Chapter 100: Lets Leave

Chapter 100: Lets Leave

As I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the soft canopy of trees overhead, the familiar outlines of the Moon Shadow Clan's forest. I wasn't in the claw territory anymore. I was back. The second thing I felt was weight on my chest—Yoru, who was sitting comfortably and licking my face without a care in the world.

"Told you I knew your plan," she said proudly, clearly pleased with herself.

I gave her a few tired pets across her head, and she shifted immediately toward my palm, pressing into it with a purr, more than happy to accept the attention.

"Well done, Yoru."

It was her who had saved me. She'd used the [Reverse Summoning Jutsu] to pull me out of the battlefield the moment that devastating blast came. Because I knew something that strong was coming, and I had been given time to prepare, I'd set the summoning link beforehand. My original idea had been to try and withstand it—to use the Seventh Inner Gate and test the absolute limits of what my body could take—but the moment the collision occurred, Yoru had acted without hesitation. Her instincts had been right. There was absolutely no way I could have survived that blast head-on. What had just happened back there... that was the level of a legendary shinobi. That was Sannin-tier destruction.

It was honestly insane. But then again... this was my master now, wasn't it?

I deactivated the summoning link and returned to the battlefield. The moment I appeared again, the devastation stretched out before me. Claw territory—what was left of it—was ruined. Craters, collapsed hills, leveled trees. For several miles in every direction, the land had been reshaped.

"So that's what you did," Tetsuya said the second I reappeared.

I looked at him. His cloak was completely shredded. With it on, he had the look of a clean-cut fighter—calm, in control, almost like a pretty boy with a weapon. But now, with his upper body exposed, I could see the truth. His torso was covered in deep scars, faded burns, long-healed fractures, and subtle muscle tears. It was the kind of damage that only came from a lifetime of unforgiving training.

"[Reverse Summoning Jutsu]. Smart," he said plainly, then paused, staring at me for a moment. I braced internally, half-expecting another spear to come flying at my head.

Instead, he just raised his arms over his head and started stretching.

"I'm going to get chewed out for this," he muttered.

I didn't understand immediately. But then he added, "You do remember I'm still part of the Akatsuki, right?"

That's when I realized what he meant. The organization wasn't going to ignore what had just happened. He had just torn up land barely a few kilometers from their central base. They were definitely going to ask questions.

"It's fine," he continued, like it meant nothing. "If they want to fight, I can fight them all too."

I couldn't help but stare at him for a second. Was that really the only thing this guy cared about?

"I guess it's time you knew a little about me," Tetsuya said casually. "But before that, how about you tell me a bit about yourself."

I took a moment to decide how much I was willing to share. Eventually, I spoke.

"My name is Shikomu Senju. I was originally a ninja from the Hidden Leaf, but I had to defect. One of the elders there was causing problems for me."

He nodded almost instantly.

"Ah. Danzo?"

I nodded again, this time more slowly.

He glanced off to the side, quiet for a moment, before continuing. "My situation is a little similar…Danzo said if I didn't join Root he would kill my mother. She's already dead, so I guess it doesn't matter now. He didn't keep his word, killed her anyway…I guess the only thing I lucked out on was his mind control didn't work on me."

There was a strange flatness to the way he said it—like someone retelling something they'd buried long ago and had learned not to react to anymore.

I looked at him for a second and then asked, "Why didn't you ever tell your comrades?"

 I had seen the way everyone was after we had fought him during the retrieval of the two tails. It was clear that they didn't know about this entire thing.

He didn't answer immediately. He took a slow breath, eyes still fixed on something far away, and when he finally spoke, his voice wasn't bitter—just tired.

"I thought about it. Back when I left, I considered explaining everything. I knew they'd understand. They would've forgiven me, maybe even supported me. But that's the problem. If they did... they'd also start to hate the village. And for some of them, the village is all they have."

He turned back to look at me.

"Naido is already walking the edge. Since he just got his revenge I am sure that he will be loyal to the village but back then even a fly could make him want to destroy everything. Tsuna's holding herself together by stubbornness alone. Sora… that's another mess entirely. Everyone's carrying something. And the truth is, the Hidden Leaf has enough enemies as it is. If more of us started leaving because of the leadership, the whole place would fracture. It wouldn't survive."

He shrugged slightly, as if trying to ease the weight of his own words.

"So instead of adding to that, I just let them hate me. Easier for them. Easier for me. No speeches. No emotional fallout. Just silence. I know it's cowardly. I won't argue that. But I didn't want to go through all of it. I'd rather just keep training, keep fighting."

 I didn't really know how to reply since my situation was a little similar to his but the only difference was that I had technically orchestrated my own one.

"So," I asked, "how did you end up in the Akatsuki anyway?"

Tetsuya shrugged slightly, resting his hands on the spear without too much thought. "The official reason? I'm someone who likes to fight strong people. I figured the best way to do that was to join the most dangerous organization in the world and make everyone my enemy."

