"A single person …"
Inside the base, every Shogunate soldier stared in terror at the black‑robed elder in the distance.
Dead—they were all dead.
The enemy was only one man.
Yet the Shogunate's seemingly vast army could not cross the invisible wall this one man had become.
Any Shogunate soldier or Oniwabanshuu ninja who stepped within a certain radius of the elder collapsed in agony and lost consciousness.
Cold‑steel weapons were useless against him.
He could even dodge bullets from firearms with ease.
What kind of ability is this?
Although they could not see it, they could sense that the space centered on the elder was filled with an eerie aura that sent chills down their spines.
"Sorry—this road is closed."
Pigeon cackled at the immobilized Shogunate troops.
Bang, bang, bang!
More bullets whistled toward him.
With a quick movement, Pigeon slipped past them effortlessly.
His gloomy gaze slid to a man at the very front—about his own age, white‑haired, wearing sunglasses. Though the man stood inside the range of the malice aura, he was completely unaffected. Because he was a story character (whom Pigeon did not recognize), system protection kept the aura from harming him.
This man was clearly the commander of the Shogunate troops.
Because Pigeon's On is saturated with intense negative emotions and will, it differs from Nen's mental pressure; it is direct psychic erosion. The system forbids its use on story characters, so Pigeon, as a player, cannot attack him.
Whoosh!
The next instant, a graceful figure streaked from the shadows. Pigeon bent at once, dodging a dagger that slashed at his neck.
A woman—red‑rimmed glasses, long pale‑violet hair—obviously a ninja.
Another story character!
Pigeon scowled. If not for system restrictions, how could someone this weak get so close?
His On excelled in large‑scale fights: the more enemies, the stronger it grew.
Missing her strike, Sarutobi Ayame landed, drew her blade again, and flung a spray of shuriken—still missing.
"Hm?"
Not far away, Hattori Zenzō, standing beside Matsudaira Katakuriko, stroked his chin as he watched Ayame attack. His expression turned odd.
"It seems a handful of us aren't affected at all… but anyone else who comes within a set distance just blacks out. Strange—and he doesn't even seem interested in hitting back at us."
"He's only defending, but it looks impossible to injure him, let alone capture him."
"My earlier guess about his strength was right… yet why are we few treated differently?"
Cigarette dangling from his lips, Matsudaira Katakuriko kept squeezing the trigger while striding forward. He didn't care about the details—he only wanted to kill the target.
"No, get back!"
Zenzō suddenly saw something and shouted.
The soldiers controlled by the mysterious energy staggered to their feet like puppets and, as if insane, began indiscriminately attacking everyone around them.
…
Elsewhere
After striking a deal with Utsuro, Xiang Nan and the other two followed him to a special chamber within the base.
At last they found the Altana crystals they had coveted.
Besides the crystals were canned, liquefied Altana—like nutrient solution.
As Nen users, the three could clearly feel the immense vitality contained in the substance.
The base's interior was vast; without Utsuro's guidance—or cracking open a Tendō elder's skull for intel—they would have wasted ages navigating password‑sealed corridors that brute force could not breach.
Just as Xiang Nan had expected, the Tendoushuu had long been running Altana experiments.
On display platforms, instruments filled with liquid Altana were also plugged into rows of Amanto test subjects, while monitors tracked their life signs in real time.
"Besides direct absorption," Utsuro said with a gentle smile, "Altana—planetary life‑force—can be made into restorative medicine or topical salves. That's the limit for ordinary people; planetary vitality is lethal if taken raw. Blind absorption means certain death.
Ordinary life must dilute Altana's destructiveness through some medium… for example, my blood."
"These aren't Earth's Dragon‑Vein energies, right? Earth's Altana hasn't been damaged yet…" Beishi's breathing quickened; his eyes burned at the sight of the Altana.
As players, they may not leak story details in the Main World, but in other worlds they faced no such gag. So Beishi exposed Utsuro's "plot" outright.
"Correct," Utsuro continued. "Altana comes from many planets, each with different properties. Altanas from different sources repel and destroy each other. A person can absorb only one lineage of Altana. If you take Earth's Altana, no other planet's life‑force will ever be compatible; let foreign Altana into your body and it becomes deadly poison, tearing your vitality apart."
"Now—it's your turn to tell me your secret."
Shōyō smiled.
