Chapter 317: 308. Attack on Benisu Island Part-2
A/N:- Spent past few weeks on prepping for an exam for job and further studies. The exam is on 18 Sep(exam name: CSIR-NET; a huge pain btw ) I have exhausted my brain cells by revising through 3 years worth of syllabus in 3 weeks. No chapter on 15 and 18. After which The updates will be stable, I promise!
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Izuna enters the building of the merchant association.
"Irasshaimase!"
A blonde woman with shoulder-length hair welcomes him. There is a beauty mark on her chin as she greets him with a warm smile.
Mmm…
Izuna nods and greets her.
"Sir, are you here to purchase something?"
The woman asks him with a friendly smile.
"Sort of!"
Izuna nods his head and walks upstairs. There are multiple items placed on display on the first floor.
Hmm…
Izuna's curiosity is piqued as he stares at the various items shelved into glass cases.
"Respected Sir! These are the recent batch of items dug out from the ancient ruins discovered on a nearby island."
The attendant introduces the items to Izuna.
"Ancient ruin?!"
Izuna tilts his head in confusion.
"Yes! Recently, one of the exploration team of sailor shinobis discovered a hidden archipelago that resurfaced nearby. Four small islands surround a tall mountain in the middle. There is an ancient temple in the middle of the mountain."
The attendant points towards various murals, wine jars, swords, and other antics kept on display.
"These priceless artifacts were scavenged from that place. The exploration team placed them here. Later, they will be auctioned to the collectors."
The attendant has a polite expression as he introduces them to Izuna.
"That makes sense!" Izuna nods his head.
He throws a momentary glance at the so-called priceless artifacts and prepares to leave.
'There is nothing noteworthy among them.'
He turns around to walk to the second floor to meet someone familiar.
Hmm…
Izuna notices a momentary glint from the corners of his eyes.
"This is…"
His attention is attracted by a dull blade with five hollow rubies embedded in it.
'I sensed some intense chakra fluctuation in it for a second.'
Izuna walks up to the shelf.
"I would like to take a closer look at this blade."
He turns towards the attendant.
"Ah… dear customer! They are carefully preserved in the case. I am afraid touching them might damage them and thus hamper their value. I am sorry but I can't fulfill your request."
The attendant apologizes to him.
"It's alright! He is a guest of mine."
A middle-aged man in a traditional green kimono walks down the stairs.
"Vice-chairperson!"
The attendant hurriedly bows to the newcomer.
He has long black hair tied in a topknot at the back of his head. He sports a petit handlebar mustache and a garibaldi beard. There are thick hairs on each side of his arms.
"It's a been a while, Ezume-san!"
Izuna greets the middle-aged man.
"Haha! It sure has been."
Ezume nods his head.
"Back then, you were still a kid when you escorted my supplies. Time sure flies away quickly."
Ezume laughs heartily. He turns towards the attendant.
"What are you waiting for? Show him the artifact!"
He waves impatiently.
"Yes… yes sir!"
The attendant hurriedly removes the blade from the case and carefully hands it over to Izuna.
Hmm…
Izuna grabs the blade in his hand.
'It's quite heavy for a one-handed blade and its hilt is quite small for two-hands.'
Izuna flips the knife in his hand. He carefully examines the gems embedded on the blade.
'These look like pure chakra ores. But they have dried up their reserves.'
"What's the name of this blade?" Izuna asks the attendant.
Ezume notices the interest in Izuna's eyes as the latter analyzes the blade.
"Ermm… Sir, let me check the details!" The attendant turns around to bring the log register.
"There is no need!" Ezume waves his hands.
"This blade was found by a squad of sailor shinobis working for me. It's called the 'Dragon Blade'. I was the one who put this on auction."
Ezume turns towards Izuna.
"Are you interested in this blade?"
"Sort of!"
Izuna nods his head.
"The material of this blade is quite rare. I was thinking of reforging it into a new katana for my personal use."
"I… I see!"
Ezume is surprised to hear Izuna's response since this blade is an old antique.
