"What about… Lord Kusen?"
The Rain ninja who had come back to report asked cautiously, clearly probing.
Hyūga Akira looked at the genin in front of him.
A straw hat.
A scar across the face.
The whole getup looked like someone trying really hard to cosplay One Piece.
Akira fell into mild confusion.
How are you managing to look like a future Pirate King… while speaking in such a timid tone?
Wasn't this supposed to be the man who will become Pirate King?
And yet, when he spoke, his waist was slightly bent, posture respectful to the point of excess—polite, civilized, the perfect well-behaved child.
It left Akira with no good excuse to explode on the spot.
With a sigh, he replied in a helpless tone,
"Kusen? He died on a mission."
If this guy dared to ask how Kusen died, Akira was more than happy to recreate the scene for him in full detail.
"I see."
The Rain ninja nodded in sudden realization and placed the prepared report on the desk.
"Lord Kiyu, this is today's intelligence."
Akira picked it up and flipped through it casually. As usual, it was full of trivial nonsense.
Since Konoha's last probe team withdrew, everything had fallen into an eerie silence.
Hiruko hadn't told him anything either.
As for the wandering ninja, their numbers had dropped sharply. There were almost no outsiders anymore, and the ones already hiding in the city had gone completely underground after Akira's last massacre.
The remaining Rain ninja couldn't track them at all.
"You don't want to ask about the mission details?"
Akira suddenly asked in a low, eerie voice.
"Huh?!"
The Rain ninja shook his head frantically, cold sweat forming on his forehead.
"Mission details are classified! I—I don't have the authority to ask!"
Originally, two ninja had been stationed here.
Now there was only Kiyu.
Even Kusen had vanished.
It was impossible not to think too much.
Everyone in the city knew it by now—Kiyu had lost his memory, and his temperament had become violent and unstable.
They all wanted answers.
But none of them dared to ask.
They were afraid they'd end up on the missing list.
"Alright."
Akira waved his hand lazily, losing interest.
"You can leave."
He had thought there would be some struggle for control.
Instead, authority had fallen into his hands far more easily than expected.
The Rain ninja retreated carefully. Just as his left foot crossed the threshold—
Boom!
His head exploded like a watermelon.
No warning. No hesitation.
His headless body collapsed straight to the floor.
Akira lowered his arm, shuriken still in hand.
"How dare you step out with your left foot first? Don't you know I hate that?"
He glanced at the floating notification.
[EXP +265]
Only then did he nod in satisfaction.
Kusen was gone.
Who was left to restrain him?
From now on, this place followed his rules.
Everyone here was just walking experience.
Right on cue, another Rain ninja walked in.
She froze when she saw the corpse on the ground, swallowing hard.
Kiyu really has gone insane…
She entered carefully, placed her files on the desk, and spoke with a trembling voice,
"L-Lord Kiyu, this is today's intelligence."
"Mm."
Akira glanced at her.
Brown hair. Female ninja.
She stood rigidly to the side, barely daring to breathe.
"You may go."
Akira waved his hand again.
She hesitated, then swallowed and asked carefully,
"L-Lord… which foot should I step out with?"
She'd clearly heard what he said earlier.
"…Hmm?"
Akira set the documents down, his face darkening instantly.
Her face went pale.
"You dare question me?!"
He snapped, pulling out a shuriken as if to punish her on the spot.
Just then—
Several Rain ninja rushed in through the doorway.
Akira frowned, then let out a disappointed sigh and put the shuriken away. Turning back to the girl, he spoke with exaggerated patience.
"If you have questions, just ask them directly. Stop testing me."
"If you really want to know what you did wrong…"
He smiled faintly.
"Come to my room tonight. I'll personally teach you."
This kind of 'teaching' might not be indecent… but it's definitely lethal!
The female ninja screamed internally.
She could feel it clearly—
The way Akira looked at her wasn't desire.
It was the gaze of a beast eyeing prey.
Completely unhinged.
She glanced at the other ninja who had entered.
They didn't make her feel any safer.
Even Kusen was gone—what could a few genin do?
At best, Kiyu simply wasn't confident he could kill all of them at once.
"I—I think I'll pass…"
She forced an awkward smile.
"What a shame."
Akira sighed dramatically.
"If you don't want to improve, there's nothing I can do."
He shook his head, disappointment and contempt plain in his eyes.
The other ninja stepped forward and placed their records on the desk.
"Lord Kiyu, these are today's reports," a stern-looking ninja said solemnly.
"Alright. You can go."
Akira waved them away, fully reining in his killing intent.
They didn't hesitate for a second.
On their way out, they dragged away the corpse of the unlucky ninja who had stepped out with the wrong foot.
Soon, Akira was alone again in the tower.
He didn't bother reading the reports. Instead, he walked to the window and looked down.
A group of Rain genin was leaving below.
Akira watched them with dark, thoughtful eyes.
"That should be enough to establish my persona."
Sure, part of it was about farming experience—but more importantly, this was deliberate.
He was shaping an image for Hanzō.
A bloodthirsty maniac.
Unstable. Volatile. Loves killing.
With that image in place, if he killed more people later, Hanzō would already be mentally prepared.
Hanzō would investigate him before meeting him—there was no way he'd bring Akira along without understanding what kind of person he was.
And the only sources of that information… were these coworkers.
"For a peace-loving guy like me to do something this deranged…"
Akira sighed dramatically.
"Really putting me through hardship."
He firmly believed he qualified as a Messenger of Peace.
"Maybe I can make this image even more vivid."
"And pick up a bit more experience while I'm at it."
"Kiyu is completely insane. A murderous lunatic."
A group of Rain ninja gathered together, drinking heavily.
The female ninja's voice was sharp with anger as she ranted,
"If this keeps up, we'll all die at his hands sooner or later!"
No one spoke.
They drank in silence.
How could they not understand?
A tall Rain ninja finally spoke in a low voice,
"If that guy really becomes our commanding officer… we're as good as dead."
"…Then why don't we kill him?"
Someone suddenly suggested.
All eyes turned toward the speaker.
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