Naruto: Starting with the Granted Strongest Eye

A genius is someone who excels in learning, but only a true ninja who has experienced the bloodshed of battle can survive and become a true elite.

At this moment, sitting across from them was one such elite: Kakashi!

Tō looked at Kakashi. Though there was no longer that worship from the comics, at least one thing was clear: this guy was indeed powerful.

However, Kakashi, at the moment, seemed a bit juvenile, especially considering he was an ANBU member. Of course, this youth was only in appearance; his experience was not in question.

He seemed about 18 or 19 years old. Yet, from the respect the other two ANBU members showed him, it was evident that he was an elite within the ANBU.

Even ANBU members were required to remove their masks while eating, but for some reason, Kakashi seemed to eat at an incredibly fast rate.

In the blink of an eye, his food was gone, and Tō still hadn't seen Kakashi's real face.

"So, you mean to say you've completely incapacitated the Mist ninja team?" Kakashi asked, somewhat surprised by the strength of these three kids.

Of course, in the ninja world, age doesn't necessarily determine strength. Looking at Shisui nodding, Kakashi was once again taken aback. This guy was at least two years younger than me! I didn't expect him to be this strong. The three great geniuses of the Uchiha clan are truly extraordinary!

"Not necessarily. We won only because we were well-prepared, and the Mist ninja didn't coordinate or prepare well. If they were to try again like that, we'd probably be in trouble. After all, while we defeated them, we were left with very little chakra and had to abandon the chase," Tō said objectively, shrugging his shoulders.

Kakashi and the others nodded in agreement. Indeed, those ninjas were elite from the Hidden Mist.

Their combat abilities were formidable, and if they had encountered an ordinary ninja, the outcome would have been uncertain. Moreover, the trio of Uchiha was perfectly coordinated—there was no doubt about that.

If I had faced such powerful opponents, I would have had trouble, too. After all, our team had only just been formed not long ago.

Though their enemies had also likely just formed their team, the level of teamwork on display was already impressive. Of course, the power of the Sharingan could not be underestimated.

"It's about time. We should head toward the castle. Otherwise, other ninjas from neighboring countries might seize the initiative," Kakashi said, standing up, his tone cold.

Everyone else stood as well and nodded in agreement. After a brief moment, they disappeared in a blur.

Near the Beast Castle

The area around the Beast Castle was surrounded by ninja from various directions, each looking on guard, ready to act at any moment.

The castle had mysteriously been occupied by a group of over a hundred cultists, and some of them were unfamiliar to everyone present.

These new figures were formidable in their own right.

The air above the castle was becoming increasingly heavy with dark chakra. If action wasn't taken soon, the enemy might succeed.

The reason these ninjas were gathered here was to stop the dark immortality jutsu, and the cultists seemed to have such techniques at their disposal.

"It seems like these guys are starting their final experiment. The success or failure of this mission might be decided here," Tō said, furrowing his brow, a serious expression on his face.

Kakashi nodded and chuckled coldly. "Now, it's all about who has more patience. The other ninjas must have noticed us by now!"

Shisui gave a small nod, a light smile tugging at his lips. "The Mist ninjas have the Byakugan. They can see everything."

Just as Shisui had mentioned, it was true that the team of Mist ninjas, under the effect of the Byakugan, could see more than anyone else. With the intense dark chakra surrounding the castle, even Qing could see it clearly, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

It would be too risky to go in directly—none of them dared to do so just yet. But if push came to shove, Qing might take the plunge.

Meanwhile, in the northwest corner of the forest, some ninja had already started moving aggressively. They seemed determined to take the castle by force.

These ninjas were quite strong. In an instant, they had wiped out over a dozen cultists using only taijutsu. What was more surprising was that the ninja themselves were unharmed, only bearing traces of the cultists' blood on their bodies.

The cultists quickly retreated, and a tall, thin figure cloaked in black walked out slowly from the castle, his black cloak billowing in the windless air.

Behind him, four others followed, walking in step, creating an eerie atmosphere.

"Is this the so-called 'High Priest'?" Tō thought, glancing at the figure. The man did seem to exude an intimidating presence.

But how strong was he?

In the world of Naruto, many had impressive auras, but few could truly be called masters.

After all, once someone's weaknesses were found, even the strongest could be taken down in an instant. Like Orochimaru, for instance—though his ninjutsu was powerful, his mental strength was weak due to his reliance on the Reincarnation Jutsu. He was easily defeated by Itachi.

Similarly, despite Pain's incredible strength, once Jiraiya uncovered his weaknesses, he was no longer invincible.

Of course, this applied when facing opponents of the same rank.

"You're from the Hidden Grass Village, aren't you? Haha, I didn't expect you to be the first ones to come out. What about the rest of you ninjas? Aren't you going to come out and show yourselves?" The tall, thin man in a black robe mocked.

Hearing this, all the Grass ninjas froze for a moment, before glancing at the ninjas from the big three countries—Konoha, Mist, and Cloud. Indeed, the ninjas from these three major nations were well-known and formed the core power of the Five Great Shinobi Countries.

Yet, the Grass ninjas, on the other hand, were from a small country that could easily be destroyed in an instant if the big countries wanted to.

"Heh... But speaking of it, your Grass Village's sealing techniques are quite impressive. They're similar to the techniques used by our side. How about we team up and wipe out these big nation ninjas together?" The man in black sneered, his voice laced with an enticing suggestion.

Instantly, Shisui seemed to realize something.

With a swift hand seal, he shouted, "Release!" His voice was full of authority. "Heh, so you're a master of genjutsu, huh? Now, it's not about convincing anyone to join you. It's about facing us head-on."

The four Grass ninjas immediately snapped out of the genjutsu. They glared at the man in black, realizing that he had just trapped them in a genjutsu.

Had they fallen for this earlier, their village would have been doomed. After all, the ninjas from the big three nations were right here. Any task carried out by them would be done with elite precision.

Though there had been some friction between the Mist and Konoha recently, now wasn't the time for internal conflict. Their priority was dealing with the overwhelming number of cultists.

The Grass ninjas had rushed in, hoping to provoke the big nation ninjas into fighting with them, using the chaos to their advantage. But the dark chakra around the castle was terrifying, and it made everything feel increasingly ominous.

"Impressive, Shisui! You saw through that genjutsu in an instant!" Qing slowly emerged from the mist. As the fog thickened, Tō's Pikachu seemed to sense Qing's anger and clenched its tiny paws, shouting out: "Pika! Pika! Pikachu!"

At this, Qing paused, his gaze falling on the Pikachu perched on Tō's shoulder. For a moment, he was stunned. Was this little thing the one who had ambushed him earlier? Not only that, it could release lightning-style attacks too!