Three Sides Stirred X Toad X Environment

On the outskirts of District 13, a luxurious mansion stood apart from all the other buildings beneath a dark gray sky.

At the end of a gravel path, its wrought-iron gates were tightly shut, dim yellow light filtering through the gap between them.

On the second floor, a gaunt old man stood before a floor-to-ceiling window, his hands clasped behind his back.

He wore a gray robe, and his sparse, graying hair was neatly combed back, exposing the deep wrinkles on his forehead.

His eyes were small but exceptionally bright, like two burning coals buried in the bark of a dead tree.

He was Grey Elder.

District 13's acting elder, a man who had held his seat in this wasteland for more than a decade.

Behind him stood a man in a black suit, bent so low that his forehead nearly touched the floor.

"What did you... just say?"

Grey Elder slowly turned his head. His voice was low, and his brooding gaze made the man's shoulders visibly shrink.

"Dodge of the Rust Bone Gang is dead."

"The one who killed him was a twelve-year-old drifter."

"Now the kid calls himself the new leader of the Rust Bone Gang."

Grey Elder did not respond immediately.

He picked up the glass of red wine beside him and swirled it, watching the traces of liquid slowly slide down its sides.

"Twelve years old."

He repeated the words, his tone betraying no emotion.

"A twelve-year-old drifter killed Dodge and took over the Rust Bone Gang."

"Dodge was a Nen user, and he just died like that?"

Cold sweat broke out on the subordinate's forehead, and his voice began to tremble.

"Judging... judging from the scene, Dodge died of exhaustion."

"Most of the farm was blown apart, the mansion collapsed, and Dodge's body also..."

Before he could finish, Grey Elder waved a hand.

The subordinate fell silent at once, barely daring to breathe.

A long silence descended over the room.

Grey Elder looked down at the dark red liquid in his glass, the corners of his mouth slowly curving upward.

"Leave him alone for now."

The subordinate was taken aback.

"Then... what about the Gray Rat Squad and the Shattered Iron Group...?"

"They'll make their moves first."

Grey Elder spoke unhurriedly.

"Those two gangs have had it in for the Rust Bone Gang for a long time."

"They both wanted a bite while Dodge was alive. Now that he's been replaced by a kid who hasn't even grown hair yet, do you think they'll wait?"

He took a sip of wine, a sinister smile spreading across his face.

"Let them fight."

"The Rust Bone Gang has a new leader, and its foundations are unstable."

"Whichever of Grey Rat and Scrap Iron moves first, the other is sure to join in."

"In a three-way brawl, the one who suffers the greatest losses is never the person watching from the sidelines."

The subordinate's Adam's apple bobbed.

"When they're done fighting, whoever's left will be the next person in District 13 that I have to put down."

Grey Elder set down his glass and turned back to the window.

"When the time comes... I'll make my move and reap the rewards."

He tapped twice lightly on the windowsill.

"Dodge, oh Dodge... you struggled for so many years, but it looks like I'll have to take the position you never managed to claim before you died."

His smile formed a triumphant curve in the reflection on the glass.

"Your death has ended up becoming my stepping stone."

Grey Elder turned his head and spoke to the subordinate, who was still bowing behind him.

"Go plant informants around the Rust Bone Gang."

"What their new leader does, whom he meets, when he goes out... I want to know it all better than he does himself."

"Yes!"

As if granted a pardon, the subordinate quickly bowed and withdrew from the room.

After the door closed, Grey Elder stood alone at the window and tilted his head up to look at the blurry full moon in the hazy night sky.

Moonlight passed through the acidic mist, casting a dim yellow halo.

"The next official elder of District 13..."

"Can only be me."

At the same time.

On the eastern side of central District 13.

The Shattered Iron Group's headquarters.

A three-story fortress converted from old shipping containers, its exterior covered in welded iron plates and spikes, like an iron hedgehog curled up in the shadows.

A man with a scar across his face sat on a seat made of stacked iron barrels. After hearing the news his subordinate had brought back, he chewed the cigarette butt in his mouth to pieces and spat it onto the ground.

