I, who just wanted to be lazy, was forced to become the Hokage.

Chapter 280 A-Rank Technique: The Eight Gates Formation!

"That's right, it's me!"

Jiraiya readily admitted to his secret mission, but hesitated somewhat when responding.

"The Nara family..."

Jiraiya originally intended to call Nara Rankei "kid".

From his perspective, Nara Rinka's seniority was too low, and his age was too young.

Compared to the three legendary ninjas who rose to fame early in their careers, Nara Rinka is two generations removed.

But as the words were about to come out, the information about Nara Rinka's incredibly high battle achievements and ridiculously strong abilities flashed through Jiraiya's mind.

Calling such a renowned legendary ninja "kid" seemed inappropriate even to a clueless idiot like Jiraiya.

After a brief silence, Jiraiya reluctantly changed "boy" to "brother".

Nara Rinka was completely unmoved by Jiraiya's changing attitude and inner thoughts.

Although it was only the second time we met.

However, Nara Rinkei did not have a very good impression of this white-haired old rogue.

"If I remember correctly, the village mentioned something in a secret letter some time ago."

Nara Rinka said in a calm tone.

"The one presiding over this Three-Tailed Seal Ceremony should be Danzo Shimura, the leader of Root."

"Why didn't Old Gen come?"

Old, old roots?

Upon hearing Nara Rinkei's address to Shimura Danzo, Jiraiya's eyes twitched slightly.

Although he was not very positive about Shimura Danzo's views on the root of the matter.

But the other party was, after all, the old man's good friend, and also an elder of Konoha...

At least on the surface, Jiraiya still needed to maintain a respectful attitude towards Shimura Danzo.

The arrogance of this "Shadow of Darkness" towards Shimura Danzo far exceeded Jiraiya's expectations.

"I seem to recall hearing similar rumors somewhere—that Shimura Danzo had a conflict with this shadowy figure?"

A piece of intelligence information flashed through Jiraiya's mind.

He arrived at the battlefield very early and had only heard about the conflict between the Ino-Shika-Cho trio and the Root.

But conflicts like these between "village ninja clans" and "high-ranking elders"...

Jiraiya had always politely declined.

Ignoring Nara Rinkei's disdainful attitude towards Shimura Danzo, Jiraiya recounts the reasons why he came to the Land of Hot Springs.

"The village originally planned to send Elder Danzo to the Land of Hot Springs; this was confirmed at the high-level meeting."

Jiraiya spoke slowly and deliberately, while revealing a secret piece of information that he considered to be "big news".

"But just a few days ago, a major incident suddenly occurred in Iwagakure—"

At this point, Jiraiya even had the leisure to keep everyone in suspense.

"Brother Lan Gui, would you like to guess what happened in Iwagakure?"

Nara Rinkazu smirked; he seemed to have guessed this information.

"It can't be like Sunagakure, where they lost their village's Kage, can it?" Nara Ranke asked knowingly.

Congratulations, you got it right!

Jiraiya clapped his hands encouragingly.

"The Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure has gone missing... Hmm? Wait a minute!"

"Why does this situation seem so familiar?"

"Back when we were in the Hokage's office, you also told me about the disappearance of the Third Kazekage of Sunagakure."

Nara Rinka responded quite calmly, as if he really didn't know who had "disappeared" from Onoki.

"Just like Sunagakure, Iwagakure also lost its Third Tsuchikage?"

"Yes, this is indeed a bit strange."

Jiraiya stroked his chin, deliberately adopting a mysterious expression.

"The Third Kazekage of Sunagakure was known as the 'Strongest Kazekage,' but he inexplicably disappeared within their village."

"Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, was renowned and powerful, no less so than his predecessor. Yet, he too disappeared from Iwagakure without explanation."

In the end, Jiraiya said it as if he were telling a joke.

"If the Third Raikage of Kumogakure also mysteriously disappears..."

"I think the old man might need to have his fortune told."

The "old man" that Jiraiya was referring to was naturally the Third Hokage.

"Lord Jiraiya, your lame joke is a bit too much."

Nara Shikaku reminded him with a helpless expression.

"Even though the reason for the disappearance of the Third Kazekage and the Third Tsuchikage has not yet been found, what kind of person was the Third Raikage?"

"Furthermore, who exactly is Lord Sandai?"

"What do you mean by 'person' or 'person'?"

Jiraiya said casually.

"They're just a bunch of old men."

Nara Rinka watched the conversation between the two with a cold eye.

He wouldn't tell Jiraiya that the Third Raikage, A, had "mysteriously disappeared" yesterday.

But then again.

The three Kazekage, the three Tsuchikage, and the three Raikage have all "disappeared".

Because of the age spots, there wasn't much difference between the Third Mizukage and someone who "disappeared".

From this perspective...

If the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, hadn't "disappeared," would he have seemed a bit out of place?

