Two figures sat down on the roots of a large tree in the woods, and Kakuzu listened as Tetsuya explained his grand money-making plan.
"Listen to me. Across the entire Ninja World, who has the most money? The ninja? The Shinobi Villages? Neither.
The truly wealthy are the high officials and nobles, the rulers and daimyo.
Are Shinobi Villages impressive? Sure, their ninja can all fight, but when it really matters, don't they still depend on funding from the Daimyo's Mansion?"
As Kakuzu listened to Tetsuya, he grew thoughtful and occasionally nodded in agreement.
"So being a ninja won't make you filthy rich. But doing business will, especially business with those nobles."
Tetsuya continued dangling grand promises before Kakuzu.
Market monopolies, capital accumulation, Money-for-Power Exchange, enclosing land for production, Financial Market Control, holding the Ninja World hostage through capital.
Listening to all this nearly sent Kakuzu into ecstasy.
An excited Kakuzu immediately stood up and bowed deeply to Tetsuya.
"I have wandered half my life, chasing wealth, believing myself the greatest money-maker under heaven.
Only upon meeting you today, sir, have I realized that I am merely a frog at the bottom of a well, seeing the sky through that narrow opening.
Compared to you, I am but a firefly before the bright moon above. Having heard your words, my admiration for you flows as endlessly as a mighty river.
From this day forward, I am willing to serve as your foot soldier and follow your lead in all things."
Tetsuya was delighted by Kakuzu's words. Who knew you, a black-faced miser, could be so eloquent?
It made sense. Even if eloquence did not come naturally to him, he had lived so long and met so many people that he would have picked up a few things along the way.
"Come on, Kakuzu, there's no need for that. We share a hobby—or rather, an ideal. We're like-minded partners. How about making money with me?"
"Then I would be honored to accept."
First he had beaten the fellow up, then offered him something he was interested in. With that two-pronged approach, there was no way Kakuzu would refuse to put his life on the line for him.
"All right, from now on, we're friends and partners. No need to be so nervous."
Tetsuya patted him on the shoulder.
"You lost four of your five hearts in that fight. Go replenish them and recover your strength first. Once you're done, you can wait for me at the Chiba Grand Hotel in the Land of Fire's Capital City. Take this."
As he spoke, Tetsuya took a key from his pocket.
"Is this... a key?"
Kakuzu grew a little excited. Could it be the key to the Treasury?
"This is the key to the Chiba Grand Hotel Main Gate. It also serves as a token. Take it to the Chiba Grand Hotel, and the person staying there won't give you any trouble."
Hearing this, Kakuzu suddenly recalled the intelligence he had received earlier. It said that Chiba Tetsuya had a powerful ninja by his side protecting him.
After fighting Tetsuya, he had assumed the intelligence was wrong. There was no ninja; Tetsuya himself was the powerful one.
Now it seemed the intelligence was correct. It was simply that, with a ninja like that protecting him, no one had ever been able to force Tetsuya to fight, leading the information broker to believe he was merely an ordinary man under someone's protection.
Thinking it over, joining Tetsuya meant having at least two experts backing him, including Tetsuya himself. Two fighters at or above the strength of an S-Rank Rogue Ninja—that was no ordinary foundation.
Coupled with what Tetsuya had told him earlier, the realization startled Kakuzu.
This Chiba Tetsuya is planning something big. He has money and powerful fighters at his disposal. If I join them, won't everything be smooth sailing?
Even so, that would not stop Kakuzu from going back and ripping out that information broker's heart.
"All right, I'll be leaving first, then. Once I've recovered, I'll come find you at the Chiba Grand Hotel, boss."
"Sounds good. See you then."
Tetsuya waved goodbye to Kakuzu.
Kakuzu vanished into the woods with the Body Flicker Technique.
"Ah, wonderful. Even in that era when overpowered monsters were everywhere, Kakuzu would still count as an expert, let alone now."
Besides, Kakuzu's most promising quality was not his strength, but his ability to make money.
Kakuzu loved money and was already skilled at earning it. Now Tetsuya had also shown him a path forward.
At the thought, Tetsuya's lips curled upward despite himself.
To put it bluntly, the Ninja World was a feudal society. He would have Kakuzu bring about the rise of capital in a world like this.
"Heh heh heh..."
Just as he was indulging in his fantasies, a pulse of Chakra reached him.
Tetsuya reacted immediately.
"Looks like Konoha's ninja noticed the commotion from the fight and came over. Tsk, I wonder if they saw the Susanoo.
But whatever. I still have Izuna to fall back on."
He had saved Tobirama while posing as Izuna back then. He did not believe for a second that Tobirama had failed to tell the Third Hokage and the others that Izuna was still alive.
With that thought, Tetsuya quickly left the scene.
For now, he would let Izuna take the blame for this.
Not long after Tetsuya left, several Konoha ninja wearing animal masks appeared.
"This should be the place. It certainly looks like a battle took place here."
The masked ninja leading them could not help feeling alarmed at the traces of battle before him.
An ordinary person could hardly have caused destruction on this scale. And there was that golden giant they had seen earlier...
"Examine the scene. Don't overlook even the slightest clue."
"Yes!"
The masked ninja began examining the scene, investigating the clues left behind.
Soon, an intelligence report reached the desk in Konoha's Hokage Office.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, read the report carefully, his brow gradually furrowing.
"A golden giant... could it be the Uchiha Clan's Susanoo...?"
Deep in thought, Hiruzen Sarutobi took a long pull on his pipe, and smoke soon filled the Hokage Office.
Following their teacher's instructions, they had always kept their guard up against the Uchiha Clan. Whether its members were inside the village or carrying out missions elsewhere, someone always kept watch over them.
He knew all the Uchiha's movements within the village, so it could not have been one of Konoha's Uchiha.
He recalled what his teacher, Tobirama Senju, had told him back then.
Uchiha Izuna, a powerful member of the Uchiha Clan who had returned from the dead, was somewhere in the Ninja World, and he might come to Konoha at any moment.
And now...
"Could Uchiha Izuna have returned? What should I do, then?"
He took another deep pull on his pipe, sending smoke billowing upward.
Bang!
With a sudden crash, the door to the Hokage Office was pushed open.
A one-eyed man walked in. His expression was cold and sinister, and a distinct cross-shaped scar marked his chin.
"Monkey, something happened outside the village. Members of the Uchiha Clan left without permission and fought ninja from another village. Such an act is unquestionably treason. We must punish this evil Uchiha Clan!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed at those words.
I only just received the ANBU's report myself. How did you find out, Shimura Danzō?
There are Root operatives in the ANBU?!
Well done, Shimura Danzō. Very well done indeed.
Before you continue