Konoha, Just Like Kizaru

"Surrender?" Kakuzu asked, clearly surprised.

From his experience, Konoha didn't seem to accept the surrender of defectors. 

And Simu was a Konoha ninja—why would he suggest this? Could he be planning to betray Konoha? The thought made Kakuzu's expression shift.

Simu sighed and shrugged. "Relax. It's all about the money."

At the mention of money, Kakuzu's eyes lit up. "Money?"

Simu nodded, exasperated. Why does this guy feel so similar to me? he thought.

"And the job?" Kakuzu asked cautiously, still hesitant about joining any group.

Betrayed by Takigakure, the village he once called home, Kakuzu had grown into a loner, wary of others and uninterested in forming connections. His only true passion was making money.

Simu dismissed the Ama no Murakumo sword and spoke calmly:

"Head to the Land of Demons and work as a thug for the Aster Flower Merchant Guild."

"Thug?" Kakuzu didn't look down on the term but was curious. How could a Konoha ninja be tied to the Land of Demons?

Simu clarified:

"The Aster Flower Merchant Guild is my business. We deal in weapons and medicines."

He paused before adding, "But sometimes, customers don't pay up. You understand?"

Kakuzu nodded, catching on quickly. "So, it's debt collection?"

"You could call it that," Simu said with a satisfied smile.

"As for betrayal, you don't need to worry," Simu said coolly. "If I wanted to kill you, I could do it anytime. No need to waste effort plotting against you."

"For your salary, how about a percentage of the debts you recover?"

Kakuzu hesitated but eventually accepted the job. After all, refusing meant certain death, while accepting was simply a new opportunity to make money. 

For someone with a long lifespan like his, it didn't matter where the money came from. The same logic had led him to join the Akatsuki organization in the original timeline.

Simu clapped his hands in satisfaction. "Good. Head to the Land of Demons to report for duty."

"That's it?" Kakuzu asked, finding it hard to believe it was so simple.

Kakuzu initially expected Simu to cast a binding sealor cast some restriction, but Simu simply let him go.

Simu shrugged. "Relax, this is just a business partnership. I'm the boss, you're the employee—simple as that."

Kakuzu studied Simu's sincere demeanor before finally nodding. Retracting the three masks into his body, he began heading toward the Land of Demons.

Just as he was leaving, Simu called out, "Kakuzu, from now on, your codename will be [Drought Disaster]."

"Drought?" Kakuzu paused to consider the new title before replying nonchalantly, "Got it."

To Simu's surprise, the process of recruiting Kakuzu had gone smoother than he'd anticipated.

Kakuzu's recruitment was necessary for several reasons.

First, the Aster Flower Merchant Guild's growth over the past two years had far exceeded Simu's expectations. 

Hyuga Tokumitsu, freed from the Caged Bird Seal by Simu, had proven to be remarkably talented in business. 

Under his leadership, the guild had monopolized the arms markets in many smaller countries and gained fame for its medicines, perfumes, clothing, and other products.

However, rapid expansion brought problems, especially a shortage of manpower—particularly thud. 

While Tokumitsu had recruited a number of ninjas and Simu had sent additional fighters from Black Iron Town, it still wasn't enough.

The most critical gap was in high-level combat power. Without elite fighters, the guild risked being bullied and oppressed by larger nations.

The addition of Kakuzu would significantly enhance the security of the Aster Flower Merchant Guild. 

However, the more important reason behind this decision was Simu's plan to increase his imitation value of Kaido.

Kaido is known for several traits: loving to mentor, recruiting followers, enjoying in battles, and constantly courting danger. 

Simu had already fulfilled the mentorship aspect. Recruiting followers was now in progress, and engaging in battles and taking risks would come in time.

Subduing Kakuzu and assigning him the codename "[Drought]" earned Simu an impressive 5% boost in his imitation value.

[Congratulations, your imitation value has reached 20%.]

[Extracting ability…]

 [Ability extraction successful.]

[Congratulations on unlocking skill [Mighty Country].]

Skills unlocked? Simu carefully felt the power of his newly acquired ability.

This skill is a combined technique of Kaido and Big Mom, derived from the Hakoku of the Giant Clan. 

By channeling Armament Haki, it produces an immensely powerful shockwave.

A full-force strike from two of the Four Emperors carries undeniable destructive power. 

It's no exaggeration to say it could devastate everything in its path.

"It's really good stuff."

Simu remarked, adjusting his glasses before glancing back.

