"Oh?"
When Nadare Rōga heard this, he was stunned at first, and then he seemed to have grasped something. The sarcastic look on his face became thicker, and his voice was raised a bit, deliberately so that everyone present could hear clearly. "It seems that our loyal Lord Asama Sandayu, when serving Lord Early Spring, his hands were very diligent in digging into his pocket!"
Two Million Ryō!
Tsk tsk, this is not the amount you can save with your meager salary and the salary of Her Royal Highness, right?
Could it be that Lord Early Spring's so-called squandering of the national treasury back then was also due to you?"
His heart-breaking words were extremely vicious. He not only tried to portray Sandayu as a corrupt hypocrite, but also completely discredited Kazahana Sōshun and shaken the trust in Sandayu in the hearts of the crew members and even Kazahana Koyuki.
The crew members looked at each other with a bit of suspicion in their eyes.
Yes, how could an exiled veteran get such a huge sum of money?
Is it really what Nadare Rōga said?
Is this Sandayu a treacherous and corrupt official?
Kazahana Koyuki frowned and looked at Sandayu with complicated eyes.
She never believed that Sandayu would be corrupt, but the origin of Two Million Ryo was indeed a mystery.
Faced with this sudden slander and everyone's suspicious looks, Asama Sandayu instead of panicking, straightened his rickety back and sneered. The laughter was full of disdain for Nadare Rōga's despicable tricks.
"Humph, the heart of a villain!"
His cloudy old eyes were unusually clear at the moment.
"I Sandayu have the breeze on my sleeves, I am worthy of heaven and earth, and I am worthy of Lord Early Spring.
This money comes so cleanly, it is God's blessing, and it is proof that fate still has a little mercy for Land of Snow!"
He took a deep breath, as if to let out ten years of accumulated depression, and said loudly, "That's right, three months ago, I got lucky at the Land of Fire Konohagakure lottery station and won the jackpot, five million taels!"
"Wow--!"
The crew let out low exclamations.
Lottery jackpot!
This is more convincing and legendary than any explanation.
Sandayu continued, with a hint of excitement in his voice. "After deducting the taxes, I actually got more than four million taels.
I didn't dare to touch even a penny of this windfall. The only thought in my mind was that this was a god-given military expenditure.
It is the starting capital to revive Land of Snow, welcome back the princess, and defeat the traitors!"
He looked at Koyuki with burning eyes, and then glanced at Nadare Rōga, "If I hadn't obtained this money, which gave me the confidence to contact the old department and purchase supplies, how could I have met the drunken hero Lord Jiraiya in that tavern?
How can you urge Director to restart the "Princess Gale" series and use this as a cover to embark on the road back home?"
His words were sonorous and powerful, and he vividly portrayed the image of an old minister who suddenly saw hope in a desperate situation, then made a desperate move and made careful plans.
The loyalty that was so deep that it was almost stubborn, the love for the homeland, and the determination to bet all hopes and huge sums of money on an adventure that was almost a gamble, moved many people present. The previous doubts disappeared and were replaced by respect and emotion.
Kazahana Koyuki's eyes filled with tears, and his heart felt sad and warm at the same time.
Sandayu... You are so loyal!
But at this moment, Naruto Uzumaki, who had always been the focus of the conflict, made an action that surprised everyone.
There was a soft sound, and the Golden Light that was flashing with Longsword a moment ago was flicked by his wrist, and he made a clean and neat sword flower, and then accurately put it into the sheath on his waist. His movements were smooth and smooth, as if the fierce blow just now had never happened.
He turned around, no longer facing the stern silhouette of the enemy, but with an almost helpless and lazy look, looking in the direction of the cart, and raised his voice:
"Hey, foster father, did you hear that? Two Million Ryō, kill three."
He scratched the blond hair on the back of his head, and his tone was casual, as if he was discussing what to have for dinner.
"I can't make the decision on this 'big business'.
You have to talk to my adoptive father."
The whole place fell silent again.
Naruto's behavior was really unexpected.
With the strength he just showed, it is not difficult to deal with the three Nadare Rōga, even if the opponent has Chakra Armor.
Moreover, Naruto was solely responsible for protecting the crew along the way. His statement that he could not make the decision was obviously just an excuse.
On the cart, the brocade quilt moved slightly, and there was a vague mutter, "Brat... I know how to use the old man..."
But Jiraiya still had no intention of getting up, but the snoring seemed to have become deliberately unnatural.
Naruto The corners of his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.
