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Paul was in big brain thinking right now
Goro, the former temporary owner of Earth demon's blade, was a brown bladed sword in full yellow with a normal hand guard in black with a kanji for earth on it . Its cover was blue with a kanji for together in brown which they had stolen from the land of fire's museum for use after all
Goro himself was indeed built like an earthen mount himself fitting he picked that blade even though none of these fools say for the lone genjutsu user, but even that was basics none of them knew any elemental jutsus or how to use one of the 7 elements.
Goro was also a half decent artist he did prove it when he drew their robber who stole the stolen goods
Anyways it was kind of a basic skill for ninja and thiefs alike to paul both were the same thing
The damages paul had to heal for Goro was mostly blunt force trauma on arms and legs internal bleeding from a punctured lung caused by a stray rib
From what he knew Goro was the one who went for that demon's things to loot it.
Next was the man who had Water demon's blade , Saburō the man had only one with a big hat covering the missing eye
The lost katana was blue bladed, with a full red handled-with a normal hand guard in black with a kanji for water on the handle itself and its cover was brown with a kanji for together but unlike it's twin this one had it in blue
Paul's personal favorite , he wanted to try it so bad but thanks to these fools he won't be able to try it right now
The damages paul had to heal was more bleeding causing and actual infections because the boy had stuffed the puncher wounds with soil and goro's clothes which he tore apart without a thought with a dash of puncher wounds from kunai with complimentary broken bones and cartilage like the rest
The next man was Jinsuke the genjutsu user He knew a basic genjutsu which he had used against the boy to poison the said boy,
He lost the blade of wind demon it was a broad sword with a sliver handle guard and black scaly leather with a cylindrical pammel
(AN ref:

It's close enough )
The damages paul had to heal for Jinsuke was new scars on his face which already had some before , broken teeth , entirety of his front teeth from both jaws were gone with puncher wounds from kunai with complimentary broken bones and cartilage
The demon brat had broken all their fingers. Escape had been impossible, even if they'd tried to
He considered killing them he really did but a tried and tested idea was revealed to him
Sighing out loud Paul moved to his kills
To the jounin and his genins.. the dead bodies he muttered something akin to a prayer , clapped his hands together
A giant golden avatar of chakra visible to only paul himself manifested her mouth opened
Paul briefly muttered "eat my lord goddess eat these starters before I your servant shall give you that demon's foul soul soon but I need pawns so by your mercy, princess amatarasu I beg you, heal these fools"
The avatar huffed. It glanced at Paul, then at the bandits, as though displeased. With a reluctant sigh, it moved. Its jaws closed over the corpses of the genin, swallowing bodies and heads in pairs; its face was delightful and lusty .
Then its tongue slithered into the pit, licking the jōnin's paste from the earth. Its face contorted in displeasure as if tasted something foul
The matter from bodies became pure chakra
three arms from shot towards the bandits out the avatar image of a goddess a bubble of chakra formed around the bandits the now digested matter turned chakra visibly flowed into each bubble
The bandits' eyes widened. They saw the corpses lift into the air, bodies cracking apart into glowing matter. Chakra-pure chakra-visible in its rawest form, something they'd only heard of happens in high A-rank jutsus.
And then they felt fresh air vanish Jinsuke's fear of close spaces started to kick in , they felt like though their sudden placed in bubbles shaped coffins
The chakra suddenly moved to them in three streams like snakes they wanted to run but they could not Saburō & Goro stomped the ground helplessly trying not to get hit by the snakes-like chakra streams
Each bandits wounds old or new started to "heal" Goro's chest rippled as a new rib slid into place old one seemingly dissolving
Saburō's ruined flesh bubbled, knitted with fibers of chakra turned meat even his eye which he had lost way before Naruto's punishment regenerated
Jinsuke's gums bulged - teeth sprouting like mushrooms, wrong shapes, wrong sizes, but teeth nonetheless
When it was done, the three bandits lay gasping-alive, but warped, their wounds not just sealed but repaired not even a single wound remained Paul smiled, fanatic light burning in his eyes.
'i haven't seen anything from my this eye it's a miracle' Saburō thought grateful
Other bandits were grateful too their bodies no longer hurted
"Rise. My gods have no patience for weakness. We have a demonic legacy to hunt...*he looked up at the sky* just you wait.....Yellow Demon. And you, Red Succubus-I'll reunite you two with your son soon." His voice was plain almost dead matter of fact tone
'Boss is really being the whole dramatic villain type' thought the bandits deadpanning internally
The chakra avatar of a certain goddess moved touched paul with her rhino-sized finger , Paul leaned in the touch rubbing himself to the giant digit of finger
then it dispelled into air like breaking away with a smile and a wink , paul face fell like his dream just broken
'Did he just hump the air? No it looked like there's something...' the mere thought that there was something or someone who they can't see made bandits fear skyrocket they didn't know much about Paul himself and he seemed to do the impossible they knew now , they were realising it too late now this Paul wasn't their usual customer
"You people should know.... I can now hear your thoughts..."
Sharp pain flows through all three bandits no wounds just pain like they were getting beaten by that kid all over again just way worse
"And i can now punish you all, welcome to slavery approved by the gods" he sighed and muttered "can't even be dramatic without being judged by my own slaves no less"
Raising his voice he began like a leader
"And now, my goddess and her kin demand strength. You will learn to bleed for her-and make others bleed as well. Kill, or be killed. Both paths belong to her. Take it with pride."
His voice dropped into a reverent hush. "Follow my masters willingly, and you shall not rot in hell after death. You shall walk beside the gods themselves-just like the trash I've delivered today. Prove your faith... and you three will see the one who healed you. I will crown you as my archpriest ."
All bandits eyes went lusty with the promise of power last threads of humanity leaving them they nodded like elephants madden with lust
Saburō rubs his healed eye, mutters "I can see again... I'll never be weak again... I will never be like before, not broken."
Paul briefly smiled he just caught the fishes to be sacrificed
"Now watch the powers of my gods help us find the dam demon you butchered you three" then he began Muttering an invocation
Paul vomited a ball of black goo at first it was only a black glob-slick and hot and stinking of iron-but it did not fall to the ground. It multiplied, a slick bloom splitting into pieces that wriggled, then ruptured like wet seeds. From the blackness erupted a multitude of small, impossible things many kinds of creatures beautiful frogs, butterfly , birds, bees , cats , rats perfectly natural looking but their eyes told otherwise
Frogs that gleamed like polished jade, butterflies with wings too perfect to be real, cats with fur smooth as silk, rats with eyes like onyx marbles. Each one radiated a beauty that was flawless, but wrong-artwork masquerading as life. Their movements were slow, deliberate, as though choreographed by unseen strings.
"They are not mine," Paul murmured with the calm devotion of a priest. "I only open the door and let my gods pass through me."
Bandits shouldn't be surprised after everything they saw but seeing him literally make such beautiful creatures--- well borrow them from his gods did it for them they were surprised yet the even the rats looked beautiful
The three bandits froze. Goro's mouth hung open, eyes glazed; he leaned forward as though to press his lips against a rat's twitching whiskers clearly Goro wanted to kiss them
despite his fear and disgust for rat-kind .
Another staggered back, trembling, whispering prayers to ward off the sight. The third clenched his fists tight, hunger burning in his stare, jealous of a devotion he could not touch but weirdly
Paul stooped low, his lips brushing the rat's fur. The creature tilted its head as if in answer, pressing back into the kiss with a tiny shudder that looked almost human. His face glowed with tenderness, as though he held a child or lover. "Each one," he whispered, "a fragment of the divine."
Then his slick hands-still glistening with the fluid of birth-reached out toward the bandits. He touched them lightly, smearing the wetness across their skin, marking them. "And so, each of you, too," he said softly.
The creatures gathered around him, luminous and waiting, as the bandits struggled between revulsion, awe, and the pull of something holy to them
The creatures did not flee. They clustered around Paul, pressing against his ankles as if drawn by a magnet. He laughed-soft, pleased-then looked at the bandits. "See? The gods give you servants. They will find him, while I train you three for revenge, do not fail me, remember it's kill or be killed."
