To repay the favor, I am willing to give everything within my power, even my life if necessary.
Of course, the condition is that it should not involve sacrificing anyone else, especially the citizens of this country and my daughter.
Therefore, offering myself as a token of gratitude wasn't something Miroku considered seriously, but rather... something she indulged in.
...
A shrine maiden is a figure that otaku often revere as sacred and untouchable, akin to a nun, but with an even higher status compared to nurses.
Shinji shared this sentiment.
Thus, with this particular "buff," tonight was destined to be a long yet predetermined battle.
As the dawn broke, Shinji sat cross-legged under the eaves, gazing at the faint light illuminating the mountain peaks, pondering how pathetic the so-called Moryo turned out to be.
It was supposed to be a world-threatening crisis, but when it came down to it, it was just at the level of an elite jonin, and one that was naturally countered by Shinji's abilities.
Of course, this wasn't Moryo's fault. According to its design, it absorbed human evil to grow stronger, with its power having no theoretical upper limit.
But that was only in theory.
Contrary to what Miroku thought, Shinji didn't completely destroy Moryo's soul or erase its existence. Instead, he left a wisp of its soul intact and let it escape.
Shinji hoped that this originally formidable boss would stir things up in this world. Without someone to shake things up, the world would be too dull.
With the connection between the system and its subsystems, Shinji saw the constant inflow of reputation points and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After two long years, Black Zetsu finally figured out how to effectively use the reputation system!
How to get stronger?
Training day and night?
Physical exercises?
Ninjutsu practice?
Nonsense!
With the system, there's no need for such training!
Just keep accumulating reputation points and exchange them!
Physical techniques, mastery of physical techniques, various ninjutsu, and their respective masteries can all be obtained with points!
Missing attributes and want to learn Fire Release but lack the fire attribute? Exchange for it! Need all five attributes? No problem!
After getting all five attributes, want to learn some specific Kekkei Genkai? Keep exchanging points!
Not enough chakra? Keep exchanging points!
Body's potential maxed out? Use points to upgrade!
Training? What's the point of training?
Isn't exchanging system points faster?
Shinji felt a bit helpless, realizing it took Black Zetsu almost two years to understand this and abandon the slow progress of traditional training to fully embrace accumulating points!
But it wasn't Black Zetsu's fault. After all, he had been cautious and secretive for a thousand years. Such deeply ingrained habits couldn't change overnight.
Transforming in less than two years was already impressive. Now, Black Zetsu had clearly defined his upgrade path, roaming Konoha and seizing every chance to gain reputation points from ninjas!
Seeing this, Shinji felt gratified. This was how it should be!
Seeing the slight smile on Shinji's side profile, Miroku, who had just woken up on the tatami behind him, was filled with curiosity about this man.
Who was this man who easily destroyed Moryo? What was he thinking?
And the protagonist of the story he told last night, Angra Mainyu, was slightly different from but somewhat similar to Moryo. Every time she thought about what Angra Mainyu went through in the story, her heart ached a bit.
Moryo drew power from human evil, while Angra Mainyu, from the moment he was named Angra Mainyu, passively bore all the world's human evils.
And because of this, he saved the entire world.
...
As Miroku, dressed in her shrine maiden outfit, walked over and sat down next to Shinji, he felt a bit puzzled.
It shouldn't be like this. Isn't this just gratitude? This way of snuggling up to him... don't take it too seriously, woman!
"Are you... leaving?"
"Yeah, but before that..."
Seeing Miroku's bold outfit early in the morning, Shinji decided to postpone his wake-up time by two... no, by an entire morning!
He would properly educate her, making her understand that a woman's disheveled attire is the greatest insult to a man! It's also the greatest disrespect to herself!
Either dress properly or maintain a clean, untainted appearance, showing the resolve to stay untainted in a dirty world. What's with this halfway attire?
Seeing Miroku release her Water Release technique first, Shinji was momentarily stunned but then began his Fire Release technique.
