Konoha: From the moment I was adopted by Tsunade

Chapter 21 Losing Oneself in the Pursuit of More Money

July 7th, sunny.

Winter Snow Casino.

Located on the edge of Tansoku Street.

There aren't usually many customers.

Natsume chose this location because he was worried about being seen by someone with ulterior motives.

For example, the ninjas of Konoha.

After all, the members of the Akatsuki organization are all highly skilled, and it wouldn't be good to scare children.

It's exactly 7 o'clock.

Natsume arrived on time, and there were already two guys who were clearly not ordinary people waiting for him.

Kakuzu and Sasori.

Both of them were wearing Akatsuki's classic black trench coats with red clouds.

Kakuzu's attire was still somewhat human, except he wore a mask, revealing a pair of bright green eyes.

Scorpion is more abstract, wearing a puppet named Hiruko, looking like a dwarf, and also has a scorpion-like tail.

In fact, the two of them were no longer human.

Sasori, a genius puppeteer from Sunagakure and the grandson of Granny Chiyo, not only controls puppets but also turns himself into a puppet.

Kakuzu, a rogue ninja from Takigakure, possesses five hearts, or five lives, through the forbidden technique Earth Grudge Fear, granting him an extremely long lifespan.

The famous scene is when he throws his shuriken at the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, from 800 miles away.

In the original work, Sasori's partner is Deidara, whose art is explosion, while Kakuzu's partner is Hidan, a follower of the Jashin.

However, during this period, neither of them had joined the Akatsuki organization, so they were teammates.

Natsume was a little worried that he would run into Obito Uchiha.

However, upon closer reflection, his transformation into Tobi and joining the Akatsuki organization happened much later.

Before this, he had been committing bloody killings in Kirigakure to avenge his beloved Rin Nohara.

During the Third Shinobi World War, Kirigakure took advantage of the weakened state of Konoha and Kumogakure after their battle and launched a surprise attack.

There were two main battles.

In the first battle, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen headed straight for the rear of Konoha Village and encountered the genin Might Guy. Under the Eight Gates, only the three members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen escaped.

In the second battle, they sent men to capture Nohara Rin, forcibly inserted the Three-Tails into her body, and then sent her back to Konoha to self-destruct.

In an attempt to thwart a conspiracy, Rin Nohara crashed into Kakashi Hatake's Lightning Blade and died.

From that moment on, Obito Uchiha set his sights on Kirigakure.

In fact, what he didn't know was that Madara Uchiha and Black Zetsu were pulling strings behind the scenes.

Nohara Rin was destined to die.

The purpose was to stimulate Obito Uchiha to awaken his Sharingan and make him the executor of the Eye of the Moon (Black Zetsu's plan to save his mother).

"You're the employer?"

Kakuzu looked Natsume up and down; he was a complete stranger to him.

"Yes."

Natsume didn't hide anything and said, "I am a clone, so I'll have to trouble you two to protect me on the way."

As long as they are not harmed and have enough chakra, clones can exist for a long time.

"To protect you?"

Kakuzu said coldly, "You weren't told in the mission that I was supposed to protect you, and it's an avatar, which makes it even more difficult."

"Add more money."

Natsume held up two fingers and said, "Since there are two of you, I'll add another 200,000 taels as payment for protecting me."

"Can."

Kakuzu's eyes darted around. Two million two hundred thousand taels—a trip to Kusagakure would be a huge profit.

A bounty on a person's head, especially one exceeding ten million taels, is extremely rare.

The Akatsuki organization earns money mostly through completing missions.

However, there aren't many S-level missions.

Two million two hundred thousand is already quite good.

Protecting a clone is nothing.

"There's another task."

To avoid future disputes, Natsume wanted to explain this in advance.

"besides?"

Kakuzu frowned.

Are all employers these days so rude? Don't they know what rules are?

"I'll pay more."

Natsume smiled and said, "I have a deal with Orochimaru. I need you to go see him and get something."

Kakuzu gave Natsume a second look.

The reputation of the Three Legendary Sannin is quite prestigious.

Those who can make deals with Orochimaru are certainly not ordinary people.

Of course, he didn't take it to heart.

In his opinion, the Three Ninjas were not worth mentioning.

He's more interested in money.

"How much are you offering?"

"Two million taels."

Natsume held up two fingers and said.

"A transaction is naturally no problem."

Kakuzu has lived for so long, he's practically a demon. "But your unwillingness to go in person means Orochimaru might make a move, which means there's a different price. Orochimaru, as one of the legendary Sannin, is quite powerful, so you'll have to pay extra."

Natsume originally wanted to save money.

Now that he had been guessed, he raised another finger and said, "Then I'll add another ten million taels."

Sarutobi Asuma's head is worth 35 million taels.

Orochimaru won't be any worse.

But this is a transaction, not a demand for his head; ten million taels is more than enough.

Kakuzu's eyes suddenly lit up.

The boss is so generous!

Having an extra ten million taels is definitely an unexpected bonus.

Then we'll kill Orochimaru and use his head to make money on the black market.

It's a win-win situation.

Kakuzu glanced at Sasori.

He remained unresponsive, as if he were truly a lifeless puppet.

Knowing his character, Kakuzu spoke on his behalf, saying, "We will accept your two requests."

"It's a pleasure working with you. Let's set off now."

Natsume laughed and said, "But I'm a bit slow."

Scorpion reacted at this moment, and with a casual tug, a puppet landed in front of him.

An odd-behaving species.

This was the only word Natsume could think of.

Wearing a tattered cloak, resembling an ant, with red, demonic horns, six arms, and two legs.

You wouldn't be thinking of making it my mount, would you?

Natsume subconsciously looked at Sasori and received three words: "Sit on it."

Good heavens! People can die from this!

Am I not paying you enough? How can you treat your employers so badly?

Couldn't you just show me your Third Kazekage figure and let me experience what it's like to stand shoulder to shoulder with the sun as it flies into the sky?

The three set off.

Kakuzu and Sasori are both standard ninja runners.

Natsume rode a luxurious mount, which, apart from being a bit shaky, had no problems.

Moreover, its combat power is extremely strong.

Kusagakure Village is located in the Land of Grass.

According to the original work, the ninjas of Kusagakure are skilled at researching and deciphering the ninjutsu of other countries, making it a village of ninjas who excel at learning.

A statement that demonstrates very high emotional intelligence.

In short, it's about stealing the country.

"Small and ignorant, small and rude" is the perfect description of them.

There is relatively little plot in the story of Kusagakure.

Leaving aside the theatrical version, all that's left is Karin and her mother.

After the Uzumaki clan was wiped out, they ended up in Kusagakure, where they were used as portable blood potions.

Due to a physical condition, they are born with a lot of chakra, and can achieve a therapeutic effect by biting food.

The Uzumaki clan, despite being jinchūriki, seal jutsu, or medical ninjas, have excellent uses.

But Kusagakure chose the shortest-sighted approach.

Ultimately, Karin's mother died after having her chakra drained.

If it weren't for Orochimaru, Karin would not have escaped this fate either.

Moreover, they are very likely to be used for breeding, generation after generation, which is extremely tragic.

Unfortunately, Karin encountered Sasuke Uchiha again and couldn't escape her fate as a tool.

Although things have improved a bit.

In my past life, I jokingly said to Sasuke, "If I ever feel like it, I'll take Karin's life."

Every time this guy improves his strength, he has to come out and show off, only to get beaten up and then rescued.

The Land of Grass borders the Land of Fire, located in the northwest.

With the three of them moving at breakneck speed, they arrived at their destination in less than two days.

(End of this chapter)