He had led Xiang Nan's team to the Altana, but never said how to absorb it. Across the universe, only the Tendoushuu had produced living test subjects; they alone held the monopoly technology. Even if Xiang Nan stole the Altana, Utsuro believed they could never use it as he did.
Beishi glanced at Xiang Nan.
Xiang Nan walked aside, picked up a hunk of plastic, and openly demonstrated Nen mastery—reinforcing the plastic until its hardness changed dramatically.
Utsuro's pupils shrank.
Xiang Nan then explained Nen theory and principles, eyes fixed on Utsuro.
Shōyō's composure shattered; awe and shock flooded his face.
"Put simply," Xiang Nan said calmly, "our 'Nen' and Altana are similar in nature—both are energies. Nen is a life‑form's own power; Altana is a planet's. We have merely learned to wield our life energy."
Beishi sneered inwardly. Even with the explanation, Utsuro could never become a Nen user within Gintama's framework.
When Utsuro regained calm, he dutifully described how to absorb Altana: It takes an extremely long time to build bodily resistance, accumulating bit by bit until the flesh transforms and attains an "immortal" state. By his account he had succeeded only by luck; otherwise, no one else in the universe could have.
With his help, Xiang Nan and Manman sorted the Altana crystals and prepared to take them away.
Crystals from different planets must never be mixed; absorbing two kinds would wreck the body. But Xiang Nan, able to perceive energy signatures, easily overcame this—placing his hand on each crystal to feel which resonated best with his body, choosing the gentler ones for absorption.
In truth, Utsuro had no idea what Nen users could really do.
"They can go into our inventory," Xiang Nan tried—and it worked. He at once signaled Beishi and Manman.
That meant they could take not only the crystals but the liquefied Altana as well.
The trio promptly cleaned the hall bare.
The energy fluid and crystals vanished into thin air, making Utsuro's skin twitch again.
"One last thing… this is only a fraction of the Tendoushuu's Altana, isn't it?" Xiang Nan asked.
"Of course," answered Shōyō. The Tendoushuu had destroyed countless planets; this cache could never be their entire haul.
"I've shown you how to awaken Nen. Whether you succeed is up to you. We'll test your Altana method, and if it works I'll teach you more advanced Nen practice."
Xiang Nan's group was ready to leave, meet with Pigeon and Orban, and return to Hunter × Hunter.
Their objective achieved, their profit from the Gintama world was immense.
So far, they were the only players ever to enter this world. Had other players visited, the Tendoushuu would long ago have been raided and the Altana gone.
Beishi's heart thumped. He saw Xiang Nan's intent: use the First‑Kill Badge to move freely between dimensions—and perhaps ally with Utsuro.
Altana, in the Hunter world, would be unbelievably rare. If V5 discovered it, they might deem it Dark Continent material; war could erupt among V5, the Republic of Padokea, and the Kakin Empire.
Planetary life‑force, with its vast vitality, could supercharge Nen, heal bodies, and even mass‑produce Nen users. With Tendō resources, Padokea might rival or join V5—becoming V6 or V7.
"Frankly," Xiang Nan told Utsuro before departing, "no matter your talent, becoming a Nen user is virtually impossible… because it hinges on bloodline."
By "bloodline" he meant "player identity," expressed in Gintama terms.
"But don't worry—next time we meet, if you still haven't succeeded, I'll help you."
Xiang Nan smiled faintly.
Together with Beishi and Manman he vanished, flashing away.
He had left Utsuro a lure to ease future cooperation.
Utsuro exhaled deeply, eyes glittering—hooked.
…
"You're going to force‑awaken Nen for him? Can that even work?" Beishi asked after shaking off Utsuro. In the Gintama world there was no Nen system; Utsuro alone could never manage it. Whether external influence could rewrite the power structure was unknown.
"The First‑Kill Badge lets players party with story characters," Xiang Nan said. "That alone proves every resource in the multiverse can be assimilated. A world's power system is just its native framework, not an unbreakable limit. Low‑tier worlds have weak systems; even with a method they may fail. High‑tier worlds see low‑tier energies as worthless.
Gintama and Hunter, though, sit in a zone where systems and resources intermix.
We take their resources, they get our power—it's fine."
"This world has no players. Even if Utsuro becomes a Nen user, the impact stays here—its future and its characters. Not us. No players means no rewinds. To us it's an inexhaustible resource farm."
"…"
Beishi swallowed hard, shaken—yet thrilled.
"Let's exploit it before any other First‑Kill Players show up."