Jinsuke felt a need to prove himself to be better than his friend-bros-teammates
The animals formed a line Paul kneeled down to pick up and kissed the first creature a rat after which it'd begun on its mission to find the yellow haired ninja
The bandits were in awe of love and affection shown by Paul almost looking at him like a father
Paul lingered, fingers trailing over the last of his creatures as though reluctant to let it go. His lips parted, whispering something only it could hear. When he finally turned back to the bandits, his hands still trembled with longing.
"Now first to welcome your salvation you will have to submit your application-beings let's go caravan camps and settlements near East here" Paul said then made a face
"Here's some crumbs from the bread I could give you three if you follow the path of righteousness" Paul placed his hand on Saburō's head getting a raised eyebrow from said man and rest of bandits "there now Saburō use water clone no jutsu"
"You know I can't i don't ha-" memories flooded him his body moved on itself own three more Saburōs popped in to existence
None of the bandits moved all trying to reconcile the fact that Saburō used a water style jutsus without even knowing that change in chakra nature
Paul only laughed at their faces "what I did ...was give Saburō here the jutsu of that jounin I turned into paste"
"How is that even possible" they all thought surprised even though they shouldn't be
'By the will of my gods' Paul smiles at them cockily smug
"Now imagine the power of an arch priest" Paul planted another seed of hunger
They gulped as if fish gasping for water they implications were world breaking for them no training just kill and you get more powerful paul moved on to goro
And said to him "perform fire style fireball no jutsu"
Goro in a trans like state went through hand signs and spat a fire ball leaving him adjusting to the new memories
He moved on to Jinsuke "use genjutsu honey trap of familiarity on these two"
Saburō and the recovering goro's world shifted they each in their old home both remember this movement when iwa was at war with Konoha their home town a voiced called their names respectively
It was their settlement's chief
"I'm so proud of you two" the man said both men ran hugged the chief crying tears of joy but sometimes was odd instead of flesh they felt bark of a tree the world around them shattered like glass
The settlement chief turned into a tree *clap clap clap*
"What did you even see?" Paul said with a knowing smirk logically they should be angry but the fact that they just got high ranking jutsus chakra reverses to match they felt hunger for more power
"Now relish in the bounty of gods" Paul spoke with the climatic tone those words deserved
All three bandits' eyes went wide then all laughed as they began their journey to become arch priests and for that they needed application like any other job.
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Victim 1) Hana Oki -
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Age: 9, Widowed. Knows every customer's usual order. Keep a tin of pickles under the counter for kids who can't pay.
Hana's backstory: For two years, Hana ran the same small roadside stall. Even after Her husband of 3 years died in a drought caused by mist village who stole the water for their tropes and cut the settlement from the rest of the world for 14 years before Hana was born
She kept the stall because it was what they'd built together. She recognized trouble by how customers dragged their feet and never by loud voices. She has a soft, practical faith - a little shrine with chipped figurines behind the steam pot - and she cares little for rank, only for steady work and kindness.
An ordinary day until it wasn't.
Hana wakes before the sun, lights a small brazier, eyes wet it was another dream , she wished she could've died in it
Hana tightened the ribbon around the ladle and let her eyes drift to the faded wooden sign she was put up soon, The phantom scent of simmering broth always brought him to mind-her husband, Taro, his laugh rumbling like low thunder, the way he'd shove a hand into the steaming pot just to taste a pinch of salt.
"Careful, Hana," he had teased once, his nose dusted with flour, "you'll turn this noodle into cement if you stir it too hard." She had smacked his shoulder playfully, and he'd just grinned, eyes crinkling at the corners.
Sometimes, she whispered the memory to herself while sweeping the alley, murmuring, "If I can run this stall for us then... I can run it for our dream. I can do this." The warmth of the memory wrapped around her like a scarf against the chill of gossip and hardship she had pretended not to hear yesterday.
It was his belief in her, his small, steady faith, that carried her through the drudgery of chores, the exhaustion of customers, and the gnawing loneliness of a world that refused to notice.
And in that quiet, she smiled-red string tied around her wrist, ladle steady in her hand-thinking, I'll make him proud. I won't let anything stop me.
and with that she prepares broth that has to be simmered in exactly the same way or else the customers notice.
She ties a red string to the pot handle, an old routine that calms her hands Hana's tiny fingers twists the red string around the ladle, a habit she'd learned to calm herself when customers were rude.
She hummed softly, thinking of the small ribbon tucked in her apron pocket-the one she'd given by her late husband.
"Just a bowl for a hand," she said politely to the stranger who came behind the stall, her smile hopeful and innocent. She stepped forward to help carry a sack, unaware of the eyes watching.
By midmorning the regulars are there: a foreman who likes extra chili, a tired nurse who takes soup to eat between shifts. A pair of students, her age but more privileged nod and joke from the school to her stall; Hana slips each a free pickle. To them she was as they called her in their poetic works
"knight without a shield"
It both ached her heart and healed it because it was too true she had lost her shield. her love. Her everything in a way she was already dead just living so she could reunite with her love. With more stories,
Of course she didn't take them as friends even when the student-the scholars-to-be said they saw her as a friend she reputedly saying otherwise she couldn't risk falling for anyone else ever...she was waiting to see her love without guilt.
Hana leans against the counter of her noodle stall, arms crossed, the midday sun warm on her shoulders. Her hands are calloused from years of stirring broth and kneading dough, but she still feels the echo of Taro's touch in the small squeeze of her wrist he used to do when she worried too much.
She remembers the first time he came by-not as a customer, but curious about the tiny, struggling stall at the corner of the market. He wore a calm, steady smile, and when she tripped over her apron strings, he bent down and tied them for her, muttering, "Some things shouldn't be left loose." That small act, so trivial, had rooted itself in her memory, in her heart.
Taro had been patient. Always patient. Even after the doctor had told them she would never bear children, he didn't flinch.
He had taken her hands in his dark eyes, warmly blessing hers, and said, "Then we'll build our life differently. But I want it to be with you." And he meant it-every ryo he earned, every caravan he invested in, he did it for them, for Hana and the little future they had imagined together.
She remembers the mornings when he would sneak a taste of her soup before she had a chance to, scrunching his nose, then laughing, "Needs more love, not more salt." The nights they spent sitting under the lantern light, counting her modest earnings and his massive financial gains and dreaming aloud about a tiny vacation of their own just the two of them at the capital of lands like
She wanted to see the fire forests of land of fire the most, the place where many colours of fires are found like flowers and trees she had it was all natural fire there
He wanted to see funky gravity mountains of land of earth , "the where gravity itself was doing drugs if you wear anything metallic" she remembered his words, it was a place where magnets were so common you should not wear anything metallic 3 km near that place it , to the none metal wearing peoples that place was full of peace something about the magnetic fields calming down the brain or something
of course they were all danger zones there too where once you enter your brain goes out,
And in return they'll be teaching orphans how to cook, giving back in the way they could. His hands had always been warm, roughened by labor but gentle when they needed to be.
Even when the world was cruel-neighbors whispering that he should marry for legacy, not love that love without offspring your marriage is a dead deal and so on but -Taro had stood by her, always the quiet anchor in the storm.
"They can have their judgments," he had said once, brushing flour from her cheek. "i have you. And that's more than enough for me."
Hana bites her lip, forcing herself to remember the laughter, the ordinary moments that had been extraordinary because he was there. That memory-the feel of his shoulder pressed against hers, the warmth of the tea he insisted she sip before eating, the gentle teasing over burnt noodles-is what keeps her upright now, even as she walks toward the edge of the market.
After dinner time she shuts the stall briefly to run an errand for the upcoming night owls- a sack of flour, a visit to the well. On the path back she hums an old lullaby, thinking of the pattern of the village and whether the river will flood properly this year.
