In Gotham, a place devoid of true light, Harvey Dent's attempt to become the shining knight of Gotham failed, leading him to fall into corruption and become Two-Face. Even Batman could only transform into the Dark Knight to combat the darkness.
The Gotham Police Department had long been tainted by the city's criminal underworld, serving as a shield and collaborator for the criminals.
"So you think, with Chidi Cole dead, we've lost our protection, and we might face pressure from both Two-Face's gang and the Gotham Police Department?"
Clearwater propped his chin, looking pensive.
"Well..."
"Never mind, I'll handle that. You tell me about the current situation of the gang."
"Boss Water, let me do it! I'm in charge of settling scores for Chidi... this kid. Currently, our gang controls this factory on the outskirts of the old industrial area and the whole Hogg Street."
A middle-aged white man with glasses smiled obsequiously at Clearwater, then took out a small notebook from his back pocket, licked his finger, and flipped it open.
"Every household on the street pays a protection fee of three hundred dollars per month. We take half of the profits from six shops, and there's a department store and a used motorcycle shop. In the past year, they've been providing us with over fifty thousand dollars in income each month."
"But fifty percent of that goes to Two-Face's gang, and after Chidi Cole takes half, what's left barely covers our expenses. So, the brothers often take side jobs, like physical labor or watching over places."
"We have seven handguns, all second-hand, with over a hundred bullets. No other firearms, but we can use the motorcycles from the shop freely. The remaining weapons are baseball bats, crowbars..."
Clearwater raised an eyebrow.
The Cole gang was indeed quite poor.
Yet, among the gangs in Gotham's slums, they had the best foundation.
Now it seemed that their foundation was due to the protection of Two-Face's gang.
After Chidi Cole and his brother Keman Cole took their share, each of the thirty-odd members could only get three to four hundred dollars on average.
Was that enough in Gotham?
But being part of the Cole gang meant they were less likely to be bullied in the slums and could even bully the common people.
In Gotham, three to four hundred dollars a month was practically slave wages.
However, if they considered that amount as a base salary, and then earned extra by doing physical labor, watching over places, or engaging in robbery and theft in the streets and alleys, then the money they made on a regular basis was enough for them to indulge.
"I understand. The Cole brothers take away tens of thousands of dollars each month, so Chidi Cole should also have quite a bit of wealth. Lead us to it."
Clearwater waved a hand at the white man with glasses.
"Well, Boss Water, even though I handle the accounts for Chidi, I..."
"Do you think I believe you?"
Clearwater stared at the white man with glasses.
"Sorry, Boss Water, I really don't know, but Chidi has a room here that no one is allowed to enter normally, and only he and his brother have the keys."
The middle-aged white man smiled apologetically.
At the same time, his gaze shifted to the blurry mess of flesh and blood on the ground.
The keys were probably no longer usable.
"Lead the way."
Clearwater stood up from his chair, crossed his arms, and gestured for the black and gold to come to his side.
"Hehe, alright, Boss Water, I'm Dura, Dura Bent, a graduate of Gotham's Gradia University accounting program. I went to jail a few years ago for cooking the books for the company, my wife and kids left me, and I went bankrupt, so I came here to make a living..."
"It's okay. Going to jail means you've completed your internship in accounting. I see you becoming one of Gotham's top accountants in the future."
"Boss, I'm Ang! I fix cars, and I manage the used motorcycle shop in our gang..."
"Boss Water, I'm Frank..."
...
Along the way, this group of thugs scrambled to introduce themselves, hoping to leave an impression on Clearwater.
With that powerful and imposing black and gold by his side, everyone could sense that a new powerful supervillain was about to emerge in Gotham, and the future of this gang was clearly beyond what other small gangs could compare to.
By pleasing the new boss now, they might also become successful gang leaders in the future.
"Boom!"
Chidi Cole's room was smashed in by a punch from the black and gold.
"Search."
Clearwater ordered indifferently.
"Yes!"
"Got it, boss!"
"Understood!"
...
The group of thugs began a chaotic search.
"Boss, would you like to sit for a while?"
A blond guy dragged over a chair and placed it behind Clearwater.
"Boss, let me massage your shoulders!"
"Boss Water! Let me give you a leg rub!"
...
"Get back to work. Following orders is much more important than pleasing me."
Clearwater kicked the chair away, indifferent.
