Orochimaru was bemused and simultaneously annoyed that Kotetsu knew very little about Shikamaru but freaking out the weaker shinobi of Konoha was always an amusing past time for them.
However, it seems the surprises were still in store for them as Hiruzen-sensei arrived, looking the same as he had been back when Orochimaru had been 9 or 10 years old.
"Hiruzen-sensei, you're looking... youthful." Orochimaru complimented. No need to be rude to his old sensei after all.
Hiruzen-sensei beamed, reaching up to stroke his beard as he seemed to relish the full return of his vitality and youth.
"Thank you, Orochimaru. I must ask, what gender do you prefer and whose body are you inhabiting?" The Third Hokage asked honestly, no hidden disgust or loathing in his tone.
Orochimaru was rather confused. They knew their sensei. Hiruzen-sensei held very high value on the importance of life, the rules of nature, and so on. What had changed in the past twenty four years?
"I am a woman. Her/she pronouns are preferable, but ultimately gender is irrelevant in the face of understanding the universe and the glories of Science. This body was once named Guren. She held a unique earth affinity from birth known as Crystal Release. She willingly gave up her body in exchange for me taking in and caring for a young child I left back in the Sound village." Orochimaru said honestly.
Hiruzen-sensei nodded serenely. "I see. Very well. I believe we can set up accommodations for you and your guests. We have a lot to discuss, especially as no doubt you'll want to know a lot about the younger generation." Hiruzen-sensei alluded to Orochimaru's fascination/obsession/infatuation with Shikamaru Nara.
Orochimaru nodded shortly, correcting her sensei.
"Tayuya, Karin, and Aikemono are all gifts to be given to Shikamaru Nara. They are not my guests, more so his... new strays. They are all Uzumaki. Kimimaro Kaguya and the remaining Sound Four are my body guards, so they qualify more as my guests."
Hiruzen-sensei blinked and then gave a wide grin, his eyes glinting.
"Naruko will be pleased to know more of her Uzumaki heritage lives with us now, but she's out an a mission at the moment. I've heard Suna is missing their Jinchuriki, and Rasa is much more quiet than normal." Hiruzen mused aloud.
Orochimaru shrugged. "We came to a disagreement on certain subjects. Nonetheless, Suna will not miss what they never really valued."
The Third nodded as an ANBU appeared to guide the Uzumaki 'strays' to their new homes. Orochimaru and the rest of the Sound Four walked behind the Third Hokage through the village.
Orochimaru was rather puzzled. Her village was quite different. The villagers still looked terrified, but not of her and her guests.
Indeed, they pretended to be polite to the Hokage and her, even greeting her by name rather than her original moniker of 'Snake Whore'.
"Kabuto has been quite busy in T&I." The Third remarked lightly.
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow. "I've been informed. I must admit, while some of Naruko's circumstances are indeed poor, it wasn't all that different from me in my time."
The Third stopped walking, standing ramrod straight as he slowly took a deep breath.
"What exactly do you mean, Orochimaru?" Hiruzen-sensei's voice was strained, barely audible.
Orochimaru frowned. "Aside from the biological hazards, I had similar difficulties. I assumed you knew as a form of raising shinobi by being self-sufficient, to toughen us up from a very young age in the face of adversity. It was not uncommon for some of the weaker orphans or those who weren't able to learn alternative ways of survival to go missing or dying." Orochimaru pointed out bluntly.
"Why did you never say anything to me?" Hiruzen-sensei said flatly, still refusing to turn and look at Orochimaru.
Orochimaru tilted her head. "Why would I? It was much the same for all of the orphans of Konoha. I was more focused on mastering ninjutsu and honing my skills to avoid dying in the field."
The Third Hokage took a deep breath. "I'm going to kill him. I'm going to kill him, bring him back as an Edo Tensei, and then kill him again."
Orochimaru's eyebrows raised. "Who?" She asked curiously.
"Danzo." Hiruzen said curtly.
Orochimaru nodded. "I see. May we continue to your office? I'd like to read the reports on Shikamaru Nara. Kabuto has told me plenty, but it's not the same as official reports."
The Third nodded, speaking gruffly. "Of course. I'm sorry, Orochimaru. I had no idea you had similar struggles as Naruko." He said lowly.
Orochimaru shrugged. "It made me who I am today, Hiruzen-sensei. I do not regret it. Shinobi endure." She said with finality.
They continued toward the office, with Orochimaru noticing that Kimimaro looked furious as the other Sound Four looked uncomfortable. She wasn't sure why, as it had nothing to do with them.
Zabuza stared at his sword.
Or rather, what remained of his sword. The blonde girl had, instead of ducking like the rest of the squad guarding the bridge builder, created chains made of chakra that grabbed his sword out of the air and shattered it into several pieces.
The handle of his sword flung itself into a nearby tree, and he was deeply unhappy to be holding his now useless sword hilt.
"Shit." He summarized bluntly.
Kakashi stood up from his duck, nodding in approval. "Good job, Naruko." As the white haired ninja turned to Zabuza, smiling cheerfully.
"I believe you just tried to kill one of my kids." Kakashi Hatake, the fucking Copy Cat Ninja, Iwa's Bane, and the killer of the previous Five Tails Jinchuriki said cheerfully.
Zabuza knew right then and there that he wasn't getting paid enough.
"I surrender. I am not being paid enough for this shit. Haku, get the fuck over here. That's an Uzumaki, and she's probably got several Shadow Bomb Clones ready to jump you by now." He raised his hands to the air while letting the hilt fall to the ground.
Haku appeared minus her usual disguise of pretending to be a Kiri Hunter Ninja, standing beside Zabuza while her hands were up to show she was unarmed.
Kakashi Hatake pouted. "Damn. I was hoping to show off a bit to my kids. Naruko, bind them and suppress their chakra. No interrogation. They're playing nice, unlike the Demon Brothers."
Zabuza winced as his chakra was wrenched out of his grasp, buried so far out of his reach that it would take a couple hours until he could use jutsu again after the chains stopped touching him.
Haku moaned, and Zabuza had to repress a twitch. He didn't need to hear his daughter in all but blood getting turned on out of being weakened and tied up.
The Uzumaki, Naruko, he noted to remember her name, gave a quiet sniff and her face flushed.
"The one in a... kimono?, she's definitely more cooperative. For reasons." Naruko whispered to Kakashi Hatake, who nodded.
"Good work, Team 7. Now I'll go over procedures in how sometimes you can hire cooperative missing ninja during missions. Sometimes we can even bring them into Konoha properly, if several conditions are met."
Kakashi Hatake was training Genin. Genin who were able to take Zabuza and Haku with ease and disarm them.
Zabuza almost pitied the fools who thought Kakashi's kids were easy pickings.
Almost.
Orochimaru scanned every page, every document, with a hunger she hadn't felt since she'd discovered the Self-Incarnation Body Transfer Kinjutsu. Shikamaru Nara had appeared unremarkable right up until he graduated from the Academy. Then it seemed as though he had an unheard of mutation in the Nara Bloodline that allowed him a level of control over space and time in the local area to such a degree that Shikamaru was considered an S-rank Genin.
Orochimaru knew right then and there that it was bullshit. No person can attain mastery over such complex abilities almost immediately, even with just instinct alone. And the fact that the abilities he wielded did not use Chakra at all, indicated that this had nothing to do with the Nara Clan.
"What do you know of how the Impure World Resurrection works, sensei?" Orochimaru asked as she continued to look through each report by Asuma Sarutobi.
"It functions by using a living vessel that sacrifices the soul, to call back a soul from the Pure Lands." Her sensei said bluntly. "That's all I know."
Orochimaru chuckled.
"Time is... different to those in the Pure Lands. To be specific, it does not exist. To the resurrected, no time has passed since their deaths. They have no recollection of the Pure Lands, and thus, no memory of the afterlife. My theories have ranged from some filter that removes memories of the afterlife to those who enter this impure world, to the idea that the dead don't recall the afterlife because there is no afterlife at all. However, this, this beautiful person, proves what I've been desperately seeking for so many years."
Their sensei tilted their head. "I don't follow." He said flatly.
