Chapter 127: I, Kokonoe Natsuya, Acknowledge Him as the Strongest
For Uzui, the heaviest burden was the memory of having technically "killed" his
brothers and his utter inability to face the father and last surviving brother
he had left behind.
Had he not been born into that clan, his personality would have driven him to
dismantle such a twisted ninja hierarchy without a second thought. But in
reality, they were his last remaining blood relatives. In the end, he had chosen
to run. To avoid them. To selectively "forget" his past.
One could even argue that if his three wives hadn't practically begged him to
keep going, he might have offed himself in some nameless corner of Japan years
ago.
But for Natsuya? Uzui's trauma was just a minor quest-line complication. To a
gamer, it was just a choice between "Family Ties" and "Moral Alignment."
"My friend lived in a place that was basically a perpetual Warring States
period," Natsuya began.
"Samurai and ninjas were constantly slaughtering each other. Nobles,
commoners—it didn't matter. Everyone lived day-to-day, never knowing if they'd
see the sunrise."
Uzui and Sabito both looked at him. Where is there a place like that in Japan?
Even the Ezo region up north wasn't that chaotic decades ago. Is he talking
about a foreign server?
Natsuya continued, "Now, this guy—let's call him Senju—was born into a clan with
massive regional power. This kid was a total airhead. He wanted to be best
friends with the young master of the rival clan and dreamed of making all the
warring factions live together in harmony."
Sabito's curiosity was piqued. "Did he do it?"
Uzui snorted. "A naive brat like that? He'd either be exiled by his clan or
assassinated by the enemies. But since Kokonoe is telling the story... let me
guess. There was a plot twist?"
Natsuya smirked.
"Exactly. That guy eventually became strong. Terrifyingly, game-breakingly
strong."
"Even as his ideas got more and more delusional—like wanting to distribute his
clan's 'Strategic Deterrent Weapons' to every other rival family—no one could
stop him."
Uzui blinked. "Strategic weapons?"
"Basically," Natsuya explained, "the kind of things where one shot can delete a
whole map sector."
Uzui instinctively thought of the massive Western naval cannons he'd seen at the
ports. But those were state-level forces.
"A guy who sells out his clan's power like that?" the ninja muttered. "In the
Uzui clan, or even a merchant house, he'd be dragged out and decapitated for
treason."
"Why did he do it?" Sabito asked.
"Because he thought that if everyone had equal access to world-ending power, no
one would be jealous or afraid of the top-tier family. He thought he could buy
peace through MAD—Mutually Assured Destruction."
Even the straightforward Sabito thought Natsuya's "ninja" was a bit of a
lunatic. Give everyone a nuke? That's how you get a server wipe, not peace.
But Natsuya's next words defied their logic.
"And then—the country actually became peaceful. At least for the decades he was
alive, no clan dared to trigger a large-scale war."
Uzui immediately argued, "How is that possible?!"
He didn't bother asking why Natsuya's "friend" sounded like a legend from a
century ago; he assumed Natsuya was using a foreign historical parable to
lecture him. But the outcome sounded fake.
Natsuya shoved a piece of daikon into Uzui's bowl, telling him to chill.
"Because he used absolute martial force to beat every clan into submission. He
built a 'Mega-Village' that fit everyone inside. And those weapons he handed
out?"
"Combined, they still weren't as strong as he was alone."
One man with more deterrent power than a fleet of Western ironclads? Uzui
processed the thought. Right, he was a shinobi. If you're that strong, you don't
need to trade fire with artillery. You just assassinate, poison, or kidnap the
leadership. You become the 'Logic' of the world.
Natsuya put on a look of profound nostalgia, as if he were truly remembering a
fallen comrade.
"While he was alive, whether it was his best friend, his worst enemy, or the
entire ninja world... no one dared to question his 'naive' ideas. Even if they
thought he was an idiot, they followed the script."
"Because he was the acknowledged [STRONGEST]."
In that patch, he was a literal War God walking among mortals.
Natsuya looked at Uzui's stunned face and delivered the summary.
"So you see, Tengen. Your 'suffering' comes from two things. One: you aren't
cold-hearted enough to truly ignore your family and follow your own path."
"Two: you aren't strong like my bro Senju. You aren't strong enough to suppress
the era and make everyone listen to you."
Natsuya held up two fingers.
"I see two viable build paths for you. One: you act like a total NPC, treat them
as enemies, and delete them. Or just forget they exist. Conflict resolved."
"Path two: you grind until you're stronger than any Hashira."
He patted Uzui's shoulder with fatherly gravity.
"Go back to Koga. Speedrun that ninja village. Grab that heartless old man and
your last brother, and re-educate them."
"Moral alignment wrong? Beat them. Zero empathy? Beat them. Beat them until
their logic is compatible with yours."
Uzui: "..." Kokonoe... isn't that a bit extreme? And I'm pretty sure you were
about to say something very inappropriate before you said 're-educate'.
The ninja let out a long sigh. The knot in his chest hadn't fully unraveled, but
whether it was the hot oden or Natsuya's bizarre, "God-tier" advice, he felt the
chill in his body receding.
"Kokonoe—Natsuya," Uzui said, changing his address to something more personal.
"You really are a man who can spout the most flashy nonsense I've ever heard."
He downed his sake and exhaled. "Thanks."
The narcissistic, determined grin returned to the ninja's face.
"Later tonight, let's have a warm-up spar."
"Lord Uzui wants to see exactly how much distance lies between an 'Average
Genius' like me and a monster like you."
Even though he was Rank 1 and Natsuya was Rank 3, Uzui had zero doubt that
Natsuya was the superior unit. Not soloing a Moon was a regret, but having a
"Rival Boss" to test his six months of training against was a flashy
alternative.
Natsuya didn't refuse. Smurfing while farming proficiency? Don't mind if I do.
Uzui's current stat-block was higher than Master Kazami's now. He was a
"High-Tier XP Bag."
"Sure. But remember: you're paying for this meal. Don't glitch out and run."
"Of course! But you're a Rank 3 with a dozen solo-kills! Are you really that
broke?"
"I'm not broke," Natsuya said shamelessly. "My money has destinations. And none
of those destinations involve paying for your dinner."
Uzui: "You cheap bastard!"
The "God of Flashiness" turned to Sabito. "Fox-boy! Want to team up with me
against him? We'll teach this brat some respect!"
Sabito laughed and shook his head. "Senior, I'll pass. I know my own Power
Level. I wouldn't last three frames against him. I'd rather not get humilated
for fun."
"Tsk. Not flashy at all."
Natsuya looked at Uzui. "One condition for the spar: No bombs."
"Eh?!"
"I don't want to deal with the 'Debris' and 'Dust' debuffs after the fight. And
I have sensitive ears; I don't like firecrackers."
"FIRECRACKERS?!" Uzui shrieked. "Those are Special Shinobi-Grade Explosive Orbs!
They are ART!"
The bickering pair sounded exactly like they did back at the food stall in
Tokyo. The only difference was the audience: instead of a smiling flower-girl,
it was an honest, slightly bewildered boy with a fox mask.
Sabito blinked, repeating the word to himself. "B-Bombs?"
☆☆☆
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