So, What Do You Want?

Kujo Sho walked toward the exit, his head hanging low in dejection.

The mission fees at the Hidden Leaf Village had risen far too quickly over these past few years, though he understood it was partly due to the massive losses caused by the Nine-Tails disaster.

However, as a small merchant group, most of his capital was tied up in goods. He wanted to earn a little more each time, but the liquid funds available for posting missions were truly scarce, and he still had to reserve some for expenses on the road.

Kujo Sho had considered simply hiring some samurai from the Land of Fire, but as Manager Tang had pointed out, the journey from the Hidden Leaf to the Land of Lightning was quite long, and there were too many uncertain factors.

Besides, if one did business in the Hidden Leaf, was it not necessary to post a few missions and pay a bit of "protection money"?

On this point, he was quite savvy.

I have no choice but to reduce the amount of cargo.

He reached a decision in his heart.

However, just then, a voice from behind caused him to stop in his tracks instinctively.

"Mister?"

"A mission?"

"Half price?"

Kujo Sho lifted his gaze and looked left and right before turning toward Naiki Uchiha's squad to ask, "Me?"

It was no wonder he had asked that initially.

After all, there was only one ninja squad in the entire hall at the moment, and Arata, who looked the youngest, was naturally assumed to be a member of the squad standing nearby.

Upon hearing this, Naiki Uchiha was also taken aback.

He looked at the chubby man pointing at him and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, Arata, it seems he doesn't even recognize you!"

"Hahaha, I'm dying of laughter."

This was definitely the most embarrassing scene Naiki had ever witnessed, especially since it involved Arata Uchiha.

"Taking a mission at half price? Mister, you'll believe anything anyone says?"

His teammate added, wiping a tear from the corner of their eye.

Even their squad leader twitched the corner of their mouth, finding the whole affair too ridiculous.

If such an absurd thing were actually carried out, it would be a massive blow to the reputation of other employers and the Hidden Leaf itself.

Although Kujo Sho felt a bit ashamed and annoyed, he offered a fake smile and prepared to leave decisively.

Even if he had to find samurai from the Land of Fire to escort him, he would absolutely not entrust this to Hidden Leaf ninjas this time.

"Mister, you've got the wrong person."

"It was me who said it."

Arata tuned out the noisy mockery ringing in his ears.

Those biting words had long since ceased to cause him any harm.

"Arata Uchiha, don't cause trouble. You aren't qualified to take missions above Rank D yet."

Before Kujo Sho could react, Manager Tang, who had been standing with his back to them, intervened.

His voice was filled with the reprimand of a superior or a senior, and a flicker of imperceptible gloom flashed in his eyes.

Arata?

Arata Uchiha!

He had been wondering why the name sounded so familiar.

So it was that brat!!

Kujo Sho was also puzzled, his desire to leave interrupted by this sudden shout.

He looked toward the source of the voice.

Eh?

He rubbed his eyes again; the speaker was indeed a tiny little thing not even as tall as himself. Although he wore the Hidden Leaf forehead protector, carried a ninja pouch, and had a blade strapped to his back, he was simply too young!

Arata ignored Manager Tang's reprimand, his gaze calm as he looked at the chubby man in his field of vision.

Actually, even if he were rejected, it wouldn't matter; he could just wait for the next person, or if all else failed, consider going to the Daimyo Palace or other nearby villages to pick up a mission.

Of course, if he could successfully secure a mission sooner, that would be better.

"Arata Uchiha, I am talking to you! Did you hear me!"

Sparks danced in the eyes of Tang Sarutobi.

Ever since he had been promoted to mission supervisor in the reception hall, he had never been ignored like this!

Moreover, this person was Arata of the Uchiha clan.

His proudest son, Kenichi Sarutobi, had been severely beaten by this brat just a few days ago and had yet to fully recover.

As one of the administrators in Konoha, he couldn't exactly go around picking fights like some common parent, could he? Besides, that was the Uchiha clan, the most unreasonable bunch of all.

However, he was no pushover either; he had already noted the name down. Every ninja was bound by the law of needing to take on missions, so he just had to wait for his prey to walk into the trap!

"Uncle, what is your answer?"

Arata lowered his eyelids.

He could already sense the underlying hostility from Manager Tang, but he chose to ignore it.

"I..."

Tang Sarutobi hesitated.

Half-price was, without a doubt, a massive benefit for him!

But did this little brat in front of him really have the capability to back it up?

He seemed to recall Manager Tang mentioning that the kid didn't even have the qualifications to take on missions above D-rank yet—wasn't that just a fresh-faced rookie who had just graduated?

