Outside a small village in the Land of Rain, a skirmish had just ended.
The rogue samurai and wandering shinobi who attacked the settlement were defeated, forced to the ground, and bound as captives.
Perched casually on a tree branch two meters high, Shinra idly flipped a kunai in his hand, as though the battle hadn't even happened.
Before long, a subordinate approached with several prisoners and reported, "Captain Shinra, the enemies have surrendered. What are your orders?"
"Don't bother me. I'm thinking."
The subordinate froze. A chill ran down his spine.
He had learned from experience whenever Shinra was "thinking," it usually meant the King of Hell was about to laugh.
At that moment, a shinobi in his twenties also wearing the cloak of the Akatsuki stood at the base of the tree. His voice was uneasy, cautious, almost pleading as he looked up at Shinra, who couldn't have been older than fourteen or fifteen.
"Captain Shinra, please… don't think about killing again. Leader Yahiko told us clearly before we left no more unnecessary bloodshed!
And besides, the interrogation just now revealed these people are Rain Country natives. They became rogues only because of desperation.
Leader Yahiko believes that someday they might understand our ideals and become allies. That's why he asked us to show them mercy."
Shinra finally stopped flipping his kunai. Slowly, he turned his head, eyes narrowing as a crooked smile spread across his face.
"True. They might understand us one day and join our cause. But that's only a possibility, isn't it?
The opposite is just as likely they might never understand us. They could even grow resentful after this humiliation and seek revenge.
I'm an orphan. I have nothing to lose. But you, Kenjiro you still have family, don't you?
If I remember correctly, you've got a younger sister. Cute girl, about twelve now, right? Lives in Yuluo village on the hillside. She's got a little mole under her right eye, likes to copy Konan by wearing a paper flower in her hair, and shows two dimples when she smiles.
Tell me, Kenjiro. Aren't you afraid that if these captives hold a grudge, they might take their revenge on her?"
Kenjiro's face went pale. His whole body stiffened.
He knew instantly Shinra had done it on purpose.
That devil had deliberately spoken every detail about his sister aloud, right in front of the prisoners on the ground!
How could he stay calm now?
But Yahiko's words carried immense weight among the early members of the Akatsuki. Even cornered by Shinra's twisted logic, Kenjiro still forced himself to argue.
"No… no, it won't come to that. They already know they were wrong."
On cue, the captured rogues fell to their knees, groveling for their lives.
"Yes! We know we were wrong we swear it! Please, give us another chance. We will never dare oppose the Akatsuki again!"
But Shinra, still crouched on the tree branch, only laughed softly.
"Heh. Kenjiro, they don't regret what they've done. They just know they're about to die.
Bringing them before Yahiko is nothing but a gamble. You're betting these people still have a conscience left.
But didn't the villagers just say it? These rogues have all killed before. Their hands are drenched in blood. Not a single one is innocent.
So tell me, can you afford to gamble?
Or do you want to risk your sister's life on that bet?"
At that moment, Kenjiro truly understood this boy in front of him, younger than himself, was nothing less than a devil who delighted in twisting human hearts.
Damn it. Who was the idiot that brought him into the Akatsuki?
After stammering for a long moment, Kenjiro finally gave in and asked, "Captain Shinra, then what do you think we should do with them?"
I'm sorry, Leader Yahiko. I never meant to disobey your orders, but this situation leaves me no choice. Kenjiro apologized helplessly in his heart.
It wasn't the first time. In fact, he had made similar apologies countless times over the past few weeks.
"Don't rush. I told you, I'm still thinking."
After a while, Shinra finally seemed to reach a decision. He leapt lightly from the tree and landed in front of them.
"Didn't the organization receive intelligence not long ago that Iwagakure shinobi fled into the Land of Rain from the north?"
"Yes," Kenjiro replied in resignation, without a moment's hesitation.
"Excellent. Then later, take these captives and bury them in the forest up north.
