"Why did you save me?" Kakuzu sat calmly in front of Emiya Shirou.
"Because you are an injured person," a green chakra floated in Shirou's palm as he watched Kakuzu's broken bones slowly reconnect. "And I happen to be a medical ninja."
"He'll definitely be killed if he goes back," Madara criticized Shirou's kindness, casually revealing a truth. "Those wastes from Takigakure couldn't possibly treat him as a companion. This guy's paltry strength is considered top-tier in that small village."
Madara Uchiha didn't think Kakuzu could be compared to him, but he couldn't help but think of his own experiences. A powerful ninja, betrayed by his own village's shortsighted leadership... The pattern was sickeningly familiar. He snorted contemptuously, "Hmph, those narrow-minded people in the ninja world don't much like others' power surpassing their own..."
For example, that villain Senju Tobirama.
And that insidious villain Senju Tobirama.
Also that insidious and despicable villain Senju Tobirama.
Shirou knew Madara was surely slandering Tobirama in his mind, but he still faintly felt like he had been stabbed in the back.
"So they wanted to kill me?" Kakuzu immediately understood. For a moment, he couldn't find his direction. "In this world, for ninjas like us, what else can we do besides carrying out missions?"
"Of course, kill them!" Madara glanced at Kakuzu, his face full of mockery. "What a complete fool. Bowing and scraping to the weak is just trampling on your own life."
Kakuzu subconsciously began to think. He was never shackled by blind loyalty. If a person wants to kill him, he will kill them. What captain, what higher-ups, what leader... as long as they wanted his life, he could take theirs.
But why did this medical ninja save me?
Was it just because he was a medical ninja?
In this world full of deception and slaughter, Kakuzu, who was always good at thinking, couldn't understand him.
"Try to live on," Shirou said, healing the injuries and patting his shoulder. "Don't waste my chakra."
"Hmph, saving his life... what a waste of my and Lord Emiya's precious time," Madara crossed his arms, his attitude extremely disdainful.
"Thank you," Kakuzu knew he couldn't afford to provoke Madara. He just looked at Shirou, nodded his thanks, and asked, "I don't know Lord Emiya's name."
"Hurry up and get lost!" Madara was about to fly into a rage. The scarlet in his eyes suddenly lit up. "If you haven't even heard of a great figure with this surname, then don't even think about having a chance to meet him again in the future."
"I am Emiya Shirou," Shirou's attitude was completely different, always gentle with patients.
Kakuzu's pupils suddenly constricted.
This name... is this a joke! That's a legendary great figure!
He had heard stories of Emiya Shirou since he was a child. According to legends, when the Land of Waterfalls was still a small village, a strange curse appeared on the land. Shirou came, cleared the curse, and healed the villagers, saving them from extinction.
"Is it really that Lord Emiya?" Kakuzu, who had always considered himself calm, could not calm his heart. But the Madara Uchiha standing by his side would certainly not lie. "Besides the legendary Lord Emiya, is there anyone else who can be so magnanimous and generous?" Madara sneered.
He had his own requests for Shirou, so he didn't mind praising him a few times.
"Go back early," Shirou waved his hand at Kakuzu, who hesitated, standing in place. He still had many confusions.
Why was he in this era? Why could he survive being stabbed through the heart? Why was his body so strange, like dust and debris?
"What?" Madara's brow furrowed, dissatisfied. "Isn't sparing your life today enough?"
"Perhaps he has lost his way in life," Shirou looked at Kakuzu and smiled. "If you are really ostracized by your village, you might as well find something to rededicate your life to. Why not try saving those in pain?"
Kakuzu was silent for a moment, then turned and walked away without looking back. He still wanted to go back to the village first, to test what Madara had said. If they really wanted to kill him, he would kill those incompetent higher-ups.
As for life after that, perhaps what this Lord Emiya Shirou said was right. But he didn't know medical ninjutsu. It would be nice if he could follow this Lord Emiya, but as a ninja from a small village, he felt unworthy.
Perhaps there was another way of life. A ninja exchanges their services for bounties. Maybe he could find a way to earn money to help people in need. But earning money through missions was too slow.
"How boring," Madara watched him leave. "With Lord Emiya's status, is it worth wasting time on such a fool?"
"To me, it's worth it, I suppose?" A black thread on Shirou's fingertip twitched slightly and was quietly retracted. This was a mission reward he had just obtained.
S-Rank Request: Display the ability of an immortal body in front of Kakuzu.
Reward: Earth Grudge Fear (a unique chakra creation. It can be used to release powerful ninjutsu, and can also be used to take the enemy's heart to obtain the ability of immortality, as well as their chakra nature transformations. At most, it can obtain the five basic nature transformations. In battle, the Earth Grudge Fear fused with different hearts can be split off to participate in the fight.
What a pity. If I had obtained a power like this in the ancient era, I could have found a way to obtain immortality and wouldn't have had to go through the trouble of setting up so many backup plans.
But it's not too late to obtain this power now. If my luck is not good in the future, this power might be the last resort.
"Alright," Shirou composed himself and focused on Madara, his words seeming a bit hesitant. "By the way, I'm not very good at lying. If I say anything wrong, please bear with me."