Chapter 184: Intentions, Purity and Kage
_________ POV Narration _________
"Remember Hiroshi, you gotta become strong in order to protect yourself!" Ken spoke out as he brought his chopsticks down grabbed yet another piece of perfectly fried chicken and brought it to his mouth.
His family sat at the table and ate quietly and in a somewhat restrained manner. Hiroshi only nodded with a rather scared expression on his face.
Ken's earlier display did wonders in putting fear in their hearts.
But that was very much Ken's intention. At the end of the day, that violence was his identity for the longest time.
He needed his 'biological' family to understand that. The type of man he was. But also the type of man he had become.
He killed without blinking, not that he was able to. He killed without hesitation, and most importantly, he didn't let anyone who slighted him off easily.
These very obvious implications did wonders in making his biological parents very uncomfortable.
But at the same time, Ken also sent the clear message that he didn't wish to kill them... Because if he did, they'd already be dead.
If he had sought out his biological family a few years back and saw them living happily like that after they left him for death, he likely would have killed them, just out of principle.
But now, he was a man who cared for his family above all else, even an estranged family. The virtues instilled in him by the care of the actual Family that looked after him had materialized fully throughout his journey.
After all, he had been nothing but warm to his brother. And despite slighting him, his parents were still alive, hell Ken had even made food for them.
But there was another reason why Ken needed his biological brother to see that gruesome scene...
Hiroshi seemed to somewhat start idolizing Ken during their talks, especially so when Ken was able to overwhelm Iruma with just his reputation, rendering their previous oppressor a tail-wagging dog without even lifting a finger.
But the Blind Monster needed Hiroshi to understand that he was not a man to be revered.
Only those who walked a path stained in blood could ever claim to appreciate someone like Ken fully. And he needed Hiroshi to understand that. He needed his estranged 'parents' to understand it as well.
Those of pure nature and mind could never get too close to Ken without being tainted as well.
The Dark Brotherhood was specifically hand-picked. Children that had already lost their purity due to the war. This was a specific choice, to only house them, to give those future misguided and previously wronged lives a proper chance at a good life.
But Purity was the main reason why children were chosen.
Even someone like Ume was far from pure... She may have liked acting childish and was childishly timid to some extent.
But that girl had watched her father get slowly decapitated in front of her, and she had also been forced to watch her mother get defiled as well before she also met the same fate as her father.
She only survived because she hid in a barrel, for around 3-4 days. She was lucky to have been found by a monk who was burying the dead in the village.
She was still too hungry to move, but the Monk saved her life, feeding her and helping her leave that damned place.
Even in arduous times, good people still struggled against the tides, they swam upstream a river of blood to do what was right.
There was no benefit in helping a half-dead little girl, but good was still present in the world. That nameless monk was one such example among many.
And Ume was also lucky enough to be sent to an orphanage, and to get picked up by Tosho, the First Blade.
After all, it was only the bloodstained hands of someone like Ken that could help build a good future for someone with so much trauma and such a rocky past.
But Hiroshi didn't have any rocky past, he didn't have any bloody birth, and he didn't have any outstanding issues aside from some humiliation and fear against a person who had done him wrong.
Hiroshi's hand trembled, the Blind Monster could feel it. His brother's fear.
Hirishi's chopsticks failed to grasp his food most times, Ken assumed that the message was sent out accordingly. Any reverence that the young Shura Clan member would be tempered by terror from that point onwards.
"Well then, I guess there is not much else left to do here." Ken could feel just how uncomfortable his 'family' was with him. He didn't feel particularly hurt, nor did he care all that much, but he had already collected all of the information required.
He had even done his biological family a favour and had arranged for his brother to gain formal training from the Anbu of the Land of Keys.
"Lor-Brother... Thank you. Y-you know. For everything." Hiroshi still managed to blurt out a thank you, whilst his eyes were still fixated on the meal in front of him.
"You are welcome, Hiroshi..." Ken slowly stood up, putting his mask back on, cracking his neck and slowly walking to the door.
Surprisingly, Toyama also got up and started walking behind him without saying any words.
'He's at least polite enough to show me to the exit, huh?'
Out of all of his 'family' members, the Father of the house was the least disgusted by Ken's actions. He was also spared the most humiliation at Iruma's hands by Ken at the end of the day.
To Toyama, Iruma deserved everything he had gotten and more. He was nothing more than scum.
He still felt some fear towards Ken. Someone like the Red Dot was an unapproachable figure to someone as small as the Shura Clan Head.
