Naruto and Sasuke are doing nothing; Madara and I will set an example.

Page 101

With trembling hands, she pulled a kunai from her waist. "No, don't come any closer! Or I'll fight you to the death."

Chen ignored her and continued forward at the same pace.

"No, don't come any closer!" Temari gripped her kunai tightly with both hands, the tips pointing towards the dust, but her feet uncontrollably retreated.

As they drew closer, Temari's chest began to heave uncontrollably, tears streaming down her face. Her legs trembled, yet she held firmly in front of her husband.

She gritted her teeth, prepared to die, "If anyone wants to hurt my man, they'll have to step over my dead body first!"

"Tap." Chen's footsteps stopped in front of her. He didn't make a move, but just stared at her with eyes devoid of any emotion.

The terrifying pressure caused Temari to break down!

It's too, too painful, my dear... I'm going first!

She raised her kunai, ready to stab herself in the neck and commit suicide.

"Whoosh!" The tip of the kunai suddenly stopped in front of the throat.

Connecting to the Shadow Binding Technique beneath her feet, three shadows split up and climbed onto Temari's body. One became a shadow slit, passing through the round hole of the kunai and pulling it away and throwing it far away. The other two became black hands that strangled her neck, choking her unconscious on the spot.

"I'm sorry, Temari, I can't let you die. I'm leaving Shikashiro in your care."

After Shikamaru finished speaking, he released the Shadow Binding, moved the fallen Temari aside, and then stood up to face the dust.

"Uchiha Chen! Do with me as you please! No Konoha ninja is afraid of death!"

"Hmm, that's more like a man."

A woman who steps forward to protect her husband in times of crisis is admirable, and unless absolutely necessary, no one would kill such a woman.

Moreover, judging from his list of twin flowers, apart from his own woman, the rest are all women without husbands.

Chen didn't mean to scare Temari, but rather to observe Shikamaru's reaction and make a general assessment of his situation.

It seems his personality hasn't been affected. He's still the same Nara Shikamaru to Konoha and his family.

The effects of Kotoamatsukami on him were ineffective; in Chen's understanding, there were only two possibilities.

First, he was subjected to a mental control of equal or even greater intensity, so much so that Kotoamatsukami could not replace that control effect.

Secondly, he was protected by some kind of illusion-like defense mechanism.

Dust's Sharingan stared intently at Shikamaru's forehead.

"The chakra pathways in the brain show no signs of disruption due to genjutsu, suggesting the second possibility is more likely. But..."

At this moment, Chen narrowed his eyes.

Through the practice of meditation and samadhi, he mastered a special ability: to accurately discern a person's current 'emotional reaction' by observing the subtle color differences in chakra.

Shikamaru faced his own emotional reaction... which was undoubtedly 'resentment'.

Resentment and hatred.

Moreover, that strong sense of resentment probably wasn't because my actions so far have violated his sense of morality and justice to such an extent that it's not worth it.

That was... a personal grudge.

It's as if I killed his father, killed his son, and took his wife right in front of him.

Only then can one have such a level of resentment.

But Chen did not do the above or anything similar.

His only interaction with Shikamaru so far has been that unpleasant conversation three years ago at the Konoha reception area.

That's even more unlikely.

Therefore, Chen was certain that Shikamaru was under some kind of control.

But what kind of control could make someone hate themselves to this extent without affecting their personality?

Could it be that... someone planted a vague yet incredibly real "hatred" in his mind towards the specific object "me"?

Even if that were the case, with Shikamaru's intellect being second only to Shikaku's, it's impossible that he wouldn't realize how unnatural this sense of emotional disconnect is.

But he really didn't realize it... which means his 'self-awakening mechanism' was turned off.

Chen's hand clenched quietly. As the user and the biggest beneficiary of that technique, the shock he felt was unimaginable.

The only illusion capable of such a feat is undoubtedly [Kotoamatsukami].

Recalling Shikamaru's unusual words and actions during that interview, Chen became even more certain.