"That there are other realities that do not rely on chakra. That there are entire dimensions filled with souls, experiences, and memories that have nothing to do with chakra. Above all else, I have been seeking an impossible variable: a person who has not yet been reliant on chakra alone. If chakra is derived of all living things, what happens if chakra disappears from the world? Everything dies. I needed a control variable, something to compare to, in order to ensure that even having my chakra torn from me does not kill me. More importantly, chakra is not natural. It cannot be: the genetic variances for chakra all appear at the same time across all the species I've studied, across the entire continent, all at the same time, everywhere, simultaneously after life has already branched off into different evolutionary sectors. And this mutation has led to further mutations in the evolution of life, as all life is now utterly dependent on this new source of energy."
Their teacher's eyes widened. "Then that means..." The Third's voice trailed off.
"That chakra was not merely a mutation over time. This was a deliberate action by something, or someone." Orochimaru said with a dark satisfaction, and an undertone of concern.
The Third's eyes closed, his face paling slightly. "Fuck." Her teacher said succinctly.
Orochimaru nodded. "Yes. It's a bad situation, sensei, if something or someone is deliberately letting us grow dependent and then prosper off of an alien source of an energy. We're being harvested." Orochimaru hissed, her yellow eyes flashing angrily.
"Yet, you think Shikamaru has an answer to this clusterfuck." Her sensei said quietly.
Orochimaru's smile widened, as she felt more excited than she'd felt in years. "Absolutely! Abilities that do not require chakra means that Shikamaru is a once-in-a-millenia mistake on this whole thing. Shikamaru Nara is definitely using some form of energy, as Asuma had felt his 'hair stand on edge' when Shikamaru Nara used his 'Cursed Technique: Lapse Blue'. A technique that does not use chakra, no hand seals, but using a vocal chant in order to empower his technique means something. It means Shikamaru's abilities are running off of an entirely different energy source."
She shook in place, her hands shaking as she set down the folder on his desk as she leaned in to her teacher, so excited she could barely contain herself.
"Shikamaru Nara may have been born here, sensei, but his soul is not. The ease of his abilities, his sudden mastery over this new energy, and his ability to understand space-time on a level even the Second Hokage would be confounded by, all makes sense if it means he's from another dimension entirely. A true reincarnation from one of the other realities not dependent on chakra! Forget simply the sheer endless advantages this gives Konoha and us, think about the sheer implications of what that means!"
The Third stared at her as she practically drooled, her eyes glowing as she trembled with excitement. She didn't even let him keep talking.
"It means that we know for a fact that other realities exist simultaneously with ours, and that there might be an infinite number of those realities. How many realities do you think there are where your wife is still alive, sensei? How many realities do you think there are where immortality and enlightenment for our species isn't simply just a possibility, but a certainty? How many realities do you think it'd be where I have a fam-"
Orochimaru immediately stopped talking. Her yellow eyes so wide and vibrant turned cold and flat, and she closed her eyes hard.
Her sensei said nothing, his face contorted in grief as he knew better than to give his student empty platitudes.
Eventually, she opened her eyes and took a deep breath. No, no tears. Science is far more important than petty emotions, and I had long since gave up having a family in the pursuit of enlightenment and immortality.
"Do you think Shikamaru is aware of this?" The Third Hokage asked her, blatantly trying to change the topic. She nodded gratefully for a moment before giving a 'sort-of' gesture.
"Of the infinite possibilities and realities, is iffy, but at the very least of one other reality where he had honed and mastered his abilities, almost certainly. As it is, even if he's unaware of the gold mine that his soul, body, and mind truly is, he is above all else, a new perspective on how our universe operates. He may have knowledge or ideas on how to do things that we may have never even considered, let alone followed up on."
"Shikamaru Nara is a big stickler for contracts, so you may need to sign one if you want to consider actually experimenting on him with his consent." Her sensei said bluntly.
Orochimaru snorted. "Likely another 'outer' ability that uses the signatures of those who signed to make a voluntary contract self-binding and absolute. I'd have done the same myself almost immediately if it was an option." She paused, hesitating.
"Sensei, I see no other for me." She reluctantly spoke. "I am not one for emotions, but this man, this wonderful man, is proof that I had dedicated my life to something worth pursuing. That my immortality does not end with me bored for all eternity after I've figured out how chakra works. This wonderful man has made me realize that not only are all my dreams not only possible, but in some realities, a certainty. As a scientist, he is the one for me. There is no other. I love him, and I haven't even met him. There is nothing I would not do, nothing I would not sign, for this opportunity, and for me to meet this wonderful man." She said with finality.
The Third stared at her for a long moment. "I see." He slowly nodded before shaking his head briefly. "Well, I can't see from your perspective on such matters, but I will absolutely bring Shikamaru here to meet you and the rest of the Sound Four guards. It wouldn't do for him to be caught off guard. As it is, he is in a very loving relationship with Naruko, a young woman named 'Menma' that looks startlingly like Naruko, and likely several others. I hope that doesn't hinder you."
Orochimaru snorted, waving a hand. "Bah. Please. He's been raised in our customs. Strong shinobi like him will be crawling with more women than he knows what to do with, and things of that carnal nature do not interest me nearly as much as others who are controlled by their genitals would be. I'll gladly bear his children, if he honors me to carry them, but I will not be so easily swayed by others in his romantic life to be pushed away in the glories of Science!"
Orochimaru paused. "Did you just say a woman that looks startlingly like Naruko Uzumaki, the Nine Tails Jinchuriki?" She asked carefully.
The Third nodded. "Yes."
Her eyes lit up with hunger. "He's already begun studying and entering other universes. Likely a mirror of our own, if he was able to bring back an individual from an extremely similar reality. Oh, the questions, the studies, the ideas!" She did not squeal. She did not! She was more dignified than that!
[Orochimaru. The Snake Sage. Love Confession. +50.
Tsunade Senju. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Gaara [Aikemono]. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Tayuya Uzumaki. Signed and Sealed Capture. +12.
Karin Uzumaki. Signed and Sealed Capture. +6.
Mabui. Signed and Sealed Capture. +12.
Samui. Signed and Sealed Capture. +12.
Karui. Signed and Sealed Capture. +12.
A [Third Raikage]. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Sasori. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Kakuzu. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Deidara. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Hidan. Signed and Sealed Capture. +12.
Yugito Nii. The Jinchuriki of the Nibi. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Killer Bee. The Jinchuriki of the Hachibi. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Third Kazekage. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Hanzo. The Former Leader of Amegakure. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
The King of Hell. Signed and Sealed Capture. +120.
Ginkaku and Kinkaku. The Gold and Silver Brothers. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
Gengetsu Hozuki. The Second Mizukage. Signed and Sealed Capture. +30.
633 Credits Remaining.]
White Zetsu in combination with Yakumo's Bloodline was absolutely terrifying when combined with the prowess of Itachi Uchiha's ocular jutsu. Alongside the most recent summoning of the dead that some of the white Zetsu had pillaged from the surrounding villages graveyards, and the result was absolutely worth the planning. That and Nagato summoning the King of Hell in order to compel it to sign the Contract he had in hand.
I had not expected a Love Confession from Orochimaru, but I had been operating under false information, thinking that she was still a man like in canon. This was not the case.
Being the two had been discussing about me, and had said my name, I had immediately became aware of the conversation and those involved, especially as the Hokage had a subconscious fragment of me working in the background. All of my retinue did. Such was the nature and power of connections through Mama Mathers' power. This ability likely wouldn't work beyond the universe I was residing in alongside the universes I visited, as even the Shards were not omnipresent.
I was quite impressed by the sheer intelligence and capacity for learning Orochimaru had in this universe, as it seemed that this version truly had wanted to learn beyond simply the scope of the Rinnegan, as had been the original Orochimaru's obsession after meeting Pain.
That and the reasoning of how the Otsutsuki did their work, despite never meeting or even hearing about them. Very impressive stuff.
Karin bit her lip as she looked at me, her face flushed. No doubt that as a unique sensor, Karin was likely at least receiving some understanding of what I was capable of.
At over 600 Credits, I had a lot of Credits to spend.
[Warehouse District. -100.
Template Stacking I: Ryoumen Sukuna [Jujutsu Kaisen] for Orochimaru. -20.
Template Stacking I: Gray Boy/Nicholas [Worm] for Orochimaru. -40.
Template Stacking I: Alucard [Hellsing] for Orochimaru. -80.
Template Stacking I: Trafalgar D. Water Law [One Piece] for Tsunade Senju. -20.
Template Stacking I: Katara [Avatar] for Tsunade Senju. -40.
Template Stacking I: Shanks [One Piece] for Rock Lee. -0. Reincarnation.