Nara Rinka's consciousness became slightly scattered.

He genuinely believed that it would be Shimura Danzo who came to the Land of Hot Springs, and he was even prepared to use the Shadow Manipulation Technique again.

Just kill Shimura Danzo.

Where is it more satisfying to first squeeze out all the remaining value from this old root before killing it?

The Root's collection of ninjutsu data is no less impressive than that of other villages!

Unexpectedly, it was Jiraiya who showed up...

While admiring the cassia tree in Nara, my thoughts wandered.

Jiraiya continued the topic he had just discussed.

"Because of Onoki's mysterious disappearance, Shimura Danzo was temporarily dispatched to the Land of Grass to lead a group of Root ninjas to the front line to investigate the situation."

Jiraiya recounted the changes that had occurred on other battlefields recently.

"And a couple of days ago, Minato was dispatched to the Land of Rain... so I came here."

In fact, Minato Namikaze could also return to the Land of Hot Springs to preside over the sealing ceremony of the Three-Tailed Isobu.

Minato Namikaze's mastery of sealing techniques far surpasses that of the vast majority of Konoha ninjas.

However, after careful consideration, Hiruzen Sarutobi still believed that the importance of "accumulating battle merits" far outweighed that of "sealing the Three-Tails".

The Shadow of Darkness's achievements were too glorious.

If the yellow flash doesn't speed up, it's very likely it won't be able to catch up with the other party's "exhaust fumes".

Once you achieve merit in war, your prestige within the village will not be as high as others.

How can the Yellow Flash succeed as the Fourth Hokage?

Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't eliminate dissidents, such as directly ordering the assassination of the Dark Shadow.

The war wasn't even over, yet they were already plotting to murder a hero of the village...

Having witnessed the example of White Fang, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't want to repeat himself.

In this situation, Minato Namikaze will have to work even harder.

As long as Minato Namikaze's achievements on the battlefield in the Land of Rain exceed—

No, it's not that it exceeds that.

Even if you turn Sunagakure upside down, you can only find one tailed beast, and it's only the One-Tailed Beast.

Nara Rinkazu holds the feat of "capturing two tailed beasts and one jinchūriki alive," a feat that Minato Namikaze simply cannot surpass.

But as long as Minato Namikaze's achievements can approach those of the Dark Shadow.

After a period of insignificant "village publicity" work.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was confident that he could help the Yellow Flash secure his position as the Fourth Hokage!

and so……

Minato Namikaze was swiftly dispatched to the Land of Rain.

Jiraiya, who was originally in charge of overseeing the war zone in the Land of Rain, "naturally" stepped down and was then dispatched to the Land of Hot Springs to take charge of sealing the Three-Tailed Isobu.

"Oh, right, I also brought some of the 'prices' from the village."

Jiraiya took out more than a dozen small scrolls from the huge sealing scroll he carried with him and placed them on the table.

"Based on your request, I only brought ninjutsu scrolls. As for other things, such as land, you will have to take over and manage them yourselves after the war ends."

Jiraiya was fully aware of the deal Nara Rangsei made with the village.

Although he believed that Nara's actions were highly inappropriate.

If Konoha ninjas gain anything on the battlefield, the best course of action is to proactively contribute it to the village.

However, Jiraiya could not ignore Nara Rinka's own stance.

Born into a ninja clan!

Within Konoha Village, the conflict between clan ninjas and commoner ninjas has always been kept hidden, and very few people have access to information about it.

Because he had a "good teacher," Jiraiya knew quite a bit about this.

The First Hokage established Konoha with the intention of getting the various ninja clans to put aside their differences and work together to build the village.

After decades of development, friction between the ninja clans within the village has decreased considerably.

But if the ninja clan and the village are to be completely integrated...

Jiraiya himself didn't know if this would actually succeed.

Even among the "Three Legendary Sannin" and even among the "Sages," Jiraiya didn't have much say on this kind of issue.

He was originally a ninja from a commoner background.

all in all.

Jiraiya didn't think that Nara Rinkazu's deal with the village was right, but he also didn't think that what he did was wrong.

In the ninja world, only children distinguish between right and wrong.

Since this is beneficial to both the Nara clan and the village...

Jiraiya simply turned a blind eye and acted as an insignificant "messenger".

Nara Rinka reached out and touched the dozen or so scrolls that Jiraiya had taken out, pretending to only take the top scroll to examine it.

In reality, the panel had already included all thirteen A-rank and B-rank ninjutsu, and information prompts were displayed in a continuous stream.

[A-level technique detected: Eight Gates Formation. Learn it?]

[A-level spell [Heavenly Canopy Array] detected...]

[...Rank A spell [Self-Karma Binding Technique]...]

As promised, Konoha has contributed a total of three A-rank techniques and ten B-rank techniques.

【Heavenly Canopy Array】A transparent spherical detection barrier extends outward from the caster. The size and range of the detection barrier can be maintained according to the amount of chakra.

