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

Chapter 39 A-Rank Ninja Battle Mission: [Rogue Ninja Kakuzu]!

Nara Kano raised his right hand, and the Konoha ninja team, obeying his command, immediately stopped their march.

"From Takigakure Village..."

Nara Kano's gaze was focused on the other's forehead. The iron headband was engraved with a simple waterfall-shaped pattern, with a horizontal line running through the center and dividing the waterfall symbol. Its appearance was significantly different from that of a normal ninja headband.

"A traitorous ninja?"

Nara Rinka, sitting on the deer cart, looked at the newcomer in astonishment.

Compared to the old clan chief, who lacked intelligence, Nara Rinka recognized the newcomer's identity at a glance.

Kakuzu, one of the immortal duo and a future member of the Akatsuki!

Why is this old man wandering around the official road of the Land of Fire instead of busy making money?

Could it be that he also wants to engage in the business of robbing caravans?

Or is it because Konoha has been cracking down on bounty hunters in the surrounding area for the past two days, which has triggered retaliation from the Gold Exchange?

Nara Rinka frowned slightly. With too little information, he couldn't deduce why Kakuzu was here.

Even so, Nara Rinkachi's mind was still rapidly devising a battle plan to deal with Kakuzu.

"A leaf-shaped emblem with a swirling pattern in the center... A Konoha ninja?"

Kakuzu's hands hung at his sides, his green eyes gazing at Nara and his entourage from afar, displaying a calm and composed demeanor.

Seeing your headbands inevitably reminds me of the first Konoha ninja I ever fought...

"The First Hokage!"

"Don't be ridiculous, you green-eyed rogue ninja!"

The hot-blooded young Sarutobi Asuma scoffed, seemingly untouched by yesterday's beating.

He pulled a kunai from his ninja tool pouch and, with extremely quick small steps, charged towards Kakuzu.

"You think you're worthy of being compared to the First Generation Lord?"

"That charlatan is worse than my old man!"

Seeing Sarutobi Asuma act so impulsively, Nara Kano frowned even more deeply, but he did not immediately try to dissuade him.

What Kakuzu just said was truly appalling.

A man who once fought against the First Hokage...

Is this rogue ninja from Takigakure just making a fuss, or has he really lived for that long?

Now that Sarutobi Asuma has taken action, Nara Kano also intends to take this opportunity to test the opponent's strength.

But first, we need to put a layer of insurance on Sarutobi Asuma...

With a thought, Nara Kano, without making any hand seals, sent an extremely thin shadow tentacle that caught up with Sarutobi Asuma's footsteps and quietly connected with his shadow.

"Your old man?"

Kakuzu frowned slightly, looked at Sarutobi Asuma charging towards him, and shook his head with a slightly pitiful expression.

"Do kids this age only know how to brag about their parents?"

It's too late to say.

As soon as Kakuzu finished speaking, his figure suddenly lowered, and he half-squatted on the ground, only kicking his right foot horizontally forward.

It was just a simple side kick, but Kakuzu's skill and speed left Sarutobi Asuma completely unable to react.

Nara Kano's pupils contracted slightly behind him, instantly pulling his shadow along.

boom!

Kakuzu's right foot, which he kicked out horizontally, landed heavily between Sarutobi Asuma's chest and abdomen, and the two made a short, sharp sound upon contact.

But before Kakuzu could unleash all his power...

Nara Kano, using the effect of the [Shadow Gathering Technique], had materialized shadow tentacles that pulled Sarutobi Asuma back from in front of Kakuzu.

"Ahem!"

Back among the group, Sarutobi Asuma, his face flushed, clutched his chest and coughed rapidly, a trickle of blood oozing from the corner of his mouth and flowing down.

"Huh? What kind of ninjutsu was that just now? A ninja tool? Iron wire? Or something else?"

Kakuzu withdrew his right foot, slowly straightened up, and looked at the Konoha ninjas.

"Kid, let me give you a piece of advice: don't act so rashly in front of unfamiliar ninjas."

"Otherwise, you won't have such a good teammate to save your life next time."

"The power and speed he just displayed are beyond what even elite Jonin could match... coupled with the enormous amount of chakra Inoichi mentioned... Could it be that this rogue ninja from Takigakure is truly as strong as he claims?"

Nara Kano's mind raced with thoughts, but he didn't show it on his face at all.

"You rogue ninja from Takigakure, why are you blocking our path?"

Konoha is the greatest ninja village in the world.

This statement is indeed true.

However, Konoha is not the legendary "international police" that can govern and interfere in everything.

Generally speaking.

The ninjas of Konoha do not voluntarily help other countries or ninja villages capture their rogue ninjas.

For example, the Oyajo En we encountered before.

If it weren't for the two sides running into each other by chance, the Konoha ninjas would have been too lazy to bother with those rogue ninjas.

Of course, there is another possibility.

That is, what crimes did the rogue ninja from another country commit within the Land of Fire, and were wanted by the Land of Fire authorities or the Konoha authorities?

In that case, the Konoha ninja will still target and capture rogue ninja.

"Let me state upfront that I am now a bounty hunter. While I don't have any goodwill towards Konoha, I also don't harbor any ill will towards it."

Kakuzu shrugged and said frankly.

