Chapter 40: The Siege of the Muten school dojo

"Your eyes..."

Ubumajin muttered, his voice trailing off, completely overwhelmed by everything that had just transpired.

First, an assassin suddenly appeared and almost killed Taro. Then, in a blink, Taro stood back up as if nothing had happened. Out of nowhere, Taro gouged out his own eyes, only for them to regenerate moments later.

Taro smiled faintly, retrieving three Senzu Beans from his bag.

"These are divine medicine bestowed by the Sage on Korin Tower. No matter how severe the injury, as long as you're still breathing, eating one will heal you completely." With that, he handed the three beans to Ubumajin

The moment Ubumajin heard this, he panicked and waved his hands in refusal.

"No, no, this is too valuable..."

Taro shrugged off the concern, pressing the beans into Ubumajin's hands.

"Don't be so sentimental. Living in this forest, injuries are inevitable. These might save a life one day. If you consider me a friend, take them."

Ubumajin frowned deeply, struggling with the decision. Meanwhile, his son tugged at his leg, asking:

"Dad, what did Uncle give you? Is it tasty?"

Taro chuckled.

"Not tasty at all. In fact, after eating one, you won't feel like eating anything else for seven days."

"Then why keep them?" The boy asked curiously.

Taro laughed heartily, clapping Ubumajin on his broad shoulder.

"This is where we part ways. Let's meet again if fate allows."

"Oh… uh… see you then…" Ubumajin replied, still in a daze.

Taro glanced at the two spherical eyes lying nearby. Narrowing his gaze, a thought crossed his mind. Smiling to himself, he flicked his fingers, releasing a burst of lightning flame that incinerated the eyes into ash.

Then, with a leap, he soared into the air and shot off into the distance.

In his previous life, after learning of his place among the Uchiha clan—a family plagued by the curse of sibling rivalry—Taro grew to abhor the practice of brothers killing each other for the Mangekyō Sharingan. His modern-day sense of morality and personal boundaries made him instinctively reject such acts.

This rejection led to two outcomes. The first was that he was ultimately cornered by his brother, Uchiha Musashi, and forced to detonate himself to take his brother down with him.

The second was his complete ignorance of the Uchiha's eye-exchange surgery. He neither understood how to use another pair of Mangekyō Sharingan to eliminate his own eye's flaws nor had any interest in learning.

He had always assumed that his brother might never awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan. He had also believed that, even if his brother did, their bond would prevent him from taking such drastic actions. He had assumed...

"Hmph. - Taro smirked."

In no time, his figure had disappeared into the horizon, leaving no trace behind.

Ubumajin watched him ascend, his expression blank and his mind reeling, unable to utter a single word for a long time.

---

Taro raced through the skies toward Sayuan City, honing in on the energy of Fanfan and the others. He flew with relentless speed.

Soon, Taro noticed something unusual.

"They're not in the city? They moved outside? And there are so many unfamiliar energies... What's going on? Is that Tsuru's energy? What on earth happened in the six years I was away?"

A sense of unease gnawed at him as Taro increased his speed further.

Since the threat of blindness had been temporarily averted, Taro decided to activate his Mangekyō Sharingan and use the dual-eye techniques "Yuki" (Ki Manipulation) and "Kaki" (Ki Maximization).

Thirtyfold Bukujutsu!

Buzz—

His flight speed skyrocketed instantly!

But before long, his figure wavered mid-air, almost plummeting.

"Tsk..." Taro gritted his teeth, pressing his fingers hard against his temples as he frowned. He muttered in self-mockery.

"I really overestimated myself. Even though there's no risk of blindness due to depleted ocular power, with my current mental strength, using the Mangekyō's abilities without restraint is simply unrealistic."

The agony of gouging out his own eyes hadn't made him flinch, but the pain radiating from the depths of his mind was unbearable, drawing involuntary cries of pain from him.

