Exploitative Profit

"Then put away your ninjutsu first. In this situation, we aren't in the mood to write." Kakuzu decided to follow his inner thoughts and chose to compromise for the time being.

Uchiha Gen nodded and even asked considerately, "Do you need a pen?" Without waiting for an answer, he tossed them a pen regardless of whether they needed it or not.

Kakuzu looked at the pen lying before him and suddenly said, "Hidan, you go pick it up."

"..."

Hidan wore a look of utter despair as he walked over. Fine, he was always the one doing the dangerous work; he couldn't die anyway, so if he got dismembered, he'd just have Kakuzu piece him back together later.

Uchiha Gen kept his word and slowly retracted the chains, though he didn't pull them back entirely; he merely deactivated the enhancement from his Sharingan.

The main purpose of doing this was to prevent them from escaping, and seeing this, Kakuzu temporarily set aside some of his own schemes.

"Do I have to write on all the money?" Hidan picked up the pen and asked suspiciously.

"One signature from each of you is enough." Uchiha Gen looked very easy to talk to at this moment. Having gained two signatures at once, he was in a good mood, and his tone was naturally exceptionally gentle.

After finishing, Hidan spread out the two banknotes to show Uchiha Gen that they had been signed, then placed the money in the box, set it between them, and silently raised his hands as he backed away.

Uchiha Gen walked over and simultaneously dispelled the Adamantine Sealing Chains. Seeing this, the two men from the Akatsuki immediately retreated.

Uchiha Gen picked up the box, intending to look at the two signatures. Although he could have chosen to submit them directly, he was purely curious about what their handwriting looked like.

However, suddenly, Kakuzu—who had already retreated—appeared behind Uchiha Gen. His arm instantly turned black. Earth Style: Earth Spear! With extreme hardness, he attempted to pierce Uchiha Gen's heart.

Just as he made contact with Uchiha Gen, Uchiha Gen suddenly vanished before him. The next moment, he appeared behind Kakuzu as if he had teleported, simultaneously pressing a kunai against his heart. The situation was reversed.

Just as Kakuzu was about to move, Uchiha Gen seemed to know his thoughts. "Although I know this won't kill you, I don't think you want to lose a heart for nothing, do you?"

Hearing this, Kakuzu's mood sank, and his face turned ugly. His intelligence had actually been leaked. Where did this guy get his information? Aside from the leader, everyone who had seen his abilities should have been dead.

This guy had to die!

Thinking this, Kakuzu suddenly used the Body Flicker Technique to put a large distance between them. He took off his Akatsuki cloak, and two masks jumped off, immediately unleashing his ultimate move: Combined Ninjutsu: Searing Migratory Fire!

"..." Uchiha Gen narrowed his eyes, looking at the raging sea of fire before him. Isn't it just the bounty for Asuma's head? Is it really worth it? Taking off your clothes is a death flag, brother. Is it really okay to set a flag for yourself this early?

At the same time, hidden behind the fire, Hidan—whose location was obscured by the flames—suddenly appeared, swinging his scythe with force toward Uchiha Gen. His goal was simple: he didn't expect to cause much damage, as long as he could draw a drop of blood, it would be enough.

However, Uchiha Gen didn't intend to play with them anymore. He had already taken full advantage of the situation, so it was better to show some restraint. Sensing the location he had previously marked, he directly used the Instantaneous Shift to leave the area.

Upon returning to the marked spot, Uchiha Gen's hair, which had been curled by the flames, returned to its original state at that very moment. "..."

This was the reason he had been slow to cut his somewhat obstructive hair; it was completely useless.

On the other side, Hidan swung at empty air. Kakuzu frowned and carefully sensed his surroundings, but he could no longer find any trace of Uchiha Gen. He could feel that Uchiha Gen hadn't just hidden somewhere, but had vanished into thin air.

He suddenly thought of a more reasonable explanation: it seemed that the Adamantine Sealing Chains he used earlier were not without a cost; at the very least, he hadn't used them again in the subsequent exchanges.

However, based on the ability he had just displayed and the Adamantine Sealing Chains used at the start, Kakuzu felt a lingering fear after his anger subsided. If it weren't for the fact that the guy inexplicably had no intent to kill them, he might have already been done for.

And that mask just now... he couldn't help but feel this matter was related to the organization's newcomer.

Thinking of this, he looked down at his empty hands and began to doubt his life. The corpse hadn't been left for him either. The more he thought about it, the worse his mood became; he never wanted to come to this godforsaken place again.

He would have to be careful in future operations. Who knew if only that guy knew his intelligence? The organization's ultimate goal was to collect the Tailed Beasts, and the Adamantine Sealing Chains were highly effective at suppressing them. He would report this to the leader later and see how he handled it.

In his heart, Kakuzu had already sentenced Uchiha Gen to death. After all, in his mind, the leader's power was comparable to a god's, and it was certainly not something an Uchiha Gen could contend with.

On the way to the bounty station, Uchiha Gen held Hidan's signature and carefully identified it, beginning to ponder how these symbols were composed. "Are these symbols actually words?" And this scribble had even been recognized by the system.

Having obtained two more experience cards, Uchiha Gen was in a good mood. He couldn't help but wonder if he should start a career of robbery; this was simply an exorbitant profit!

The bounty for this rogue ninja named Hengye was a full 10 million ryo. Added to what he had robbed from Kakuzu and what he had won at the gambling den, Uchiha Gen had over 8 million ryo more to spend.

He split off two Shadow Clones and sent them back. After all, due to the time wasted earlier, there was only nearly half a day left for travel.

If he wanted to reach Konoha within the time stipulated by Tsunade, he would need to use the Instantaneous Shift, which consumed a large amount of chakra. By having one clone carry the other, he could reduce consumption and make the chakra of the Uzumaki Reikawa clone last longer.

Back in Konoha, Tsunade finished reviewing documents and asked Shizune, who was helping organize files nearby, "What is the date today?"

"Lady Tsunade, it is already the 9th. Is there a problem?"

"Nothing." Tsunade rubbed her eyes. Uzumaki Reikawa, don't let me down...

Just as Shizune was about to leave with the documents, the door was suddenly kicked open with a "Bang!", giving Shizune such a start that the documents in her hands scattered all over the floor.

"Sorry, sorry!" Uzumaki Reikawa hurriedly helped Shizune pick up the files.

Tsunade smiled at this, though her tone sounded like an interrogation. "Cutting it close, are we?"

"No, no, how could I dare," Uzumaki Reikawa said, acting terrified. After Shizune left, he suddenly became serious. "Lord Hokage, I accidentally obtained some information while I was out. The Jinchuriki of the Five-Tails from Iwagakure may have been captured, though I don't know by whom."

Hearing this, Tsunade's expression turned solemn as she organized the intelligence she had received over these days in her mind. "I understand. I have my own arrangements for this matter. There is something I would like to ask of you, could you do it?"