Naruto: The Information Broker from the Uchiha Clan.

Chapter 326 The Nine-Tailed Fox Needs to Save Money

East of the Land of Fire's coast, in a vast ocean, lies a lonely little island.

Beneath the small island lay the 100,000 White Zetsu clones that had just been transferred.

"Whirlpool Sky! Whirlpool Sky!"

Enraged, Black Zetsu trembled violently, his eyes blazing with fury as he tried to tear everything in front of him to shreds.

Obito also betrayed them. That guy named Kisame never returned after the operation ended, and he was most likely killed by Uchiha Kumo.

And now... after thousands of years of planning, he is left all alone.

All of this stems from Uzumaki Sora and Uchiha Kumo of Konoha!

"Bastard! Unforgivable!"

An enraged Black Zetsu turned to White Zetsu: "If it weren't for you, I might already be dead. Mother needs me; I can't let those two capture me."

White Zetsu scratched his head: "I only saw Obito encounter Uzumaki Sora, and then Obito entered another dimension to prepare to escape, but Uzumaki Sora's eyes also have the ability to create space-time, and he opened Obito's other dimension."

"Although it took a bit longer, who knows, maybe the two of them were discussing the need to use the restroom inside?"

"Obito is so selfish! He didn't even take me with him. Yeah! That's unforgivable!"

Black Zetsu ignored these trash words.

It has always been very wary of Vortex Sora, not only because of his power, but also because of his almost omniscient abilities.

It is clear whether the Infinite Tsukuyomi can bring peace. Deceiving Madara Uchiha and Obito Uchiha was nothing more than a way to rescue his mother.

If Uzumaki Sora knew all his secrets, then Obito's betrayal would have been easy.

Mom... what should I do?!

In a fit of emotion, Black Zetsu turned into a pool of black liquid and lay deep underground.

Obito has already betrayed us, and Madara Uchiha's Impure World Reincarnation has been sealed by Uchiha Kumo. Now, the power I can control is the same as it was thousands of years ago.

Only he and the White Zetsu remained...

No! We can't give up like this!

Mom is still waiting for me. There must be a way to rescue her...

Black Zetsu, who inherited some of Kaguya's memories, is currently recalling those memories in his mind.

Uzumaki Sora and Uchiha Kumo have both broken through to the level of Hagoromo Otsutsuki. They are already in danger under such power, so how can they find new power?

Although he still had a chess piece in his hand, it was merely the Mangekyou Sharingan, which was nothing in front of those two.

After his anger subsided, Black Zetsu regained his composure.

The guy who could wait for thousands of years just to rescue his mother—his patience was his greatest virtue.

Keep waiting, wait for those two bastards to die, then we can use this backup piece in our hand.

We've waited for thousands of years, what's a few more decades?

When that time comes, no one will be able to stop me from rescuing my mother.

……

Northern part of the Land of Iron.

Looking at the underground cave in front of him, where there was not a single person, Obito frowned.

"It seems our meeting has been discovered."

"Although all 100,000 White Zetsu can travel underground, the movement of them is quite a commotion. It's impossible for them to do this without being detected."

Obito looked at Sora and said, "It seems we can't solve all the problems at once. But with your abilities, didn't you foresee this scene in the future?"

Kong shook his head: "The future is not static, and the future I can see is not something I can control at will."

As he spoke, Sora glanced at the empty underground space and laughed, "You're quite adept at playing the 'blind spot' game. No wonder the joint search team led by Itachi Uchiha couldn't find you."

Obito explained, "Only underground can so many White Zetsu clones be hidden, and both Black Zetsu and I have the ability to pass through rock layers... The most dangerous place is also the safest place, and it really made the right bet."

"What are you planning to do next? If you can't find him, that guy who has been able to endure for thousands of years will always be a ticking time bomb in the coming peace."

Uzumaki Sora smiled and said, "If the explosive tag can be pushed back down the moment it explodes, then it has no purpose."

