"Kakashi-sensei, please come over here as well."
Sakura spread several photographs across the table and gestured for everyone to look.
"These were taken this morning at the gathering site. Roughly speaking, this is how it works. After their daily propaganda activities, Cardo's followers return to this location. The site also regularly hosts various… events. Take a look."
They turned their gazes outward.
On the open ground, large numbers of people were gathered, forming circle after circle.
There were not only mercenaries, but also fishermen, beggars, and children with unkempt hair. What was strange was that every one of them wore a radiant smile.
"…This feels like a horror movie," Naruto said, goosebumps rising all over his body.
"The photos don't really tell you much," Sakura replied grimly. "If you go there in person, it feels even creepier."
Naruto thought for a moment. "Why don't we go take a look ourselves? We don't really have anything else to do anyway. Boss, are you coming too?"
Kakashi shook his head. "I haven't fully recovered yet, and the Dazna family needs someone to watch over them."
"Then the three of us will go see what's going on."
The three of them changed into gray-black clothing, no longer wearing anything brightly colored, and put on wide-brimmed hats.
"Let's go," Naruto said.
…
Near noon, sunlight bathed the streets of the Land of Waves, drying the salty, humid air just a little.
Sweating heavily, the three slowly made their way toward the gathering point.
As they drew closer, Sakura signaled them toward a narrow alley around the corner—one she had discovered during her investigation, a path so cramped that almost no one paid it any attention.
After a while, they reached the fence surrounding the gathering area. Through it, they could see groups of people sitting in circles on the ground. Moving quietly, they caught fragments of conversation drifting over.
The group closest to them was talking among themselves.
Naruto listened carefully.
Some spoke of their suffering.
Some shared secrets.
Some confessed the bad things they had done…
After the host finished speaking, the atmosphere sank rapidly. Some people began to sob softly, and before long, the entire group slid into emotional collapse.
Naruto's expression stiffened.
A fisherman with reddened eyes said, "When I was a child, my father used to take me to a nearby snack street to buy takoyaki. I was young and didn't understand anything, so he always refused to eat any, saying his teeth were bad. Only when I grew up did I realize… he just couldn't stand the taste."
Another mercenary said, "When I was little, our family sometimes caught too much fish. My mother only ate the tail. When I asked why she wouldn't eat the belly, she always said she preferred the tail. But think about it—everyone knows the best meat is in the belly."
The host cleared his throat and said in a low voice, "My dear friends, although Mr. Cardo has no intention of running for office, he understands the suffering of the people. This morning's meeting gave us a chance to reflect, and we must seize it firmly."
Sasuke couldn't help whispering, "What does 'kinship' mean?"
"It's a Korean term," Sakura replied solemnly. "It means companions and friends. That's not strange—things like the 'Unification Church' originated there."
Naruto grimaced as if his teeth hurt. "Does this count as cultural invasion?"
As they spoke, everyone sitting in circles suddenly burst into tears.
At that moment, the host stood up.
"My dear friends," he said warmly, "now that we've all shared our little secrets, we are good friends. Do you trust each other? Let's play a small game!"
As he spoke, he dragged over a chair and climbed onto it.
"I'll stand on this chair, turn my back to you all, and fall backward. I believe my friends will catch me. This is my trust in you."
With that, he fell straight back—but the "relatives" behind him caught him in time, preventing his head from hitting the ground.
The host said excitedly, "See? This is the trust between family and friends. Now you try it yourselves!"
Under his guidance, everyone took turns falling backward into the arms of their "family." No one hit the ground.
When the last person fell and was caught, the host exclaimed passionately, "Do you see? This is the power of 'kinship'! Kin will never betray your trust! Kin will support one another forever!"
Cheers erupted, as though everyone had found new companions.
Sasuke stared blankly at the scene, his mouth hanging open.
"My dear friends…" Sakura felt she would never be able to look at that phrase the same way again.
I really should stop watching Korean dramas…
Oh right, this is the ninja world. Never mind.
She finally understood why there were so many mercenaries in Cardo City—like cockroach eggs.
"What… what are they doing?" Sasuke stammered. All three of his worldviews had taken a critical hit.
Naruto looked at him sympathetically. It was normal—villagers had never seen anything like this before.
"They're brainwashing each other," Sakura said, frowning. "First, they share secrets to shorten psychological distance. Then they stir emotions to strip away rationality. Finally, they use games to build a new sense of identity. They don't even need ninjutsu to pull off tricks like this."
"In professional terms," she added, "this is a pyramid scheme."
Naruto hesitated, then added, "Well… companies often do things like this too…"
Of course, corporate leadership wouldn't call it a pyramid scheme.
They used a gentler term instead:
Team building.
Sakura nodded. "Back when I was in university, applied psychology students did similar experiments. They called it group psychological training."
Thinking of something else, Sasuke asked, "I just realized something. Where do you think the food the mercenaries distribute comes from?"
"Most likely from those who've already been brainwashed, willingly handing it over," Naruto said after thinking for a moment. "That's what they mean by 'taking wool from the sheep.'"
Sakura said decisively, "We can't let this continue. We need to find a time to completely destroy this gathering site."
Naruto added, "If you keep this up, Cardo, the entire Land of Waves will fall."
He withdrew his earlier contempt for Cardo.
The three began discussing tactics.
…
Night.
Naruto lowered the brim of his hat and headed toward the gathering site.
A quick scan told him that, on average, a group of mercenaries appeared near the site every two hours. They came to hand over the day's "performance" and then rotated shifts.
The entire gathering place functioned like an automated machine, dedicated to pulling every citizen of the Land of Waves under its control.
Naruto followed one of the groups toward the entrance.
"Please wait a moment," the guard at the gate stopped them. "We need to count the number of people in your group."
The gathering site used headcounts to assess how much influence they had over the Land of Waves.
The man at the front, who looked like the group leader, said proudly, "Group Three successfully distributed all food today, promoted Mr. Cardo's ideals, and made nine new friends."
He gestured behind him. The guard motioned for the newly joined "relatives" to split off, while the rest entered according to the list.
Suddenly, Naruto felt something was off.
Was he exposed before even getting inside?
At that moment, both the guard and the group leader noticed him.
Why was there an extra person in the group?
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All the fanfiction is 30-chapter ahead but this "A Witty Life in the Naruto World" is 30 chapters ahead there