Goro of The bandits cross her path at the treeline: the ragged men, faces shaded, hands quick. He asks for directions, then asks for food. She tells them she's closed. He laughs it off.
She tries the softer answer " why don't you help me carry flour to my house and I'll give you a bowl." It is a habit she learned to survive, to defuse danger with work. He agreed.
He moved with her toward her house. As she thanks him and turns around to unlock her door she sees from the corner of vision something which looked like a matel injection coming straight to her
Hana thinks she knows how these moments end with her death. She was actually happy that finally she will be free of this flesh. She will reunite with her lover. She could almost imagine her beloved's face.
But instead what happens is she falls limp paralyzed she watched as the man stuffed her in the sack of flour her mouth up so she doesn't die she heard the man go away somewhere probably looting her house then after some time he muttered "fire style" something something she wanted to cry she really did but she couldn't , she wanted to beg for death but she couldn't what did she ever do to this man
Her mind went through all the pain that awaited her it was clear this man didn't have good intentions with her or her body
The patrol who finds the plot where once stood her house later will say it was an accident an act of God, how wrong they were but it was their way to cope , to stay delusional
Weeks later, the whispers will begin. "See? We told her to marry our sons," one woman said, fingering the hem of her gown.
"Should've listened. Now she's gone, and her will-all her property to orphans and money to the fire"
Another smirked. "Bet she liked that place a lot."
No one paused to remember the girl who had hummed at her stall, only the lesson they thought they had taught indirectly.
Her stall was sold and the money was to go to the orphanage but it wasn't guaranteed.
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The campfire burned low, embers hissing like teeth in the dark
Paul with Saburō and Jinsuke sat around the camp which was at the end of the settlement waiting for Goro with his application-being
"Master Paul any news on the demon we're supposed to hunt?"Saburō asked
Paul briefly closed his eyes and reopened them while muttering something
After focusing sometime he replied his voice dead like usual
"No, it appears he has gone to the land of the recently liberated country.... interesting."
"What happened? Master" Jinsuke asked looking up from lighting the fire for camp
"A frog has found that demon's tracks but also never mind I'll show you when we get there"Paul said in a dismissive yet merf way
Goro stomped towards them from a distance carrying the bag of flour and hana
"Got your application to be I see" paul said looking at goro's direction making the other two look at goro as well
Hana's brain span in action trying to make sense what's gonna happen to her this mad man had more people her gut twisted more than it had during the famine she could slight warmth of fire oh how she wished she could move to jump into it but she was paralyzed she couldn't even cry she just hoped these men will just kill her nothing more
Goro uncovered her from the sack a little to show them hana ,his prized application and then closed it the bandits leered at her as her figure disappeared in the jute bag
Saburō asked "what made you pick her ?"
She heard one of her questions being voiced
Goro shrugged "meh honestly she was pretty and alone honestly too bad she's meant to be killed-" *bonk* paul retrieved his hand from goro's head
"Not killed, you fool. Sacrificed. There's a difference.. she's a property to gods well a property to be until we get applications for these two as well" Paul grinned
Horror filled her soul but she was unable to express it
"We don't need her to be unused right?" Goro asked
"Nope but wait till I allow it" Paul said causally as they went to bed well except for hana she was trying to scream for help
The next morning came way too early for Hana. She wished she was taken by the angel of death. For a moment she thought that she had died but it soon realised she was unfortunate enough to live.
When the fresh air touches her flesh.
She had closed sure but not for long as he commanded her to look at him.
"Look at me , little one" from the voice alone she deduced that he was the man....
The man who was clearly the boss of everyone else looking at her.
She only made muffled sounds.
"Please have this man kill me. I don't like the way that kidnapper touches me please gods above...for all the shrine visits"Hana thought.
The man smiled, his eyes glowing with compassion. He stalked forward.
"I'm the apostle of gods, your gods. They will meet you soon enough for now here's a trailer for you fellow devotee" the man known as Paul put his hands on navel.
A flash of light and then Hana was gone, on Paul's palm a flower inked to skin had appeared. Faintly pulsing as if to scream.
"Two more to go slaves" with no unwilling person they could move at speed.
"Why don't you store us like that ? We will be hard to detect that way" Goro thought.
"Because it's not storage it's a literal trailer of what's to come it's in simple words limbo or purgatory the gods can taste her now but can't bite yet her mind will raped not body in short"
Three should've been scared but they were in reality turned on.
They moved towards east aiming to pick another application in the way they reached a small settlement border of land of fire
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Age: 10. Married, with a son on the way. Keeps careful accounts; has a laugh that comes out as a mid-growl due to throat issues. Known for bartering fairly.
Masao's backstory:
born in a scrappy border village between Fire Country and wave, where life was precarious, supplies scarce, and raids frequent. His father had been a caravan guard, killed during a bandit ambush when Masao was only 5. From then, Masao grew up with survival carved into his bones.
He inherited his father's job early-handling caravans, running supplies across unstable territories where shinobi protection was expensive and unreliable. Unlike ninja, he couldn't breathe fire or vanish into mist. His skills were grit, knowing terrain, reading people, and never wasting movement.
Masao had one dream: to save enough ryo to build a stone warehouse and rest stop for travelers in his village. A place that would last, that bandits couldn't burn down in a single raid, and where his wife and soon to be born kid could live in peace. Slowly, he gathered wealth through sheer endurance: carrying heavier loads, doubling his routes, skipping food so others could eat on the trail.
Masao runs mostly the logistics for the merchant caravan that travels between Konoha and coastal towns and settlements . He's practical, can mend a wheel in ten minutes, and keeps his ledgers in a leather folio he never leaves behind. He worries about his future kid's schooling . He's not brave in the heroic sense - he's brave in the accounting sense: steady, reliable, the kind of man communities quietly depend on.
An ordinary day until it wasn't
Masao adjusted the leather straps of the caravan pack, a double barrel Shortgun and an extending baton for safety .The rope creaking under the weight of supplies. The sun was low over the border hills, painting the dust in gold and rust. Merchants and guards moved in patterns he knew like his own pulse, the rhythm of commerce and danger intertwined.
He barked instructions to the youngest apprentices even if the said apprentice had more digits in his lifetime than Masao himself , correcting a misaligned cart wheel, urging the oxen to keep steady. His eyes scanned the horizon constantly. Every clump of trees, every flicker of movement was a potential threat. Bandits were common, but what worried him most were the rogue mercenaries-outsiders taking advantage of the Land of Fire's border chaos.
Masao's mind flicked to Aiko, organizing herbs at their home with that serene focus she always had. Soon, the baby would arrive. He imagined her humming softly while she arranged little bundles of dried tea leaves, her hair catching the sun just so. He had promised her a safe journey home this time, a route clear and calculated, one he had mapped and re-mapped in his head dozens of times.
But even with careful planning, the world of shinobi and merchants was unforgiving.
A misstep, a careless guard, or the wrong path through the hills could unravel everything. Masao tightened his grip on the reins, feeling the tension in his muscles and in the rope that tethered the wagons. Each day on the road was a negotiation between survival and ambition, a constant balance between trust and suspicion.
The caravan slowed at a creek for water, the oxen knee-deep in mud, their hooves squelching. Masao inspected the supplies, noting scratches on the barrels, a splintered crate.
Nothing too serious, but he mentally filed the information. Every small detail mattered. One lost crate could mean weeks of lost trade, maybe even starvation for some in the settlements farther east.
He smiled faintly, a rare and private smile, imagining Aiko watching the sunset from their small home, the baby kicking faintly in her belly, unaware of the dangers he faced. That thought steeled him-he would face the world, bandits, rogue shinobi, whatever it took.
Masao had known Aiko since he could remember. She was his caretaker as a baby while his parents and caravan traveled. Her calm hands soothed his scrapes, her quiet presence a fixture in his earliest memories. Aiko's late husband of 20 years, Isamu, had been Daigo's partner in the caravan; both men died in the same ambush.
Before he died, Isamu left a will: Masao was to marry Aiko. The arrangement ensured her care, protected her dignity, and allowed her skills as an herbalist to benefit the young caravan handler to be.
