The Business

The frustrated shopkeeper had never expected to run into a weirdo like Naruto Uzumaki.

Talking him into leaving wouldn't work, and might even get him beaten up. As for using force, he was afraid of going to jail.

With no other choice, the frustrated shopkeeper turned to the Police Force for help.

This area fell under the Police Force's jurisdiction, but with the Third Hokage's warning and Fugaku's orders, how could they dare get involved in Naruto Uzumaki's affairs?

They refused to help, and even turned around to warn the shopkeeper...

Get out of here. Don't drag us into this, or we might just arrest you.

That Demon Fox brat had some deep connections...

Nishimura had once again confirmed this, and couldn't help thinking that Konoha was truly a dark place.

Just as Nishimura was feeling utterly dejected and about to leave,

a member of the Uchiha suggested, "For certain reasons, it's not very convenient for the Police Force to get involved. But I suggest you go straight to the Hokage..."

Nishimura agreed outwardly, but cursed inwardly.

The Uchiha really were all bad eggs, harming him for no reason.

Never mind whether someone of his standing could even meet the Hokage. Even if he did, what good would it do?

Almost everyone knew Naruto Uzumaki had been able to act so arrogantly because the Anbu protected him, and the Anbu answered directly to the Hokage.

So who Naruto Uzumaki's biggest backer was didn't need spelling out, did it?

Going to the Hokage for help would be like walking right into his own death.

That was Nishimura's dark take on things...

The Third Hokage had plenty of flaws, but he wasn't that cruel to the villagers, and was reasonably reliable.

Before Nishimura could even speak, the Third Hokage had already sought out Naruto Uzumaki, urging him to treat others kindly and let the shopkeeper off.

Naruto Uzumaki scoffed.

"Quit acting like some great saint. If I let him off, who's going to let me off? Besides, this whole mess ultimately comes down to you, Third Hokage, doing nothing and letting the rumors start and spread.

"If there hadn't been any rumors, none of this would have happened."

"Repay resentment with kindness? Then what do you repay kindness with? My demands aren't high. All he has to do is apologize to me and promise to treat me like a normal customer from now on, and I'll leave immediately."

Was that really too much to ask?

The Third Hokage asked himself...

It wasn't much. Just a verbal apology and normal business dealings. The General Store wouldn't lose anything.

But it wouldn't mean anything.

He might apologize to Naruto Uzumaki's face, but he wouldn't mean it. There were plenty of people in Konoha who hated Naruto Uzumaki, and forcing Nishimura to apologize wouldn't help.

Instead, it might provoke the others and make them hate Naruto Uzumaki even more.

"Doesn't matter. To me, there's no difference between 99 and 100."

"Little Naruto, you'll never make any friends acting like this."

"I don't care. Anyone who clings to prejudice doesn't deserve to be my friend."

The Third Hokage felt a headache coming on.

How could he not care? If things went on like this... how could he shoulder the responsibility of protecting the village?

After sitting guard for over a month, Naruto Uzumaki finally carved a wife that looked the part. That was when Nishimura finally broke.

He was a middle-aged man with elderly parents to care for and children to raise. His whole family depended on the General Store.

Ruining their livelihood over a personal grudge would be idiotic.

"I'm sorry. I won't do it again. From now on, I'll give you half off on everything you buy at my store. Please let me off." Nishimura held out a stack of bills with both hands, kneeling in humiliation to beg a three-year-old for mercy.

Fortunately, they were inside the General Store and no one else saw. Otherwise, he'd never be able to show his face in Konoha again.

Naruto Uzumaki's eyes lit up. He took the bills and counted them quickly: one thousand ryo, enough for two months' living expenses.

"I'll accept your apology."

He tucked the bills into his pocket and patted Nishimura on the shoulder with his little hand, saying approvingly, "It's never too late to mend your ways. This time, I'll be magnanimous and forgive you. Don't do it again."

"Yes, yes, yes, boss. Whatever you say. Just hurry up and leave."

Nishimura nodded along repeatedly, wanting nothing more than to send the bringer of misfortune on his way.

The moment the bringer of misfortune left, Nishimura let out a long sigh of relief.

Thirty seconds later, he stared expressionlessly at Naruto Uzumaki, who had come back.

Naruto Uzumaki explained, "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm not changing my mind. I just want to make a deal with you."

I don't want to make a deal with you. I just want you to get lost.

Ignoring Nishimura's repulsed expression, Naruto Uzumaki continued, "Do you have any business rivals you hate? Want me to go sit outside their shops?"

Hold on! This deal... might actually be worth considering.

That's right. Noguchi had been especially insufferable over the past month, always mocking Nishimura for being unable to deal with a three-year-old brat. He'd made Nishimura lose face in front of all their friends.

Now that he had the chance, he could make Noguchi suffer the same way he had.

"Well..."

Nishimura opened his mouth to speak, but then thought of Naruto Uzumaki's dreadful reputation and quickly shut it again.

Colluding with the Demon Fox to hurt other people was too sensitive a matter. Nishimura didn't trust Naruto Uzumaki.

If word got out, his social life would be over.

Seeing this, Naruto Uzumaki frowned and thought for a moment, as if he understood. Then he raised his hand and solemnly swore,

"I swear on my most respected Grandpa Third that if I ever let this secret slip, may I be struck by five bolts of lightning and never reincarnate."

In the end, Nishimura couldn't suppress his hatred for his enemy. He pulled out one thousand ryo and hired Naruto Uzumaki to cause trouble.

Well, now he was part of the underworld...

From that point on, Naruto Uzumaki embarked on a path he'd never imagined taking.

...Half a month later...

As expected, Noguchi, the man Nishimura had hired Naruto Uzumaki to target, also knelt and paid Naruto Uzumaki compensation, apologizing to him.

After collecting the money, Naruto Uzumaki repeated the same trick. He tweaked the words he'd said to Nishimura and said them to Noguchi.

Noguchi suddenly understood. "So Nishimura sent you."

Revealing his employer was forbidden, so Naruto Uzumaki protested, "No..."

Noguchi waved a hand. "You don't have to say it. I've been at odds with Nishimura for decades. I know what kind of person he is—petty to the core... Tell me, how much did he pay you? I'll give you double. Keep sitting outside his shop."

"But this isn't about the money..."

"Triple!"

Naruto Uzumaki shook his head. "I refuse! I told you, it's not about the money. Nishimura and I have settled our grudge. We're even now, so I can't just attack him for no reason."

Besides, when doing business, you had to think long-term.

Turning against a client was strictly forbidden in the Ninja World. Once you ruined your reputation, you'd never get another job.

Aside from his archrival Nishimura, the person Noguchi hated most was the clothing shop owner on the next street.

That bastard sold him counterfeit goods last week and then denied it to his face. It was infuriating.

"Here's one thousand ryo, kid. Go get him."

Naruto Uzumaki took the job.

That clothing shop had driven him away before, so it was fair game.

But with two previous examples to learn from, the clothing shop owner surrendered quickly. In less than a week, he raised the white flag and handed Naruto Uzumaki one thousand ryo in compensation.

But when Naruto Uzumaki mentioned that he was open to doing business, the owner handed over another thousand ryo and hired him to cause trouble at the clothing shop across the street.

With three previous examples to learn from, that shop folded even faster.

But unfortunately...

The guy was a coward and didn't dare do business with Naruto Uzumaki.

Naruto Uzumaki was deeply disappointed.

But that was all right!

Naruto Uzumaki had found his own way of the ninja!