The Game Merchant Who Started from the Ninja World

Chapter 23: Kabuto's Betrayal

Asuma clutched his wounded right arm, eyes locked onto Kabuto.

The clouds above grew heavier, and thick raindrops began pounding against the rooftops on either side of the street, creating a steady patter.

"Kabuto… have you betrayed the village?"

Asuma tried to reach into his ninja pouch, but before he could move, two shuriken flew at him, interrupting the motion.

With chakra reinforcement, a ninja's body wasn't as tough as stone, but it was still far stronger than a normal person's.

However—

Kabuto had thrown his kunai imbued with both Throwing Enhancement and Poison Coating skills.

What were usually harmless probing weapons became the venomous fangs of a serpent.

Asuma could already feel the numbness spreading through his right arm but dared not make a move.

There was an antidote in his pouch.

But his instincts screamed that if he so much as flinched, Kabuto would strike again.

"Betrayal?"

Kabuto looked at Asuma—his comrade-in-arms in the game—smiling at the corners of his eyes. "You could call it that. Betrayal isn't a concept I've ever had trouble accepting."

For most ninja, regardless of strength, there existed a bond—strong or faint—to their village.

Even rogue ninja wandering the world showed discomfort when accused of betrayal.

But Kabuto… was utterly unfazed.

Thunk.

While he spoke, Asuma tried to seize the moment to jab an antidote into his right arm.

But just then,

Kabuto vanished from where he stood and reappeared behind Asuma in a sudden leap.

Shadow Flash Strike.

A sharp dagger pierced through Asuma's lower side.

Grunting through the pain, Asuma's shoulder emitted a blazing red mist as he swung his fist backward.

Flaming Heavy Fist.

His fiery strike narrowly missed Kabuto's chest as the traitor dodged just in time.

Even so, the intense heat scorched Kabuto's clothes and seared the skin underneath, charring it black.

Had the punch landed fully, it might have shattered his organs.

Distance opened between them.

As a Stalker class, Kabuto specialized in ambushes and assassination—not prolonged close combat with a Brawler.

Sweat beaded on Kabuto's forehead as he glanced at his burnt chest, still smiling. "Close one. That must be the skill you awakened, Captain. Pretty terrifying, I must say."

The attack had gone just as planned:

Use poison kunai to initiate, then strike a critical blow while the target was distracted by antidote application.

Objective achieved.

Asuma's combat ability was heavily compromised.

He ignored his bleeding and stared Kabuto down. "Can you tell me why you betrayed us?"

"Because, Captain, that Wraith Banner you hold… Lord Sasori wants it."

Kabuto kept smiling. "I know you're stalling. But I chose this time for a reason. This street is remote, and I've cast a wide-area genjutsu to keep others away. No one will know you've been attacked."

"Sasori?"

Asuma searched his memory—

He'd heard the name before. A brutal rogue ninja known for massacring several small nations.

So it was about the Wraith Banner—a purple-tier item.

Oddly enough, Asuma felt a touch of relief.

The banner was valuable, yes, but if it exposed a hidden traitor like Kabuto, then perhaps the loss was worth it.

Letting someone like him continue to lurk in Konoha would've caused even greater harm.

With a cold voice, Asuma said, "I don't show mercy to traitors."

He didn't waste time trying to convince Kabuto to surrender. The man had come prepared and clearly wasn't going to change his mind.

Kabuto's expression didn't change. He removed his glasses and carefully placed them in his pouch. "Captain, I suggest you don't underestimate me. You'll regret it."

"Oh yeah?"

Asuma readied two chakra ring-blades in his hands.

Wind-nature chakra wrapped around the blades, forming razor-sharp wind edges.

Flame Breath.

Fire chakra surged across his fists, fusing with the wind blades and forming long flaming tails—

It looked like he was wielding twin swords of roaring fire.

"Flame Breath enhances punches with fire. It's the passive ability of the Flame Brawler class."

Kabuto calmly analyzed him. "For that level of effect, your passive skill must be Level 5, right?"

Skills in the Reincarnation Game were incredibly powerful.

Upon becoming a classed player, one awakened a new skill every five levels. Other skills had to be learned from scrolls.

But unless a rare skill dropped, most focused solely on their core class abilities.

Why?

Because the game was expensive.

After unlocking a skill, it still needed to be leveled up to reach its full potential.

Leveling required repeated use for proficiency—plus a hefty reward point cost.

Skills had rarities too. The higher the quality, the more expensive they were to upgrade.

Asuma's Flame Breath, for example, was blue-tier.

Leveling it once had cost 100 reward points.

Next levels? 300, then 500.

Kabuto's class skills, on the other hand, were only white and green-tier.

That's why he couldn't match Asuma head-on and had instead chosen an ambush—wounding him before striking.

"If your Poison skill were Level 5, I probably wouldn't be standing."

Asuma was genuinely thankful.

Even a Level 1 white-tier skill had power rivaling a C-rank jutsu.

And leveling made it even stronger.

Had Kabuto's poison skill been at Level 5, it would have added a passive called Lethal Toxin. That single kunai would've paralyzed him.

"Stalkers... such a despicable yet deadly class."

Asuma exhaled sharply and launched forward like a fired arrow.

He needed to end this fast.

Both had been on the same team and knew each other's strengths and weaknesses.

If Asuma could get in close, his Brawler class could potentially end it in one hit.

Blazing Chain Fists.

Countless red-hot fists formed in front of Asuma, following his charge and hurling toward Kabuto.

Shadow Step.

Kabuto didn't dodge.

He precisely timed it, activating the skill a second before the attack landed.

His form blurred in shadows, passing through the fire fists and reappearing behind Asuma.

"Sasori-sama must have that Wraith Banner. He even gave up two high-grade puppets to fund my skill scroll purchases."

Kabuto's dagger, coated in violet-black poison, aimed straight at Asuma's heart from behind.

As he struck, he kept speaking—subtly shifting blame for the attack to the rogue Sasori.

After all, the Konoha Collapse Plan was about to begin, and as Orochimaru's loyal subordinate, he couldn't risk causing trouble.

Originally,

he had planned to remain hidden until the plan launched.

But the Wraith Banner's value was too great. Orochimaru wanted it now, even if it meant activating Kabuto ahead of schedule.

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