Template Stacking I: Taylor Hebert/Skitter/Weaver/Khepri [Worm] for Shino Aburame. -20.
Template Stacking I: Toph Beifong [Avatar] for Aikemono [Gaara]. -20.
Template Stacking I: Jack Slash/Jacob [Worm] for Menma Uzumaki. -20.
Template Stacking I: Bonesaw/Riley Grace Davis [Worm] for Menma Uzumaki. -40.
Template Stacking I: Sir Crocodile [One Piece] for Shukaku/Ichibi. -20.
Template Stacking I: Eneru/Enel [One Piece] for Fuu. -20.
Template Stacking I: Adam [Shuumatsu no Valkyrie] for Sayuri Uchiha. -20.
Template Stacking I: Tattletale/Lisa Wilbourn [Worm] for Kabuto Yakushi. -20.
Designer Babies III: -24.
Gone and Forgotten: -10.
Let Them Know: -10.
Paper Trail: -10.
Engineering Talent. -30.
Talent Sharing: -20.
Science Talent.
Engineering Talent.
29 Credits Remaining.]
Honestly, all of these purchases are pretty much overkill and using the Template Stacking credit sink is just way easier than trying to find some way to spend all the Credits into creating a demiplane.
All of this was very much just me wasting credits to also make myself even more broken than before, if it was even possible. Also, because I can. I just can, so I will.
I had not expected Rock Lee to be a reincarnation of Shanks from One Piece, however. That would explain his sheer willpower and his absolute insane capacity for Taijutsu, considering, you know, Haki is fucking broken in comparison to almost anything here in this universe.
Diving into the Social Club, I quickly started the cycle of empowering myself and everyone else with these new Templates alongside mastering them within Tsukuyomi.
Of course, now that we also had Gray Boy and Sukuna's Templates into the mix, in conjunction with Tsukuyomi, Social Club, the Butcher's Template, and so on, well, you can see how this quickly reaches absurd very quickly, yes?
Not to mention One For All and All For One became very interested in how Sukuna's ability to turn himself into Cursed Fingers allowed an acceleration and evolution into fully amplifying one's nature into a pseudo soul rather than simply a fragmentary consciousness as I initially suspected. It was a shame that Kenjaku, for some odd reason, was not available as a Template for power, but that just meant going to Jujutsu Kaisen and getting the first Kenjaku Template was just that much more valuable in the future.
That didn't even begin to cover the synergies between the various Templates that were now in my possession.
I dare say I might have become a TX Entity without technically becoming one, as you are required to have obtained a TX Ticket before you become such an entity as far as the Company was concerned.
Which is why the moment I returned to myself, I appeared next to Nagato, who had summoned the Gedo Mezo. I stamped it, the large wooden 'statue' not reacting in the slightest.
The three days starts now.
Finally, Wendy growled in my ear, you've been frustratingly patient and putting off my task until now. In three days, I'll finally get to eat the pathetic shadow and mount you. You have no idea how much you've been teasing me, leading everyone along since the beginning.
I shrugged. Work before play, Wendy, work before play; it's still two months until the Chunin Exams anyway. By my calendar, I'm still early. I've even left most of Kumogakure's forces, and A, alone so that way you get a feast when they get stupid enough to try and invade us.
The feeling of a cold yet hot sensation crossed the back of my neck as I felt more than saw Wendy lick the back of my neck hungrily.
You tease too much, Meraki. Better pray that your soul and body can handle me. Wendy purred.
I tilted my head. Isn't the best part of the hunt being the chase, the back and forth between a predator and it's prey? And what makes you think that I'm the prey? What if you are my prey, Wendy? I asked mentally as I began to vividly imagine what I would do to her if given half the chance.
Wendy gave a low moan in my ear. Promises, promises. Then, I will be waiting for you in the forest, Meraki. Hunt me, track me down, pin me down, and then 'devour' me. Wendy purred lustfully as I growled, feeling her hands reaching to grope me briefly under my pants before she vanished.
[Template Stacking I: Morgan Yu [Prey] for Fu Yamanaka. -20.
9 Credits Remaining.]
How do you deal with dimensional traversing beings like the Otsutsuki?
Answer: You create or bring something that eats sapient beings for breakfast that can traverse dimensions like we would entering through doors.
Morgan Yu is by no means unbeatable. The protagonist of Prey has died countless times in the simulations that makes up the game. Each iteration different than the last. Indeed, Morgan Yu is nothing in comparison to the really dangerous Entities like Scion or Eden from Worm. In fact, many would remark that this was just another waste of credits in comparison to the sheer daunting task of facing the Otsutsuki Clan on their home turf.
Except, there's a catch. In the final ending of Prey, it's revealed that the protagonist is not Morgan Yu at all. You are in fact a Phantom, a Humanoid Mimic given the memories of Morgan Yu and then placed under a simulation.
According to the Company rules, this means that the structure of the Template for Morgan Yu must cover every iteration of Morgan's abilities from every playthrough of the game, and everything else covered by the lore. For just like how the Bonecharms and powers of the Outsider were technically infinite in their scope and vastness, the nature of this Template would cover every possible iteration of Morgan Yu, not just the ones' shown in the game.
I had isolated Fu Yamanaka's mind from everyone else in the Social Club, using a mixture of Tsukuyomi, Kotoamatsukami, Gray Boy's Time Manipulation, Bonesaw's Wet Tinkering Specialization, the Butcher's Template, and got to work.
Admittedly, I took my time with this. Morgan Yu's abilities from the Typhon were fairly formidable in their own right.
It was absolutely worth the investment. To touch, is to be touched. The Template Stacking I grants the abilities of those it is Templated by, but the way each Template functions is based on the origin on how that Template's character operates. Bleach Characters are a Template on top of the soul, Alex Mercer is a Template of biology, and so on.
It even came as a surprise to me that I actually died in a few simulations, with Fu having been able to subtly influence and change Blacklight to creating a Weaver Network vast enough to summon the Alpha Typhon, as the young man's mind became consumed by the Typhon Hive Mind.
Not that it helped them. When a Butcher dies, the killer becomes the next Butcher. And thanks to all of my Defenses on top of [Immutable Self], that made me the new Alpha Typhon. With each death, I became exponentially stronger as all of Blacklight grew exponentially more powerful from the abilities of the Typhon. With each consumption, I became a little... more than human.
This was my answer to the Otsutsuki, for I had heard of them via osmosis through the internet in my time. That they were immune to jutsu, that one of them had even apparently ascended to the level of a God.
The Typhon Hive Mind and the Blacklight Hive Mind began to mix several decades in, with Blacklight eagerly co-opting the mechanisms of how the Typhon Hive Mind did not cut off in between dimensions, as all of the Typhon were in effect, one species, and one entity. An ever hungering, ever-evolving, sapience devouring species that hunted those who had the capacity for intelligence. A Mind Flayer would approve of such a species creation, even if the Mind Flayer would be horrified at the fact that the species did not have an over-arching goal. It simply ate and devoured because that's it's instincts, and nothing else.
With this, I could connect to my retinue across all local dimensions simultaneously. For the Typhon, dimensions are to them what doors are to us, mere flimsy barriers to food and resources to be opened at a whim.
This is where all of my other Templates began to shine. From Gray Boy, came the ability to iterate loops upon loops. From Bonesaw, came the wet tinkering that fully molded organic things into other things. Morgan Yu was no slouch either, as the man had made the Scanner that had allowed him to detect mimics and read their mental patterns to create new Neuromods.
Slowly, piece by piece, a new Typhon was born.
Toneri Otsutsuki knew that the time to depart down to earth was coming. His plans were slowly coming to fruition, and he'd already dealt with the other traitors. His time was soon at hand.
He stopped moving, a sensation he'd not felt before rising rapidly.
The stars were shifting, some of them vanishing and others seeming to warp around something.
His Byakugan saw nothing, even as he cast his gaze kilometers forward into space.
Something cold touched his neck, and Toneri screamed as something shoved itself down his throat.
The home dimension of the Otsutsuki was under attack. It was supposed to be impossible. The home dimension of Shibai Otsutsuki was guarded under His ever watchful gaze.
Yet that didn't stop this thing that ignored their attacks and abilities. Elder Otsutsuki, ripe off of the fruits of countless worlds, died in droves as the black tendrils seemed to ignore their screams, shoving itself into their throats and eyes, screaming as their minds, bodies, and souls were torn asunder and consumed by this creature, this infestation.
