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Danzo calmed his restless emotions because he wanted to recruit this young man and bring him to his side. This was the only practical way to use this ability for his own benefit.
Thinking about that, he adjusted his mood and laughed gently,
"Hahaha! That was just a joke. I already know these things; it only proves your amazing competence as a shop owner."
"The ability to make an illiterate person suddenly know how to read—even if only temporarily—is practically miraculous. I wonder how you accomplished it?"
While showing a friendly attitude, Danzo was confident in his ability to win over this chūnin who had suddenly risen from almost nothing. And he could also get more information about his abilities.
"Ah, so Danzo-sama was joking. Haha! I didn't expect you to have this sense of humor."
Internally, Rob wanted to slap this hypocritical idiot. No one knew how many people had fallen for that friendly smile… If Danzo knew Rob was going to expose everything about him in the manga, who knows how he would react?
"Please, come with me. It's uncomfortable to stay standing here, and many more customers are still coming into the store."
Before revealing anything, Rob led the way toward where the Third Hokage, Minato, and Kushina were seated.
Rob was intentionally gathering famous characters from the series in one place, in order to create a lively, interactive atmosphere that all these people would get used to later, whether good, evil, or even hypocrites following their own desires.
Since they were all humans—or conscious beings—they would all eventually be united by their love for Naruto's manga.
(Hehehe, the ninja world is about to be turned upside down because of my manga, I'm sooo excited.)
Rob wasn't scared. He was genuinely excited—extremely excited, in fact. Not only because of his abilities (which he was eager to test, by the way), but also because of the chaotic changes Naruto's manga would bring with each chapter!
Of course, the world would not remain the same after reading these manga chapters.
The storm had already begun, and its center was right here inside the Art Store of Konoha.
…
Danzo, Homura, and Koharu were all surprised by how comfortable the sofa they sat on was, so much so that they didn't want to stand up again. They even saw an expression of pure bliss on Hiruzen's face. He didn't greet them; he simply nodded and continued reading the manga with an expression of absolute delight.
Only now did they understand the reason behind it. They swallowed their irritation and shared the same bliss as the others… The Konoha Council chairs were like uneven rocks compared to this place! They could swear that even at this relatively young age (in their forties), they were suffering from constant back pain because of those Council chairs!
…
"That's right, Danzo-sama. The Knowledge Capsule is a sub-ninjutsu I was able to master after awakening my bloodline… We, the Uzumaki, place great importance on knowledge. Anyone who can't read or write is unworthy of carrying our clan's name…"
"By taking a Knowledge Capsule, anyone—even someone without chakra—can automatically learn how to read… It's extremely magical, but as you know, nothing is impossible in our world."
Rob gave a simple explanation since Danzo kept pushing to learn the deeper truth… Of course, he wouldn't tell him that the source of the Knowledge Pills was his System Shop, right?
As soon as Rob opened the Art Store and people started coming in, many sighed in sadness because they didn't know how to read… In this world, only a few lucky ones were educated. Most either couldn't read or only knew a handful of words.
To solve this issue and ensure he earned every coin he could from Art Currency and experience, Rob kept spending money to buy Knowledge Capsules and dedicated a private room for illiterate people. They would go in, take the pill, and walk out able to read—as long as they didn't leave the Art Store, the effect would remain active!
That's right—Rob was delighted when he found a solution to this terrible problem through his System Shop. The Knowledge Pills had no side effects, and that was the most important part. But they did have huge benefits—after taking ten pills, a person would become fully literate!
This meant his art store wasn't just for entertainment—it was a means of eradicating illiteracy! Later, this realization would make everyone appreciate it far more than they already did.
Rob kept a stiff smile even though his heart was bleeding as he watched the hard-earned coins he had saved slowly disappear because he kept buying so many Knowledge Capsules! Each pill costs 5 coins!
'This is robbery! The average person only gives around 10 coins! How is it my fault that people in this world are illiterate!?'
Rob wanted to scream this and protest in front of the system, but all he could do was cry silently.
Fortunately, after taking ten capsules, a person became fully literate and would never need another pill again.
Since his store would soon receive hundreds—no, thousands—of customers, there would naturally be thousands of illiterate people among them, meaning he would have to spend thousands of art coins as well.
This meant he had to accelerate his growth, earning more money, gaining more experience, and evolving. There was no room for fear of the future… If Danzo wanted to scheme against him, all Rob needed to do was summon the strongest person from another world and crush him to dust.
'No! I need him alive! He gives too many coins and too much experience!'
That's right—Danzo, just like the Third Hokage, was a walking bank. The moment he read the first chapter, Rob immediately got a thousand art coins.
[+1002 AC from Danzo Shimura.]
'How lucky you are, you evil bastard… Just wait until I drain every last coin from you—you'll see how much I'll enjoy tearing your tendons apart, you rotten scumbag.'
Rob outwardly showed a friendly smile, but inwardly, he was laughing wickedly with a sinister expression. Danzo didn't know why he suddenly felt a chill, but he sensed that smile was fake… In this aspect, this "Rubirō" was exactly like him.
His desire to recruit him multiplied tenfold! Especially after reading this art form called manga.
…
"Uzumaki Naruto? Complete trash! How the hell can he not even make a proper clone? Since when does our ninja academy produce such garbage?"
Danzo said loudly, causing Kushina's expression to turn terrifying.
But before she could scream at Danzo and curse him, Minato covered her mouth and whispered,
'Don't. That's Danzo-sama, the head of our village's Council… and also the leader of the Anbu.'
Hearing that, a cold shiver ran up Kushina's body. She had almost insulted the second most influential man in the village… That wouldn't kill her, but it would definitely make her life much harder.
'Thank you…'
Kushina blushed as she felt Minato's body pressed gently against hers, his hand softly covering her mouth.
Minato heard her whisper, "Thank you," and finally let her go… He really was quick-witted. He knew her fiery personality and her deep fondness for Naruto, which is why he had shifted his focus from the manga chapter for a moment—to stop her from doing something reckless.
Danzo didn't notice, but the Third Hokage did. He simply didn't care. He looked at Danzo calmly and said,
"Keep reading, Danzo. You'll be shocked at the end of the first chapter when you see how talented Naruto really is."
"Shocked? Tch. Hiruzen… do you think anything can shock us at our level?"
Danzo said mockingly.
"He is truly pitiful. That poor little boy."
Koharu Utatane covered her mouth as she said this sadly while watching the scene of Naruto sitting alone on the swing.
Koharu wasn't the only one who felt sad for Naruto at that moment—many civilians and ninjas alike felt the same, especially the orphans among them.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 15: The Kyūbi Appears!
Chapter 16: The First Villain: Mizuki.
Chapter 17: Is Naruto the Kyuubi?
Chapter 18: A Sad Backstory for Teacher and Student
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BlackStar_BH:
The chapters currently available on Patreon are up to Chapter 20.
I will be uploading more over the coming days, heavily, starting today—up to 50 advanced chapters.
But I won't neglect updating here either, and I'll also be updating frequently.
For now, you can read all the advanced chapters for only $5 in the Silver Tier, and also on Ko-fi.