Although most people spoke of him dismissively, saying things like the Village Hidden in the Sand was weak, the Village Hidden in the Cloud was foolish, and that the Village Hidden in the Mist would have handled things differently, the very fact that so many people repeatedly discussed him already said something in itself.
Later, after the war with Konoha officially began, mentions of his name became increasingly frequent.
And at some point, the tone people used when discussing him changed.
What began as disdain gradually gave way to silence, and what began as casual jokes gradually became solemn discussions.
Especially after Mei Terumi was drafted into the war over two months ago.
Every time the seniors assigned to their team mentioned that name, their expressions would unconsciously grow heavier.
Although Mei Terumi had only transported supplies in the rear and had never truly stepped onto the front lines, she could still tell from the fragments of conversation she occasionally overheard that this Shinichi Higashino had caused the village far more trouble than anyone had anticipated.
At the time, she had often wondered: How did he do it?
They were practically the same age, and he was only a few months older than her.
She was considered a genius within the village, and her seniors all said she would achieve great things in the future, yet compared to the boy whose name shook the entire Shinobi World, there seemed to be an insurmountable gulf between them.
The title of genius seemed merely to qualify one to stand at his threshold.
No, perhaps not even the threshold.
After all, she had only just stepped onto the battlefield before somehow becoming a prisoner.
Had he not saved her, she probably would never even have seen him.
What exactly does he intend to do with them?
Over the past few days, Mei Terumi had learned from some seniors in the village that the reason they had been rescued from the ruins and treated so unusually in the prisoner camp was probably due to Shinichi Higashino's orders.
Despite being so ruthless, despite causing countless casualties among their Village Hidden in the Mist comrades, he had then ordered the treatment of prisoners like them.
The contradiction was something Mei Terumi simply could not understand.
Thinking about it, she could not help sneaking another glance at the black-haired figure ahead, and along with her curiosity came an inexplicable sense of regret.
As for what exactly she regretted, she could not quite explain.
Most likely, her fangirl tendencies were acting up again.
Mei Terumi knew these thoughts were wrong.
'Mei Terumi, Mei Terumi, how can you be this hopeless? That's Shinichi Higashino! The Shinichi Higashino who kills without blinking! How can you be fangirling over him?'
She scolded herself inwardly, but then she thought about it.
No one even knew whether they would live or die after this, so why bother worrying about such things?
'Might as well…'
With that thought, the girl suddenly felt completely justified, and the frequency of her secret glances quietly increased.
Meanwhile, walking at the very front of the procession, Shinichi had no idea what kind of chaotic thoughts were running through the mind of the brownish-red-haired girl behind him.
According to the planned route, they would pass by the Fire Temple in two days.
At that time, he would represent Konoha in a friendly exchange with the Fire Temple and thank them for the extensive support they had provided since the outbreak of the war.
Then, three days later, the group would arrive in the capital.
There, he would represent Konoha in receiving the cordial condolences of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.
At this moment, as Shinichi walked along the road and looked at the dirt path that could barely qualify as an official highway, he once again found himself complaining about this world's bizarre technological progression.
There weren't even any cars.
It was difficult to imagine that in an era possessing telephones, video recorders, and televisions, transportation remained at a medieval level.
Ninja traveled primarily by foot, while wealthy merchants and nobles could only ride in horse-drawn carriages.
Even the most primitive internal combustion trains would not appear in the Shinobi World for another decade or so.
And they would not appear in the Land of Fire, which possessed the most developed trade network.
Instead, they would emerge in the far northern Land of Snow.
As for automobiles, there was not even the slightest sign of them before the storyline he knew from his previous life came to an end.
He truly did not understand how the people of this world thought.
Many technologies only required a little cross-disciplinary inspiration and a slight push to bring about earth-shaking transformations, yet everyone seemed to have their eyes covered by something invisible.
No one ever looked in that direction, and every new technology or invention always emerged at some specific point in time, as though it had suddenly appeared out of nowhere on a whim from the creator.
For example, the computers.
At least Shinichi had discovered that there was currently no information whatsoever about computers, yet, according to the original timeline, computers would become widespread across the offices and laboratories of every major ninja village little more than a decade later.
Presumably, a few years from now, computers would simply appear out of thin air with absolutely no prior development and then rapidly advance to an astonishingly sophisticated level.
To this day, Shinichi could not forget the scene that had shocked him for a long time when he watched the anime in his previous life.
A laboratory filled with advanced laptop computers and various instruments he did not even recognize, but which looked extremely high-tech, and the source of illumination inside?
It was oil lamps.
"Such a damn ridiculous world."
Shinichi shook his head inwardly and returned his thoughts to the present.
Although he could now move faster than a high-speed train when running, he would still be more than happy to slack off a little if he had a proper vehicle.
Two days later, the group passed by the Fire Temple and made a brief stop as scheduled.
Representing Konoha, Shinichi engaged in a friendly discussion with Abbot Gyatso, thanking the Fire Temple for its active support since the outbreak of the war.
Abbot Gyatso welcomed him with Buddhist courtesy.
The meeting concluded in an atmosphere that was both formal and cordial.
Afterward, the group enjoyed a simple vegetarian meal in the temple dining hall before setting out once more toward the capital.
The world-honored one, or rather, the Buddha, who exactly was he?
As Shinichi walked along the road, recalling his earlier conversation with Abbot Gyatso, the thought arose in his mind.
The origins of Buddhism in this world could no longer be traced, and the legendary world-honored one, who attained supreme enlightenment beneath the bodhi tree and guided countless beings through compassion and wisdom, was far more mysterious than any Otsutsuki.
Neither the Fire Temple's records nor the various Buddhist scriptures circulating throughout the Shinobi World contained any clear account of his true identity.
It was as though he existed only within the scriptures, the recitations, and the faith of believers, yet had left no unquestionably authentic trace at any point in history.
That was far too abnormal.
In his previous life, Shinichi naturally would not have dwelled on such a question, but the world he now inhabited had been a fictional work constructed by an author.