Hokage: I Confronted the Five Kage Before the System Arrived

Chapter 125: A Gift from Danzō

"We've arrived."

Breaking through the air, Hagoromo Gengetsu and Sasuke emerged from the forest into a clearing. Before them stood a man-made, towering mountain, as straight as a chopstick, surrounded by deep ravines.

Sasuke looked up and could barely make out some buildings at the mountain's peak.

"This is Katsuragi?" Sasuke asked in surprise, having learned their destination earlier.

Had Hagoromo not told him, he would have had no knowledge of this place or the Tsuchigumo clan, known for their powerful forbidden techniques.

"How powerful must the forbidden technique be to intrigue Lord Hagoromo?" Sasuke thought.

Hagoromo stepped forward, saying, "Follow me closely; there are traps everywhere."

"Yes," Sasuke replied, focusing on the path ahead.

With each step Hagoromo took, black sealing techniques appeared on the ground, neutralizing the traps and explosive tags below. 

Danzō was quite the benefactor. Not only did he hand over the Mangekyō Sharingan, but he also revealed the secrets of the Root's base. When raiding the Root base, Hagoromo had taken not only key technological instruments and materials but also sealing techniques of the Uzumaki clan, which helped him make rapid progress in developing the Yin Seal and refining the Reaper Death Seal. Dealing with the traps here was a simple matter with these skills.

Quickly, Hagoromo led Sasuke across the open space and to the edge of the ravine. For ordinary people, the 20-30 meter wide chasm was an insurmountable obstacle, but not for ninja. However, the chasm was protected by a barrier that had deterred many who sought the Tsuchigumo's forbidden techniques.

Unlike the barrier at the Fire Temple, which he had shattered with a punch, this barrier required targeting specific weak points. 

Hagoromo's Mangekyō Sharingan spun, quickly analyzing the barrier. Minutes later, his gaze focused on a corner of the building cluster atop the mountain, the barrier's weakest point.

"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"

Hagoromo extended his hands, forming a rectangular transparent barrier that elongated and struck the building corner, silently disintegrating it to atomic form.

With a soft pop, the barrier vanished.

Hagoromo and Sasuke moved, leaping over the ravine and swiftly climbing the mountain.

Simultaneously, in the Tsuchigumo clan's main residence on Katsuragi, the clan's leader, En no Gyoja the Traveler, heard the sound of a monitoring crystal shattering and turned pale. 

Beside him, his attendant, Tonbee, exclaimed, "The barrier is gone? Could there be an enemy invasion? The traps around Katsuragi didn't activate!"

Having experienced the Third Great Ninja War, En no Gyoja gravely replied, "This means the enemy is extraordinarily powerful!"

"Tonbee! Quickly, take Hotaru and escape through the secret passage to the hidden village in the mountains!"

Tonbee, understanding En no Gyoja's intentions, protested, "Master, let me stay and hold off the enemy while you take Hotaru!"

En no Gyoja shook his head, "The enemy is after me. Hotaru is our clan's only hope. I'm entrusting her future to you. Go, Tonbee, no more delays!"

With one last respectful bow, Tonbee, eyes red with emotion, rushed to Hotaru's room, scooped up the confused girl, and fled to the hidden passage.

Relieved, En no Gyoja quickly sent out a warning and then grabbed his cane, heading to the main entrance. As he opened the door, he was greeted by the sight of a man in blue attire, wearing a white swirl mask.

"En no Gyoja the Traveler?" the man in the mask, Hagoromo Gengetsu, asked calmly.

En no Gyoja did not deny it, nodding, "Yes. And you are?"

Hagoromo responded, "A scholar, merely here to study the Tsuchigumo clan's forbidden techniques. In exchange, I can offer an equivalent gift."

En no Gyoja ignored the offer, having heard similar promises before, where a kunai or a basic ninjutsu scroll was considered "equivalent." Assuming Hagoromo was of the same ilk, En no Gyoja sighed, "Another one after forbidden techniques. Young man, these techniques are forbidden for a reason; they come with unbearable consequences."

Looking seriously at Hagoromo, En no Gyoja continued, "If the Tsuchigumo's forbidden techniques could indeed make one invincible, as rumors suggest, why is the clan now reduced to just an old man like me, with most of our members dead or gone?"

"Have you ever considered that?"

Hagoromo glanced at En no Gyoja. The old man was lecturing him. While En no Gyoja was somewhat correct, Hagoromo's interest lay in understanding the techniques, not in taking them.

"Don't worry, I don't plan to take your forbidden techniques. I just want to observe how the 'Fury of Heaven' technique absorbs and stores natural chakra energy," Hagoromo explained sincerely.

However, En no Gyoja did not believe him, thinking Hagoromo was too well-prepared to be merely observing.

Still, if he could buy time for Tonbee and Hotaru to escape, it was worth it. En no Gyoja sighed, "The Tsuchigumo clan is far from its former glory. I'm the only one left who can use the forbidden techniques, but I'm too old and weak to perform them now."

En no Gyoja then coughed heavily, appearing frail. However, Hagoromo's next words shocked him.

"I never asked you to perform it. Isn't there still your granddaughter?"

Crack!

En no Gyoja's cane split in his grasp. "You..."

En no Gyoja stared wide-eyed at Hagoromo in disbelief.