Shinji was determined to challenge the universally acknowledged principle that water conquers fire with his own weaker stance!
Active Shrine Maiden.avi...
...
"What's your name?"
"Just call me Anri."
Leaving these words behind, Shinji left the shrine maiden's quarters in the Land of Demons.
"Anri... Angra Mainyu..."
After Shinji left, Miroku murmured to herself, feeling there was some inexplicable connection between the two names.
Also, the occasional look of frustration she caught in his eyes—what was it?
She, who could see the future, couldn't see this man's future. All she saw was chaos.
Perhaps... a thought could lead to heaven, or a thought could lead to hell.
The sound of footsteps broke Miroku's thoughts. Knowing it was her precious daughter, she quickly dressed and got up to greet her.
"Mom, where's Uncle An?"
"He... probably went on a journey."
"A journey? Hmph! He didn't take Shion with him!"
Seeing Shion pretending to be angry but actually feeling complex and sad, Miroku gently patted her head, silently comforting her.
Meanwhile, Miroku's other hand began to caress her own abdomen, hoping without much hope.
Just in case...
...
A month later.
Land of Fire, Konoha.
Konoha was the first to receive the SOS from the Land of Demons, warning that Moryo's revival could endanger the entire ninja world, possibly leading to an apocalyptic crisis!
Knowing time was of the essence, Tsunade quickly organized a team of ninjas, ordering them to head to the Land of Demons immediately to join forces with other nations' ninjas to thwart Moryo's plot!
However, upon arriving in the Land of Demons, they learned from the shrine maiden Miroku that Moryo had already been dealt with.
Having traveled for half a month to the Land of Demons only to find this out, not just Konoha but also the other nations' ninjas felt a mix of relief and frustration.
The ninjas from other villages left reluctantly, but a certain Uchiha from Konoha caught Shion's attention.
"Mom, his hair is curly like Uncle An's, but Uncle An's hair is curlier."
The white-haired, masked ninja from Konoha, there to assist along with Shisui and now bidding farewell to Miroku, was suddenly reminded of something upon hearing the little girl whisper this to Miroku.
Uncle An? Why does this name sound so familiar?
A man with the surname An, curly hair...
"Lady Miroku, is the Uncle An your daughter mentioned a blue-haired, blue-eyed man about 185 cm tall?"
After much thought, Kakashi asked.
"Huh?" Miroku, who had been missing Shinji for two weeks, was startled and uncontrollably asked, "Is he a Konoha ninja?"
"Kakashi..."
Shisui, having realized something, was about to speak when Kakashi raised his hand to stop him, continuing, "Although he isn't a Konoha ninja, he is known to the Hokage. May I ask, was he the one who dealt with Moryo?"
"That's right!" Little Shion, hands on her hips, proudly hummed, "Uncle An is amazing! He easily defeated that scary Moryo!"
Hearing this, Kakashi and Shisui exchanged glances, both unable to hide the shock in their eyes. They were among the few in Konoha aware of Angra Mainyu's existence.
Angra Mainyu... helped humanity?
...
Back to the present, after a month-long journey back from the Land of Demons, Kakashi and Shisui reported to Tsunade in the Hokage office.
Hearing their report, Tsunade frowned, deep in thought.
Shikaku was the first to voice a theory: "Could it be that Angra Mainyu despises beings like Moryo? After all, he endures human evil involuntarily, whereas Moryo absorbs human malice for power..."
Tsunade, considering this, nodded in agreement, "That's very possible. He might indeed look down on Moryo, so destroying it makes sense. But I didn't expect..."
"I didn't expect him to be so powerful," Shisui interjected. "According to the shrine maiden's daughter, he used freely controlled sword shadows, and Moryo was pierced by them, unable to resist!"
"Sigh," Tsunade sighed, then waved her hand, "Alright, enough about him. What's the latest from Kumogakure and Iwagakure?"