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*****
Inside the cabin, when Gato finally came to his senses, he was drenched in cold sweat. His eyes were filled with a primal fear and reverence for the mysterious person before him.
Though the Hell Viewing Jutsu was merely a simple C-rank genjutsu, to an ordinary person like Gato who possessed no chakra, it was as terrifying as a "divine technique."
"My Lord!" Immediately after emerging from the world of illusion, Gato scrambled on all fours to prostrate himself at Menma's feet, his voice trembling.
"Gato is willing to serve you, my Lord!" Gato looked up, his small eyes brimming with panic and awe. He was terrified that if he had no utility, the other party would skin him alive.
The Hell Viewing Jutsu forces the victim to see their deepest, most visceral fears. For Gato, that fear was "dying with a fortune left unspent."
In the world of illusion, he had experienced countless cycles. He watched with his own eyes as his hard-earned Gato Company became a world-class financial conglomerate, only for him to die for various reasons—sometimes by accident, sometimes caught in a ninja war, and sometimes simply assassinated by a shinobi.
There were no fewer than a million such illusions. The time Gato experienced in the genjutsu world translated to over a year in reality.
Of course, Menma had added some extra "seasoning" to the illusion, showing Gato how those high-and-mighty Daimyos and nobles were slaughtered at will by powerful ninja. Consequently, the moment Gato emerged, he begged for mercy and pleaded to serve this mysterious ninja lord. It was a complete shattering of Gato's faith in the old order of the shinobi world. His previous worldview regarding the rule of nobles and Daimyos was thoroughly dismantled during those countless lives.
Menma nodded with satisfaction and placed his hand on top of Gato's head. Gato lowered his head nervously.
"Seal of the Blood Pact!" As Menma's dark, violent chakra flooded into Gato's brain, a '卍' (swastika) curse seal appeared deep on Gato's tongue.
This was a curse seal technique Menma had developed in the Limited Tsukuyomi World. It was very similar to the Root's Self-Exertion Seal; however, while the Root's seal caused total paralysis if information about Danzo was leaked, Menma's Seal of the Blood Pact was far more ruthless. If the victim attempted to reveal information about Menma to an outsider, their brain would be directly destroyed, preventing the enemy from extracting further intel through memory reading.
However, Menma had modified this technique to store a volume of chakra equivalent to an average Genin, significantly enhancing the victim's physical constitution.
"I require your money-making abilities to contribute funds to the organization," Menma stated, floating in mid-air as he scrutinized the kneeling Gato.
Feeling the subtle surge of chakra energy within his body, Gato's face lit up with pleasant surprise, and he bowed deeply once more.
"Thank you for your grace, my Lord! Gato swears deathless loyalty to you!"
---
Night fell, and the waves slapped against the hull with a light, rhythmic sound.
Gato's office had been cleared; the corpses were dumped into the ocean, and after a thorough cleaning, the room became Menma's lounge on the ship.
"My Lord, this is top-tier tea specifically offered as tribute to the Daimyo by the Land of Tea. May I brew a cup for you to taste?" Gato served him carefully at his side.
"Mhm." Menma remained masked, leaning lazily against the sofa.
The Dark Nine-Tails had already hopped out from Menma's fur collar and was sitting on the coffee table, devouring sweets in large gulps. Gato hurriedly offered more pastries as if serving a deity.
"Your current task is primarily to manage the company's revenue and reserve funds for the organization," Menma said, flipping through an ancient tome from Gato's collection while propping his cheek on his fist.
"Yes! I shall obey your command, my Lord!"
Though it pained Gato slightly to hand over all his hard-earned money to the organization, he had gained power and a certain status within this Lord's group. In the future, he might even become a noble of the new world!
"How long until the fleet reaches the port of the Land of Lightning?" Menma suddenly looked up and asked.
"Reporting to my Lord, approximately five or six days. It is currently the season of north winds, so the fleet's speed will be much faster."
Departing from the Land of Fire's port, one needs to bypass the Land of Hot Springs and cross a bay to reach the coastline of the Land of Lightning. The distance isn't actually that far—roughly equivalent to the distance from Konoha Village to the Land of Hot Springs.
Calculating based on a Jonin's speed of 300 kilometers per hour, it would take about a day; subtracting rest time, the distance is roughly 5,000 kilometers. This ship is a wooden sailboat, and with the wind assistance of the north wind season, it should maintain about 18 knots—roughly 33.3 km/h. At its limit, it can cover 800 kilometers a day. It really does take five or six days to reach the coast of the Land of Lightning.
Calculated this way, the shinobi world is actually quite large. It's just that ninja move too fast. Considering the speed of Naruto's team traveling from Konoha to the Hidden Sand in three days—even if they have the stamina of elite Jonin and move at 200 km/h, sleeping only five hours a day—they would cover about 3,800 km a day, totaling over 11,000 km in three days. For comparison, the Earth's circumference is only about 40,000 km.
It seems the size of this planet is indeed planned according to Earth's scale. The total population of the shinobi continent should be around 300 million, with each of the Five Great Nations having 30 to 50 million people.
Menma stroked the Dark Nine-Tails' head and added: "In addition to earning funds, your company must expand across the Five Great Nations and the surrounding small-to-medium countries to gather intelligence."
"May I ask what kind of intelligence, specifically?" Gato requested instructions.
After a moment of thought, Menma said slowly: "The geography and terrain of various countries, major cities and important passes, port conditions, population statistics, social structures, and the contradictions between nobles and commoners. All of this can be collected."
"What about the hidden ninja villages?" Gato asked in a whisper.
Menma didn't mention that an ordinary person like Gato was entirely unsuitable for spying on ninja villages; he simply said coldly: "I will arrange a separate intelligence team to handle the hidden villages."
"Yes, my Lord!" Gato answered solemnly.
The Dark Nine-Tails, wearing her red-and-white kimono, looked like a small child. Sitting on Menma's lap and gripping a large piece of dessert, she was just about to take a bite when she suddenly looked up and spoke to Menma.
"By the way, aren't you going to deal with that Cloud ninja's corpse?"
Menma finally remembered that he still had the Cloud envoy's body in his storage scroll.
"Where is the Bounty Station in the Land of Lightning?" Menma asked Gato.
Since he was passing through the Land of Lightning anyway, he might as well find a Bounty Station to see if he could exchange it for some cash. He would also take a stroll through the Hidden Cloud Village.
And while he was at it, he'd deliver some "local specialties" from home to them.
(End of Chapter)