Isamu also praised the young man saying he's got a heart of gold and he trusted aiko to him and in one line too deep for the 5 year old to understand the will closed
"Masao you'll be a great man i know it , i believe in you take care of aiko give her what i could never give may your bloodline flourish under her"
At first, the marriage felt like duty more than love. Masao respected her skills and her composure, and Aiko appreciated his diligence and reliability. Slowly, the boundaries of obligation softened. He helped her carry herbs from the market; she taught him how to grind roots and prepare poultices. They laughed at small mistakes, shared quiet moments over tea, and gradually, love for the sake of family replaced duty.
By the time Aiko became pregnant, the practical arrangement had blossomed into genuine affection. Masao's obsessive care wasn't just for obligation-it was for her, for the life they were creating together, for the home he dreamed of building where their child could grow safely. Each calculated route through dangerous territories, each negotiation with a wary guard, became an expression of love.
He became also obsessively cautious-choosing longer but safer routes, cutting deals with shinobi for protection when possible, even refusing high-paying contracts if they seemed risky. His friends teased him for becoming "soft," but Masao would only smile and put a protective hand on Aiko's belly.
He often dreamed aloud about settling down once their child was born. He promised Aiko he would do one last round of caravan trips, earn enough to build a proper house with wooden floors instead of dirt, and finally stay home. He even kept a small carved rattle, which he had bought cheaply from a craftsman in Konoha-"our baby's first toy," he told her proudly.
The caravan spread for the day to begin the business for the day they travelled like nomads usually his wife--aiko would've been with him like his fellow merchants ,they had a weekly cycle- basically they made hotspots where the people knew them and what services they can provide he was on his way to meet reunite with his wife soon this was their last stop
Masao rises with the caravan's first bell. He checks crates, barters a crate of salt for a basket of dried fish at a way-station, exchanges a smile with his driver / student, and jokes with the animals when the cart jolts. At midday they stop at the border path for water and a short rest. He steps away from the wagons to mark a waypoint and to fix a strap. He sets his ledger on a rock and wipes his hands on his trousers.
Saburō from The three bandits was there he made 2 water clones
they transformed using the henge no jutsu - one talking loud as if to deter suspicion, another pretending to trade, the third pretending to sleep against a tree.
Masao greets them politely; they ask for work. He offers a day's labor hauling a broken axle back into town for fair ryo. As he bends to check the axle the "younger" clone slips a hand to the ledger, then takes an injection from the original.
The moment is over in a blink. The caravan's mule bells jangle as someone notices a silhouette at the treeline carrying a sack, and the caravan riders the apprentice came running minutes too late.
Masao tried to scream but was paralyzed he wanted to cry at the unfairness of it all but couldn't. What did he ever do ?
"Aiko please don't dowel too much on my death...I only wish I could've seen you and our child one last time.... I'm so sorry kid..looks like i won't be able to see you grow up" masao thought as Saburō carried him away
They find Masao's ledger open, pages sifted. The caravan folk close the folio with shaking hands. They will report a bandit ambush. Masao's wife will wait at the gate until the sun is gone followed by the moon. The unborn child will never see his father.
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Paul lay stretched in a hammock, the firelight carving hollows under his cheekbones. Goro and Jinsuke squatted by the flames, tossing guesses like gamblers throwing dice.
"Wanna bet Saburō drags back a woman again?" Goro smirked.
"Single or mingled?" Jinsuke countered.
"Orphan or family brat?"
Their laughter was thin and sharp, too casual for what they were talking about.
The brush at the treeline shook. Saburō stepped through, a filthy sack slung over his shoulder. A satisfied grin - almost boyish, too innocent for his scarred face - spread wide.
Masao stirred within, the rough fibers scratching against his cheek, the stench of dirt and blood clogging his nose. His limbs refused to move, still paralyzed from whatever toxin they had used. He felt the faint warmth of the fire outside the sack and wished he could crawl into it, burn himself alive, anything to escape the living cage of his own flesh.
Saburō dropped the sack to the ground with a heavy thump. The impact rattled Masao's skull.
"Got your application," Paul murmured without sitting up, eyes closed like a man half-asleep.
Goro leaned forward, curious. "So? What made you pick this one?"
Saburō crouched, tugging the sack open just enough for the firelight to fall across Masao's face. A boy, dirt-streaked, his eyes glassy with terror. Then the sack closed again, the image gone like a candle snuffed.
"Because he fought," Saburō said simply. "The world from what I gathered he's barely 10 is married to a 40 plus woman who was the wife of his dad's friend. Didn't cry for himself, cried for his wife that he'll never see her again and also has a child on the way . Stronger spine than most I've seen." His grin sharpened. "That kind makes the gods listen better."
Masao screamed inside his skull, but his throat was stone. Only silence escaped.so he thought as if like a payer to anyone who's hearing his thoughts
"Aiko... I'm sorry.
child... I wish... I was there when you'll be born..."tears should be flowing but they weren't
Paul opened one eye, glinting in the firelight. "Not bad. A clean offering." He yawned, voice turning flat again. "But remember - not killed. Sacrificed. Property to gods. Property to be."
The word "property" burned worse than the ropes around Masao's wrists. He tried to thrash, to weep, but his body betrayed him, still heavy and useless.
"Guess we wait, then?" Jinsuke asked, poking the fire with a stick.
"Wait till my gods allow it," Paul said, smiling faintly in the dark.
"And look here what my blessings have found"paul said a rat popped out of his clothes exiting from the neck.
It ran along his hand and when it reached the palm of his hand it exploded piece of flesh from someone's face
The bandits looked visibly uncomfortable.
Paul however unbothered he stretched the half skin of face to show everyone else, it wasn't dirty but muscles were visible just behind the skin part of the torn face ,whisker like three-makes on the cheek.
"Is this the face of that kid who beat you up ?" Paul asked
"Looks like him" they all thought and paul heard
"Does that mean he is dead now" Goro asked his voice Happy
"No" paul shook his head "my holy animals saw him rip his own face and pass out like it wasn't anything serious" paul said
"So he's in the hospital now, good for us right? Now we can just kill him and get the stuff we fairly stole back from him?" Jinsuke said
"Sadly no, he walked away like nothing, his body healed regenerating the lost piece of his face. My animals saw it and through them I saw it too," Paul said, his voice never revealing anything.
"Is that even possible?" Saburō asked
"Does that brat have a similar power to Paul?" All three thought looking at him to explain this and paul heard
"No he does not apostles like me would never interfere with one of our own as I did mark you three with the scent of gods basically it signals everyone else like me to not mess with you probably why you survived till here
The camp settled again, laughter drifting like smoke. Masao lay in his sack, alive but erased, as the fire hissed and popped like teeth in the night.
______________________________________
Victim 3) Keita Uda - the fisherman's apprentice in land of waves
______________________________________
Age: 8 Lanky, quick-hands, hates authority but loves the sea. Keeps a pocket of sea glass he found on his first dawn catch.
Keita's backstory: Keita ran away from a cramped home his family was of nomads he left them when they rested in wave before gatō monopolized it
He followed a fisherman named Daichi who'd taken pity on him. He learned knots, tides, and how to read gulls.
He used to fight with other boys, used to chase girls before he met nonu, and steals an extra fish now and then to bring to an old woman named Kiyomi who feeds him leftover rice. He has a quick temper and an easy laugh, the kind that makes elders roll their eyes and mothers shake their heads.
When gatō monopolized the land his master was killed for fishing without asking gatō... Daichi had gone to fish for the village, not himself. He knew it was suicide but he went anyway because of him many were able to survive a month or two longer.
An ordinary day until it wasn't :
Keita wakes to gulls and the slap of waves in his boat + living place the boat itself was inheritance from his late master his heart ached just remembering that day.
