Chapter 121: Suspicions, Lesson and Trust

Chapter 121: Suspicions, Lesson and Trust

_________ POV Narration _________

Ken cracked his neck as he stood in front of the classroom.

The podium in front of him was filled with blank pages, as usual.

They weren't blank per se, but nothing could be seen with the naked eye. This was optimal, as Ken had no eyes, naked or otherwise.

But despite being empty, the pages were also fully written. Within Ken's mind were drawn countless theories about the ways he could go around to teach his students about natural energy.

Plenty of thoughts and experiments he wanted to run were laid down on those papers. The reason why they were empty was quite simple.

Invisible ink.

Not just that, Tosho had gone out of his way to seek out and create a form of ink that could be felt when being infused with chakra.

It was actually quite expensive to make and chakra metal dust was used during the creation process, but it was a rather great tool.

One couldn't really see what was written when the paper was infused with chakra, but they could feel it.

A normal shinobi would still have trouble reading something through his chakra, but to a sensor like Ken, it was child's play.

Jiraiya still didn't realize what was going on, so to him seeing a blind child sift through a stack of empty papers in front of a full classroom was still jarring.

The rest of the children didn't seem to pay any mind to that anomaly, they just quietly waited for their teacher with smiles etched upon their faces.

Jiraiya couldn't help but sweat at that scene, it honestly felt as if the children were well and truly brainwashed.

He had yet to meet one of them that had any semblance of a negative emotion towards the Dark Brotherhood or Ken himself, and that was a tad concerning.

To any outsider who hadn't spent enough time there, the young members of the Dark Brotherhood sure seemed to be brainwashed.

No one could blame an outsider for making that mistake. Kazue had also thought so at first. But he did realize at some point that there was no brain washing within the Brotherhood.

'They're just being treated well and are acting accordingly...' That was the conclusion that the Uzumaki Seal Master had reached after all the time he had spent within the Brotherhood.

Of course, Jiraiya didn't really think that Ken was the one pulling the strings in that sense.

'He may be strong, stronger than anyone here... But I doubt he is experienced enough to pull something like this off... Maybe one of the blades is controlling the organization behind the scenes?'

The Toad Sage's mind immediately went to the three Blades that were present in the back.

The first one was just standing in place, still like a pillar while observing the classroom through his mask.

Although he was standing there, and Jiraiya could see him, his presence was fleeting, almost as non-existent as that of Ken himself.

It was hard for Jiraiya to tell what was on his mind.

The Second Blade looked a lot more casual. He seemed to be sipping on some tea, he had seemingly made a small hole in his mask for that specific purpose.

He was sat down on one of the seats in the back, his figure smaller than that of the first, less eye-catching, but certainly still intimidating to Jiraiya.

Although his presence seemed more pronounced, he also gave the Toad Sage a creepy feeling. The type that made one thing clear... 'I don't want to get involved with this one.'

The Third Blade was the most confusing, however.

He was also sat down, his legs resting on the desk in front of him as his arms were crossed and head tilted backwards.

He seemed to be... Snoring?

'Hmm... I guess the one behind the brainwashing would either be the First or the Second... Or maybe the Third is actually secretly a genius as well? It's really hard to tell...'

As Jiraiya continued musing and trying to get a better read of the situation, the lesson also started.

"Last time, we talked a bit about the theory behind Nature Energy, what it is, how it functions and the effects it may have..."

The Blind Monster's voice was quiet and imposing, it demanded attention, and Jiraiya was immediately broken out of his trance as his eyes settled on the lecturing teacher.

"I'm sure that many of you have already tried it, right? To get a feel of the Nature Energy around you, to try and sense it."

Although the lesson was directed towards the children, Jiraiya still couldn't help but pay attention. He had already agreed to attend the lessons, so he was going to at least try and make the most of them.

"Yep yep~ Teacher's description of this Nature Energy was really cool! 'The blood of the world itself' There's no way we wouldn't at least try to sense it!" Yue clapped her hands, happily responding to her master/teacher.

Many of the children present nodded at her words, Tatsukio and Morita included. N0v3lTr0ve served as the original host for this chapter's release on N0v3l--B1n.

