Immortal Kakuzu

Inside a public restroom in Bird Country.

This public restroom had more to it than met the eye. Its hidden chamber was actually an underground exchange. Murder, robbery, kidnapping, smuggling, money laundering, even plotting national uprisings—any dirty business imaginable could be found here. As long as one could afford the price, anything could be done.

At that moment, Kakuzu was counting money with great care. A corpse lay at his feet, clearly the prey he had already captured.

After counting the last stack of bills, Kakuzu nodded in satisfaction and put the money into his briefcase. He was especially obsessed with money. Every time he completed a mission and received payment, he counted every bill himself. It was not that he distrusted the exchange; he simply enjoyed the feeling of counting money and loved the scent of printer's ink. Through those long years, only money made him feel secure and content.

"That's right, exactly three million ryo. He's yours now. Sigh, business is getting harder and harder. The leader of the largest underground organization in the Land of Fire is only worth this much." Kakuzu kicked the corpse by his feet unhappily. Two exchange workers immediately came over and carried the body away.

"Mr. Kakuzu, please wait."

Kakuzu stopped and turned back to look at the exchange worker.

"Here's the situation. We have a client who specifically requested that you complete a custom private assignment. The price is quite generous. May I ask whether you're interested in taking it?"

"A custom private assignment? How much?"

"Ten million ryo!"

"What mission?" Kakuzu was clearly tempted. In times of war, human lives were as cheap as grass. Although there was more business, most of it did not pay much. Kakuzu had once refused jobs worth less than five million, but now, just to make a living, he had no choice but to accept small jobs worth three million. Now a ten-million-ryo job had come knocking, one specifically tailored for him. How could he not be tempted?

"Assassination."

"How many?"

"One."

"Who?"

"Him."

The worker handed over a photograph.

"Hanzo of the Salamander?" Kakuzu was somewhat surprised.

"That's right, him." The worker pushed up the sunglasses that had slipped down his nose.

"This man is known as the demigod of the shinobi world. His ninjutsu is superb, his sickle technique exquisite, and his summoned beast Ibuse is fierce and powerful. He's rather troublesome..."

"Are you saying you'll decline this job?"

"I'm saying you need to pay more."

"My client said that, given the difficulty of the job, the reward could be raised accordingly. He gave me authority over a certain amount. Please name your price." The worker spread one hand.

"Seventeen million ryo!" Kakuzu tested the waters with a high price.

"Deal!" The worker smiled faintly.

Damn it, I asked for too little. Kakuzu silently cursed himself. But the deal was already done, so he could only let it go.

"Fine, I'll take it. Body or item?"

This was industry slang. "Body" meant bringing the target's corpse to the exchange to collect payment. "Item" meant bringing a specified item from the target to collect payment, usually an organ such as the head.

"Neither is necessary. From the moment you accept the assignment, as long as news of the target's death appears within three months, you may come to the exchange and collect your reward. The client has their own channels to verify the result."

Kakuzu nodded, checked the time, and said, "Then it starts from this moment!"

"Come, eat, eat. This is hot spring fish shipped in from the Land of Rivers this morning. The flesh is tender and the flavor delicious, a rare delicacy in this world. Senior Hanzo, you simply must try it." Rasa wore his usual fake smile as he politely urged him to eat.

Hanzo of the Salamander sat at the head of the table. He did not touch the food or wine, merely turning his wine cup silently in his hand. His eyes were half-open and half-closed as he watched the geishas dance gracefully before him, saying nothing and revealing no expression. The atmosphere immediately turned cold.

"Manager Rasa." After a long while, Hanzo of the Salamander finally spoke.

"Please, go ahead." Rasa immediately sat upright, looking as though he were ready to receive instruction.

"We feast here on fish and meat, while my people can no longer afford to eat."

"Is that so? Is it really that serious? That's terrible. Everyone knows Lord Hanzo loves his people like his own children. The people below must be terribly incompetent and need to be properly disciplined. They must not tarnish your reputation." Rasa laughed it off, completely ignoring the faint green tinge creeping onto Hanzo's face.

"Manager Rasa doesn't know? Yesterday, twenty thousand refugees surrounded my Rain Shadow Building. It nearly turned into a bloody incident." Hanzo's patience finally ran out, and his tone gradually grew harsher.