Nara Rinka had planned barrier-type ninjutsu when he was building the underground research institute.

However, this type of ninjutsu is too precious, and Mrs. Cat doesn't have any of it. The clan can't even find anyone to trade with.

This time, in the process of selling the Three-Tails, they actually managed to extract an A-rank [Heavenly Canopy Technique] from Konoha.

【Self-Karma Binding Technique】This is a binding-type A-rank curse seal technique.

It has a similar basic effect to the [Shadow Technique], but the essence of the Cursed Seal Technique makes its ability exceed that of a simple Yin Release Technique.

It has the reference of the Rashomon effect.

If Nara Rinka were to incorporate the [Self-Karma Binding Technique] into the [Shadow Slap Technique] or other binding shadow techniques, its power and effectiveness would undoubtedly be elevated to a new level.

Nara Rinka didn't pay much attention to the remaining ten B-rank ninjutsu, leaving them all to Nara Shikaku to negotiate.

The quality of these ten B-rank ninjutsu...

We won't go into the details of standard B-rank Five Elements Ninjutsu such as Fire Release, Earth Release, Wind Release, and Water Release.

The three relatively special B-rank ninjutsu are not exactly good either.

【Dead Soul Technique】Manipulates the corpse after death, granting it temporary mobility.

【Magic Illusion: Tree Binding Kill】, the infamous "Shame of the Jonin" Kurenai Yuhi's trump card technique, is a genjutsu that is completely countered by 【Magic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Reversal】.

【Konoha Power Cyclone】, a spinning kick.

Nara Rinka glanced at the ninjutsu and found them rather underwhelming.

Fortunately, he obtained the ninjutsu he was after.

[Rank A Technique: Eight Gates Formation]

[Spell Description: Burn your soul! A deadly ultimate move!]

[Technique Effects: In the chakra meridian system, the places that suppress and control the chakra in the body are the "Eight Gates": Opening Gate, Resting Gate, Life Gate, Injury Gate, Closing Gate, View Gate, Shock Gate, and Death Gate.]

The Eight Gates Formation can open the Eight Gates, increasing the amount of chakra that can be contained within the meridian system, thereby unleashing power dozens of times stronger than one's original strength.

[Skill Evaluation: Use it whenever you have the ultimate; youth is invincible!]

As a ninjutsu-type ninja, Nara Rinkei wasn't particularly interested in those straightforward, fluid jutsu techniques.

The "Gentle Fist" passed down by the Hyuga clan cannot be called a "fist technique"; it should be called a "true damage attack."

Although Nara Rinka never knew whether 64 thrusts with a Gentle Fist hurt more or 64 thrusts with a Kunai were more miserable...

cough cough.

all in all.

Nara Rinka doesn't think much of Steel Fist Fluid Technique.

However, we must admit one thing—ninjutsu has its limits!

Nara Rinkei has always been dedicated to researching bloodline limits, and even more advanced bloodline elimination techniques.

However, he also knew that no matter how advanced his research on bloodline limits and bloodline elimination was, could it surpass the "bloodline net" of the ninja progenitor?

In the final battle of the Fourth Shinobi World War, there will be no room for conventional ninjutsu.

Faced with those Rinnegan that seemed to be sold wholesale.

Not to mention conventional ninjutsu, even bloodline limits or bloodline elimination techniques were completely ineffective.

Nara Rinka is engrossed in the research of bloodline limits, not because he truly believes that pursuing the path of bloodline limit research can lead to "godhood".

It's simply because at this stage, apart from researching bloodline limits, there are no other normal and rapid ways to improve one's strength.

After the research on bloodline limits is completed.

The first thing Nara Rinkei wants to do is to mix natural energy with bloodline limits to create "Sage Art Bloodline Limits", or even "Sage Art Bloodline Elimination"!

Sage Mode represents one of the limits of power that a normal ninja can reach.

As for the other door...

This is the Eight Gates Formation!

Nara Rinka hopes to obtain the Eight Gates Formation, not because he truly wants to abandon his leisurely life and devote himself to physical training.

He wasn't that diligent.

only……

"Below the immortals, I am invincible; above the immortals, I'm one for one!"

Nara Rinka gripped the scroll of the Eight Gates Formation tightly.

"We can use tactics like these nuclear bombs, but we can't be without them!"

The thirteen gates of Konoha are not all described in the text, so they are listed here.

Rank A: [Heavenly Canopy Formation], [Self-Karma Binding Technique], [Eight Gates Formation].

Rank B: [Death Soul Technique], [Illusion: Tree Binding Kill], [Konoha Power Whirlwind], [Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet - Fire Dragon Bullet Technique], [Water Release: Water Fang Bullet - Water Dragon Bullet Technique], [Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall - Earth Dragon Bullet Technique], [Wind Release: Vacuum Ball].

(End of this chapter)