Urashiki had been the first to fall, screaming about some endless hunger in the dark, before some tendrils appeared to tear itself through the man, choking to death as he seemed to gaze at Momoshiki for help, who looked horrified.
Kinshiki had been next, the man's large frame with his weapons ignored as the beast seemed to eagerly consume the Otsutsuki. Then it split itself into eight copies of itself, all of whom seemed to turn toward Momoshiki, who immediately fled as fast as he could.
It didn't matter. The infestation proved relentless, and Momoshiki's cries for help died under the swift tide of the ever-hungering monsters.
Shibai Otsutsuki had no body to be devoured, and yet even He watched on helplessly as the infestation grew to devour his home dimension. These things even seemed to copy his Clan's bodies and minds, departing to enter dimensions and places where the Otsutsuki had been growing more fruits to be devoured. They were being eaten, harvested en mass, and there was nothing they could do to stop these mimics, these twisted copies of the Otsutsuki Clan.
It was just a moment too late when Shibai realized that something was watching Him watching them, and then He was silenced.
Isshiki Otsutsuki knew that the time was not yet right. The thing that called itself Black Zetsu was still crawling around trying to release the seal on it's mother, the traitor that had attempted to kill him.
He stiffened as the dimension he'd sealed off was breached, and he knew it was a moment too late as the blackened thing had grabbed his container and devoured them both simultaneously.
Across the local universe, the Otsutsuki Clan was discovered, eaten, and then dissolved. There was no one to hear their screams and pleas for help.
Their minds were torn asunder, their bodies carefully analyzed and then molded, twisted, into whatever the Typhon deemed necessary or useful to it's goals. The souls would not depart to an afterlife, for the Wendigo feasted on each one hungrily.
Only those deemed useful to the Alpha Typhon were deemed viable to be left alive within the Hive Mind, their bodies no more.
[Toneri Otsutsuki. 'Stamped'. +60.
Urashiki Otsutsuki. 'Stamped'. +60.
Kinshiki Otsutsuki. 'Stamped'. +60.
Momoshiki Otsutsuki. 'Stamped'. +60.
Shibai Otsutsuki. 'Stamped'. +600.
Isshiki Otsutsuki. 'Stamped'. +120.]
You spoil me. Wendy purred.
I snorted. Did you think I'd leave them to run around and mess with me and mine after I've left? No. They were doomed from the start. I merely waited until it was more convenient.
There was no way that any of the Otsutsuki stood a chance, especially once the Typhon got their hands on the Accelerator Template. Even Shibai was utterly fucked at that point.
Now there's only a few things left, and then I can truly start thinking about where to go for my next world. I haven't even looked at my Exit Stage Left app.
I paused, frowning.
What do I do with all these points now?
I sighed. Suffering from success.
Gato's death was too kind, as far as Team 7 were concerned.
With Naruko creating a few dozen Shadow Clones to go around slaughtering any bandits, mercenaries, and anyone else that seemed willing and complicit to Gato's operations, she still had more than enough chakra to participate in Kakashi's next lesson.
"Infiltrating enemy territory is arguably one of the most dangerous things you'll ever do as a shinobi." Kakashi lectured calmly.
The three Genin nodded simultaneously. That was obvious.
"One of the only things more dangerous for a shinobi is coming home." Kakashi continued.
"How?" Naruko asked flatly.
"Because as a shinobi, the feeling of safety and comfort of one's home leads to being careless. In fact, some of the best ways a Yamanaka Interrogator gets intelligence from captured ninja is to create a memory simulation of them successfully returning from a mission." Kakashi answered bluntly.
Sakura frowned, looking both upset and uncomfortable. "Aren't we supposed to be safe and comfortable in Konoha?" She asked uneasily.
Kakashi nodded. "Yes, however, safety and comfort does not mean you let your guard down. It doesn't mean you become paranoid either, as being in 'mission mode' as I call it can make you overreact to even the little things that can be explained with obvious answers. It simply means you keep your ears and eyes open, and then act accordingly. Higher level shinobi like myself do this subconsciously, and it's my job to tell you and teach you these things to help you survive and thrive."
Sakura relaxed slightly, nodding.
Sayuri frowned. "Yet, we aren't on guard all the time. We slip up, we make mistakes. How can we keep ourselves alert and relaxed simultaneously when our mistakes can cost people their lives?" She pointed out.
Kakashi hummed thoughtfully. "True. Our mistakes carry consequences. However, scaring yourself into maintaining high alert state of mind doesn't work for long: eventually the mind will begin to fabricate signs, fabricate tells in your mind. You'll start thinking everyone is out to get you, and then you'll die because you'll be acting so paranoid that others will think you are becoming not just a danger, but a legitimate threat to those around you."
"Constant vigilance is important." Kakashi admitted briefly, but his tone was cautious. "Yet it will and can kill you. We rely on our fellow Konoha shinobi to know what they're doing in order to defend our homes as well. Even I cannot do everything. I would burn out. I nearly did."
"Are you okay?" Naruko asked seriously. Kakashi smiled.
"Yes, I am, Naruko. Thank you for asking. My friends Might Guy and Anko Mitarashi dragged me from the edge of burn out, and we do mental/emotional checks on each other. Once a week if we're in the village, and whenever we return from a mission. A successful mission check up is brief, but if a mission goes south or if we feel emotionally compromised, we have made it a rule that we cannot be left alone for at least a month outside of missions."
Sayuri looked confused. "Why would you admit such weakness?" She asked. After all, to admit such emotional instability was practically reputational suicide.
Kakashi tilted his head as he looked at her, chuckling after a moment.
"Sorry, kids. I forget that while you have the skills of a Jonin, you lack the mindset of one. The whole rules on how a shinobi should act that the Academy trains into you to memorize? It's pretty much garbage. Most of those rules are for the rank and file, the Genin, the Chunin. The followers, if you will. I'm not raising Genin. I'm raising future Hokages, future ANBU Captains, future SS-rank shinobi. I am the best of the best, and I expect the best of the best from my kids." Kakashi said matter-of-factly.
His three kids beamed at him, with Naruko hiding her sniffles and tears as she shook her head for a moment.
"In any case, the same major weakness of a shinobi being careless in their own territory, applies to most groups as well. Gato promised a lot of money to Zabuza and Haku. He's greedy, selfish, and, more importantly, short sighted. It's very unlikely he hired any other missing ninja."
Sayuri frowned. "How do we know that about the target? We haven't observed him, and he was willing to kill the bridge builder. He could be cautious and paranoid." She pointed out.
Kakashi smiled. "Very good, Sayuri. Don't take even my words at just face value: the higher up the promotion ladder you go, the more politics and subterfuge begin to mix. We know Gato is short sighted precisely because he's trying to kill the bridge builder."
The three blinked at him, lost.
Naruko's eyes lit up. "Oh! I get it!" She exclaimed quietly. "Gato could've waited until Tazuna built the bridge, killed him, and then turned it into a... toll... bridge?" She tilted her head as she looked at Kakashi to confirm.
"You got it, Naruko." Kakashi confirmed. "Much like how the Land of Fire requires all merchants to pay a fee to cross its territory, so does the ports. Gato could have simply started double dipping by charging any merchants leaving the Land of Waves by land through the bridge, making it exorbitantly more expensive for merchants to relieve their goods by boat and then shipped through caravan out to the Land of Fire. He's so focused on saving every yen and maintaining his monopoly that he's destroying what could be a serious, yet documented, source of income."
"Such a man would be very unlikely to spend even a yen more than he'd have to, meaning the odds of any missing ninja guarding Gato in what he assumes to be his own territory is slim to none, especially as missing ninja are not required to uphold a standard or ethics. Many missing ninja have no problems killing someone they think is beneath them and taking the money by force. Zabuza is a rare case of a relatively, by missing ninja standards, honorable ninja who will go through on the mission requests."
"So, we know where Gato's base is, Zabuza gave you a rough idea of the mercenaries in the area, and we know Gato is likely there. What's the plan?" Kakashi asked his kids.
The ideas varied, but all of them made Kakashi smile with a vicious pride.
His kids would slaughter the Chunin Exams, and he was absolutely excited to watch them in action.
This mission was turning into a gold mine as far as he was concerned. Opening his kid's eyes on the reality of fubar'd missions, the politics and rules regarding nations and missions, even getting to teach Naruko how to adopt Haku into the Konoha Registry as a Mercenary Ninja under her payroll later.
