The order from the leader of Takigakure left some of the village's ninjas puzzled and others less than content.
Allowing Whitebeard's pirate crew to enter the village—what could these pirates possibly be up to?
After all, they were pirates!
And Whitebeard's reputation in the ninja world is not very good, which added to the anxiety of the Takigakure Village ninjas.
The reason behind Whitebeard's less-than-favorable reputation? Well, it boiled down to a few key incidents: killing a Daimyo, assassinating the leader of Kusagakure Village, and hunting tailed beasts.
Coincidentally, the Land of Waterfall, where Takigakure Village was situated, had its own Daimyo.
Takigakure Village also had a leader.
And, as luck would have it, Takigakure Village happened to possess a tailed beast.
Quite the coincidence, wasn't it?
"Is this really an order from our esteemed leader? Are we truly allowing them into Takigakure Village?" wondered a Jonin from Takigakure Village as he gazed at the imposing Moby Dick ahead. The sheer size of the ship made him involuntarily swallow hard.
Beside him, another ninja chimed in, "This order was delivered by the Anbu on behalf of our leader. Ninety percent of the time, it's a command directly from our esteemed leader."
With that, the village's ninjas refrained from further objections.
After all, this decision came from their Takigakure Village leader.
They didn't know why the leader had made this choice, but they could only watch as Moby Dick anchored itself just outside the main gate of Takigakure Village.
The colossal pirate ship stood there like a mountain, less than a hundred meters from the village entrance.
Takigakure Village's ninjas had to tilt their heads dramatically upward to catch a glimpse of the pirate flag fluttering in the wind.
The emblem on the pirate flag confirmed that this was indeed Whitebeard's crew!
And The leader of Takigakure Village came out in person.
He was accompanied by two Takigakure Village elders and the village's Anbu ninjas—the highest level of reception Takigakure Village could offer.
"As rumored, this ship must be at least fifty to sixty meters tall, and its length is beyond estimation. The width can't be less than a hundred meters," the Takigakure leader marveled.
At that very moment, hearty laughter echoed through Takigakure Village: "Gurararararara! You foolish sons, Pops has won! Never underestimate my Observation Haki!"
Whitebeard, standing on Moby Dick, grinned at his sons. "I told you from a kilometer away that these ninja brats wouldn't dare oppose us!"
"Gurarara!!!"
Whitebeard openly exposed Takigakure Village's awkward predicament.
The village's ninjas wore expressions of embarrassment and frustration.
Kakashi surveyed Takigakure Village below. "It seems our exploits in Kumogakure Village have become common knowledge."
Kisame smirked. "That person must be Takigakure Village's leader, right?!"
In their line of sight, almost all the ninjas from Takigakure Village were gathered ahead.
However, those ninjas didn't seem to show much hostility.
There were also no defensive fortifications set up in the village.
They were on the ship, looking at the ninjas from Takigakure Village.
A group of ninjas from Takigakure Village also looked up at the Whitebeard Pirates.
"Are they the Whitebeard Pirates? Hiss! I think I see Whitebeard, he just like the legend, he's so tall!"
"That person... is Kakashi of the Sharingan from Konohagakure? I heard he joined the Whitebeard Pirates, I didn't expect the rumor to be true!"
"And there's Hoshigaki Kisame from Kirigakure Village!"
"No wonder the leader doesn't want us to conflict with the Whitebeard Pirates, there are many ninjas in this group of pirates... who are famous in the ninja world!"
"..."
Amidst the hushed whispers, Whitebeard jumped directly off the Moby Dick.
His huge and burly body fell heavily to the ground, his feet trampling the ground beneath him, creating cracks.
An invisible wave of air spread from Whitebeard as the center, forming a breeze that fluttered the clothes of every Takigakure Village ninja.
Bang!
Whitebeard's Murakumogiri heavily pounded on the ground, and the ninjas from Takigakure Village in front felt the ground tremble.
This kind of strength is indeed shocking.
It also made the whispers on the scene fall into silence.
Then, Kakashi, Kisame, Sasuke, Naruto, and others also jumped off the ship one after another.