"Twelve years old."

He grinned, revealing teeth missing on one side.

"Has the Rust Bone Gang run out of people?"

"Boss, should we..."

"No rush."

The scarred man waved a hand.

"Grey Rat is bound to be more impatient than we are."

"Let them test him first. We'll see what that brat's really made of."

That same night.

At the Gray Rat Squad's base, in a basement piled high with discarded electronic components.

A short, stout middle-aged man sat on an old leather sofa, turning a metal lighter in his hand.

"The Rust Bone Gang has a new leader?"

"Yes, boss. A twelve-year-old drifter."

The lighter snapped shut.

"Before daybreak tomorrow, I want to know exactly how that kid killed Dodge."

"And... how many people he has around him, where his weapons came from, and who's backing him."

"Yes."

The basement light flickered on and off, illuminating the short, stout man's greasy face. No expression could be made out on it.

At the very center of the storm, Jiang Ye was in a room at the innermost end of a row of makeshift living quarters converted from old shipping containers, three hundred meters northeast of the farm's ruins. The room had been partitioned off from the others.

The room was small.

An iron-framed bed, an old wooden desk, and a yellowed hanging lamp.

The walls were coated in relatively fresh whitewash, and a dusty old fan stood in the corner.

It was still very shabby, but compared to the leaky shack Jiang Ye had lived in before, it was a palace.

Jiang Ye lay on the iron-framed bed with his hands behind his head, gazing at the yellowed ceiling above him.

This was the best place he had ever stayed in Meteor City.

It had a roof and walls, the rain wouldn't leak in at night, and he didn't have to worry about someone sneaking in and slitting his throat while he slept.

He lay there calmly, without the slightest trace of sleepiness.

His mind had been turning nonstop since the moment he entered the room.

He did not regret his decision to become the Rust Bone Gang's leader.

As a mere drifter, it was ultimately unrealistic for him to go it alone in Meteor City.

Even though he knew the Shattered Iron Group and the Gray Rat Squad were already itching to make a move, and that Grey Elder, hidden in the shadows, would set his sights on him sooner or later.

One person's strength was limited, after all.

Meteor City was too vast. He needed manpower.

He needed people to run errands for him, watch the road for him, and shield him from the minor troubles that couldn't reach him.

More importantly... he needed resources.

Now that he had the Rust Bone Gang as a foundation, his strength, status, wealth, and more would all rise substantially!

Of course, those were all secondary benefits.

The main thing was still...

Jiang Ye closed his eyes, and his next target appeared in his mind.

Toad!

The third Shikigami of the Ten Shadows Technique!

A defensive type, skilled in frontal defense and control-a role that the Divine Dogs and Rabbit Escape could not fulfill at all.

Ever since taming Rabbit Escape, he had come to understand just how important the environment was to taming.

Take Toad, for example. If it were summoned in a swamp, a mud pit, or a damp, enclosed area, it would have an absolute advantage during the taming ritual, and Jiang Ye wouldn't even be able to touch it.

But if it were summoned on open, hard ground, Toad would be severely restricted. Its strength could be said to be forcibly cut in half.

When that happened, the chance of taming it would soar!

At the thought, the corners of Jiang Ye's mouth lifted slightly.

There were so many things a gang could do for him.

Finding suitable terrain, modifying the site, setting up facilities, and sealing off the perimeter.

He did have to complete the taming ritual alone, but there were no restrictions on the preparations beforehand.

He could pour the strength of an entire gang into creating a battlefield best suited to taming Toad.

That was one of the central reasons he needed the Rust Bone Gang.

Not just to have strength in numbers, but so that when he wanted to grow stronger, someone could pave the way for him.

"First, I need to tame Toad. Only then can I go further."

"But before that, I still need to expand the Rust Bone Gang."

"In a place like Meteor City, if you don't move forward, you fall behind."

Jiang Ye silently considered his next step.

Just then, someone knocked on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.