Squelch!
With a single swing of his sword, Akira beheaded Gatō on the spot.
His hideously twisted head rolled across the ground.
Faced with such a bloody scene, the villagers felt no fear.
Instead, they experienced the exhilaration of finally having their vengeance.
For years, Gatō and his men had enslaved them.
Daka Village—and even the entire Land of Waves—had suffered tremendously under his rule.
Every last one of them hated Gatō to the bone.
“You’re finally dead, you bastard Gatō!” Overcome with emotion, Tazuna grabbed a wooden club and began smashing Gatō’s severed head into the ground.
Blood and brain matter soon splattered everywhere.
“Mr.
Tazuna, please try to contain your grief…” The villagers stepped forward to comfort him.
They all understood the pain Tazuna had endured after losing his son-in-law.
Still, Gatō—the man who had controlled their lives for so long—had died so suddenly that it almost felt unreal.
Thud!
Tazuna abruptly dropped to his knees before Akira and slammed his forehead against the ground several times.
“Thank you!
Thank you from the bottom of my heart, great king, for delivering justice on our behalf!” The other villagers quickly followed his example, kneeling in unison until a vast crowd had prostrated themselves before Akira.
“Our honored king…” “We are willing to devote our entire lives to serving you!” Their gratitude toward Akira came from the depths of their hearts.
“Very well~ Then work hard and continue building your homeland.
The king’s glory shall protect you.” Akira naturally accepted their devotion as though it were only proper.
[Main Role Progress: 12%] His Portrayal Progress increased once again.
Akira felt the power within his body rise considerably.
…
After Gatō’s death, the remnants of his organization immediately descended into internal conflict.
Not a single person suggested avenging their former leader.
Instead, they swiftly divided his wealth among themselves before scattering in every direction.
Zabuza Momochi, a rogue shinobi from Kirigakure who had been working as a mercenary, arrived one step too late.
He received nothing and was naturally in an extremely foul mood.
This was not because Zabuza had reacted too slowly.
His relationship with Gatō had never been one of unquestioning loyalty.
It had merely been a partnership based on mutual benefit.
Gatō intended to make use of Zabuza’s strength, while Zabuza intended to make use of Gatō’s wealth.
The Land of Waves had no shinobi forces of its own, nor did it possess any resistance organization worthy of concern.
Gatō could easily suppress all opposition with ordinary thugs and samurai.
There had been no need for him to deploy someone as powerful as Zabuza.
Besides, hiring Zabuza for a single mission was extremely expensive!
That was why Gatō had not brought him along when he led his men to Daka Village.
By the time news of Gatō’s beheading reached him, Zabuza had been delayed by the lack of information.
He arrived too late and missed his chance to claim a share of Gatō’s fortune.
“Mr.
Zabuza, what should we do now?” Haku asked worriedly.
Without Gatō as their financial backer, they could no longer guarantee even their basic living expenses.
More importantly, Zabuza still needed to gather enough money to finance another coup in Kirigakure.
“Damn it!
What bastard dared ruin my plans?!” Zabuza’s expression was exceedingly dark.
“According to the information we received, a boy in Daka Village who calls himself a king killed Gatō,” Haku replied, his eyes flickering slightly.
Truthfully, the kindhearted Haku had always despised a thoroughly wicked man like Gatō.
Unfortunately, Zabuza needed to cooperate with such a person, so Haku had no choice but to endure it and obey.
When he heard that Gatō had been killed, Haku could not help silently praising the person responsible.
The world had been rid of a terrible scourge!
“Hmph!
In a barren place like the Land of Waves, even some nameless stray dares call himself a king?” Zabuza spoke with open disdain.
Although Akira had slaughtered all of Gatō’s subordinates in one attack, such a feat still meant little in Zabuza’s eyes.
As a former elite jonin of Kirigakure, Zabuza could have wiped out Gatō and all his men by himself with ease.
He had only lowered himself to work beneath Gatō because he was a rogue shinobi wanted by the Land of Water and needed somewhere to hide from his pursuers.
Now, some unknown brat claiming to be a king had single-handedly destroyed his refuge.
Naturally, Zabuza was furious.
He had also heard that the boy possessed tremendous wealth.
That gave him the perfect opportunity to rob him!
“Let’s go!
We’re heading to Daka Village to meet this arrogant brat!” Zabuza strapped the enormous Kubikiribōchō to his back and strode outside, radiating murderous intent.
“Mr.
Zabuza…” Haku’s lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but he ultimately remained silent.
As Zabuza’s tool, he could only obey.