Allegiance

That made sense, though—if Oyakuro En had truly grown big and strong, he wouldn't have needed to come to Sunagakure to do business in person.

By now, Oyakuro En was drenched in sweat. His hand instinctively tightened around the pendant on his chest.

This was a treasure he had bought at great expense, one that could tell him whether he was under the influence of genjutsu.

The pendant showed no reaction, but that only made Oyakuro En more terrified—because that was what didn't make sense!

If the other party wasn't using genjutsu to extract information, how did they know about this?

That night, aside from his daughter, he had killed every single clan member himself. He had checked each one personally. Could someone have come back from the dead and defected to Sunagakure?!

Oyakuro En was shocked by his own absurd thought. There was no such thing as the dead coming back to life. But if not, how else could the other party know everything about him?

"Don't be nervous. I mean you no harm, or I wouldn't be telling you this in the Kazekage Building. Rest assured, I won't send you to the battlefield. You'll still be a merchant. You just need to do a few things for me from time to time."

Oyakuro En fell into a deep silence.

He wasn't a child. The dangers of this world had never been confined to the battlefield—or rather, the battlefield had already spread across the entire world.

If there were no danger, why wouldn't the sand shinobi handle it instead of choosing him?

But could he refuse?

"Sir, may I have some time to think it over?"

Hoshino Maki smiled. "Of course."

With that, he pulled a stack of documents from his sleeve and handed them over. "Take these back too."

Oyakuro En took the documents, glanced at the title, then quickly flipped through them.

"I plan to turn a large oasis in the east into a Sleepless City—a complex combining hotels, sightseeing, and entertainment. The initial investment is estimated at around 400 million. If you're interested, I can reserve a spot for you."

Hoshino Maki stepped forward and patted Oyakuro En on the shoulder. He spoke with earnest weight: "This world is terrible—so terrible that those trapped in it don't even realize it's terrible. You can choose to change this world with me, or you can choose to become one with it. The choice is in your hands."

"Do you know why I chose you out of all those merchants? Because I saw unwillingness in your eyes. I saw pain. And I saw hope. Those are things the ones who've fallen into their moneybags don't have."

"Go home and think it over. Whether you choose to keep wandering, or to change this world with me."

With that, Hoshino Maki brushed past him and walked out of the meeting room first.

By the time Oyakuro En returned to his residence, it was already nine in the evening.

He was dead drunk, leaning against the door, pounding on it and shouting at the top of his lungs.

A rapid series of footsteps sounded from inside. An elderly servant opened the door and quickly steadied Oyakuro En. "Master, why did you drink so much today?!"

Oyakuro En didn't answer. He waved the servant's arm away and stumbled inside.

Before long, the old servant carried a bowl of hangover tea and gently pushed the door open. He saw Oyakuro En sitting by the candlelight, staring blankly at a contract, lost in thought.

Hearing the soft sound at the door, Oyakuro En didn't turn around. Instead, his voice carried a heavy tone as he asked, "Jukang, how long have you been with me?"

"About ten years now."

"Ten years."

Oyakuro En squinted his drunken, bleary eyes, as if recalling something.

"Yes. If not for you saving me, Master, these old bones of mine would have rotted away somewhere long ago."

"Ah... all these years of running around with me must have been exhausting."

"Not at all. Being able to serve you, Master, is already my greatest fortune."

Oyakuro En said nothing. Just then, a tender cry came from the inner room, breaking the silence.

Oyakuro En was about to stand up when he saw Jukang dash into the inner room at a speed that belied his age. He expertly cradled the baby in his arm, gently coaxing her, his eyes full of affection.

Under the soft lullaby, the little one soon drifted off to sleep.

Oyakuro En watched the two of them and felt like an extra.

Jukang placed the sleeping baby back into the crib in the inner room, gently closed the door, and whispered, "The young miss is asleep. You should rest early too."

With that, Jukang turned to leave. But just as he did, Oyakuro En's voice came from behind: "Jukang, buy this house tomorrow."

Jukang froze for a moment. Hadn't they planned to leave Sunagakure soon? Why the sudden decision to buy a house?

But he didn't ask. He simply turned, bowed, acknowledged the order, and left.

By the candlelight, Oyakuro En took a sip of hangover tea to clear his head, smoothed out the creases in the contract, and began to read it carefully.

"Sir, Bo Er requests an audience."

By now, Hoshino Maki had moved out of the hospital. His old home was too small for his current status and work needs, so Chiyo had lent him a property belonging to the Chiyo Clan near the hospital as a temporary residence.

Chiyo had originally wanted to give it to him outright, but Hoshino Maki refused. She didn't insist and left two people to guard his safety.

"Let him in."

Hoshino Maki didn't look up from the mountain of documents piled on his desk.

Ever since Hoshino Maki had stated during the public trial that the village was about to face a dual crisis of economy and food, every Tom, Dick, and Harry had tried to grab a piece of the pie.

News spread quickly. Many people rushed to the stores to hoard goods, only to find that the merchants had gotten the news even earlier and refused to sell, waiting for the right moment to sell at a high price. The result was chaos.

If Hoshino Maki hadn't been on guard in advance, Sunagakure would have seen a zero-yuan shopping spree.

Some clan leaders came to him, saying they were willing to fund the village through its crisis, but they had their eyes on an oasis not far from the village; others hoped the village's food supply would prioritize their clan.

These were just their surface demands. What schemes they had in the shadows, Hoshino Maki didn't know—after all, the Anbu was in Chōjūrō's hands, and even the Chiyo Clan's influence there was limited.

He wasn't entirely opposed to someone profiting from this, but these people treated him like a child, negotiating with him like he was a sucker, all while wearing an expression that said, 'You're getting a great deal.' That pissed him off.

In this era of rising young heroes, why did they think that someone who had led an army to a major victory and uncovered a great crisis for the village would be so easy to fool?

Hoshino Maki didn't feel slighted this time; he just marveled at their thought process. If it weren't for this desert protecting them, these guys would have been swallowed up long ago, not even leaving scraps behind.

"Sir."

Hearing Oyakuro En's voice, Hoshino Maki set aside his thoughts and looked up, smiling. "I think you've brought me good news."

"Oyakuro En is willing to serve you, sir!"

With that, Oyakuro En knelt on one knee. This ruthless man, who had single-handedly wiped out the Chinoike Clan, no longer wore a false mask, swearing allegiance with his true name.