A spacious, luxurious living room reeked of blood. Kakuzu's bounty target had been dealt with easily.
A corpse with bulging eyes and a crooked head sat on the sofa in front of him. It had clearly had its neck twisted clean off by Kakuzu.
Several more bodies lay scattered across the room. They were all the personal bodyguards of Kishimoto Qi—the gang leader.
These bodyguards were capable mercenaries in their own right, nearly on par with second-rate experts, but they couldn't put up even a decent fight against Kakuzu.
After taking care of everyone in the living room, Kakuzu pulled out the bounty slips and checked the reward details.
He frowned slightly and shook his head in disappointment. "Besides the gang leader, the rest are all worthless. But it doesn't matter. It'll give that brat Xuan Yu a few more trips to make, hauling all these bodies to the Bounty Exchange."
Kakuzu was pondering how to use this opportunity to squeeze Xuan Yu for all he was worth when a familiar sense of danger suddenly washed over him.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—!"
A few sharp whistles cut through the air. Three kunai shot toward Kakuzu in three streaks of icy light, too fast to dodge.
"Hmph!" Kakuzu snorted. His body flipped sharply to the right, narrowly evading the ambush. At the same time, a kunai appeared in his hand, ready to strike back at his attacker.
But as soon as he looked up, the sight before him left him dumbfounded.
The bounty target whose neck he had personally broken just moments ago, along with the bodyguard carrying the highest bounty, were both slung over Xuan Yu's shoulders!
In the split second Kakuzu had flipped aside to dodge Xuan Yu's ambush, Xuan Yu had not only made off with the two corpses, but had already carried them all the way to the living room's entrance!
"What are you doing?!" Kakuzu roared furiously.
Before joining the Akatsuki, Xuan Yu had already stolen bounty targets Kakuzu had hunted.
And now, after joining the Akatsuki, he was still stealing the bounty targets Kakuzu hunted. Hadn't Xuan Yu joined the organization for nothing?!
Facing Kakuzu's thunderous roar, Xuan Yu paused, then turned back with an embarrassed grin. "Kakuzi, sorry about that. Occupational hazard! But we have to turn in the jobs anyway. I'll handle these two, and you can take care of the rest. It's settled."
"Stop!"
Kakuzu shouted sharply. How could he possibly agree?
He had already planned everything out.
He would personally turn in the three-million-ryo target, and Xuan Yu would take the remaining bodies to various Bounty Exchanges over time.
But Xuan Yu had no intention of stopping.
The moment Kakuzu shouted "Stop," Xuan Yu had already vanished from before his eyes.
Kakuzu could only glare murderously in the direction Xuan Yu had gone, his expression as if he wanted to eat him alive.
Kakuzu swore viciously to himself.
If that brat dared to pocket his money and not give him half as agreed, he would spend the next while tirelessly plotting to kill Xuan Yu!
Otherwise, if Xuan Yu kept making trouble for him like this, Kakuzu would never be able to enjoy completing missions and earning money in peace.
Meanwhile, Xuan Yu unleashed all 5,000 points of his speed attribute and pushed his Level 10 Body Flicker Technique to its limit.
At that speed, even carrying two corpses, he raced straight to the Empty District Bounty Exchange.
Before long, Yoshino Yujin, the manager of the Empty District Bounty Exchange, spotted Xuan Yu in the lobby again.
Over the past few days, Xuan Yu had been coming by the Bounty Exchange several times almost every day.
For some reason, Xuan Yu's mission completion rate had suddenly become much higher than before.
But these changes had little to do with Yoshino Yujin, the Bounty Exchange's manager.
What he cared about was the Exchange's business, and Xuan Yu's frequent visits had undoubtedly sent his branch's performance soaring.
Seeing Xuan Yu again, Yoshino Yujin gave him a false smile. "Brat, you've been coming here a lot to turn in missions these past few days, but they've all been low-value jobs. What, can't you handle high-value targets on your own?"
Xuan Yu merely shot Yoshino a cold glance. Then he lifted the two corpses from his shoulders and dropped them in front of Yoshino with a thud, coolly saying four words: "Try that again."
At first, Yoshino didn't take the remark seriously.
But when he looked down and recognized the two corpses, his pupils suddenly contracted and his eyes went wide.
"Th-this isn't the Wildfire Clan leader and his Chief Guard, the ones who've been active near Kusagakure lately?! You killed them both?" Yoshino asked in utter shock.
As the manager of the Empty District Black Market, Yoshino had an extremely powerful intelligence network.
So he knew exactly what these two bodies Xuan Yu had brought in meant.
After all, the bounty on a Fire Country Daimyo Guard—one of the Twelve Guards of Fire—started at only thirty million ryō on the black market.
And one of the two corpses Xuan Yu had brought in carried a bounty of thirty million ryō!
Yoshino also knew a few details.
The Wildfire Clan leader's bounty was only thirty million ryō because the client had limited funds, not because the man's head was worth only that much.
Just as Yoshino was so shocked he lost his composure, Xuan Yu tapped the counter leisurely with his knuckles and said with a smile, "Mr. Yoshino, I want an additional two percentage points in commission. Given my ability to complete missions, that's not an unreasonable request, is it?"
Yoshino snapped out of his shock and waved his hands repeatedly. "That won't do."
He had only planned to give Xuan Yu a 1.5 percent commission, not the 2 percent Xuan Yu had demanded.
The difference might not seem significant when the sum was small, but it added up fast when the amount was large.
After Yoshino flatly refused, Xuan Yu didn't waste a word. He bent down as if to pick up the two corpses and leave.
Seeing Xuan Yu about to go, Yoshino hurriedly called out again. "Wait!"
"Oh?" Xuan Yu drawled lazily, waiting for Yoshino to continue.
Yoshino's face twisted with indecision. After thinking it over, he finally seemed to reach a decision and said, "I can give you an additional three percentage points in commission. That's the highest amount I'm currently authorized to approve."
"You can see that I'm being sincere. I hope you'll keep bringing your missions to our Empty District Bounty Exchange from now on. As the Empty District Bounty Exchange's rating rises, I'll give you as many additional benefits as I can within my authority."
After hearing Yoshino out, Xuan Yu grinned.
That meant he could pocket quite a bit of extra money just by turning in missions at the Empty District branch.
And he wouldn't have to split that extra income with Kakuzu.
On the surface, he and Kakuzu were splitting the money fifty-fifty, but in reality, Kakuzu got 50 percent while he got 53 percent—even though Kakuzu had been the one to kill the bounty targets.
Once the Empty District Bounty Exchange's standing improved, he could earn even more in extra commission.
Thinking this, Xuan Yu smiled and held out a hand to Yoshino. "Mr. Yoshino, then let's settle up first. We'll do it your way. But I'll be upfront with you: if another Bounty Exchange offers me more, I might not keep coming to the Empty District."
Yoshino's expression turned serious. He promised solemnly, "You have my word. The Empty District Black Market will always be your best partner!"
Before you continue