Everyone Works for Me

Chapter 23: Everyone Works for Me

Under the pressure of Dragon Might, time seemed to suddenly slow down, but in reality, it was their thoughts that had frozen.

The people before him had never felt a moment stretch as endlessly as this one.

Fear was almost completely swallowing them.

Shen Mo stood with his hands behind his back, while Hikari, crouched on his shoulder, curled up uncomfortably.

At that moment.

As if sensing something, he suddenly raised his head and looked in a certain direction.

In an instant—

Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was inside the Hokage's office, stood up in utter shock. Every muscle in his body tensed, as if the entire world had been reduced to the pair of eyes within the crystal ball.

He finally understood why those Anbu had collapsed.

More terrifying than the Nine-Tails—no!

Even more terrifying than the First Hokage unleashing his full aura!

The sound of cracking rang out continuously.

The crystal ball in front of him, which was being used to cast the Far-Sight Technique, seemed unable to withstand such immense pressure and gradually began to shatter.

Only after those eyes could no longer be seen and had vanished completely did the soul-chilling pressure slowly dissipate, but it had already left its mark.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew very clearly that he might never forget this for the rest of his life.

What exactly was that?

A dojutsu?

No, it was simply power—power beyond all imagination!

Hiruzen Sarutobi breathed slightly heavily. It wasn't that he had never seen powerful people before, but he had never experienced mental pressure like what he had just felt. He began to realize that allowing Danzo to act tonight might have been a colossal mistake.

This merchant...

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked into the distance with extreme caution and concern. After hesitating for a moment, he finally said in a low voice, "Bring Danzo here."

"Yes!"

In the darkness of night, a figure vanished into the distance in an instant.

Then he turned back.

Only after the feeling of being watched disappeared did Shen Mo slowly withdraw his gaze.

He hadn't expected that Dragon Might, which cost nearly a hundred thousand Trading Points per minute, would have this use as well.

The one who had been watching him just now was probably the Third Hokage.

Looking at the few Anbu ninja and Sasuke before him, Shen Mo felt that it was about enough. He slowly reduced the intensity of Dragon Might until it reached one-tenth of its previous level—the equivalent of ten thousand Trading Points per minute.

Even so.

The few people who already had fear carved into their hearts still remained prostrate on the ground, not daring to move.

The so-called Dragon Might was simply a brutal way of telling everyone exactly what kind of existence stood before them, while deeply engraving that fear into their minds.

Running away was impossible.

They couldn't even move, and their minds had been stripped of control. How could they escape?

At least at this moment, their fear of Shen Mo had surpassed everything else.

Only Sasuke, because he had merely been caught in the effects, was able to humbly and painfully crawl to his feet little by little.

He looked at the figure of the man before him. His eyes held indescribable fear, along with a trace of fanaticism.

Such an existence, such power!

He could definitely defeat that man!

Definitely!

He shouted loudly in his heart.

But Shen Mo.

He hadn't paid them any attention at all. Instead, he suddenly looked into the distance. A gentle smile once again appeared on his face as he raised his hand and waved, as though brushing away dust. All the Anbu ninja were sent flying uncontrollably, crashing heavily toward the alley entrance nearby.

Teuchi had returned.

And he had brought his entire fortune.

"Mr. Shen Mo." Teuchi walked over and looked at Shen Mo, who was standing outside the shop, seeming rather embarrassed.

"It doesn't matter." Shen Mo chuckled and shook his head. "Since we're doing business, a little waiting is nothing."

"Mr. Shen Mo, you're truly kind." Teuchi was also somewhat moved.

After all, it was the middle of the night, and he had made someone wait like this for him.

Only Sasuke's lips twitched.

Kind?

Having felt that pressure himself, he knew all too clearly what kind of monster the person before him was.

He didn't even know whether this person could still be called human.

If hatred hadn't been driving him onward.

At this moment, merely standing beside this person gave Sasuke a fear that made him tremble uncontrollably.

"It's nothing." Shen Mo beckoned Teuchi back into the shop and sat down. "So, how many sets of Jars would you like to buy?"

Coming to Konoha today, and counting the battle just now, he had actually suffered a severe loss.

Although this expenditure had been expected.

He still hoped to earn at least a little back.

"Mr. Shen Mo, this is all the savings I've accumulated over the past several decades." Teuchi handed over the small chest in his hands without the slightest reluctance, then looked at Shen Mo eagerly. "There are twelve sets of Level 1 Chests remaining. In addition to those, I'd also like to buy one set of Level 2 Chests."

Twelve million?

Shen Mo was pleasantly surprised.

That was quite a lot. Converted into Trading Points, it would amount to more than six hundred thousand.

The battle just now had seemed to last a while, but in reality, after Dragon Might erupted, it had only taken two or three minutes. Calculating it that way, he hadn't lost money today—in fact, he had even made a small profit.

"That is already enough." Looking at Teuchi, Shen Mo decided to give him a small hint. "Does Mr. Teuchi know how my previous chef customer embarked on the path of becoming a Gourmet Hunter? When he first made a deal, he didn't even have as much capital as you."

"I think he expanded his food business." Teuchi smiled. "For a chef, there isn't any other way to make money besides that."

Or rather, even if there were, he wouldn't do it.

A true chef wouldn't be willing to waste a large amount of time on matters outside of cooking.

"That is indeed the case, but not entirely." Shen Mo smiled mysteriously. "I can even accept food directly in exchange here."

Teuchi seemed pleasantly surprised by this.

Although he had brought out his entire fortune, it was still far from enough!

Even without Shen Mo saying so, he knew that the Level 2 Chests contained more miraculous ingredients and more incredible recipes. There might even be higher-level chests later on.

After witnessing the road leading to gourmet cuisine, he was truly itching to continue.

Unfortunately, he didn't have enough money.

"All valuable items can be traded here." Shen Mo smiled as he explained. "For a chef, the most valuable thing is naturally the food he creates. As long as your cooking continues to improve, whether you make food of unparalleled excellence or create a valuable recipe, you can exchange it for Jars here. Our exchange prices are fair and honest, so you don't need to worry about our credibility."

The system evaluated value.

The value of money wasn't fixed either.

If the authorities printed large amounts of money and caused inflation, then without a doubt, the exchange ratio between money and Trading Points would widen.

Therefore, Shen Mo wouldn't focus only on money.

Those wealthy merchants and nobles would remain where they were; they wouldn't run away. But if these people capable of creating value could grow sooner—whether by making delicious food, developing ninjutsu, or working hard to earn money—in the end, they would all become Trading Points in Shen Mo's hands through the Jars.

This was a virtuous cycle.

In other words.

The entire world's elites worked for me?

Shen Mo secretly chuckled inwardly, but there was no change in expression on the surface.