I nodded slowly. "I mean… yeah. That tracks."

He glanced over at me. "And the real reason?"

He was quiet for a second before answering. "I guess you could say someone saw what kind of situation I was in. Gave me something else to do. A bit of direction."

I had a pretty good guess who he meant. 'Itachi Uchiha.'

It seemed like the kind of move he'd make. Quiet, strategic, with just enough compassion buried under it. If anyone would've looked at someone like Tetsuya and seen more than a loose cannon, it would be him.

Tetsuya didn't elaborate, and I didn't ask. It was clear enough. After a short pause, he looked back at me and said, "What about you? What did you do after leaving the village?"

I gave a small breath. "Well, I remembered something Sora-sensei once mentioned. That the origins of weapon style could be traced back to the Land of Iron. He said their old master left the country and taught it to a few people in the Leaf."

Tetsuya nodded along, not interrupting.

"So, I went there. The Land of Iron, I mean. Took my time, followed a few leads, and eventually I heard rumors about a blacksmith. Supposedly the best in the world. So I decided to find him. I broke into the Shogun's estate, searched the grounds, and eventually tracked down the forge. That's what led me to you."

"Ah. So you met the old man," Tetsuya said with a small grin. "Yeah. I went looking for him too after I left the Leaf. Took me almost a year though. I was just trying to get a better spear. The one I had back then wasn't enough."

He turned his spear slightly in his grip and looked at it for a moment. "I found the blacksmith eventually. He didn't just hand over a weapon. Said I had to meet a certain condition first. So I did."

I looked at the spear again, taking in the clean lines, the subtle patterns in the metal. "Does it have any special functions? I remember reading in Konoha's archives that some weapons are built with abilities."

"Yeah, a few," he replied. "I can change the weight—make it heavier or lighter depending on what I need. It burns chakra when I do it too much, but it's useful. And I can call it back to me. Doesn't matter where it is, it comes back."

That made me pause for a second. "That's kind of cool. Does it have a name?"

Tetsuya gave the spear a light tap with his knuckles and nodded, just a little.

"Yeah. I call it… Tetsuya's Spear."

"Yeah. I call it Tetsuya's Spear."

I let the name hang for a second, not really sure if he was joking or just completely serious. He didn't elaborate, so I let it go.

Shifting the topic, I asked, "Do you know why the old man asked me to come here?"

He looked over at me like the answer was obvious. "Well, obviously because I'm the best spear user in the entire world. And if he sent you to learn spear style, then I'd assume it's because he wants you to learn it from the best. Which is me."

There wasn't any arrogance in his tone—it was just a flat statement of fact.

"I'd recommend you listen to him," he added. "The old man usually knows what he's doing."

I nodded at that. It made sense. If the blacksmith had gone out of his way to link me with Tetsuya, it wasn't something I could afford to ignore.

We stood there in silence after that. It wasn't uncomfortable for him—Tetsuya seemed completely fine with just standing there, looking off into the distance. For me, it felt a bit awkward.

Eventually, I broke the silence. "So… what do we do now?"

He gave a small shrug. "I guess I have to go back and report that I'm taking a disciple."

That caught me completely off guard.

"Wait, what?" I blinked. "You're just going to tell them? Like, outright?"

He nodded like it was no big deal. "Yeah. I mean, White Zetsu probably already watched the whole fight. They're everywhere, so there's a good chance they've already reported it anyway. And honestly? I don't really care. You can't stay hidden forever. Sooner or later, everyone's going to know who you are. Hiding only works for so long."

I already knew that I would have probably been watched for the entire fight…and I also knew the Akatsuki would know about my wood style after this.

I would be surprised if Danzo didn't already tell Orochimaru, and if he knew it didn't matter who else in the world knew…

He waved one hand vaguely, brushing the thought aside. "Besides, I've got free reign in the organization. They stopped trying to control me a while ago. Sent two members after me once because I wasn't cooperating. I killed them. After that, they figured it was easier to let me do my own thing and just ask me to help when they needed something done."

That... was insane.

"I still don't think this is a smart idea," I said, frowning. "This puts a massive target on my back. One I'm not sure I'm ready to deal with right now."

He paused for a moment, actually considering it, then gave a small nod. "Yeah. That's fair."

He turned away from the cratered battlefield and started walking.

"Then let's just leave."

I stared at his back, confused. "Wait… what?"

He looked over his shoulder, genuinely puzzled. "What do you mean, what? I said let's leave."

"You mean leave the Akatsuki? Just like that?"

"Yeah."

I coughed once, half from disbelief. "Just to confirm… you want to walk away from the most dangerous criminal organization in the world… right now?"

Tetsuya nodded without hesitation, completely serious. "Yeah. I don't see what the problem is."

(Authors note: Wow guys, 100 chapters. Thats amazing...thanks for following so far! And for that, I will release an extra chapter today)

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Authors note:

You can read some chapters ahead if you want to on my p#treon.com/Fat_Cultivator