When in Doubt, Use an Explosive Tag! (Please Recommend and Bookmark!)

Chapter 48: When in Doubt, Use an Explosive Tag! (Please Recommend and Bookmark!)

Although he had no idea what kind of agreement the various clans and Konoha's higher-ups had ultimately reached, Jonin Mikawa had previously informed him that he could come collect supplies and had casually mentioned a few things. From that, Aoba could easily tell that the various clans had probably paid a hefty price this time.

Jonin Mikawa had also told him that the medicinal bath discount recorded on the IOU he had signed would still be calculated according to the previous selling price. He had also told Aoba not to spread the matter around, to keep it confidential, and, at the same time, to protect himself.

It was obvious that once word got out that he was the one who had provided the formula, not only would his life be in danger, but this monopolized business would also become impossible to maintain.

As the saying went, cutting off someone's path to wealth was like murdering their parents. If the business were ruined, would Konoha's higher-ups, who had already tasted the benefits, easily let him off?

By then, he would truly be surrounded by enemies on all sides!

Minato would probably have a hard time even putting in a good word for him.

Aoba naturally knew how serious this matter was. He also understood why they had specifically asked him to collect the supplies here: the place was secluded enough, and no unnecessary interaction was required.

"I'm here to collect the supplies."

After entering a specially sealed private room, Aoba spoke toward the narrow window, then passed in a small scroll Jonin Mikawa had given him.

The person inside was probably verifying its authenticity and did not respond immediately.

Once it had been confirmed, a sheet of paper and a pen were passed out.

Aoba picked them up and glanced at the paper. It was filled with the supplies he could collect here, ranging from basic kunai and shuriken to Explosive Tags, smoke bombs, various soldier pills, antidotes, training equipment, and everything else one could need.

Every month, he could claim up to ten thousand ryo worth of training supplies. For him at present, that was already quite a lot—more than enough.

Moreover, he had already decided what he wanted to exchange for before coming here.

His gaze shifted to the line for Explosive Tags. Without hesitation, he circled it. He did not write down a quantity afterward, instead writing two words directly: "Exchange all!"

At three hundred ryo each, he could get thirty-three Explosive Tags for free every month. Although he would have to repay half the money later, that was a minor matter. (I checked a lot of sources but couldn't find the exact price of Explosive Tags. The mainstream view online now is three hundred ryo each, so I'll use that setting for now. If any expert finds the accurate price, please let me know and I'll revise it promptly.)

When he had watched Naruto back then, he had been utterly awed by Konan's financial power. She had detonated six hundred billion Explosive Tags just like that. That was seriously badass! (In a shriek!)

In the future, when he encountered enemies, he could use her as a reference and bury them under a pile of Explosive Tags! Even if the blasts did not kill them, they would disgust them to death!

It took some time to assemble the supplies, but Aoba soon received a scroll, along with the special scroll he had handed over earlier. All of this month's supplies had been stored inside.

Aoba was just a little depressed. He had no chakra and did not know any ninjutsu, so he could not even take anything out. He was utterly useless!

It seemed he could only trouble Jonin Mikawa again...

Come to think of it, should he start training his chakra now?

There seemed to be no need to wait until school began next year.

Once he had made up his mind, Aoba hid the scroll away and turned to leave.

The people inside probably had not imagined that the person coming to collect supplies would be a little brat who did not even have chakra...

Bang!

Jonin Mikawa helped take all the supplies sealed inside the scroll out. Then, when he saw what Aoba had exchanged for, the muscles on his face twitched several times.

"You exchanged your entire allowance for Explosive Tags? Do you know how dangerous these things are? Can you use them? Are you even capable of using them? What exactly do you plan to do with them?"

It was hard to blame Jonin Mikawa for being so tense and cursing up a storm.

Every single thing Aoba had done lately had scared him half to death. He was even showing signs of a weakening heart!

If this little brat used Explosive Tags to blow up someone's house—or simply blew up Hokage Rock—Jonin Mikawa would have to strangle him with his own hands, then take his own life in atonement!

Faced with Jonin Mikawa's excessive agitation, Aoba first carried the packets of medicinal bath ingredients to the back and put them away. Then he said innocently, "I heard someone say that Explosive Tags are incredibly powerful, and they're also very expensive, so of course I had to choose them!"

"Besides, I can't use them, and I'm not able to use them. But Jonin Mikawa can take them and use them."

Jonin Mikawa had been about to explode, but when he saw Aoba's "pure" smile, he suddenly froze. "You exchanged them... for me?"

Aoba nodded twice in quick succession and even put on an embarrassed look.

All the anger in Jonin Mikawa's stomach immediately vanished. His eyes shifted awkwardly to the side. "Uh, I don't need this sort of thing. I'm a dignified jonin!... Still, the power of these things is pretty good. They can be used for self-defense too. Since you've already exchanged for them, you should keep them. Use them if you encounter danger in the future."

Jonin Mikawa's insincere words nearly made Aoba laugh out loud.

At least he was no longer worried about Aoba taking the Explosive Tags and causing trouble.

Of course, Aoba would not feel bad if Jonin Mikawa took the Explosive Tags.

Compared with everything Jonin Mikawa had done for him, a few Explosive Tags were nothing.

"By the way, can I learn chakra extraction now? Otherwise, I can't even open a scroll. I can't keep troubling Jonin Mikawa to make a trip every time, can I?"

Seeing that Jonin Mikawa had accepted his gesture and seemed to be in a good mood, Aoba took the opportunity to ask to learn how to extract chakra.

If he had brought it up from the start, Jonin Mikawa might not necessarily have agreed, especially after seeing that stack of Explosive Tags. He probably would have refused immediately.

But at this moment, after thinking it over carefully, Jonin Mikawa decided that teaching Aoba how to extract chakra ahead of time would not hurt. By the time he enrolled next year, the children of the various clans would have basically learned it already. If he were bullied, this little brat might do something astonishing again.

With that thought, Jonin Mikawa subconsciously glanced at the neatly arranged Explosive Tags on the table. Then, an image inexplicably surfaced in his mind: Aoba being pushed to the brink at school, pulling out a large handful of Explosive Tags from his pocket, and preparing to perish together with his opponent...

Jonin Mikawa immediately shuddered!

He absolutely could not let this little brat take such dangerous things to school!

So he immediately put on a stern expression and said, "Teaching you ahead of time isn't impossible, but you have to promise me that no matter what happens, you will not bring Explosive Tags to school. And you absolutely must not use them against your classmates! Of course, if you encounter danger or run into bad people, you may use them."

Aoba hurriedly nodded. His eyes had already begun to shine when he heard the first half of that sentence. He no longer cared about the rest.