High-Priced Puppet

Furthermore, his Water Bat No. 7 has almost no downsides, except for its insufficient toxicity.

The key is that the yield of such effective venom is not low.

No wonder this bald merchant ninja is so enthusiastic; the profit margins are considerable.

"Fish, if you were in business, we'd all be out of jobs."

The bald merchant ninja teased him verbally but acted with enthusiasm, inwardly delighted at the prospect of another small profit. This DDT No. 7 is potent and highly pure. After acquiring it, he could secretly process it, dilute it, and pocket the excess.

It's like getting paid double.

Why else would he work on this dangerous front line if not for money?

Whoever can make him money is his boss.

Once he saved enough to pay off his gambling debts, he'd find an opportunity to leave, reclaim the house at the Daimyo's Mansion, and use the ninja connections he'd built on the front lines to start a business. He was sure he could make a comeback.

He didn't want to spend another day on the front lines; it was far too dangerous.

Even with the hired guards from Hongzhou's merchant ninja, how could they compare to the Sand Ninja from the Land of Wind?

He was just an ordinary person who had refined chakra, weaker than even a Genin, unable to outrun anyone. He wouldn't be doing such dangerous work if he wasn't desperate due to his gambling debts, and if it wasn't for the quick money.

"Kūen-zō, I've brought 1500 milliliters of DDT No. 7 this time. If you offer too low a price for my spoils, I'll have to go elsewhere."

Umino Sasuke patted the sealing scroll, his words laced with threats.

"So much this time?"

The bald merchant ninja, Kūen-zō, was overjoyed. The yield had doubled this time; that's quite an increase. It seemed this Sarutobi Jonin was short on cash and planning a major purchase, which meant another opportunity for him to profit.

"Mmm," Umino Sasuke nodded. He had intentionally controlled the sales volume of Water Bat No. 7 before, not through artificial scarcity but by waiting for the right price. He was worried that large-scale sales might cause casualties among the Sand Ninja, drawing their attention to the poison.

If the Sand Ninja noticed, with their expertise in poison and antidotes, they could likely develop a counter-serum in minutes.

Once it was cracked, his Water Bat No. 7 would be no different from ordinary poison, perhaps even less effective. At least its seemingly good production rate wouldn't keep up with ordinary poisons for widespread use.

Wouldn't that mean losing a stable cash flow? One had to think long-term, unless there was an urgent need for money.

"Fish, I'll give you a quote for your spoils right away. But you're not going to bring me any junk to mess with me again, are you?"

Kūen-zō had always been unenthusiastic about Umino Sasuke's subsequent spoils. He specialized in high-end clients. Acquiring these common Sand Ninja's scrap metal lowered his status and was beneath him.

For a Jonin of the Sarutobi Clan to personally sell such junk, wasn't he afraid of being ridiculed?

But forget it. This Sarutobi Jonin seemed to care about his subordinates. This junk was likely spoils his subordinates had painstakingly collected, and it was good that their superior was helping them dispose of it, showing he had their trust.

"Kūen-zō, don't misunderstand. This time, these are mainly my spoils."

Umino Sasuke took out a sealing scroll and weighed it in his hand.

"Oh? They're yours?" The bald merchant ninja, Kūen-zō, his eyes lit up upon hearing this, looking utterly greedy.

Spoils traded by a Konoha Jonin were usually in high demand and quite valuable.

Kūen-zō rubbed his hands together obsequiously. "Fish, with your strength, you certainly won't disappoint, will you?"

"Naturally!"

Umino Sasuke feigned arrogance and slowly unsealed the scroll.

With a bang.

A pile of broken puppets and some custom tools from Sunagakure appeared before them.

Then, Umino Sasuke unbuckled his long sword and casually tossed it into the pile of puppets. After doing so, he crossed his arms and looked down at Kūen-zō with a proud, arrogant demeanor.

"Sunagakure puppets, and one of them is a Special Jonin-level puppet."

Kūen-zō caressed the puppets and parts as if stroking a maiden's skin, sometimes surprised, sometimes regretful. His impression of Umino Sasuke grew even more respectful.

He knew very well how powerful an entire squad of Sand Ninja puppeteers could be.

The Special Jonin puppeteer alone was as strong as an ordinary Jonin. Coupled with two Chunin puppeteers, even an Elite Jonin might not be able to defeat them completely unscathed under normal circumstances.

Now, this Sarutobi Jonin had taken down an entire squad of puppeteers without taking any damage himself. His strength, even if not Elite Jonin level, was likely close.

Moreover, these puppets were shattered, likely destroyed by advanced ninjutsu.

The Sarutobi Clan, true to their reputation as a prominent Konoha clan skilled in ninjutsu, was indeed formidable.

This man, from the Sarutobi Clan and possessing such strength, would surely secure a position in Konoha Village in the future. If he could build a relationship with him now, wouldn't that be the network he had always longed for? Making a comeback would then be as simple as a word from him.

"Sir—"

Kūen-zō became even more obsequious.

Although Umino Sasuke couldn't fully grasp Kūen-zō's thoughts, he guessed they were along the right lines. He then kicked the ninja sword from the pile of puppets into Kūen-zō's arms.

"Give me a price. I'm in a hurry."

Kūen-zō could tell that this Sarutobi Jonin didn't want to interact with him much. While he felt regret, he didn't dare to be negligent.

"A standard-issue ninja sword from Sunagakure!"

Kūen-zō, with his extensive experience and sharp eyes, immediately recognized the origin of the sword. Capturing such a sword meant killing a Sand Jonin.

Combined with the entire squad of puppeteers, enemies of this caliber would likely be a tough fight even for an Elite Jonin.

And this Sarutobi Jonin in front of me was actually able to kill them all and seize all their weapons. He must be an Elite Jonin, no doubt.

It seems I underestimated him before. I haven't brought out the truly valuable items for trade yet.

This time, I'll give him a better deal. That way, I can get my hands on his hidden collection and build some rapport first. I'll take things slow later on.

"Sir, about those contraband items you mentioned last time, I happen to have a batch here. Do you still need them?"

"Kūen-zō, you're not being honest. But fine, since you can get them for me, I'll let this slide. However, don't let it happen again."

Umino Sasuke waved his hand, indicating that he wouldn't hold grudges against a superior. In reality, however, he was overjoyed. He could finally begin his true scientific experiments.