They were all a group of street toughs, fierce and combative, unable to be as disciplined as ninjas or soldiers.
However, instilling discipline was the best way to improve the combat effectiveness of a group of ragtag fighters and was the best way forward.
If Clearwater wanted to become a big shot in Gotham's underworld, he had to start by cultivating a group of obedient subordinates.
As it turned out, these Gotham lowlifes were far inferior to the high-caliber talents in Arkham, unable to even find a penny during the search.
By the time evening approached and darkness fell, they still hadn't found a dime.
"Turn on the lights and continue searching."
After sitting on Black Gold's shoulders, Hardy looked down from a high vantage point, surveying the room.
He had been watching all along.
Most of the room had been thoroughly searched, and the remaining areas did not seem like places to hide money or set up traps.
The accountant Dula hurriedly pressed the light switch, only to find the light not working.
"Boss! I can fix the light bulb! Give me a few minutes, I'll fix it right away!"
A punk with colorful dyed hair raised his hand and shouted.
"Go."
Hardy decided that if they couldn't find anything within half an hour, he would have Black Gold demolish the place.
Soon, his men brought a ladder and helped the punk up to fix the light bulb.
As the light bulb socket turned, before the light bulb could be removed, the nearby ceiling loosened slightly, revealing a gap.
Hardy's eyes flickered, and he ordered, "Stop."
He then concentrated his chakra on the soles of his feet, walked on the wall, and hung upside down to the ceiling.
The punks watched in astonishment, and the guy fixing the light bulb almost fell off the ladder.
Chapter 27 Scorpion's Dissatisfaction
The ceiling had indeed been tampered with, making it easy to pry open.
Inside a hidden compartment was a safe.
Above the light bulb, there was a simple mechanism set up with ropes and gears on the ceiling. When the light bulb was turned, the gear was also activated, pulling the rope.
The rope was securing the tampered ceiling. Once the rope was pulled, the ceiling would naturally come down.
Continuing to turn the light bulb would also block the safe, pushing it down from the missing part of the ceiling.
It was a crude design but undoubtedly practical. Unless it was violently dismantled or scanned with high-tech gadgets like Batman, it would not be easy to find.
Naturally, the key to this safe had been destroyed along with the room key and its owner by Black Gold.
However, Hardy had a way.
For a ninja, the real security measure was sealing techniques. For locks like this, there were multiple methods to crack them.
Hardy took out a sharpened paper clip, connected it with chakra threads, inserted it into the safe, moved it up and down a few times, then twisted it, making it look like a key before reinserting it.
With a click, the safe opened, revealing crisp green banknotes and a refreshing scent of ink.
A smile appeared on Hardy's face.
Although there were no gold bars this time, the amount of money was significantly more than what they had encountered with the previous boss.
To become wealthy, it wasn't just about earning and saving money; it also required exploiting others.
Chidi Cole, as well as the previous nightclub boss they had encountered, were just heads of small gangs, yet they easily possessed such a large sum of money.
"Boss! There are a total of four hundred and ten thousand dollars in here!"
After the accountant finished counting, he excitedly reported to Hardy.
"Take out two hundred thousand, distribute it among the brothers, take out another hundred thousand, buy some guns or something, the rest is mine, and also..."
"From now on, the Cole Gang will no longer be called the Cole Gang, it will be called the Hogg Union."
Receiving their reward, the punks naturally rejoiced, cheering happily.
Having just recruited this group of subordinates, it was necessary to give them some benefits. Combined with the methods they had shown earlier, using both rewards and punishments, they could better get these people to work.
Feeling that he had already established a closer relationship with the new boss, after helping distribute the money, the accountant Dula approached Hardy to start a conversation.
"Hogg Union? Boss Water, that doesn't sound very imposing, does it?"
"Those gangs with names like that, even a fool would know they are gangs. By calling it the Hogg Union, it sounds more like a legitimate organization, less likely to attract the attention of those bat-like creatures. Later on, we can come up with something like a football club, then we will be a legitimate organization in the eyes of the public, a community association."
Hardy explained to Dula.
Most of the punks were uneducated under the influence of a rough upbringing, except for Dula, who had attended college.
The quality of American church universities varied, with the good ones being top-notch globally, but most were regional, serving specific communities or groups, not particularly high in quality.
The Gotham Gladia Church University where Dula studied was not comparable to top-tier institutions like Gotham University or Central City University, but it was a legitimate university.