Besides me, there are others in this ninja world who possess the power of Kotoamatsukami.

Moreover... that person was hiding in the shadows, hostile towards me.

If it weren't for my accidental failure to use Kotoamatsukami on Shikamaru, which alerted me, I probably wouldn't have discovered this fact at all.

Who is it? Who is it...?

"Crack!" Dust's palm enveloped Shikamaru's crown.

He immediately wanted to use the human way to explore his brain.

But he quickly rejected it...

If Shikamaru himself has no information about the caster in his memories, even using the Human Path won't reveal anything.

This matter should be discussed at length.

"Crack!" A time-freezing mist descended from Shikamaru's crown.

"What...what is he going to do to Advisor Shikamaru?!"

"We can't just stand by and watch!"

At this moment, Madara and Obito forcefully appeared beside Chen, one standing with his arms crossed and the other with one hand on his waist.

He coldly stared at those who were itching to make a move.

In the end... no one took a step.

Perhaps the ninjas of Konoha are truly unafraid of death.

But whether it's a heroic sacrifice or a laughable death like an ant, they still know the difference.

"Snap!" The frost and haze dissipated, and Shikamaru was frozen into the Tuo Liu time zone.

At that moment, no one noticed.

It was on the same nail-shaped rock that Naruto and Sasuke had both stepped on.

A figure in black robes stood there.

No one knows when he stood there, or how long he's been standing there!

Her long hair was loose, and she wore a mask that was half black and half white, resembling a yin-yang face. (See Chapters 93 and 94, "The Hidden Enemy")

From the two eye sockets of the Yin-Yang Mask, two six-tomoe Rinnegan eyes, one black and one white, stared intently at 'Shikamaru'.

"This hidden stake has finally been pulled out, but it has already served its purpose."

"Compared to the real 'big shots,' Nara Shikamaru is just an insignificant nobody."

Dust, Madara, and Obito passed under the nail-shaped rock without ever glancing at it.

Chen stopped, bent down and picked up his broken mechanical watch from the ruins, turned back time, and put it back on his left wrist.

"time to go."

Watching the dust disappear from the space.

"Uchiha Chen, you're about to become the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki, which suits me perfectly. After all, you're still far from being ready."

The masked man lowered his head and removed the black glove from his left hand, revealing a black wedge in his palm!

"Before this 'weapon' reaches its end, grow as I wish, Uchiha, Chen!"

Chapter 139 The Way of the Dark Ninja

After meeting up with Kaze at the agreed-upon location outside Konoha, Chen and his group returned to Peach Blossom Spring.

"You're back, pillars of strength~." Xiao Nan, who was waiting at the hidden gate, seemed to be in a good mood.

"I remembered I haven't put away the laundry at home yet, so I'll head out first." Obito absorbed Kamui into himself.

Madara thought to himself: What? Obito, that coward, just ran away? I was looking forward to watching you guys fight. How boring.

"I'm going to give Xue'er some pointers. You guys go ahead with your work." Ban also left.

Feng thought to himself: I haven't been home for more than a day. My mother's shoulder often hurts, and my younger sister is terrible at housework. My mother will get tired if she does all the housework by herself. I have to go home and help my mother with the housework.

"Uncle, Aunt Konan, Grandpa Kakuzu, I'll head home now."

In stark contrast to the radiant Konan was Kakuzu, who stood to the side with a bitter expression.

After Xiao Feng left, he stepped forward and said, "Shadow, you should control your women."

Chen: "Huh? There's something wrong with what you're saying! I only have one woman, Guang!"

Kakuzu: "Then let me put it another way: control those women who are always around you! Especially your good sister and this one next to you!"

Chen glanced at Xiao Nan, whose expression remained unchanged.

He thought to himself: This is a direct complaint; it seems Kakuzu is really anxious.

"Did Jinghua and Xiaonan do anything to upset you?"

Kakuzu was furious, looking like a wronged woman: "Your dear sister, along with her little follower, went to the Temple of Darkness and removed all the statues of the God of Wealth that I worshipped! They were replaced with some kind of [Amaterasu Omikami]!"

