Chapter 138: The Light, The Shadow, and That One Kid Who Won’t Shut Up

Chapter 138 - The Light, The Shadow, and That One Kid Who Won’t Shut Up It was only the next day, after Ren woke up in the morning, that he finally looked at the newly gained special stat: Charisma (CHA). On the status screen, a newly added column had appeared after the regular attributes. It was titled Special Stats, and there was only one stat listed in it: CHARISMA (CHA): 52 He looked at it for a moment and asked the system in his mind, System, what are the special stats? What is the use of this stat, and what does the 52 in charisma mean?' Even though he already had a few guesses, it was better to get everything confirmed directly. The system responded quickly: [SPECIAL STATS, UNLIKE NORMAL ATTRIBUTES, DO NOT QUANTIFY THE USER'S PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE. THEY QUANTIFY QUALITATIVE TRAITS AND HAVE NO DIRECT COMBAT EFFECT. 52 IN CHARISMA MEANS THAT THE USER'S ABILITY TO ATTRACT OR INFLUENCE PEOPLE THROUGH WORDS IS SLIGHTLY BETTER THAN A NORMAL JONIN. IT IS ADVISED TO CONTINUE EXPLORING THE STAT FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING.] Ren nodded as he read the message. 'As I thought, Charisma is just like in those other systems. I probably got this as a reward since I used my words to talk to Naruto or maybe, it was because of Naruto's inherently high charisma and ability to convert villains just by talking to them.' He tilted his head in thought. 'Either way, this could be useful in the future. Higher charisma means people will be more willing to listen to me.' He looked back at the system's explanation. 'But this is also a bit confusing. Charisma doesn't necessarily relate to rank or strength, though those things are a part of it too. Naruto himself is the best example, despite being just a genin, his charisma was through the roof.' He continued mentally, 'I guess what the system said is right. My charisma is just better than a 'normal' jonin. A jonin with this level of influence might sway genin and chunin, but tokubetsu jonin would be harder to convince without status or strength. Same applies to me. My fight with Itachi means my face is known to some, but the only ones who'll listen to me easily will be academy students, genin, and maybe some chunin.' He gave a thoughtful hum. 'This reward is somewhat unexpected. Never thought there could be anything beyond the basic stats. But it's a good addition. Though I don't really need charisma right now, it might become useful later on.' 'Still, if I want to increase it, I have to talk to people.' He paused. 'Wait, that came out weird. What I mean is, if I want to increase my charisma, I need to influence people. Lead them. Make them willing to listen to me. Is that it?' A sudden thought struck him. 'Then Hiruzen must have the highest charisma in the entire village.' He asked again, 'System, are there any other special stats?' [YES] '...That's it?' he thought, disappointed. 'Well, not like they help in direct combat. They're just quantifications of my personality and reputation.' With that, he closed his status screen and got ready. Today was another mission day. ~~~ After finishing his morning routine, he left for the command base. Upon reaching, he headed directly to Yoru's office and knocked. "Come in," came the response. Ren pushed open the door and stepped in. He was about to greet Yoru as usual, but something felt off. He paused. 'He seems in an unusual mood.' Ren noted internally. Still, he spoke, albeit cautiously, "Hey Commander! You got any missions for me?" Yoru didn't respond immediately. He continued working, flipping through papers, scribbling, signing documents. It was a long, silent 25 minutes before he finally spoke. "I'm assigning you a combination mission," he said flatly. "It will be a long-term S-rank mission that'll keep you out of the village for the next six months to one year. During that time, your task is to eliminate rogue ninja camps spread throughout the Land of Fire. Each camp you destroy will count as a separate A-rank mission. Additionally, for every ten A-rank-level rogue ninjas or infiltrators you eliminate, that will count as one A-rank mission. Understood?" Ren stayed silent, processing the information. Then, after a moment, he asked, "Boss-man, everything good?" Yoru paused, then motioned for Ren to sit. Ren obeyed. Yoru leaned forward and began in a serious tone, "What has your father told you about the man named Danzo Shimura?" Ren's eyes narrowed. The name took him slightly by surprise, but only slightly. 