"Of course, of course. Thanks for all your hard work these past two days. Ahaha..."
Seeing that her awkward laughter still failed to change Karn's expression, Tsunade continued.
"All right. Over the past two days, we've confirmed that your medicines really work exactly as described. I've already sent word to Konoha, and we'll definitely be buying them in bulk."
Karn let out a soft sigh at that. "That's good. To be honest, I've been away for quite a while. It would be nice to finish the deal as soon as possible."
"Don't worry," Tsunade reassured him. "Unless something unexpected happens, a group will be heading back to Konoha in three days. I'll go back with you then. I should be in charge of purchasing the medicines, but someone else will negotiate with you over the other supplies."
Karn glanced at Tsunade. After a moment's thought, he decided not to ask. But Tsunade noticed his look and asked, "What's wrong? Is there something you're wondering about?"
"I'm just a little curious," Karn said. "You must be very powerful. Is this really the time for you to go back and discuss a business deal with me? If you can't answer, just pretend I never asked."
"Why wouldn't I be able to answer that?"
Tsunade replied casually, "The war is almost over, so I'm going back with the wounded."
The Sand Ninja were also pulling back their defensive lines, having lost the will to continue the war. Caught between Konoha and the Rain Ninja, they had suffered considerably more casualties than the Konoha Ninja, all thanks to the execution of Danzo's plan.
If the fighting continued, Konoha would suffer heavy casualties, but the Sand Ninja would certainly collapse. That was why they had chosen to concede defeat.
At this point, Tsunade was less useful on the front lines. Returning to the village to work at Konoha Hospital and put her skills as a Medical Ninja to use was what she ought to be doing.
"That's good, then."
Karn did not know whether time in the two worlds was synchronized. He had already spent five days in the Hokage Universe, and twenty days or so was the longest he could tolerate staying. If he failed to return for too long, both Carl and the people around him would report him missing to the police and put out missing-person notices.
A few more days passed, and Tsunade led a group of wounded back to Konoha as the first returning contingent. Karn was among them.
Since he was not a ninja, Tsunade had thoughtfully arranged a horse-drawn carriage for him. After all, Karn would soon be Konoha's honored guest, and they needed to treat him well.
The journey took quite a while as well. By the time they reached Konoha, it was already the afternoon of the following day.
"We're here. This is Konoha. What do you think?"
Tsunade seemed to be showing off a little as she introduced it to Karn. Perhaps she felt that Konoha counted as a fairly prosperous village in the shinobi world, which explained the pride in her voice.
"Not bad. So, next..."
Karn spoke to Tsunade with an indifferent expression, entirely unimpressed by Konoha's prosperity. It was only a village. Even New York fifty years ago had been far more prosperous than this little place.
Seeing that Karn did not seem surprised, Tsunade clicked her tongue and said, "I'll get you settled somewhere so you can rest first. There are still plenty of empty houses at my place."
"Your place?"
Karn's expression shifted slightly. He immediately said, "Just find me an inn. Let's forget about your place, Tsunade-san. I'm only here to do business. We're not close enough for me to casually move into your home."
Karn would have to be declared insane on the spot before he agreed to move into the Senju Clan Compound.
Tsunade gave Karn a look after hearing that, then said, "Konoha doesn't have any inns. The only available places to stay right now are unassigned homes and ninja apartments. Neither is suitable for you. Besides, there are plenty of empty houses at my place, and staying in the Senju Clan Compound will make it easier to protect you."
What were you showing off about earlier if Konoha doesn't even have an inn?
Konoha had been founded only a little over thirty years earlier, and the village was still dominated by ninja clans. The Second Hokage's support for civilian ninja had begun only a little over a decade ago. Most businesses were run by ninja clans, and there really were no inns catering to outsiders.
From the outbreak of the First Shinobi World War to the Second Shinobi World War, the tense atmosphere in Konoha had never eased. After the Second Hokage's death, whether to avenge him or assert its strength, Konoha had never enjoyed a single day of true peace. Even the Second Shinobi World War had been initiated by Konoha.
Tsunade's offer to let Karn stay at her home temporarily had also been reported to and approved by the Third Hokage. Most importantly, the only person who could sense whether Karn harbored any malice without alerting him was Tsunade's grandmother, Mito Uzumaki.
No matter how deeply someone concealed their malice toward Konoha, it could not escape Mito Uzumaki's perception. Some time earlier, Konoha had used her ability to root out quite a few spies hiding within the village.
If Karn was an undercover agent sent by another ninja village, he would never escape Lady Mito's Malice Perception.
That was what Hiruzen Sarutobi had in mind. He would also assign ANBU to keep Karn under covert surveillance.
He could hardly be blamed for being so cautious. The medicines Karn had produced were simply too important, enough to influence the outcome of a war. If he had approached the Rain Ninja first, Konoha would have been the one in trouble.
Karn studied Tsunade for a long while and realized there was probably little room for negotiation. He sighed and said, "All right, then. Sorry for the trouble, Tsunade-san."
One complication after another. His first deal had not gone nearly as smoothly as Karn had imagined.
Then, with Tsunade leading the way, he arrived at the Senju Clan Compound. The two shinobi world wars had inflicted heavy casualties on the Senju Clan. On top of that, Hashirama Senju had dissolved the clan, having the other members abandon the Senju surname and integrate into Konoha. As a result, the entire compound felt deserted.
After arranging a place for Karn to stay, Tsunade told him, "Rest here for today. Tomorrow, I'll take you to see Teacher Sarutobi, the Third Hokage of Konoha."
"All right, understood. Unless something unexpected happens, I won't go out."
"There's no need to go that far. If you want to look around, just let me know." Tsunade felt rather helpless at Karn's excessive caution. The man truly had no interest in prying into Konoha's secrets. Throughout the journey, he had seemed terrified of hearing something he shouldn't.
After Tsunade left, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi stood respectfully beside an elderly red-haired woman in another large courtyard not far from Karn's house. Holding a crystal ball, he asked,
"Lady Mito, sorry for the trouble, but please use your ability to sense good and evil to see whether this man harbors any malice toward Konoha."
Hiruzen Sarutobi had already told Mito Uzumaki that Karn was staying in the Senju Clan Compound. With her sensory ability, she could easily pinpoint Karn's location and sense any malice in his heart.
If he had any ill intentions, there was absolutely no way he could conceal them from Mito Uzumaki.
After a while, Mito Uzumaki opened her eyes and told Hiruzen Sarutobi, "There is no malice in this man's heart."
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded at her words, then said, "Understood. I won't trouble you any further, Lady Mito."
With that, he left with the crystal ball, ready to make arrangements for the next day's trade negotiations.
Before you continue