Naruto: Starting with Creating a Genius Persona

Shinichi's speed was by no means slow either.

At the same instant that Maruhoshi Kosuke formed hand seals and made his move, he became like a black gust of wind that swept across the ground, following closely behind the surging waves, and shot towards the enemies who had been swept away and scattered.

During their hurried journey, the two had already briefly discussed several contingency tactics. Shinichi's quick hand gesture just now was precisely an indication that the area needed to be cleared.

Although Kosuke Maruboshi did not understand why Shinichi made such a judgment upon meeting him, out of trust in this outstanding junior, he chose the water-style ninjutsu with the widest range of knowledge he had mastered without hesitation—the Great Waterfall Technique!

puff!puff!

The dull thuds of blades piercing flesh rang out one after another. Shinichi was the first to catch up with two cultists who had been knocked to the ground by the water and had not yet fully gotten up.

His movements were swift and ruthless. His katana pierced one man's heart with precision, and with a twist of his wrist, he pulled it out and plunged it into another man's heart at almost the same angle.

However, the two believers whose hearts were pierced only stiffened slightly, as if they could not feel the pain and weakness brought about by the fatal wound.

With a loud roar, he pounced towards Shinichi!

Shinichi frowned slightly, a cold understanding flashing in his eyes.

He swiftly retreated half a step, and at the same time, with a flick of his wrist, the samurai sword in his hand transformed into a chilling arc of light.

scoff!

Two heads flew off. The headless body staggered a couple of steps before finally collapsing to the ground, completely still.

At this moment, Maruhoshi Kosuke had already darted to his side like a ghost. Shinichi quickly said, "Senior, these people's bodies are strange. Their vital organs seem to be different from ordinary people. Try to cut off their heads or completely destroy their body structure to make them lose their ability to move."

Upon seeing the blood-red pattern with an outer circle and an inner triangle, Shinichi's heart immediately went on high alert. He thought it might be related to the Jashin cult that Hidan would belong to in the future, whose followers might possess a similar but weakened form of unconventional life force.

Unable to articulate it directly, he used this tactic of striking first and engaging the enemy at close range to verify and pass on crucial intelligence to his experienced companions in the most direct way.

It now appears that these believers did possess some ability to avoid certain fatal wounds, but decapitation was still effective.

It seems that Hidan, who later truly possessed "immortality," was a one-in-a-million exception. It's likely that Hidan was the so-called "holy son" they were talking about!

Maruhoshi Kosuke's eyes sharpened, and he replied in a deep voice, "Alright! I understand."

The battle ended quickly, even abruptly.

The group of black-robed cultists completely underestimated their opponent's strength. They were immediately dealt a heavy blow by Maruboshi Kosuke's Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique, which had an astonishing range, and their formation was thrown into chaos.

Subsequently, their divine grace, which allowed them to ignore some fatal wounds, lost its effectiveness against the two who were prepared and focused on their vital points.

Before most of the believers could regroup, they were harvested one by one by the swift current and precise, deadly attacks.

Among them, the strongest, Elder Takahashi, was roughly at the level of a special Jonin, but unfortunately, he was facing Maruboshi Kosuke, a perennial Genin.

A mere special jonin is naturally no match for a perennial genin.

Especially since he's a perennial genin from Konoha.

He sensed the opponent's formidable Water Release technique and intended to counter it with Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet to turn the tide.

However, Maruboshi Kosuke's Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet, inherited from the Second Hokage, instantly tore his earth dragon to shreds, and the still-powerful water dragon crushed him heavily.

This water dragon bullet seemed to have the effect of absorbing chakra. After being hit, Elder Takahashi was not only seriously injured instantly, but his body also quickly became weak and he completely lost the ability to resist.

"You, you all...!" Kurokawa Yasumasa slumped in the mud, his finger trembling as he pointed at the two approaching figures. His face was devoid of any semblance of the lord's authority, replaced only by boundless terror and disbelief.

He wanted to say something else, perhaps a threat, perhaps a plea for mercy.

But Shinichi didn't give him a chance to continue. The boy's eyes were calm and unwavering. In a flash, he was behind Shinichi and delivered a clean and swift chop to the side of Shinichi's neck.

Kurokawa Yasumasa rolled his eyes, his words abruptly stopped, and he collapsed to the ground. Shinichi casually took out a rope and tied him up tightly.

"I have sent this information to the nearest Konoha intelligence outpost via the ninja hawk. They will report the news to the Third Hokage of the village as soon as possible via phone and fax." Maruboshi Kosuke walked over, his voice steady.

"We need to wait here for further instructions from the Third Generation Lord... The follow-up work will likely be quite complicated. However, we didn't expect the city lord to come in person, which saves us a lot of trouble later."

He glanced at the unconscious Kurokawa Yasumasa and a smile appeared on his face.

……

It is unknown what kind of communication and negotiation took place between the village and the Land of Fire officials, but in any case, a day later, the messenger hawk returned with clear instructions from the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The order was concise and clear: the two men were to immediately proceed to Narumi Castle, hand over the captured former castle lord, Kurokawa Yasumasa, to the castle's security office for temporary detention pending further action, and complete the necessary handover with the temporary new castle lord who would arrive three days later.

Afterwards, they had to escort the captured Elder Takahashi back to Konoha Village immediately.

Three days later, amidst the official and polite farewell from the newly appointed castle lord and the heartfelt and continuous expressions of gratitude from the people who had found their children, the two embarked on their journey back to Konoha.

The road stretched out beneath our feet, gradually leaving the small border town behind.

After walking a distance, Shinichi suddenly stopped, turned around, and silently looked at Narumi Castle, which had shrunk to a blurry outline in the distance.

The morning light outlined his calm profile, revealing no emotion whatsoever, except for his eyes, which gazed at the distant horizon, deep and unfathomable.

Seeing this, Maruhoshi Kosuke sighed softly and walked to his side, raising his hand to place on the boy's shoulder: "Shinichi, you've done very well, don't think too much."

Maruhoshi Kosuke knew what the boy was thinking. Afterwards, through separate interrogations of Elder Takahashi and Kurokawa Yasumasa, they found the hidden location of the imprisoned children and rescued some of them in time.

However, another group of children had been secretly transferred to the territory of the Land of Hot Springs—the so-called headquarters of the Holy Church—long before they even arrived in Narumi Town.

This matter has already involved foreign countries, and will inevitably involve complex diplomatic negotiations between Konoha and the Land of Fire, as well as the Land of Hot Springs.

"I understand, senior, I'm fine." Shinichi shook his head, a calm smile appearing on his face.

He once again cast his gaze toward the distant horizon in the direction of the Land of Hot Springs, took a deep look, and then looked away without saying another word.

But Kosuke Maruboshi knew that the seemingly calm boy beside him had already made a decision that no one else knew about.

At this moment, Kosuke Maruboshi understood even more why the Third Hokage called this child "the successor of the Will of Fire".

Exceptional talent, meticulous thinking, and decisiveness are all secondary; what matters is the gentle appearance of the young man before us.

It pulsates with a pure heart that possesses a strong sense of responsibility and deep empathy!

……