I Play Ninjutsu in Jujutsu Kaisen! Chapter 8

"Mm."

Ryota Hida nodded, gripping his knife tightly against the woman's throat as he said in a gloomy voice, "Hand over the card."

"Oh, okay."

Perhaps because she knew she would not be raped, she calmly took out her bank card from her bag and smoothly recited the password. "There's one million yen in it. The password is 5687."

"..."

The woman's calm expression made Ryota feel insulted in his profession. He put the card back into the bag, slowly zipped it up, fell silent for a moment, then barked in a hoarse, angry voice:

"What are you doing? Where's the panicked expression? Do you think I won't rape you? Hurry up and panic! We're robbers! Robbers, understand? Do you take us for beggars?!"

"I... I understand."

Looking at the man who had already gone mad, as well as the knife that had cut her skin, the woman said nervously, "Th-this is everything I own. The... the bank card password is written on the card. Please let me go."

With that, she slowly held out the bag hanging from her shoulder.

Seeing the woman's panicked expression and trembling body, Ryota Hida revealed a satisfied smile. He picked up the bag and called to his underlings, preparing to leave immediately.

Before they had taken two steps, they saw a little brat walking toward them. Remembering the woman's trembling figure from earlier, a smile appeared at Ryota's lips, but before he could speak—

Natsu Hiraku beat him to it. "Robbery! Put the bag in your hand on the ground right now, or don't blame me for getting rough!"

That was right. His way of making money was to rob the robbers again. That way, they would be the ones arrested, while he would be the one profiting.

After all, who would believe that a little kid could snatch a wallet from the hands of these burly men?

"..."

After a brief silence came a burst of wild laughter. The three underlings behind Ryota Hida mocked him:

"Hahaha, you're killing us, kid. What the hell are you talking about? If you're not awake yet, go back and find your mommy."

"Yeah, yeah. Dressed in a hospital gown... don't tell me you ran away from a mental hospital."

"Hahaha! Why don't we send him back?"

Yet Ryota, the leader, seemed to see his former self in the boy—someone with the grand ambition of becoming the king of robbers.

With a tone of appreciation for talent, he asked, "Want to join me? Follow me, and I guarantee you'll grow bigger and stronger someday, bringing glory back to the world of robbers!"

"..."

Natsu Hiraku was speechless. Did this guy have some kind of serious illness? Just because he was wearing a hospital gown didn't mean he was mentally ill...

Still, in the mood to play along, he said, "Really, big brother?"

"Of course, fifth brother!"

You guys were really getting creative with this...

The three men beside them were speechless. Looking at the smile on their boss's face, it was as though he had gained a son in his old age.

Natsu Hiraku dropped to one knee, cupped his fists, and said with utter sincerity, "My name is Lü Bu. Since Big Brother is willing to take me in, your kindness is as weighty as a mountain. How about I acknowledge you as my adoptive father today?"

"Good. Since you have such intentions, and I have no children under my name, I shall acknowledge you as my adopted son today."

"Adoptive Father!"

"Adopted Son!"

"Adoptive Father!!"

"Adopted Son!!"

The two shouted back and forth, while the three men at the side stood dumbstruck, the light gone from their eyes as though they had become disconnected from the world.

As Natsu Hiraku watched his "adoptive father" approach, he suddenly drove a fist into the man, knocking him to his knees on the spot.

Ryota Hida clutched his stomach as the bag fell from his hand. He stared in disbelief at the adopted son he had just taken in and asked, "Adopted Son, why did you hit me?"

Natsu Hiraku smiled, picked up the bag from the ground, and pulled out the scattered yen inside. He did not touch the bank card. After all, he was only robbing robbers right now. Touching the bank card would be different—it was someone else's private property, their personal bank card.

He then zipped up the bag and sneered. "I, Lü Bu, specialize in stabbing adoptive fathers!"

"You!!"

Just as Ryota Hida was about to say something, he saw his underlings rush in front of him.

"You dare touch our boss? You're dead!"

"Today, we'll show you what a beating from society looks like!"

"Get him!"

Seeing his underlings defend him so fiercely, Ryota, as their boss, felt a pang of emotion. Just as he was about to get up and fight beside them, he saw that all of his underlings were already lying on the ground, wailing, while the little brat was completely unhurt.

"What, you still want to come at me?"

Natsu Hiraku looked at the man getting to his feet and beckoned at him.

"..."

"No, I think there may have been a misunderstanding between us. If there's nothing else, we'll be taking our leave."

Ryota Hida only wanted to leave now. Too terrifying. Where had this monster come from? One against four? He had to get out of here quickly. If he did not leave now, he would be finished here today.

The three people kneeling on the ground also saw the gap in fighting strength. Deciding that a wise man knew when to yield, they hurriedly slipped away.

Watching the four of them leave, Natsu Hiraku tucked the money into his pocket, walked toward the alley, and said to the woman kneeling on the ground, "Here's your wallet. Check whether any money is missing."

"Mm, thank you. You're really amazing."

Mitsuchi Mi had witnessed everything just now. Although her vision had been blurry, this seemingly frail child had taken down three people in an instant. His combat ability was far more impressive than the bodyguards at home.

If I could hire him as a personal bodyguard...

Watching the woman rummage through her bag, Natsu Hiraku asked, "Is anything missing from your bag? Do you want to call the police? They ran off way too fast."

"No, nothing is missing."

Mitsuchi Mi took out a tissue and pressed it against the wound on her neck.

"..."

Natsu Hiraku was utterly thrown off by that. He had clearly taken a stack of cash, yet she said nothing was missing...

