The Game Merchant Who Started from the Ninja World

Chapter 18: The Hidden Leaf Village Left Behind by Revolution

The five elite players swiftly began laying traps.

[Spike Trap], price: 200 reward points.

[Poison Bomb Mine], price: 350 reward points.

[Flame Trigger], price: 300 reward points.

...

Seven traps in total, costing 1,500 reward points.

If all of them detonated at once, even the Wraith General would be in trouble.

After all, this was deep in enemy territory. There was no room for error. It had to be a one-shot kill, or they'd be overwhelmed by the endless tide of Wraith Soldiers.

The spacious hall

was fully covered by trap items. Once one was triggered, the rest would chain-react and explode.

Ordinary Wraith Soldiers had 300 HP.

Wraith Captains had 700 HP.

The total damage from all traps exceeded 4,000—more than enough to vaporize most enemies.

Of course, that was the best-case scenario.

The Wraith General wasn't some mindless ghost. He had intelligence. Whether through defense or evasion, much of the trap damage would likely be avoided.

Terumi Mei wasn't expecting a kill—just a serious injury.

The final blow in the decapitation strike would be hers to deliver.

Silence.

The strike team held their breath, hiding in the dark corners of the castle's main hall, waiting for the moment to act.

[Server Channel]

Mysterious Merchant: Intelligence Update. The Wraith General commands the external defenses of the ruined castle. Defeating him will clear out the Wraith Soldiers and prevent them from respawning.

Guaranteed loot: Wraith Banner (consumes mana to summon Wraith Soldiers), Captain's Malice Blade (melee strength-type weapon), Captain's Resentment (consume to permanently increase Strength stat), Wraith General's Swordsmanship Notes (learns passive skill: [Sword Mastery])...

Weakness revealed: The Wraith General has extremely keen perception. Non-assassin players must purchase stealth items to approach.

"No wonder we couldn't break through the outer defenses in two whole days. Turns out the Wraith General had to be killed first, or the mobs just keep respawning."

"The Mysterious Merchant only gave shallow info last time. Now he's dropping even the weaknesses. Could someone be on the verge of breaking in?"

All players saw the announcement. Reactions varied.

Be it the Vampire Baron or the Wraith General, the Mysterious Merchant only released details after players had unexpected contact with corrupted monsters.

So suddenly revealing the Wraith General's full dossier likely meant a player had breached the defenses and encountered him.

The outer ruins echoed with battle cries.

Though players fought bravely, the Wraith Soldiers were densely packed. Breaking through anytime soon seemed unlikely, let alone reaching the Wraith General.

"Someone's broken into the inner castle—must be shinobi players!"

Mabui, one of Kumogakure's few tacticians, quickly pinpointed the issue.

She frowned.

She didn't care about the loot from the Wraith General.

What truly concerned her was the fragile formation of the Kumogakure Alliance, just recently established with Cloud shinobi at its core. Many players had joined—but their loyalty was shaky.

If another shinobi team scored the first kill on the Wraith General and started forming their own alliance, those newly recruited players would surely jump ship.

The most concerning threat was the team led by Terumi Mei from Kirigakure.

Behind the screen,

the silver-haired loli asked curiously, "Master, if you didn't release the info, wouldn't the Wraith General's strength force the strike team to burn through even more reward points?"

She didn't understand her master's reasoning.

"This is what they call a long-term investment," Fang Yi replied with a smile.

"By revealing the intel, any sharp players will catch on—especially since I highlighted stealth items. They'll start buying those pricey stealth tools to slip past the Wraith Soldiers and head straight for the inner castle."

"The well-funded strike team will catch on too. Soon, other players will start mimicking their strategy."

"To ensure they get the kill, they'll have to rush. And just the cost of group teleport scrolls and trap items alone will be massive. They won't want to lose the Wraith General to anyone else—so they'll go all-in to kill him fast."

Fang Yi paused, then looked at the silver-haired loli. "The Wraith General is a Level 10 ghost warrior, fully geared in green-tier Level 10 equipment. All his skills are at Level 5. Even with a Level 9 Flame Mage like Terumi Mei, they can't kill him quickly. What would you do?"

The loli hesitated. "Buy items?"

"Smart girl."

Fang Yi ruffled her hair, grinning. "After the update, equipment and material drop rates went way up. Most players are now hoarding reward points, only buying healing potions from the shop. They're gambling on getting gear from drops."

"After all, casual players aren't bound by any faction. They've got time to grind. No pressure. If they keep at it, eventually they'll gear up."

"That's why the real whales in the item shop are the big ninja villages trying to plant their influence in the Reincarnation Game."

"If they want to dominate here, they have no choice but to buy expensive tools from the shop—even knowing it's not cost-efficient."

"Unless, of course, they're willing to just sit back and watch other villages take over the Novice Village."

It was a transparent scheme. Even if tacticians saw through it, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and play along.

And then there was Konohagakure.

Fang Yi's gaze shifted to the Leaf squad that had just bought stealth items and was preparing for their own sneak attack.

The most powerful shinobi village in the real world, home to countless talented ninjas and the largest population—and yet, its in-game performance was pathetic.

Even though Asuma had fought hard, and even someone as dense as Naruto was beginning to grasp the revolutionary potential of the game...

The real-world leadership—the Hokage, Danzo, and the council of elders—remained stubbornly resistant to the Reincarnation Game.

Still dreaming of being the center of the world, unwilling to wake up.

The Sannin, White Fang, Uchiha, Hyūga, Minato Namikaze...

Konoha had once birthed generations of genius. It had held the power to end the era of Hidden Villages and unify the ninja world.

But for many reasons, it had become the fat prize in every other village's eyes.

At the root of it all was the Will of Fire.

"Wherever the leaves dance, the fire will burn…"

Fang Yi didn't want to judge whether a belief system was good or bad.

But whether ruling a ninja village or an empire, one needed solid laws and institutions. Running a massive power structure on ideals and personal values alone?

The outcome was obvious.

If Konoha didn't wake up soon, it might really face the worst possible future.

Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.

Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Frank10