"Ezume-san! A blade is a weapon, a weapon meant for battles. It will be a waste to put such a fine weapon on display!" Izuna shakes his head.
"Well, I can't argue with you on that!" Ezume chuckles.
"Since you are interested in this blade, I will directly sell it to you for half the price." Ezume presents an offer.
"Really?!"
Izuna raises an eyebrow.
"Of course! It was thanks to your help back then that my supplies were safe, and I was able to grow this big. If not for that, I would probably be drowned in debt by now."
"Is that so?! Then I will appreciate your goodwill. Please state the price." Izuna gently caresses the blade.
"I was originally about to auction it at a starting price of 1 million Ryo, but since I promised to sell it to you for half the price, then what about five hundred thousand Ryo." Ezume has a smile on his face.
'Damn! That's too expensive for such a rusty blade. These businessmen sure are fickle-minded people.'
Izuna curses them in his mind.
"Fine! I will buy it."
He hesitatingly draws a stack of Ryo from his storage and passes it to Ezume.
"Haha… As direct as ever!" Ezume bursts out in laughter.
He passes the money to the attendant and gestures at Izuna.
"I am sure you are here for another batch of sake and tea. I will send someone to fetch them for you. Meanwhile, you can wait in my office and have a chat with them. I am thinking of expanding my business to Konoha."
Before Izuna could reply, he was dragged upstairs by Ezume.
Izuna has a helpless expression as he stares at Esme's back.
'Damn! I was here to grab some free cash from them, but instead, they scammed me for 500 thousand Ryo. Still, it's a steal even with the amount of sum.'
Izuna flips the dragon blade in his hand.
'This blade is made from meteorite iron, which is a very good crafting material and is extremely rare.'
'Brat! Can I take a look at that blade? It feels familiar!"
Yin Kurama's voice rings in Izuna's ears.
"Well sure!"
Izuna passes the blade to Kurama as he arrives in Ezume's office.
Ezume gestures to Izuna to sit on a sofa. He waves at an attendant to serve some tea.
"So, I would like to talk about the potential business expansion in Konoha…"
Ezume starts his long, boring monologue.
Izuna sips the tea and enters the Sin Space to take a look at the Dragon Blade.
Hmm…
Kurama is carefully inspecting the blade as it holds the weapon in its claws.
"Do you recognize it?"
Mmm…
Kurama nods his head.
"It's the Dragon Blade from Mount Koryū."
Kurama points towards the five-partite prism symbol engraved on the hilt of the blade.
"This is the symbol of Mount Koryū."
"Mount Koryū?!"
"Mount Koryū or the Ancient Flow Mountain is an ancient temple located at the junction of the chakra ley-lines of the shinobi world. This faction existed way before even the birth of the Sage of Six Paths.
Back then, humans couldn't channel chakra through their bodies. Instead, they use such special weapons, which absorb chakra from nature, to combat against various powerful beasts roaming throughout the world. However, not much is known about their origin and downfall."
Kurama shakes his head and passes the blade to Izuna.
"You can still restore this blade and use it without smelting and reforging it. The forging method of this blade has been lost centuries ago. It has a blood seal engraved on it. Just drop some blood at the hilt and you can summon it during the battle."
Kurama introduces the method to wield the blade.
"I see!"
BOOMM…
A loud explosion occurs in the middle of the city. Multiple sky shinobis fly through the skies of the Benisu Island as they wreak havoc everywhere.
"That's my cue to leave!"
Izuna exits his mindscape.
Ezume has a terrified expression on his face as he stares at the flying sky, shinobis.
"What… what's going on? Who… who are these people? Why are they attacking us? Where are the guards?"
Ezume shouts at his attendant.
Whoosh… whoosh…
Multiple sailor shinobis flicker through the rooftops as they engage in a battle against the Sky shinobis.
"They are the sky shinobis!" Izuna replies to Ezume.
"They attacked Konoha a few days ago and lost the battle. This time their target seems to be Benisu Island."
"Sky shinobis?! What grudge do they have against us?" Ezume panics as the Sky shinobis closes on.