This mission was supposed to be a toe dip into the shallows, and it ended up being his kids diving into the deep oceans, and making it look easy.
He smirked as the memories of a Shadow Clone popped, the Clone observing Haku moaning Naruko's name as she tied herself up using her ice release to make icy copies of Naruko's Chains.
He made it a rule to not interfere with his kids' personal love life, but maybe he could introduce Naruko to the 'Beginner's Guide to BDSM'. She might need it.
[Template Stacking I: Misogi Kumogawa [Medaka Box] for Shikamaru Nara. -600.
409 Credits.]
Misogi Kumogawa is arguably one of the most double-edged swords you'd have to deal with as a Contractor. The man himself possesses an ability known as All-Fiction.
Anything he wishes can become 'fiction', erasing it from existence. This can range from mere objects to Absolute Concepts. In short, this ability is absolutely dangerous because it is absolutely vital on how one's mindset works. If someone with depression or an extremely low sense of self-worth obtained All-Fiction, they would erase themselves from existence permanently.
My original consideration had been for Medaka Kurokami, due to her immense amount of copied abilities and her own skills as [The End] and the Protagonist of the series, but I had decided against it as such an ability was likely better off for some of my weaker retinue later on. The amusement of raising a Tier 1 Character to an immediate Tier 10 with that sort of synergy was something I'd consider as an end-resort tactic if needed.
No, I went for Misogi Kumogawa because he was the Eraser to Prometheus. Creation and Destruction, at my will.
Arguably, Prometheus was more than capable of fulfilling the same functions as All-Fiction, but Prometheus had a limitation: it would only be effective where I or my retinue currently existed. Leaving the world of Naruto, for example, would render Prometheus unable to affect the world of Naruto if I and my entire retinue left the world.
All-Fiction, was the nuke to the precision scalpel of Prometheus. Even if I did somehow die a True Death, All-Fiction negated it as I'd be brought back later on. Much like those cartoon shows or anime with retcons, amusingly enough.
It was worth the 600 Credits, as the ability of All-Fiction would stay strictly with me. It would not be passed down through the same cycle of the other abilities. All-Fiction required strict control, as it had some serious consequences, since anything erased by All-Fiction could not be undone.
Well, sort of. It was odd that Misogi had thought All-Fiction had that limitation, because you could simply erase the erasure event from time in the local area, bringing it back from All-Fiction. It was an ability that relied on how one perceives and views the world around you.
Now the only way to die a 'True Death' was if the outward governing force on the multiverse I was in stopped spinning, since it was one of those few forces that I could sense was not influenced or affected by the power of All-Fiction.
Which tracks since if I recalled correctly, the anime of Medaka Box pretty much ended when Misogi erased the concept of colors from the series.
"Huh. I could actually achieve Madara's dream now." I mused aloud quietly to myself.
I want to sever the Fate of this world. A world of only victors. A world of only love. A world of only peace.
All-Fiction was more than capable. The ability to erase Concepts such as Hate, Corruption, and Greed was easily within reach.
I would not do it, however. Again, All-Fiction is a nuke option only. It cannot be so easily undone, and erasing such emotional concepts would have some extreme consequences.
No, my current plan of taking over the nobles and forcefully dragging this world into an era of peace through mutual interests, kicking and screaming if I must, was still the better option.
Now I wonder what would happen if I entered the world of Marvel now. I mused internally. The Infinity Stones are nothing in comparison to the power of All-Fiction. Even 'Snapping' me out of existence would be for nothing. One Above All and One Below All would be terrified of such an entity like myself if I truly showed myself.
For they would be powerless against All-Fiction rendering them meaningless. To box them out of their own multiverse.
My smile darkened as I chuckled lowly.
You played with the lives of countless living things in your endless chess games. Forcing you both to sit out and watch the current universes I enter, to be powerless to change things, to feel pathetically mortal like the people you used. Truly, there is no better punishment for the likes of you. For I know the Truth that you desperately seek to hide from them all: That there is no difference. One Above All and One Below All are One and the Same. Alpha and Omega. God playing with his children's lives for his own amusement. No, there is no escape from me if I enter your domains, for I will lock you out and make you watch as I clean up your failures.
This was the power of All-Fiction in the hands of a Contractor.
You are teasing me so much right now. Wendy growled lustfully in my ear. Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to always feel robbed because of all the stupid retcons and resets those multiversal entities do? I cannot believe I have to wait another 44 hours. You are a tease, Meraki! She whined.
I snorted.
You're just happy you won't have to hold back against me, since I can just return from Death. I replied mentally.
Absolutely! You have any idea how much it sucks to have to constantly hold back?! I can't even fully enter your world without increasing fatalities by 10,000%! You have any idea how much more backlogged work that is?!
I shrugged. I can fix that using 'April Fiction' to temporarily erase the concept of the extra fatalities for a full 'three minutes' though I am unsure how that applies to a Conceptual Entity like you. I mentally responded.
April Fiction only worked on local things, but creating a 'screw' to pin down Wendy in order to conceptually erase the extra baggage of death caused by her entering the world I was in, was well within the lines of possibility.
Stop. Teasing. Me! Gah! It's not fair! Yes, it would work, but my 'three minutes' in your terms would be three eons, three blessed eons of no extra fatalities of work. It would only be three minutes in your world's terms, as far as you're aware. I don't even know what to offer in your terms to make it an 'even deal' so to speak. I tilted my head.
What if I don't want anything from you for it? What if I just want to make it even easier, safer, and more convenient for us to be together? It just seems like an easy decision on my part.
I... Well, I... Fuck, that's actually really sweet of you. Stop making me feel things dammit! I don't know what to do with all these complicated positive emotions! Ugh! I'm going to have some tea with Persephone. I'll see you in 44 hours.
Have fun. I responded as the mental connection vanished.
I'm thinking I'll save on the rest of the Credits. Either for the X-blade purchase if I decide to save up for that Master Xehanort Template, or if I want to be silly and just fully buy out the Sweet Home Expansion [×25] so I can turn my Pocket Manor into a whole planet the size of earth. That'd be pretty cool.
Trajectory. Agreement. Would allow me to visit anywhere I want at any time, but then it feels like an end-game purchase since I would no longer feel obligated to complete the 'story' of any world I visited like how Exit Stage Left operates.
Nah, I'll enjoy the randomness of the Catalogue. It's not like I'm stuck with one option either, thanks to Pursued by a Bear giving me seven worlds to choose from.
It's not like I don't have an eternity or three to spend here anyway.
Huh. I paused as a thought entered my mind.
Should I give Wendy a permanent body? Between Ikigai and All-Fiction, it'd be possible. I'll have to ask her when she gets back. I wonder which Persephone she visited. The Hades Persephone is pretty nice, but the Riordan Persephone would also enjoy a cup of tea. Hmm.
AN: First major sex chapter, so let me know what you guys think. Tentacles, breeding, some light 'vore', if not really.
[Juubi. The Ten Tails. Stamped. +120.]
I immediately activated Body Tune-Up. The barely present chakra exploded into existence as the Gedo Mezo began to reverse itself back into it's prime state.
Black Zetsu's yellow eyes only saw a glimpse of the Gedo Mezo shrinking, as Wendy eagerly grabbed the shadow, it's screams of defiance and despair silenced as the Black Zetsu was consumed by the Wendigo.
I love you, Meraki. You know where I'll be. Find me. Hunt me. Claim me. Wendy purred into my ear as she vanished.
[The Shinigami. The Puppet of True Death. +120.]
Kaguya opened her eyes, her calm face hiding the sheer turmoil of emotions under the surface. Having been sealed away by her two sons, having her chakra torn out of her body and then permanently mutilated, changed beyond recognition, she was barely even aware of the world around her.
She flinched as a screw appeared to bury itself into her hand.
"What... is... this?" She murmured slowly. She didn't even get a chance to say much else.
"[All Fiction]." She looked up at me as the screw vanished, a deep flush on her face as she slowly fell to her knees, one hand reaching up to tear open her shirt to expose her massive breasts to me, moaning loudly.
I had erased her ability to feel intense negative emotions toward me and mine.
And since I considered this world and everyone in it mine, she could no longer feel hatred or betrayal. As those were intense negative emotions.
"I love you. Fuck me. Breed me!" Kaguya moaned lewdly, shaking under another harsh orgasm.