Ken had been quite blunt during their past lecture. He made it very clear that Nature Energy was far superior to Chakra in terms of the raw power it provided its users.

Although it was a completely different type of energy from chakra, and it couldn't quite be moulded the same way Chakra could be, it was still similar in many ways.

And when it came to raw power, there really was no comparing the two of them.

Ken's words were like a bucket of cold water amidst a heat wave. Everyone was already stressed out due to the pressure, but hearing Ken's voice calmed them down greatly.

And it also motivated them.

They couldn't lose it. They couldn't lose the chance to be taught by Ken personally.

Morita grit his teeth as he forced himself to crawl forward, he was the first among the students to take a step.

Before anyone could even blink, a slight gust of wind passed through the classroom, and the First Blade was already standing by Ken's side, his arms held behind his back as he stood there silently.

Jiraiya's eyes widened once more when he noticed that.

Not only at the fact that someone was able to withstand Ken's pressure so quickly, but also because of his speed.

"Haaah~" A loud yawn was heard next, as the Third Blade was seemingly woken up from his nap. He looked around confused for a moment before shrugging and walking forward like nothing was happening.

He seemed to also not be in any rush. He just kept his hands behind his head as he yawned and walked through the pressure, he eventually reached the podium without any issue and just sat down by Ken's side.

"Seems like someone's been fed well..." The Second Blade slowly put his teacup down as he also stood up, he then vanished from his spot and reappeared behind Ken as well.

He seemed to have just used the Body Flicker technique.

'Holy shit... This place really is filled with monsters...' Jiraiya couldn't help but sweat.

He wasn't sure if the exercise applied to him as well. But he damn well didn't want to appear any weaker than the Blades.

So he immediately started running towards the podium as well.

His speed was good, certainly not any lesser than that of the First Blade. And he made it through the aura wave as he overcame his fear of it.

He was a Legendary Sannin for god's sake, he wasn't going to allow himself to be outdone by some masked wackos in a bounty-hunting organisation.

In the end, the children also bore through the pressure. Their eyes were resolute, their minds fearless.

After all, why would they ever fear their father? The trust they placed in him was greater than anything. So there was no need for any of them to worry about getting injured.

So they just trudged ahead.

Morita was first to reach the podium, crawling onto it and lying down while panting with a smile on his face.

The next to reach it was Tatsukio, he simply dashed towards it, flying through the air in a few straight angles before landing behind his teacher in a crouched position, well, he was mainly supporting himself on his arms as his one leg was crouched down.

After that, it was Yue's turn to show off her skills. She immediately used her Sowing Needle to extend a dozen or so threads onto the stage, and she pulled herself towards it using them.

She did try to 'accidentally crash' into her teacher, but Tosho 'fortunately' caught her by the scruff of her neck and dragged her away to a corner of the podium, where he placed her down like one would a puppy.

After that, the rest of the students also managed to cross onto the podium, although at a slower pace than their more talented classmates.

However, in all fairness, many of them were situated more to the back of the class, which also made things more difficult for them.

Overall, Ken was very pleased with the results of the test. Many of the children seemed now to be more aware of the Nature Energy around them.

All of them could now, at the very least, sense Ken's aura even when he was not bothering to use it actively.

Of course, this was as long as Ken wasn't bothering to hide it.

Still, that was very good progress in itself.

As for Ume... Well, she had just managed to become Ken's third personal disciple within the Brotherhood.

Ken was going to be giving the little girl a lot of extra lessons, to allow for her overwhelming talent to bloom and shine thoroughly.

'Hmm, yes. Things seem to be going quite well...' Ken couldn't help but smile as he finally reached his office after a long day.

He sat down, and the second he did so Tosho was already entering his room, with a letter in his right hand.

"Master, it seems that we've received a request for help from a rather large group of Orphans within the Land of Rain..."

"... More work, huh?" The assassin just sighed as he slumped into his chair.

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Hope you liked the chapter!

I'm tired af, so I'mma just finish uploading and go to sleep

Story Shoutout: The Final Desperation

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