The Exchange Office Eight Hundred Li Away! The Legendary Rogue Ninja

The air in the secret chamber of the Underground Exchange was thick with the mingled stench of old paper and metal.

Oh, and most importantly, the reek of urine from the nearby latrine.

A solitary lightbulb hung from the ceiling, casting the four figures into distorted, elongated shadows against the mottled walls.

Senju Ryosuke endured the stench, sitting on one side of the table wearing a mask, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the surface. He scrutinized the four individuals opposite him; these were the elite rogue ninjas they had spent a fortune to hire.

"The plan is simple." Ryosuke's voice was a low murmur as he laid out the mission requirements. "Two of you will split off to lure Orochimaru away, dragging him along the border for at least half a day. The remaining two will go and eliminate his squad."

The leader was a man with a scar across his face. He leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, and let out a cold laugh at the words. "Eliminate the squad? Employer, the intel you provided didn't mention that there's a brat named Sawada Hiroki in that team."

Ryosuke's tapping fingers stopped, and he frowned. "He's just a genin, what's the problem?"

"The problem is huge." The scarred man sat up straight, leaning forward and blocking half the light on the table. "We work for money, not to throw our lives away. We've heard the rumors outside loud and clear. Wiping out a Cloud Village squad single-handedly and taking down a jonin? You call a monster like that 'just a genin'?"

This guy was trying to gouge him.

Senju Ryosuke realized this in an instant, taking a deep breath to suppress his rising anger.

These guys were cold-blooded rogue ninjas; he didn't dare vent his fury on them.

The younger, leaner jonin sitting next to the scarred man spoke up, his voice soft but tinged with a hint of a smile. "And then there's Orochimaru, one of the Third Hokage's disciples. 'Luring' him away and 'stalling' him for half a day are two completely different concepts."

"Exactly, we wouldn't dare make a move against the Third Hokage's disciple."

Ryosuke's expression darkened.

He hated this feeling, hated these money-grubbing ninjas haggling in front of him.

Village ninjas were at least bound by rules. Did these damn ronin only care about money?

But he also knew that in a place like this, money was the only law; they truly only cared about money.

"How much do you want?" he squeezed the words through his teeth.

The scarred man held up two fingers.

Ryosuke's eye twitched, but he eventually pulled a scroll from his robes and pushed it across. "This is the additional deposit. Once the job is done, the final payment will be paid in full. But if the mission fails—"

"We never fail." The scarred man took the scroll, stowed it away without a glance, and stood up. "Two to stall Orochimaru, two to take out those three brats, prioritizing the one named Nawaki, right? But let's be clear, the other kids aren't part of our mission scope."

The four ninjas vanished into the shadows of the secret chamber as quickly as if they had never been there at all.

Only Ryosuke and the manager of the Underground Exchange, who had been standing silently in the corner like a doll, remained in the room.

"Those desperate thugs—" Ryosuke cursed under his breath, his eyes filled with unconcealable distrust. "They come for money, and they can leave for money. What if someone offers them a higher price to stop, or what if they take our money and turn around to sell us out?"

The manager stepped out of the shadows, walked to the table, and began tidying the teacups with measured movements, his voice as flat as if he were discussing the weather. "That is a risk you must bear."

"We only handle the posting of missions; I will ensure your safety while you are within the Underground Exchange."

But once they leave the Exchange, you take no responsibility, right! This guy is a damn jackal too.

"I need insurance." Ryosuke's gaze turned cold. "An absolutely reliable insurance. What if these guys abandon the mission?

No matter the cost, I need insurance that can complete the mission even if they fail or quit."

"If they abandon it—" Ryosuke made a throat-slitting gesture.

He wanted all those damn ninjas dead.

The manager paused in his wiping of the teacup and looked up.

Black-on-black? This employer was certainly proposing a troublesome task. But that was none of their business.

They only handled mission postings and collected brokerage fees.

Still, a group of four jonin was not a task that just any rogue ninja could handle.

However, they did have someone capable of executing it.

"If this is also a mission, then I do have a suitable candidate."

"Who?"

"Kakuzu."

When the manager uttered the name, the temperature in the secret chamber seemed to drop a few degrees.

Ryosuke's pupils contracted slightly.

As a member of the Senju clan, he naturally knew of the man who was rumored to have fought against Hashirama.

Although he wasn't personally familiar with Hashirama, the forests created by him still existed across much of the Land of Fire to this day.

A man with such legends attached to him, who had yet to be wiped out, was naturally incomparable to some nameless rogue ninja.

Even just having been on the battlefield of the First Hokage was something to be proud of!

"He only recognizes money, but conversely, as long as you pay him, he is the most reliable blade. If he takes your mission, it will not fail." The manager continued, "His reputation is his life. Because any breach of contract would affect his future 'business.' Therefore, he never breaks a contract."

Ryosuke was moved; this was exactly what he wanted.

"Very well." He made his decision immediately. "I want to hire him. The mission objectives remain the same: after those four act, he is to confirm whether the targets are dead. If they are still alive, he is to deliver the final blow. And, regardless of the outcome, he must kill those four jonin!"

Ryosuke gritted his teeth as he said the last sentence; he would never allow those gouging bastards to demand the final payment from him.

"Very well." The manager nodded, "However, there are two things you need to be clear about."

"First, his price will be more than three times the total amount you just paid."

Ryosuke's expression shifted, but he gritted his teeth and said, "Money is not an issue."

As long as the person they supported took power, they would be considered to have rendered meritorious service in the rise of a new ruler. Although their status would still be a notch below the ninja, money would certainly not be in short supply.

But if he let those rogue ninja live, he wouldn't be able to swallow his pride.

"Second," the manager's voice dropped even lower, "Kakuzu's whereabouts are erratic; even we do not have a way to contact him. To find him, we can only wait until he is in need of money. Furthermore, it takes time to relay mission information to him. The fastest it could possibly take is about a month."

A month—

Ryosuke fell silent.

Nawaki and his squad could return to the village at any moment; a month was too long.

It looks like I have to forge more intelligence again?

But he had no other choice.

"Then go find him." Ryosuke stood up from his seat, straightened his collar, and regained that arrogance belonging to the Senju clan, "A month it is. Tell him that as long as he accepts this mission, no matter what price he names, we will pay it."

He needed to ensure there were no slip-ups.

For the sake of their future, Nawaki must die.