Taking a Master
"Clack~"
Just as Lin Ke was lost in thought, the sound of a door opening came from outside, followed by unhurried footsteps approaching.
"..." Another classic Nara pineapple head, albeit a smaller version, walked in holding his head. He was about to speak but stopped abruptly when he saw there was a guest.
"My son, Shikamaru," Nara Shikaku called the smaller pineapple head over, introducing them to each other, "Chunin Lin Ke."
These father and son really look alike.
Nara Shikamaru hesitated slightly, his expression unchanged, and walked over with a muttered "troublesome." He sat properly next to his father, gave a slight bow, and appeared attentive and polite, but in reality, his mind had already wandered far away.
Lin Ke nodded in acknowledgment and then bowed, saying, "Master, I look forward to your guidance in the future."
The reason for becoming a disciple was simple.
Becoming a disciple of the previous generation's 'Shika' would mean having the Nara clan's backing for many things. The Ino-Shika-Cho trio was a significant asset.
In the short term, becoming a disciple would completely gain the trust of the steady faction.
In the long term, it would benefit him in becoming a Jonin, or even a Kage.
As for the nonsense about sacrificing for the village to become a Kage... if I become a Kage, would I still need to care about that?
Nara Shikaku smiled, stroking his goatee, his expression looking much gentler. Regardless of how many high-level considerations were involved, simply put, becoming a disciple meant being one of their own. Having another capable genius disciple was always a good thing.
"?" Nara Shikamaru's half-open eyes suddenly widened, his mouth slightly agape, his small face filled with an expression of 'Did I miss something?' He turned his head to look at his old man, then back at Lin Ke, who had straightened up.
Even more question marks appeared.
"You can come to our house to find me if you have any questions in the future," Nara Shikaku said, "Stay for dinner tonight. You and Shikamaru are about the same age, so you can interact more in the future."
How troublesome, how troublesome, how troublesome...
Nara Shikamaru muttered to himself.
However, his old man, Nara Shikaku, didn't give him any room to breathe, standing up and saying, "I won't disturb you young people's conversation." With that, he left with light steps.
The two kids sat in the living room, facing each other across the table.
"Lin Ke."
"Nara Shikamaru."
The two introduced themselves again, then fell into silence.
Finally, Nara Shikamaru felt that as the owner of the house, he should take the initiative and said, "I've heard of you, a genius ninja who graduated last year and became a Chunin in the same year."
"You flatter me," Lin Ke replied dryly.
In fact, in the manga, Shikamaru also became a Chunin in the Chunin Exams in the same year he graduated.
"I saw you at Barbecue Q this afternoon," Nara Shikamaru was still trying to find something to talk about.
"Yeah," Lin Ke responded.
Nara Shikamaru stood up and said, "I'm going to the restroom." Then he opened the door and left.
He probably wasn't coming back.
Lin Ke turned his head to look outside. Communicating with precocious kids like Shikamaru was a bit difficult for him. The relationship between the two had gone from strangers to a subtle intimacy too quickly—
His old man was his master.
Whether in his previous life or this life, the master-disciple relationship was always close, especially in a profession like a ninja.
Except for a certain mindless and idiotic psychopath who would ruthlessly attack his master, even Orochimaru needed to stab his hand with a Kunai to steel his resolve when dealing with the Third Hokage.
The last person in the manga to stab his hand to steel his resolve was the protagonist, Uzumaki Naruto.
Not to mention shedding tears after making the move. According to the explanation in the first part of the manga, Orochimaru wanted to "make the wind turn the windmill," so he had to kill his master and carry out the Konoha Crush Plan.
Anyway, it was more reasonable than a certain psychopath.
Even a heinous villain like Orochimaru had special feelings for his master, let alone others.
Indeed, it's more comfortable to keep a certain distance.
Lin Ke thought to himself.
Lin Ke walked home feeling awkward all over. Nara Shikamaru's mother, and wife of his teacher Nara Shikaku, Nara Yoshino, was a very, very enthusiastic person.
Especially after learning that he was an orphan and already one of their own, she not only showered him with concern but also kept pulling him into endless chats.
The key was that Nara Shikamaru ran off right after dinner, and Nara Shikaku sat beside him, not even daring to sigh, which led to him only being able to go home now, after nine o'clock at night.
What a troublesome woman with no sense of boundaries.
Lin Ke shook his head, extracted Chakra, formed hand seals, and released. He clapped his hands together—
Summoning Jutsu.
His consciousness followed the instant the jutsu took effect, transmitting his thoughts: Are there any ninjas from Konoha Village?
As expected, it's an evil brat from Konoha Village, daring to play with life and death... (Here, a dozen curse words are omitted.)
Lin Ke skillfully canceled the jutsu, blocking out the soul of that hostile ninja from who-knows-where.
There were too many dead people in the Pure Land—
That seemed like a redundant statement.
Lately, he had been idly casting the Summoning Jutsu in the Pure Land, hoping to find a few useful deceased individuals he could use. However, the probability of encountering a ninja from Konoha Village was like finding a needle in a haystack.
Over 99% were civilians who didn't even know they were dead or were filled with resentment, and there were quite a few like the one just now who started cursing right away.
So far, the only two souls of Konoha Village ninjas that Lin Ke had found were his old man and another...
He formed hand seals again and released the Summoning Jutsu, first greeting his old man, then saying: Nawaki, good evening.
Is it evening in the living world again? Nawaki thought.
In the Summoning Jutsu, souls cannot lie; the thoughts reflected in their consciousness are directly 'summoned' by Lin Ke.
Time seemed to not exist in the Pure Land. Even though Lin Ke had found him last month, communicating now felt like only a second had passed for the deceased.
This ability should theoretically be very convenient for interrogation. The only problem was that he really couldn't find specific souls without a medium. He was still a bit puzzled about what the specific medium was. Even standing near the Memorial Stone and touching the graves where the dead were buried, he still couldn't connect to the corresponding deceased.
He still hadn't figured out the logic behind it.
Is there something you need? Nawaki asked cautiously.
Lin Ke asked as casually as possible: Have you ever thought about returning to the living world?
He could only control the dead who walked out of the Rashomon to enter and exit, but he couldn't force them to do anything. So, if he really wanted to form an army by himself, he would have to properly communicate with the deceased he found using the Summoning Jutsu.
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