Utmost Benevolence and Goodness, Equal in Death

"Do you think Pain has already blown up the royal capital of the Land of Fire with a massive Shinra Tensei?"

Ran was making conversation for lack of anything else to say. He was not used to acting alongside Mercenary Tao. Neither Orochimaru nor Uchiha Itachi, who were traveling with them, seemed inclined to speak. That silent atmosphere, paired with Mercenary Tao’s half-smiling expression, made Ran feel as though he were being watched by a venomous snake every second.

He was beginning to understand why Catherine had so insistently demanded to work with Pain and Konan this time.

That strong-willed woman had probably been stretched to her emotional limit over the past few days as well.

Uchiha Itachi paid no attention to this "rogue ninja," while Orochimaru merely glanced at the unexpectedly capable fellow. In Orochimaru’s eyes, the man was too frivolous by nature and not someone capable of accomplishing anything great.

Only Bai Cangshu and Hiranaka Hana, seated atop the Summoning Beast’s back, had any interest in answering the question.

"Pain will probably give a long speech that sounds like an accusation against the entire world, though no one will actually listen to it. Then he’ll destroy the place."

After saying that, he took a bite of the thoroughly boiled Tailed Beast meat.

You consumed uncooked Tailed Beast meat. Ingredient Grade: Medium. Deliciousness Grade: Average

Gourmet Cell has gained slight growth. Current: Lv0 (62/100)

Milestone: Gourmet triggered. You obtained the temporary buff Energy Overflow (Rare): When using energy, an additional 10% energy intensity will erupt.

Ran knew that Mercenary Tao possessed Gourmet Cells. Eating now was probably another way of continuously strengthening himself. From a reincarnator’s perspective, someone like Mercenary Tao was probably among those with the highest chance of survival.

"I’ve truly never met anyone like you. You’re practically… tailor-made by the space itself."

Ran spoke without thinking, but quickly realized that saying something like that to Mercenary Tao might offend him. He hurriedly waved his hands in panic and began explaining.

"I just mean you possess every trait we need. Look, we need the courage to never flee from battle, the ability to constantly challenge difficulties, and, beyond that, the ability to ensure we survive every dangerous situation. And then… not becoming weary of the future, not growing tired of it…"

Ran had heard of many reincarnators who had not died in mission worlds because they lacked strength. Some were quite strong and lucky as well, yet the endless string of missions eventually crushed them beneath the pressure.

Those people ultimately indulged in every kind of desire to relieve their stress, fell into depravity, and died in mission worlds where no one would ever know.

But someone like Mercenary Tao seemed like a robot to Ran. Even when eating, he had no pursuit of delicious food whatsoever. Ran felt that if it were not for the needs of his Gourmet Cells, this guy would probably eat Tailed Beasts raw.

After explaining for a few sentences, Ran realized he was only making things more confusing. Seeing Mercenary Tao tilt his head and look at him, he could only use checking how far they were from their destination as an excuse to pull away.

"They’re all afraid of you."

Orochimaru had already realized that Mercenary Tao, Heaven’s Will, Ran, and those people capable of using unusual "hand-sign-free ninjutsu" all came from the same place.

Moreover, they were not on good terms. Their relationships with one another were extremely tense.

And this Mercenary Tao was most likely at the top of their food chain.

Bai Cangshu nodded indifferently.

"Yes, they have many misunderstandings about me. Orochimaru, you know that I’m actually a generous good person. It’s just that, like you, I possess an intense desire to explore certain things."

Bai Cangshu spoke half-truthful nonsense, and Orochimaru did not investigate further.

Following the map Heaven’s Will had provided, they had come to search for Uchiha Madara’s corpse. Along the way, they would pass through the Land of Rain and deliver a cruel gift to the royal capital of the Land of Lightning.

"Mr. Mercenary Tao, that lady said… my husband has gone missing, and only that man… knows what happened…"

Hiranaka Hana was somewhat afraid of Mercenary Tao, but she still wanted news of her husband.

Her husband’s act of passing on that information had led to the massacre of everyone in their town. At first, Hiranaka Hana had naturally been confused and even resentful. But after losing all her relatives, her husband was the only person she had left to rely on in this world.

And after hearing so much about the hatred between ninjas, about wars between great nations, even she could not help beginning to believe that perhaps her husband had truly done such a thing for some greater cause.

Shimura Danzō was tied to the Summoning Beast Orochimaru was riding. A foul stench wafted from beneath him. Since Bai Cangshu had crushed his spine, his body had begun to lose control.

Shimura Danzō’s expression had become numb as well.

Bai Cangshu looked at the woman, who had cooked for him twice and was now cautiously trying to probe his attitude. A smile curled at the corner of his mouth, but he did not question Danzo as she expected.

In truth, he had already roughly guessed Hiranaka Minoru’s fate.

Heaven’s Will claimed she could influence and control him to a certain extent by manipulating space. It sounded extremely mysterious at first.

But Bai Cangshu had relevant experience. He knew very well how it worked.

Just as he had caused Moon Demon and the others to fail their Main Mission in the initial trial world by killing Mercenary Tao, if Heaven’s Will could understand the contents of his trial missions to a certain degree—

Then she could use that to interfere with his actions.

If his guess was correct, the second stage of his Special Trial: Utmost Benevolence and Goodness would extend from Hiranaka Hana to her husband, Hiranaka Minoru—the man who had truly caused the predicament of the first stage.

If Heaven’s Will had not interfered, that man would most likely have been imprisoned in Konoha.

