Land of Fire, an underground bounty exchange.
A burly man wearing a mask, with only a pair of dark green eyes exposed, slowly walked into the underground bounty exchange carrying a bloodstained bundle.
"This is the head worth nine million. Confirm the identity and pay me immediately."
The green-eyed man tossed the bundle onto the manager's counter and spoke calmly.
"Please wait a moment, Lord Kakuzu."
Upon seeing the green-eyed man, the manager immediately spoke respectfully, then gestured for his subordinates to verify the identity of the head inside the bundle.
Not long afterward, his subordinates confirmed the identity. At the manager's signal, they brought out a chest full of silver notes from the inner room. The amount was neither more nor less than nine million.
"Lord Kakuzu, here are nine million silver notes. Please check them."
Kakuzu nodded lightly, then lifted the chest and sat down in a corner of the exchange hall. Opening it, he began slowly counting the money. He was highly practiced at counting bills, and his pace was remarkably steady. Not only was it strangely pleasant to watch, it also made it seem as though he were performing something extremely sacred...
This was clearly nothing more than a dark underground bounty exchange, yet unlike the other bounty hunters who hurriedly counted their money after collecting payment, he stood out as particularly different.
Before long, Kakuzu had methodically counted all nine million silver notes. The amount was exactly right. Satisfied, he sealed the money into a storage scroll before walking back to the counter and asking the manager, "Any updates to the recent bounty list?"
"Lord Kakuzu, this is the updated list from a few days ago. Please have a look."
The manager was exceedingly respectful toward Kakuzu. After all, Kakuzu was both a major client and a regular customer. Every time he visited the underground bounty exchange, he completed a high-value bounty mission, something ordinary bounty hunters could not remotely compare to.
"Mm."
Kakuzu took the updated bounty list from the manager. His dark green eyes swiftly scanned the portraits and the bounty amounts marked beneath them.
"Mm?"
"Ninety million silver notes?"
For the first time, surprise appeared in Kakuzu's voice. The portrait bearing that bounty depicted a young boy with blue-white hair and pale eyes.
"I want all the information on him!"
The enormous bounty of ninety million silver notes immediately caught Kakuzu's attention. Compared to it, the other cheap bounties no longer interested him. Rather than waste time on low-paying missions, he might as well take on one big job.
"Yes, Lord Kakuzu."
After hearing this, the manager directly took out a small file from beneath the counter and began explaining to Kakuzu, "Since this bounty was synchronized from the Land of Lightning branch a few days ago, the information is incomplete..."
Kakuzu merely nodded without saying anything. He took the file from the manager and examined it carefully.
"Hyuga Yuzuru, born into the Hyuga Main Family, six years old, currently a first-year student at the Konoha Ninja Academy. Estimated strength: Jonin!"
The final sentence in the file was marked in red, followed by a large question mark. Clearly, they were not certain of Hyuga Yuzuru's true strength.
"No wonder the bounty is ninety million silver notes..."
Kakuzu understood at once. No wonder they had placed such a high bounty on a six-year-old academy student. They feared his potential.
"I'll take this bounty mission!"
Kakuzu, who had once fought Hashirama Senju and "retreated unscathed," was naturally extremely confident in his own strength. Dealing with a six-year-old boy from Konoha would not be difficult.
"Then I'll await your good news, Lord Kakuzu!"
The manager said fawningly, his face full of smiles. If Kakuzu completed this bounty mission, he would receive quite a generous commission as well.
"By the way, what is the employer's time limit?"
As he was about to leave, Kakuzu asked the manager.
Generally speaking, employers set a fixed deadline when posting bounty missions—one week, one month, or one year. This was also meant to prevent bounty hunters who accepted missions from dragging things out indefinitely, leaving the bounty uncompleted for far too long.
"The employer's deadline is quite long: five years in total. As long as Lord Kakuzu completes this mission within five years, this high bounty will be yours."
"Five years? That's plenty of time."
Kakuzu nodded, quite satisfied with the deadline. After all, the target was a member of Konoha's Hyuga Clan, and moreover, someone from the high-status Hyuga Main Family. Under normal circumstances, members of the Hyuga Main Family would not leave Konoha easily.
With that in mind, after formally accepting the bounty mission, Kakuzu turned back to look over the other bounty missions. With so much time to spare, he could naturally earn some extra money on the side.
Before long, Kakuzu accepted several more bounty missions and immediately left the underground bounty exchange. To him, time truly was money.
In the Land of Rain, located at the intersection of the three great nations of Fire, Wind, and Earth.
Inside the reception hall of the Land of Rain leader's residence.
A burly man wearing a gas mask was receiving three guests, his light brown eyes appraising them.
"Lord Hanzo, we truly came seeking cooperation. This is a win-win situation, so please consider it carefully..."
The speaker had flame-like hair and eyebrows, ruby-red eyes, and delicate features. There was still some youthful immaturity on her face, but her manner of speaking carried a sense of maturity. The confidence radiating from within forced Hanzo to treat her with caution.
Of course, the true reason Hanzo was polite to them was not their appearance or temperament, but the strength of all three.
Though they appeared to be only sixteen or seventeen, they possessed Jonin-level strength. The red-eyed, red-haired girl alone placed considerable pressure on Hanzo. Although Hanzo had not gone all out at the time, the strength of the three girls was enough to allow them to speak with him as equals.
"Fire Woman, what can you offer me?"
After pondering for a moment, Hanzo asked the red-eyed, red-haired girl at the head of the group.
Upon hearing him, the girl who called herself Fire Woman immediately smiled. She took out a summoning contract scroll from her robes and handed it to Hanzo.
The two girls beside Fire Woman also revealed faint smiles, seemingly very confident in the summoned creature bound to this summoning contract scroll.
Hanzo accepted the summoning contract scroll from Fire Woman, obvious confusion on his face. He already possessed a very powerful summoning beast and had no need for another to grant him more strength.
"I believe Lord Hanzo will certainly be satisfied with this summoning beast. It is a powerful divine beast in no way inferior to those of the Six Great Sacred Lands!"
Beside Fire Woman, a girl with long pale blue hair spoke. Her watery eyes shone with azure light, as deep as the sea, and even her voice carried an air that inspired trust.
"A divine beast?"
For the first time, Hanzo showed shock. This was not a title casually given to summoning beasts. Any creature that dared bear the name "divine beast" possessed, at minimum, Kage-level strength. Of course, "Kage-level" was merely a broad term; it did not mean that any ninja with Kage-level strength could contend with a divine beast...
"With its help, Lord Hanzo's strength can absolutely increase severalfold, allowing you to realize your long-cherished dream and make the Land of Rain the sixth great nation of the Shinobi World!"
The third girl spoke as she gently brushed aside her emerald-green bangs. Her green eyes fixed on Hanzo as she spoke with absolute certainty.
"Become the sixth great nation?"
Hanzo murmured to himself, then tightly gripped the summoning contract scroll in his hand. A fire of ambition slowly began burning deep within his eyes, growing ever fiercer...
Before you continue