"I've said it before, once the power of me and my original self was born, the so-called Infinite Tsukuyomi became a joke."

……

After leaving the underground, Uzumaki Sora looked at Obito.

"It's time to make a choice."

Obito was stunned.

Should I rejoin Akatsuki? Or find a suitable opportunity to go to Konoha?

Both of these choices were difficult for Obito.

His goal has never been just peace; a peaceful world must also have Lin's presence for it to be meaningful.

It's not difficult to resurrect someone who has been dead for many years, but if Lin sees the opposite version of herself after being resurrected, she would be very disappointed when she learns the whole story.

"By the way, there's something I think I need to remind you of."

Uzumaki Sora looked at Obito and said, "In the previous Akatsuki organization, when Yahiko was on his way to meet Hanzo of the Salamander, you ambushed and killed all of his teammates. If you go back to Akatsuki for that, you'll probably get a good beating."

"Who knows... he might even get beaten to death."

???

Obito asked in surprise, "After bringing me into your plan, isn't it your responsibility to ensure my safety?"

Kong smiled and shook his head slightly: "Why don't you understand? Bringing you into my plan was just a whim, or perhaps a manifestation of my perverse sense of humor."

"After all... I still really want to know whether Rin Nohara likes you or Kakashi. What do you think of this reason?"

Obito's eye twitched slightly: "What a nasty personality... How does someone like you possess such power?"

He shrugged and said, "I'm actually quite surprised too. I didn't do anything, and it just got to this point."

"Alright. Hurry up and decide. Although your alternate dimension saves a lot of travel time, it still took some time to get here from the Land of Fire."

After a moment of silence...

Obito's gaze turned towards Konoha: "That's where everything started. I once told Rin that I wanted to become Hokage, and she promised to always watch over me..."

"Although it's definitely impossible now, when she can be resurrected, she'll definitely want to see a positive and optimistic version of me."

"Instead of being fooled for decades by an old relic that doesn't even have a physical body."

Uzumaki Sora said thoughtfully, "Actually, at first I wanted to just revive Nohara Rin and have her have a conversation with you, that would be much more exciting."

Upon hearing this, Obito shuddered, and at that moment he looked at Sora as if he were looking at a demon.

If Lin gets angry and grabs me and hits me, will I fight back?

If Lin questions me about my past dreams, how should I answer?

wrong……

If it were Lin, she would only gently ask herself why things turned out this way, and comfort herself that all the sadness had passed, right?

……

Two days later, in the market town of the Land of Hot Water.

At this moment, Uchiha Yun was comfortably soaking in the hot spring, eating the fruit that the owner had given him as a gift.

On the other side of the small pond, Sasuke and Naruto were floating with their heads above water, looking at the clouds with some displeasure.

"Brother Yun, is our mission this time to soak in the hot springs of the Land of Hot Springs?"

"I thought it would be a mission to protect VIPs, to wipe out all the invading enemies, and to show off my skills. Turns out... it's just a vacation?"

Yun took a bite of fruit: "The reward for the mission is forty million taels of silver. The fact that you three little devils were able to carry out such a mission is all thanks to me."

Upon hearing this, the Nine-Tails inside Naruto went wild.

"Naruto! I want twenty million ryo! If you don't give me twenty million ryo, don't even think about using my power again!"

"What?!"

At the sealed site, Naruto almost stumbled and knelt down.

"Boss...it's impossible for all forty million taels of silver to be mine!"

The nine-tailed fox, lying on the ground, scratched its head with a paw: "It's impossible for it all to be yours. One, two, three, four, how much can you get among four people?"

The Nine-Tails, clawing at itself, grinned broadly, but to Naruto, that smile clearly indicated it was after the mission reward.

As expected, Dad was right. With such a powerful entity inside my body, it knows everything I do, making it impossible for me to secretly save any money.

"Um?"

