Cole Gang

"And Sasori, it's been a long time. It's only been two years, and you've already grown so much. You even joined the Puppet Force."

The Third Kazekage rubbed Sasori's head, looking rather concerned.

Finally, his gaze fell on the only young man present whom he had never seen before.

"Lord Kazekage, his name is Shimizu. He's a newcomer who entered the Puppet Force this year with the top selection score!"

Miyaki quietly kicked Shimizu's shin and introduced him to the Third Kazekage.

Shimizu had no choice but to put on an excited expression and stammered, "L-Lord Kazekage, my name is Shimizu. I'm eleven this year!"

"Ah, I'll remember that."

The Third Kazekage extended his other hand and patted Shimizu's head as well, looking every bit like a down-to-earth, caring leader.

Everyone who could enter the Puppet Force was a Puppeteer with considerable talent. Anyone who ranked first in the selection process was undoubtedly a future Elite Jonin, not to mention that Shimizu was still so young.

As the leader of Sunagakure, the Third Kazekage naturally paid attention to, befriended, and nurtured these gifted youngsters.

At the very least, he had done a good job as Kazekage. Going by the original story, Sunagakure had been at its strongest during the Third Kazekage's era. Not only had his personal strength ranked among the best at Kage level, but Sunagakure had also possessed the most Top experts during his time.

Among the older generation were Chiyo and her brother; among the middle generation were Sasori's parents; and among the younger generation, they had cultivated Rasa, Karura and her husband, as well as Pakura.

Sunagakure's later decline to the bottom of the Five Great Shinobi Villages had simply been due to bad luck.

Sasori's parents had run into the Konoha White Fang, a fierce opponent who countered Puppeteers, directly causing a break in their line of succession. As a result, Sasori had lacked love since childhood and grown up mentally unstable, eventually assassinating the Third Kazekage.

After Rasa took office, he used political means to betray Pakura, who threatened his position as Kazekage. Then Karura died shortly after giving birth to Gaara due to complications during labor.

In the end, Rasa was even assassinated by Orochimaru.

If Konoha's decline during Naruto's era had been caused by the Fourth Hokage and his wife dying in battle, coupled with the Third Hokage's inaction in his later years, then Sunagakure had truly just been unlucky. In barely more than a decade, only the two old-timers, Chiyo and Ebizo, remained to barely hold things together. They could not even find a qualified Kage, and could only force the Jinchuriki into the position.

If not for that incident involving the White Fang, then once Sasori's generation had matured, Sunagakure might have become the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.

It could be said that the Third Kazekage had laid an excellent foundation for Sunagakure. Unfortunately, he had encountered the Konoha White Fang, and a single battle had shattered Sunagakure's normal succession.

"Lord Kazekage."

Sasori suddenly called out to the Third Kazekage.

"Sasori, what is it?"

The Third Kazekage crouched down and stroked Sasori's head.

"Is the White Fang dead?"

The Third Kazekage's hand froze. His gaze darkened, but he forcibly pulled a smile onto his face.

"I'm sorry, Sasori. The White Fang is very strong, and I wasn't able to kill him. But with Jonin Ishido's help, I severely wounded him as well. If there is a next time, I will definitely kill him!"

Perhaps unwilling to see the disappointment in Sasori's eyes, the Third Kazekage turned and smiled at everyone.

"In my capacity as the Third Kazekage, I hereby announce that although the original A-rank mission to capture an Uchiha failed, it was incorporated into the higher-ranking mission to ambush the White Fang. Hatake Sakumo has now been severely wounded. Even with Tsunade present, he will be unable to return to the battlefield anytime soon. Therefore, the mission is a success."

The A-rank mission had failed, but the S-rank mission had succeeded.

It could be said that Shimizu and Sasori were nearly the first people in Sunagakure's history to participate in and complete an S-rank mission as Genin.

Their mission reward afterward would also increase by at least double.

DC World.

Gotham, the slums, Gotham's old industrial district, inside an abandoned factory.

"Starting today, the Cole Gang belongs to me, and Flash Wade will run it. Do any of you have objections?"

Shimizu sat calmly in a chair, his left hand propping up his chin on the armrest as he looked at the thirty-odd punks before him.

The two-meter-tall Black Gold stood quietly behind him, and together with the mangled mass of flesh at Shimizu's feet, formed an intensely intimidating sight.

That mangled mass of flesh had been the Cole Gang's former boss, Chidi Cole.

After exchanging several uneasy glances, the punks began talking among themselves.

Just then, a bald man wearing a gold chain suddenly raised a pistol and aimed it at Shimizu.

"You're not wearing that hunk of iron right now, Mr. Wade. All I need to do is pull the trigger, and I can kill you. Looking at it that way, I seem more suited to be the boss of the Cole Gang."

Shimizu laughed heartily.

"I like your courage. Your name is... forget it."

The hand resting on the armrest flipped swiftly, launching a slender steel nail that pierced through the bald man's forehead.

If he had been facing someone like Deathstroke or the Ninja Master, they could have easily reacted. But this bald fellow was merely an ordinary human who was slightly stronger than average.

"I have no interest in knowing a dead man's name."

The punks trembled in fear and hastily changed their tune.

"Greetings, Boss Wade!"

"Long live Boss Wade!"

"Boss Wade is mighty!"

They shouted all sorts of things, their voices chaotic. Anyone could tell at a glance that they were nothing more than a rabble.

A gratified smile appeared on Shimizu's face as he watched the fortune on the System Panel rise.

It was little, but it was indeed increasing.

Sure enough, becoming the boss of a faction really could increase fortune.

Next, he should keep expanding his influence, right?

"Um... Boss Wade, there's something I'd like to report to you."

A punk with messy green-dyed hair raised his hand toward Shimizu.

"Speak!"

Shimizu crossed one leg over the other.

"Chidi Cole has an older brother named Keman Cole, who is a leader in the Two-Face Gang. Every month, our Cole Gang has to scrape together tribute and hand it over to the Two-Face Gang. That way, the Two-Face Gang protects us, and other gangs and the police won't give us trouble."

"I understand how being protected by the Two-Face Gang keeps other gangs from causing trouble, but what does that have to do with the police?"

Shimizu asked the messy-haired punk curiously.

"Heh, Boss, you must have just entered this line of work, so you may not know yet. But Gotham's cops all have ways to make extra cash. The big gangs have connections with the higher-ups in the police department. They cooperate with the cops and pay tribute, so the police won't actively come after them. Sometimes, they even pass along information."

"When the police need achievements, the big gangs obediently offer up scapegoats. They can also keep the smaller gangs under them in line, so things don't get too chaotic and embarrass the big shots."

Shimizu nodded in realization.

That made sense. With only that little salary each month, why would those cops risk their lives fighting gangs?