Takahashi Yū walked out of the Hokage Building and glanced back up at the Hokage's office.
Wisps of smoke drifted from the half-open window. Did the ANBU around the Hokage breathe secondhand smoke every day?
His clothes bulged with title deeds and money. There was no helping it. Takahashi Yū knew no ninjutsu, so naturally, he could not use storage scrolls either.
He could only stuff everything into his clothes. Only someone like Takahashi Yū could manage it-with his enormous body and equally large clothes, he had enough room to hold it all.
War merits were worth a lot. He had exchanged his for a plot of land comparable in size to the Hyūga and Uchiha Clan Compounds combined.
Although it was far from the center of Konoha, it had a river, mountains, and arable land. Towering trees currently covered it, which would save him plenty of effort finding timber.
After exchanging his merits for the land, he still had roughly seven S-rank wartime missions' worth left. Since he had no need for ninjutsu, he exchanged it all for cash, receiving a little over twenty million ryō.
An S-rank wartime mission was worth close to three million ryō. Even seven combined fell short of Asuma's thirty-five-million-ryō bounty on the black market in later years.
Konoha really was a rip-off!
Still, exchanging merits for money offered the worst value, but nothing else appealed to Takahashi Yū. A single high-end ninjutsu could cost three or four S-rank missions' worth of merits.
Marveling at the obscene profits of a monopoly, Takahashi Yū headed home. He would put away the deeds, then find a carpenter. His grand farming venture was about to begin.
When the redheads at home learned that Takahashi Yū wanted to establish a large farm, their eyes lit up.
Perhaps, having lost their home, they too understood the profound sense of security that land provided.
Mizuki Uzumaki cradled the deeds Takahashi Yū had tossed onto the table as though they were treasure.
Seeing Takahashi Yū laughing at her from beside her, Mizuki blushed in embarrassment.
Only then did Takahashi Yū understand just how much weight the word "follow" carried when Uzumaki Shui Ling said it.
Judging by the girl's behavior, perhaps she already considered herself one of Takahashi Yū's own.
Knowing that Takahashi Yū was going to find a carpenter shortly, Mizuki stared at him with her big, glistening eyes.
"All right, all right, stop staring. You can come along."
Takahashi Yū surrendered under her stare. He suddenly felt that Mizuki Uzumaki had become livelier.
Uzumaki Shui Ling watched with amusement. The words she had spoken to Mizuki after Takahashi Yū left had worked.
Once Mizuki Uzumaki had taken the two tiny redheads upstairs, Takahashi Yū led her toward the iron fence less than five hundred meters from his home.
After cutting a large hole in the wire fence, Takahashi Yū stepped onto the land that now belonged to him first. Later, this entrance would become the farm's main gate. All the wire fencing would go, replaced with wooden fences. That would give it a proper farm feel.
Takahashi Yū planned the renovations in his head as he cleared a path through the dense woods. After taking Mizuki around the undeveloped farm, he felled the trees in its center to clear a site for the farmhouse.
Takahashi Yū was very pleased with the land. It was even better than he had imagined. Since it was close to the center of Konoha, the woods had no large wild animals.
The terrain was flat and the soil fertile, suitable for growing crops or raising livestock. He could even fish on the farm and hunt in the mountains to the north.
Perfect!
Mizuki Uzumaki was smiling too. Although Takahashi Yū found her dramatic change in such a short time strange, he did not ask about it.
This was much better than excessive deference. Takahashi Yū did not want a twelve- or thirteen-year-old girl treating him with painstaking respect every day.
"Come on, let's ask around and hire the best carpenter to give our farm a proper makeover."
Takahashi Yū stepped through the hole he had made earlier, patted the thick stacks of banknotes in his clothes, and headed toward Hot Springs Street with complete confidence. Perhaps because she had heard him say "our farm," Mizuki's smile deepened, and she hurried after him.
Following a kind woman's directions, Takahashi Yū and Mizuki arrived at the home of the supposedly best carpenter in Konoha.
Takahashi Yū stepped forward and knocked lightly. A response soon came from inside. A stubble-faced man in his prime opened the door and, after learning why they had come, welcomed Takahashi Yū and Mizuki inside.
Takahashi Yū looked around. The carpenter the woman had recommended as Konoha's best did not seem to live very well. He lifted the hot tea the carpenter had poured him; it contained only a single, pitiful tea leaf. Mizuki looked equally puzzled beside him.
"Lord Takahashi Yū, are you looking to remodel your house?" Noticing their doubts, the carpenter hurriedly brought out a booklet and asked Takahashi Yū.
"I built your current house when I was young, too," the carpenter told Takahashi Yū calmly upon seeing Mizuki's doubtful expression.
The carpenter had great confidence in the houses he built. He believed Takahashi Yū was very satisfied with his current home.
Hearing this, Takahashi Yū's trust in him immediately soared, and he eagerly leafed through the booklet the carpenter had brought out.
"No, I have a plot of land. I want to build a farm," Takahashi Yū replied.
The booklet contained buildings the carpenter had constructed throughout his career. After browsing for a while, Takahashi Yū found that the designs were all very much to his taste, so he handed it to Mizuki.
"A farm! How much land?" The carpenter grew excited.
A big job!
Takahashi Yū took the map from inside his clothes, spread it on the table, and showed the carpenter the circled area.
"I want you to build a manor house at least three times the size of my house, a warehouse, and a wooden fence around the entire property."
"Hmm... I'll consider anything else once those are finished."
Takahashi Yū laid out his requirements directly.
His face excited and his eyes shining, the carpenter took out an abacus and a sheet of paper. He swiftly began calculating, recording figures with one hand while rapidly working the abacus with the other.
"Lord Takahashi Yū, if I remember correctly, that area is mostly woodland, right?"
Without waiting for Takahashi Yū's answer, the carpenter continued on his own.
"In that case, we won't need to account for timber costs. What about the warehouse? How big should it be?"
"The same size as the house," Takahashi Yū said lavishly, holding his cup.
The carpenter said nothing more and buried himself in frantic calculations.
By the time Mizuki picked a style, the carpenter's wildly moving hands had stopped too.
"My lord, a conservative estimate would be at least seven million ryō. With enough workers, I can finish it in three months!"
Hearing this, Takahashi Yū recalled the price of an ordinary house that the woman had told him.
He nodded and extended his enormous, fan-sized hand.
"Deal!"
The fact that this carpenter had built his parents' house was enough to seal the deal.
After they shook hands, however, the carpenter began to look hesitant to speak.
"Lord Takahashi Yū, could I find the workers myself? I guarantee their wages will be below the market rate! And it won't delay construction."
Takahashi Yū took a stack of money, roughly four million ryō, from inside his clothes and placed it on the table.
"Of course. As long as it's completed without a hitch. Here's the deposit," Takahashi Yū said casually.
The carpenter saw the two of them out, then clenched his fist behind the door and punched the air hard.
The orphanage was saved!
Evening drew near.
After leaving the carpenter's home, the two headed back to their own. Having arranged the work to come, Takahashi Yū felt completely at ease. He walked along Konoha's broad street with Mizuki, the lingering sunset still radiating warmth. The farm that would soon be built and a peaceful life were both slowly taking shape as Takahashi Yū hoped.
"Lord Orochimaru and Lady Tsunade will return to the village in triumph tomorrow!"
A shout suddenly rang out. Once again, a ninja was leaping across the rooftops, calling out once in each area without lingering.
He left only the villagers discussing the news in the streets.
Takahashi Yū also heard the Sarutobi ninja's powerful shout.
Damn it. I'd lost out.
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