Of course he made the decision.
It's just that he has been squeezed a bit hard by that old pervert recently. He does all the dirty, tiring and dangerous work, and nine out of ten of the rewards earned are taken away by Jiraiya in the name of "custody", "investment", "honoring the elders", etc., leaving him only a pitiful pocket money, which is called "exercising the mind and getting rid of material desires".
This time it's Two Million Ryō!
Even if most of it is taken away as usual, what is left will be enough for him to be wealthy for a while.
But more importantly, he didn't want his unscrupulous adoptive father, who was drunk all day long, paid off other women's money, and always pushed troubles to him, to continue to lie there leisurely watching the show.
"Oh... there's really nothing I can do against you."
A lazy sigh with a hint of heartache came from the direction of the trolley. Under everyone's focused gaze, Jiraiya, who was wrapped in a white brocade quilt and had been "drunk like mud", finally sat up slowly. His movements seemed casual, but when he opened the brocade quilt and narrowed his eyes that were always full of drunkenness and jest, an invisible pressure as thick as a mountain spread quietly, and even the howling wind and snow seemed to be stagnant.
His large black brocade robe (which was previously covered by a white brocade quilt and could not be seen clearly) unfolded like flowing water as he stood up. It was vaguely embroidered with the dark Red Eyes fairy rune pattern. Although it was stained with wine, it did not damage its profound and unpredictable demeanor. The white-haired hero casually patted the non-existent snowflakes on the robe, raised his right hand, and pointed in the direction of Naruto, as if he just made a casual move:
"Naruto, do it."
His tone was calm, as if he was just instructing a trivial matter.
However, the blond figure in the field did not move at all.
Naruto folded his arms and stood calmly on the spot. He even turned his head slightly and gave his adoptive father a "you know" look. The meaning was clear: White Fang is not allowed to talk in vain. The old rule is to talk about money first.
Seeing Naruto's reaction, Jiraiya's eyes twitched slightly, and he cursed in his heart that this little brat was getting better and better. Of course he knew what Naruto was waiting for - he had been a bit hard to squeeze (cross out) recently, but that was Two Million Ryō! That's all...
He gritted his teeth, as if he had made some great sacrifice. His voice was not loud, but it was loud enough for people nearby to hear clearly. "... This Two Million Ryō will pass through your hands first! Okay?" He specifically emphasized the word "first", implying that there may be a "custody" step afterwards, but at least for now, the control rights are temporarily transferred.
The words just fell--
"Deal!"
The laziness in Naruto's eyes dissipated instantly, replaced by a sharp light like an unsheathed blade! Almost at the same moment that Jiraiya's words fell, his figure disappeared from the place!
It is not as mysterious as Body Flicker Technique, but the extreme speed caused by the explosion of pure physical power, leaving only a circle of slightly swinging snow dust and a blurred afterimage of Golden in place!
"Not good! Hand Seals!"
Nadare Rōga reacted the fastest and shouted loudly.
The three of them were already on full alert. When they saw Naruto bursting out, they were still frightened, but their hands flew up almost at the same time. Afterimages appeared one after another, and Hand Seals was completed in an instant.
Unique to Land of Snow, the special Ice Release Ninjutsu is activated with the help of Chakra Armor and environmental bonuses.
"Ice Release·Tsubaki Snow!"
Fubuki Kakuyoku screamed and pushed with both hands. Countless ice crystal snowflakes as sharp as Shuriken condensed out of thin air, covering the sky and making a sharp sound of breaking through the air. Like a swarm of metal bees in a snowstorm, they enveloped the trajectory of Naruto's sprint.
"Ice Release·Blizzard!"
Fuyukuma Kōssetsu roared, slamming both palms into the snow.
With him as the center, a violent ice and snow tornado rose from the ground, rolling up thousands of piles of snow, forming a moving white barrier full of tearing and freezing power, crushing it horizontally, intending to block Naruto's advance route.
"Ice Release·One-Horned White Whale!"
Nadare Rōga, as the leader, performed the most powerful Ninjutsu. He put his palms together, Chakra surged wildly, and the snow in front exploded.
A giant whale made entirely of hard ice, with a ferocious horn on its head and a size comparable to a small house, emerged from the snow, let out a silent roar, and crashed into Naruto with the power of crushing everything.
Facing the Ice Release trio that almost blocked all dodge space, Naruto's sprint speed did not slow down at all.
"Wind Release·Wind Blade!"