"Is that so? What a pity. Why are the refugees of the Land of Rain like that?" Rasa continued to laugh, refusing to take the bait. He deliberately emphasized "refugees of the Land of Rain." The meaning was obvious: they were not refugees from the Land of Wind, so what did it have to do with him?

"There is an agreement between Lord Jing Hang and me. When Hidden Sand Village established factories in Hidden Rain Village, it was also responsible for resettling Hidden Rain Village's refugees!" Hanzo of the Salamander finally could not hold back any longer and laid his cards on the table.

Damn it, acting like a beggar and still complaining that the food stinks. Rasa cursed inwardly.

"There's nothing we can do. Business is difficult now. The factories are already fully staffed, and we can't use any more workers. Besides, taxes in your Hidden Rain Village are too high and keep increasing. Our two factories are practically making no profit. I've already submitted a report to Lord Kazekage and am preparing to relocate them. I hear the Land of Rivers has a good environment, and Lord Wen Shui of Hidden Hot Spring Village has a good relationship with Lord Kazekage. Moving there should not be a problem." Rasa stopped humoring Hanzo. Since Hanzo had laid his cards on the table, Rasa would do the same.

"You!" Hanzo of the Salamander was left speechless by the retort. At that moment, all he wanted was to pull out his chained sickle and chop that arrogant bitter-faced bastard to pieces.

"However, this matter isn't entirely without room for negotiation." Rasa pretended to take a sip of sake.

"Before Lord Kazekage left, he specifically instructed us to cherish our friendship with Lord Hanzo. After all, we're neighbors. Friendship comes first!"

"Oh?" Hanzo saw that there might be a turning point and calmed himself.

"Here's what I was thinking. I have a suggestion. Please let Lord Hanzo consider it."

"Go on."

"Recently, we received an order from Hidden Cloud Village, and the quantity is quite substantial. Sada Iron Mine's production capacity is proving somewhat insufficient. If Lord Hanzo is willing to transfer the mining rights to Sumu Iron Mine, I believe the refugee problem in Hidden Rain Village will no longer be a problem. After all, mining iron ore requires miners, doesn't it?"

"Oh, you want to buy the mining rights to Sumu Iron Mine. For how many years?"

"The usual terms, fifty years!"

"What's the price?"

"Twenty-eight million ryo."

Hanzo of the Salamander fell into deep thought. Sumu Iron Mine was slightly smaller than Sada Iron Mine, but the quality of its ore was exceptionally high. Twenty-eight million was neither a high nor low price, leaving Hanzo somewhat hesitant.

Seeing Hanzo of the Salamander remain silent, Rasa immediately threw out another bomb.

"If this goes through, these two million will be your personal tea money." Rasa snapped his fingers. Karura immediately carried a briefcase over to Hanzo of the Salamander and respectfully opened it. Inside were neatly stacked bundles of brand-new bills.

"Actually, if Lord Hanzo is short of money, you can just tell me directly. There's no need to collect sanitation fees or garbage fees and make things so troublesome. Then it has to go through the official accounts too. Why bother? We're all friends!" Rasa said with a cheerful smile.

Hanzo of the Salamander stared fixedly at the box of money, his eyes filled with greed. After a long while, he picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of fish, removed his breathing mask, and took a bite. Surprise appeared in his eyes.

"This hot spring fish truly is extraordinary. It's exceptionally delicious." Hanzo put his mask back on.

Good, he took the bait. Rasa clapped his hands again. Two alluring geishas swayed gracefully to Hanzo's sides.

"Listen carefully. Lord Hanzo is the renowned demigod of the shinobi world! A great hero! You must make sure to serve him to his complete satisfaction!"

"Yes." The two geishas bowed gently, revealing such impressive cleavage that even Hanzo, seated to the side, felt his heart stir.

"Then please take your time eating and enjoying yourself, my lord. I still have some mundane matters to attend to, so I won't disturb you."

"Good! Good! Good! Go busy yourself." Hanzo clearly could no longer restrain himself. His hands had already begun roaming over the geishas.

"Heh, I've never seen a bastard so happy to sell off his ancestral property. It almost makes me not want to kill him anymore." As soon as Rasa left the hall, he turned and said to Karura.

"Too late. Lord Kazekage has already given the order." Karura handed Rasa a small note.

"Oh, is that so?!" Rasa's eyes lit up as he took the note. The more he read, the happier he became.

Hearing bursts of laughter from the hall, Rasa could not help but let out a cold sneer.

"Eat, play, old man. You won't be enjoying yourself for many more days."