To Hate is to negatively obsess over someone or something. To love, then, is to positively obsess over someone or something. Kaguya had grown to deeply resent and hate humanity, her sons, and had wanted to start over. She wanted to take back her chakra that had been stolen from the world, to make them all kneel before their rightful Mother, their Goddess.
Now she felt deeply in love with this world, and respected those in it who had done what they needed to in order to thrive without her guidance. Now she wanted to give back to the world that she had so deeply harmed unintentionally. Now she wanted them to soar, to be the best they could be, with or without her involvement.
This is the power of All Fiction. To turn even the greatest of villains, of monsters, and make them your allies and most trusted confidante with just a single command.
[Kaguya. The Mother Guardian of Shinobi. +300]
A different screw lodged itself into Kaguya's left hand, making her whimper as all of her chakra, all of her abilities, were disabled temporarily.
She moaned even louder as she spread her legs, her robes darkening as she clearly enjoyed being rendered powerless, not even able to do much more than move in place as she groaned.
"Fuck. Me. Please." Kaguya said breathlessly.
"For the next three minutes, you'll have no access to your powers and defenses. For the next three minutes, I'm going to use your body until you look like a well used slut." I said hungrily as I licked my lips.
"Then. Use me." She groaned as she weakly thrust her hips at me, her robes so utterly soaked that a puddle of her juices were beginning to appear at her feet.
"Good bitch." I purred as my form began to writhe, the flesh growing and shifting as Prometheus created an invisible dome over us. Three minutes of real time would last three hours inside the dome.
Her robes were torn apart, as the red and black flesh of Blacklight/Typhon wrapped themselves around Kaguya's limbs, lifting her into the air as she moaned.
Her juices didn't even touch the ground as Blacklight hungrily sucked up every drop that drooled from her pussy, the pale skin flushed as she wiggled weakly.
The first 'tentacle' of flesh dove itself into Kaguya's mouth, whose moans got cut off as she groaned, swallowing as much as she could of the most delicious liquid she had ever tasted in her two lives. She squirmed and groaned through the pulsing flesh in her throat as she felt so hot, so empty as she began to thrust her hips desperately at the air.
She whined as the flesh drooled more of the hot stuff all over her body, feeling the heat intensify until she felt like she was melting from how desperate she was getting.
The second tentacle eagerly pierced her pussy, the throbbing tendril hungrily burrowing itself firmly, and yet, slowly, in and out of her as her eyes, all three of them, nearly rolled to the back of her head as her back arched from intense orgasm back to back.
A third tentacle dove into her ass, something she had felt initial revulsion at the sensation of something poking her back there until she felt the pleasure triple, feeling so full and yet ever hungry for more as she groaned.
She spasmed from orgasm to orgasm. She could feel them all working together to drive her wild and she wanted to scream as the pressure grew and grew.
Until she crashed over the edge and felt her whole body seize up as she screamed as she went limp for a moment.
Yet still the tentacles continued and she felt whimpers escape her throat as she knew this was just the beginning. Her master would be breaking her in. Just like she wanted.
Chakra? Her sons? All that mattered was the intense pleasure and the knowledge that her master would surely knock her up over and over again. All that mattered was this moment, and nothing else.
She eagerly swallowed the intense wave of indescribably delicious liquid going down her throat, her legs twitching, her feet clenched, as she groaned in bliss as liquid heat poured into every part of her. Her alien womb, so unlike a human's, hungrily clenched onto the tentacle inside it, using her cervix to milk every drop as she could feel all four of her ovaries twitching, releasing several eggs so that way she could be turned into a proper breeding Otsutsuki.
No more harvesting fruits. No more trying to dominate the universe. All she was meant to do was to be her master's breeding slut, to give him countless children. The idea of spending the rest of her eternity just being this made her orgasms even more intense.
A while later, Kaguya found herself on a bed, her body and face a mess as she collapsed to rest, to recover as she found herself dreaming of giving ever more of herself to the world she had pledged to protect.
Wendy shivered. The forest no longer listened to her. Her shadows were unresponsive. The deaths of the world, for a brief moment, were no longer her concern nor her priority.
She whimpered as the ever forceful, ever relentless tide of unbridled Life poured through her forests, the tendrils relentless and ever hungering.
She knew that this was a Hunt. A Hunt with her as the prey, and there was no escape, there was no reasoning out of this. There was only the chase, and the act of being devoured.
She clenched her thighs as she knew she was drooling, the liquid arousal from her form not even killing the tentacle below.
Her eyes widened as she moved to leap up, only for the tentacle to grab her by her leg and pull her down into the earth as it yawned open.
Her eyes gazed up at the sky of her forests, a sensation of pride and annoyance of having been caught and defeated so utterly in her own forests dashed as the ground sealed up above her.
The many tentacles filled with hunger and life, black and red flesh rippling and writhing, seemed to cover every part of the surface she could see, and then she barely spotted him.
Meraki's glowing dozens of eyes blinked at her at different intervals, a mouth gaping open with different teeth of various sharpness and angles, and several hands pulling her toward her fate of being consumed and utterly fucked by him.
She couldn't even moan as a large tongue shoved itself down her throat, her legs wrenched open as several tentacles buried themselves into the warped body of the Wendigo, a screw forcing itself into her hand that briefly cut her off from the deaths of the multiverse.
She had lost the Hunt, and was being claimed utterly. She loved every moment of it as, for a brief moment, Death bowed to the relentless tide of Life and Meraki.
The air was clean, the skies looked clear, and the mountains below looked relatively peaceful.
"Sorry, Kumogakure. I've decided to cut this short. Forgive me for not giving you the send off you deserve, being a village of the Great Five, but I have to confess, this tiptoeing around while seeing if any of you do anything interesting is starting to get boring." I commented lightly to no one in particular.
Seriously. Why would Kumogakure think they would be able to face Konoha on their own? They didn't even send any messages or invitations to Orochimaru, which is quite rude since as far as they know, she was chomping on the bit to do some damage to her former village of origin.
How foolish. Regardless, I've decided that simply waiting for the Chunin Exams is just not in the cards any longer. I'm done waiting, and now I will erase this pathetic village, to the point where not even the mountains will remain.
I cast my voice through the entire village with Genjutsu.
"My name is Meraki, but those among you will know me as Shikamaru Nara, the S-ranked Genin from Konoha. I also go by Gojo Satoru, Accelerator, the Honored One, among other names and titles. However, citizens and shinobi of Kumogakure, that is not why I am speaking to you."
"I possess three jutsu, that all work together. Lapse Blue works by forcefully contracting the Space between objects. Reversal Red works by forcefully expanding the Space between it and the objects it touches. Hollow Purple does both simultaneously to the point that even the molecules and atoms that make up your bodies are torn apart."
"I'd say it's been fun, Kumogakure, but I'd be lying. Rejoice in the honor of having been annihilated by the Honored One."
Of course, the entire village erupted into action from the moment I began speaking, amusing me as I watched them all moving from around their mountainside village and the nearby areas, as none of them seemed to realize that I was above them all.
So, why did I explain this all to them?
Because I can, for one. And because it makes my abilities that much more deadly to those who know how they work, courtesy of how Jujutsu Kaisen's Power System operates.
"Phase, Twilight. The Eyes of Prajna. Maximum Cursed Technique: Lapse Blue."
My hand outstretched below, as my face stretched wide in a vicious grin. The blue sphere hummed in the air for several seconds, shouts of alarm and worry echoing from the village below as they finally looked up.
Too late. The blue sphere roared out of my hand, the sphere immediately growing and expanding to double it's size for every second it fell.
Jutsu of various lightning styles, some water, and even some fire style jutsu all collided desperately against the massive blue sphere that had grown to the size of their tallest buildings, and yet was still nowhere near landing.
As the sphere grew to encompass the size of the entire major village on the mountainside, the shinobi below seemed to realize that their attacks were ineffective, and I could see them all scurrying away like ants from the rain.
There is no escape.
"Phase. Paramita. Pillar of Light. Maximum Cursed Technique: Reversal Red." My other hand outstretched to fire what would seem like a beam of red light to most shinobi rather than the immensely dense red orb that it actually was, speeding rapidly toward the now immense blue orb as it was merely a second or two from touching the village. It was easily the size of four times the size of Kumogakure by this point.
The red orb met the edge of the massive blue orb, and the blue orb, for a brief moment in time, turned purple.
"Nine Ropes. Polarized Light. Crow and Declaration. Between Front and Back. Maximum Cursed Technique: Hollow Purple."
