Slipping Through the Cracks

Previously, the sale of over a hundred copies of the second volume of Journey to the West had earned over 10,000 ryō in royalties.

That was over the span of two months.

Royalties had subsequently trickled in, earning another 60,000 ryō.

Selling the Special Military Ration Pills had brought in 6 million ryō.

The total income was just over 6.07 million ryō.

During this period, all expenses for his cultivation-assisting medicine, food, and lodging were provided by the clan.

He had spent about 1.2 million ryō on friendly aid, providing various cultivation-assisting resources to Jiraiya and Orochimaru.

Currently, Xian Yu still had 4.8 million ryō and several tens of thousands in loose change on hand.

In his spatial backpack, he still had 1 Golden Treasure Chest and 1 Byakugan Treasure Chest.

Opening the Golden Treasure Chest required 15,000 diamonds, and the Byakugan Treasure Chest required 1,500 diamonds. He couldn't afford to open them...

As for the two Black Iron Treasure Chests, they had already been opened.

Over these two months, the Treasure Chest Radar mini-map hadn't refreshed, and Xian Yu didn't know when it would refresh, or if it even would.

The nearest treasure chest outside the village was a Black Iron Treasure Chest, and the distance was quite significant.

There was, however, a Bronze Treasure Chest inside the village that he had never been able to obtain; it was located in the Hokage Building.

And Xian Yu had clearly been coveting this Bronze Treasure Chest for a long time...

As a student at the Ninja Academy, how am I supposed to sneak into the Hokage Building to find that chest? I don't even know which floor or where exactly in the Hokage Building it spawned. If it spawned next to important items like the Scroll of Sealing, the difficulty of obtaining it would be even higher... it's basically impossible.

Based on the opening prices of the Golden, Silver, and Black Iron Treasure Chests, Xian Yu estimated that the opening price for a Bronze Treasure Chest should be 150 diamonds, which was 1.5 million ryō.

The current situation was: he had the money, but no suitable chest!

There was no doubt that opening chests could make him stronger much faster.

"Sigh, let nature take its course. I'm going to go crazy if I keep thinking about this Bronze Treasure Chest all day..." After deep thought yielded no results, Xian Yu finally sighed helplessly.

Born into the house of Danzo, his starting point was already excellent. There were almost no decent threats in the early stages, allowing for a very stable period of growth.

If he were a child of any other family, the moment he showed too much talent, he would have to face the covetous gaze of the "Darkness of the Shinobi World."

And hiding his talent? Not showing it? If one couldn't stand out among their peers while young and full of drive, they would lose the pride of the strong and naturally struggle to achieve anything in the future.

Wasn't there a ready-made example right there? Madara Uchiha.

"The current Hiruzen Sarutobi and that old thief Danzo are only twenty-five or twenty-six; they haven't reached their peak yet. They should only be Jōnin, right? Elite Jōnin at most. They definitely haven't reached Kage-level strength. It's precisely because of this that they need five other companions to form a high-level advisory team. Oh, wait. Now it's three high-level advisors and one Hokage assistant. Kagami Uchiha is already dead. Speaking of Kagami Uchiha's death, there are actually many suspicious points... he was also a poor soul. Neither side could tolerate you, huh? The high-level officials of Konoha are truly terrifying."

"Sigh, even if they are just Jōnin, I'm afraid I don't have the slightest chance of sneaking into the heavily guarded Hokage Building. Forget it, I'm already very lucky... better not be too greedy. Compared to others starting in 'Hell Mode,' my start can already be considered 'Casual Play' level. I'd better focus on steady growth; don't get cocky in the early game." After hesitating repeatedly, Xian Yu finally sighed.

"You little brat, what are you muttering about instead of sleeping?"

The voice that suddenly sounded behind him gave Xian Yu a fright. Once he realized who it was, he shouted angrily, "Old thief Danzo, are you trying to kill me! Do you not make a sound when you walk? Don't you know that scaring people can actually kill them?"

"..."

The air suddenly went quiet...