Amidst the clear drink, the Longsword in his hand that had been sheathed was unsheathed again at some point. The sword was no longer the bright Golden Light before, but transformed into a more condensed, sharp and profound Blue Light that seemed to be able to cut everything.
Wind Release Chakra is highly compressed and attached, causing Longsword to emit a low and pleasant buzz.
The sword flashed!
There are no fancy moves, just the simplest and most direct horizontal slash!
The cyan arc light is like a crescent moon, accurately cutting into the intersection of "Yan Chui Snow" and "Blizzard".
The seemingly violent ice crystal snowflakes and ice and snow tornadoes were cut open and swept away as easily as a hot knife cutting butter in front of this extremely condensed Wind Blade.
The ice crystals shattered and splashed, and the blizzard tornado was cut with a huge gap. The strong wind blew back, making Fubuki Kakuyoku and Fuyukuma Kōssetsu's clothes dance wildly, and the blood on their faces faded.
After the gap, Naruto's figure had broken through the double blockade, and his eyes as blue as a cold pool coldly locked on Fubuki Kakuyoku, who was trying to adjust his posture with a horrified expression.
The moment their eyes met, Fubuki Kakuyoku felt a cold and piercing murderous intention, like an actual ice pick, piercing into her mind.
The blood all over her body seemed to freeze instantly, her legs were shaking uncontrollably, her heart was beating wildly, almost breaking her chest, her brain went blank, and even her breathing stopped.
The so-called Hand Seals, dodge, counterattack... all the fighting instincts completely failed under the suppression of this terrifying murderous intent.
And in this flash of lightning, her consciousness was swallowed up by fear.
The huge One-Horned White Whale, with great momentum, rushed to the top of Naruto's head. The cold shadow completely enveloped him, and its ferocious one-horned eye was about to penetrate him.
Naruto didn't look back, but the right wrist holding the sword shook back very slightly.
"Tsk--!"
A green sword light that was more solid than before slashed out from bottom to top.
There was no earth-shattering collision.
There was only a slight but heart-wrenching "hiss" sound, like glass being cut open by an extremely sharp blade.
It was like the sky opened, and some ice particles fell from the giant white whale.
Under the stunned and unbelievable gazes of the crew, Sandayu, and even Nadare Rōga and Fuyukuma Kōssetsu, that cyan sword light was like cutting tofu, cutting through the tip of the ice whale's horn without hesitation, and passing along the center line of its huge body!
A sword comes out and the whale falls.
The huge ice whale's forward momentum came to an abrupt halt.
Then, under everyone's frozen gaze, this Ice Release creation, which was strong enough to knock down a city wall, neatly split into two smooth mirror-like halves along the central axis.
The cut surface is so flat that it can illuminate the silhouette of a person, reflecting the gloomy clouds in the sky and the horrified faces of everyone.
"Boom..."
The two halves of the whale body lost their connection and collapsed, breaking into countless crystal ice cubes of different sizes, mixed with snowflakes all over the sky, and returned to the silent snowfield again, as if they had never appeared before.
But the figure of Naruto is no longer where it was.
Fubuki Kakuyoku felt a chill on my neck.
There seemed to be a breeze blowing.
Then, with her horrified eyes with dilated pupils, she saw an extremely strange yet extremely clear picture: below, a slim, headless body wearing a Snow Ninja uniform was slowly falling forward. The neck fracture was smooth and flat, and blood had not yet spewed out, only a trace of white gas came out.
That body... so familiar.
The posture of the slender hands Hand Seals, the Ninja Tool Pouch on the waist... yes...
That's...
Her own... body...
Consciousness, like a kite with broken strings, fell into the darkness and coldness of Eternity.
"Plop."
The headless corpse fell softly on the snow, splashing into a dazzling red and white.
Quiet.
Deathly silence.
Only Fengxue's whimpering sound seemed particularly harsh.
Naruto stood on the side of where Fubuki Kakuyoku fell. Longsword, whose Blue Light gradually dissipated, pointed diagonally at the ground. A drop of bright red blood slowly slid down the spine of the sword, creating a small red dot on the white snow.
The design of this sword is really good, and there is no blood on the blade.
He turned his head slightly and looked at the remaining Nadare Rōga and Fuyukuma Kōssetsu. There was no emotion in his blue eyes, only a frozen lake.
"The first one."
He said softly, as if he had just completed an insignificant count.
Nadare Rōga's face was as pale as snow. Fuyukuma Kōssetsu's huge body could not help but begin to tremble slightly.