Naruto: Reborn in Konoha, Starting with the Drop of Asura's Chakra

"Hinata, is Sensei Kurenai okay?"

After merging the five white energy spheres, Yagyu walked over to Hinata and Shino Aburame, glancing at Kurenai Yuhi lying on the ground.

While performing a healing technique on Kurenai, Hinata replied, "Sensei Kurenai is fine, she's just been stunned by the lightning."

"That's a relief," Yagyu nodded, though his expression remained heavy.

Seeing Kurenai in this state served as a stark reminder to Yagyu.

In terms of offensive power, with the development of the Hard Swirling Water Blade, Yagyu had gained the capability to defeat enemies of higher rank.

After all, apart from the Fourth Raikage, who excelled in both strength and durability, the other Kage's physical resilience wasn't much different from an ordinary person's.

If struck by his Water Spear, they would undoubtedly meet their end.

Yet, the same was true for Yagyu.

Except for a few exceptions, most ninjas in the world of Naruto were high-damage but fragile "glass cannons."

Kurenai had only taken a direct hit from a lightning ball and had been rendered unconscious.

Yagyu realized that if he faced such an attack, he wouldn't fare much better.

Until his Sage Body fully developed, granting him the ability to heal without seals, or until he awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan to use the ultimate defense, Susanoo, Yagyu's current vulnerabilities were his defense and speed.

If he encountered an enemy with either formidable defenses or speed greater than his, even with his high offensive power, Yagyu would be at a disadvantage.

Realizing this, Yagyu knew what he needed to focus on improving next.

"Yagyu-kun, Sensei Kurenai is awake!"

Hinata's excited voice interrupted his thoughts.

Looking over, Yagyu saw Kurenai Yuhi slowly opening her crimson eyes, identical in color to his, her gaze still somewhat unfocused as though awakening from a deep sleep.

"Sensei, are you alright?"

Yagyu's voice brought Kurenai back to reality.

As her vision cleared, she saw Yagyu and, beyond him, the mountains and sky. Kurenai suddenly stood up, scanning the surroundings warily. "Yagyu, are you all okay?"

Before Yagyu and the others could reply, Kurenai, having stood up too quickly, felt her vision go black. Lacking proper blood flow to her brain, she collapsed toward Yagyu.

Despite being only a few centimeters shorter than Kurenai, Yagyu quickly reached out to catch her, reassuring her, "Don't worry, Sensei. Raiga Kurosuki is dead."

"What?"

Kurenai froze, her crimson eyes wide with disbelief. "Raiga Kurosuki is dead?"

Before Yagyu could respond, Shino added, "He was killed by Yagyu's new ninjutsu. His body is over there."

Following Shino's gesture, Kurenai spotted the corpse of Raiga Kurosuki, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Her emotions grew complex.

She felt both pride and shame—pride in her student's achievements, and shame for having failed to protect them, to the point where they had to protect her.

At that moment, Kurenai recognized her own weakness and reignited her long-lost motivation.

She resolved to stop drinking and slacking off. If she didn't work hard to improve, she would become a laughingstock among the Jonin.

Kurenai patted Yagyu's shoulder with newfound determination, smiling. "Yagyu, well done!"

Noticing Kurenai's sudden change in demeanor, Yagyu felt puzzled but maintained his respectful smile. "It's all thanks to the Binding Gold Technique you taught me, Sensei. Without it, I wouldn't have caught his opening to deliver the final blow."

That explained it!

Both Kurenai and Shino finally understood.

Kurenai realized how Yagyu managed to kill Raiga, while Shino understood why Raiga had stood still and taken the fatal hit.

He had thought the rain had obscured Raiga's vision, but it turned out Yagyu had immobilized him with the Binding Gold Technique.

"Raiga Kurosuki was a rogue ninja from Kirigakure and one of the original Seven Ninja Swordsmen. When he defected, he took the Thunder Swords: Kiba with him, making his bounty in the black market quite high. However, the reward requires both his head and the swords to be handed in together."