"I was just hunting down a rogue ninja from the Land of Hot Water, but I haven't made any substantial progress along the way."

"However, I unexpectedly ran into you Konoha ninjas..."

"I'd like to ask if Konoha has captured any rogue ninjas from the Land of Hot Springs recently? Specifically, ninjas from the Blood Pond Clan."

A bounty hunter chasing Miyajo En?

Nara Kano instantly grasped the situation.

He wanted to say something more, but just then, Yamanaka Inoichi's voice suddenly rang in his mind.

"Uncle Kano, if the other party really is a bounty hunter, then considering his status as a rogue ninja from Takigakure, he's most likely Kakuzu, a notorious figure in the black market."

Even during their spiritual exchange, Yamanaka Inoichi still spoke quickly and urgently.

According to the intelligence gathered by the analysis team, Kakuzu is one of the strongest bounty hunters under the Gold Exchange, and his speed and efficiency in completing missions far surpass those of other bounty hunters.

After receiving the information from Yamanaka Inoichi, Nara Kano turned to Kakuzu and spoke.

"This is a secret of Konoha Village, and I cannot disclose it."

Kakuzu remained silent for a moment, then sighed.

"You guys from ninja villages are really stubborn..."

Unless there are special circumstances, Kakuzu would not want to provoke the ninjas of Konoha.

Instead of wasting time, you might as well do more bounty missions and earn more money.

There is no point in fighting between ninjas.

In this world, only money is the only truly reliable "companion".

Moreover, even the most experienced ninja cannot guarantee that they will not get injured in battle.

Injury weakens you, which increases your survival risk and can even lead to death.

We will never fight unless absolutely necessary.

Even in battle, we must never be careless.

This is the result of Kakuzu's nearly seventy years of experience as a ninja, and his experience of caution.

"Hmm, wait a minute, I feel like I've seen your face somewhere before..."

Kakuzu suddenly fixed his gaze on Akimichi Choza, his eyes sweeping over the brown armor he was wearing, which was engraved with the character "食" (food).

He hadn't planned to fight the Konoha ninjas, so he hadn't carefully observed their personnel situation.

But Choza Akimichi's physique was simply too conspicuous.

Even if he tried to ignore it, Kakuzu still noticed his presence.

"It seems to be the 'Ino' from the new generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio in Konoha..."

laugh!

Nara Kano suddenly threw a kunai in Kakuzu's direction. The heavy kunai sliced through the air and embedded itself directly in front of Kakuzu.

"We are indeed the Ino-Shika-Cho trio from Konoha."

Nara Kano said coldly.

"Now that you know our situation, you'd better leave!"

Through the brief exchange just now, and the information provided by Yamanaka Inoichi.

Nara Shikano judged that Kakuzu was most likely a powerful ninja of the elite Jonin level.

The Mismatched Pig-Deer-Cho Squad is not incapable of dealing with opponents of this caliber.

The problem is that there are young ninjas like Nara Rinka and Yuhi Kurenai nearby.

Nara Kano could not guarantee that he could completely protect the safety of several Chunin during the battle.

In addition, he hadn't heard much about Kakuzu's reputation...

It's best to avoid this unexpected encounter for now.

Of course, if the other party makes a move...

"Since it's the Ino-Shika-Cho team, I can't let this opportunity slip by so easily!"

Kakuzu's tone suddenly rose a notch, like a fisherman who had unexpectedly discovered a big fish.

"Losing out on the Blood Pond Clan's inheritance is not bad; it can be made up for with the heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio—"

"Now! Choza!"

Nara Kano interrupted Kakuzu with a shout.

"Haiyi, lead Lan Gui and the others to retreat!"

The old clan chief had only spoken halfway through his sentence.

With a loud "bang," Akimichi Choza's body suddenly swelled up, his entire body becoming proportionally gigantic, transforming into a majestic giant that seemed to transcend reality.

The giant leaped high into the air, hugging his knees with both hands, curling up like a hedgehog, while his hair grew longer and harder, covering his entire body.

"The Akimichi clan... they're butterflies!!"

Akimichi Choza began to spin rapidly in mid-air, like Mount Tai pressing down, crushing towards Kakuzu.

"Human Bomber Needle Tank!"

The moment Nara Kano spoke, Kakuzu realized that there might be something special going on and wanted to dodge.

But at that moment, a burst of Yin Release chakra suddenly erupted from the kunai that had just been pinned in front of him, and the pre-prepared Shadow Binding Technique pinned Kakuzu to the spot, rendering him unable to move for a moment.

Kakuzu struggled to lift his head, only to find the Akimichi Choza-class human bomb chariot already looming over him.

boom!!!

[A-rank ninja battle mission detected!]

[Rank A Mission: Rogue Ninja Kakuzu]

[Mission Objective: Defeat/kill Kakuzu, the rogue ninja from Takigakure]

[Mission Reward: Rank A Ninja Scroll]

[Mission Note: A-rank ninja battle missions against the same target can be completed once per season]

Kakuzu did indeed fight with the Great Pillar.

However, it is definitely not the "shuriken shot from 800 miles away" that is widely circulated online.

According to the information in "The Book of the Master".

Kakuzu was defeated by the Wood Release technique of the Great Pillar.

Ok……