He had been fed everything the Daichi had making him sleep like never before
When he had awoke he found a letter from Daichi saying
"young one by the time you will read this letter i have died I'm sorry I lied no gatō wasn't gonna be overthrown Tomorrow or the day you'll wake up in i said that to make you eat as much as possible without worry gatō and his men won't be satisfied with my death for what I'm about to do, they'll come for you will say to you to give them all your food which you don't have on you , i doubt they'll hurt you because they'll want you to work in my place sorry to make you go through this young one I just couldn't let you see your friends funerals , think of it like an old whale dying but feeding a whole ecosystem for months if not years grow up and old I'll be waiting to hear your stories young lad this is good bye for now,
Sincerely - an old fart "
Coming to his senses He wiped tears gatō was gone now thanks to one Naruto Uzumaki,
Country of wave his land was free how many people were saved by his master from selling themselves to gatō for basic rights just as food he didn't know but he was glad that part of his teacher's legacy will remain to these people for ever
He haul nets, feet sure on the wet decks.The net flew through the air, arcs perfect, and landed in the water with a soft splash. He pulled it back slowly, imagining the big fishes trapped within but The day's catch is thin, but he laughs it off and shares an extra silver with the old woman who feeds him.
Keita was wiry and sun-darkened, with a grin that made him look mischievous even when he wasn't
He had a habit of racing Inari and the other boys to the docks, bare feet slapping the planks as they shouted about who could cast their nets farther. Despite the hardship, he found joy in small victories: catching three fish instead of two, finding a seashell intact
At noon he slips away to meet a friend at the estuary where the river runs slow and warm. They shout across the reedbeds, compete to see who can find the shinier glass.
Keita was known in his village for his optimism. He would whistle while repairing nets, hum to calm children during Gato's thugs' visits, and tell stories of the "big fish" he swore he'd catch one day.
After a little fun with peers Keita sits on the edge of a dock at dawn, bare feet dangling over black water. He holds his master's worn fishing rod, imagining he'll reel in something huge. He talks aloud to himself: "man I'm thinking about proposing to nonu" His friends chuckled at his thoughts made speech
"Just don't get leashed too tightly dude" one said half joking
"Yeah you better before some other magnate takes this land over" Inari joked
"Is Nonu the big fish you always talk about catching-" another was saying in a matter of fact tone but a slippery by keita silenced him
They bust out laughing then , Keita nods at them a little too dramatically and starts to pack his stuff in his mind destination set , nonu's house while walking away from his friends he makes sure to step on everyone's foot except for inari making the said boy laugh none the less all three look at him with pride
At nonu's house he knocked on the door and he waited till she opened the door,nonu was the same age as him she greeted him with a smile and a certain glint in her eyes
"Ah you finally came home- my home thought you would be too tired from all your activities anyways I'm glad you came...hurry up come on in how's the old woman doing?"
He went in obeying her and saw some of his belongings on the table, a harpoon he got from his master , a big clam stripped of its outer layer of chalk showing the Nacre nonu loved it , some clothes he had forgotten to take him from the last night's visit after visiting her at nights before going to his boat was a routine both were accustomed to
He began gathering his stuff she brought a bag for easy carrying after that they talked for a few hours which went like seconds after that it was his time to leave
Before leaving he gave her half of a clam's shell and said "say Nonu..would you be my wife?" Each word felt like cement expecting the worst eyes closed head down.
nonu broke down saying yes over and over again she latched on to Keita making him fall they both laughed
"You have no-o i-i-dea how long I have waited for this movement...i thought you liked Kiyomi-san for somet-time"
"HAHAHAH! at least you think I have good taste-"Keita was interrupted by nonu biting him on his cheek huffing
"Don't. Even. Joke. About. It."she said with his cheek still in her jaws
"OU! OKAY FINE! LEMME GO PLEASE"Keita whined between laughs nonu looked way too cute to him to take this situation seriously
She finally let go with peck
"Ou!! You bite like a octopus" Keita said while he nursing his jaw now with visible bite marks on it
"I also tickle like one too" Nonu said causally wiggling her fingers
Keita created some distance like his life depended on it "you won't dare."he said smiling
"I will dare." Nonu said smiling back
Both busted laughing again Keita sets the bag and the harpoon back down he had picked up
With a soft voice which is dripping with satisfaction Keita said "i will be back I think I left the net in the water actually"
"Be home as fast you can my love" Nonu said in the same tone
With that Keita left for what should've been a quick midnight run to his boat and back but on his way back on his way to the boat, he cuts across a shaded path to save minutes. Unknowingly falling right into Jinsuke's genjutsu it showed Keita
The three people all he had seen around the village were sitting near an abandoned fishing hut. In reality there was only one man named Jinsuke the entire street was empty it was past midnight after all
One calls to him like an older friend; the younger two pretend to be messengers. Keita like any other civilian doesn't suspect a thing
He goes closer to trade a story for a swig of sake. They clearly had to make the upcoming things with Nonu go smoothly. A part of him really wanted to run from here to mist village out of happiness he was nervous to finally be alone with nonu now his nonu this alcohol should help.
A hand moves faster than he expects. A rock thrown to startle, a shove, then silence. Keita's friend finds only footprints and the flutter of a net. The tide keeps coming in, indifferent. The next morning a small group of fishermen tracked a trail to the trees and called the village. The river takes and the village remembers that even the sea's small boys can be taken.
"At Nonu's house, a half-clam still sat on the table, waiting for its other half to return to reunite for strength and safety."
______________________________________
______________________________________
The campfire burned low, smoke curling like black ribbon into the night sky. The smell of roasting fish lingered, greasy and sweet. Saburō sat sharpening a blade, Goro hummed tunelessly, and Paul swayed lazily in his hammock, eyes half-lidded.
"Third time's the charm," Goro muttered, grinning as the brush stirred again. "Bet Jinsuke brings back another woman this time. I'm not liking the sausage fest here."
"No," Saburō said flatly. "doubt it he's got a soft spot for women so a male so get your lust fulfilled with your pet Hana it sickens me... you know it's very obvious ...due to the smell you are releasing"
Goro growled "only if I could i haven't even touched her properly yet...Paul-sama said I'll need to wait a little longer...*exhales deeply* you know if I knew I wouldn't even be able to touch her I would've used her a little beforehand.."
Saburō emerged, shoulders squared, dragging his prize behind him: a boy in a sack, his head lolling against the rope knot.
Keita's mind floated somewhere between dream and waking. He smelled fish, woodsmoke, sweat. He thought of the pond back home where he'd fished with his master with nonu , how the reeds hissed when the wind blew. For a moment, he almost convinced himself that was where he was. But the coarse fibers against his cheek, the weight in his stomach, told the truth.
Jinsuke let the sack drop with a heavy thud. The boy whimpered faintly as the air left his lungs.
"Got your application," Paul drawled without opening his eyes.
Saburō leaned forward, peering. "Why him?"
Jinsuke's grin stretched wolf-like. He tugged the sack open just enough for the firelight to sketch Keita's face - soft, frightened, but alive with something fierce. The boy's lips moved soundlessly, like he was still arguing with someone in his head. Then the sack fell closed again.
"He got married like a few minutes ago," Saburō said simply. "I watched him. Right before I took him. I figured..." Saburō chuckled low. "The gods should hear that kind of loyalty up close."
Keita's chest burned with helpless fury. He wanted to scream at them, to tell them they didn't understand what prayer meant, that it wasn't theirs to twist. But his body betrayed him, numb and heavy, mouth useless.
Paul finally cracked one eye open, the firelight cutting his face into planes of shadow. "Not bad," he murmured.
"The potential of a bright future sweetens the offering."
The word "offering" made bile rise in Keita's throat.
"Think the gods will like him?" Goro asked, nudging the sack with his boot.
Paul closed his eye again, smiling faintly. "They always do. But not yet. Wait until I allow it by their will, trust me the process...you all will love"
The men went back to their mutterings, blades and jokes and smoke, while Keita lay still in the sack. His mind clung stubbornly to the memory of home - his parents from who ran away their calloused hands, the glint of sunlight on water -
Even as the night pressed down and the fire hissed like laughter, his master , most of all the woman he loved, Nonu ,knew his fate was sealed but damn did he hate it , he had just proposed, he had just kissed her after said proposal.