Although Tang Sarutobi had been suspected of inflating commissions lately, he had never made any mistakes in his work; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to hold the position of manager at the Konoha Mission Hall.

However.

This little guy seemed to have the surname Uchiha?

"Enough, Arata."

"Just honestly start from D-rank missions; stop embarrassing the Uchiha!"

"Can't you see the look of doubt in that uncle's eyes..."

Standing to the side, Naiki Uchiha, who was clutching a mission scroll, was nagging again. During those days when Konoha residents came to demand explanations, he had been scolded severely by Yashiro for trying to stop Arata from using the training grounds, and he could only vent his frustration by taking on missions.

Running into him today was the perfect opportunity to let it all out.

However, Arata was no longer going to indulge him.

"Shut up!"

As the words were thrust forward, a surging ocular power erupted, the pitch-black tomoe appearing exceptionally magnificent against his scarlet pupils.

Though it was only a Single-Tomoe.

It was, after all, the Sharingan!

"Thud."

"Hah... hah..."

Naiki Uchiha collapsed to the floor in an instant, his trembling arms bracing against the hall's floor, his chest heaving uncontrollably!

"How... how is this possible?"

His brain was trembling, filled with terror!

To lose the will to resist from just a single glance—how could this be?

He possessed the Sharingan too!

How could he not even resist for a single instant?

This guy was even more terrifying than he had been two years ago!

"Arata!"

"That's enough."

A deep, stern shout rang out. It was the ninja instructor accompanying the team, wearing the dark green flak jacket that symbolized a Jonin, though it lacked the Uchiha clan crest.

Hearing this, Arata slowly raised his face, his right hand resting on the hilt of his blade at some point. His scarlet eyes radiated a sense of fearlessness.

And that wasn't all.

"Clear Mirror, Still Water: Activate."

An invisible pressure pushed forward, aimed directly at the four-man squad before him.

The two Genin didn't even need to be mentioned; the moment they made contact, their faces turned pale, and their legs began to shake.

Even the team leader, who was the primary target, couldn't help but tense his nerves. This kind of near-solid hostility and killing intent was something he had only ever felt from members of the Anbu!

What kind of existence was this little guy in front of him?

"So, what do you want to do?"

The cold words poured into his ears, and the team leader in the dark green flak jacket was left speechless for a moment.

A little guy like this had to be a genius highly valued by the Uchiha!

What could he even do?

The entire hall fell into silence.

Arata didn't continue to press the issue; he withdrew the pressure released by Clear Mirror, Still Water and began to walk away. If nothing else, he could just go somewhere else to take a mission.

"Wait, my apologies, little brother. Please forgive my poor judgment. I am willing to hire you—at the price of fifty thousand."

As the youth walked past, Kujo Sho suddenly came to his senses.

With a mere wave of his hand, he forced back three genin, and he possessed the Sharingan, the premier dōjutsu—would hiring such a genius not be far more rewarding than hiring those samurai?

"Time."

Arata Uchiha paused, paying no mind to the situation where he had just been questioned.

But at that very moment, a threat hissed through gritted teeth rang out abruptly: "Kujo Sho, you had better think this through; the rules of Konoha are not something just anyone can break!"

Upon hearing this, the stout middle-aged man froze instantly, the smile on his face solidifying in that very heartbeat.

Although the other party had not spoken plainly, this was already a blatant, naked threat!

Arata did not speak.

It was as if this power struggle had nothing to do with him.

"Hmph."

Tang Sarutobi's gaze spilled over with disdain; so what if he had a bit of strength? Was he not still something I could manipulate at will?

"For the sake of our friendship, I will help you find a squad of chunin to escort you, and I will cover the shortfall in the bounty myself!"

The smile in Manager Tang's eyes grew even deeper, and his voice softened accordingly.

Did you see that?

This is the method of a grown man!

Arata still offered no response, instead lifting his stalled feet and walking outward.

However, at that very instant, the conflicted yet firm resolution of the stout man reached his ears:

"A merchant's word is worth a thousand pieces of gold."

"Little brother, eight o'clock tomorrow morning, see you at the village gate."

The sudden turn of events left Tang Sarutobi stunned, his ferocious grin frozen at the corners of his eyes.

The Konoha market and fifty thousand ryo in capital were undoubtedly a massive temptation for a small merchant group; he truly had not expected the other party to give it up!

And Arata Uchiha's pace faltered slightly after hearing those words.

"Mn, I understand."

He replied.