Despite being blood family, Toyama still didn't want to upset Ken in any way, so he even walked a bit outside with him, before bowing his head.
"Lord Ken! Thank you for everything! Seriously, you have done us a great service..." Toyama's voice was a lot less fearful or hesitant, he was straightforward and genuinely grateful.
Ken nodded. "You are welcome. I may never call you my father, but you are still my brother's father, and the leader of this clan.
Have more self-respect from now on. Till we meet again."
The Blind Monster wasted no time and left the village, turning into a blur in front of his biological father as he vanished in the wind.
He walked through the forests just outside of the compound whilst whistling a cheerful tune. He could feel the anbu around him trembling in fear and keeping a good distance from him.
Ken pondered for a moment what else to do in the Land of Keys... He had truly gotten everything he wanted from the Shura Clan.
There was little else he could do in that region... But he still wanted to meet with the Kage there.
'Yamada, was it? I think he was part of the Whirlpool Facing Alliance form back in the day... He was smart enough to back off before losing too much, unlike others.'
Thankfully, he wouldn't have to make too big of a detour to get there... As Ken could feel the Kage appearing right in front of him, alongside the Anbu Captain that Ken had dismissed earlier.
Yamada was wearing his cap, his chakra levels were also quite decent for the Kage of a smaller region.
Really it was his chakra levels that had saved Yamada from being targeted for a brutal assassination by Ken during the war against the Uzumaki.
"Lord Ken! It is my honour." Yamada wasted no time to go on one knee and slightly bowed his head. A very respectful greeting, one that allowed the Kage to still maintain his face.
Yamada was by no means pathetic or weak to greet Ken in such a way. In his mind, he was merely acting respectfully as one would when meeting a king.
After all, Kings were only important because they held the power to end the people who prostrated before them... And Ken certainly wielded that power.
"Yamada, no need for that!" The Blind Monster chose to take the cordial approach this time around, immediately walking forward and pulling the Kage to his feet, much to the surprise of everyone around them.
Normally, one would have around a dozen blades pointed at their vitals by Anbu if they even so much as breathed close to a Kage in their own land, but Ken was too terrifying a figure for that to ever happen.
"I have heard about you... You have managed to build and maintain a rather beautiful piece of heaven in this land." Ken's friendly tone seemed to have taken Yamada aback greatly, he blinked a few times and nodded.
"T-thank you, sir. My predecessors worked hard for this place, it would be a disservice to them if I failed to maintain and develop it further." Yamada, now straight as an arrow, returned Ken's smile and shook his hand.
Inside his mind, the Kage was jumping around and panicking, but he was truly glad that Ken was not bearing resentment for the actions of those foolish Shinobi.
When getting the message that someone had approached Ken and the Shura Clan, he immediately got a bad feeling and started making his way there to soothe things over.
Thankfully Ken was a lot more agreeable than the rumours surrounding him.
"I had heard that you wished to speak to me, so I decided to come and greet you myself. Someone as esteemed as yourself shouldn't be bothered with coming to my humble office."
In truth, the last thing Yamada wanted was for Ken to go into their village at first... He may have claimed that the Red Dot would seek them out if needed and that there was no need to worry, but if possible he wanted to have the weapon of mass destruction named Ken outside of his village.
But now it seemed that it wouldn't be that big of a deal if the Blind Swordsman just went there for a stroll or two... As long as some Anbu looked at him from a distance and made sure no one dared to bother him.
"Oh, I doubt it is humble. But to get to the point, I wish to speak to you regarding the Shura Clan's situation and taxation.
As your men might have informed you, this happens to be the Clan that I originally came from, I may not be a member of it, but my brother is."
Yamada nodded, having already been briefed on the situation by the Anbu Captain behind him.
The fact that Ken was originally from the Shura Clan was beyond shocking to Yamada, but it was also exciting. After all, that meant that his Hidden Village now had the chance to collaborate with Ken.
"Of course, we will make sure that the Shura Clan is treated more fairly from now on. We will also arrange proper teachers for your brother, as well as a good supply of appropriately skilled sparring partners."
Yamada was also not one to mince words(at least not in front of people like Ken), he immediately went above and beyond to accommodate any requests Ken might've had.
He even sent a letter to his secretary to prepare all of the paperwork necessary whilst he was away. It was only natural for the Shura Clan's treatment to change now that Ken was involved.
"Thank you... Now then, the other matter I wish to speak to you about is a bit more of a personal one..."
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Hope you liked today's chapter!
Missed one yesterday, took a bit longer to write the one on Patreon, and they tend to go on at the same time so yea...
Anyway, have a great day!
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