______________________________________
The sun was rising higher and higher as the dawn fully announced itself Paul was training the bandits at Their training camp.
He drew a diagram on the wood of a tree using the chakra construct now semi-visible to his underlings.
"Now listen to this carefully," he pointed to a big circle. "This is what our lord our gods are this" he to a smaller circle in contact with the bigger circle with an arrow "is me and my link with the gods, now these " he pointed to three smaller triangles connected to "paul" via lines " are you all"
"As you can see your link is through me thus if I die you'll as well" paul said shocking the bandits audible sounds of gulps could be heard louder than before.
"I'm sure you all have pictured something like this already" he said as all the bandits nodded.
"It's not that simple actually look here" Paul said as the chakra construct made multiple circles like the biggest one.
"We're not serving a single union of gods, we're they're slaves nothing else sometimes they will want us to sabotage each other's work , don't worry we'll be protected by the god of wanted that as long as you yourself don't enjoy it...my punishment for enjoying that 'prank' was my youth the gods had given me eternal youth.."
Paul looked awfully humbled.
shocking the bandits even more audible sounds of gulps could be heard louder than before.
"What can't our gods do?" Jinsuke thought amazed
"To such powerful gods have devotees like Hana" Goro muttered
Saburō was eager now.
Paul clapped his hands to get everyone's attention "Now...now let's get this going we have a demon child to hunt...soon" Paul removed his clothes one by one. Now revealing scares and three inked marks kanji for flower, a kanji for righteousness & "blessing" .
Wordlessly all three began to remove their clothes.
Paul drew four Circles in the dirt and placed three bone bowls inside it. "Kneel," Paul said, a voice emptied of warmth. "Breathe in. Remember their names, Hana , Masao and Keita."
The wind died. The bowls trembled.
"Tonight you will be converted fully. I nicknamed this the marrow ritual or beginning of your new career." he continued, lifting the first lid. "Strength is taken, not granted for everyone except for our gods only they grant and you can never take from them. Bleed when I tell you. Eat when I say stop. Pray when it hurts."
The bandits did not look at one another.
"Archpriests to be ," Paul said, almost tender. "Earn your crowns"
The circle was the same he had drawn on the tree he sat in the biggest on the circle, they all were instinctively pulled in the circle.
Soon their names began to form on the ground under them inside their respective circles.
Jinsuke couldn't help but notice that the "bowls" look too much like baby skulls. He knew it too well he had worked as a janitor for an abortion clinic to a man who took pleasure in ripping the would-be or even an almost formed child alive.
The inked marks began to move kanjis walked like spiders from his hands to his lower body at the foot
where they twitched hard the reality itself bent for a moment with a flash of light the victims were present with them again eyes glazed clearly a shell of their former self and nude.
They began "walking" without an intent of ever doing so without a single thought of their own; they walked right on to the lines which were connected to the person who had captured them.
The bandits look at Paul in awe
Hana , Masao and Keita towards Goro ,Saburō and Jinsuke respectively...
As the victims passed the bowls they emptied the contents of their stomach in them both from their mouth and arses.
Outside of circles reality itself seemed to twist as what could only be described as different coloured chakra constructs which seem to be too lively, and began to form.
Then the contents of bowls mixed by one of the chakra beings, a woman who took her time, even tasted it.
The woman made of chakra was a little odd. She had stitches across her neck.
All bandits knew she was the food maker; their people used to curse susano' for cutting her head when famine arose within their villages.
Her name was uke mochi...she was ,as the villagers said her to be as she had a fox mask at the side of her head she was well built, her body able to seduce even the strongest of monks.
Other figures stepped forward towards Hana as the figures were someone everyone also knew and looked up to with lust in their eyes, goddesses of love Okuninushi and Benzaiten.
Okuninushi a handsome man in traditional Japanese regal attire, Benzaiten a woman with long hair and associated with water, holding a biwa (lute) on her back , even their clothes beautified them more enough to arouse everyone who was lucky enough to look at them.
Okuninushi moved his hands on Hana's body and then moved to goro.
Benzaiten puppeted Hana to goro making her all kinds of seduction dances which looked wrong so with Hana's dead eyes.
Her mind was broken far too often by the gods around them.
Then another stepped forward goro knew him as an old man with white hair, a long beard, and large eyebrows, wearing a traditional Japanese robes and a pointed hat...his family and his village prayed to him for wisdom before trading. His name was Omoikane.
He moved forward and placed his hands on Hana's head..and Hana's eyes snapped open like before her mind was back. The effect was instant she tried to move , tried to cover herself with her hands...
Okuninushi moved his hands on to goro's body and puppeted him, aligning him to Hana's body.
Goro looked at Paul who only nodded and just like that Goro got what he wanted , Hana.
Hana screamed.
Goro only laughed.
Okuninushi kissed Benzaiten too and then pressed each other's bodies against each other.
Jinsuke and Saburō were too focused on application beings to notice the play between Okuninushi and Benzaiten.
"Now all of you are free to do whatever you want with these applications under the rule of gods there is no accountability... let go of the morals of this world...."Paul's voice boomed everywhere.
The words slid through their minds like oil on metal. Goro felt something unclench in his chest - a small, trembling knot of shame that had always stopped him from crossing certain lines. It dissolved now, replaced by a strange warmth.
Saburō's heartbeat slowed as if someone had wrapped his conscience in silk and buried it deep. And Jinsuke, staring at the hollow eyes of his assigned victim, realized he no longer saw a person - only a vessel for strength, a permission granted from something larger than guilt.
Saburō , Jinsuke and Goro felt the last bit of hesitation go away.
People can do the worst things to other people if given the chance.
Saburō and Jinsuke began to rip and eat their own victims.
Screams of everyone echoed through the forest, screams of pleasure from the arch priests mixed with the screams of pain from the victim getting eaten alive.
______________________________________
After the ritual was done Saburō , Jinsuke and Goro only smiled with bloody teeth, three skeletons each having their meat picked off the bones.
The gods still around them some of them had their hands on their genitals enjoying- the show too much.
lingering-flickers of light and smoke, watching, whispering, savoring.
The bowls were empty long ago.
"Now now I'll tell the powers since you've had your fun now" Paul said as the clothes of bandits caught on fire for a moment and then we're replaced by something matching to what Paul himself wore.
"You are allowed to call upon each and everyone of these gods through me, I'll be your service provider in a way"
He spread his arms.
"Through me, you may call them. Through me, you will serve. Remember what you gave, and what waits if you falter."
The shapes around them whispered approval, and
And just like that the wolves were ready to hunt..
The newly crowned priests began to dress themselves up while a golden coloured chakra female looking construct moved forward to Paul.
It had long, light golden-brown hair. Gold eyes with non-visible pupils.
Wearing a long white kimono with red trim, red armbands, a red obi with white braided bands, and simple sandals.
Jinsuke , Goro and Saburō took a sharp breath and they knew she was the sun goddess Amatrasu.
The giant bent down kissed Paul.
Paul glowed for a bit and then the man who stood after that glow was visibly younger than the old man who was kissed.
He rolled his shoulders and smiled, a sound like bones popping in the silence.
"Ahh... that's what I missed."
"I should thank you slaves because of you I have been given a gift now let's begin the hunt"
______________________________________
The air over the sea was thick with salt and the promise of rain. Naruto stood knee-deep in the cold surf, his back to the village of Wave, his focus entirely on the boy in front of him.
"Again, Inari!" he barked, his voice cutting over the crash of waves. "Chakra to your feet isn't about pushing down!try imagining releasing hundreds of noodles from your feet!"
Inari, sweating and determined, gritted his teeth. He focused, a faint sky blue aura flickering around his sandals. He took a trembling step onto the wooden surface… and took another and then immediately plunged down to ground with a yelp.
