Chapter 623: The Shinigami's Scream
Kenichi had to admit that even he had not expected his Shadow Clones to be this outrageous.
Still, he was quite pleased with their decision.
As far as Kenichi was concerned, the choice they had made was completely correct. It would reduce his workload considerably.
More importantly, although this kind of attack might not inflict devastating damage on Isshiki, it should at least leave him flustered and force him to react.
Thinking of this, Kenichi waved his hand.
Immediately, several of his Shadow Clones descended from the airship carrying the specially prepared weapons.
The group quietly spread out and surrounded Isshiki's base from different directions.
Meanwhile, Isshiki remained completely unaware of what was happening outside.
...
"Jiraiya, what are you thinking about?"
Deep inside the underground base, Isshiki studied Jiraiya with a trace of scrutiny in his eyes.
At the moment, Isshiki was explaining Kara's scale and future plans to him.
However, everything he was showing Jiraiya was false.
More precisely, it was a carefully constructed facade that Isshiki had deliberately prepared for him.
After all, Isshiki still did not completely trust Jiraiya.
Although Jiraiya's previous actions had earned some of his confidence, Kaguya's betrayal had left Isshiki with an extremely difficult time trusting anyone.
Even though Jiraiya was a partner Isshiki had personally chosen, Isshiki still refused to expose Kara's true core to him.
The current Isshiki was cautious to the point of pettiness, yet also deeply arrogant.
His pride depended on whom he was facing.
If the opponent belonged to the Otsutsuki Clan, Isshiki would naturally become much more serious.
But when dealing with the shinobi of this world, he instinctively viewed himself as superior.
Normally, he concealed that attitude extremely well.
Even Jiraiya had never noticed it on his own.
However, Kenichi had already analyzed Isshiki's personality for him, so Jiraiya understood at least part of what was hidden beneath that calm exterior.
Naturally, Jiraiya would never expose that knowledge.
He was currently a spy who had infiltrated the enemy organization.
His only responsibility was to earn Isshiki's approval.
Just like now.
Unfortunately, Kenichi had not given him much more time.
Today was the final day of Jiraiya's infiltration.
"Nothing."
Jiraiya pretended to think deeply.
"I was just wondering whether the organization lacks convincing research results."
"Most of the research I've seen so far seems too weak."
"Some of it is almost boring."
He frowned.
"Can things like this really drive the evolution of the world forward?"
Although he spoke seriously, Jiraiya's thoughts were somewhere else entirely.
Today.
He knew exactly what day it was.
Jiraiya himself was one part of Kenichi's operation, so he understood what he was supposed to do.
There might be sacrifices.
Or perhaps there would be none.
Jiraiya could potentially escape through Reverse Summoning and return directly to Mount Myoboku.
But doing so came with risks.
According to Kenichi, when the operation began, he would activate an extremely powerful technique.
That technique would produce no detectable ninjutsu fluctuations.
There would only be a sound.
A scream.
An extremely sharp and piercing one.
That scream would be the signal for Kenichi and everyone else to begin the assault.
The moment Jiraiya heard it, he was supposed to escape.
If he failed to leave in time...
Then there was a very real possibility that he would die beneath Kenichi's opening attack.
When Tsunade first learned about the plan, she strongly objected.
From her perspective, Kenichi's plan was far too reckless.
It placed Jiraiya directly inside an extremely dangerous situation.
At the time, Tsunade had stared at Jiraiya with a complicated expression.
Her eyes seemed as deep as still water, carrying pain and longing from years past.
For an instant, she almost seemed to see her younger self again.
The memories of those brighter days returned.
Smiles.
Companionship.
Happiness that once seemed as though it would last forever.
Then came the memories of loss.
The death of the man she had loved.
Tsunade's eyes had grown slightly damp.
She drew several quiet breaths, trying to suppress the emotions rising inside her.
The corner of her mouth lifted into a faint smile.
It was almost imperceptible.
Yet beneath that smile remained a deep sadness that could not be concealed.
