After applying a Sealing Jutsu to Tenzo that would leave him clutching his rear and wailing for the next half hour, Ren Uchiha turned to the approaching Aburame Ryoma and greeted him with a smile.
"Ryoma-senpai, long time no see."
"You really have a twisted sense of humor," Ryoma replied, looking utterly speechless. He glanced at Tenzo, who was currently crawling away to lick his wounds, before walking toward the edge of the cliff.
"You flatter me, you flatter me."
"That wasn't a compliment! Forget it..." Ryoma shook his head helplessly. "I have some intelligence for you. It's likely related to you."
Ryoma's expression shifted, turning grave as he spoke. "But, whatever you do, do not get agitated."
Seeing his superior's serious face, Ren knew that in the month and a half he had been training, the turbulent ninja world had likely undergone some drastic changes he knew nothing about. He composed himself and looked up, meeting Ryoma's gaze with equal gravity.
"I'm calm. So, what's happening in the outside world?"
Ryoma took a deep breath and said solemnly, "You... have been put on the wanted list!"
"Me? Wanted? Again?"
Ren was stunned, completely baffled. The last time he was "wanted" was a month and a half ago. That incident ended with Kumogakure retreating, the black markets across the ninja world being decimated, and the S-rank rogue ninja Kakuzu being captured by the Uchiha.
He couldn't understand it. Who would dare to provoke the Uchiha clan while they were in such a foul mood, especially by putting a bounty on him again?
"It's not a bounty from the underground black market," Ryoma said, shaking his head.
"It's the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning!"
"A month ago, an organization called the 'Undead Zealots' infiltrated the capital of the Land of Lightning. Claiming to act in the name of ending the war, they launched a terrorist attack during the Daimyō's procession."
"Twenty ninjas belonging to this organization launched a suicide attack. At the cost of 19 lives, they managed to obtain the blood of the Daimyō and his guards amidst the chaos, demonstrating the effects of their occult techniques on the spot."
"The final member used a so-called 'Curse: Death Controlling Blood' to curse and kill a Guardian Ninja—an elite Jōnin—at the cost of his own life as a mere Genin!"
"And they issued an ultimatum to the Daimyō: 'Stop this war immediately. Otherwise, the Son of God shall descend to subject you to the same agony millions of times over!'"
Hearing this, Ren's pupils shrunk. He immediately remembered the letter he had received from Hidan back in Konoha.
Curse: Death Controlling Blood.
This technique should only be known to the cultists who survived the massacre at the Jashin headquarters and Hidan, who held the Ritual of Jashin left by Bishop Hayato Togo. The Jashinists were certainly not pacifists.
Therefore, the one driving this... was Hidan!
And this method—it was likely Hidan using the PUA techniques he had learned from Ren to manipulate the remaining cultists. In a state of total confusion, the cultists had likely elevated Hidan to a leadership role, sacrificing themselves for this impossible "Great Cause."
Ren, who had witnessed the suffering in the Land of Hot Springs and understood how terrifying the infection of such a "Great Cause" could be, knew that for the Hot Spring ninjas who had been squeezed between the Iwa-Kiri war, this "Cause"... was equivalent to a divine revelation.
But when a group of fanatics mastering ultimate one-for-one curse techniques gathered, they became a force capable of shaking the ninja world.
However...
"No, he's playing with fire!" Ren's brow furrowed.
The curses of the Jashin cult were most powerful when the information about them was kept secret. Once the secret was out, there were countless ways to break the jutsu!
But now, the group gathered around Hidan was exposing the mechanism of the curse for the sake of their "Cause," attempting to convert "lethality" into "deterrence" to force a superpower to back down.
That was impossible!
Especially now, with an elite Guardian Ninja dead and the Third Great Ninja War raging. Whether to secure the Daimyō's support or for the sake of national prestige, Kumogakure would never stand by and watch.
Hidan was in danger! That was Ren's first thought. But then he caught the other implication in Ryoma's words. He looked up at the Aburame in shock.
"I see what you mean. You're saying... the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning put a bounty on me?"
"But if the Daimyō was attacked, why am I the one being wanted? I haven't done a damn thing!"
The cultists weren't even supposed to have survived. In that horrific sacrifice, Hayato Togo had linked their lives to Hidan; they were meant to be sacrifices. But because of Ren's interference, the ritual was broken and they lived. Combined with his influence on Hidan... tracing the root cause, Ren was the culprit behind the Daimyō's assassination attempt.
But only Ren and Hidan knew the truth of that day, and they hadn't leaked it. How could anyone else know?
Ren suddenly felt a strong urge to take off his shoe and hit someone.
Ryoma clicked his tongue, looking at him with a mix of awe and pity. "You didn't do anything, of course. But someone did it on your behalf!"
"Before the attack, this 'Undead Zealots' group spent time preaching their philosophy of 'Ending War and Welcoming Peace.' During that time, they publicly declared the deity they worship and their true leader—"
"A man named 'Ren Uchiha.'"
"The man who will bring the ultimate end to the world of Shinobi!"
Hearing this, Ren buried his face in his hands. Goosebumps erupted all over his body. At that moment, a wave of cringe so intense it traveled from his toes to his skull washed over him. He wanted nothing more than to use his toes to dig a three-bedroom apartment out of the ground and hide in it.
Back then, he had made a joke to the kid, saying some nonsense like "I shall be your god." He never expected Hidan to take it literally, act on it, and even create a religious organization to let him enjoy being a "deity."
Ren was touched, truly.
But... why the hell did you have to use my name as the brand, you brat?!
Now it was great. The whole world thought "Ren Uchiha" was a radical terrorist leader!
Ren took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to rush to the Land of Lightning, hang the kid up, and beat him eight times a day for ten days straight.
The priority now was to see if there was a way to bail the kid out. He looked up, his eyes sharp, and asked Ryoma:
"So, what is the current situation of this organization?"
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