章 67: The Land of Silence
Immediately, he cast an illusion around a small circle of ground, allowing him to cover his activities with an opaque veil.
Then, with a swift movement, he began to dig.
The soil was soft, yielding easily to his touch. Because of his experience, he knew exactly what he was doing.
He reached the rough wooden coffin surprisingly quickly. Working with efficiency, he then carefully pried it open.
The stench of decay hit him like a physical blow, but he remained undeterred. With a gloved hand, he reached inside and collected some of the decayed remains of Mangetsu's corpse. This would suffice.
He withdrew his hand, the dead flesh clasped tightly within his palm. It was then stored inside a scroll. Whether or not Mangetsu even had at least one of the swords, the DNA sample was useful in building an army.
Replacing the lid, Arthur refilled the hole, ensuring the grave remained undisturbed. Deactivating the illusion, he then melted back into the shadows, leaving the town behind as silently as he had arrived.
Twelve hours later, Arthur found himself in a secluded clearing.
Here, he prepared for the next step.
'Summoning jutsu: reanimation.'
For this ritual, Arthur had sacrificed a hapless NPC, a petty thief who had attempted to rob unsuspecting merchants back in Wizened Town. His disappearance wouldn't raise an eyebrow.
A complex seal materialized on the ground and around the unconscious victim. The dust fluttered through the air. Then, with a crack, it covered the thief until a figure clad in the tattered remnants of a Mist Village ninja uniform appeared.
Arthur placed a kunai strapped with a charm inside the figure's head. Mangetsu Hōzuki, his eyes blank and unseeing, rose to a sitting position.
His resurrection was complete, but his consciousness remained dormant—a puppet animated by Arthur's will.
"Mangetsu Hōzuki," Arthur said. The reanimated corpse twitched ever so slightly, its head tilting towards Arthur in a silent query. "Perform the summoning technique and bring forth the swords."
Mangetsu, devoid of his own will, responded instantly. His hands shot out, forming a series of hand signs. With a final show, he slammed his hand onto the ground.
A plume of smoke erupted from the epicenter of the seal. Then, a massive scroll materialized in front of Mangetsu.
It unfurled, emerging not a single weapon but three. The Blunt Blade, the Long Blade, and the Explosive Blade—all three of the unique swords from the past Seven Ninja Swordsmen!
Arthur hadn't felt satisfied, only content.
Five out of the seven blades were now within his grasp. This wasn't a triumphant feat, but a quiet, controlled sense of accomplishment.
He was a faithful man, simply building his arsenal.
Not wasting any time to admire his new acquisitions, he unfurled three separate scrolls. One by one, the three revived weapons vanished within their respective scrolls, bound until the moment he deemed them necessary for use.
Turning back to Mangetsu, Arthur deactivated the Reanimation technique. Mangetsu's vacant eyes lost their ethereal glow. He slumped back into the coffin, once again a lifeless corpse.
The coffin then sank back into the earth, swallowed by the darkness.
Arthur remained in the clearing for a few moments longer, basking in the quiet power he had amassed.
Then, with a decisive nod, he turned and vanished, leaving behind no trace of the forbidden technique or the swords he now possessed.
Wizened Town.
As Arthur reached the outskirts of town, his gaze landed on the construction site where Sun Stream Plaza was taking shape.
Vinci, true to their word, hadn't wasted any time. A massive crater now occupied the space where the plaza would rise.
This was small, but great progress nonetheless.
While the plaza marked a significant step, it was just the beginning. His ambition craved more, a wider canvas to paint his grand design.
He needed more land and more resources. And with a definitive decision made, he turned, fixing his gaze on the horizon.
His next destination was the northeast, where he would spend three days traversing terrain. He was heading towards the "Land of Silence."
The Land of Silence was a remote samurai nation nestled in mountains. It was once ruled by a feudal lord but now harbours resentment towards the ninjas of the Five Great Nations.
Arthur's objective wasn't the country itself, but an individual residing within its borders—a man named Gengo, residing within Fushū Castle, nestled in Curtain Village.
Curtain Village, the capital of the Land of Silence, isn't like other villages. The poverty-stricken majority scrape by while a select few nobility enjoy a life of luxury.
Crime runs rampant, attracting fugitives and black market activity.
Regarding Fushū Castle, it was written to be the current seat of power for the "Enlightened Ones," an occultic group Gengo leads.
Gengo himself was a former Mist Village shinobi. He believed ninjas, with their ability to manipulate chakra, should be the ruling class.
His story began with a rebellion against the fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi. After the rebellion failed, he and his comrades became disillusioned mercenaries.
Eventually, he took over the Land of Silence and established the Enlightened Ones, a group comprised of ninjas who left their hidden villages to follow Gengo's nepotism.
They wouldn't be fully formed until the aftermath of the Fourth Shinobi War.
Gengo, a ninja, possessed a powerful, speech-induced genjutsu that brainwashed victims. He was also a skilled swordsman, likely trained in the Mist Village's sword techniques.
Driven and charismatic, he used his genjutsu and persuasive skills to build his following. However, he was arrogant and resorted to torture when necessary.
When the Leaf Village discovered his activities, Gengo's reign came to an end. Shikamaru Nara and his team were written to have infiltrated the Land of Silence and exposed Gengo's genjutsu.
After losing his voice, Gengo's power was broken, and he was captured.
Not only was this event not likely to happen since Shikamaru was dead, but Arthur was three years ahead of the time.
His mind already possessed a detailed map of the world, so he plotted his course to that country.