Naruto laughed, the sound bright and genuine. "Close! Nice work! You'll get it before the tsunami gets back from the house, just watch!"
He was teaching tree-walking. It was only harder, because of his lack of experience in using chakra.
Naruto stood knee-deep in the surf, sleeves rolled up, pant legs soaked, one of his feet atop the surface.
"Big brother Naruto! I can't wait to master this and whatever you are doing to walk on water you know! Grandpa had told us that your teacher was fighting with that momochi guy on the surface of water i bet! I'll master it before you" Inari ranted.
Naruto felt conflicted on one hand; he felt pride Inari had learnt all the basics which he knew at astonishing speeds which had taken him months.
On the other hand there were arrows of jealousy and insecurities. After all he was the dobe. The dead last the retard.
A Single thought echoed in his mind "perhaps they were right about this too"
Inari, leaning on a practice post, managed a wobbly smile. "Still can't… believe you're here. After Gato…" he said, grinning despite the ache in his arms. And being tired from using this much chakra.
"Hey, someone's gotta make sure you guys can throw a punch if another fancy-pants crook shows up again," Naruto laughed, but the sound was hollow even to his own ears. His mind was a split screen: the here-and-now of Wave, and the ghost-sensation of his clone's recent memories of cooking with Ebisu was fresh in his mind.
"Sure uncle Naruto" Inari said in mock seriousness.
A large Shadow landed just behind Naruto and then there was blood. A katana blade poked through Naruto's chest from his lungs.
"Hello gentleman and demon my name is not important but you can call me your death or just Paul"
With that he lifted Naruto up like a sticked fish.
A figure stood at the tree line. Tall, gaunt, wearing traveler's robes that were too clean for the road. His hands were clasped in front of him, as if in prayer. It was Goro.
"The supreme master has made that filth his bitch" Goro said.
Inari could only stare in shock. His mind failed to register what was happening in front of him.
Naruto tried to cross his fingers to summon shadow Doppelgangers but raised his blade causing Naruto's body to get yanked upwards while Naruto screamed.
Naruto's feet left the sand even more the pain increase Due to gravity.
The katana through his chest wasn't killing him—not yet—but every breath felt like he was inhaling broken glass. His fingers twitched, refusing to form seals, muscles locking up under the shock. He was choking on his blood too.
Paul stepped forward into full view now out of the shadow of the tree , close enough that Naruto could see the faint seal-work crawling along the man's wrists like dormant insects.
"Now let's finish this as slowly as possible," Paul murmured, almost fondly. "You have no idea how long I've waited for this opportunity."
A thin, almost invisible chakra string snapped into existence.
It latched onto the hilt of one of the stolen swords—the one resting against the tree Inari had cut and shaped into a makeshift stand, proud of his work only days ago.
The sword answered.
The kanji etched along the blade flared a dull, earthen amber.
The katana shifted.
Metal groaned, lengthening, thickening, the straight blade warping into something older—heavier. The curve deepened. The spine broadened. What emerged was no katana at all but a Kang Long Jian, its presence dragging at gravity itself.
The ground beneath Paul's feet cracked.
Naruto hit the sand hard as the blade slid free of his chest with a wet sound. He screamed—not from the wound, but from the way the sword's intent pressed down on him, pinning his chakra like wet clay.
Paul caught the transformed blade easily.
Inari whimpered.
"Earth," Paul said, testing the weight with one hand, satisfied. "Doesn't cut to kill. It teaches submission."
He brought it down.
Not a slash.
A crushing, diagonal blow.
But he stopped, his ears twitched. And then vanished Naruto fell to the ground, his wound healing up already. Paul stood tall in front of him . He looked pissed and his face was red.
"Why didn't you TELL ME THAT YOU WERE LIMITED YOU BASTARD I WAS ABOUT TO RUIN MY REVENGE" He kicked the tree which shot forward and crashed into its neighbour making them both fall on another which dominoes until it was like a giant nest made of big trees.
"The fuck are you saying bitch" Naruto said as he vomitted blood.
Inari , and the bandits' eyes went as the hole sealed shut.
Paul shook his head "foolish demon you have two seals on your stomach from what my gods have revealed to me"
In a bust of speed he was on Naruto literally— Paul's finger was stabbed into Naruto's gut."Here's the seals "
"I'm assuming you let those seals limit your chakra or it to make your chakra easy to control after all even demons like you need control over their own body"
"Go on release those seals so I can kill you at your full power or do you want me to remove them."
Naruto stared confused not understanding what he meant by seals he only had one seal to his knowledge which was not something he had put on himself. And he definitely didn't want to deal the nine tails out his body.
"What the hell ya talking about you fossil and stop touching me you perverted old man!" Yelled as he smacked him away.
Paul rose to his full height in an instant avoiding Naruto's back hand.
"Ew why would I touch a filthy demon like you.. that Uzumaki blood in your veins is a waste... Observe what you could've done with this blade alone." With that Paul stabbed the eight sided Kang long jian in the earth.
Another arm shot from his shoulder a female looking arm. The arm grabbed the blade.
The arm did not tear through flesh.
It unfolded.
Skin parted along a seam that should not exist, pale and smooth, fingers delicate—almost reverent—as they closed around the Kang Long Jian's hilt.
The blade sank.
Into the earth.
Naruto suddenly had his body on a platform of earth. His body locked to it.
Another arm shot off his shoulder exactly the same as that other one before it.
"HEY WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA HERE YA BIG PERVERTED OLD FOSSIL!!!" Naruto trying to break free
"Shut it! I don't have all.. so I'll take down the seal so you can be killed at your full power" Paul said in a very casual voice. With that one the new arm pulled Naruto's jacket exposing seals behind the chainmail.
"Five elemental seals ? Unorthodox for training but you waste your time however you wish i guess.."
That arm's fingers lit up with elemental kanjis. "Not so strong are you now ?" Jinsuke mocked as The arm stuck on the stomach Naruto making double over.
Inari screamed Naruto's name.
Inari ran- tried to run to Naruto's side but was caught by Goro.
"The fuck did I ever did to you" Naruto whispered as he fall into unconsciousness.
Inari sobbed.
"Don't worry kid I'll kill him soon enough"
Naruto didn't look like he'd wake up soon.
That annoyed Paul.
He clicked his tongue softly, withdrawing his hand from the failed seal-work as if disappointed by an unfinished toy.
"Tch. Out already," he muttered. "Always the same. You people break before the interesting part."Paul turned his head slightly.
"Goro."
the mountain of a man replied.
"Yes, Supreme Master."
"Take the boy."
Goro tightened his grip on Inari, who was still thrashing weakly, throat raw from screaming Naruto's name. The man didn't bother restraining him gently—one sharp twist of pressure and Inari went limp, breath knocked clean out of him.
Paul glanced down at Naruto's unconscious form.
"…And the vessel."
The earth obeyed.
The stone platform sank smoothly into itself, reshaping into a cradle-like slab that lifted Naruto's body without jostling him, sealing his limbs again—not to torture this time, but to transport. Blood crusted at the torn fabric of his jacket, but the wound beneath had already closed, pale and ugly.
Paul watched the healed wound with open distaste.
"Disgusting efficiency," he said. "No appreciation for suffering at all just like his parents."
"Goro , bring the wanna be demon here" Paul gestured to
He stepped forward and pointed two fingers at him, then two glowing fingers only visible to Paul and the bandits materialized and pressed to Inari's forehead.
Paul's brain split screened and he watched Inari's whole life.
"Hmmmm so you have a widowed mother..." Paul clicked his tongue.
"You should've thought about her before agreeing to become this demon's pupil."
He turned to Naruto.
"I'll let you wake up properly," Paul said softly, almost kindly. "It wouldn't be sporting otherwise."
He straightened and looked toward the village.
Paul gestured dismissively.
"Jinsuke," he said, not bothering to turn. "Go."
"Hostage retrieval," he said flatly.
"Don't take your time for you have no time for yours ," Paul ordered . "Break her will, not her body. I want the boy to watch later. Both of them watching as I rid this world of this filthy demon"
Paul tapped Jinsuke's forehead.