He continued, "Why don't you look again?"

"No." Mitsuchi Mi shook her head. "Nothing is missing. My bank cards, ID, and everything else are still here."

Good grief, you really are clueless...

Natsu Hiraku was speechless. He had originally wanted to pin all this money on those people, but he had hinted so blatantly that he might as well have put the cash in her face and said:

'This is the money you lost!'

Forget it. Taking money from someone this naive would weigh on his conscience. He should return it.

Couldn't be helped. His heart was just too kind.

Sigh, why am I so handsome?

The Sharingan's most basic abilities were copying, genjutsu, and keen perception. Although Natsu Hiraku's genjutsu was not very useful against sorcerers at the moment, it was enough to fool an ordinary person.

Even without having learned it properly, he could still make her mind pause briefly for a few seconds.

He wasn't low enough to take money from someone so innocent and foolish.

"Look into my eyes."

As soon as Natsu Hiraku spoke, cursed energy within him surged toward his eyes. His originally black pupils turned scarlet, and a single tomoe spun rapidly.

Mitsuchi Mi only took one glance before darkness fell over her vision. Her body seemed to be floating in outer space, without that heavy sense of weight or even the sound of her own heartbeat. The pitch-black world was terrifyingly silent.

But that strange sensation vanished in an instant. When the sense of weight returned, the originally dark world slowly dispersed like a thin veil. The dim street was once again imprinted in her mind, gradually overlapping with her previous memories, as if nothing had happened.

"Phew!"

Natsu Hiraku took a deep breath and covered his slightly weary eyes. It was inevitable that his first attempt would be clumsy, but he had not expected using it on an ordinary person to consume so much cursed energy. Was this Sharingan fake or something?

He then slowly stood up and said as if nothing had happened, "Since everything's fine, I'll be going now. Remember not to fall for me."

With that, he left directly, imagining the glorious image he must have cut just now. Surely, in that woman's heart, he must have looked incredibly cool. If a man didn't show off, heaven and earth would condemn him. Although he had lost an opportunity to make money, he had left behind a heroic silhouette.

A total win!

But Mitsuchi Mi was not paying attention to any of that. She kept staring at the large words behind Natsu Hiraku.

[Tokyo General Hospital]

[Natsu Hiraku]

His name is Natsu Hiraku? I'll have Father look into him when I get back. He seems pretty reliable as a bodyguard.

Night.

The previously quiet corridor had become a little livelier, and amid the noisy chatter was a hint of warmth.

Maki Zenin sat on a stool with a bottle of drink in hand and called out, "Natsu Hiraku is cooking today. If it doesn't taste good, beat him up hard."

Yuta Okkotsu said with a smile, "Hiraku can cook? I'm kind of looking forward to it."

Toge Inumaki echoed, "Salmon!"

Panda was currently hugging a tender bamboo stalk and chewing on it. The satisfied expression on his face made it clear that the meal was pretty good.

Natsu Hiraku had gone to three supermarkets before finally finding it. After all, if he wanted to build good relationships with everyone, he still had a lot to learn.

As the enticing aroma drifted out of the room, the stomachs of the three sitting by the door began to growl on their own.

Natsu Hiraku's voice came from inside. "The food's ready. Panda, if you're full, could you come in and carry the dishes out?"

"Coming, coming."

Panda placed the tender bamboo on the table and slowly got to his feet. The moment he entered the room, he smelled that mouthwatering scent.

Bamboo shoots!

His fondness for Natsu Hiraku immediately rose. Not only was he friendly, but he could cook too. How wonderful!

The key was that he did not even need to taste the food. Just from the smell, he could tell it was definitely delicious!

"There are still two dishes and a soup inside. Sorry to trouble you."

Natsu Hiraku came out of the kitchen carrying two plates of food, a smile on his face.

"Alright, leave it to me!"

Panda patted his chest and spoke with complete confidence.

"Mm."

One more thigh added to the roster—nice. Sure enough, the fastest way to make friends was to hook their stomachs. Those six months I spent teaching myself to cook hadn't gone to waste; they were finally coming in handy today.

The smile on Natsu Hiraku's lips did not fade as he placed two bowls of dishes on the table by the door and said casually, "I made fish-fragrant shredded pork, beef soup, sweet-and-sour fish, stir-fried bamboo shoots with pork, and beef stew with potatoes today. If you think it tastes good, it's fifty thousand yen per person for a monthly subscription. If you don't have the money, you can owe it for now. One meal a day."

"Fifty thousand?! That's so expensive!"

After taking a bite, Yuta Okkotsu was so startled that he spat the food back out before even swallowing it.

"Kelp."

Toge Inumaki sounded as though he were complaining, but he still picked up a piece of sweet-and-sour fish and tried it.

"Not three meals a day?"

Maki Zenin picked up some of the meat from the fish-fragrant shredded pork. The moment she tasted it, she realized it really was far better than fast food!

"Three meals would be too much trouble. I still need to train normally—I can't possibly cook all day, can I?" Natsu Hiraku explained with a smile. "It's hard to get food this delicious at a restaurant, and it's not even expensive. The ingredients alone take up more than half the cost."

Panda's voice came from inside the room. "Give me a monthly subscription!"

"For you, it'll be one hundred thousand. Tender bamboo shoots are expensive."

"Hey! Natsu, that's unfair treatment! Fine, I'll bring my own tender bamboo shoots. You just make me something tasty."

"Deal!"

Natsu Hiraku smiled faintly, already imagining a future where he never lacked money. Should he buy a house first, or pick up girls first?