When you report back, say we repelled the enemies who attacked the village, but unfortunately, we couldn't capture any prisoners. On the way back, however, we stumbled upon Iwagakure spies, tracked them down, and killed them all in the northern forest. That's the story. Report it like that."
Shinra's shameless fabrication immediately caused the prisoners to struggle violently, their ropes straining against the sudden panic.
In the very next instant, Shinra casually flicked the kunai he had been toying with. It flew true, embedding itself straight into the forehead of one captive. The man collapsed without a sound.
And Shinra's words never faltered.
"Make sure you strip their clothing before burying them. Yahiko is meticulous when it comes to missions I lead. He might actually go to the site and dig up the bodies just to double-check, so don't forget the details. Make it convincing."
Kenjiro's heart screamed with curses.
Why do you think Yahiko is so careful about missions you're in charge of? Don't you have any idea?!
Shinra gave his shoulder a friendly pat.
"I'll leave this to you, Kenjiro. After all, it's for the sake of your adorable little sister's safety."
"Heh… Captain Shinra is joking. Should I be thanking you then?" Kenjiro forced the words through gritted teeth.
Shinra pretended not to notice the resentment and answered innocently, "Shouldn't you?"
"…"
In the end, Kenjiro could only swallow his frustration. He turned away to handle the task, sighing quietly in his heart.
Why had things turned out like this?
It wasn't like this a few months ago. Back then, the Akatsuki Organization had felt like sunshine to him warm, bright, and full of hope.
As for why everything had changed, Shinra himself might have been able to answer.
Because just a few months ago, the person now called Shinra had only just arrived in this world.
The original Shinra was nothing more than an ordinary orphan in the Land of Rain agile, yes, but otherwise unremarkable. Only after being taken in by the Akatsuki did he learn the basics of chakra extraction and set foot on the path of a shinobi.
But the current Shinra's soul had been replaced by that of a modern-day Hokage fan. A fan who once delighted in spamming Kizaru and Purple Dog in arena battles.
On the very first day of his transmigration into the shinobi world, the new Shinra had been forced into a cruel path of survival.
Survival in the truest sense where failure meant certain death.
The moment his thoughts cleared after arriving, a cold, mechanical voice rang in his mind:
"System Notification: You have bound with the Destiny Observer System."
"This system specializes in observing, simulating, and accurately estimating the host's future outcomes based on existing intelligence."
"After system evaluation, the host's future shows
A 17.0% probability of dying in 153 days. Cause of death: retaliation from wandering shinobi in the Land of Rain.
A 33.1% probability of dying in 402 days. Cause of death: eliminated during Hanzō's purge.
A 35.7% probability of dying in 402 days. Cause of death: caught in the aftermath of Nagato's Rinnegan rampage.
A 7.2% probability of dying in 1153 days. Cause of death: abducted from the Land of Rain by Konoha's Root, subjected to countless cruel experiments, eventual collapse from accumulated side effects.
A 4.8% probability of dying in 1467 days. Cause of death: sold to Orochimaru by Root, used as a disposable test subject, body dissolved.
A 1.6% probability of dying in 3891 days. Cause of death: killed in crossfire during Orochimaru's defection from Konoha.
A 0.5% probability of dying in 6315 days. Cause of death: perished in battle during the Konoha Crush alongside Orochimaru.
A 0.1% probability of dying in 31,330 days. Cause of death: natural old age."
At that moment, Shinra's expression looked exactly like the blank Shiba Inu meme he had spammed in his past life utterly numb. Completely done.
Thankfully, the system added one more line: the host's choices and actions would continuously alter these predictions.
Furthermore, whenever his fate shifted far from its original path, the system would seize a fragment of power from the River of Destiny itself, convert it into a reward, and bestow it upon him.
From that moment, Shinra had carved out his ninja way:
Better that I betray the shinobi world than let the shinobi world betray me!
Anyone who stood in the way of his peaceful death… would have to die first.