It was no surprise that Enkuu would think this way because, to him, all creatures of the other races looked the same except for his race. He asked in an uncertain tone, “Human?” Uchiha Tonan narrowed his eyes slightly and replied warmly, “I’m Uchiha Tonan, you can call me Tonan.”
He shook the banana in his hand lightly and signaled Enkuu to take it with a gentle smile on his face. Enkuu hesitated for a moment but took the banana and peeled it off, eating it one bite at a time.
Tonan smiled and sat down beside him. Looking at the mist below Mount Huaguo, he lightly said, “I’m here to look for a partner.”
Enkuu nodded, “I know that humans must sign a contract before being able to come here.”
Tonan casually asked, “Are you interested in coming to the Ninja World?”
Enkuu was startled hearing the question. He was obviously tempted but his eyes became dull soon and he said while shaking his head, “I’m not talented and no matter how hard I train, my adamantine body is still just fur. Even the worst one of my peers has started learning ninjutsu. If I go to the Ninja World, even a genin can kill me. It’d be better for you to choose someone powerful, otherwise, it’ll be a big loss for you.”
Enkuu continued to eat the banana. Although he looked like he didn’t care, his frustrated expression betrayed him. He was aware of his strength, or lack thereof, and didn’t want to hold someone back or ruin their future.
Tonan was even more satisfied with his words. “I’m not afraid of you being a waste, I was afraid you had no desires and greed.”
He said, “I watched you train for a while and I noticed you’re doing it wrong.”
“What am I doing wrong?” Enkuu looked at Tonan with a puzzled look. Tonan leaned back and placed his hands on the ground, speaking in a low voice, “Effort is useful but making effort in the wrong direction will keep you away from your goal. Have you ever heard of Konoha?”
Enkuu thought for a while and nodded, “I’ve heard about it from Enma-sama.”
Tonan closed his eyes and took a long breath. He had to begin brainwashing now that consisted of three steps. The first was to trigger resonance.
It’s simply saying things like I used to be just like you or even worse than you. Or, we are fellow sufferers, and so on.
With a look of reminiscence, he began, “I used to be the lowest-ranking student in the Konoha Ninja Academy. I had no friends, no one to care about me, and no one to comfort me. Every day, I had to suffer the cold eyes of my clan members. Facing their ridicule, I could only pretend to be happy and didn’t dare show my efforts in front of others.”
“I was afraid… afraid that even after trying my best, I might not achieve anything in the end. I was afraid that everyone would think I’m a piece of trash after they knew this. I could only act like I’ve abandoned myself, making other people think that I’m not useless but I just don’t make any efforts. But at that time, I truly strived my hardest!”
“I was very serious in class and my written test scores were always the highest. I had even previewed the senior year courses. Every night, after my family fell asleep, I’d get up and run to the corner of the yard to quietly train by myself. I pretended to be strong and struggled under my parents’ high expectations. Even so, there was no result. I couldn’t even compare to others in throwing techniques.”
“When the grades for my first school term came out, my parents found out that I ranked last. They, who had high expectations from me, became disgusted. They insulted and whipped me at every turn. At that time, I hated myself so much for being so useless. I couldn’t even find the value or meaning of my existence in this world.”
When Tonan said these things, he didn’t forget to put on his saddest expression. At first glance, anyone would sympathize with how hard and unforgettable his experiences were. Enkuu was already fascinated. Wasn’t this similar to his current situation? He had no strength, and he was not welcomed by anyone. Even his relatives didn’t support him. He anxiously asked, “What about now?”
The second step of brainwashing was to show off the results. Simply tell him about how amazing he is and let him be envious.
Tonan sat up straight and with a sweet smile on his face, said in a slightly proud tone, “Now, I’m the last student of the Hokage-sama and the number one Konoha genius. I defeated an Anbu captain called Konoha White Fang. Yesterday, I killed Orochimaru, one of the Konoha sannin, who was secretly doing human experiments.”
Tonan was observing Enkuu’s expression. Seeing his blank look, he explained, “You might not have heard of them but have you heard of the Ryuchi Cave? Manda is that cave’s strongest warrior. He is also Orochimaru’s summoning beast.”
Tonan stuck out his index finger and waved it lightly in front of Enkuu, “One move. I made it run back to Ryuchi Cave with one hit. If it hadn’t dispelled the summoning technique, I’m confident that my second move would’ve killed him.”
Listening to Tonan’s words, Enkuu felt his emotions surge. He wanted to immediately run over to Manda and stomp it under his feet. But after a moment, his passion cooled down and he said with doubt, “You… bragging…”
Although what Tonan said was exciting, it also sounded unbelievable. Enkuu didn’t know who Manda was but he had heard of the Ryuchi Cave, which was one of the three sacred lands. Could this seemingly young human youth truly beat Manda?
The corners of Tonan’s mouth rose slightly. He pulled out a sword from his back and said, “This is a divine artifact called the Kusanagi Sword. It’s the sharpest weapon under the heavens. This was my war trophy after I killed Orochimaru. This sword can easily break through Enma-sama’s cover as well and defeat him.”
Tonan held the Kusanagi and casually swung it at the huge rock in front of him.
Crack… The huge rock split into two halves. Enkuu had become a believer. He suddenly stood up. Staring at Tonan fanatically, he stammered, “Tonan… -sama… please guide me.”
Tonan smiled a little and started the third step of brainwashing.
Want to be as strong as me? Want to become the second me? Then, just be obedient and learn from me. Do what I tell you to do.
“Don’t call me -sama, just call me Tonan. In fact, from the first time I saw you, I felt we are the same kind. Ordinary training methods don’t have much effect on special people like us. What we need is to find the right way. That choice is more useful than effort.”
Tonan stood up and stretched out his hand towards Enkuu, “Are you willing to be my partner? I’ll personally teach you and make you stronger quickly.”
