Multiversal Wanderer: Starting in Naruto-Chapter 61: A Shuriken Eight Hundred Miles Away

"Hahaha! Finally, some fresh air!" Hashirama took a deep breath, feeling invigorated after sneaking out of the village. Being Hokage came with endless responsibilities, and the young Hashirama had never been good at political scheming. Lately, the stress had been wearing him down.

Standing atop the cliffs at the Valley of the End, he stretched lazily. What he didn't know was that just a day before, his old friend Uchiha Madara had also come here to let off steam.

Hashirama chuckled, recalling the days when the three of them fought together—those were the good times.

Not far away, Kakuzu happened to be passing by. The moment he saw the three massive statues carved into the cliffs, he stopped. He'd heard rumors that the sculptures had been created instantly by Uchiha Xuiyu, one of the legendary Three Ninja Gods, using Earth Release. But Kakuzu scoffed at that idea. There was no way a jutsu of that scale could be cast in an instant. Not unless someone had an unlimited supply of chakra—and in his young, naïve mind, such a thing wasn't possible.

Just then, he noticed a figure standing calmly on the lake. frёeωebɳovel.com

"A ninja?" Kakuzu muttered, narrowing his eyes. Without hesitation, he hurled a shuriken.

"Huh?" Hashirama blinked as the spinning shuriken came flying his way. He casually knocked it out of the air.

"Who's there?" he asked, peering into the trees. His gaze landed on Kakuzu. "Where's this hard-headed brat from? Is he seriously trying to ambush me?"

Kakuzu stepped out from the shadows, his tone sharp and fearless. "So you're the legendary God of Shinobi, Senju Hashirama? I've come to take your life!"

Hashirama stared at him blankly, deadpan. Tobirama always says I'm dumb... but even he's never seen a fool like this.

Kakuzu, fired up and without a trace of hesitation, flung another shuriken. "Fire Style: Searing Pain!" he shouted.

Hashirama raised an eyebrow, not even bothering to dodge. Annoyed, he formed a seal with one hand.

"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence."

In an instant, a vast forest burst from the ground, trees erupting like rockets, towering and wild. Within seconds, Kakuzu was overwhelmed, entangled in the thick vines of a massive tree. Even worse, the trees began to drain his chakra. His limbs weakened, his breath caught in his throat.

And just like that, Kakuzu finally understood the weight of Hashirama's title.

The scale of this jutsu... it was terrifying. Even if Takigakure mobilized every ninja they had, they'd be wiped out in seconds. The only possible countermeasure was the village's Tailed Beast—if that.

But truthfully, even that might not be enough.

Hashirama, looking utterly disinterested, cut off the flow of chakra powering the forest. The towering trees froze where they were. With the "fly" now swatted away, he strolled around the Valley of the End for a bit, then began heading back toward the village.

"I better hurry," he muttered. "If Tobirama finds out I snuck out again, he won't shut up for days."

Three days later, Kakuzu stirred awake, still hanging from the tree. "Seriously? He didn't even finish me off?"

He glanced around. Without Hashirama's chakra, the tree had reverted to a normal forest. The chakra-draining properties were gone. With some effort, Kakuzu broke free of the branches.

As he staggered down, he couldn't help but feel bitter. I actually met the God of Shinobi... and I couldn't even land a scratch.

Despite the failure, he started making his way back to Takigakure. He expected punishment, sure. But it was still his home. No one in their right mind would defect over something like this... right?

After all, the Warring States period had just ended. Things were finally settling down. Missing-nin were still rare.

Back in the hidden village of Takigakure, a meeting was taking place.

"Kakuzu's back?" one elder asked, surprised.

"Yeah. He survived. Which is... unexpected. We sent him to die."

"That mission was suicide from the start," another elder said flatly. "We only wanted him gone because we saw him as a threat to our positions. He was rising too fast. Too much potential."

"Either Senju Hashirama spared him out of pity... or Kakuzu never fought him at all."