The Kakashi trio finally took out all the enemies that Simu had handpicked for them with the help of the guards.

Of course, the so-called solution is nothing more than knocking down these people.

Among the trio, only Kakashi killed one person while trying to save Obito.

Neither Obito nor Lin had seen blood yet.

Simu sighed.

Kick the two dying Bounty hunters in front of them.

"Kill them," Simu commanded firmly.

Obito looked up, startled. "Why? They've already lost the strength to fight back."

Simu turned to Kakashi. "Kakashi, explain why."

Gripping the White Fang Short Sword tightly, Kakashi replied in a cold tone, "On the battlefield, if you don't kill them, they'll kill you." 

He paused and glanced at Obito. "And not just you—your comrades, too."

As if to emphasize his point, the Bounty hunter lying at Rin's feet suddenly sprang into action.

With a crazed hiss, he pulled a hidden kunai from his sleeve, shouting, "If I'm going to die, I'll take someone with me!"

The sharp blade lunged toward Rin with alarming speed.

Rin, still inexperienced and overwhelmed by the chaos of battle, froze in place, unable to react.

"Rin!"

Without thinking, Obito dashed forward, kunai in hand, and plunged it into the hunter's chest.

Blood spurted out, splattering onto his hands and staining them scarlet. The warmth of it clung to his skin, the sensation seeping into his very being.

His chest rose and fell rapidly as his mind spiraled into chaos. 

"I... I killed someone"

"I killed someone!"

Kakashi observed the scene silently, showing no outward reaction. He understood what Simu intended.

Simu wanted them to experience death—both delivering it and witnessing it firsthand. To conquer their fear of it.

Even if Obito or Rin hadn't acted, Simu would never have let them die. This was a harsh but deliberate lesson.

"Good job. The rest will be troublesome for Sir Captain," Simu said, looking at the guard captain.

The captain, of course, didn't refuse. Without Simu, they wouldn't have survived the attack.

After this battle, those who had doubted Simu's combat effectiveness among the guards remained silent. Of course, some stayed silent forever.

After all, when hunters can pinpoint your location, who would believe there are no traitors?

But Simu was able to turn this information to his advantage. 

Originally, it was just casual fishing, but unexpectedly, he caught Kakuzu—a big fish—that boosted his imitation value by 5%. A pleasant surprise.

With this wave of hunters cleared, the next leg of the journey went much more smoothly. After all, all nearby hunters had been dealt with in one sweep.

Some hunters who were left behind saw that even someone as ruthless as Kakuzu had been defeated, so they didn't dare to approach.

The day before they reached the capital of the Land of Fire, they faced a second assassination attempt. This time, the enemies were all samurai.

Their strength was average at best.

Samurai are the second most powerful fighters in this world after ninjas. 

They typically wield ninja swords and use chakra to enhance their attacks with the swords.

The Land of Iron is the birthplace of the samurai. Among them, Admiral Mifune is a particularly strong samurai.

Unfortunately, these assassins weren't as powerful as Admiral Mifune.

Simu was too lazy to handle it himself, so Kakashi and Obito took care of them.

Although Simu doesn't like it, these samurai are still a great threat to Kakashi and the others.

But Kakashi is a genius, and Obito activated his Sharingan in advance.

As a result, the battle ended without any risk. The only cost was that Obito's goggles were shattered.

"I'm really sorry, Simu-sama, these assassins were sent by Miss Haruko's older brother..." 

The captain of the guards started to explain, but Simu interrupted him.

"Mr. Captain, our task is only to escort you to the capital of the Land of Fire." He never liked this kind of bullshit.

The captain immediately realized his problem, and hurriedly apologized:

"Sorry, I crossed the line. "

Haruko, sitting in the carriage, felt guilty. If Simu had been interested in the Kamizumi family, she might have been able to tie him to their cause.

"If the Captain wants to apologize, maybe getting a new pair of goggles would be good" 

Hearing this, Miss Haruko poked her head out of the carriage and smiled, "When we get to the capital, I'll cover all your expenses!"

"Great!" Obito cheered first, and even Rin showed a hint of excitement.

Although Rin wasn't greedy for luxury, she had always heard that the capital of the Land of Fire was the most prosperous place in the ninja world. She couldn't help but feel interested in it.

Kakashi didn't seem to care.

Simu suddenly had an idea and patted Kakashi on the shoulder. "Kakashi, the capital has a lot of story books."

"Books?" 

Kakashi was a bit confused, wondering why Simu was bringing it up.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED

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