Dula was one of the few educated individuals under Hardy's command, possessing certain management skills, making him worth Hardy's attention.
"I see. In the future, we can use financial forms like community money meetings as an excuse to collect protection fees. It will be less likely to be caught by outsiders.
But boss, I think I need to remind you that this is Gotham's slums. The rules from the wealthy areas don't apply here. The rules here are about who has more guns, more people, who can fight better, who can occupy more territory, take more money. In the future, the gang's expansion will still rely on using fists to speak. Of course, I believe that here, no one's fists can be harder than yours."
Dula pushed his glasses up and said.
Hardy nodded in satisfaction.
This guy was on the right track.
...
...
Naruto World.
It had been a day since the last S-rank mission incident.
After stabilizing Ishitsu's injuries with medical ninjutsu, they escorted him back to the Hidden Sand Village for better treatment.
The Third Kazekage returned to the front lines.
Now, Hagoromo Senju...
Injury is the best time to counterattack against Konoha, and it requires him to oversee the overall situation.
Hiruzen specifically gave Team Six a few days off to let everyone rest.
However, Shizuku still planned to go to the puppet army base as usual to observe the puppet training.
When Shizuku arrived at the base, he found that Sasori had already assembled puppets on the workbench.
"Sasori, what are you doing..."
"I was here all night last night."
Sasori pointed to the repaired Sansho fish next to him and glanced at Shizuku.
"Your two puppets are very good. After I finish assembling Kuroari, we can have another match."
"Kuroari..."
Shizuku looked at the puppet Sasori was assembling.
Although it was not yet fully assembled, the general shape had already emerged.
Obviously, this was an upgraded version of Shiroari, but with a larger size and different materials.
"Do you have something on your mind?"
Shizuku felt that Sasori's current state was somewhat abnormal.
Thinking back to how Sasori had turned his childhood companions into puppets and later assassinated the Third Kazekage, turning him into a puppet as well, Shizuku was a bit worried that Sasori might also want to turn him into a puppet.
After all, they were teammates, and Shizuku had even defeated Sasori in a selection match.
It would be best to try to correct his situation while Sasori was still young.
Sasori paused his movements but then quickly resumed assembling the parts, while speaking, "And you, you seem to admire the Third Kazekage a lot?"
"Perhaps, at least in the Hidden Sand Village, at present, we are all subordinates of the Third Kazekage. What about you? Are you dissatisfied with him?"
Sasori pursed his lips, stopped his hands, and stared at Shizuku with bright eyes.
"He didn't lead us to victory against Konoha and many people died."
Is that the reason you will assassinate the Third Kazekage in a few years?
Indeed, this child, like Itachi Uchiha, was not taught from a young age and his mind has gone astray.
Chapter 28 Black Ant
"You are right, but that was his limit. He also wanted to win against Konoha, to free the village from the desert sands."
"Then who should be blamed for the deaths in the village?"
Although not explicitly stated, Shizuku knew that Sasori implied that his parents' deaths should be blamed on someone.
In theory, this was not something a mere low-ranking ninja like Shizuku should know.
The Elder Chiyo had always kept Sasori in the dark about his parents' deaths, only telling the young Sasori that his parents had gone far away and would return after a long time.
However, as Sasori grew older, his natural intelligence could no longer be kept in the dark.
After a moment of silence, Shizuku carefully considered his words, trying to avoid saying something inappropriate, and finally came up with a correct but essentially meaningless statement.
"Blame those who killed, if it was Konoha who killed, then blame Konoha."
"But the one who started the war was the Third Kazekage. If he hadn't started the war, people wouldn't have died."
Why is this child so stubborn!?
"No, people would still die, and even more would die."
Sasori tilted his head.
"Because we are very poor, the village is not wealthy, surrounded by vast deserts. In the Land of Wind, deserts and wastelands occupy over seventy percent of the land, and over eighty-five percent of the land is unsuitable for cultivation. Yet most of the resources and wealth are taken by the daimyos and nobles to sustain their lavish lifestyles, even cutting back on the village's budget for this purpose."
"The annual budget of our Hidden Sand Village is the lowest among the Five Great Nations. Without funds, the village cannot develop and may even regress. While other villages are progressing, ours is regressing. In the end, the village will become a small ninja village that can be bullied by anyone, leading to its destruction. And if the Land of Wind loses the village, it will also perish."
