Chapter 74: Welcome to the Dark World of Adults
A tremor ran through Jiraiya. He stared, refusing to believe that Konoha could harbor such a terrifying training methodology.
"You're lying! How could something like that happen in Konoha? The Fourth Hokage would never allow it!"
Stelle, in her guise as Kou, took a single, deliberate step forward. Her eyes, fixed on him, were abyssal voids, utterly devoid of emotion. She was less a person and more a perfectly crafted puppet.
"Lord Jiraiya, this is merely the daily training regimen of the Root," she stated, her voice a monotone flatline. "Actual combat is the most effective crucible. Those who cannot pass this stage are simply eliminated."
The unspoken implication hung heavy in the air. Eliminated was a euphemism for dead.
The three genin understood it instantly.
The sheer murderous intent radiating from the girl was a physical force. It struck Jiraiya with such intensity that he stumbled backward, landing hard on his rear. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and the oppressive weight in the air made him gasp for breath.
Whoosh!
Two figures blurred into existence at Jiraiya's side, their presence instantly shouldering some of the crushing pressure.
"Wait," Tsunade said, her voice laced with uncertainty. "Sensei said her memory is distorted, probably from a harsh interrogation after she was captured. So, what she's saying… it should be false, right?"
"I remember now, too!" Jiraiya exclaimed, the color returning to his face. "So it was all fake! You scared me half to death! Hey, don't just say terrifying things like that so casually!"
Relieved of the suffocating pressure, he let out a long, shaky breath and shouted at Kou, his embarrassment fueling his anger.
Only Orochimaru remained silent, his brow furrowed in deep thought.
Having successfully farmed a bountiful wave of emotional energy, Stelle swept her dark eyes over the three of them one last time. She decided to quit while she was ahead, lest she alert any actual Anbu who might be observing. Maintaining the emotionless persona of a Root operative, she turned and departed.
The moment her back was turned, however, her heart was doing cartwheels.
'Wow, System! As expected of the Sannin, they're major players for a reason! So many mood points, so many coins! I love it, I love it!'
[Host, you're amazing!] the system cheered like a loyal lackey.
By the pond, however, the relaxed training atmosphere the trio had enjoyed was gone, shattered beyond repair.
Were those things she said really lies?
Why did it feel so terrifyingly true?
The mission for the second day was to escort a merchant caravan to the Land of Rice. After being cooped up in the academy for intense tutoring, the three genin were buzzing with excitement to finally get out into the field. Hiruzen Sarutobi walked behind them, a paternal warmth swelling in his chest as he watched the vibrant, energetic trio.
His gaze shifted to Kou, who stood off to the side, a perfect effigy of an emotionless tool. A sigh escaped his lips.
Why had the Fourth Hokage saddled him with such a volatile asset? It was a genuine headache. And the look in her eyes when she'd handed the girl over… it had been incredibly meaningful.
A chill traced its way down Hiruzen's spine. Had the incident with the "Parallel World" affected her? Had she begun to grow wary of him? He tried to put himself in her shoes. If he were sitting in the Hokage's seat and someone revealed that the position originally belonged to another, he would likely harbor some suspicion as well. Sometimes, no matter how strong the bond, the weight of that seat forced one to consider every angle.
The Fourth Hokage was probably also afraid of inviting more turmoil to Konoha. The village, as it stood, truly couldn't afford any more trouble.
Of one thing, Hiruzen was certain: even if he had refused, she would have found another way to force this girl onto his team.
'Forget it,'he thought with resignation.'I'll just have to observe. As long as I'm watching her, nothing can go too wrong.'
Since they were hired to guard a merchant caravan, the journey was bound to be eventful. Sure enough, as they passed through a dense forest, rogue ninja appeared and launched an attack. They were all low-level shinobi, so Hiruzen held back, content to observe his disciples' performance from the sidelines.
Everything was proceeding smoothly at first. But then one of the rogue ninja, realizing he was outmatched, grabbed a civilian hostage to secure his escape—an ordinary traveler who had paid to join the caravan midway for protection.
His three students were still young. Faced with such a predicament, they hesitated, afraid of harming the hostage.
In that split second of indecision, Kou struck. Her blade left its sheath in a silent, fluid motion. She used the Body Flicker Technique to close the distance in an instant, and with a flash of steel, she brought her sword down in a diagonal slash aimed to cut through both the rogue and the civilian he held.
