Twenty days later, Shinji and Hidan finally returned to the Jashin cult.
The main reason for the delay was the supply convoy—they were simply too slow. As a result, the two of them had to reduce their pace and eventually made their way back at a leisurely crawl.
Of course, Shinji had already sent word back in advance using messenger birds raised by the Oshima Trading Company. Above all else, he valued stability.
Outside the base, Sect Leader Takihata stood there with a gentle smile, his gaze warm and benevolent as he looked at them.
"Children, welcome home."
"May Lord Jashin live forever!"
Shinji and Hidan simultaneously pressed the Jashin cult emblem necklaces to their foreheads and spoke with reverence.
"How was the journey? Everything goes smoothly?"
After arranging for others to receive and inventory the supplies, Sect Leader Takihata walked alongside them, his tone filled with concern.
"Other than running into a few insignificant petty thieves, everything went quite smoothly," Shinji replied, deliberately glossing over details.
As for Hidan, his answer was even simpler…
"Pathetic."
Sect Leader Takihata glanced at the Executioner's Blade on Shinji's back and, as if joking, remarked meaningfully,
"A petty thief who can wield the Executioner's Blade is no simple character."
Then he patted Shinji on the shoulder and laughed heartily.
"Mm, you did well this time. The other party praised the two of you extensively in their letter. Even the previously agreed sponsorship has been tripled—all thanks to your efforts!"
"Tell me, is there anything you want? Lord Jashin will surely grant it."
Upon hearing the promise, an eager Hidan spoke up first.
"I want to offer Lord Jashin higher-quality sacrifices!"
The moment Hidan finished speaking, Shinji noticed Sect Leader Takihata's smile stiffen—just slightly—before he said helplessly,
"The sacrifices in the underground dungeon are yours to choose from."
"I want high-quality sacrifices! The trash in the dungeon will only defile my faith in Lord Jashin!" Hidan shouted in dissatisfaction.
To put it bluntly, what Hidan worshiped was the god who had granted him rebirth—not the Jashin cult leader standing before him.
Faith was a double-edged sword!
Even Sect Leader Takihata probably hadn't anticipated that his indoctrination would be this successful—too successful, in fact.
And that was not a good sign.
Looking at Hidan, who was already showing faint signs of becoming uncontrollable, Sect Leader Takihata grew cautious inwardly. Still, he maintained his smile.
"Your devotion to Lord Jashin is beyond question. However, high-quality sacrifices are rare and are consumed quickly. How about this—any high-quality sacrifices we capture in the future, you'll be given priority access to ten of them. In addition, you're free to capture sacrifices on your own. If you manage to catch one of exceptionally high quality, I can even make an exception and hold a private sacrifice ceremony just for you."
"Tch. I'm going to rest."
Hidan clicked his tongue, clearly unimpressed, and turned to leave without the slightest courtesy.
This trip to the Land of Waves had made Hidan fully realize just how powerful he truly was!
If not for the fact that there was still someone constantly pressing him down a notch, Hidan's ego would have inflated even more.
Watching this, a trace of displeasure flashed briefly through Sect Leader Takihata's eyes.
Naturally, Shinji wasn't as emotionally tone-deaf as Hidan—especially given that the Jashin cult still had value to exploit. So he smoothly changed the subject.
"Sect Leader Takihata, I'd like to forge a weapon."
"Oh?" Takihata said with interest. "What kind of weapon? And don't you already have one?"
"This blade can only serve as a temporary measure. To be honest, it doesn't suit me very well," Shinji said, shaking his head with some regret.
Hearing this, Sect Leader Takihata found himself agreeing.
After all, no matter how powerful a weapon was, if it didn't feel right in your hands, you could never fully unleash your true strength.
And compared to Hidan, Shinji's request was perfectly reasonable.
So without much hesitation, Sect Leader Takihata readily agreed.
"All the materials in the sect's treasury are at your disposal. If you have any specific ideas, you can discuss them with the craftsmen."
Shinji thanked him again, thinking to himself: This is the perfect chance to test the other conditions for Curse Tool conversion.
In the blink of an eye, several more days passed.
Shinji returned to his packed routine—cooperating with blood draws, recording experimental data, training in taijutsu, and cultivating cursed techniques.
Though every day was scheduled to the brim, the life itself felt fulfilling.
Of course, it would be even better if the first two items could be removed.
After all, no one enjoyed being treated like a lab rat.
Additionally, after returning, Shinji made no effort to deepen his relationship with Hidan or increase their bond value.
In fact, he practically ignored the guy—avoiding him whenever possible.
It wasn't because he'd had a "change of heart" or found a new bond target.
He simply felt that the few scraps of daily wool he was shaving off weren't worth it anymore!
That trip to the Land of Waves had made him thoroughly understand how the bond value with Hidan worked.
So he decided to leave Hidan hanging for a few days—then suddenly strike with thunderous force and take him down in one move…
Ahem! He meant: see if he could hurry up and complete the second phase of that damn mission.
A true scumbag, through and through!
Meanwhile, although Hidan wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, he still noticed Shinji's obvious "cold treatment" over the past few days.
They'd disliked each other for a long time now.
From verbal spats and shouting matches, to "wait for me after school, one-on-one," and even pulling knives at the slightest disagreement—white blade in, red blade out, straight to mutual destruction!
By all logic, Hidan should've been used to it.
But the truth was… Hidan was really pissed off!
He didn't even know why he was pissed—he just was!
And when he was pissed, he wanted to make that bastard feel pissed too.
So after holding it in for several days, Hidan finally couldn't take it anymore. Grinning with anticipation, he headed off to cause trouble for that guy!
At this very moment, Shinji was in the craftsman's workshop, carefully examining the vicious weapon that had just been completed!
It was a three-section scythe, entirely crimson in color.
The three-bladed design allowed it to inflict more thorough damage on its target. At the end of the handle was a circular ring, allowing a rope to be attached for long-range throwing and retrieval.
This was none other than the fearsome weapon from the original story—Hidan's iconic Bloodstained Triple-Blade Scythe!
After the previous mission to the Land of Waves, Shinji had identified yet another weakness in Hidan.
When not using Death Possession Blood, Hidan's killing power was severely lacking.
So forging this signature weapon for him as soon as possible was absolutely necessary!
Shinji truly didn't want to see Hidan swinging around two stupid cleavers like a lunatic ever again.
Seriously—his style points had completely tanked!
When it came to killing people, the most important thing was obviously looking cool!
He picked it up and swung it around a few times. The feel was excellent—solid materials, top-notch craftsmanship.
But there was one unfortunate detail.
The system showed no reaction whatsoever.
Which meant that the Bloodstained Triple-Blade Scythe in his hands could not be converted into a Curse Tool.