Swish—
Three kunai flew toward Kakashi.
A look of pure disgust flashed through Kakashi's dead-fish eyes.
"Seriously? With this level of skill, you're out here playing rogue ninja?"
"Kakashi, this world is way too chaotic, isn't it?"
Obito's eyes had barely shifted into the three-tomoe Sharingan before the dozens of rogue ninjas in front of them were already trapped in his genjutsu.
"These guys... their skills are worse than our Empire's elementary school graduates! And they still dare to come out and rob people? That's actually insane!"
Obito couldn't stop complaining. Kakashi sighed helplessly.
"Speak. What year is it? What is the strength of your group? Are there many rogue ninjas like you?"
Kakashi addressed one of the ninjas controlled by Obito's illusion.
The ninja, eyes glazed over, answered instinctively. "It is Konoha Year 64. The strongest among us is Doma; his strength rivals a Chunin."
"There are many rogue ninjas like us on the borders of the Land of Fire. The people here are mostly poor and weak. Even if they are bullied, they have no money to go to Konoha to issue a mission. After all, a C-rank mission costs anywhere from thirty thousand to one hundred thousand ryo."
Obito's eyes widened.
"You mean commoners have to pay for mission dispatch themselves? Does the Daimyo of the Land of Fire not care?"
"Why would the Daimyo care if commoners live or die? If they were willing to care, we wouldn't be rogue ninjas."
Obito clicked his tongue.
"Kakashi, the Daimyos here are even bigger animals than our Lord Senju! I thought our Emperor was stingy enough, but the Daimyos here are the real bastards!"
Kakashi frowned.
"Obito, watch your words. The Emperor is stingy because the Empire is newly established, funding is needed everywhere, and the R&D for the interdimensional jutsu and the transport gate sucks up resources. Have you ever seen the Emperor indulge in luxury?"
"Huh? Not luxurious? The Emperor preaches monogamy, yet he turns around and takes both Lady Tsunade and Lady Mei Terumi..."
Kakashi paused for a second. "The Emperor's conduct in that area... admittedly doesn't look great. But there are many political factors involved. You can't just judge based on the beauty of those two Ladies."
Obito rolled his eyes at Kakashi.
"I don't care about that. I only love Rin."
"Alright. Let me ask you this: currently, which is the weakest country?"
"The weakest... should be the Land of Water. I've seen a map; they are surrounded by ocean on all sides and have closed their country off, cutting all communication with other Ninja Villages. You almost never see Mist Ninjas outside. Even the infamous Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist—after encountering a single Leaf Ninja—were reduced to the 'Three Lucky Treasures'..."
Having gathered enough intel, Obito activated his Sharingan genjutsu. The group of bandits immediately drew their blades and committed seppuku.
"To be honest, I feel zero guilt dealing with these guys. If anything, I feel like I dirtied my hands."
"But Kakashi, isn't it strange? Why do a bunch of Genin dare to become bandits? I really feel sorry for the civilians of this world!"
Lives ruined by the greed of a few. In the Empire, such a thing was impossible, but here, it was as common as eating and drinking.
In the Empire, every ninja was registered. Your identity, home address—everything was on file.
Even the jutsu you knew and the ninja tools you owned had to be updated in the registry periodically.
Using unregistered jutsu or tools was a criminal offense.
Because of this, many people had cursed the Emperor, claiming ninjas had no human rights or privacy, that exposing everything to the Empire was a violation.
At the time, Obito hadn't understood and had joined in cursing the Emperor. But seeing the situation here, he began to reflect deeply on the Emperor's intent.
"The last rogue ninja robbery in the Empire was three years ago..."
The Empire's laws were draconian. Any unregistered ninja who dared to harm an innocent civilian would, at minimum, be sent for detention and rehabilitation. At worst, their chakra would be crippled, their meridian points sealed, and their descendants banned from practicing ninjutsu for three generations.
Many ninjas, furious at losing their privileges, had rebelled when the policy was first introduced. A group had slaughtered several villages in protest, including some Bloodline Limit users.
Everyone knew the Emperor cherished talent, especially those with Bloodline Limits.
But to everyone's shock, the Emperor had unhesitatingly treated them exactly as they had treated the civilians. Until their dying breath, those rebels couldn't understand why, as elite Bloodline Limit users, they were worth less in the Emperor's eyes than a bunch of commoners.
Now, as the two looked at a literal tower of human heads in the distance—men, women, children, and the elderly, their severed heads piled casually like refuse—they instantly understood.
When there is privilege, people will exercise their power without restraint. How could an Empire stabilize under such conditions?
Unification was the right choice! The Emperor truly is great!
Both of them felt a massive shift in their perception of the Empire and the Emperor.
"Alright, Obito. What we need to do now is speed up the Emperor's mission. The errors of this world are deep-rooted. For now, let's head to the Land of Waves and take a boat to the Land of Water. We'll start our conquest there!"
Kakashi gave the order.
The Land of Water's isolationist policy was perfect for their operations. They could gather Tailed Beasts or massive amounts of chakra materials to build a transport gate connecting to their home world based on the blueprints the Emperor provided.
The Mist's closed borders would cover their tracks, preventing them from alerting the other nations too early.
Once the gate was built and more Imperial elites crossed over, conquering this world would be much smoother.
The two openly entered the territory of the Land of Waves. Perhaps because the Land of Waves was genuinely poor, they didn't encounter any more rogue ninjas.
And because the locals relied on the sea for fishing, there were far fewer people starving to the point of being skin and bone compared to the famine-stricken peasants in the Land of Fire.
"According to the merchants we met on the road, there's a businessman in the Land of Waves named Gato who has ships going to the Land of Water. Looks like we need to pay him a visit," Kakashi said.
They had the ability to run across the ocean, but that would consume chakra and potentially impact their future plans. Taking a boat to rest and maintain peak physical condition was naturally the optimal choice.
"Yeah. But before that, we need to eliminate a little mouse trailing behind us."
Obito's Sharingan glanced inadvertently at a tree behind them.
Having been classmates and best friends who grew up together, Kakashi instantly understood.
In the next instant, Kakashi appeared beneath the tree Obito had looked at. Before Jiraiya could even react, a blade gleaming with cold light sliced through his neck.
Only then did the sonic boom of the short sword cutting through the air reach his ears.
Poof!
A burst of white smoke dissipated. Jiraiya's shadow clone was instantly obliterated before it could even register the attack.