The black hair burned easily.
Too easily.
It writhed violently inside the inferno, thrashing like a living creature trying to smother its own flames.
The harder it struggled, the faster it burned.
"Cough… cough… did we kill it?"
Hidan crawled out of the scorched zone in miserable condition.
His clothes were charred.
His skin was blackened with soot.
His eyebrows and hair were completely gone.
But he was alive.
And, more importantly, not eaten.
Getting burned along with the enemy didn't bother him much.
With an immortal body, collateral damage simply didn't matter.
If roles were reversed, Hidan would have done the exact same thing.
"Not sure yet," Shinji said. "Wait here. I'm going down to confirm."
"If something happens, do exactly what I did. Burn everything. Don't worry about me."
Hidan flopped onto his back.
"Fine. I won't hold back."
Shinji trusted him.
If Hidan ever got the chance to roast Shinji alive, he absolutely would.
That mutual understanding counted as teamwork.
Before moving, a faint notification surfaced in Shinji's vision.
Synchronization Level IncreasedCurrent Value: 251
Halfway to the next threshold.
Shinji ignored it.
He lit a torch and descended into the well.
The interior was coated in scorched black residue.
Burn marks everywhere.
No movement.
No resistance.
At the bottom, something small reflected the torchlight.
A glass bottle.
Palm-sized.
Perfectly intact.
Shinji frowned.
There had been nothing here before.
Which meant this object either came from the chest… or dropped after the creature was destroyed.
Either way, it wasn't ordinary.
He carefully picked it up.
A familiar internal prompt appeared.
Ability UnlockedCursed Object Acquired: Perfect Perfume
Shinji's eyes narrowed.
He focused.
Cursed Object: Perfect Perfume
Effect 1: Emits a scent that irresistibly attracts most biological lifeforms.Effect 2: Generates black hair capable of capturing and digesting organic matter to strengthen itself.Effect 3: Regeneration
Weakness: Fire
So that thing they fought…
Was this bottle.
If he had walked away earlier, this cursed object would have been lost forever.
Shinji slipped the bottle into his pouch.
Unpleasant origin or not, usefulness mattered more.
He did one last sweep of the well.
Nothing else.
Then climbed out.
"Good news?" Hidan asked.
Shinji nodded.
"It's finished. Burned completely."
Hidan visibly relaxed.
"Good. But seriously… what the hell was that thing?"
Shinji shook his head.
"No idea."
Hidan rolled his eyes.
"Tch."
"Can you walk?"
"You think?"
"Then stay here. I'm going back to sleep."
"Shinji Akagi, you heartless bastard!"
"Great. You're loud. Means you're alive."
Shinji turned and started walking.
Behind him, Hidan cursed nonstop.
After a moment, a crimson strand shot out.
It wrapped around Hidan's body.
Before he could react, he was yanked off the ground.
"Hey—!"
More strands wrapped around his mouth.
Silence.
Shinji sighed in satisfaction.
Finally.
Quiet.
Using Blood Art: Red Dominion, Shinji dragged Hidan toward the village.
They returned to find the old man gone.
Shinji didn't care.
Fear made people disappear.
That was normal.
Not long after, screams began echoing throughout the village.
The unconscious villagers were waking up.
They found themselves outdoors.
With pounding headaches.
Surrounded by burn marks and scorched earth.
Panic spread quickly.
Livestock were missing.
No bodies.
No explanations.
By dawn, the village was in chaos.
Shinji didn't look back.