Three days of traveling by air and in the wilderness presented no real challenge. He moved with stealth, hunted for sustenance, evaded any encounters, and arrived at the border of the Land of Silence on schedule.
The country lived up to its name. An oppressive silence was evident from the moment Arthur landed.
The journey to Curtain Village took another half day—a trek through uninhabited landscapes. Upon reaching the village, Arthur surveyed the small cluster of ramshackle buildings huddled together.
Here lied Fushū Castle in the center. His plan was simple: infiltrate the castle and locate Gengo.
'Smoke jutsu.'
His form dissolved into swirling smoke. Gliding through the castle walls, he used his Tamashii to guide him.
In the chambers, he found Gengo, a man of average build and unremarkable appearance. Gengo had a black beard, and he was engrossed in a book by a dimly lit lamp.
Arthur watched him silently.
For twenty-four hours, he had followed him, witnessing his mundane routine—breakfast, reading, and attending a meeting. There was nothing extraordinary about the character's behaviour, nothing that hinted that he was a criminal.
Arthur remained vigilant, his gaze glued to Gengo's every move.
Night eventually plunged the village into darkness. Arthur, still in his smoke form, was watching in the throne room from a concealed corner.
The monotonous routine had taken a turn. A frustrated woman stormed into the chamber. She barked, berating Gengo about the deplorable state of marketplace food.
"This is unacceptable!" she raged, holding a pile of wilted vegetables and questionable meats. "People are complaining, lord Gengo. We can't allow this to continue!"
Gengo, perched nonchalantly on his throne, simply sighed. He began, "My dear, it's not as if I have any control over the quality of the food."
Arthur felt something amidst it, so he used this opportunity to activate his Tamashii. He focused on Gengo, searching for any telltale fluctuations in his chakra flow.
For the most part, Gengo's chakra signature remained unremarkable. But then, a subtle shift occurred. An invisible tremour emanated from Gengo's mouth as he spoke.
Intrigued, Arthur honed his focus to discern the nature of this anomaly.
It wasn't offensive or defensive in measure; it was something he had rarely come across in his time in this world.
A strange, almost ethereal wave of energy pulsed from Gengo's mouth, intertwining with the sound vibrations of his words—genjutsu.
Gengo was employing his infamous illusion technique called "Evil Illusion: Enhancing Flattery."
This genjutsu is a powerful illusion in which the user injects chakra into their voice to manipulate the listener. The target is forced to confront their deepest fears and becomes a loyal follower after a simple command.
What made it so potent was that it affected one's will, and it wasn't something that could be detected.
The Sharingan could place people under illusions, but another dōjutsu user could always tell if their target was in one. When casting Gengo's genjutsu, the only influx of chakra was during its initial use. Afterwards, the user's chakra and behaviour would return to normal, with only their will having been changed.
While powerful in its own right, it is breakable. The technique is resistant to basic awareness. A strong-enough emotional bond can also break it.
This was the reason Arthur ventured to this village in the first place: to learn how to perform this deadly illusion.
Its unusual chakra flow was key.
He watched, captivated, as the wave of chakra seeped its way into the sound vibrations and carried on Gengo's soothing words. It entered the woman's ears, traveling up to her brain.
Gengo's voice, now imbued with chakra, continued its work.
The chakra moulded itself with the woman's mind, subtly twisting her perception and warping her judgment.
Suddenly, Arthur felt a prickling sensation at the back of his neck. Then he understood that the illusion's vocal influence wasn't confined to just the woman.
The manipulation of sound vibrations, laced with Gengo's chakra, had a detectable effect on Arthur himself. It was insidious, almost undetectable, but it was there.
Had he not been actively searching for signs of Gengo's technique and been aware of how this illusion functioned, he wouldn't have noticed.
But there was a problem: even if the target notices they're under the illusion, awareness alone wouldn't break it!
A shiver ran down Arthur's spine as his vision was covered in darkness. He closed his eyes, trying to drown out Gengo's voice.
'Don't look behind me…'
After what felt like minutes but was truly milliseconds, Arthur gingerly opened his eyes. The darkness that greeted him gradually faded.
Had Gengo said the right words, he would have been ensnared for certain. Even so, he had enough faith to break it. Resisting was a matter of choice, not emotion.
A close call nonetheless.
Arthur returned his attention to the woman, witnessing her transformation in real-time.
The woman's initial anger morphed into a hesitant confusion, then a hesitant acceptance, and finally, blind adoration.
She, now completely under Gengo's sway, bowed low and said, "Forgive my outburst, lord Gengo. You are benevolent, and I was blinded by my own ignorance."
After the theatrics, she exited the throne room in a daze, leaving Gengo and his guards alone.
Gengo, unaware he was being spied on, simply chuckled to himself. The woman's outburst had been easily quelled, her concerns replaced with a false sense of devotion.
Another pawn was added to his occult.
The illusion itself, which Arthur pieced together, worked by subtly altering the listener's perception through sound. By lacing chakra in one's tongue and focusing that chakra on the sound vibrations, Gengo could essentially rewrite the message his words carried, twisting them to his will.
It was deceptively simple. The technique relied on sound rather than everyday elements.
Before exiting the castle, Arthur placed a flying raijin mark in a secret location. He dispelled his Smoke technique outside, solidifying his form once more.
The encounter with Gengo had been worthwhile. He may not have collected the flowers to help amplify the mind-control effects, but him acquiring the knowledge of how to perform the Enhancing Flattery technique was more than enough.
For now, there was more to explore, more knowledge to be gleaned.
With a reserved thought, he turned his back on the castle, leaving Curtain Village behind as he walked into the night.
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