Chapter 112: Concern, Perspective and Departure

Chapter 112: Concern, Perspective and Departure

_________ POV Narration _________

Ken stopped just short of bumping into the Raikage.

No one had really stopped him or even tried to talk to him after the funeral was over, which was to be expected.

Although he had helped the Raikage and A, he was still technically an outsider.

It wasn't like he would've had it any other way. He wouldn't have minded if he wasn't invited to the funeral at all, but life had its own ideas.

Just like the Raikage seemed to have his own when stopping Ken with a hurried/worried look.

"Sure. We can talk a bit."

Ken ended up just nodding to the Raikage's request for a conversation.

The Raikage then looked around, realizing that their interaction had attracted quite a few gazes before his attention settled on the Blind Assassin in front of him.

"It might be better if we do this in my office."

To that, Ken only nodded and felt the Raikage sprint towards the Kage Building.

Before anyone around them could even react, he also turned into a blur and followed the Raikage's steps.Ñ00v€l--ß1n hosted the premiere release of this chapter.

Ken paid no mind to the reactions of the people that had attended the funeral, he just rushed into the Raikage's office without any worry.

None of the Anbu guarding the building stopped him either, and the Raikage was already inside waiting for him.

He wasn't sitting in his chair, he was merely leaning on the table, one hand on the back of his neck while the other was still missing.

Ken walked into the office without bothering to put his mask back on, his face wasn't displaying any emotions, however.

He could somewhat guess why the Raikage was wanting to speak with him.

He appreciated the fact that Mabui had at least waited since after the funeral, but it was likely just done out of consideration for the event.

Ken cracked his shoulder as he slowly walked up to the Raikage and crossed his arms.

"So, what is it? Do you have a job for the Brotherhood?"

He still decided to start the conversation in a light tone. throw the ball in the Raikge's court so to say.

Ken was curious about what the man would feel.

He didn't think his age was that big of an issue personally. But that was because he knew he was way older physically than mentally.

Outwardly, it certainly looked a lot worse. The entire shinobi world had been shaken up by a child.

Which was why the Raikage had to confirm it, to make absolutely sure that Mabui wasn't making any mistakes.

"I think you already know what this is about... The conversation you had with Mabui before coming to the funeral." The Raikage seemed determined to get right to the point.

Ken just nodded when hearing that.

"Figures..."

The Blind Assassin would've rolled his eyes if he had any.

The Raikage didn't seem to be in the mood for jokes, however.

"So it's true then? Are you really only 13?"

His serious tone only got a tired sigh from Ken, who decided to just confirm it in the end. He did consider playing around with the Raikage and Gaslighting Mabui for fun, but he decided that it would ultimately be a waste of everyone's time.

He had revealed his age for a reason in the first place.

It was about time that the world learned about his talent. They already knew of his power, now they were to learn of his potential for growth, far exceeding that of regular humans.

"Yes. I hope that reveal won't be an issue for any future cooperation, right?" Ken crossed his arms and tilted his head towards the Raikage.

All of a sudden, his mannerisms started looking child-like in the Raikage's eyes. And he slowly pieced together the puzzle that had been unfolding in his mind.

Child-like or not, the Raikage couldn't bring himself to look down on Ken, who was by all accounts one of the strongest people alive at that time.

And his services had also never let the Raikage down in the past. So it was safe to say that his answer was going to be obvious.

"It won't affect our cooperation in the future. But your age does raise quite a few concerns regarding your mental state and upbringing..."

The Raikage sighed as he now no longer tried to hide the concern in his gaze.

"You shouldn't be concerned for me, Lord Raikage... I've been operating for years without any issues."

Ken's gruff voice sounded reassuring to the Raikage, but what he said still seemed strange.

They handle our budgets, they have a chokehold on all of us. We are mere soldiers at the end of the day. Even me."

Ken tilted his head a bit when hearing that answer.

He found it odd that the Raikage and the others were letting themselves be at the beck and call of the Daimy of their respective nations.

"Budget? That is the issue? You'd think the Shinobi would have the power to overthrow the Daimy after all these years..."

Ken was genuinely confused.

He had been under the understanding that the Daimy were mostly just figureheads. That was certainly the case for most of the small nations...

So were the 5 Great Ones any different?

"Things aren't as simple as that. If we are to rebel, then we certainly have the power to do so.

But no noble family would give us work from that point forward, we would become no better than criminals.

We would slowly but surely run out of resources, and we'd end up resorting to war to make up for that anyway..."

So it would seem...

The world seemed to be built on an extremely stable system. One that put the power not in the hands of those that had actual power, but the hands of those that had the most money.

Ken couldn't help but sigh as he realised just how much that reminded him of his old world.

"... So it was the Daimy's idea to attack the Uzumaki clan as well?..."

Ken gulped a bit internally as he realized the implications of what the Raikage had said earlier.

Depending on the answer he received now, his guilt and feelings over A's death would certainly shift...

"Well... I'll admit that it was mostly us the Kage spearheading that invasion. Fuinjutsu is simply too valuable to ignore even for us."

Thankfully there was no need for that.

"That's understandable... Thank you for giving me more perspective in the way the 5 Great Nations operate."

Ken nodded towards the Raikage, choosing not to go further into it.

He now knew that ending the war wasn't something he could do through the Raikage, that was enough knowledge.

"No problem... It's not exactly public knowledge, only those within our circle know this, but I don't see any reason why I shouldn't tell you... You are a friend after all, though a bit young..."

The Raikage just sighed and walked over to his chair, finally sitting down while running a hand through his hair.

"A friend... Well, thank you, Lord Raikage... Both for the invitation and concern.

You don't have to worry about me, however. But if I ever need help, I'll reach out to you."

Ken smiled as he addressed the Raikage in a warmer tone now.

It made the man in question smile, some of the frustration and concern in his mind dissipating in the process.

"Thank you for trusting me enough to do so Ken..." The Raikage muttered as he looked at Ken's back, getting further and further away before the door closed.

On the other side, Ken's smile immediately fell.

The Raikage had really helped Ken a lot. The information given should've been obvious in retrospect, but he may have overlooked some things in his thought process before.

He had been too fixated on blaming everything on Shinobi.

But it seemed humans in general were rather faulty at their core. Well, at least those that became corrupted by power, greed, and any other desire.

The world was complex at the end of the day. And Ken was now finally opening up his mind to observe that complexity.

'My plans will have to be changed greatly... But at least now I know what I need to do.'

Ken then cracked his neck, put his mask back on, and vanished from the Raikage's hallway.

__________________________________________

Hope you liked the chapter!

Managed to squeeze this one out today since I was feeling better.

Cold came back tho, cuz I'm apparently cursed with unfathomable bad luck

Also, no :)) The Raikage won't be showing up with adoption papers to the Dark Brotherhood for now. It's a pretty fun idea tho

Story Shoutout!(send me a DM if you've got any interesting story for a shout out, have little time for reading as of late) : The Last Observer

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