'Is he going to tell me about Danzo, finally?' He answered calmly, "He told me to be cautious of that man, but not afraid. That I should stay away from him as much as possible." Yoru nodded. "Do you know why?" Ren tilted his head slightly and thought, 'I know way too much, but I'm not supposed to know.' He shook his head and said, "No, he didn't tell me why." Yoru's tone turned instructional. "When the Second Hokage established the ANBU, he also set up a foundational training program called Root. It was meant to train shinobi who would later be inducted into the ANBU. Root was essentially an academy, but for black ops." Ren nodded as he listened, letting the pieces settle. "This continued for a few years," Yoru went on, "until the Third Hokage took office. At that time, he changed recruitment policy. ANBU would start pulling from the regular academy, just like other departments. That should've ended Root's purpose, right?" Ren nodded again. Yoru's voice grew dark. "But it didn't. Root didn't end. It went underground, becoming more secret than even the ANBU. Their missions were things that even ANBU weren't allowed to touch. Things that, if revealed, would cause all the Nations to unite and destroy the Leaf." Ren remained silent, listening. "But that changed," Yoru continued, his tone darker now, "a few years into the Third Hokage's reign. The Root was under temporary leadership by Hiruzen himself, but after some... events, one of his friends, a shinobi who'd retired from active duty, took over Root permanently." Ren finished the sentence for him. "That man was Danzo." Yoru nodded grimly. "For a while, they operated as expected. The darkness covered the Leaf, protecting it from the outside. But as the saying goes, 'If you stare too long into the abyss...'" Ren finished the thought in his mind: '...the abyss stares back.' Yoru spoke once again. "Danzo stayed in the darkness for too long. It changed him. His mind twisted. He became obsessed with the Hokage seat, and slowly, the things he did, while still 'for the village,' began crossing even the baselines set by the darkness itself." He leaned forward, his voice low. "And no one stopped him. Bit by bit, Root transformed. It stopped being the village's shadow arm. It became Danzo Shimura's personal force." Yoru continued, his tone calm but edged with bitterness, "By the time the others got to know what was going on, it was already too late. They approached the Third Hokage, of course, but due to Danzo being his old friend, Hiruzen didn't say much. He simply reduced the scope of Root's activity. A symbolic gesture, one that left many others deeply dissatisfied." Ren leaned in slightly, listening with complete attention. "But no one could really act," Yoru said, voice steady, "because the Third was always backing him. His shadow gave Danzo room to move unchecked. This imbalance continued all the way up until the time came to select the Fourth Hokage. Orochimaru was the most obvious candidate at the time, talented, powerful, a war hero, but there were whispers. Unclear connections between him and Danzo. People were suspicious." Yoru gave a dry chuckle. "But the turning point came when Hiruzen chose not Orochimaru, but Minato Namikaze. The Jonin Council followed that recommendation, and Minato became the Fourth Hokage." Ren frowned slightly, "That must've pissed off Danzo." Yoru gave a nod. "You can't even begin to imagine. Since Danzo couldn't be the Hokage himself, he wanted someone who would listen to him to be the Hokage. The Fourth was no fool. He wasn't just a genius in combat, he was politically sharp too. Once he took office, he contacted all of his trusted connections, many of them people who supported his ascension and many who didn't, and they began working quietly behind the scenes to limit Danzo's influence. They cut him off from several major information routes and blocked his attempts to interfere with the ANBU." Yoru's tone darkened. "But somehow, Danzo found out. He didn't retaliate openly. He stayed quiet. But then..." he paused, his voice turning cold, "...just a short time after that, the Nine-Tails attacked the village." Ren's eyes narrowed sharply, his back straightening. "Does that mean?" Yoru shook his head slowly. "To this day, there's no concrete evidence. But every clan head, every single one of them, believes Danzo was involved. Even if he didn't orchestrate it, he used it. And once again, the Third did nothing." Ren's eyes tightened at the information. "This time," Yoru continued, "the other leaders had greater leverage. With the village in shambles and the Fourth gone, they forced the Third to take a step back. Even then, Danzo was only lightly punished. Root was shut down, but only for two years. That was all." Ren whispered, "Just two years." Yoru nodded. "And coincidentally, during those two years, the village saw one of its fastest recovery periods in history. Medical support stabilized. Mission success rates went up. Internal conflicts dropped. Of course, that excludes Orochimaru's defection, but still, Root being gone helped the village breathe." Yoru leaned back in his chair. "But once those two years were up, Danzo came back. And this time, he was hungry. He needed new manpower. For reasons no one knows, Hiruzen didn't allow him to recruit publicly. Maybe guilt. Maybe caution. Who knows?" Yoru's voice dropped into a growl. "And so Danzo turned to blackmail. Threats. Manipulation. He forced or cornered geniuses into joining him. He revived his force built entirely on shadows, shadows that bled our village dry." Ren sat silently, absorbing the flood of new information. This wasn't like the anime or manga. This was raw. Messy. Real. "There are countless atrocities I could list," Yoru said, "but that's not the priority right now. What matters is this, thanks to your little 'incident' with Naruto Uzumaki," he glanced at Ren, "I found an opportunity to corner Danzo. He was forced to suspend 60% of Root's operations for a full year." Ren's eyes widened. "You managed that?!" Yoru nodded calmly. 