"Hey kid, I think there's something off about your eyes... What? Trying to sneak a tidbit away from me?"

"I'm telling you... impossible!"

"From now until the mission is over, I'll be watching you, even if it means staying up all night!"

Naruto, who had been sprayed with spittle, wiped his face, composed himself, and said ingratiatingly, "What's mine is yours, boss. There's no need to be so particular. But boss, what do you need the money for?"

Nine-Tailed Fox waved its claws, its face full of resentment.

"Although the other half of Uchiha Izumi is a bastard, some of the things it says make sense."

"Although you have gained my approval, in terms of human lifespan, you can only live for a few decades at most."

"Decades may seem like a long time to you humans; Konoha has only been around for a few decades. But for us tailed beasts, it's just a matter of time."

At this point, Kurama's claws pointed at Naruto.

"When you die of old age, I'll be free. That shameless half-body even managed to get a Konoha ninja beast identity, so he can at least get some salary."

"If I'm free and penniless, I'll have no choice but to go to the Land of Wind and eat sand with Shukaku. That won't do!"

Naruto paused, then asked, "Um... won't the boss merge with your other half? Since they were originally separate parts, it's possible for them to merge back together, right?"

"Bang!"

The claws slammed down, creating a gust of wind that nearly knocked Naruto over.

"Who would merge with that slut? Shameless, despicable, bastard! That guy has utterly disgraced me!"

"If Uchiha Kumo dies by then, I'll eat him! Let's see how he'll show off then!"

"And the money it hides under its butt, it'll all be mine then! Hahaha..."

"Well……"

The figure caught in her peripheral vision made Nine-Tails swallow back her laughter.

I got a little carried away and for a moment forgot that Uchiha Yun was right next to me.

"You just meant if I also fail, right?"

Yun looked at Nine-Tailed Fox with a smile: "Don't worry, for now, I estimate that its lifespan won't be much different from yours."

???

Nine-Tails was stunned for a moment.

Not much difference?

Although he was given consciousness by the old man of the Six Paths, he is essentially still an aggregate of a portion of the Ten-Tails' chakra.

Can chakra die of old age?

That's absolutely impossible!

And a human being... can live that long? How is that possible?

Even an old man, with such formidable strength, eventually faced death one day.

"Gulp."

Swallowing hard, Nine-Tailed Fox lay on the ground and glanced at Yun: "Don't make such scary jokes, they're quite frightening to foxes."

Yun smiled and said, "Who's joking with you? Don't worry, judging by the probability of accidents, I'll definitely outlive you."

Yun then looked at Naruto and said, "As the Jonin leading the team, half of the 40 million ryo mission reward is mine, and the remaining 20 million ryo will be split equally among the three students of Team 7."

"In other words... if nothing unexpected happens during this mission, Naruto will be able to receive more than 6.6 million ryo."

???

Nine-Tails was stunned.

The original expectation of 20 million taels of silver ended up being only 6 million taels.

He glanced at Naruto.

Although this guy was quite easy to talk to, you can't go all the way with taking advantage of others.

We still have to leave half for this brat, so that we'll only have a little over three million taels.

This amount of money isn't even enough for a few meals of barbecue...

"Alright, alright, just give me half of Naruto's share. I need to save money eventually; I don't want to be eating dirt in my old age."

Kurama looked resigned, and Naruto was quite happy about it.

However, Uchiha Yun added, "The money is based on the premise that the mission is successfully completed. If the mission fails, there will be no money at all."

Nine-Tails waved his hand impatiently: "With me here, how could the mission possibly fail? Even if we encounter Uzumaki Sora from Akatsuki, don't we still have Boss Yun?"

"As long as you can stop Vortex Sky, Boss Yun, leave the rest to me. There will be absolutely no problem."

Yun ignored Kurama's boasting and left the sealed land with Naruto.

In the hot spring pool.