"And this woman beside you, instead of stopping it, she even rallied the people and said that Amaterasu Omikami is the embodiment of the will of darkness! She is the goddess of the sun that never sets! When the people heard this, they rushed to worship her!"

So that's how it is. The statue of the God of Wealth was removed, and the incense offerings were stolen. This was a minor offense against Kakuzu, but it shouldn't have made him this angry.

Chen asked, "Anything else?"

"This, this is fine, but this woman, this woman actually..." Kakuzu raised his hand, pointing tremblingly at Konan, with blue smoke rising from his head.

"Then, this woman, this woman actually, in order to create the miracle of Amaterasu Omikami's appearance, actually, actually used her Paper God Technique to openly and secretly scatter money! In less than a day, she scattered a full 700 million ryo!"

Ah... I see! Chen suddenly realized.

At this moment, Konan turned her amber eyes to the corner of her head and said, "Amaterasu Omikami is an important part of the Shadow Shikigami Project. With Shizuka performing the blessing ritual, this Shikigami can be initially nurtured."

"But to truly establish and grow, it needs the support of believers, that is, faith, to sustain it. That's how the five great shikigami got to where they were back then. You don't know that, do you?"

Kakuzu exclaimed in frustration, "Of course I know, but we didn't throw money around back then!"

Konan said confidently, "That's because the five shikigami are not as powerful as Amaterasu Omikami. As the saying goes, you have to spend a lot of money to accomplish great things."

Kakuzu was so angry his nose was crooked: "Nonsense! I'd accept it if you spent the money wisely! Amaterasu Omikami is supposed to be a sun goddess! What's the use of throwing money around! At least give us some sunshine!"

Xiao Nan hadn't considered that for a moment, and was taken aback, but then quickly regained her cool and invincible aura: "After the money was put into sacks, the people were overjoyed, shouting 'Long live Lord Shadow!' It's even more effective than sunlight!"

Kakuzu stamped his foot and said, "Yes! Yes! You've made Amaterasu Omikami take care of everything for the God of Wealth! After you close down the stall, who will still worship the God of Wealth in the future!"

Konan said, "Then let's not close the stall, and just keep worshipping Amaterasu Omikami."

He couldn't beat them, he couldn't argue with them, he couldn't stand being angry... Kakuzu was so angry he could grind his teeth.

You spendthrift woman! If I were Shadow, I'd use Kotoamatsukami to control you and make you the top courtesan in the red-light district! I'd make every man in Shadow regularly line up to patronize you, contributing to the increase in the labor force!

No... we still can't do it this way. This woman has a spendthrift gene in her bones! Her offspring will definitely be spendthrifts too!

Ha, might as well get her ligated and then go the high-end route. This woman is still top-tier in terms of looks. Let her cater exclusively to the wealthy, clandestine clients, and I'll take a hefty commission, just enough to keep her from starving.

Poor Kakuzu can only offer a spiritual victory, after all, he's the one being controlled by Kotoamatsukami and working for someone else.

However, Chen still respected Kakuzu, only granting him absolute loyalty and not interfering with his personality.

Moreover, Kakuzu is probably seriously considering the long-term development of the village.

Dust: "How about this, Kakuzu, I'll use my own savings to make up for the 700 million taels that are missing from the treasury."

Upon hearing this, Kakuzu's dark green eyes immediately lit up. "Ah? This, this, this sounds pretty good, but you can't always be the one to cover for this woman's extravagant spending!"

The implication was that Chen wanted to give Xiao Nan a warning.

Chen said in a gentle tone, "Sister Xiao Nan, we should be cautious about throwing money around. After all, the market economy operates according to rules. Without corresponding labor output, too much money flowing into the market out of thin air can easily cause inflation."

Xiao Nan said, "Oh! Is that so? I don't quite understand, but I'll pay attention in the future."

"Hmph, let's just let this matter drop this time." Kakuzu finally gave up, satisfied.