Naruto: Pay-to-Win Ninja System

After clearing out the Root ninjas inside the [Orphanage], 

Shimoku immediately sent several of his shadow clones to accompany Nonou inside for search and rescue operations—aiming to save as many children within the [Orphanage] as possible...

Meanwhile, 

Shimoku himself continued manipulating Shinkawa Hyuga.

"How does it feel?" 

"Amazing!" 

"What are your plans next?" 

"I am ready to serve Lord Shimoku!" 

Without hesitation, Shinkawa Hyuga knelt halfway to the ground and solemnly swore allegiance to Shimoku. 

This wasn't surprising.

Firstly, having been controlled for so long by the Caged Bird Cursed Seal, he had never held much affection for the Hyuga Main House or Konoha. 

Secondly, the effects of the Recruitment Order had greatly increased his favorability toward Shimoku and the Homura Hidden Village. 

Thirdly, with his cursed seal now removed, there was no place left for him in the Hyuga clan.

Therefore, aside from pledging loyalty to Shimoku, he truly had no other options. 

Besides,

Serving someone out of gratitude 

and serving someone under the compulsion of a curse—

these were clearly two entirely different experiences. 

The choice needed no explanation.

"Good. Welcome aboard!" 

With his ploy successful and a new recruit gained, Shimoku couldn't help but smile widely. 

He went on:

"By the way, will the Main House find out that your Caged Bird Cursed Seal has been lifted?" 

"They will." 

"The moment the seal vanishes, the Main House will sense it instantly. It can't be concealed..." 

Shimoku replied with a calm tone, "No big issue." 

"After this is over, I'll burn down the entire [Orphanage] along with all the corpses inside to erase all evidence." 

"That way, the Main House will think you died here as well and won't come after you anymore..." 

"Thank you, my lord!" 

Shinkawa Hyuga was momentarily taken aback, then pleased. 

Once the Shinkawa Hyuga of the Branch House was presumed dead, naturally, he would escape any pursuit or assassination attempts by the Main House—and completely bid farewell to his former self!

"So then..." 

Shimoku continued issuing orders, 

"You should remain in Konoha for now." 

"You're very familiar with the operational structure of Anbu and Root. I want you to stay behind and gather intelligence on every secret base Root owns." 

"Understood!" 

Shinkawa Hyuga touched his eyes—the pair of fully restored [Byakugan]—and answered firmly. 

Now that the "Caged Bird" restriction was gone, 

he was confident he would never lose to any of his Hyuga clansmen again.

Moreover, tasks like gathering intel and locating hidden bases… 

were especially suited for the penetrating vision of the [Byakugan].

"As long as you don't expose yourself deliberately, the Hyuga Main House will hardly realize you've survived and broken free from the seal." 

"I also want you to quietly reach out to Branch members who are fed up with the Main House." 

"I believe many among the Branch have grown tired of the cursed seals... tired of the Main House itself." 

"And with your case as proof," 

"I'm sure they'll begin longing for freedom—for a truly glorious future for the Hyuga Clan."

"I suppose those Branch House ninja will also make the right choice!"

Shimoku curled his lips into a smirk, shamelessly barking orders once again.

Even prodigies like Shinkawa Hyuga and Neji Hyuga from the Branch House found it hard to resist the temptation of removing the Caged Bird Cursed Seal! They couldn't resist their longing for freedom!

Considering that, other Branch House ninja would surely rush forward even more eagerly!

If everything goes well, his Long-range Byakugan Sniper Unit will practically form itself.

What a beautiful thing it is to be playing dirty like this!

So satisfying!

The only challenge?

He might end up recruiting too many Branch House ninja,

and he might not have enough coins to buy all the Recruitment Orders needed...

...

After receiving the order, Shinkawa Hyuga quickly put on his mask and concealed his presence.

He immediately set out on his [Reconnaissance] and [Undermining] missions.

To be fair,

he had lived under the control of the Caged Bird Cursed Seal for so many years, filled with bitterness and fear.

Now, finally liberated,

he naturally wanted to help other Branch House ninja escape this hellish fate as well!