Yun looked at the two kids and said, "Your powers are unrestricted for this mission. That means you can use either the Mangekyou Sharingan or Naruto's Kurama Mode at will."

Use it freely?

Sasuke asked doubtfully, "Is the enemy very strong? Judging from the current situation in the ninja world, we shouldn't be facing the Five Great Shinobi Villages..."

"Brother Yun...you didn't find the Akatsuki's hideout and just decided to bring us here on a whim, did you?"

"Bang."

Yun reached out and smacked Sasuke on the forehead: "You received your mission from Minato before we set off. Do you think he'd let me just lead you guys to your deaths? Especially not his son?"

Uh!

Sasuke, clutching his forehead, sank into the hot spring in frustration, leaving only his two nostrils sticking out.

Naruto, standing nearby, asked doubtfully, "If it weren't for Akatsuki, the mission reward wouldn't be this high, right?"

Ignoring the little devil's question, Yun looked at the sky, stood up, and walked out of the hot spring.

"Have a meal to loosen up your muscles and bones, and then it will be easier to get started when it's late at night."

The two little devils behind him exchanged glances upon hearing this, and they both felt that there was a conspiracy at play.

This scene, no matter how you look at it, seems to have a special meaning, just like that time when they went out of the village to carry out a mission.

Last time, we wiped out the mountain bandits.

There are quite a few C-rank missions like this in Konoha; basically, every genin has done this type of mission to some extent.

But that time...

Bloodshed, killing... these were not difficult for Class 7, who were already mentally prepared.

The real challenge lies in what follows.

After the bandits' lair was wiped out, Brother Yun also took control of seven or eight people.

Just as Sasuke was about to make his move, he was stopped by Brother Yun.

……

Would you like to hear their stories?

Yun's ambiguous smile made Sasuke shudder.

The grand illusion he performed during his graduation assessment remains vivid in his memory.

Soon, under the watchful eyes of the Seventh Squad, the first bandit regained consciousness.

They didn't ask for my name or gender.

"If you were killed as a bandit, would you regret it?"

"You're ninjas from Konoha, right?"

"Regret? How could I!"

"If I hadn't taken this path, I would have starved to death two years ago. Now... at least I've survived these past two years."

"You were invited by the General's Mansion, weren't you? Ninjas? Heh... How could you, born into a high and mighty position, possibly understand what it feels like to starve to death?"

Yun asked, "What about the farmland? There haven't been any major wars in recent years, so there should still be some, right?"

"Land? From the highest prefectures down to the nobles who manage a small village, they're all exploiting us like crazy. They're afraid, afraid that so-called Akatsuki organization will come and take their lives."

"They need money. With money, they can go to Konoha and hire ninjas to protect them for a while. I was hoping that Akatsuki could take him down, but they never came."

"The price of rice in Daming Prefecture kept falling, and grain was worthless, but the starving farmers had nothing to eat."

"Those bastards! Akatsuki is a bunch of bastards too, why don't they kill him?"

……

The first bandit fell into a deep sleep again.

Then came the second, the third, the fourth...

The reasons for becoming bandits and robbing are all similar. This is just a C-rank mission where there are no ninjas on the other side. All the enemies... or ordinary people, were just farmers before this.

Because a loved one fell ill, because all the grain was taken by the nobles, because the goods were looted and they couldn't give anything back to the nobles...

Etc., etc……

It seems that all the reasons are inseparable from the central point of the Daimyo's Mansion in the Land of Fire.

In the market town near the mission point, none of the three kids from Class 7 had an appetite at the dining table. Only Yun put down his chopsticks after filling his stomach.

"So what came to your mind?"

What came to mind?

The three of them looked at each other for a moment.

An Uchiha, a Hyuga, the son of a Hokage...

Prestigious families are also beneficiaries of the system.

They had never experienced hunger and poverty, the plight of having loved ones desperately needing money but having no way to help them.

……

(End of this chapter)