Chapter 408: Master Thief

“Did something happen to the Third Hokage?” asked Tsunade as she held Edward firmly, squeezing him with all her strength.

“Please, calm down.”

“This is not the time to be playing around.”

“I’m aware of this, but do you think being in a panic state is any way to do anything?”

“You…You are right,” replied Tsunade, taking a moment to breathe deeply. “So, what happened?”

“Orochimaru allied with the Sand Village to destroy the Leaf during the Chunin exam.”

“So, he’s going this far?” uttered Tsunade softly before sighing. “How much time do I have?”

“A few minutes? It’s about to start.”

“What?! So little?” She suddenly frowned. “Wait, why are you telling me now? What’s on it for you?”

“I’m going to take this opportunity to steal all your Jutsus and get blood samples from all the Hidden Leaf’s Clans.”

“You!”

Edward shrugged his shoulder as he called the clone. The five rings in his remaining hand floated to the clone, and he took it. These rings were powerful magical artifacts to help the clone in case of a dangerous situation.

“I think it’s best if you kept some, given your sorry state,” stated the clone, and Edward agreed after thinking for a moment, so he left only one with the clone. Edward then opened a portal for the two.

–Scene break–

Bang!

A massive creature appeared in the middle of the village, emanating immense power.

“It seems we are on time,” commented the clone.

“Is that the first tail, Shukaku?” said Tsunade in shock.

“This is for you,” said Edward as he condensed a ball of light from the magical ring.

“What is it?”

“You’ll know when the time is right,” he replied before placing it inside her body. Tsunade did not say anything and rushed into the village. After seeing the damage, she first tried to save as many lives as possible. She summoned Lady Katsuyu and divided her into many parts.

In the past month, her medical ninjutsu drastically increased after digesting Edward’s knowledge. Additionally, she learned his Chakra Refining Method and increased her Chakra by a small amount to reach the limit of her genes.

Edward looked at her from a distance before going to do his thing. His first went to the Hokage Office, where all the A-Rank and above Jutsus were kept. This process required reading the mind of a few people, but he soon found his target.

‘As expected, there are people still protecting this area.’

Swish!

He used a body Flicker Jutsu to appear behind these Anbu members and knocked them out. He got the information he wanted from their mind and found the storage room.

Edward flipped through all of them, nodding in satisfaction. He picked a scroll containing the Uzumaki Sealing Jutsu and scammed through it.

“This world might be more valuable than I thought.” He only came here for the God Tree, and everything else was secondary. However, after reading this technique, he had many thoughts.

The Sealing Jutsus in this world allowed individuals to seal powerful creatures inside their bodies. And back in the Empire, there were too many powerful creatures.

“The citizen could seal Spirits inside their bodies to increase their bond and draw more powers from them. They could seal the devils from the Konosuba World or devils summoned from other planes or dimensions.

“Better yet, they can seal Gods.” One of his most significant discoveries from the Mummy World was Nick–a person with a unique physique that could seal the power of gods and steal it. Until now, Edward has been studying Nick’s ability and how to replicate it. But now, with this Sealing Technique, he should succeed.

“The Arcane Empire will really be the nemesis of the gods.” He shook his head before copying all these scrolls and leaving. He had a limited time window and did not want to waste time. He went to every notable clan in the Leaf and copied their Jutsus. Then, he would secretly take away blood from them.

Finally, Edward went to Root’s base:

“Who are you?” asked Danzo.

“It does not matter who I am. What matters is why I’m here: your arm.”

Danzo calmly surveyed his surroundings.

“Your men are taking a nap, so you don’t have to worry about them.”

“Youngster, I don’t know who you are, but you’re very very capable if you could infiltrate this place without being detected.”

Edward’s mouth almost twitched, wondering why these people keep called him youngster when he was dozen times their age.

“I wanted to fight you to test the fighting capability of the Chakra System. However, I cannot guarantee that you would not destroy the arm or use your left eye. So, my apology, I have to cheat.”

Danzo’s danger senses activated, and he wanted to do something, but it was too late. He felt something coming from behind him and entered his mind. He tried to resist, but the power was overwhelming, so he fell on the floor, passing out.

“Psychic Energy is the best.” As long as he has a soul, he can convert his spiritual energy into Psychic Energy, turning into a powerful telepath or telekinesis. And even without a soul, he can modify his brain composition to acquire this power, making this power system quite universal.

Edward proceeded to raid Root’s base, acquiring much information on other nations along with a few unknown Jutsus and research results from Orochimaru and the second Hokage. Then, he spent a few hours studying Sealing Jutsus and other things.

Later that night, Hokage’s office:

Tsunade sensed something and looked in the window, where she saw Edward. “Oh, it’s you.”

“Huh, what’s with the tone?”

“Nothing, just tired.”

“No, that’s not it. I’m very sensitive, and I can tell you’re upset about something, and it seems to be because of me,” said Edward as he entered.

“You’re overthinking.”

“Remember, communication is key to solving any problem,” added Edward standing opposite her desk.

“Do you really want to know why I’m upset?”

“I do.”

“I don’t like how cruel and indifferent you were. You knew people were going to die, saw what happened, and had the power to stop it, but you ignored everything for your benefit; I don’t like what you did.”

“I see,” uttered Edward looking directly into her eyes. “This is who I am. Besides the people I care for, I usually act when things are in my best interest–ignoring everything else.

“And the person you met this past month is only the surface. The horrors and atrocities I’ve accomplished would make someone like Orochimaru look like a petty criminal.”

Tsunade lay her back on her chair and sighed deeply before saying, “I had a feeling it was the case.”

“By the way, I also have seven wives.”

Tsunade clenched her hands tightly, “Why would I care?”

“Indeed, this has nothing to do with you,” said Edward as he looked around the office. “Where is Shizune?”

“I forced her to rest.”

“I see. I’m guessing the Third Hokage survived?”

“Yes. Thanks to what you gave me, I could enter Orochimaru’s seal and assist him in the battle,” replied Tsunade. “I guessed I should thank you since that thing also saved my life.”

“No problem. Is Orochimaru dead?”

“No, he ran away with severe injuries. You don’t have anything to do with him?”

“I want to get my hands on his research.” Tsunade frowned but did not say anything.

“Are you going to be the next Hokage now?”

“The old man asked me, but I don’t know.” She was a little confused. “What about you? What have you been doing?”

“Like I said, stealing Jutsus and such. I’ve also kidnapped Danzo.”

“What? You promised me not to hurt anyone from the Leaf Village?”

“Go to the root base and see the shady things this man has been doing.”

“Even so,” replied Tsunade with raised eyebrows.

“Do you know he implanted your grandfather’s cell into his body?”

“What?!” she yelled while also punching the desk into two. Luckily, Edward placed a psychic barrier around the room to not alert Anbu.

“His bandage hand is an arm made from Hashirama’s cell that he had Orochimaru create for him. He even implanted a bunch of Sharingans he gathered from the Uchiha clan. I have controlled him to release the seal he placed in the Root Members, so you should be able to get them to talk.”

Tsunade grunted, thinking of the implications behind these accusations. “Fine, I’ll send someone.”

“Alright, I have research to go. I will come to see you in a few days.” She watched him disappear in the night, thinking deeply to herself. She sighed before continuing her work.

—–

Many people suggested in the comment that the Naruto World should not be too short since it has so much potential for the Empire. The idea they gave was brilliant, and I’m beginning to wane on my previous decision. So, tell me what you think.