"Doesn't matter," one elder said coldly. "The mission failed. And for a mission of this importance, failure means death. Let him die with honor—we'll tell the village he perished during the mission."

And just like that, Kakuzu's fate was sealed behind closed doors.

That evening, Kakuzu sat in his small home, finishing his meal and awaiting the village's decision. When two shinobi arrived at his door, he stood up and bowed slightly.

"Can I help you?"

Neither man spoke. They each grabbed one of his arms.

"Your punishment has been decided," one said simply.

They dragged him silently to the village's prison for death row inmates. Inside the cold, dim cell, the sound of a shuriken clinking against the ground echoed.

"Kakuzu, commit suicide," one of the men ordered. "You failed your mission and caused a major loss to the village. The elders have decreed that if you end your own life, we'll honor you as a hero who died in service."

Kakuzu's eyes widened. "What...?"

He stared at them in disbelief. "You want me to kill myself? Do you even know what mission I was given? You told me to assassinate Senju Hashirama! The God of Shinobi!"

His voice trembled with rage. "Tell me—who in this entire world could succeed at that?"

"The God of Shinobi is just a title," one of them scoffed. "Don't use that as an excuse. The mission was given to you, and you failed. That's all that matters. You're just a disappointment. A failure."

"You can die with some dignity tonight," the other said, his tone casual. "If not, we'll handle it for you tomorrow."

The two turned and left without another word.

From outside, Kakuzu heard them laughing.

"This idiot really tried to kill Senju Hashirama. What a joke."

"Why do you think we sent him? No one comes back from a mission like that."

Their laughter faded, but the damage was done.

Kakuzu stood in the silence of his cell, anger quickly fading into despair.

So this... is how my village repays me.

He clenched his fists, heart pounding in betrayal. I risked my life for them. I faced the God of Shinobi and lived. And this is what I get in return?

He stared down at the shuriken on the floor.

Fine... if this village wants to destroy me...

"...then I'll destroy them first."

-------------

To some extent, the concerns of the elders in Takigakure weren't entirely unfounded. Kakuzu was, without question, one of the village's rare talents. That alone made him a threat in their eyes. Power tends to cling to power, and those in control often refuse to gamble on the future—especially when it means giving up their present hold.

After breaking out of prison, Kakuzu had long abandoned any foolish notions of loyalty. The village he once vowed to protect? Now, he wanted to burn it to the ground—starting with the elders.

Still, Kakuzu wasn't some mindless brute. Right now, survival came first. Takigakure might've been a minor village, largely irrelevant in the grander ninja world, but escaping from it was far from easy.

"First things first—I'm getting that forbidden technique," he muttered.

Escaping the village would be tough, sure. But stealing the forbidden jutsu? Much easier.

He slipped into the secret vault unnoticed. Maybe the village didn't guard the technique well, or maybe the security was just laughably lax tonight. Either way, Kakuzu moved in undetected and laid his hands on Takigakure's most dangerous secret: Earth Grudge.

Thick, dark tendrils burst from the sealing scroll, writhing and twisting like living things. As soon as they touched his skin, they began to burrow into his flesh. Kakuzu clenched his jaw to suppress the screams as white-hot pain tore through him. His body trembled violently until, finally, exhaustion overwhelmed him and he passed out.

It didn't take long before he came to.

"...No one's even checked this place?" Kakuzu muttered, sitting up groggily. "Seriously? What kind of ninja village is this?"

An entire hour had passed since he'd stolen the Earth Grudge, yet not a single Takigakure shinobi had come to investigate. The whole operation had gone down without a hitch.

The scroll had even included a brief overview of the technique's abilities: mending wounds, reattaching limbs, forming independent tentacle entities to attack, and most disturbingly—stealing an opponent's heart to extend one's lifespan. Not only that, but one could harness the chakra nature of the stolen heart.

"So the old bastards want me dead, huh?" Kakuzu said, eyes narrowing. "Fine. I'll send them to the dirt first. Trash belongs in the ground."

The Earth Grudge had fused with him completely, bolstering his body beyond anything he'd imagined. His doubts about escaping had vanished. Confidence surged through him, and with it, bloodlust.

