Everything is relative. The oppression of ordinary people by Cyberpunk megacorporations seemed almost tame when compared to the barbarity of ninjas.
David had thought his previous life was already one of profound suffering, until he witnessed the sheer brutality of the Soukaiya. They utterly disregarded human life; to them, killing a person was as casual as stepping on an ant.
Regardless, Saburo Arasaka had always been human, and a competent capitalist to boot. Ninjas, however, were no longer human at all!
Even Laomoto Khan, the boss of the Soukaiya, though nominally a capitalist, was at heart a ninja. In other words, his capitalist ambitions were not as unalloyed as Saburo Arasaka's.
Of course, what David didn't know was that the Soukaiya was considered the most 'humane' among the ninja organizations. Zaibatsu Cinema, on the other hand, operated on a strict caste system, while Yoroshi-san regarded no one as human—even ninjas were mere expendables.
It was enough to make one beg: 'Please, give us some capitalism.jpg'.
"Rather than focusing on our minor disagreements, it would be better to deal with the Soukaiya first. We have already located their headquarters."
"Is this an invitation?"
David looked at Takemura, who was the epitome of a die-hard loyalist—an old man who exuded rigid straightforwardness.
"You don't want this city to be ruled by the Soukaiya either, do you? Then come and help."
As Takemura spoke, he drew the cursed blade 'Beppin' from a corpse. A string of blood beads followed it, yet the blade remained pristine, seemingly containing the wails of trapped souls.
Saburo Arasaka had been calculating their moves from the very beginning. Leaking the restaurant's location to Lucy and her group was a calculated move; he had long suspected it was Soukaiya territory. His suspicions proved correct. David had killed quite a few Soukaiya members there, including two ninjas.
David pondered for a moment. He held no positive impression of the Soukaiya. With their modus operandi, he would be targeted sooner or later—or rather, he was already being targeted. Since that was the case, there was nothing to hesitate about. No reason existed to hold back.
"When do we act?" he asked Takemura.
"Tomorrow night. We need a little preparation time to ensure everything goes smoothly."
The exchange between the two sides was extremely restrained. The conflict between David and Arasaka was less intense because Lucy had survived, but it was difficult to feign cordiality—at least, until he saw those hundreds of millions of eurodollars.
"Saburo Arasaka gave you five hundred million?!"
Inside one of the city's safest rooms, David let out a sharp cry of disbelief.
It wasn't that he was blinded by money, but that the sum offered was simply exorbitant. Even knowing that Saburo Arasaka was trying to improve his image in their eyes, David couldn't remain indifferent.
Thinking about it carefully, although the previous experience had been perilous, the final outcome seemed to have turned out well, and Saburo Arasaka's amends were offered with an appropriate attitude... Was he subconsciously starting to defend him?
David understood the profound terror of capital. Was this the so-called 'sugar-coated bullet'? Such a simple, transparent tactic, yet unexpectedly effective.
Inside his spiritual world, Naraku watched David's fluctuating emotions. Naraku, the Ninja Soul, was baffled; it was truly consistent in thought and action. Saburo Arasaka was a ninja, so he should be killed!
However, there was a hierarchy to ninja slaying. At least until Naraku fully seized control of the body, it had to defer to David. Otherwise, it would be Ninja Slayer versus Death Ninja right now.
"So, you're going tomorrow night?"
Lucy expressed her worry. It was obvious that Saburo Arasaka was recruiting muscle. The adversary's strength was not to be underestimated. For a megacorporation to take him so seriously, Laomoto Khan's power was certainly not weak. Moreover, having inherited knowledge from her Ninja Soul, she understood the immense power needed to establish a ninja organization...
"Of course."
David was decisive. After becoming Ninja Slayer, he chose to accept Naraku. Although he had his own standards and some ninjas could be temporarily spared, regarding Laomoto Khan, both he and Naraku had only one desire: his death!
It was impossible to accurately count the dead in New Kiotto's nights. Even the morning Death Lottery broadcast had been suspended, reportedly due to a mysterious individual killing the host.
David knew it was the work of ninjas. The Soukaiya was attempting to paralyze the entire city to usurp Arasaka Technology's control and eventually conquer the entire city!
"I certainly don't like Arasaka, nor do I like megacorps, or the society and life I had before."
"But compared to letting the Soukaiya endlessly slaughter ordinary people, I'm more willing to cooperate with Arasaka to kill Laomoto Khan first."
He seemed to hear the wails of the common people. That was the resentment of fallen mortals, and a source of Naraku's power.
Even now, ninjas were active in the city. He couldn't kill all Soukaiya members in a single night; the decapitation strike was critically urgent!
Lucy knew she couldn't dissuade David from fighting. She could only lean on his shoulder with a touch of worry, and the two shared a long-awaited embrace...
Meanwhile, inside the Soukaiya base, Laomoto Khan discovered that Lord Hell Kite and his team had lost contact entirely. They had been eliminated.
"Arasaka Technology... worthy of being an established megacorporation. To think they could take out so many of my subordinates."
As the boss of the Soukaiya, Laomoto Khan had built the entire organization single-handedly, relying on pure and overwhelming power.
The deaths of his subordinates were of no consequence to him. He had only one reason for establishing the Soukaiya: he simply found things troublesome!
With such immense power, he naturally had no desire to handle everything personally. The Soukaiya was merely an organization to carry out his tasks. In other words, as long as he lived, the Soukaiya would never be defeated. Laomoto Khan alone represented the majority of the Soukaiya's combat power. A so-called 'decapitation strike' against him would be tantamount to suicide!
"It's not just Lord Hell Kite. There has been no reply from Yoroshi-san either. They seem unwilling to cooperate with us any longer."
The one reporting the intelligence was a Kabuki subordinate by his side. Clearly, the Soukaiya was running low on manpower; the slaughter by Takemura and Ninja Slayer had taken a toll.
However, what dissatisfied Laomoto Khan the most was Yoroshi-san's 'betrayal'. With Yoroshi-san's help, his body hosted no less than seven Ninja Souls—a truly unique feat! Therefore, he didn't care about the deaths of his subordinates; after all, if he offered enough rewards, people would always flock to him. But Dr. Lee's technical prowess was truly unparalleled.
"Attempt to contact Yoroshi-san. I will offer 'sincerity' for continued cooperation."
Faced with truly capable individuals, he was never stingy with rewards. This was also the reason the Soukaiya could be established.
However, before that, he needed to demonstrate his strength to alleviate Yoroshi-san's concerns. He knew the power of Arasaka Technology; he had no chance of winning a direct conflict with an army.
So the answer was simple. Saburo Arasaka-san, staying in New Kiotto is your gravest error.
Laomoto Khan stood up and stretched his body. He intended to end this conflict quickly and bring the entire city under his control. Thus, the best method was—a decapitation strike!
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