At Kisame Hoshigaki's feet…
Among the pale ashes, a golden badge shaped like an eye lay quietly. Gato had clutched it until his final moment, and even Amaterasu's black flames left it unscathed.
"As expected, it was found," Shen Mo said, narrowing his eyes.
After several upgrades, the membership badge cost him a fortune.
It had a dual nature—physical and ethereal.
Not so easily destroyed.
But Shen Mo hesitated about contacting Itachi Uchiha now.
Unlike Gato, a noob player…
Itachi, with powers from other worlds, would be a top-tier player.
If the series were chosen well, he could blend them with ninjutsu, creating new techniques—like Tsunade's Holy Light: Palm Healing Jutsu, a custom skill not in the system, highly valuable.
And Itachi's desires… he seemed focused on supporting Sasuke.
So, it needed careful thought.
Meanwhile, Itachi approached, staring at the clearly extraordinary badge.
Surviving Amaterasu unscathed was enough to make him wary.
"I've never seen this symbol," Itachi said, brow furrowing.
Normally composed, his expression had shifted multiple times today.
"Neither have I," Kisame said, crouching and cautiously reaching for the badge.
But before he could touch it…
The badge glowed with faint golden light.
Whoosh—
Itachi and Kisame leaped back in unison, keeping a safe distance, watching the badge cautiously.
Not overcaution…
Gato's performance was too shocking, and the ninja world was full of strange techniques.
The badge slowly floated up.
Its light shimmered, the eye-like center moving, as if scanning them.
"Sigh—"
A long, drawn-out sigh echoed.
Itachi and Kisame tensed, muscles taut.
Someone was behind this badge!
"The first complete death of a member, so soon," the voice from the badge said, tinged with regret.
As it spoke…
The badge began dissolving from the edges.
Realizing something, Itachi quickly asked, "Who are you?"
"Uchiha Itachi," the voice chuckled softly. "We'll meet again soon. I hope by then you've cleared your doubts and faced your failures. Perhaps I'll offer you a different path…"
The golden badge vanished completely.
So did the voice.
Itachi's gaze dropped, his Sharingan detecting no ninjutsu traces.
And…
The person behind the badge seemed to know him well, deepening his unease.
No!
Itachi decided he needed to return to Konoha soon to check things out.
"Kisame, we need to report this immediately," Itachi said.
"What about Gato's liquidated assets?" Kisame asked, surprised.
Their mission included collecting the money from Gato's sold properties.
"It can wait," Itachi shook his head. "I'll use genjutsu to control some people to handle it, but the intel on Gato's backer is more urgent."
"Alright," Kisame nodded.
He glanced at where the badge vanished.
Though worried, he felt no fear.
The pain in his chest only fueled his battle lust.
They scrapped their original plan, preparing to return.
On the other side…
Shen Mo watched their retreating figures, stroking the warm, soft Hiju, his eyes thoughtful.
He'd just spent trading points to enhance his mental powers, remotely reading Itachi's mind.
Itachi was still in a confused phase.
Unsure if relying on himself to solve everything was right.
Even resigned to death.
This was one reason Shen Mo held off selling cans to him now. At least wait until Itachi saw Sasuke's current state for some stimulation. Plus, Shen Mo felt it was too early to engage the Akatsuki. The world's environment needed more time to ferment.
For an organization of the ninja world's elite villains, he had high expectations.
For now…
Plant a seed and wait for the right moment.
"This world's plot is collapsing in every sense…" Shen Mo turned to a certain direction, a harmless smile on his face, then continued enjoying his delicious lunch, as if none of this concerned him.
In the following days, Shen Mo stayed quietly at home, closely monitoring various places, especially Konoha's changes.
News of Gato's death spread back to Konoha faster than he expected.
Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed to take this mysterious, can-buying tycoon very seriously.
After all, he knew Gato's true nature.
But upon receiving the news…
His mood didn't improve—it worsened.
Especially when Tsunade stormed in, brushing past the blocking ninja and slamming her palm on Hiruzen's desk.
Bang—!
The sharp sound shook the papers on the desk.
"Hokage-sama…" The two ninja who should've stopped Tsunade looked embarrassed.
"It's fine," Hiruzen said with a kind smile. "Close the door."
"Yes!"
The ninja, relieved, shut the door and ensured no one else approached.
"Old man!" Tsunade's eyes blazed with unmasked anger. "Why did you tell the Ino-Shika-Cho clan heads to pool their wealth for unified distribution?"
Bluntly put…
The Ino-Shika-Cho clans, though notable in Konoha…
Couldn't compare to the Hyuga.
The Hyuga, with their powerful Bloodline Limit, were in a league of their own.
Pooling wealth for distribution? That was clearly targeting the Hyuga!
And targeting her!
Everyone knew the Hyuga were fully backing Tsunade. Hyuga Hiashi's stance during Hiruzen's can-opening was proof enough.
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