Memories that had once brought her happiness had also become some of the most painful things carved into her heart.
She silently followed Jiraiya with her gaze.
Some part of her wanted to offer him the same warmth and concern that he had shown her for so many years.
Those feelings had existed for a very long time.
Tsunade had simply never managed to speak them aloud.
And now that Jiraiya was walking directly into danger, her emotions became impossible to completely suppress.
Even so, she said nothing about those deeper feelings.
She only expressed her concern regarding the plan.
For Jiraiya, that alone was enough.
A faint warmth had risen in his chest.
In the past, Tsunade would never have spoken that way.
She certainly would not have shown him an expression like that.
The fact that she now cared enough to openly object was already good.
Very good.
Jiraiya was secretly delighted.
Naturally, none of those emotions appeared on his face now.
Instead, he continued speaking with apparent concern, as though he were sincerely worried about Kara's future.
Isshiki listened without changing expression.
Internally, however, he was satisfied.
Jiraiya might be somewhat foolish, but after joining Kara, he had unexpectedly begun seriously considering the organization's future.
That pleased Isshiki.
For the time being, Isshiki did not need Kara to become too conspicuous.
All he needed was to continue hiding.
Hide until his strength recovered.
Hide until he possessed enough power to kill Kaguya.
When that day arrived...
It would finally be time for revenge.
"Don't be impatient."
Isshiki spoke coldly.
"Everything in this world develops gradually."
"If we suddenly revealed research far beyond what people can understand, do you really think they would accept it?"
He looked toward Jiraiya.
"You know about the young girl from our organization."
"She once brought a portable electric lamp to a remote village because she wanted to bring light to the ignorant people living there."
"And they burned her to death."
Jiraiya fell silent.
He knew that incident very well.
After all, he had been the one sent to deal with the aftermath.
By the time Jiraiya arrived, the girl's corpse was still hanging from a wooden frame.
The villagers were singing and celebrating.
They praised the witch who had supposedly been powerful enough to burn the evil spirit to death.
They even claimed that the strange light the girl had brought was the glow of an evil spirit that would eventually burn them all alive.
The village itself was an ancient settlement hidden deep among layers of lush mountains.
At the entrance stood an old stone marker covered with the traces of countless years.
The winding mountain roads were narrow and quiet.
Villagers moved hurriedly along them, their figures seeming strangely lonely.
Their clothes were simple.
Their faces had been weathered by years of hardship.
Every wrinkle seemed to tell the story of a difficult life.
Most homes were constructed from mud walls and thatched roofs.
Thin wisps of smoke occasionally rose from crude chimneys, one of the few obvious signs of life.
Inside the houses, the furnishings were just as primitive.
A wooden table.
Several chairs.
An oil lamp giving off a weak, flickering glow.
The girl had stumbled across the village by accident.
When she saw how primitive their lives were, she thought of giving them something ordinary.
An electric lamp.
Across the more developed parts of the Shinobi World, electric lights were already common.
But that was mostly true in major shinobi villages and developed settlements.
Remote areas often lacked them entirely.
And this village, hidden deep among the mountains, was more isolated than most.
So the girl had wanted to bring them a simple invention that could improve their lives.
Instead...
They treated her as an evil spirit.
Then they burned her alive.
The irony was almost unbearable.
At night, the village's scattered lamps shone like tiny stars.
Those weak lights reflected both the perseverance and isolation of the people living there.
Every day, the villagers repeated the same difficult labor.
Farming.
Gathering firewood.
Fetching water.
Every task required considerable effort.
One of the few things that genuinely brought them joy was searching for wild fruit in the barren mountain forests.
The fruit trees survived stubbornly against the wind and rain.
Their harvests were never plentiful.
But to the villagers, those fruits were among the sweetest things they could look forward to.
Whenever someone discovered a tree bearing fruit, rare smiles would appear on otherwise tired faces.
Yet toward outsiders...
The village was extraordinarily hostile.
Whenever strangers approached, the villagers would immediately shut their doors.