Time to clean house.

One of the elders, only recently asleep, was stirred by a noise.

"Who's there?!"

But before he could react, a kunai was pressed to his throat.

"Elder," a voice whispered coldly. "Been a while, hasn't it? Oh wait—you're the one who sent me on that suicide mission. Remember me now?"

The elder's face paled. His legs trembled despite his forced calm.

"K-Kakuzu? You... you were supposed to be in prison!"

Kakuzu gave a humorless smile. "Oh? So you do know my situation. Let me ask you something—why should I be rotting in a cell? I'm the man who risked everything to assassinate Senju Hashirama. The man who survived facing him."

"Wait... you actually went after Hashirama?" the elder said, stunned. The mission had been a sham—he hadn't expected Kakuzu to take it seriously. It was nothing more than a veiled execution order.

He dared not admit that now.

Kakuzu laughed bitterly. "So even you knew it was suicide, huh? Then why send me? Because I was loyal?"

His tone darkened. "That's the joke. The village that raised me sent me off to die. And I was stupid enough to follow through."

The elder was beginning to realize just how unhinged Kakuzu had become.

"Kakuzu, listen... don't do anything rash. If you kill me, you won't escape. But if you take me as a hostage—maybe then you've got a chance. I don't want to die. You don't want to die. Think about it."

It was a decent plan. Even the elder didn't believe Kakuzu would fall for a lie, so he offered the truth: survival.

But Kakuzu only chuckled, shaking his head slowly.

"You don't get it, Elder. I never planned to escape. Not until all of you rot in the soil."

"No—!"

The scream was cut short.

Kakuzu's tendrils lunged from his body, stabbing into the elder's chest and wrapping around his heart like a snake.

"Let's see what kind of filth is flowing through that decrepit body of yours."

The tendrils tore the heart free. Blood sprayed across the room like rain. The elder collapsed to the floor—lifeless.

"So it's red, huh? Same as anyone else's. How boring. I was expecting black, honestly."

Kakuzu held the still-beating heart in his hand as Earth Grudge absorbed it. Soon, he felt it—his second heartbeat. The chakra within it pulsed weakly, but it was there. New, foreign. Useful.

"Incredible. It actually works. Take a heart, gain its chakra affinity... What a godsend. And the villagers never even figured out how to use it properly? Pathetic."

Unbeknownst to Kakuzu, Takigakure had once produced a skilled user of Earth Grudge. But the technique's cruelty had led to internal chaos. Ultimately, it was sealed away, deemed too dangerous for use.

If Kakuzu had still felt any loyalty to the village, maybe he'd have hesitated. But with his faith shattered, he was done playing nice.

"It's gonna be a long night..."

He moved through the village like a phantom, one elder after another falling to his blades and tendrils. With each new heart, he grew stronger. By the time the massacre ended, he had gathered all five chakra natures. Kakuzu had become a one-man army.

Chaos erupted in Takigakure. Screams pierced the night. Shinobi scrambled toward the scene, arriving only to find corpses—elder after elder, wiped out.

"Who did this?! Who could've—?"

"Could it be another village's assassin? One of our enemies?"

"Impossible. We haven't made any moves that would justify this. And who would target us?"

But their speculation was cut short when a figure stepped out of the last elder's chamber.

Blood dripping from his clothes. A beating heart still in hand.

"Kakuzu?!"

"Why... why would you do this?"

"What did the village ever do to you?!"

Fear settled into their bones. They had all seen Kakuzu in battle—he wasn't just strong, he was terrifying. No one dared move.

Kakuzu looked at them coldly.

"We're even now. The village owes me nothing. You want revenge? Step up."

His glowing green eyes sent shivers through the crowd. No one said a word.

Seeing their silence, Kakuzu turned and began walking toward the village's exit.

"I'm done here. I won't be coming back. Just one last thing—don't ever cross Konoha."

He tossed the heart he was holding onto the ground.

Once beating... now still.

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