He was even eager to see the terrified expression on the Main House's face when they realized all Branch Members had escaped their control!

Therefore, regarding this mission,

he was naturally very enthusiastic and fully committed.

...

As this "piece" departed,

Shimoku revealed a satisfied smile and resumed focusing on his main task.

He rushed straight into the [Orphanage] before him.

Soon after entering, he saw—

exactly as expected.

Though outwardly normal,

the entire [Orphanage] had secretly been infiltrated by Root,

transformed into a covert base.

Beneath the orphanage,

they hollowed out an underground chamber — a massive bloodstained battleground.

Any orphan brought into the [Orphanage] who showed even a glimmer of ninja talent

was selected early on and secretly sent down into the underground facility.

These children were then subjected to brutal secret training.

And the methods used were extremely cruel and bloody.

Looking around, there were at least dozens of children's skeletons piled in the corners alone!

And this was just one location.

The actual death toll from training was likely several times higher!

This was proof of how many unforgivable crimes Root had committed over the years — crimes that would outrage even heaven itself!

Therefore,

when Nounou saw the hidden bloodstained killing floor beneath the [Orphanage], saw the blood-covered ground, and the piles upon piles of bones,

even she, with her strong resolve, nearly broke down completely.

She couldn't hold back her tears. She clung tightly to the bones of the children, sobbing uncontrollably and blaming herself endlessly.

If only she hadn't trusted Root so easily.

If only she hadn't been such a neglectful director.

Then so many innocent orphans wouldn't have fallen into the demonic hands of Root and Danzo!

She was guilty!

...

After some time, receiving comfort from Shimoku's shadow clones,

Nounou gradually calmed her emotions.

Along with several shadow clones,

she led the remaining thirty or so orphans outside.

These orphans were mostly without any ninja talent.

Among them, only a few still recognized the former matron Nonou. 

The other twenty or so were orphans newly accepted in recent years. 

However, many of these children clearly bore visible bruises and signs of abuse... 

This alone made it clear they'd been treated inhumanely inside this orphanage. 

It didn't take much imagination to picture just how brutally those gifted orphans must've been treated... 

After rescuing all the children, 

Shimoku didn't hesitate for even a moment. 

He quickly grabbed another dead Root ninja's corpse from the ground and hurled it into the Orphanage. 

Then, 

[Great Fireball Technique] blazed forward with a whoosh. 

In an instant, the entire [Orphanage] was engulfed in raging flames. 

He set about erasing all traces of what had happened. 

... 

The dazzling flames and intense chakra fluctuations 

soon attracted many Konoha ninjas to rush over. 

But by the time they arrived, 

there was no one left around. 

Only the dilapidated [Orphanage] continued burning fiercely in the inferno. 

Meanwhile, 

more than a hundred miles beyond the Hidden Leaf Village, 

Shimoku instantly reappeared here with a group of children and Nonou, 

arriving precisely on a [Flying Thunder God Mark] he'd set up long ago. 

A hundred-mile journey was already quite a stretch. 

Even for a ninja, it would take considerable time to chase after them. 

It definitely gave Nonou enough time to lead the children beyond Konoha's sphere of influence. 

Of course, Shimoku could also teleport everyone directly back to the Homura Hidden Village thousands of miles away. 

However, transporting dozens of people such an extreme distance at once 

would consume quite a lot of his chakra, even for him. 

He still had plans to return to Konoha later to cause some trouble — and leave a few 'gifts' behind! 

It made sense to save as much chakra as possible for later use. 

That's why he only teleported Nonou and the others here. 

"Thank you! Thank you so much, Lord Shimoku!" 

"Thanks to you..." 

With red-rimmed eyes, Nonou sincerely expressed her gratitude repeatedly. 

"All right. If you really want to thank me, repay me with actions later." 

"Now, take these kids and retreat first." 

"I'll go back for a while." 

"I'll come back and reunite with you soon!" 

Shimoku waved his hand dismissively, rapidly giving instructions. 

Then, after leaving a basic Shadow Clone behind for protection, 

he activated the [Flying Thunder God Technique] once more and teleported back to Konoha.

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