered.
I, on the other hand, seem unharmed, but then
FUOOSH
A katana cut my back, as apparently there was one very well hidden.
But luckily, I always wear chain mail armor, so it prevented further injury.
But just as I was about to turn around, Master Sakumo decapitated him from another angle.
"You let your guard down," he said as he wiped the enemy's blood from his katana.
But then he saw me.
"Even if the fight seems over, never let your guard down. You never know when and where enemies are hiding."
I reluctantly nodded, because he was right.
The armor stopped his katana, but I did feel the impact, as armor is not effective against blunt attacks, so now I have a huge bruise forming in the area where he struck me.
That blow really hurt. It seems that investing my time in increasing my speed and wearing chain mail was worth it, because if I were to take a blow like that, it could kill me.
I'm still a child, so if a single attack hits me, it could cost me my life. My body is not yet developed enough to withstand such a blow.
Should I swap my armor for a gambeson?
POV Sakumo
Something smells fishy. That last ninja was not a rebel ninja. He had much greater concealment skills than a simple renegade.
I inspect the corpse of the last ninja, who was wearing a mask... ANBU? But this was a mission to hunt bandits and rebel ninjas, so why would there be an ANBU here? I must report this to Lord Hokage.
Was this ANBU there to silence the deserters... or to make sure no one else knew what they were up to? Damn it, I have my suspicions, but I can't say anything, it would get me into a lot of trouble.
Having finished with the bandits' and rebel ninjas' camp, I inspect the bodies.
This is too much. The two chunin-level rebels' skulls were split open like melons, and one of their faces was terribly deformed by his expression of horror as well as by the large cut that completely split his head in two.
I know one must kill without hesitation, but this already looked like an execution field rather than a battlefield.
The last of them, a jounin-level rebel, had his skull blown apart by the explosion created by the kunai, so nothing remained of his head but thousands of pieces of flesh and blood scattered around him.
"Take the last one, because I have to deliver him to the Hokage so they can extract information from him in the intelligence division, so don't keep him.
Kenji was already taking the bodies away, but when I mentioned that last part, he seemed a little discouraged, but he followed my order without complaining after letting out a sigh.
Anyway, why would you want the corpses anyway?
I think in this case it's better not to ask, because even if they were experiments, they're already dead anyway, so it wouldn't be inhumane, and even if they were alive, it's not forbidden to experiment on criminals or enemy ninjas.
I just don't want to know what experiments he's doing, but I can guess based on his poisons and new tools....
In the end, it's not my problem, but I feel it's my duty to show him the right way, because his methods are too brutal.
Having gathered everything and washed ourselves, we headed back to the village.
General POV.
In the Hokage's office.
Sakumo and Kenji had already returned from the mission, but something the Hokage did not expect was that Sakumo would report an enemy ANBU who tried to kill Kenji, but because he was protected by armor, it was not a serious injury, just a very large bruise.
Upon hearing about an ANBU who tried to kill Kenji, Sarutobi already had an idea of what might have happened, so he nodded with a calm face and increased Sakumo's pay for the mission for having dealt with even an "enemy ANBU."
When Sakumo left, Sarutobi waited for him to walk away from the office, then called an ANBU who came down and knelt before the Third Hokage.
"Tell me your orders."
The Third Hokage put his pipe to his lips and took a puff before saying.
"Tell Danzo to come here." He exhaled the smoke from his pipe, his face still serious.
"Yes."
Sarutobi's expression became complicated, for he already knew who it was.
Half an hour later, the sound of a cane echoed through the Hokage building. The person making that sound emanated an aura of darkness and pure evil.
The door opened without even being touched, and there he was, Shimura Danzo.
"What do you want? Monkey, I'm busy."
Sarutobi's expression soured, and he slammed his fist on the desk as he shouted at him.
"Danzo, why did you try to kill young Kenji?"
Danzo's expression remained unchanged, as playing dumb was his specialty.
"What are you talking about? Why would I want to kill him?"
But Sarutobi's anger became more evident.
"Don't try to fool me. Of all people, you are the one who wanted him most for the Root, but when he rejected your offer, your only option was to kill him? Do you want to provoke the Uchiha clan by killing the nephew of the future clan leader?"
Danzo remained impassive, then returned to an expression that almost said, "Don't look at me, I didn't do it."
"Could it be that someone from another village wants him dead? He's been hunting bandits lately, and maybe one of them was useful to another village."
Hiruzen ignored those words, because he knew full well what he had done.
"Danzo, don't touch the boy. I see the will of fire in him." (where?)
But Danzo seemed to be thinking to himself: yeah, right.
But it was already clear that Hiruzen had figured everything out, so he decided to be direct now.
"That brat is being raised by those evil Uchiha. It's better to get rid of him once and for all before he turns against us. He's a danger."
But before Danzo could finish his words, Sarutobi slammed his fist on the table and shouted:
"Enough, Danzo, you're not touching that child, period."
"Hiruzen, he'll turn against us if we don't kill him now."
And then the magic words came out.
"Danzo, I am the Hokage."
"You'll regret this."
POOM
Danzo stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him, furious, returning to his base.
But inside, Sarutobi knew there was no way Danzo would give up, because he knew him very well.
"I've heard he gets along well with the nine-tailed jinchuriki. I could connect him with her so that Danzo can't touch him, as well as create a complete team to teach him the will of fire."
But something Sarutobi didn't know was that Kenji had already chosen a path similar to Orochimaru's, but instead of seeking eternal life, he was looking for ways to make his enemies suffer, so that one day he could take revenge on his advisor, Danzo.
In short, we could say that it's all Danzo's fault.