'So that's why he was in such a strange mood yesterday.' Ren realized. 'He's planning something massive. If I support him, maybe, just maybe we can eliminate Danzo for good. And the rewards, the rewards would be something else entirely.' Yoru's voice broke his thoughts. "You, Ren, are also a top-priority target for Root. Your abilities, they make you dangerous to him. So you need to be extremely cautious. But with Root weakened, you now have a window, a year. During this year, go out. Complete missions. Eliminate camps. Kill infiltrators. Get stronger. Earn your Jonin promotion. After that, I'll tell you more." Ren leaned forward. "Commander," he asked with a grin, "do you want me to kill Danzo?" Yoru stared at him. Ren's eyes practically glowed with excitement. "...No," Yoru replied, finally. "The darkness must be handled by the darkness. You're not to stain yourself with that." Ren frowned slightly. "Your role is different," Yoru continued. "During this year, I'll send ANBU squads to you for joint ops. You'll lead them. Gain their respect. Build your reputation. When the time comes, I want the Leaf's elite to see you as a capable leader." Ren opened his mouth to speak, but Yoru cut in. "I know you don't want to be Hokage. I'm not asking for that. But I am asking you to be the light." Ren blinked. "The light?" Yoru nodded. "When the people begin doubting the Third due to his connection with Danzo, they won't trust the old faces anymore. They'll want someone new, someone clean. Someone strong. Maybe a Hokage. Maybe a strongman. But someone they can believe in." He looked directly into Ren's eyes. "Ren, will you be that light?" Ren looked back, thoughtful. "As long as you don't try to force me into that stupid chair, I'm fine. But are you sure I'm the right one for this?" Yoru leaned back. "There is no 'right' one. I'll be giving this speech to a few others. Whoever does best, becomes the right one." Ren groaned. "Ugh. Can't believe I almost got swept up in your speech." He stood, brushing imaginary dust off his cloak. "But are you really ready for a potential fight with the Third Hokage?" Yoru didn't flinch. "If it's for the village, then not even the Hokage can be spared." Ren raised an eyebrow but nodded. "I'll go with your plan. But don't expect me to win against the Third, alright?" Before Yoru could respond, a side door opened, and three figures stepped into the room. One of them spoke immediately. "No one's expecting you to fight the Third Hokage, Ren Takahashi." Ren turned, his body which was ready for action relaxed. At the front stood Fugaku Uchiha, Mangekyou Sharingan faintly glowing. Beside him, yawning lazily, was Shikaku Nara, the Jonin Commander of Konoha. And behind them, stood Utakata, Ren's former sensei. Ren grinned. "Hello, sensei! Long time no see." Utakata gave a small nod, face calm as always. Yoru stood. "These," he said, "are some of the others involved in the plan to neutralize Danzo Shimura. Just Danzo. There should be no further mention of the Third Hokage unless we have confirmation of complicity. Understood?" Everyone nodded. Yoru looked at Ren. "Get your things in order. You leave in two days." Ren gave a mock salute and turned to leave. As he walked through the doorway, he called out cheerfully. "Bye Commander. Bye sensei. Bye cool Nara uncle. Bye leader of losers." The door slammed shut behind him. Inside, silence. Shikaku choked mid-yawn and began coughing, glancing nervously at Fugaku, whose face had turned red, nearly the color of his eyes, as he trembled in place. Utakata sighed, clearly used to his student's antics. Fugaku turned to Yoru. "Is that boy necessary to this plan? Can I not kill him? Right now?" Yoru exhaled. "I want to kill him every single day. But I've learned to hold back. You should too, it builds character." Utakata let out another long sigh. 'Just what did he do to make even the ANBU Commander like this?' he wondered. ~~~~~ {Planning, intense planning, but nobody knows the full plan, except me of course.} {Also, a new stat, I wanted to add the Reputation stat when he got his first bingo book entry but I really forgot, so I had to search for another chance and now we have Charisma stat.} {One more thing, I added and AUX Chapter to warn the new readers about the hole they're about to dive into, and I want you to comment there (there really isn't a bonus Chapter on the line, I swear)} {If you want, you can support me on pat-reon} { h t t p s : / / w w w . p a t r e o n . c o m / Z e e n o n } {Bonus Chapter : 200 Powerstones + 20 Comments in the AUX Chapter (Actual real comments)} {You know what else} {STONES!!!!}