"It looks like they are targeting the Merchant association!"
Izuna scans the pattern of their flight.
"Our Association?!" Ezume's expression turns ugly.
"Seems like it!"
Chapter 318: 309. Infiltrating Land of Sky Part-1
Boom… boom…
The sailor shinobis and the sky shinobis engage in fierce combat.
Izuna calmly stares at the battle without making any move.
'My shadow clones will ensure the safety of the civilians, but I won't interfere with the battle.
This attack from Sky will serve two purposes. Lately, the ego of the merchants of the Benisu island has inflated a lot. They are manipulating the market of the world of the shinobi by creating artificial demand and supply leading to inflation.
This will serve as a lesson for them and will tone down their ambitions.
Secondly, well… it is an opportunity for me to earn some big cash to fund my organization.'
Izuna takes another sip of the tea and slowly places it on the table.
"Ezume-san! I am sorry but I have to evacuate from this place and I hope you do the same."
Izuna grabs his supplies and prepares to jump through the window.
"Wait!"
Ezume has a flustered expression.
"Izuna-san! You are a powerful shinobi, right?! Please lend the merchant association a hand." He pleads to Izuna.
Hmm…
Izuna stops in his tracks. He has a smile on his face as Ezume takes the bait.
"Well…"
Izuna turns around with a serious expression.
"Ezume-san! I am sorry to disappoint you, but I am currently in the middle of another important S-Rank mission issued by the village. Also, looking at the scale of this attack; it can easily be an above S-Rank mission. Such missions are quite risky and one can lose their life if they aren't prepared."
Izuna helplessly shakes his head.
"I… I…"
Ezume stutters as he is unable to refute Izuna's words.
"I may not be able to lend a hand, but I know a few powerful Konoha shinobis who are present on this island that might help you in your current situation."
"Really?!" Izuna's words spark some hope in Ezume's eyes.
"Yes! But they don't have any incentive to lend help. So, I am afraid it's not easy to convince them. You get what I mean… Ezume-san?!"
Izuna drops some hints at Ezume.
"Please summon them. I will convince them with handsome rewards." Ezume drops on his knees and pleads to Izuna.
"Please stand up, Ezume-san! Don't embarrass me like that!"
Izuna hurriedly stops Ezume.
"I will immediately summon them, but bear in mind all of them are S-Rank shinobis and their price might be a bit too high."
"It's alright! Merchant association lacks anything but funds!" Ezume nods his head.
"Alright!"
Izuna jumps out of the window and flickers away.
"I hope the personals of the association won't suffer any harm!" Ezume stares at Izuna's back with worry.
Whoosh…
Izuna flickers in a nearby alley.
Swish…
He makes a hand seal.
Poof… Poof…
Seven shadow clones appear in front of him.
"You know what to do!" Izuna signals to them.
"Just leave it to us!"
Swish… swish…
The clones transform into masked shinobis and flicker towards the merchant association.
"I will be making some quick buck if these clones follow the script."
Izuna has a sly smile on his face.
"My acting and scriptwriting skills have improved a lot. Now, I have to polish my directing skills. But for now, let me search for Ayaka and the rest."
Izuna closes his eyes and senses their chakra.
"Found them! They are on another island!"
Whoosh…
He flickers towards the group.
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In a small restaurant,
Ayaka and the girls are hiding under a table. They warily stare at the group of sky ninja flying through the skies.
"Why does it feel like a repeat of the previous incident?" Ayaka remarks.
"Because it is!" Yakumo nods.
"Ayaka-chan! Yakumo-chan! Do you know them?" Kanami asks them.
"They are the sky shinobis from the Land of Sky. A few days ago, they launched an attack on our village but were easily repelled by Konoha shinobis." Hanabi replies to her.
"So now they are targeting our nation." Kanami grips her saber.
"Your girls, stay here! I have to join the fight to protect my village."
Whoosh…
Kanami flickers out of the restaurant.
Mm…
"Ayaka! Do you think Sensei will be alright?" Hanabi inquires with worry.