"Gurararararara!" Whitebeard glanced at the leader of the waterfall ninjas with a hollow gaze and laughed heartily: "The little devils of Takigakure Village, you guys are quite welcoming!"
The leader of the waterfall ninjas swallowed a mouthful of saliva, the pressure Whitebeard brought to him was not ordinary.
Because at this moment, Whitebeard was only ten meters away from him!
He could clearly feel a unique domineering aura emanating from this man.
Just like a king looking down at his subjects.
"I presume... you must be the famous Whitebeard."
The leader of the waterfall ninjas tried to steady his emotions, he spoke: "I am 'Hisen', the fifth leader of Takigakure Village."
"We didn't expect the Whitebeard Pirates to pass by Takigakure Village today, the village didn't prepare a welcome ceremony for you in advance, we are really a bit rude."
His words made the ninjas from Takigakure Village behind him dumbfounded.
The leader's tone and words were a bit too humble, weren't they?
Takigakure Village is a ninja village after all, right?
"Tsk tsk, Hisen-dono, there's no need to play this language game." Kisame, carrying Samehada, laughed: "We're not just passing by, we're here for Takigakure Village."
Kisame's words sent a chill down the leader of Takigakure's spine.
He glanced at Whitebeard's pirate crew, and his sinking heart plummeted even further.
Whitebeard, Kakashi of the Sharingan, Kisame, and Konohagakure's Shisui of the Body Flicker...
Together, this group of pirates extinguished any hope of victory for Hisen after a fallout with Whitebeard's crew.
There were also some unfamiliar faces among the pirates.
But Hisen suspected that being part of Whitebeard's crew meant they were far from ordinary.
And those young children—whether it was his imagination or not—he sensed that they were exceptional too.
Was this the depth of Whitebeard's crew?
Was this their true power?
"Kisame-dono" Hisen asked, clinging to a last glimmer of hope, "may I inquire about the purpose of the pirate crew's visit to our village?"
Kisame grinned openly. "Naturally, we've come to borrow your tailed beast. I assume you won't mind?"
Takigakure Village's leader, Hisen: "…"
Takigakure Village's elders: "…"
As Hisen's mind raced, searching for an excuse to explain that the village's Jinchuriki was temporarily absent...
Suddenly, there was a commotion from the crowd behind them.
"Let me see! Let me see! Don't block me! Is it really Whitebeard's pirate crew? Is it truly the living Whitebeard? Let me take a look!"
A lively, childlike voice cut through the tension.
Hisen's expression froze.
Goodness, couldn't two Jonin keep an eye on one child?
He recognized the voice—it belonged to "Fu."
When Hisen turned around hastily...
Sure enough.
There stood a girl with aquamarine hair, pushing her way through the group of ninjas to the front.
And Fu's two Jonin guards were hurrying to catch up.
The Jinchuriki's guards exchanged glances with Hisen, the village leader.
"Your Excellency," they stammered, "we apologize..."
Fu stood beside the Takigakure leader, greeting him with a smile. "Good afternoon, Your Excellency!"
Hisen forced a nod, then managed a strained smile. "Fu, this isn't where a child like you should be. Please go back—"
Before Hisen could finish, Whitebeard's voice cut in directly: "Gurarara! I'm indeed the living Whitebeard! Any objections, kid?"
Hisen was dumbfounded.
Fu widened her amber eyes, gazing up at Whitebeard.
Unlike the other villagers, her expression held neither fear nor trepidation when she looked at Whitebeard.
It was as if a child had met a big celebrity.
Fu's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Are you truly the legendary Whitebeard? I heard from 'Shibuki' that there's a formidable pirate in the ninja world named Whitebeard! Shibuki also said that Whitebeard single-handedly defeated Kirigakure's Mizukage and Kumogakure's Raikage!"
Like an eager little explorer, Fu continued, "Whitebeard, are all these things Shibuki told me true?"
Seeing such a familiar and unabashed child, Whitebeard's smile grew broader.
"Gurarara! They're absolutely true, kid!"
Whitebeard laughed heartily.
"Amazing!!!" Fu's eyes were almost sparkling, she was in awe.
