Chapter 162 : JōNin At The Age Of Thirteen! ! !
Riku, Hinata, and the others followed the boat captain through to the back.
Meanwhile, inside the izakaya, Samui frowned.
Karui and Omoi looked at her and asked, "Now that the Konoha group has been captured, shouldn’t we rescue them? One of them is from the Hyuga clan."
Kumogakure hadn’t yet acquired the Byakugan, and the Fourth Raikage hadn’t developed any concrete plans regarding it.
Still, they didn’t want the Byakugan to fall into the hands of traitors.
Although Samui was visibly tense, she raised a hand to stop Karui and Omoi. "Wait. We need to figure out who their boss is first."
They had initially suspected that the izakaya owner was part of the criminal network. Judging by what they’d seen, they were probably right.
Karui and Omoi exchanged uneasy glances. "But if we wait any longer, those guys might actually pull this off."
Samui didn’t respond. The three of them continued to wait—quiet, still, and tense—for several more minutes.
Then Samui gave a single nod.
In the next instant, the three disappeared from the izakaya in a blur of movement.
At the same time, Riku followed the izakaya owner into the backyard.
The man opened a door and led them into a hidden room, where he dropped to his knees before a single ninja seated at the back.
The ninja had a jagged scar across one eye and clutched the hilt of a blade with a practiced hand.
A scratched forehead protector rested on his brow.
A missing-nin.
But not from Konoha—his headband bore the symbol of Kirigakure.
The izakaya owner said a few hurried words. The missing-nin’s eyes turned to Hinata.
"Byakugan, huh?" the rogue muttered.
"But I can’t tell if she’s from the main family or the branch..."
"Go lift her bangs—I want to see if she has the Cursed Seal."
The izakaya owner approached Hinata and brushed aside the hair on her forehead.
Nothing. No seal.
The Kirigakure ninja immediately stood up, his face splitting into a grin. He stepped forward for a closer look, confirming it with his own eyes.
"No mark at all! Hah! Unbelievable. I actually got my hands on a main family Hyuga. The boss is going to love this."
Just as he reached forward to grab Hinata—
Crash!
Several figures burst through the window.
Thud!
The izakaya owner collapsed to the floor, a kunai buried in his chest. Blood spilled across the tatami.
Karui stood behind him, her expression cold.
The rogue ninja’s face twisted in shock. He whirled around to flee—but found a blade at his throat.
"Move and you’re dead," Samui warned, holding a short sword flush against the man’s neck.
The three newcomers were none other than Samui, Karui, and Omoi.
In that same moment, Hinata, Ino, Shino, and Riku—all disguised as sailors—sprang into action.
Shino extended both arms. A cloud of black insects surged out, racing toward Omoi.
Caught off guard, Omoi leapt back immediately.
Riku dispelled his Transformation Jutsu with a puff of smoke, his Shadow Clones vanishing at the same time.
Samui blinked in surprise. "You..."
Karui and Omoi were stunned. "You weren’t captured?"
The rogue Kirigakure ninja trembled. "H-How... you weren’t prisoners?"
Ino smirked. "You underestimated Konoha shinobi."
Samui’s gaze lingered on Riku. "Are you a jōnin from Konoha?"
She sounded unsure—understandable. Riku looked extremely young. Barely six, by appearance.
Yet Kumogakure’s intelligence division had no data on a young jōnin like him.
Riku chuckled. "Konoha’s special jōnin. Name’s Riku. And you are?"
Samui furrowed her brow at the name. It didn’t ring any bells.
Still, she introduced herself. "Samui, jōnin from Kumogakure."
"I’m Omoi," said the white-haired ninja.
"Karui," the redhead added curtly.
The two villages weren’t currently at war, so there was no open hostility between them.
"We’re trying to locate this gang’s hideout," Riku said evenly.
Samui replied, "That’s our mission too."
Riku offered a calm smile. "Then why not work together?"
Karui scowled. "Why should we? We’re the ones holding the prisoner."
Riku didn’t react—but Ino snapped, "We’re the ones who found him. If you hadn’t barged in, we might already know where their base is. You didn’t even realize the izakaya owner was part of the group."
Karui glared. "Well, he’s in our custody now. If you’ve got a problem with that, come take him."
Karui and Omoi were both chūnin—strong ones, not far from jōnin level.
They were known as prodigies in Kumogakure, though only about a year older than Ino and her team.
Ino was the weakest among her group.
Hinata and Shino, at least, weren’t far behind Karui or Omoi in strength.
And Riku... well, there was no comparison.
Neither Riku nor Samui intervened. They simply watched as the argument unfolded.
Eventually, Riku sighed and lightly tapped Ino’s shoulder. She backed off reluctantly.
Karui, clearly flustered, stopped too.
Samui spoke evenly, "That’s enough, Karui."
The Kirigakure chūnin stood stiffly, Samui’s blade still tight against his neck.
One wrong move and he’d be dead. Rogue or not, he wanted to live.
Riku turned back to Samui. "We have a way to make him talk."
Samui seemed thoughtful. Then, surprisingly, she asked something unrelated. "How old are you?"
Riku blinked, then realized she was assessing him—trying to gauge his position in Konoha.
After all, the younger he was, the more impressive his rank and the more weight his opinion held.
Before Riku could answer, Ino jumped in proudly. "Riku is only thirteen. Impressed yet?"
Riku gave her a helpless look.
Karui, who had just been arguing with Ino moments ago, now looked stunned.
"You’re a special jōnin at thirteen?" she said. "Is Konoha’s promotion system broken or are you just lucky?"
Riku hadn’t even fought yet, so Karui couldn’t believe it.
But Samui wasn’t so doubtful.
She remembered the Transformation Jutsu earlier—Riku had created four Shadow Clones that each transformed flawlessly.
Four clones. That wasn’t something a typical chūnin could do.
Not without a massive chakra reserve and high-level control.
Naruto was an exception due to being a Jinchūriki, but Riku was clearly something else entirely.
At the very least, his chakra and genjutsu control were at true jōnin level.
---------------------
Join my Patreon and get access to 50+ early Chapters before anyone else! 🔥
https://www.patreon.com/UK21
Your Support is Truly Appreciated
--------