"Of course! Sensei is strong! I heard he is even stronger than the Hokage." Yakumo nods her head.
Tap… tap…
A pair of hands poke their head.
Eek…
The girls freak out the sudden attack.
"What are you girls gossiping about?" Izuna appears in front of them.
Phew…
They heave a sigh of relief.
"It's you Sensei! I thought it was an enemy for a second!" Hanabi takes a deep breath to calm herself.
"Alright girls! It's time to depart for the Land of Sky."
Izuna walks out of the restaurant. The girls closely follow beside him.
They look around but fail to notice a boat or ship.
"Sensei! The Land of Sky is on another island. How will we reach there?"
"We already have a boat!"
Izuna points towards the sky.
The girls raise their heads and notice the flying ship of the Sky.
"But that's the enemy ship."
"It sure is!"
Whoosh…
Izuna jumps on top of a building and grabs a flying Sky ninja.
"Shinobi Battle Skill #4 Deception"
Swoosh… Bang…
Izuna pulls down the flying sky shinobi and knocks him out.
Poof…
He transforms into the sky shinobi and ties the winged flying mechanical device around his waist and takes flight.
"You three have five minutes to follow after me. This is a test of your infiltration skills. If you can infiltrate the sky ship without being discovered and successfully reach the Land of Sky, then you will pass my test."
Whoosh…
Izuna flies away in distance and disappears from their vision.
"Another test?"
Ayaka grit her teeth in anger.
"Let's go!"
Yakumo takes out a painting scroll from her storage and makes some brush strokes.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan"
Ayaka activates her Sharingan and traps an enemy in her genjutsu.
"Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm"
Hanabi knocks out another sky shinobi from the sky.
Poof… poof… poof…
They transform into the sky shinobis and fly towards the sky ship with the help of the Mechanical winged devices.
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On top of the sky ship,
"Damn it! Where did these shinobis come from?"
The captain of the fleet grinds his teeth in anger as he stares at multiple masked shinobis wreaking havoc on his sky fleet.
"Retreat!"
He signals his subordinates to retreat.
"If I suffer a loss here, then I won't be able to face commander's wrath. Besides, we have already fulfilled our purpose."
He pulls out a crystal orb. The orb is glowing with dark purple chakra.
"This is enough dark chakra to power the flying fortress for another month."
He stows away the crystal orb and signals to his second-in-command.
"Order your men to do a thorough inspection of every shinobi. I don't want another case of the second shinobi war incident."
"Yes, Captain!"
The subordinate nods his head and leads his men to inspect every sky shinobi.
On a corner of the ship,
Gulp…
Three sky shinobis gulp their saliva.
"Do you think they will catch us?"
One of them asks the other.
"I hope not!"
The sky shinobis inspect every shinobi one by one. The guard arrives in front of them.
"You three! Present your chakra tag."
"Chakra tag?!"
The trio cluelessly stares at the guard.
"Umm… we are new recruits! So, we don't know what chakra tags are?"
"What?!"
The guard's expression turns ugly.
"You THREE!"
Before he could any more words.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan"
Ayaka quickly activates her Sharingan and places him under a genjutsu.
Hmm…
"What's the matter?!"
The rest of the guards turn towards the first guard.
"You three are fine. Next!"
The first guard returns to his senses and continues the inspection.
Phew…
"That was a close call!"
The trio heaves a sigh of relief.
At the other corner of the ship,
Another shinobi stares at the trio and smiles slightly.
"Looks like they have successfully completed the first step!"
He nods his head in satisfaction.
'Naruto world is all about a shinobi, a ninja who is a master of deceit and covert operations. Although in the latter half of the series, the skills of a ninja became irrelevant but these skills are still an integral part of a shinobi's growth. Who knows, they might come in handy in sticky situations?'
Izuna nods his head and stares at the captain, who is gazing at his subordinates.
Hmm…
"From his expression, it looks like he is surely up to something! Well, that's none of my concern, at least for now!"
Fwoosh…
Izuna hides his presence and fades into shadows.
Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
0 Power
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