Then the second stage of his trial mission would be to enter Konoha to rescue him, or avenge him by killing one of Konoha’s core figures.

Such a mission balanced difficulty with plot progression perfectly. It fit the space’s style very well.

But now, it was obvious that the woman codenamed Heaven’s Will had once again displayed a reincarnator’s ambition. She had directly begun forcefully remaking this world with an entirely different power system.

The world had changed. Another purpose behind Bai Cangshu’s Konoha Collapse Plan had failed, and Hiranaka Minoru had already been arranged by Heaven’s Will in advance.

Through this situation, she had drawn him into her plan.

"If your husband became a monster, would you still love him?"

Bai Cangshu asked the woman this question with great interest, drawing looks from both Orochimaru and Uchiha Itachi.

In their eyes, a topic like "love" seemed utterly unrelated to this humanoid Tailed Beast. From beginning to end, he had not even shown sexual desire toward the opposite sex.

Hiranaka Hana’s face turned somewhat pale. Countless unpleasant images flashed through her mind. She twisted her hands together, then finally took several deep breaths and said,

"As long as he is still my husband, I will love him."

The woman spoke calmly. That ordinary but honest man appeared before her eyes once more, scene after scene from the past flickering through her mind. She was grateful for everything he had done for her and their family. Though he was not some powerful ninja, he always went out on missions and always tried his hardest to return alive…

Bai Cangshu watched the woman’s heartbeat gradually settle from its rapid rhythm of fear and agitation into calmness and resolve. The smile on his face slowly faded.

Tch. The weaker a creature is, the more it loves to talk about "love." It cannot even withstand a single finger of mine, yet it fantasizes about forever.

That weak yet resolute thing was something Bai Cangshu did not possess.

He remembered the little girl from the One Piece World who had wiped her snot on his pants when she cried. His face showed neither joy nor sorrow.

Pop!

With a flick of his finger, another burst of force struck Danzo in the face.

The Hokage adviser, who had gradually gone numb as he waited for death, merely looked at Bai Cangshu blankly.

"Where did you hide the man who leaked the information about the discord between Konoha’s higher-ups and the Uchiha?"

Orochimaru was about to form hand seals. He had some expertise in interrogation as well, but Danzo spoke first.

"That man… escaped…"

"He suddenly became much stronger. He escaped from Konoha’s prison three days ago… That woman probably helped him…"

Clearly, Danzo had already formed his own suspicions.

"He escaped… Is Minoru all right?!"

Hiranaka Hana hurriedly pressed him, but Danzo only lowered his head.

"Golden eyes… He had golden eyes…"

"What kind of Pupil Technique was that…"

Danzo began muttering to himself, voicing the many questions he had once considered. His mind was probably close to breaking down.

Bai Cangshu had his answer. Clearly, that woman had secretly planted the Erdtree somewhere and allowed Hiranaka Minoru to receive a portion of the Golden Order’s blessing.

The Golden Order, under which no life would ever die, likely held a fatal attraction for many people in this world.

When Bai Cangshu looked again at the name Utmost Benevolence and Goodness for this Special Trial, he found it held more meanings than before.

It seemed the mission world assigned after he activated the Virtue Card had not been chosen at random.

Demonstrating Utmost Benevolence and Goodness through the Golden Order?

Bai Cangshu’s expression became inscrutable.

Whoosh, thunk!

Uchiha Itachi suddenly turned and threw a Shuriken. It embedded itself directly in a tree trunk with a dull sound.

Bai Cangshu turned around and saw Uchiha Obito, dressed in a Red Cloud Black Robe and wearing a spiral mask, silently appear behind them.

He seemed to have been hiding here all along.

Seeing that the other man wore Akatsuki clothing, Itachi did not continue attacking.

Uchiha Obito jumped down from the tree and landed on the Summoning Beast Bai Cangshu was riding.

"Mercenary Tao, I advise you not to trust that woman’s words. She will deceive everyone who believes in her."

"Including the Third Hokage, Danzo, me, and you."

Obito’s voice was somewhat gloomy. He felt the situation was slipping out of control. Nagato was increasingly breaking free of his control, while Konoha’s actions had also been ruined by Uchiha Shisui, whom Mercenary Tao had arranged.

Bai Cangshu nodded and said frankly,

"She wants me to kill you, so no one will interfere with her grand plan of planting trees."

Obito remembered the world she had proposed, one where no one would die, and his heartbeat quickened slightly. But he soon shook his head.

Rin was already dead. Even if that so-called Erdtree Era truly arrived, it would not be the world he wanted…

It would merely be a world without Rin.

"What is your choice, Mercenary Tao?"

"I know you have ambitions for power. Believe me, I can give you everything you want."

"The Sharingan, the Mangekyō Sharingan, even… the Rinnegan!"

"As long as the Infinite Tsukuyomi can descend, I can give you everything afterward."

Uchiha Obito spoke passionately. He truly did not care about those things. So long as he could complete the Infinite Tsukuyomi, they would be of no use to him.

Hah…

Bai Cangshu let out a derisive laugh.

"You people still don’t understand me well enough."

"My Utmost Benevolence and Goodness does not work that way."

"Whether it’s the Erdtree Era or Infinite Tsukuyomi, it’s all a bit too troublesome."

Obito seemed to feel a gust of wind blow toward him. Purple ripples swayed across Bai Cangshu’s body like flames, yet they were exceptionally sinister.

"Do you know, Obito? There is only one circumstance in this world that allows everyone to empathize with and understand each other."

"That is… the fear of death."