Klautz's fingers shook. He was lying motionlessly a moment ago but now life was starting to return to his body. Klautz eyes flickered open.

The moment Klautz woke up he found himself in his assigned quarters on top of his bed. The sun was already disappearing down the horizon. A frown formed on his face.

He checked his body to confirm everything was right. Only by making sure his belongings were in their place could he breathe a sigh of relief.

As he watched the sun go down Klautz sighed. His head lowered as his lips pressed tight.

"Day over and I have made no substantial progress. I shouldn't have trusted that Akihiko.

"

All Klautz had in his hands was the Star Dagger. In Hell, no one could expect everyday to be a success but Klautz couldn't help but feel annoyed.

Klautz had believed that Akihiko was interested in his potential so he would send him to a stronger trial to test his strength. But rather he employed a different method to test his talent instead.

Klautz thought that he was playing with Akihiko but in the end, he was being played instead. He cleared the trial in mere hours but he had to spend most of the day being unconscious.

"Most of the day spent unconscious

"

Who knew how far Akihiko had taken him? Klautz had no idea. The travelling must have taken its own token of time.

Klautz shook his head.

'The trial site must have been far.'

Klautz was expecting that it would take him several days to clear the trial but he was willing to take it. But in the end, he wasn't given an opportunity.

"Oh, you woke up?

" Akihiko's voice resounded in the room.

Klautz frowned, narrowing his eyes.

"What do you want now? The trial that you sent me was trash!

" Klautz roared.

Anger oozed out of his every cell. But his actions were quite on the contrary to what Akihiko expected. Any other newbie would have been elated to have the Star Dagger to himself.

Akihiko was taken aback. After all, what was that trial? Anyone could have gone to any extent to monopolize such a trial. Everyone was interested in the powers of the ninja which could defy the laws of this world.

Akihiko shook his head. He concluded that Klautz was naive.

'He doesn't know of its true value'

Little did Akihiko know that he couldn't be more wrong.

"It's not useless. The weapon that you obtained can aid you in assassinating anyone who is weaker or equal to you in your stats.

"

Klautz tilted his head. There was a sneer in his eyes.

"And why would I be interested in assassinating someone as strong as me when I can kill them in a battle itself? Don't forget that I am not one of you,

" Klautz continued,

"I wanted something that could be useful against someone stronger than me.

"

Klautz shrugged. He wasn't a ninja anymore. He was a warrior. He only saw usefulness in using underhanded tricks for opponents stronger than himself since he couldn't defeat them using straight means.

Klautz wasn't a ninja but he wasn't a fan of chivalry either. Sticking to one of them was only for the foolish. One must be adaptable at all time and make their plans calculating the best of the situation.

Akihiko nodded.

"I assure you there are weapons meant for killing stronger targets under my reach as well. But those are high ranked weapons and skills. You will only get them when you bring in enough clients and give enough contribution to the village.

"

Akihiko tried to explain to Klautz. But Klauutz already knew this. He could only shake his head in annoyance.

"You know what? I knew that you would be spouting some bull** like this.

"

Klautz knew this too. In the 'normal' scenario ninjas and representatives have to rise in rank to gain access to stronger trials. It was even harder for representatives to gain access. But was Klautz normal in any way? He was abnormal in every meaning of the word.

Klautz gritted his teeth.

"You have disappointed me Akihiko. I am wasting my time and skills on you,

" Klautz claimed as he stormed out of the room.

*Bam*

He shut the door behind Akihiko leaving him in a daze. Klautz words kept ringing in his ears. He couldn't help but have his ground shaken.

After all, who was Klautz to him? A member of the Koga or Iga. The hidden villages he had always admired. Yet Klautz had refused to acknowledge his skills. Doesn't that make him a failure in whatever he was doing until now?

'I couldn't have sent you to a stronger trial even if I wanted to,' Akihiko clasped his fingers into a fist as he stared at the door that was shut behind him.

What was Mizukigakure? A rather young ninja village. Its reach and powers weren't as great as Kishiogakure. Wasn't that the very reason he was looking for new talents?

Clearing a stronger trial would have taken Klautz several days. How would he have tricked Gozoto for so long?

Akihiko shook his head in denial.

"No, I am just giving excuses for my incompetence.

"

Akihiko was a man who loved his culture. Such a drive had led him to create a ninja organization from scratch. Even by Hell's standards, it was a great feat!

But was Akihiko satisfied? Both Klautz and Akihiko were ambitious. He couldn't stop at just a small ninja village!

'I have to grow in strength so that no newbie can disrespect me like this again.'

Akihiko clasped his fists as he stared at the door shut behind him in a daze. He couldn't help but grit his teeth in annoyance.

He could neither blame Klautz nor he could blame Gozoto. He could only blame himself.

***

Author:

Creation is hard for authors. Cheer me up with your power stones.

Let me know your thoughts about the chapter in the comments sections!