Chapter 346: Like Facing a Great Enemy

"Tazuna that old man is here, huh…"

"Perfect, let's wipe out all these guys at once!!"

A middle-aged man wearing black sunglasses and chewing on a cigar exuded an arrogant and domineering aura from the moment he appeared.

Hmph, Gato…

Seeing the middle-aged man in black suddenly appear, Yu immediately recognized his identity. On the surface, Gato is the president of a shipping company and one of the richest men in the world, but in reality, he is an unscrupulous black market merchant. He wants to control all maritime traffic in the Land of Waves with his wealth and violence. Therefore, he hired Kurosuki Raiga and Aoi Rokusho, two high-level ninjas, to assassinate Tazuna, the builder of the Land of Waves bridge, intending to continue controlling the entire Land of Waves.

"Except for Gato, leave no one alive."

Facing the group of samurai and ronin behind Gato, Yu had no interest in making a move himself and directly ordered Haku and Kimimaro behind him.

"Yes, Yu-sama!!"

Upon hearing Yu's order, Haku and Kimimaro vanished from their spots with a Body Flicker Jutsu.

"Aaaaaah!!"

Immediately following were the screams of countless samurai and ronin, with blood spraying everywhere. Kimimaro, like a tireless battle machine, wielded his bone blade and slaughtered wildly among the crowd, his superb and elusive Taijutsu devoid of any unnecessary movements.

"Water Release: Great Waterfall Jutsu!!"

Trailing right behind Kimimaro, Haku was even more direct. His hands became a blur as he harnessed the powerful Chakra within him to form seventeen complex hand seals in one go. Taking advantage of the abundant water environment around him, Haku, with his exceptional Ninjutsu talent, unleashed an immensely powerful A-rank Water Release Ninjutsu. The massive volume of water erupted around Haku like a great waterfall, the fierce currents immediately sweeping away all the samurai and ronin on the bridge in front of him.

In less than a minute, the screams gradually subsided. Everywhere one looked, there were corpses of samurai and ronin. Haku and Kimimaro, their clothes unstained by a single drop of blood, had already captured Gato and returned to Yu's side in an instant.

"Yu-sama, it's all taken care of."

After returning to Yu's side, Haku and Kimimaro pressed the terrified Gato in front of Yu.

"Mm, well done."

Seeing Haku and Kimimaro effortlessly eliminate all the samurai and ronin, Yu nodded in satisfaction, appreciating that having subordinates meant he didn't have to handle everything personally.

"Wow... amazing..."

Watching Haku and Kimimaro, who seemed only a little older than herself, take down over a hundred samurai and ronin in a single encounter, Sakura was completely stunned.

"This level of power... how is this possible..."

Witnessing the strength of Yu's two subordinates, especially Sasuke and Naruto, the two youngsters could hardly believe their eyes. "They don't look much older than us... yet their strength is on par with Kakashi-sensei..."

"To be able to perform high-level Water Release Ninjutsu at such a young age..."

"Even his subordinates are this powerful... you really are something, Yu..."

Seeing Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura's incredulous expressions, Kakashi sighed helplessly. He had once seen Yu's strength firsthand on the battlefield and had worn the same expression.

"So... what's your purpose in suddenly appearing in the Land of Waves?"

After collecting his thoughts, Kakashi couldn't help but ask, his left eye's crimson Sharingan locked onto Yu.

"Don't be so tense, Kakashi... I'm not a rogue ninja or anything..."

Sensing Kakashi's wary gaze, as if he were guarding against a wild beast, Yu casually shifted his gaze to the trembling merchant Gato kneeling before him.

"Memory-Concealing Manipulative Sand!!"

Ignoring Gato's desperate pleas, Yu used the Thread Fruit's ability to create a tiny, needle-like thread. With a slight movement of his finger, he inserted the thread into Gato's brain, sealing and altering his memories.

"Go now, find a merchant named En Oyashiro. You two will become good friends..."

After completely controlling the black market merchant Gato using the Thread Fruit ability combined with Puppet Jutsu, Yu leaned in close to his ear and whispered softly.

Given Gato's wealth and control over the black market, it seemed a waste to kill him. So, Yu planned to assimilate him and En Oyashiro into his network, turning them into his puppets.

"Yes, BOSS."

Hearing Yu's words, Gato nodded blankly, a hint of confusion in his eyes as if he had forgotten everything that just happened. He then turned and left the bridge where everyone was gathered.

This is...

Seeing the evil merchant Gato, who controlled the dark forces, leave the bridge like a mindless puppet under Yu's command, Kakashi's initially heavy gaze became even more wary.

"Although you're not a rogue ninja, and the village hasn't issued a warrant for you..."

"But considering your actions four years ago, when you single-handedly destroyed the Hidden Cloud Village in the Land of Lightning and conquered the Land of Snow..."

Swallowing hard, Kakashi took out a kunai and held it in front of him. "I think there isn't a more dangerous person in the entire ninja world than you right now... So until I understand your purpose, I won't let my guard down!!"

"The most dangerous person in the ninja world..."

"So this is how the ninja world views me now..."

Hearing Kakashi's assessment, a slight smile appeared on Yu's young and handsome face, but a glint of sharpness flickered in his amber eyes.

"Water Release: Instant Water!!"

Taking advantage of the water environment created by Haku's Water Release: Great Waterfall Jutsu, Yu effortlessly used the Water Release Body Flicker. In less than a blink of an eye, he appeared beside Kakashi. One arm casually draped over Kakashi's shoulder while the other hand lightly pressed down on the kunai Kakashi was about to swing, a faint smile playing at the corner of his mouth. They looked like old friends who had known each other for years.

"I told you, there's no need to be so tense... After all, there are some things that being tense won't change..."

So fast!!

Kakashi's eyes widened as he stared at Yu, who had suddenly appeared beside him and draped an arm over his shoulder. He felt his hair stand on end.

Even my Sharingan couldn't track his movement...

His strength... has reached this level...

With Yu's arm on his shoulder and his hand pressing down on the kunai, a drop of cold sweat dripped from Kakashi's forehead. He had no doubt that Yu could kill him in an instant.

"Alright, don't just stand there..."

"Pack up; I'm coming back to Konoha with you..."

Watching Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura's shocked expressions with interest, Yu was making it clear through his actions that in the face of absolute power, any resistance was futile.

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