The first time I opened my eyes and saw this world, everything was red.
I blew out a few bubbles—glug, glug—and consciousness sank back into sleep.
Countless images in my mind flashed past like scenes from a movie.
"Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do?"
Pain from my body brought my mind gradually back to consciousness. My eyes slowly narrowed to a slit.
"What is going on? This child was actually made by mixing in my flesh and blood cells. Orochimaru, you..."
A deep voice came from beside me, but I couldn't make out the words clearly.
"Don't get so worked up. This child was just a little accident."
Perhaps my body was too weak. I gradually fell asleep again.
When I woke up once more, the red before my eyes had completely faded. Only a faint, musty smell and darkness remained.
"Ugh... ah..."
The child made unintelligible sounds. My throat felt as though it were burning.
My whole body was weak, my head was splitting with pain, and my mind was still hazy.
I only vaguely sensed that I was no longer submerged in anything, and the mat beneath me was somewhat hard.
"Who am I?" The child tried to sort out his thoughts. Gradually, he recalled a jumble of fragmented images.
There were towering buildings and flying dragons and birds. There were countless familiar yet unfamiliar faces. Most of all, there was confusion and pain.
The final image was of a man leaping down and a pool of blood covering the ground.
With a creak, the door opened, and a somewhat slender figure entered. Bing San's eyes didn't seem to have adjusted yet; he couldn't see clearly.
Five or six figures followed behind the man.
"Tomoko, from now on, you'll take care of him. Report to me once every three days."
"Yes, Clan Head. May I ask what his name is?" a soft female voice asked.
"Just call him Bing San."
With that, the man waved and left, leaving only the woman named Tomoko behind.
"Shimura Bing San? What a strange name."
Bing San drifted in and out of consciousness, then lost it again.
Three years later!
Spring, Year 38 of Konoha. The Shimura estate.
"Ah~ Don't~ Young Master Bing San. Not there, you really can't..."
"Why are you making such a fuss? I'm just taking a nap in a tree. It's not like I'm doing anything weird!"
Bing San sat up in the tree and stretched his small body.
His weight of over forty pounds made the branch sway slightly. The girls below let out a series of startled cries.
Three years had passed. That Shimura Danzō seemed completely unconcerned, having tossed Bing San to the girl standing before him. He hadn't come to see Bing San even once.
For the past three years, nightmares had plagued Bing San without pause. Sometimes he saw towering buildings, sometimes deserts and jungles. Sometimes there were birds, beasts, flowers, insects, and fish; other times, crowds of people streaming by like a river.
It was as if memories buried deep within him were slowly waking.
After stretching, Bing San looked down at the girl beneath the tree. She looked about sixteen or seventeen.
Her petite frame was at odds with her ample curves. Her large eyes and long black hair gave her an unexpectedly mature air.
Her pink lips and small nose were especially alluring.
Bing San's lips curled into a smile. He gave his long hair a handsome toss and said:
"Yo, old hag. You need something?"
Bing San deliberately teased the girl who looked after him.
A black vein popped up on the girl's forehead, but vanished in an instant.
She parted her lips and said gently, "The Clan Head wants to see you!"
The teasing look gradually faded from Bing San's face, and his gaze grew increasingly profound.
"So this is the Shinobi World! And that man is Shimura Danzō!"
Bing San couldn't help feeling stirred.
From what Bing San had learned by asking around, Konoha was currently on the eve of the Third Shinobi World War.
The man named Sarutobi Hiruzen was still at his peak. Shimura Danzō had also just formed his own organization by taking advantage of the conflict between the Hokage and the great clans.
The organization that man was so proud of—Root.
"Maybe he's been busy training his Root operatives. That's why he hasn't come to see me, his experimental subject, all this time!"
Bing San rubbed his chin, lost in thought.
"Ah~ Ya-mei-dai~!"
Tomoko turned her head away with her eyes shut, arms held out and body leaning back. It was hard to tell whether she was trying to catch someone or push them away.
Bing San jumped down from the tree and bonked Tomoko on the head. "What are you yelling about?"
Tomoko opened her eyes, patted her ample chest, wrinkled her small nose, and said breathlessly, "Please don't do something so dangerous!"
Bing San had long noticed that something was wrong with his body. He had never tried to mold Chakra, nor had he learned anything about being a Ninja.
And yet his body kept gathering Chakra, without ever stopping.
"Let's go. Time to see that man."
Bing San tossed his long hair and sauntered off.
Tomoko followed behind him, straightening her somewhat rumpled collar as she walked.
When they passed a stream, Bing San looked at the reflection of a young man with silver-white hair, purple eye shadow, thin lips, small eyes, a high nose, and an oval face. He couldn't help staring for a moment.
If he had to rate himself out of a hundred, Bing San would give himself ninety-nine. He'd only take off one point because he looked a little too fierce.
As he reached the corridor, he heard a resentful, somewhat chilly voice from inside.
"Monkey, are you even going to interfere in my family affairs now?"
"Danzō, don't be so hostile. We're teammates. You've been alone all these years, and we've been worried about you. Since you have a child now, there's no need to keep it a secret.
"Just bring the child's mother home openly and marry her. It'd be nice to settle down with a wife and child. Look at me—and look at Koharu and Homura."
The other voice sounded exceptionally warm, though something about it felt off.
The chilly voice snapped in anger:
"Shut up, Monkey! How can you make baseless accusations against me? It's all hearsay.
"I merely adopted a child.
"Nothing happened."
Then a woman spoke in a sour tone:
"You've got some nerve, Danzō. Hmph. Shameless."
Another, somewhat gentler voice interrupted in an even tone:
"Enough, enough. We've been teammates for years. We're just here to see the child, so stop making snide remarks.
"And Danzō, we're all at this age now. There's no need to keep hiding it."
Bing San shook his head. It seemed even people in the Shinobi World couldn't escape the trial of snide remarks.
Bing San straightened his clothes and ran a hand through his hair.
He tugged at the collar rumpled by the tree branches, then pushed open the door and entered.
In an instant, five gazes converged on him.
Some were sharp, some chilly, some calm, some hostile, and some warm!
In that moment, it was as if he had stepped onto an unseen battlefield, thick with smoke and danger.
Bing San paused only slightly, then walked in openly, facing the pressure from all five people.
Bing San smiled faintly, like snow melting in the spring sun, like flowers blooming in the warmth of spring.
He bowed slightly in greeting, then looked at the five people in the room.
The atmosphere suddenly turned strange and tense.
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