Chapter 76 - Rumors and Accidents
Over the past few months,
The clans had found a new way to discredit us. With our supplies secured and our own stores opening. Our growth was strangled but not stopped.
The Shinobis did buy our cheaper tags from our stores. The only way to disrupt us now was to legally take away our right to sell. Which could not be done as we complied with the regulations. Or to initiate a price war. But a price war hurts the interests of all clans. The purpose of all those exclusive contracts was not just to isolate us but to establish their monopoly in Konoha. Now the association practically controlled the Fuinjutsu of Konoha. It would cost them an astronomical amount of money to keep our prices down. We had alternate streams. They, not so much.
I had no idea how the Hokage had let such a power bloc grow. But I guess the fact that this was all done under Nara's knowledge made it easier. From the perspective of the major clans. The weapons market was theirs anyway. They were fine as long as defections or wartime problems didn't occur. I could see the bigger game afoot clearly now. Chain us before we grow too strong. He didn't want another power bloc. He wanted a loyal hound.
But their plan had failed. So they dipped their feet into another kind of warfare. Rumors. The Yami were devils. The ink we used was made of blood; our tags were bad. From anything to everything they could find to smear us. I want to say it didn't affect me much. But it did. The small whispers as you pass. The looks you get when you travel. They start mattering over time.
The clan was financially more stable with the focus on missions. But it was also subdued and gloomy. The medics who worked with people every day were facing the brunt of it. Ignoring all this was no longer an option. I could take it. But not every member could. And I could not get any good alliances. We were too cornered. So I focused on silent development and research. We had perfected the boots, but we didn't unveil them. We kept them a clan secret. Focusing on light armor. The focus was defense and speed.
I had a bad feeling, though. I knew the Kurokami had prepared something. But they were waiting for something to deploy it. That's also the reason our origins weren't in question yet. That was a weapon that was to be deployed for maximum impact. All I knew was that the attack would be political in nature. I could see that in the eyes of the politicians I met at the council.
Something was being prepped behind the scenes. But the trap wasn't sprung nearby. It sprang right after the 7th year from transmigration. You see, I got into an accident then.
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STATUS
KUROSAWA REN
Power - Elite Chunin
Physique - 601
Chakra - 3100
Specials - YamiGami
Skills - Tagcraft IV, Sensor, Taijutsu III, Kenjutsu III, Leader II, Medic II
System Stats - 2290
Call - The Eye Slows
TREE OF LIFE
Soul Develop (3/10) 10000 SS
Physique
Soul Physique(1/1000) 10SS
Chakra
Chakra Control (10/100) 100SS
Energy Control (99/100) 100SS
One Tail (100/1000) 10 SS.
I panted as I finished the daily quest. Despite so much Growth, I was still in the Chunin Range. Not Even Special Jonin. My skill panel had seen explosive growth, though. Using those achievements, 10SS a day, daily quests, and the extra provided by the YamiGami. I had gained 99 in Energy control.
I had noticed that my LEGEND did not grow in all this time at all. It was still at 215. I needed to find a way to increase that, too.
But anyways. Tagrcaft IV had given me 1000SS straight. The Medic II only gave 200SS.
So did the Taijutsu and Kenjutsu. The leader II did not give any SS or Legend. Same cryptic remark. Increases loyalty in followers.
That's how I had the surplus despite investing 3700 in energy control. But now I was stuck. It will take at least 2 more years to accumulate enough SS to gain evolution. It needed 10100, but I had held off on the SS Tag for a while now. And those persistent rumors were getting on all our nerves. So I decided to restart the research.
I found that I could now control SS somewhat. It was not good control, but it was passable control.
And while experimenting with the tag, I came across a wild idea. Since the tag latches onto my chakra and follows it home, why not give it chakra that has no home! Energy control had increased my sensitivity to natural energy. The natural energy was stabilizing in nature. I could use it as a base and fuel.
I could use the SS as a container instead of Nature Energy. Use the container to collect nature energy and the bam! Use the combination of the two to cause an explosion. Causing the container to blow up alongside the Nature energy as fuel. This was genius.
I fixed the tag on the table and began trying to draw. I was confident that this would turn the firepower up to an A rank or maybe even a pseudo S rank Jutsu.
As I tried to draw using SS as fuel, I noticed that the nature energy and SS were harmonious, and it was absorbing nature energy even with an incomplete seal. I could not help grinning, but my smile froze as the seal destabilized. I realized I did not have enough control to create the SS part correctly. Now I had an unstable bomb in my hands. I tried to dissipate it, but the flow won't stop. It was out of my control now.
As the suction turned violent, I ran towards the training ground. It should be empty right now. But before I could reach its middle, the natural energy reached the critical point. I tried suppressing it, but it was no use anymore. I threw the tag and ran back, only for a huge explosion to catch up to me as I tried to shield myself with Jutsus and fling me headfirst towards a wall. The last thing I remembered was the searing flame at my back and a headache from crashing into the wall.