"At that time, many people in the Land of Wind will die, far more than you will see in your lifetime, multiplied by ten. So, to prevent this situation, the Third Kazekage can only lead us to fight outside, seize more resources, better land, and feed more people."
Explaining concepts like war and productivity to a child, especially one who has not received a proper education and has been trained as a ninja, is quite challenging. Shizuku could only try to explain these things from a ninja's perspective that they could understand.
"Why not take back resources from the daimyos and nobles?"
Sasori asked again.
"Because the daimyos and nobles of the entire ninja world stand together. If we openly turn against the daimyos, kill them, then all the other daimyos will demand their ninja villages to attack the Hidden Sand Village, as the actions of the Hidden Sand Village undermine their ruling class. We would have to face the entire ninja world, but if we go after the Land of Fire, we only need to deal with Konoha."
Sasori fell silent, feeling the need to sort out his thoughts.
For someone who hadn't even completed two years of schooling and had been taught how to kill people as a ninja, this knowledge was completely different from what they had previously considered.
After a few seconds, Sasori decided to set aside these thoughts and get back to the main topic.
"Let's talk about those things later. Today, I want to compete with you first. The puppet you made that can fit a person inside is quite special, different from the mainstream puppets in the village. I want to test the power of that thing."
Shizuku looked deeply into Sasori's eyes and said with emphasis, "Alright, after the match, I hope you can think about what I said and if there's anything you don't understand, you can come to me."
To prevent being turned into a puppet in the future, Shizuku believed it was necessary to guide Sasori's thinking.
At least teach him to think in a more normal way, so that these self-proclaimed geniuses, who have not been taught by anyone, don't come up with all sorts of chaotic ways to solve problems.
The two walked out of the room and arrived at the puppet army training ground, releasing their respective puppets.
The hands flicked out, connecting the chakra threads to cover the fat puppet onto oneself, controlled by the right hand, while the left hand's chakra threads drilled out through the gaps in the fat puppet's glove, connecting to the little boy.
Manipulating puppets with chakra threads doesn't completely affect one's body posture.
At thirty-five years old, Scorpion could control hundreds of puppets simultaneously with just a piece of meat-released chakra thread.
The key to puppet manipulation lies in controlling the chakra threads.
Of course, the posture and movements of fingers and arms can also enhance the control of puppets by chakra threads, maximizing the combat effectiveness of individual puppets.
Of course, Shizuku couldn't reach the level of mastery in puppetry like Scorpion did in his prime. Normal puppeteers would only use their fingers to emit chakra threads to manipulate puppets.
He didn't need to be so complex; he only needed to use the technique of black ninjutsu skillfully while controlling the fat puppet in battle, using the fingers hidden under the puppet's glove to manipulate the little boy.
That is, using five chakra threads from one hand to control the little boy and five chakra threads from the other hand to control the fat puppet, coordinating the movements of various body parts.
Scorpion also connected chakra threads to the Black Ant and the Sansho Fish. One hand controlled the Sansho Fish to protect the main body, while the other hand controlled the Black Ant to launch an attack.
"Black Ninjutsu: Hand Manipulation Dance."
It was the move he used during a mission before. The six arms of the Black Ant instantly elongated, not only much longer than the White Ant but also with the tips of the arms turning into metal, resembling six collapsible long spears.
"Black Ninjutsu: Rapid Performance."
The little boy also revealed mechanical claws and rotating saw blades, starting a fierce battle with the Black Ant.
The former was clearly faster than the Black Ant, but the latter had more claws and other mechanisms.
The battle between the two was evenly matched, quickly changing pace—cutting off the opponent's chakra threads to disrupt their control over the puppets.
Shizuku raised an eyebrow, looking surprised at Scorpion.
"Black Ant, Sansho Fish... There should be a crow in the future, and with Scorpion's abilities, he will likely upgrade the puppets."
In the Chunin Exams, Mirai Kanekuro used the Black Ant and the Crow, and after becoming a Jonin in Shippuden, he added the Sansho Fish.
Being continuously used up to Jonin level indicates that the Black Ant and Sansho Fish were upgraded to Jonin level, showing that the foundation of these two puppets is quite solid.
At least in Shizuku's judgment, the Black Ant puppet should also rank among B-rank puppets.
Both using black ninjutsu, although Shizuku's puppetry has made considerable progress compared to the past, there is still some distance compared to Scorpion.