Thirty Thousand in Compensation!

"I... I..."

Tazuna lowered his head, knowing there was no escaping this.

He slumped down onto the ground.

"Lying about the mission details... If another team without a Jonin Instructor had taken this mission, they probably would have ended up dead."

Sakura stepped forward and came to stand beside Cangwu, glaring at Tazuna.

At that, Naruto finally realized what was going on. He, too, glared at Tazuna.

"So it was you, you stinky old man!"

"Idiot. That doesn't change the facts, cowardly dead-last." Sasuke suddenly chimed in.

Naruto glared fiercely at Sasuke, then deflated.

"Y-yeah... Thanks for saving me!"

"Damn it... Just you wait. I'll get you back for this!"

Sasuke sneered and said no more.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to... I never intended to put you in danger." Tazuna worked himself up for a moment, then his eyes suddenly reddened. Only then did he speak with heartfelt emotion.

Hmm... He really did sound 'convincing,' like he was singing.

Clearly, no one was buying it except Naruto.

Tazuna raised his head, his face full of grief and indignation.

"The Land of Waves is a very poor country."

"And now it's under the control of a heartless corporation... They've seized every port."

"The people of the Land of Waves are barely able to survive. Even getting enough to eat is a problem."

"So we scraped together what we could and came to Konoha for help... A C-rank mission was all we could afford. We've already spent everything, but we still can't pay for a higher-ranked mission..."

Tazuna wept as he spoke.

Naruto was weeping right alongside him.

Thud—

Sakura showed no mercy and punched him on the head.

Sasuke remained unmoved, merely saying coldly:

"Why is that heartless corporation targeting you?"

At this, resentment appeared in Tazuna's eyes.

He clenched his fists, his voice hoarse. "Because of Gato!"

"That bastard Gato... He plans to become the daimyo and rule the entire Land of Waves, turning it into his personal territory!"

"He wants to use everything in the Land of Waves to make money!"

"And I'm a craftsman... If I can finish building that bridge connecting us to other countries... I can foil Gato's ambitions!"

Tazuna lowered his head. "My son... My son was killed by Gato's men while the bridge was being built!"

"So even if it means this helpless old man dies, that bridge has to be completed!"

"For the Land of Waves... For everyone... I wouldn't hesitate for a moment, even if I had to die!"

As he spoke, Tazuna knelt before the four of them.

"Please... No matter what, I have to build that bridge. I know this is unfair to you... But you're all I have. If even you... then the Land of Waves will have to live in Gato's shadow forever, and everyone will continue to suffer!"

"Boohoo..." Naruto, who was especially empathetic, was already bawling.

Cangwu kept smiling.

"It's tragic, sure, but it doesn't sound like it has anything to do with us."

"Besides, just now, my adorable student nearly died because of you."

"Keep up that arrogant attitude you had earlier."

Uh—

Tazuna froze on the spot.

He had thought that if he said all that, these Konoha shinobi would take pity on him and find it hard to refuse.

"This must be that example Teacher Cangwu gave us earlier... Is this what you call emotional blackmail?" Sakura asked, tugging on Cangwu's clothes after kicking Naruto away.

Sasuke didn't say anything. He simply watched Cangwu.

He wanted to continue the mission.

Continuing the mission would give him better training.

If he wanted to gain strength, he couldn't keep playing at being a shinobi.

Cangwu patted Sasuke on the shoulder, signaling him to be patient.

"Mr. Tazuna, that's not how the world works."

"I already taught you what to do before we set out."

At that, Tazuna's face crumpled. "I... What should I do?"

"Pay more." Sasuke replied coldly.

"Uh... I... I don't have any money." Tazuna's face instantly turned pale.

He suddenly realized that, aside from that blond fool, the others weren't so easy to fool.

"In that case, we'll have to head back."

"Of course, you can also come with us and face judgment by the Anbu."

As he spoke, Cangwu led Sasuke and Sakura away.

Sasuke furrowed his brows. Sakura lowered her voice and said, "Teacher Cangwu is so devious... Three... Two..."

Sasuke didn't understand why Sakura had suddenly started counting down.

It wasn't until Sakura said "one" that Tazuna's voice rang out behind them.

"Wait!"

"I... I'll pay more!"

After shouting, Tazuna slumped to the ground like a deflated ball.

He hugged his knees and said in a low voice:

"Once the bridge is built... We'll definitely have money!"

"Then I'll pay you one hundred thousand ryo!"

Cangwu stopped walking.

A smile appeared on Sakura's little face, too.

That's more like it~!

Otherwise, the Explosive Tags and Kunai we just threw would have cost us more than we'd earn from a C-rank mission!

"Mr. Tazuna, do we look that easy to fool?" Cangwu asked in a gentle voice.

Sasuke looked puzzled.

Seeing Sakura's expression that said she'd known it all along, he felt defeated once again.

Phew—

'Teacher Cangwu is right. I'm too impatient. There's still a lot I need to learn.'

"I... I'll write an IOU!" Tazuna hurriedly said.

Cangwu shook his head. "I told you, those two are missing-nin from Kirigakure."

"But they're only Genin. I'm guessing there's a Jonin backing them, right?"

"Let me think... If I'm not mistaken, it's Kirigakure's S-rank missing-nin, the Demon of the Mist, Momochi Zabuza."

"One hundred thousand ryo is nowhere near enough for this mission."

"I... I really don't have any money!" Tazuna was starting to lose it.

"That's all right. Once the bridge is built, you'll have an income."

"Fine!"

"Then... three hundred thousand ryo!"

"That's my absolute limit!"

After hesitating for a moment, Tazuna gritted his teeth and said it.

From his expression, Cangwu could tell there was still room to bargain.

"That's so sad. Maybe I should just..."

Thud—

Before Naruto could finish, Sasuke kicked him away.

"Idiot."

Naruto covered his face and glared at Sasuke.

"If your sympathy runs wild, you'll get someone killed. Do you want to die?"

"Then go to the Land of Waves by yourself right now, and get there ahead of us."

Sasuke looked at Naruto coldly.

For a moment, Naruto couldn't say a word.

"In that case, let's write up an IOU." Cangwu took out the IOU he had prepared earlier.

"W-Wait... You saw through my act from the beginning?" Tazuna's eye twitched.

Cangwu smiled without answering.

Sakura and Sasuke came to stand beside Cangwu.

"Teacher Cangwu, what if..." Sakura looked conflicted.

Sasuke, meanwhile, had come over to 'learn.'

Cangwu ruffled their hair, then leaned down and whispered in their ears:

"Don't worry. I won't let you lose out."

"He may not have any money, but Gato does, right?"