Undercover in Konoha: I Was the Real Hokage All Along!

"Huff… Huff…"

"D-Did we… get him?"

The taller Iwagakure shinobi squinted into the smoke-shrouded ruins of the street. The thunderous chain explosion had reduced everything in front of them to rubble. Buildings trembled, windows shattered, and faint sobbing could be heard from within nearby homes—muffled, terrified.

But his focus remained locked forward.

"Gendo…"

Just as he muttered his comrade's name, Ash Soiled called out sharply:

"Gendo."

"Sir?"

The taller shinobi turned around, confused by the serious tone.

Ash Soiled extended his hand, pointing toward the sealed scroll box behind them—the one containing S-rank intelligence.

Without looking back, he spoke in a low, firm voice:

"Forget everything else."

"Take the scroll and escape—exactly as we planned."

Gendo froze.

He wasn't just some expendable foot soldier. He was over twenty, still a Chūnin—not because he lacked talent, but because he'd willingly accepted the kind of missions that would surely lead to death.

He had always been prepared to give his life for Iwagakure.

So, the moment that order came down…

He didn't feel relief.

He felt lost.

Then, quickly, he protested:

"Sir! You're far more important than I am!"

"Shut up! That's an order!"

Ash Soiled—towering nearly two meters tall—stood firm, like an unmoving bear. His body was covered in small cuts, but his breathing was only slightly ragged.

After a pause, seeing Gendo still unmoving, he softened his voice just a bit:

"Everything… is for the village."

Those words left Gendo speechless.

Yes.

That was the way of a shinobi.

Neither of them was dying for the other.

They were dying for the village.

Finally, Gendo nodded. Without hesitation, he turned, grabbed the sealed box, and dashed toward the prearranged escape route.

But just as his feet lifted from the ground—

Shhk!

A storm of shuriken cut through the air, aimed at Gendo's back.

Ash Soiled moved in an instant. Despite his massive frame, his reaction speed matched that of a galloping horse. With a swing of his knuckle-blades, he shattered the incoming weapons with sheer force.

At the same time—

From within the cloud of dust, a tall, slender figure shot forward like a bullet, chasing after Gendo with deadly speed.

Ash Soiled saw this and smiled… grimly, even a little madly.

Without hesitation, he turned in the opposite direction and bolted.

"Earth Style: Light–Weight Boulder Jutsu!"

In a flash, his body became featherlight.

He leapt, soaring across rooftops, his speed now rivaling Saharu Kiri himself.

And in his arms, he cradled a scroll bearing Tsunade's signature.

Yes.

Letting Gendo carry the scroll box and staging a last stand had all been a smokescreen.

The real target had been on Ash Soiled the whole time.

He'd extracted it from the Hokage's vault before they even left the Tower.

He hadn't broken the seal yet, of course. The sealing technique was too advanced to deal with on the run.

Still, the moment he fought Kiri, he knew—this kid was trouble. Young, but not someone he could beat quickly. Not someone to underestimate.

The mission would fail unless he played it smart.

So, like countless times before in his infamous career…

He used his comrade as bait.

He'd done this so many times before that he'd lost count.

If it were for the village, there was no sacrifice he wouldn't make. No darkness too deep to crawl through.

Fwoosh!

Wind screamed past his ears as he pushed himself faster.

Even among Iwa shinobi, mastering the Light–Weight Boulder Technique was rare. It reduced his body weight to a third without sacrificing strength, allowing him to fly like the wind.

Just a little more!

Faster—just a little faster!

Freedom is right there!

His will to live surged within him, pushing his chakra output to the absolute limit.

He didn't even think about Gendo anymore.

Didn't think about Kiri.

What drove him now was not duty.

It was desperate, primal survival.

WHUMP!

His feet pounded the earth, launching him into a perfect arc. Up ahead—the escape route they'd prepared.

His eyes gleamed.

Then—

BOOM!

A sonic blast tore through the field.

From the empty terrain ahead, a figure appeared out of nowhere.

Thud.

The headless body of Gendo hit the dirt beside him.

Ash Soiled froze.

His weathered face twisted into open fear as his eyes locked onto the boy now standing in his path.

"That… that was… space-time ninjutsu?!"

"Barely," Kiri replied casually, tossing the scroll box aside.

"The so-called 'force of stoppage'—it manipulates space, you see."

"It can stretch even the smallest distance into 'infinite far away.'"

"But reversed…"

"It makes the distant… infinitely near."

"Today was my first time using it."

"Pretty impressive, don't you think?"

Ash Soiled's instincts screamed.

His battle-hardened experience told him: he was done.

Kiri took one step forward.

VMMM—!

The very air trembled.

Ash Soiled blinked.

Kiri vanished.

When he reappeared, he was already in Ash Soiled's face, like he had materialized inside his very chest.

His seemingly delicate frame surged with chakra.

Muscles exploded with power.

Momentum is transferred from the foot to the spine to the shoulder.

And then—

BOOM!!

The punch landed without contact, like a vacuum detonating between them.

A conical shockwave ripped through the air. His sleeve disintegrated from the force.

The blow struck dead center—Ash Soiled's ribs and sternum collapsed inward.

He coughed blood violently, his eyes bulging.

And yet—

If one looked closely, they'd see that Kiri's fist never actually touched him.

The damage was caused by the space being compressed to near-zero between them.

Infinite Near pulled the target into the blow.

Infinite Far protected the attacker's body from recoil.

But it came at a cost.

He could only manage five hits with his current eye power.

Ash Soiled stumbled.

But before he could fall, Kiri spun.

His right leg swept up like a cleaving axe—

At the same moment, a hidden earth clone leapt from the ground, its stone-coated arm ready to crush him.

"Earth Style: Rock Fist!"

CRACK!

Kiri's kick hit first.

It sliced clean through the clone's rocky torso, shearing it completely in half.

Then—

"Hah!"

Ash, Soiled, battered, and bleeding, pulled every last drop of chakra into one final, desperate gamble.

"Explosion Style: Deton—!"

Crack.

Kiri's other hand crushed his throat before he could complete the technique.

Grrkk—

His face turned purple from lack of air, bloodshot eyes locked on Kiri's.

Even now, even dying—

He couldn't accept it.

After decades of surviving the intelligence world of the Five Great Nations…

He was going to die here.

At the hands of some no-name Konoha kid.

His voice rasped out, weak but bitter:

"Who… are you…?"

Kiri smiled.

"You want to know?"

"Open wide."

Ash Soiled blinked, confused.

Then—

A sphere of brilliant blue chakra formed in Kiri's palm—no hand signs needed.

"Rasengan."

And he shoved it straight into the man's mouth.

BOOM!!!

The entire head detonated into mist.

Kiri wasn't about to leave any trace behind.

Not when a Yamanaka could dig through the corpse's memories.

Thump.

He let go.

The headless body dropped to its knees and fell forward with a sickening crunch.

Blood mist drifted upward, swirling gently on the breeze.

Kiri stood still.

He waited.

And then, almost like he felt it, he looked up toward the rooftops.

There, under the moonlight—

He locked eyes with a stunned Minato Namikaze.

Minato stared, speechless.

At the two corpses.

At the boy—so familiar, and yet so utterly unknown.

Kiri smiled kindly.

"Good evening, Namikaze-kun."

His voice was warm. Soft.

Then his eyes flicked toward Minato's injuries—blood-stained, bandaged in a rush—and his voice carried a hint of praise.

"You've worked hard tonight."