Although at her age, she didn't quite understand what kind of concept the Mizukage of Kirigakure Village and the Raikage of Kumogakure Village were.
But Fu probably knew that those two people should be similar to the leader of Takigakure Village, right?
That is to say, the Whitebeard in front of her is the one who can defeat two leaders!
Fu silently did a "unit" conversion.
She thought it was reasonable.
"Pops, Matatabi said, she is the Jinchuriki of Takigakure Village!" Suddenly, Sasuke spoke: "She has 'Seven Tails' sealed in her body! Matatabi said, the name of the Seven Tails is 'Chomei'!"
Sasuke's voice was not loud, but it was enough to make a group of higher-ups in Takigakure Village change their faces.
"Oh?"
Whitebeard looked down at Fu thoughtfully, he could tell from the reaction of the Takigakure ninja leader that this little kid was not simple.
They just didn't expect that the Jinchuriki of Takigakure Village would appear in front of him so easily.
At this moment, the leader of the Takigakure ninjas was already sweating coldly.
The air around seemed to be a bit heavier.
Hisen looked at the Whitebeard Pirates in front of him, and then at Fu, who had an innocent face, as if she was looking at an idol.
He wanted to say something, but he didn't dare to say.
"Eh? How do you know I'm a Jinchuriki?" In the end, it was Fu who broke the silence: "Matatabi? Who is that?"
Fu looked at Sasuke curiously.
"Heh, because I'm also a Jinchuriki." Sasuke crossed his arms and said coolly: "And my relationship with the Tailed Beast is very good, what it knows, I naturally know."
His tone also had a bit of bragging.
Fu was stunned.
Then... her reaction was a bit beyond the expectations of ordinary people, she was surprised: "You, you are also a Jinchuriki?!"
Although Takigakure Village does not discriminate or isolate Jinchuriki like Konohagakure Village and Sunagakure Village, it will also strictly supervise Jinchuriki.
Generally, Jinchuriki will not be allowed to interact with too many peers, just in case.
This has resulted in Fu not having many friends from childhood to adulthood.
Her best friend is "Shibuki", the son of the leader of the Takigakure ninjas.
When she learned that Sasuke was also a Jinchuriki...
A sense of closeness rose instantly.
Under Sasuke's somewhat astonished gaze, she ran straight towards Sasuke.
Fu grabbed Sasuke's arm and excitedly said: "Hello! My name is Fu! My goal is to make a hundred friends in my lifetime! Are you also a pirate of the Whitebeard Pirates? What's your name?"
Such a sociable person made Sasuke a bit overwhelmed.
Sasuke instinctively replied: "Uchiha Sasuke."
"Uchiha Sasuke? Can we be friends?" Fu was excited: "Can you be one of my hundred friends? I don't have any pirate friends yet, I don't have any Jinchuriki friends yet!"
Sasuke was a bit stunned, facing such an enthusiastic Fu, he could only look at Naruto for help.
Naruto put his hands behind his head and laughed, he also said very familiarly: "Not only Sasuke is a Jinchuriki, I am also a Jinchuriki!"
Fu widened her eyes and turned to look at Naruto: "You're also a Jinchuriki?"
Naruto gave her a thumbs up, grinning: "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, I'm the captain of the first division of the Whitebeard Pirates, and also the Jinchuriki of the Nine Tails! I'm the man who will become Hokage in the future, and even surpass Hokage!"
Fu felt that happiness came a bit too suddenly.
The appearance of two "same kind" in a row... Could this be a piece of luck given to her by heaven?
"Can... can I be friends with you?" Fu asked excitedly.
"Hahaha, of course!" Compared to Sasuke, Naruto was much more friendly.
"Yay!" Fu cheered.
She turned her head to look at Hisen and said as if she was taking credit: "Leader, I made two friends! And they are also Jinchuriki! Hehehe..."
Hisen: "..."
"Good... good girl." Hisen tried to control his facial muscles to avoid twitching.
"Gurara! Little brat, you're interesting."
Whitebeard took an interest in Fu and laughed: "Are you interested in joining the Whitebeard Pirates and becoming my daughter, Whitebeard?"
He actually invited Fu!
...
...
(End of Chapter)