The purple orb flared, and the resulting energy exploded forth, the sheer energy so vast that in the distance, the seas rippled from the sheer shockwave of the blow.
After a moment, the white light dimmed and faded, as I could sense Wendy was eagerly collecting the thousands of souls not part of my retinue, the minds and souls of those I'd captured were suspended within the Web of Memories, waiting and ready to be reborn in new bodies if I allowed it.
There wasn't even a mountain left. It had been erased, with the only evidence of it's existence being the various pieces of rubble that had made up it's base, cracked, fractured, and into pieces. All life in the area was gone, eviscerated from existence.
It was something I could've done with ease using All Fiction, but this was a satisfying conclusion, to use the abilities I had chosen at the start to be the ending chapter of the village that had thought itself superior to all others.
Kumogakure was no more, and while the Lightning Daimyo could try and fund another village to be built, the crippling moral and economic blow to the loss of Kumogakure in it's entirety would mean it'd be generations before the Land of Lightning would even begin to call themselves a Great Village ever again, if they even could.
I hummed as I summoned a single screw, driving it deep into the earth with one foot.
"The Lands of Water, Earth, Wind, and Lightning shall no longer declare themselves as independent nations, for you are all now one nation. No other leaders can claim those lands, for those leaders are all but proxies for the ruler of the continent, the Lord Of Honor, for the Lord Of Honor is the Honored One, Gojo Satoru. All Daimyo will possess no free will of their own, subservient to the will of the Lord of Honor. For on this day, and all days and nights hereafter, the Lord of Honor has claimed this continent, all the people therein, and the world the continent is a part of, to be His. The Lord of Honor has commanded a Mantle of Heaven, a subservient position only given by the Lord Of Honor, upon Hiruzen Sarutobi to lead this world in His absence, and to ensure that prosperity and trade will be fully endorsed throughout the continent, for War shall not exist between what is His."
I mentioned before that All Fiction is a nuke in comparison to the scalpel that is Prometheus.
I hadn't mentioned, however, that there is one ability that All Fiction can synergy beautifully with.
Accelerator's Vector Manipulation.
With Prometheus' aide acting in tandem to the power of All Fiction, Creation working with Destruction simultaneously. Accelerator's Vector Manipulation guided the two powers, ensuring that there was no intended consequences of my words as I commanded the world to change as I see fit.
I'd wait for the Chunin Exams for Naruko, but I would leave a True Clone here while I explored other worlds in the mean time. For I had a multiverse to explore.
Although, I mused silently, I may have to pay Orochimaru a visit first. No doubt she'd happily leave this world without a second glance if I asked her too. All the others likely had obligations or emotional ties to this world.
The world froze, and I found myself sitting at a table across from Misogi Kumogawa. Looking around, it seemed like I was in a cafe, with a cup of coffee in my hand.
"Hello, Meraki. I've picked this form and this place as a good sort of middle ground for our talks. I'm from the Company, and I have to say, I'm very impressed with what you've done. It's been a long time since anyone's gotten attention of our parent company."
I blinked. I didn't even know the Waifu Catalog Company had a parent company.
"The Choose Your Own Adventure Corporation has existed long before the Waifu Catalog Company. I'm here to give you two offers. You can accept one, or the other, but not both."
I carefully kept my face blank.
"One, I give you three IMG Tickets for me to take copies of your Heritage Templates. Very few Contractors are aware that the Heritages need to come from somewhere, and often the Tier X,Y, and Z's give some serious haggling on their end to keep us from simply copy-pasting the Heritages that we offer from them directly. Getting copies from you is not only way easier in comparison, but you've even fully utilized and merged these Templates in such unique ways that we're considering making an Experimental Heritage off of it."
He paused for a moment. He nodded with satisfaction as he seemed to like whatever he was looking for.
"Or, we harden your Defenses to be fully capable of blocking even Tier Omega's, in other words, making your Defenses Absolute. Only the CEO and some of the Higher Ups in the Company have this, since rather than overlay the Defenses over you like most Contractors, like an invisible skin, we'll be permanently melding them through every part of your framework, body, mind, soul, meta-essences, and so on. In exchange for giving us those Heritage Templates. Whatever offer you take, your Templates and abilities will not be removed from you. You did pay for them, after all."
Misogi smiled politely as he drank from his cup of coffee.
I blinked.
Well, shit. What do I choose?
"I won't accept anything merely off of your words alone, Representative." I said, after a moment.
"After all, it is through Contracts, not mere words, that we are brought into this business, and it will be through Contracts that decides how this goes forward." I finished grimly.
Misogi grinned. "I like you. Very good. Yes, we can promise even the Heavens themselves with our words alone, but that means nothing without a document ensuring its bindings. I must say, by the way, I was quite impressed with how you used the "Signed and Sealed" Perk. Very few people ever realize how truly effective it can become, especially when used in combination with other methods of Capture."
Misogi clapped his hands, as two documents appeared in front of me, along with a pen.
"These two documents are identical. One is for you, and the other is for the Company. You were right to call me out on my earlier offers, because we like to give low ball offers first to see if we can get any bites. You'd be surprised how many Tier X's and Tier Y's often end up falling for those initial offers, since they can be blindsided by the initial greed of more IMG Tickets or for an Absolute Defense Framework."
Misogi's eyes narrowed as his smile darkened. "Many Contractors who fall for the Absolute Defense Framework do not realize that it also makes them inherently weaker, as they cannot add more Templates, gain new abilities, grow, learn, or even traverse worlds. They become trapped, as the Absolute Defense freezes them at that point of their journey."
I raised an eyebrow. "Then why tell me all of this? Why would I willingly accept any offer you put forward now?"
Misogi smiled cheerfully. "I'm telling you, because, like I said, I like you. Also, the Company is more than willing to give some genuine offers, as long as it's not being disingenuous on your part."
I snorted. "'Rules for thee, not for me', huh?" Misogi shrugged.
"The Waifu Catalog enjoys a certain position of authority over their Contractors. It's not that much a surprise if they have several ways of dealing with some of the more power-hungry or unsavory ones, no?"
I shrugged, pulling my copy of the contract toward me as I read it carefully.
"In exchange for allowing the Waifu Catalog Company to create copies of the potential Heritage Templates, the Contractor, whose name shall be written below if accepted, shall receive no less than 1 IMG Ticket per Potential Heritage, 3 IMG Tickets per Potential Experimental Heritage, and will automatically be eligible for the Heritage Founder's Package as per Company Law .16.16a. This eligibility will be automatically considered accepted if the Experimental Heritage Template are considered acceptable in the next versions of the Waifu Catalog. The original Templates/abilities/structures, be they physical, mental, spiritual, meta, or otherwise, that make up the Contractor shall not be harmed, disabled, removed, nullified, stolen, or edited in any way by the Company during the Copying Process. All physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and meta-essences are insured by the Company to be guaranteed to be unchanged, undamaged, unaltered, unharmed, unhindered, and unedited during this process. The Intellectual Property of the new Experimental Heritage shall be held in confidence between the Contractor who developed the Heritage first, and the Waifu Catalog Company, splitting the profits of Credits paid by future Contractors in half between the Company and the Contractor involved."
I looked up, frowning. "What is the 'Heritage Founder's Package'?" I asked bluntly.
Misogi's smile widened. "Incentive." He said plainly.
"Tier Y's and Tier Z's are extremely reluctant to give up even copies of their abilities and how they function, so we needed to give them some incentive, especially for newcomers who have brought in new ideas and new 'blood' so to speak on the idea of creating their own Heritage Templates from scratch. The Heritage Founder's Package is supposed to help give incentive to encourage these beings to allow us to create copies."
"The Heritage Founder's Package, and the Law it's a part of, has been outlined below." He pointed out as I looked down.
"In accordance to Company Law .16.16a, all those who have created new Heritages, that are not considered replicas of other Heritages, will be considered Heritage Founder Package Applicants. All Applicants are considered Tier Omega's by Company Ratings. If the new Heritage, deemed Experimental during Beta Testing, is accepted, the Application is considered accepted. All Accepted Applicants are then considered Heritage Founders.
Heritage Founders enjoy unique privileges and Perks with the Company that are not available within the Waifu Catalog.
1. All Heritage Founders are automatically considered Exempt from Company Loans, with any outstanding debts immediately nullified.
