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Chapter 173: Post-Battle Tally, S-Rank Ninja Tool!
🕑 Added 2025-09-05 14:01:29 +0000 UTCChapter 173: Post-Battle Tally, S-Rank Ninja Tool!
"Yes, Uchiha Madara is dead..."
Minato's gaze shifted to the lifeless body of the old man on the ground, and he let out a sigh of relief.
"I never thought a ninja of his age could still wield such incredible power. If it weren't for the unique effects of your shadow techniques, Keisuke, we might have failed at the very last step..."
Thinking back, Minato couldn't help but review the entire mission. If he had come here alone, he probably wouldn't have even been able to break through the defenses of the reanimated Uchiha Kagami, let alone kill the Uchiha Madara hiding in the shadows.
Regardless, the S-rank mission to execute the "Founder of Konoha" was finally complete. Minato had undertaken numerous S-rank missions over the years, but in terms of the sheer power of the target, this one absolutely surpassed all others.
He was glad it was finally over.
"Keisuke, you rest here for a bit and keep an eye on the body," Minato said, getting to his feet and gesturing for his teammate to take a break. "I'm going to search the cave."
Killing Madara was one thing, but they couldn't just take the body and leave. A thorough and detailed sweep of the battlefield was essential.
Keisuke nodded to Minato and sat down cross-legged. While Minato was busy clearing the cave, Keisuke silently inspected the corpse of "Uchiha Madara."
Shadow Manipulation Technique!
An almost imperceptible shadow thread extended from beneath him and connected to the body. As expected, he found no trace of any consciousness.
'It really is just a corpse,' he confirmed, withdrawing the thread. 'But it's definitely not the real Uchiha Madara! How did he manage such a realistic disguise? Was it a White Zetsu's transformation technique? And what Tobi said before he escaped...'
While Keisuke was pondering these questions, Minato had already completed his sweep. When he wasn't saving people, the Yellow Flash's work ethic was impeccable.
"These scrolls are basically his personal collection."
Minato returned with a stack of scrolls in his arms and spread them out in front of Keisuke.
"I did a quick check. There are almost no defensive seals on them. The contents are varied, but the vast majority is ninjutsu knowledge from two clans: the Uchiha clan's Fire Style, and... the Uzumaki clan's sealing jutsu!"
"The Uzumaki clan?" Keisuke raised an eyebrow, feigning surprise.
"Yes. Keisuke, you know our Konoha symbol," Minato said, pointing to his forehead protector, then turning to point at the red swirl on the back of his flak jacket. "The leaf represents Konoha, and the swirl represents Uzushiogakure. The Uzumaki clan resided in the Land of Whirlpools, but today... their village has been wiped from the pages of history. It's a story from decades ago, too complicated to explain now... but looking at this, it seems the destruction of Uzushiogakure back then was inextricably linked to the Uchiha Madara who was hiding in the shadows!"
As he spoke, Minato couldn't help but clench his fist. It wasn't the destruction of a village that angered him, but his connection to Kushina Uzumaki, who hailed from that very place. If she hadn't been brought to Konoha, would she also have fallen victim to Madara's schemes? It was... unforgivable!
"Madara was connected to the fall of the Uzumaki?" This time, Keisuke was genuinely surprised. He had never made that connection before. But listening to Minato, it seemed Madara had a hand in that as well?
Actually... it wasn't impossible. After his battle with Hashirama, Madara had been in a state of "faked death," operating from the shadows. In the long years since the battle at the Valley of the End, Konoha had gone through three Hokage and fought three great ninja wars. It was unlikely Madara had just been hiding and doing nothing that whole time. From the intel Keisuke had, he knew Madara had deep ties with Kirigakure, at the very least.
"Let's just say it's highly likely," Minato explained. "But Uzushiogakure fell decades ago, and we have now killed Madara... There's little practical value in discussing it further."
Keisuke nodded, his gaze falling upon the pile of scrolls. He slowly reached out his hand.
Instantly, a flood of notifications appeared on his panel, scrolling past like a waterfall.
[B-Rank Technique Detected: [Fire Release: Great Fire Destruction]. Learn?]
[A-Rank Technique Detected: [Fire Release: Hiding in Ash and Dust Technique]...]
[...A-Rank Technique: [Fire Release: Dragon Flame Release Song Technique]...]
[...B-Rank Technique: [Contract Seal]...]
[...B-Rank Technique: [Transcription Seal]...]
[...A-Rank Technique: [Tailed Beast Sealing Method]...]
[...A-Rank Technique: [Tailed Beast Unsealing Method]...]
Keisuke only briefly scanned the messages, the sheer number of B-rank and A-rank symbols making his head spin.
Truly worthy of being Uchiha Madara's personal collection! Even the lowest quality technique is B-rank! And considering the value of sealing jutsu, in my eyes, their rank should be even higher!
With the help of his system's unique "one-click learn" function, Keisuke mastered all of the techniques in the blink of an eye, absorbing them into his own arsenal. With Minato right there, however, he couldn't exactly pull up his panel and inspect his new abilities, so he put it off for later.
"Besides these scrolls, he also had a few special ninja tools," Minato said, his figure vanishing and reappearing in an instant. "A few black robes, some super-sized Fūma shuriken, and of course, the most unique item is probably this fan..."
Keisuke looked at the large, special fan in Minato's hand. He had seen one like it before, wielded by Ebizō during the Battle of Kikyo Castle. After he had captured the old man, that fan had become part of his personal collection, though he rarely used it.
"I don't know what this is, but among all the scrolls and tools, this was in the most prominent place," Minato said, lightly fanning it a few times and creating a small breeze. "And Keisuke, don't you think it looks a lot like the Uchiha clan crest?"
"It does," Keisuke nodded and held out his hand.
Minato understood and passed the fan to him. The moment Keisuke held it, a notification appeared on his panel.
[S-Rank Ninja Tool Detected: [Flame Uchiwa]!]
[S-Rank Ninja Tool: Flame Uchiwa]
[Description: The highest symbol of the Uchiha clan! Repel all things, and turn them into a ferocious counter-wind!]
[Effect: 1. The Flame Uchiwa is carved from the wood of the Divine Tree. It can absorb chakra of any form or nature, convert it into Wind Release, and reflect it back. 2. It can contain a maximum of S+-rank chakra energy.]
[Evaluation: How about a nice, cool shake?]
'So it really is the Gunbai!'
Keisuke played with the giant war fan, a hint of pleasant surprise in his heart. 'It seems Madara really bled a lot to make his fake curtain call convincing!'
The scrolls Minato had collected were indeed high-quality, but from Keisuke's perspective, it was obviously not Madara's complete collection. For one thing, how could it only contain Fire Style and sealing techniques? Where was the Wood Style? The Yin-Yang Release? The Rinnegan? There wasn't a single S-rank jutsu. This couldn't possibly be all he had.
Keisuke knew Madara's real base was in the Land of Iron. This cave was likely just a temporary decoy, just like the "temporary research bases" he himself was fond of digging. He had been mentally prepared to leave with just the A and B-rank jutsu. He never expected to pick up an S-rank ninja tool at the last minute.
The Flame Uchiwa! This fan could even block a Tailed Beast Bomb without taking a scratch. It was just that powerful.
"We should probably return this to the Uchiha clan later, right?" Minato said, unaware of its true nature. "After all, it was Madara's personal item, and it looks so much like their clan crest."
"Speaking of the Uchiha, don't we both have one in our squads?" Keisuke reminded him. "And one more thing. Minato-san, is Kagami-senpai still out there?"