"There is where his Mom will be see if you can take her old man too do not keep me waiting for long"
Jinsuke vanished.
Paul turned back to Naruto and Inari.
"Well then," he sighed, stretching his neck. "Field trip." causally taking the rest of the swords he put the swords on his belt.
"Let's go for a ride now" Paul said as the female arm waved the earth kanji'ed katana.
The earth moved pillars raised around them like a cage, the pillars connected with a wall of earth.
Then the cart of earth moved.
Earth plates slid over one another like closing jaws, swallowing the beach, the trees, the sand—reforming into a narrow ravine that plunged downward at a sickening angle.
Paul stepped onto the moving stone casually.
Goro followed, carrying Inari.
Naruto's slab drifted after them like a coffin on rails.
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The silence in the house was the worst part. It wasn't peaceful. It was the silence of held breath, of a sprung trap waiting.
The tsunami stood at the kitchen window, staring at the direction of the beach where Naruto and Inari should have been.
A cold dread, heavier than the sea mist, had settled in her stomach.
"You must be that brat's mom?"
The voice came from directly behind her, soft and intimate, as if the speaker were a lover sharing a secret.
She whirled, a cry caught in her throat.
Jinsuke leaned against the doorframe to the living room. He wasn't wearing his bandit garb anymore. He wore simple, dark clothes. His face was calm, almost sympathetic. But his eyes... his eyes were empty mirrors, reflecting only her own terrified face back at her.
"Who—"
"Shh," he said, taking a single step forward. His hands were at his sides, open, non-threatening. "It's alright. You're scared. A mother's instinct. I understand."
"Where is my son?" Tsunami demanded, her voice trembling. She grabbed a kitchen knife from the block.
Jinsuke didn't even glance at it. "Safe. For now. He's with the Supreme Master. He's being shown the truth."
"The truth?" Her knuckles were white around the knife handle.
"The truth about the demon you let into your home." Jinsuke's voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. "The loud, smiling boy. The helpful one. You saw the way he healed, didn't you? Not natural. You felt the wrongness in the air around him."
Tsunami's mind flashed to Naruto's impossible recovery from training injuries, the way cuts sealed before her eyes. She'd pushed the thought away, called it a ninja thing. Now, it rose like bile.
"What have you done to him?"
"Nothing he does not deserve. But you... you deserve to see. You deserve to know what he is, what he wants." Jinsuke took another step. He was close enough to touch her now. His scent was wrong—like clean linen over something rotting. "You think he protects you? He is the storm. We are just... revealing the lightning."
He raised a single finger. Not in threat. In invitation.
"Let me show you, Tsunami-san. Let me show you the future he brings. The future he craves."
Before she could move, before she could scream or lunge with the knife, his finger touched the center of her forehead.
The world dissolved.
---
The Genjutsu:
She is in her own bedroom. The lantern is lit. The familiar quilt is on the bed. It's night.
The door creaks open.
It's Naruto.
But he is wrong.
His eyes are not blue. They are slitted, molten red iron. The playful grin is gone, replaced by a flat, hungry leer. His chakra doesn't feel warm and wild; it feels oily, possessive, filling the room with a pressure that makes her skin crawl. This is not the boy who fixed her roof. This is something wearing his skin.
"Tsunami-neechan," the thing says, its voice a parody of Naruto's, layered with a guttural growl. "You're always so... kind. So welcoming."
He takes a step. She tries to back away, but her body is frozen, a spectator in her own mind.
"I protected your home," it purrs, stalking closer. "I saved your boy. Doesn't that mean something? Doesn't that mean... I own a piece of it? A piece of you?"
"Na-Naruto, stop..." Her voice is a thread.
"Stop?" It laughs, a sound like breaking stones. "This is just the start. This is what you get for letting a monster in. You don't get to say stop."
His hand—clawed, she sees now, tipped with sharp, black nails—reaches out and grabs the front of her yukata. The fabric tears with a sound louder than thunder.
In the genjutsu, the violation is not just physical. It is metaphysical. It is the perversion of every act of kindness she offered. Him sharing a meal becomes him claiming tribute. Him playing with Inari becomes him marking his property. Her gratitude becomes his entitlement.
The vision is graphic, brutal, and agonizingly slow. It is engineered not to arouse, but to desecrate. To make every future memory of Naruto's smile curdle into this leer. To make the touch of the sun on the beach feel like the touch of those claws.
And through it all, Jinsuke's voice is a soft, mournful commentary in her ear, a part of the illusion itself:
"See? This is his nature. The beast beneath."
"He sees your kindness as weakness. As an invitation."
"This is what you sheltered. This is what your son admires."
"Who knows how long till your son becomes like him just like him"
It goes on and on, breaking her down not through pain, but through the utter annihilation of a bond. It turns trust into naivety, compassion into folly, a hero into a predator.
---
The genjutsu snapped.
Tsunami collapsed to her knees on her own kitchen floor, the knife clattering away. She didn't scream. The sound was ripped out of her. She vomited, dry heaves wracking her body, as if trying to expel the violation imprinted on her soul.
Jinsuke knelt before her, his face a mask of tragic empathy. He gently wiped a strand of hair from her damp forehead.
"Now you see," he murmured. "The demon must be cleansed. For your safety. For your son's soul. You understand now, don't you? Why must we hurt him? Why must we break him? It's not cruel. It's... mercy. For everyone he would otherwise destroy."
He stood, looking down at her shattered form with something akin to pity.
"The Supreme Master will end him. But first, the demon must be shown for what he is. Your hatred will be part of the ritual. Your justified, righteous hatred. It will make the sacrifice pure."
He turned away then he looked back, only to look back at the woman trembling on the floor, her world in ashes.
"Remember what you saw," he said softly. "It is the truest thing you will ever know."
Jinsuke formed another seal with his hands and muttered "sleep "
And just like that tsunami was out like a light.
"I wish the others weren't perverted shits. Now I have to carry this woman there," he said as he unsealed a sack for tsunami.
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"Naruto" the clone dropped the last bundle of sticks by the cold pit and straightened his back with a sigh. The forest was still half asleep - dew clung to the leaves, and a soft mist hung low, catching the first shards of sunlight.
He stared at the small stone where Hinata had carved her message.
Her handwriting - careful, deliberate, almost trembling - looked like she'd been thinking too much even while writing it.
"Guess she's always worrying..." he muttered, rubbing the back of his head.
A smile tried to form, but something in his chest twisted before it could stay.
He sat down by the stone and poked at the ashes. The last fire had gone out from that spot hours ago.
"She said she wants to fix me," he thought, the words echoing in his skull.
Naruto frowned. "I'm fine."
But his voice cracked slightly, betraying even him.
He grabbed a stick and started scratching meaningless lines into the dirt, the way he used to draw when he was alone as a kid - anything to stop the thinking. The camp smelled faintly of wild herbs, Hinata's scent still mixed into the blankets behind him.
He was drawing chibi drawings of himself and neji where he would beat him up over and over using Ebisu's "training" like giving neji food poisoning or tying his feet together like he imagined last night.
For a moment, he glanced at the path she'd taken.
He could see her footprints through the mud, faint chakra residue glowing when he focused his senses. She wasn't far - maybe a few hundred meters.
And yet, part of him didn't want to follow.
Something about her words - about being "guided" - made him feel small. He didn't want pity. He didn't want it fixed. Maybe a part of him did it was confusing.
But the warmth she left behind lingered.
He didn't realize when his hand went to his chest, where her head had rested last night. His fingers brushed that spot and stayed there, as if trying to remember something his mind couldn't say.
Shaking his head he put the sticks in the pit full of ambers and opened the wind channel on the primitive mud stove.
The mud stove itself is a hidden ember pit, covered with a vented clay mound that lets him cook without smoke or open flame. Something he mentally thanked Ebisu for this mud stove Ebisu had made and made him make as well it was way more efficient with fuel.
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