2. All Heritage Founders are given a Golden Eye. Golden Eye Holders are exempt from participating in Red Eye Invasions, with Red Eye Holders automatically considered to have lost the engagement. The Golden Eye expands this protection to all worlds the Heritage Founder has visited, is visiting, or will visit in the future.
3. Heritage Founders are automatically given the Amazon Elite Package. This includes the following: Warranty Plan, Express Delivery, and Amazon-free Warranty.
4. The Heritage Founder, at their request, can edit the world they enter. This is in addition to [Universal Calibration], and functions on a per case basis. As an example: [Universal Calibration] to age up the Harry Potter wizards to eighteen may have the unintended side effect of killing Harry Potter. The Heritage Founder can then request, up to 24 hours after entering the world, to revive Harry Potter and edit their world appropriately. This can be done through an app or by placing a request through our Golden Eye Office number provided. They will answer any calls or texts within .1 millionth of a second.
We thank you for your services to the Waifu Catalog Company."
"I see. That seems a little too good to be true." I commented, frowning. "Also a lot of this seems rather unnecessary to me. With Ikigai, Prometheus, and All Fiction, I can already do this." I pointed out at the number 4's privilege.
Misogi nodded. "True. Which is what I told them would happen, you're not an idiot. Lucky for you, I was able to pull some strings with the parent company as well."
He took out a bottle filled with liquid.
"The Essence of the Inviolate Self. Unaltered, unedited, and completely untouched." Misogi proclaimed as I stared.
"You're kidding." I said bluntly.
He smiled. "I'm not. The Waifu Catalog Company is, shall we say, impressed by you, but they're also limited. Most Perks, purchases, abilities, all come with either strings attached or have a drawback. However, that is neither here nor there: unlike the Waifu Catalog Company, Meta Essences Incorporated is not limited. As long as it sticks to a theme, they can get as outlandish as they want."
"Seriously. Just for the Heritage Templates?" I asked quietly.
Misogi shrugged. "Partially. Another part is because, frankly, we're tired of letting those Tier X, Y, and Z's think they can do whatever they want without consequences. I mean, I certainly wouldn't say no, if, by some odd coincidence, your next jump just so happened to be my own world, Medaka Box, to visit a certain acquaintance of mine."
Ajimu Najimi. The Leader of the Not Equals.
"So, this is personal, I'm assuming."
"Not at all." Misogi said cheerfully, lying through his teeth. "I just wish to bring her to my level. A loser among losers." He smiled coldly.
A third contract appeared, detailing the exchange of an Essence and the next jump set to being Medaka Box.
I signed it along with the two other documents. The Essence of the Inviolate Self appeared in my hand and Misogi smiled cheerfully at me.
"Sell her to me, and I'll pay you 3 IMG Tickets on top of her selling price." Misogi commented lowly, his eyes dark before he nodded.
"Pleasure working with you, Meraki."
I found myself in my Grand Manor, sitting at the dining room table.
I immediately uncorked the Essence of the Inviolate Self and drank it, doing my best to ignore the taste.
Spoiler: Essence of the Inviolate Self
Misogi Kumogawa was no slouch of dealing with Contractors.
It was why he was known as the Contractor Eraser. The one who took on even the most dangerous of Contractors, cleaning up their mess with a combination of his original "All Fiction" and "The One Who Wields The Power of God".
The Waifu Company often liked to keep an eye on the Contractors who were especially intelligent, powerful, or useful in some way. Both to obtain leverage over the Contractor in question, and to give incentive to keep those Contractors around.
It's a double edged sword. Strong, powerful, paranoid Contractors that did not trust the Company often lasted the longest out in the field, but their paranoia would lead them to start trying to find ways to get out of doing the Waifu Catalog's missions or jobs, and often led to trying to rebel against the Company.
Likewise, the Company were more than capable of simply stripping those Contractors of their powers, Perks, and skills. It was why he was hired on into Class S, the Contractor Hunter unit.
No, Meraki was immediately flagged due to the various synergies between his Templates, and his unorthodox use of the Perks he purchased. Meraki was deemed at least a Tier 'S', an informal rank between Tier 10 and X due to his various Templates and his lack of Capturing a Tier X. So he was called in to monitor the situation.
In truth, the Company was impressed by Meraki's understanding of the Perks and limitations of those Perks, but the Company was also worried that Meraki would grow to be too powerful to contain.
A little known fact about Template Stacking is that the more one uses and masters a Template, the more likely it begins to 'bleed' into the original framework of the Contractor themselves. In other words, simply taking off the Templates would stop working, because it has become a part of them.
Awakening a unique name based off of various Templates, truly accepting the changes they bring, is a form of spiritual rebirth, especially if it's not using a name already invented by the Company.
Meraki had absorbed the Templates in full when the Contractor became Meraki, and the Company grew even more worried/impressed as they realized that this extended to the immediate cannibalizing of future Templates purchased.
Ergo, Meraki was raised to a Tier SS, and Misogi Kumogawa was given an update on his file, and was told that he had a job to do.
Get Meraki to think positively of the Company. Offer incentives. Give protocols. Whatever it took in order to keep Meraki at least content enough to not turn his gaze on the Company in case a Contractor, or worse, a lower tier member of the Company, tried to screw Meraki over with one of their shenanigans.
So, naturally, Misogi Kumogawa did what he did best. He looked at Meraki with the same analyzing gaze he had done with his fellow Minuses, for all Contractors seemed inevitably, painfully, flawed and molded by their environment.
He disregarded trying to erase his work or the other Captures of his retinue. The power of All Fiction was negated by the surprising factor of Meraki's own All Fiction and Ikigai. Not to mention that threats and scare tactics on Meraki would only make his job harder, not easier.
Then it struck him. Meraki was a man of creativity, of passion. Meraki had no qualms about doing whatever he wanted, in order to achieve the goals he wanted, and his abilities all leaned in amplifying those traits.
Giving him IMG Tickets was a stupid idea. He would never spend them on himself. He wouldn't give the Company leverage over him, not willingly.
However, Misogi Kumogawa had strings to pull from more than just the Waifu Catalog Company. Meta Essences Incorporated often brought him on board to erase their less advertised Essences, the experimental ones that often did not end well for the beta testers. It was easy for him to get his hands on the Essence of the Inviolate Self.
This was what he could use to give Meraki incentive to sign on board for them to copy the Heritage Templates he'd been unknowingly creating in his time here. The Essence of the Inviolate Self would be more than enough to keep Meraki happy, as a being of creativity and passion.
At least, that's what Misogi Kumogawa told the higher ups who asked him why he was doing this.
They let him keep it, assuming it was a heavily modified, edited, Essence, that would finally give the Company leverage over this SS-rank Contractor.
He let them think that. He had no qualms on how the Waifu Catalog Company viewed him, seeing Misogi Kumogawa as a dog on a leash.
He found it funny, really. They were not the omnipotent beings that they thought they were.
Meraki was given the Essence as a way to make the SS-rank more comfortable as a Contractor, but also because Meraki was what Misogi Kumogawa had been hoping to find.
The weakness to Ajimu Najimi. The weakness to Medaka Kurokami. The weakness to Medaka Box as a whole.
Abnormals. Minuses. Not Equals. All of them wouldn't stand a chance to Meraki.
Not because of their powers. For Ajimu Najimi had almost an infinite number of powers.
But because Meraki stood for the power of human connection, creativity, and the power to use it. The ability to connect with others, to understand them, to change them. It was this connection that had led to his first retinue member, and it was why he gathered others to him like moths to a flame.
Ajimu Najimi would have no way of stopping this force he had sent her way. No narrative force would bind him. No power could end him or stop him. Even declaring him the 'new' main character would do nothing, because to Meraki's eyes, there was no one main character.
Meraki had viewed them all as the main characters of their own arcs, a representation and deconstruction of what it meant to be human. Even Medaka herself, was a character arc of realizing that she was no Goddess, that she was human as well.
So, Misogi Kumogawa had no scruples about lying to the higher ups, and pulling strings to get what he wanted. They'd be angry with him, but it's not like they could do anything about it now. After all, Misogi Kumogawa had drank many Essences over the millenia he'd been working for them.
Now the only question was if Meraki would sell Ajimu Najimi. His own social experiment. Personally, he thought that Meraki would refuse to sell. The man had not sold a single member of the retinue he had thus far.
Of course, he wouldn't say no if Meraki did sell her to him. Ajimu Najimi was like a sister to him, even as he both hated and loved her in equal measure.
"What will you do, Meraki?"
He couldn't wait to find out.