"Nonsense! Where is this ninja village?!"
Unfazed by the children's doubts, Aoi smiled and raised one hand.
"I say — let there be no light in this world!"
Darkness Technique!
"Ah — what's happening?!" "Did night fall already?!"
"Who blew out all the lights?!"
A curtain of deep blackness swallowed their sight completely, plunging their world into total darkness.
Using an A‑rank forbidden technique on a group of children… only someone who still thought like a child himself would do such a thing.
"And now — I say, let there be light!"
At the sound of Aoi's clear voice, the darkness slowly receded, and light returned to their eyes.
With just this small display, the children lost all urge to rebel. Instead, they stared at Aoi with newfound respect and awe.
To them, such power was nothing short of a miracle.
Satisfied that the atmosphere was set, Aoi raised both hands and declared: "I say — here stands a ninja village!"
"Ding — Confirm receipt of ninja village."
Confirm.
The immense power of the System descended, and as if constructed by some cosmic printer, a fully formed village — modeled closely after Konoha — materialized and stood silently in the center of the plain.
"H‑how… how is this possible?!"
The children's eyes nearly popped out of their heads.
They stumbled backward in fear, having never witnessed anything so incredible.
"Ding — Follower added: Makino. Follower added: Kawai."
But the display was far from over…
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Channeling his full power, Aoi called forth nearly a hundred giant serpents from Ryūchi Cave all at once.
Before the children could even scream, the great snakes opened their jaws, and dozens of cursed‑snake warriors carrying supplies stepped out, filing naturally into the village and beginning to settle in.
In just a few minutes, the whole place was alive with activity.
The children were left speechless. It was all as fantastic as a fairy tale — something even the most powerful shinobi could never achieve.
To conjure an entire village out of thin air… that was practically the power of a god!
Soon after, Aoi gained several more followers.
These children, who had lived on the fringes of great noble families, were often far more decisive than ordinary people — simply because they had so few chances to begin with.
Now, everything fell into place. With the Heavenly Cursed Seal applied to each of them, Aoi had no fear of betrayal — even from those who did not yet swear absolute loyalty.
As for the village itself, being labeled "basic" meant it was functional but far from luxurious; it had everything necessary and nothing more.
The cursed‑snake warriors handled all daily needs and logistics, even operating their own serpent‑drawn carts.
For training, instructors were drawn from Orochimaru's subordinates, while the legendary puppet master Sasori served as the village head.
It was a stop‑gap arrangement, but Aoi's pool of trusted talent was still too small to do otherwise.
"I don't teach children," Sasori grumbled — a rare admission of something he was not good at.
"And if these brats get too noisy, may I be allowed to kill a few?"
Absolutely not…
All the same, Aoi had finally laid the foundation of his own force.
More students would be recruited later from the Land of No and from Orochimaru's ranks.
With the most complete collection of low‑rank techniques in the entire ninja world, plus Sasori's guidance, Aoi was confident — provided the children did not end up as practice targets — they would one day bring him great rewards.
"Open the Kage‑Tier Treasure Chest!"
The contents were underwhelming as usual: one mid‑grade ninja tool, a pair of stockings once belonging to Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, and one entry‑level Trial Scroll.
Trial Scrolls… they really are the most common reward, aren't they?
"Perfect — while I wait for events in the Land of Birds to unfold, I might as well take a look."
He unfurled the scroll, revealing a strange table with five straw hats laid upon it.
Before he could get a closer look, his vision blurred, and consciousness slipped away…
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