Some would even pick up weapons and threaten them.
Their eyes carried complicated emotions.
Suspicion.
Fear.
And a strange sadness.
It was as though they believed any influence from the outside world would destroy the fragile peace they possessed.
One of their witches had even screamed that Jiraiya should be killed.
According to her, Jiraiya must have been another servant of the evil spirit, sent to steal away their happy lives.
Jiraiya had nearly lost his temper on the spot.
Happy lives?
From his perspective, there was absolutely nothing in that village worth protecting as some idyllic paradise.
He had not even wanted to be there in the first place.
But when Jiraiya looked at the murdered girl...
His anger became overwhelming.
So he used ninjutsu.
And burned the entire village.
Against someone like Jiraiya, those ordinary villagers were powerless.
They could do nothing.
Jiraiya simply stood there in silence.
Afterward, he took the girl's body down from the wooden frame.
Then he buried her.
From that day onward...
Kara began treating Jiraiya with far greater importance.
"Jiraiya."
Isshiki looked at him.
"I know you're frustrated."
"But don't let your emotions control you."
"Not everyone in this world deserves to be saved immediately."
"Some people need time to learn."
"Time to understand."
"That is precisely why an organization like ours must exist."
Isshiki actually went out of his way to comfort him.
There was little choice.
At the moment, Jiraiya was one of the only members of Kara with respectable combat ability.
Otherwise, Isshiki would never have bothered wasting this much patience on someone he regarded as weak.
Jiraiya smiled.
Then he continued walking alongside Isshiki as they toured the base.
As for whether he should escape early...
Jiraiya still had not decided.
If he suddenly disappeared now, he feared Isshiki might notice something abnormal.
And if that suspicion disrupted Kenichi's battle plan...
Then Jiraiya would become responsible for endangering the entire Shinobi World.
"Our organization doesn't seem particularly large."
Jiraiya casually made conversation.
Isshiki did not think much of it.
He simply assumed Jiraiya had noticed that parts of the base were being hidden from him.
In reality, the underground complex was enormous.
But many of its most important sections were absolutely forbidden to Jiraiya.
Isshiki remained wary of him.
So he merely smiled and explained that Kara was still in its early stages.
The organization needed continued effort from all its members before it could truly grow.
In simple terms...
Everyone needed to work harder for the organization.
It was actually an effective method of motivating people.
Most of Kara's current members, aside from those Isshiki had personally cultivated, were merely naive experimental subjects.
They had no idea what the organization really was.
Nor, in Isshiki's view, did they deserve to know.
Ironically, their ignorance helped Kara remain hidden.
Countless organizations appeared across the Shinobi World every year, each carrying some slogan or grand ideal.
Against that background, nobody paid much attention to another supposedly idealistic organization calling itself Kara.
Isshiki took great pride in that.
Kaguya, in his eyes, had been a complete fool.
After obtaining the chakra fruit of the Divine Tree, she had not even understood what to do with her power.
She had also failed to realize that Isshiki had survived.
The thought only deepened his contempt for her.
And his hatred.
If Kaguya had never betrayed him...
Isshiki believed he would already have become a supreme existence.
A true pride of the Otsutsuki Clan.
Instead...
He was trapped inside another person's body.
Forced to hide.
Forced to cling to life.
To Isshiki, there could be no greater humiliation.
"Jiraiya."
Isshiki eventually stopped.
"I've finished showing you the base."
"There's a task I need you to handle next."
He looked directly at Jiraiya.
"At the moment, you're the only person in the organization capable of carrying it out."
Jiraiya showed a trace of hesitation.
Then he nodded.
"I'm listening."
After all...
Today would be Isshiki's final day in this world.
Jiraiya could afford to be a little more patient with him.
Just wait.
Wait for that screaming Shinigami to sound the death knell meant for you.
Then...
"Hummm..."
A strange sound suddenly echoed through the underground base.
Both Jiraiya and Isshiki instinctively looked toward the ceiling.
Isshiki frowned.
"What is that sound?"
....
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