Having recovered, Kurenai approached Raiga's body and, after surveying the area, quickly spotted the Thunder Swords: Kiba lying nearby.

Picking them up, she turned to Yagyu and asked, "Yagyu, since you killed Raiga, his head and these swords are your spoils of war. Do you want the swords or the bounty?"

"I want the swords," Yagyu replied without hesitation.

Having already decided to work on his weaknesses, he knew the Thunder Swords: Kiba would be invaluable for his training.

"Alright, the swords are yours."

Kurenai handed the swords to Yagyu, adding, "Use them freely. Once we return to the village, I'll report this to the Hokage."

She then pulled out a storage scroll to prepare Raiga's body for transport.

Since Raiga's brain was intact, his body would be valuable to Konoha, especially to the Yamanaka Clan, which could extract memories from corpses.

By giving Raiga's body to the village, even if Kirigakure demanded the return of the Thunder Swords: Kiba, Konoha could resist any diplomatic pressure.

Watching Kurenai pack up Raiga's corpse, Yagyu's expression suddenly changed.

"Sensei, can I handle the body myself?" he asked urgently.

Kurenai paused mid-motion, turning to look at Yagyu's serious face.

After a brief silence, she smiled, retrieved an explosive tag, and attached it to Raiga's head.

"Step back!"

As the tag ignited, Team 8 quickly retreated.

Boom!

With a deafening explosion, Raiga Kurosuki and the boy in the raincoat were blown to pieces.

Dusting off her hands, Kurenai smiled. "Alright, let's head back to the village."

"Sensei, you're not going to ask why?" Yagyu inquired, surprised.

"There's no need. Everyone has secrets they don't want revealed," Kurenai replied, patting his shoulder. "Use the swords without worry. As for Raiga's body, I'll tell the Hokage that we destroyed it as part of our strategy."

Moved by Kurenai's trust and loyalty, Yagyu felt a warm sense of gratitude. "Thank you, Sensei."

At the same time, a sense of fear lingered in his heart.

He had nearly exposed his secret!

When Kurenai had started preparing Raiga's body, Yagyu remembered Kakuzu from the original story and the Yamanaka Clan's Mind Reading Technique.

This jutsu didn't require any special tools to extract thoughts and memories, even from the dead.

The technique Yagyu had used to immobilize Raiga wasn't the Binding Gold Technique but the Sharingan's Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique.

He didn't know if Raiga's brain had any seals from Kirigakure, but he wasn't willing to take the risk.

If Konoha's higher-ups learned he had a Sharingan, Yagyu could already imagine the consequences.

From this experience, Yagyu learned a vital lesson: even the dead couldn't keep secrets. Complete eradication was necessary.

After ensuring no traces remained, Yagyu stored Raiga's and the boy's remains in a storage scroll.

Despite their curiosity, Kurenai and the rest of Team 8 didn't question his actions.

Once Yagyu finished, the team began their journey back to Konoha.

Unlike their five-day trip to the Land of Rivers, their return using body flicker techniques took less than half a day. By the time they arrived, the sun was setting.

"I'll report to the Hokage about the mission. You all can head home," Kurenai said upon entering the village gates. "You have three days off. Use this time to rest well."

"Yes, Sensei," the exhausted trio responded in unison.

After dispersing, Yagyu decided not to invite Hinata to dinner, choosing instead to head home for a bath, a simple meal, and a well-deserved rest.

As he passed through the marketplace to buy fresh ingredients, he brushed shoulders with a man.

Pausing mid-step, Yagyu turned to look at the man's back, his eyes glinting with recognition.

The man wore a wide-brimmed hat, carried a wooden box on his back, and held a sake bottle in his hand.

Although he had only ever seen him in manga and anime, Yagyu recognized him instantly.

It was none other than the bridge-builder from the Land of Waves—Tazuna!

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