In Naruto's eyes, Hidan was the epitome of stubbornness.
He had already beaten Hidan once and then let Kisame, Itachi, and Kakuzu take their turns.
Normally, anyone with a shred of self-preservation would start feeling some fear or hesitation. But not Hidan… he remained just as defiant and unyielding.
Naruto thought that Hidan would always be like this, but reality took an unexpected turn.
Through the Observation Haki, Naruto detected a faint trace of confusion in Hidan's emotions. Although it was a very subtle, it was undeniably present.
There are two stages in which Hidan undergoes such a transformation, one when Naruto performs the Courage Blessing and the other when he performs the Weapon Blessing.
Naruto speculated that the blessings, or what appeared to be divine favor, had deeply unsettled Hidan.
As a devout follower of the Jashin, Hidan had never received any tangible sign of Jashin's favor. Yet here were three people, not even fellow worshippers, visibly blessed by Naruto.
To Hidan, this was incomprehensible.
'If it were really that simple, then Jashin-sama would have blessed me long ago…'
'Could it be that Jashin-sama isn't real?'
The more Hidan dwelled on this, the more chaotic his thoughts became. Doubts began creeping into his once-absolute faith.
"No, impossible! Jashin-sama must exist! I must not have been devout enough… that's why the all-powerful Jashin-sama hasn't noticed me yet. How could I expect his favor when I've dared to doubt him? I need to be even more devoted!"
Hearing Hidan muttering to himself, Naruto chuckled.
Just now, Naruto was just guessing about his confusion about faith, but now he is completely sure of his thoughts.
Originally, Naruto had been struggling with how to break Hidan free from his fanaticism. But in an ironic twist, simply showing off had accidentally cracked the foundation of Hidan's faith.
This was an unexpected but welcome surprise.
But Naruto understood that Hidan's confusion was a natural reaction. After all, Hidan is a rather stubborn and single-minded kid.
reminded Naruto of children from his previous life who believed in superheroes like Ultraman. They'd cling to the hope that Ultraman would save them in times of danger. But when no Ultraman came, the kids would begin to question its reality.
As they grew older, they'd come to accept that Ultraman wasn't real, and their hero was just a character from a TV show.
However, even as adults, some would still hold onto that belief… not out of ignorance but because Ultraman symbolized their childhood innocence and a beacon of hope.
For such positive beliefs, Naruto saw no harm. In fact, he also believed in ;the light'.
But Hidan's situation was different. The Jashin cult he believes in was inherently malevolent. From the outset, it had led him astray, turning him into a remorseless killer.
If it were anyone else, Naruto wouldn't have bothered to deal with them.
However, to realize his dream of uniting the Akatsuki, Hidan was indispensable.
Therefore, what Naruto needs to do is to make Hidan understand that the Jashin cult is fake, fundamentally cut off Hidan's thoughts, and make him no longer so crazy and obsessed, so that he would turn over a new leaf.
However, Naruto knew he couldn't outright denounce the Jashin religion. As doing so would only make Hidan double down in defense of his faith, becoming even more fanatical.
The best strategy was to say nothing, leaving Hidan to stew in his own doubts. With cracks forming in his faith, Naruto would wait until his Observation Haki advanced to its highest level. At that point, dismantling Hidan's belief system would be far easier.
Putting Hidan aside for the moment, Naruto clapped his hands and declared, "Alright, that concludes today's game."
After saying that, with a wave of his hand, Naruto retrieved a villa from the system inventory, placing it neatly on an open patch of land.
"What is that?"
Hidan, witnessing the seemingly magical act of Naruto pulling an entire house from thin air for the first time, was utterly shocked.
He didn't ask any direct questions but observed silently, his mind clearly racing.
Naruto noticed Hidan's shock and uncertainty through his Observation Haki. His mind turned, and a plan immediately came to his mind.
