Naruto: I Kill, I Loot, I Ascend

Chapter 218: Hyuga Arin Takes Command of Root’s Second Squad

"Root has a total of ten squads," Aburame Ryoma explained to Arin as they walked.

"They're not like normal ninja teams of three or four people. Each squad has a base size of twenty members. However, because every team handles different tasks, some squads may expand beyond that."

Ryoma led Arin into a rather remote room within the Root base.

It was actually a large training ground, where many people were currently training.

"So how many people are in my squad, and what exactly are our responsibilities?" Arin asked.

"The Second Squad has the standard twenty members," Ryoma said.

"Its primary duty is encirclement and assassination operations outside the village."

He stopped speaking there.

More precisely—

They were responsible for eliminating Konoha ninja deemed dangerous by Root.

This type of mission was deeply despised by the village.

If this squad was exposed, they would immediately be treated as expendable pawns and abandoned.

Killing fellow ninja from the same village was an unforgivable act for most loyal Konoha shinobi.

Because of this, the Second Squad had always remained at twenty members.

It never expanded.

Quite simply—

No one wanted to join.

Unless Danzo personally ordered it, no one would volunteer for such a unit.

By placing Arin here, Danzo clearly didn't have good intentions.

With Arin's current achievements in the village, if his activities were exposed, he personally might not suffer much punishment.

But he would certainly be hated by nearly every ninja in the village.

Possibly even worse than the Uchiha.

At least people merely disliked the Uchiha's arrogance.

They didn't necessarily feel genuine hatred toward them.

But if the entire village came to despise Arin, he would be unable to integrate into normal society.

He would have no choice but to continue serving Root.

This was Danzo's calculation.

A way to prevent Arin from ever leaving Root.

At least—

That was what Aburame Ryoma believed.

"Encirclement and assassination, huh…" Arin rubbed his chin.

"But there aren't many ninja outside the village, right?"

Ryoma sighed.

"It's village ninja."

"When Root issues an order, you cannot refuse. You must carry out the assassination."

Most people would never accept such a mission.

Ryoma assumed Arin would react the same way.

"Wait—this is good news, isn't it?!" Arin's voice suddenly jumped an entire octave.

Ryoma: "???"

Clearly, he didn't understand Arin very well.

And perhaps Danzo hadn't been plotting anything.

Maybe this squad was simply the most suitable place for him.

"So when do we get missions?" Arin asked excitedly.

"Right now? Who's the target?"

"Sarutobi? Or the Ino-Shika-Cho clans?"

"Well, maybe not Sarutobi. I'm not very interested in them."

"The Ino-Shika-Cho clans would be pretty good."

"As for the Hyuga clan… if it's not the main branch, it's hard to get excited."

"But if it's the Uchiha, just tell me how many people there are…"

Arin rambled endlessly.

His meaning was clear.

Not only did he not mind the mission—

He was actually very excited about it.

Whoever the target was.

Whichever clan it belonged to.

Just tell him the number of people and location, and he guaranteed no survivors.

This reaction was completely different from what Ryoma had expected.

Did someone like this really exist in Konoha?!

Where was his bond with fellow villagers?!

Give it back!!

Was it really okay for someone like this to join Root?

Well…

Root wasn't exactly a good place anyway.

Ryoma screamed internally, but outwardly remained calm.

"Those missions are usually assigned directly by Lord Danzo."

"At the moment, Lord Danzo hasn't issued any orders."

He also quietly moved a little farther away from Arin.

"Tch."

Arin clicked his tongue.

"That Danzo guy really isn't doing his job properly as Root's leader."

"There are so many ninja in Konoha. How could they all be clean?"

"If they're clean, can't you just frame them?"

"If you can't even frame someone, what kind of Root leader are you?"

As long as you're not the leader, Ryoma thought silently.

If Arin actually took over Root, half the village's ninja might disappear overnight.

At that moment, Ryoma suddenly appreciated Danzo's authoritarian leadership.

At least Danzo wasn't that insane.

"And please address him as Lord Danzo," Ryoma silently added in his heart.

He said nothing aloud.

After all, there was really no good response to that.

He used to think Root was cruel.

But after seeing Arin…

Root suddenly seemed pretty humane.

There was truly no harm without comparison.

"One day I'll have to talk to little Danzo about this," Arin said painfully.

Lord Danzo's status had just dropped another level.

Arin's ambitions were obvious to anyone.

At that moment, Ryoma silently swore to himself—

He would defend Danzo's position with his life.

At the very least, Root's leader absolutely could not become someone like Hyuga Arin.

"Oh right," Arin suddenly asked.

"Can I recruit my own people?"

This was actually his real goal.

Machi's identity still hadn't been solved yet.

Ryoma nodded.

"You can recruit members yourself. Their identities will be managed by you."

"After all, you are the captain of the Second Squad."

The main reason was simple.

Even Root ninja who had undergone emotional suppression training didn't want to kill their fellow villagers.

So the Second Squad had the authority to recruit independently.

"No problem then," Arin nodded.

Problem solved.

Their arrival attracted the attention of the Root ninja training in the room.

Twenty ninja immediately appeared before Arin and Ryoma.

"From today onward," Ryoma announced solemnly,

"Player will serve as the captain of the Second Squad."

"All of you must obey his orders."

"This is Lord Danzo's command."

All twenty ninja knelt on one knee toward Arin.

"Greetings, Captain Player."

Arin nodded while activating his Byakugan and scanning them.

Among the twenty ninja—

Only three possessed jōnin-level chakra.

The remaining seventeen were chūnin.

Despite Root and Anbu seeming prestigious within Konoha, there actually weren't many jōnin among them.

Chūnin made up the majority.

Of course—

There were no genin at all.

"I'll leave the rest to you," Ryoma said.

Then he vanished instantly, leaving with a Body Flicker Technique.

Arin looked at the group of ninja in front of him and cleared his throat.

"From now on, I'm your commander."

"If you perform well, I'll reward you."

"Thank you, Captain Player."

The group responded in unison.

Their voices carried no emotion whatsoever.

Of course—

They had no expectations either.

Arin rubbed his chin.

It was their first meeting.

They obviously wouldn't become loyal immediately.

But that could be handled slowly.

"Anyone capable of fighting and killing a jōnin, step forward."

To Arin's surprise—

Five people stepped forward.

He activated his Byakugan again to examine them more carefully.

Three of them only had chūnin-level chakra.

But since they dared to step forward, they clearly had some confidence.

After all—

Chakra quantity didn't necessarily determine combat strength.

"You five, come with me."

"The rest of you continue training."

"Yes!!"

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