Xian Yu's small face turned deathly pale: Oh crap, it slipped out. It's over, it's over, I'm going to die...

"Bang!" Sure enough, the next moment, Xian Yu took a heavy punch to the stomach. His small body was sent flying against the opposite wall, then slowly slid down the smooth surface...

"What did you call me?" Danzo, dressed in Anbu attire and wearing a blood-red Fox Mask, had a fierce glint in his eyes.

"Uh... Daddy... you're back... your child missed you so much." Xian Yu reached out to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth, wearing an innocent and cute smile, though tears of humiliation streamed down his eyes.

"Heh, you little brat, you've grown bold after two months. Let's talk about what this thing is first." Danzo pointed at the mini Three-Tailed Fox on the bed that was playing dead, and said coldly.

"Uh... Daddy, this is a Ninja Fox, my summoning beast..."

"Oh? You've grown capable, haven't you? Even signed a summoning beast."

"Bang." Another punch, and Xian Yu was pinned tightly against the wall, a large amount of saliva spilling from his mouth, and a faint crack appeared on the wall...

"Who the hell told you to sign a summoning beast randomly! You little bastard! Don't you know I have the summoning scroll for the Baku?" Danzo ripped off his Red Fox Mask and said viciously, "Let's talk about that Special Military Ration Pill, what's that about?"

Little Xian Yu suddenly stood up excitedly, pointing at the mini Three-Tailed Fox on the bed, crying out, "It's it! It's it! It's all its fault!"

"It tricked me into signing the summoning contract, and that Special Military Ration Pill was also provided by it! It said it was good for me... that it could make me stronger faster... Daddy... if your hands are still itchy, go hit it... don't hit me anymore, wuwuwuwuwu~" Little Xian Yu acted like a child who had suffered a great injustice, his expression agitated, as if he had endless grievances to pour out.

The Three-Tailed Fox, Bai Xiaoqi, widened its beastly eyes, its mouth hanging wide open.

"Yo, you're not playing dead anymore, little guy? Can you talk? Tell me about it." Danzo's gloomy expression immediately shifted toward Bai Xiaoqi.

"Hmph, you scarred-face, what are you being fierce for? My Qingqiu Mountain Fox Immortal clan is the fourth holy land, not a bit weaker than Mount Myōboku, Ryūchi Cave, or Shikkotsu Forest. A mere Baku clan dares to compare itself to me?" Bai Xiaoqi pulled its head back and said disdainfully.

"Bang!" Danzo smashed a fist down, only to be shocked to find his fist pass right through the little fox's body and hit the bed, causing it to collapse instantly.

"Since you summoned the Baku clan, you should know the fame of our major holy lands, right? How dare you lay a hand on this fox?" The little fox remained floating in its original position, completely unharmed.

Danzo let out a cold snort. "A mere genjutsu dares to be arrogant in front of me?"

With that cold snort, everything in front of them twisted for a moment.

It was still the same room, and the bed that should have collapsed was perfectly intact.

Only the little fox on the bed had vanished into thin air.

It turned out that everything seen before was a genjutsu.

"You run fast." Danzo snorted coldly again, though he didn't say anything else, and disappeared with a Body Flicker Technique.

Xian Yu looked at the faint cracks visible on the wall, his mouth twitching a few times. It's a good thing I've been feeding Bai Xiaoqi Spirit Rice all this time; its genjutsu power has leveled up. But the old thief Danzo's strength is improving too fast! It looks like even if he isn't at the Elite Jōnin level, he's not far off. Xiaoqi had the advantage of surprise, yet he was still able to discover and dispel the genjutsu so quickly... Phew, but that should have bluffed him; the matter of the Special Military Ration Pill should be considered settled.

The night was late, and Danzo, who had returned overnight, was already exhausted. He returned to his room and lay down to rest, only muttering, "Never heard of any fourth holy land called Qingqiu Mountain? Could it be an undiscovered holy land? But since that summoning beast could name the three major holy lands and had such a big mouth, it must have some background. Sigh, forget it. Let it be."