Before, Naruto was just planning to ignore Hidan, but Hidan actually gave him the opportunity, so he had to seize the opportunity and deepen Hidan's confusion.
Smiling slyly, Naruto turned to Itachi and asked casually, "Itachi, it's getting dark. How do you plan to solve the problem of dinner?"
Itachi frowned slightly but said nothing at first. He knew Naruto had plenty of stored game from the previous day and wouldn't ask such a question without a reason.
'Among those present, only Hidan was unaware of the food reserves.'
'It was obvious that Naruto-kun's actions were intended to provoke Hidan.'
After playing along with Naruto multiple times, Itachi had already caught on to Naruto's plan, especially in relation to Hidan's overzealous devotion to the Jashin cult. Clearing his throat, Itachi spoke earnestly, "Naruto-kun, please bless us with sustenance."
Kisame and Kakuzu quickly followed suit, mimicking Itachi, "Naruto-kun, please bless us with sustenance."
"Good! Such sincerity!"
Naruto nodded, clearly pleased with their performances, "Since you've shown such devotion, I shall bless you with sustenance."
With a wave of his hand, a large black-haired cow appeared out of thin air in front of him.
Naruto explained deliberately, "This is a sacrificial offering someone just gave me. Let's all enjoy it together."
Hidan didn't say a word but immediately rushed forward to inspect the cow. He found that the cow had indeed just been slaughtered and its blood was still warm.
"This… how is this possible..."
Hidan's face twisted with disbelief. He refused to accept the notion that Naruto could perform feats akin to a god, but the evidence before him left him at a loss for words.
Logically speaking, even if Naruto had used Space-Time Ninjutsu to summon the cow, it wouldn't have preserved the freshly slaughtered state so perfectly. Moreover, Naruto had been in front of them the entire time, with no chance to hunt the cow himself.
The only logical explanation was that Naruto really had received the offering.
'Could it be that this kid is a true God?'
Compared to the abstract and intangible Jashin, Hidan felt that Naruto in front of him was more real.
Hidan barely allowed this thought to surface before he ruthlessly suppressed it. He couldn't permit himself to doubt Jashin.
But Naruto had already noticed Hidan's extremely drastic emotional fluctuations through his observation Haki.
Naruto chuckled internally. To achieve this level of doubt and disruption in Hidan's faith had already far exceeded his expectations.
Not only had he shaken Hidan's convictions, but he'd also managed to show off spectacularly in the process. Truly, a double win.
"Mmm, it smells so good!"
Naruto gave Kakuzu a big thumbs-up as he chewed on a piece of tender beef, 'As expected of an old monster who had lived for many years, he may be not proficient in everything, but he was good at most things. This beef is so perfectly cooked I almost swallowed my tongue.'
With Naruto starting to eat, Kisame, Kakuzu, and Itachi began taking their turns based on their rankings.
"Hey, Hidan, come over and eat." Naruto called out to Hidan.
Hidan hadn't eaten in two days. If he went any longer without food, his body would likely start breaking down. Naruto didn't want Hidan dying of starvation before he could be properly converted.
Surprisingly, Hidan looked genuinely confused, "I'm a follower of Jashin-sama. Don't you care about that?"
"Care about what? All I know is that I'm your superior, and since I brought you out here, I can't let you starve."
Naruto replied simply while still chewing on his meat.
"Why aren't you eating? Are you waiting for me to feed you?" Naruto asked in mock exasperation.
For once, Hidan didn't respond with trash talk. Instead, he silently picked up a piece of beef and started eating.
Seeing this, Naruto nodded in satisfaction. However, he was puzzled to sense a faint trace of gratitude in Hidan's emotions.
'What's going on?'
'Could it be that everything I did was not as good as a meal of beef to Hidan?'
'My god… is Hidan's hidden identity a foodie?'
Unbeknownst to Naruto, it was his simple, straightforward response that had triggered this shift in Hidan.
Sometimes, the simpler and more sincere the answer is, the more it can move people.