Kisame was still reeling from the shock, completely unable to pull himself together.
Seeing this, Naruto understood that Kisame was already wavering, but that was far from enough. He needed to give Kisame a tangible benefit… a 'sweet treat', to firmly secure his loyalty.
Opening the system panel, Naruto scrolled through all his acquired skills. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as he found the perfect ability.
It was none other than the Courage Blessing!
This was a reward from a previous sign-in at the Land of Waves. Courage Blessing didn't simply enhance courage, as it was a powerful damage-boosting buff!
[Courage Blessing: Bless teammates within 100 meters, increase their physical (Taijutsu) attack power, magical (Genjutsu) attack power, independent (Ninjutsu) attack power, strength/intelligence (Chakra), and accuracy. Also increase the user's skill attack power and accuracy.]
"Kisame, stick with me, and I guarantee you'll live the good life!" Naruto declared confidently, then silently activated the Courage Blessing.
He clasped his hands in a prayer-like pose, gradually summoning a fiery red glow.
As he spread his hands apart, the fiery red glow rose above Naruto's head and exploded in a dazzling burst.
The radiant light spread across a 100-meter radius. When it touched Kisame, both he and Naruto became surrounded by shimmering lights of purple, blue, and yellow.
The three radiant lights condensed into a pattern resembling a three-tomoe Sharingan, but instead of black, the tomoe were colored purple, blue, and yellow.
The lights spiraled down and merged into their bodies, leaving behind a warm sensation that flowed through them. Both Naruto and Kisame felt their Chakra Reserves increase slightly.
Buzz!
A glowing symbol of a staff, dagger, and sword appeared above their heads, representing Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu, respectively.
When the glow finally dissipated, a faint misty aura lingered around the two of them.
"This is…"
Kisame, who came back to his senses, was even more astonished.
Earlier in the day, his Chakra had been completely drained, and he had no time to recover it. Now, however, he could clearly feel the warmth flowing through his body, replenishing him.
Not only that, but his fists felt stronger and more powerful. For someone like Kisame, whose strength had plateaued for a long time, this newfound vigor was an immense joy and a pleasant surprise.
"Naruto-kun, what exactly is this?" Kisame asked eagerly.
Naruto explained, "This is one of my Sharingan's unique abilities of. It boosts the strength of others. The more I use it, the greater the boosts will become. But it's a special privilege reserved for my subordinates."
Kisame quickly responded, "Naruto-kun, what do you mean? The moment I decided to hear your secrets, I was already your most loyal subordinate."
For a seasoned Shinobi like Kisame, a buff like this was an irresistible temptation. And for someone like Kisame, who was also at a crossroads in life, it also served as a powerful reassurance.
Whether it was for practical benefits or for strength, he couldn't refuse Naruto's offer. Becoming Naruto's subordinate was undoubtedly the best choice.
"Hahaha!"
Seeing Kisame's attitude do a complete 180, Naruto couldn't help but laugh heartily.
'Sure enough, the real Talk-no-Jutsu wasn't just about talking… it required some sweet rewards as well.'
However, Naruto noticed a flicker of something unusual in Kisame's eyes. Though Kisame tried his best to suppress it, the occasional furrowing of his brow didn't escape Naruto's sharp observation.
"If you have anything else on your mind, just tell this boss of yours." Naruto said, his tone both curious and encouraging.
Despite Kisame's weathered appearance, he was only 29 years old. With Naruto's two lifetimes of experience, his mental age far surpassed Kisame's, so he definitely can help Kisame answer some questions about life.
As the boss, Naruto believed it was his responsibility to understand his subordinates' concerns.
After a brief pause, Kisame finally voiced his worry, "Naruto-kun, are you really confident you can leave the Akatsuki successfully?"
"Of course."
Naruto's confidence was unshakable as he replied, "The Akatsuki right now is still disorganized. They're like a pile of manure when together and scattered stardust when apart, completely lacking mutual trust. As long as I break them apart one by one, it's no issue. And besides, if the worst comes to the worst, I can just join them. With my strength, and the fact that they need people, they'd even temporarily tolerate me despite wanting the Kyubi inside me."
"But nothing's ever 100% certain. What if something goes wrong?" Kisame expressed his lingering worry.
"Something goes wrong?" Naruto smirked, "You're overthinking it. Don't forget who my father is."
Kisame asked in doubts, "Your father? When Itachi-san was away, I found out about the Chunin Exams. I heard that you are the son of the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato. But what does that have to do with this?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow in mild exasperation, "What is the unique technique that my father is famous for?"
"The Flying Thunder God Technique, which known throughout the Shinobi World… Wait… Are you saying you can use it too?" Kisame immediately grasped the implication.
"Of course. So, do you still think there's a 'what if'?" Naruto responded, his smirk growing wider.
Kisame shook his head and said self-deprecatingly, "Looks like I was just overthinking. From the start, you've been invincible."
The Flying Thunder God Technique was a Space-Time Ninjutsu that allowed its user to teleport instantly. As long as Naruto wasn't instantly killed, he could easily escape from any danger in the Akatsuki's base.
And to instantly kill someone as terrifyingly strong as Naruto?
Kisame asked himself honestly and concluded that such a being simply didn't exist… at least not in the Akatsuki.
Otherwise, the Akatsuki would have unified the Shinobi World long ago, and it would only take a word to achieve peace or destruction. Why would they need to go through the trouble of collecting the Biju to carry out the Eye of the Moon Plan?
Seeing Kisame's furrowed brow had completely relaxed, Naruto nodded in satisfaction.
After personally helping his subordinate solve his doubts, Naruto felt more and more suited to being a big boss.
Just as he was thinking this, the system prompt rang in his mind.
[It is detected that the host has stayed in the hot spring for one hour. Sign-in successful. Reward: Weapon Blessing!]
'Huh? What kind of reward is this?'
Naruto was baffled.
With the hot water of the hot spring, he expected a reward related to water or fire. What did Weapon Blessing even mean?
[Friendly Reminder: This location was originally a blacksmith's shop, where water was used for weapon quenching. Hence the derived reward.]
'Oh my god, the system is really capable of forcing things!'
Naruto couldn't help but complain in his heart.
'Weapon quenching typically used cold water, not hot springs' water. The system was clearly just making things up.'
Originally, Naruto had hoped for a fire-resistant ability, something he could test by signing in while immersed in flames. But now, that idea seemed out of reach.
Still, a reward was a reward. Even if it was trivial, Naruto chose to accept it. After all, free gifts, no matter how small, were better than nothing.
Opening the system panel, Naruto checked the details of his reward.
[Weapon Blessing: Increases the weapon-based physical attack power and accuracy of team members within a certain range. Also boosts their strength slightly for a limited time.]
'Not only are the rewards given by the system perfunctory, but the reward introduction is also perfunctory.'
Having recently received incredible rewards, the mediocrity of this one left Naruto feeling a noticeable gap in excitement.
"Naruto-kun, if there's nothing else, I'll head back now," Kisame said, standing and wrapping himself in a towel, preparing to leave the hot springs.
"Sure, go ahead… wait, no!" Naruto's eyes lit up as he abruptly stopped Kisame, "Stay here for now. I have an experiment that requires you!"
Naruto was halfway through his words when he suddenly thought of something.
'While Weapon Blessing might be useless for me, it could be incredibly effective for Kisame.'
'If I applied Weapon Blessing to Samehada, what kind of results might it produce?'