Making Money-There Are Plenty of Ways

After seeing Lin Yan leave the ramen shop, Naruto remained silent, even seeming distracted while crossing the street and nearly bumping into someone.

He quickly jogged over and blocked Lin Yan's path.

"Um?"

Lin Yan noticed this, and then looked down at Naruto with a puzzled expression.

"What's wrong, Naruto?"

"Uncle Lin, why do you seem so distracted?"

"I almost bumped into someone!"

Naruto reminded him.

"Oh? Sorry, I was thinking about something just now."

Lin Yan smiled and walked forward, gently patting Naruto's head.

"Let's go home."

"Uncle Lin, are you...?"

Naruto looked up at Lin Yan, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

Hearing his words, Lin Yan met his gaze again and saw a hint of suspicion in the young man's blue eyes.

"What? Just say what you want to say."

Lin Yan smiled.

"Are you out of money?"

Naruto looked at Lin Yan with a strange expression.

"Forehead..."

Lin Yan touched her nose. "Is it that obvious?"

"Hey, hahaha... I knew it! Uncle Lin!"

"I saw you looking a little embarrassed when you were paying the bill in front of Uncle Ichiraku, hahaha..."

"As expected, Uncle Lin is just as poor as I am!"

Naruto burst into laughter, as if it were the funniest joke ever.

But when Lin Yan heard his last words, she couldn't help but feel a little sad.

Naruto is the biological son of the Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze.

The descendants of heroes should, by all accounts, be living in such dire straits.

But that's exactly how reality is.

Naruto was always hungry and his pockets were empty.

Sometimes they even had to drink expired milk and eat expired bread to fill their stomachs.

This is truly ironic.

Don't be fooled by Naruto's cheerful tone as he recounts these things.

But in reality, how many people can see the pain in his heart?

All this naive optimism was just a facade; he didn't want to be looked down upon, and he didn't want others to see him licking his wounds in such a pathetic state.

At this moment, Lin Yan walked over, gently patted the little guy's head, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, your Uncle Lin has plenty of ways to make money."

"Really, Uncle Lin?"

"If you don't have any money either, that's okay. We won't go hungry. I know how to fish, and we can go fishing tomorrow night for dinner!"

"I do this all the time. I use fish from the river outside the village to grill, and it tastes delicious."

Naruto naively suggested.

However, as he spoke, his expression suddenly darkened, and he lowered his head.

"Well... it's probably because I've been catching too many fish lately, there are fewer and fewer fish in the river."

"But that's alright, we can go to rivers further out to catch fish, we should be able to catch more there..."

Hearing the little guy's naive thoughts, dreaming and talking to himself, Lin Yan smiled again.

He patted Naruto's head. "Then, Naruto Lin will be waiting for you to take care of me in my old age."

"Retirement?"

Naruto paused for a moment.

I don't seem to understand the meaning of this word.

"Haha, I was just kidding."

"Your suggestion was good, but don't worry, we haven't gotten to that point yet."

"Uncle Lin won't let you go hungry."

After Lin Yan finished speaking, she took Naruto's little hand and walked firmly forward.

Naruto was a little stunned at this moment, staring blankly at Lin Yan's smiling profile.

For a fleeting moment, he was distracted.

It felt as if the person standing beside him, holding his hand tightly, was not Uncle Lin, but his own father.

That mountain that protected me from being bullied, that sheltered me and my family from the wind and rain...

"If Uncle Lin really were my father, I would be so happy..."

"That way, the villagers won't bully me anymore, they won't distance themselves from me, and they won't treat me as... the incarnation of a Nine-Tails fox."

Naruto thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Lin Yan was also lost in her own thoughts.

He certainly has plenty of ways to make money.

However, there was one method he had never tried.

Since the goal is to experience life in the ninja world, then of course we can't miss out on that kind of method.

Lin Yan escorted Naruto home.

Because he was so tired from training during the day, the little guy fell fast asleep as soon as he got into bed after his bath.

Lin Yan went out alone.

He quickly arrived at the Hokage Building.

Although it was past 9 p. m., the Hokage Building was still brightly lit.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was handling official business in his office.

Suddenly, he slowly raised his head.

In the office, right in front of me, there was another person in front of my desk.

An uninvited guest who is not a native of the village.

Who are you?

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Lin Yan in front of him, asking a question he already knew the answer to, his tone calm.

He even calmly took out his pipe and lit it.

"Don't you know me?"

Lin Yan smiled.

"Didn't you send your men to follow and monitor me before?"

He added another sentence.

Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression finally changed noticeably; his previously calm demeanor became extremely serious.

His eyes flashed with surprise and uncertainty as he stared at Lin Yan: "It seems I underestimated you."

What is your purpose?

Hiruzen Sarutobi had lived for decades and experienced many Ninja World Wars.

Having seen many big events, he has developed a calm and composed temperament.

He quickly came to his senses.

"Don't worry, Third Hokage."

"I came here from a distant Land of Sea, my only purpose being to travel the world and broaden my horizons."

"I harbor no hostility towards you, towards your Konoha Village, or even towards your Land of Fire."

Lin Yan spread her hands and explained with a smile.

Hiruzen Sarutobi remained skeptical. He slowly lit his pipe, took a couple of puffs, and stared at Lin Yan for a while before saying, "What I'm asking is, what is your purpose in coming here?"

"You couldn't possibly be doing this just to explain your innocence to this old man, could you?"

"Isn't that going to unnecessary trouble?"

"If you really have a problem, the ninjas of Konoha will definitely step in. All the ninjas of Konoha have the ability and confidence to protect our village."

Lin Yan smiled slightly at Hiruzen Sarutobi's words.

He shook his head, both amused and exasperated. "I already explained it; I'm too lazy to prove anything."

"Third Hokage, I'm here to look for a job."

Looking for a job?

Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed quite surprised by this, and looked up in astonishment to scrutinize Lin Yan intently.

"Yes, looking for a job."

"I'm a little short on cash lately. I heard that ninjas get paid for missions; they get paid as long as they complete a mission."

"So I came here to see if there are any suitable tasks for me?"