Shaking his head, Taro switched to the ninefold Muken Bukujutsu and continued toward the location outside Sayuan City, where he sensed Aragon and the others.

---

Outside Sayuan City, at the foot of a mountain, stood the Muten School Dojo.

A massive crowd had surrounded the dojo, nearly spilling out through the gates. At the inner courtyard's center, Aragon stood with the disciples of the Muten school, all clad in white martial arts uniforms, bracing against the immense pressure.

It had been a month since this mob, drawn by the Muten school growing reputation, had besieged the dojo. Every day, they clamored to meet the founder of the Muten school, Taro. But... Aragon and the others wanted to know where he was, too! Ever since Taro left six years ago, there had been no news from him—he had vanished as if into thin air.

Meanwhile, Yumeko stayed in the back, accompanying her mother, Fanfan.

Next to Aragon, two figures floated: one tall and one short.

Among them was Tsuru, who had parted ways with Taro years ago near Mount Orin. The other seemed to be a disciple Tsuru had trained over the years.

Tsuru stood with arms crossed, the corner of his mouth curling into a faint sneer. He seemed eager to witness the Muten School humiliation.

"Mom, it'll be fine. Aragon will definitely handle them." Yumeko said, holding her mother Kogane's arm in comfort.

Fanfan's expression was filled with worry as she gazed at the strangers encircling their home. She murmured softly:

"Taro... where are you?"

"Today is the final day of the deadline! If someone dares to call themselves a Muten, why won't Master Taro come out and meet us? Let us see the so-called martial arts prowess of this Muten Master! What do you all say?"

(Explanation: Muten can mean somethings like Heavenly martial arts or Martial Heaven, and Taro, Founding a school with this name, is naming himself the Master of martial arts from heaven).

A man leading the crowd shouted, his gaze shifting toward Aragon and his group as he spoke.

"Yeah! Why won't the Muten Master show himself?"

"What kind of Muten is he? I bet he's just a Turtle Hermit!"

"Haha, good one! Turtle Hermit! And the Turtle Hermit gave birth to a beautiful Turtle Daughter!"

The mob burst into laughter, their mocking voices echoing through the mountains.

"They're nothing but scum!" Yumeko fumed, her eyes blazing with anger as she heard the obscene insults being hurled at her family.

"Hahaha..." Tsuru, who floated nearby as a detached observer, chuckled in amusement, clearly enjoying the spectacle. The disciple beside him laughed along, his face plastered with an ingratiating smile.

"Shut your damn mouths! Do you even know how to talk properly?"

"If it's a fight you want, come on then! Right here, right now!"

"Who's scared of who? Throwing insults isn't a real skill!"

The disciples of the Muten school, clad in their white martial arts uniforms, were livid. Some, like the once-chubby boy who had now grown into a muscular young man, and Arlong, looked ready to charge at the crowd any moment.

"Master Long, this is going too far!" Aragon called out, his voice tense but restrained. Though he was furious, he managed to hold himself back. Over the past six years, many challengers had come seeking fame by confronting the Muten school, but this time, Aragon felt particularly uneasy.

The current group of intruders was unlike any he had faced before. Leading them was none other than the renowned Master Long, a martial artist whose legendary mastery of fist techniques had earned him a reputation as one of the best in the martial arts world. Aragon had heard countless stories about this man during his years managing the Muten school Dojo. Now, standing face-to-face with him, Aragon's confidence wavered.

"This is all my fault." he thought bitterly. "If only I had mastered Master Taro's Muken, I wouldn't need to waste words with these people!"

For years, Aragon had poured his heart and soul into studying the Muken, never slacking for a moment. He had learned to enhance his techniques and increase their power, but sustaining the explosive force that defined the Muken for extended periods remained beyond his reach.

It was as if an insurmountable wall loomed before him, separating him from true mastery.

On the far side of that wall stood his master, Taro.

And he? He couldn't even make out his master's silhouette from where he stood.

_________

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