If the strike landed, they would both die.
As the civilian began to scream, seeing his life about to be extinguished, Hiruzen appeared beside them. His right hand clamped down on Kou's wrist, arresting the blade's descent, stopping it a mere inch from its target. His movements were a blur. His left hand shot out, seizing the rogue ninja's throat.
Crack!
The sharp sound of shattering bone echoed through the clearing, and the rogue ninja slumped to the ground, lifeless.
With the threat neutralized, Hiruzen released Kou's hand, his expression thunderous. He ordered the caravan to continue moving.
When they next stopped to make camp, Hiruzen called her away for a private talk.
Back at the main camp, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru huddled together.
"The angle of her attack just now was wrong," Tsunade said, her brow creased with worry. "Could she be..."
"Exactly," Orochimaru, the prodigy, affirmed, his words carrying significant weight. "From that angle, she was fully prepared to kill the civilian along with the enemy."
Jiraiya shot to his feet, his face flushed with anger. "How could she do that?!"
The three of them crept quietly toward the river and saw Hiruzen reprimanding Kou. His tone was severe, yet the girl being scolded wore a placid expression, as if she couldn't comprehend what she had done wrong.
"The first of the Shinobi Rules: the mission is paramount," Kou recited calmly. "For the sake of the mission, anything and everything can be abandoned."
After finishing, she repeated it once more. The way she looked at Hiruzen made it seem as though he were the one being unreasonable, which sent a fresh pang of frustration through him.
In truth, the world of the shinobi was a deeply distorted one. If a client paid a large sum for you to assassinate a wealthy merchant with whom you had no grievance, was that merchant not innocent? Yet, most ninja were not bloodthirsty. On a simple, low-stakes mission, without any compelling reason, would one really kill a civilian just because they were taken hostage? This wasn't a time of war between nations where such grim calculations were necessary. There was no need for such a heavy killing intent.
Hiruzen felt his head beginning to throb again. This was only their first mission, and already a problem of this magnitude had surfaced.
Hiding in the bushes, Jiraiya couldn't listen any longer. He burst out with a roar, "What do you mean, 'everything can be abandoned'?! Does that mean if you get injured and become a burden on a mission, we can just abandon you, too?"
"Of course."
Kou turned her head, her tone solemn and decisive, completely unmoved by his fury.
"Lord Jiraiya can abandon me without hesitation. Kill me directly, or place explosive tags on my body to delay the enemy. I am prepared to be abandoned at any time."
How could this be? Who would actively kill a comrade and retreat simply because they were injured and slowing the mission down?
Jiraiya's face turned beet red, his entire body trembling with rage. "We're comrades! Aren't comrades supposed to support and trust each other?"
Kou tilted her head, her tone unwavering as she produced the props she had prepared just yesterday. "Comrades are merely a simple, cooperative relationship established to meet mission requirements. However, Lord Jiraiya needn't worry. If one day I am injured and cannot retreat with you, I will end my own life."
She pointed to her cheek. "I have a poison capsule hidden in my mouth sufficient to instantly destroy my brain cells."
She then gestured to the side of her coat. "There are five explosive tags attached to my clothes that can be detonated at any time. Enough to blow me to pieces."
"Hiss!"
The others gasped, taking a unified step back. They looked at her as if she were a monster. This person was truly prepared to die at any moment—and to die completely.
Hiruzen extended his hand toward her, his voice dangerously low. "Give me the poison and the explosive tags. Now. Immediately."
Seeing that Kou didn't move, he added, "This is an order."
"Yes, Lord Hiruzen."
Without a change in expression, Kou took the explosive tags from her clothes, removed the miniature poison capsule from the gap between her teeth, and handed them over.
After confirming she wasn't hiding anything else, Hiruzen sighed and turned to explain to his three horrified students.
"This is a training method from the Hidden Mist's Hunter-nin. Kou's thoughts are just confused, and she's projecting herself into that role. Don't misunderstand."
Even as he said it, he knew he didn't believe a word of his own explanation.
That night, after returning from the mission, Hiruzen went to find his great Fourth Hokage to request that Kou be transferred to Konoha's Anbu Black Ops.
Unfortunately, the Fourth Hokage, as if she knew he was coming, had already gone into hiding.
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]