BlackStar_BH:
More Power Stones and comments, guys!
Enjoy the new chapter!
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A brief silence fell inside the Art Store.
Rob was confident in his stance, but for Shazan, Chiyo, Ebizō, and the rest of Sunagakure's shinobi, their rejection of foreign culture was clear—yet it had been shaken by Rob's words.
In a battle of words, silence became the wisdom of leaders; they knew that a single wrong sentence could be more dangerous than any forbidden technique.
The Third Kazekage, Saburo no Shazan, kept his gaze fixed on Rob, his fingers slowly tightening around the armrest of the luxurious leather chair. He was no longer acting as a customer, but as the leader of a village, weighing a new threat that had entered his territory without true permission.
That was true—Rob had used cunning mixed with force to gain entry.
"Art…?" he finally said, his tone unnervingly calm.
"We have fought wars over a single information, and you're telling me this is just a story?"
Rob did not answer immediately.
Instead, he slowly turned, took an empty glass cup, and placed it on the counter before him. Then he filled it with a transparent liquid—colorless, odorless.
"Do you know what this is?" Rob asked.
One of the ANBU shinobi behind the Kazekage tensed, thinking Rob was mocking their intelligence, but Chiyo slightly raised her hand, signaling him not to intervene.
"Water," the Third Kazekage replied calmly.
Rob nodded.
"Correct. Water. It does not kill, does not wound, does not destroy. And yet… oceans are filled with it. It can drown cities and redraw the maps of the world."
He raised the glass slightly before their eyes.
"Art is like this water. It carries no chakra, forms no seals, and declares no hostile intent… yet it seeps in." Rob smiled as he looked at the glass in his hand.
The Kazekage frowned. "Beautiful words. but they only reinforce my stance against your art, they do not dispel my doubts."
Rob smiled faintly. "I never said I wanted to."
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
This was no longer the talk of a merchant justifying his goods, but of a man who knew exactly where he stood.
"Let me be clear, Kazekage-sama," Rob continued.
"If I wanted to influence Sunagakure, I wouldn't have started with a manga that portrays Konohagakure as weak, discriminatory, and divided from within."
At those words, Chiyo stopped turning the pages and slowly lifted her head.
"…Weak?" she asked.
Rob gestured to the book in her hands.
"A child burdened with a sealed demon, hated by his own village. A clan-based system that hides its fractures behind slogans of will. Heroes crushed under cowardly political decisions—this manga carries all of that within its pages."
Then he looked directly at Shazan.
"Is this propaganda, or fabrication?" the Kazekage asked with a curious expression.
"You're from Konoha, aren't you?" The Kazekage's eyes gleamed as he voiced his guess plainly.
"That's right," Rob replied simply—no concealment, no lies, no hesitation.
Hearing that, a faint smile appeared on the Third Kazekage's face. Somehow, he appreciated Rob's honesty at this stage.
"You said earlier that you opened a store like this in Konohagakure and published this story there as well. From what I know of Hiruzen and his companions, it's impossible that they would make your days easy because of this book."
"That's also true…" Rob replied calmly.
"Then you know you may become the common enemy of two villages or more, and yet you're still determined to move forward with your story?" Shazan asked, his tone colder this time.
"Fully prepared," Rob said shortly.
Ebizō, who had been observing in silence, crossed his arms and spoke slowly:
"You're clever. Too clever. And that's what worries me."
"Natural," Rob replied calmly. "Everything new is worrying."
The Kazekage slowly rose from his seat.
He stood at his full height, with a presence that had terrified entire battlefields, then took just one step toward the counter.
"Understand this well," he said in a low but sharp voice.
"Sunagakure is not a testing ground. And I will not allow anything—art, trade, or even prophecy to plant seeds of unrest among my shinobi."
Rob did not retreat.
Nor did he challenge him.
He gave a slight bow—closer to acknowledging boundaries than submitting.
"That is precisely why I opened my store after the war, not during it."
He raised his head and continued:
"If the world were stable, no one would need art. Art appears after bloodshed… not before it. My manga is not a political weapon, nor is it under the control of any power. I alone am responsible for what I draw and what I publish."
Chiyo and Ebizō exchanged a glance.
This was not the language of an agitator.
Nor the language of a spy.
It was the language of someone who saw the world from an entirely different angle.
Shazan let out a deep breath.
"…You will remain under surveillance," he finally said.
"Everything you sell, everything you publish, will pass under our eyes."
Rob smiled—this time, sincerely.
"That's all I ask."
The Kazekage turned, signaling his entourage to move.
Before returning to his seat, he paused for a moment without turning back.
"One last thing," he added.
"Go ahead."
"If your story ever reaches Sunagakure… and portrays my village."
He paused for a second.
"Make it truthful."
Rob replied without hesitation:
"I promise." It was a sincere promise.
Rob truly was drawing the Naruto manga as it was meant to be—what was supposed to happen, what had already happened in the past, and what would happen in the future.
All of it was entirely truthful, manifested within entertaining manga volumes.
The leaders of this world—the clever ones among them—might sense that something was off. They might see their interests being threatened.
They might come knocking on his door to hold him accountable… all of that would become reality once the manga moved from its foundational parts to the parts that revealed the secrets of this world.
At that time, the world would be laid bare to everyone living in this era.
This was Rob—the man who used the Art Store and art itself as a mirror through which the people of this world could see the truth of their reality, without fabrication, distortion, or lies.
At that moment, Shazan stood before the manga shelves, where the second volume of Naruto rested.
He took out 30 ryō from his pocket and placed it on the shelf.
The money vanished into thin air, and the oppressive power over one of the manga volumes disappeared.
A blue interface appeared before the Third Kazekage's eyes:
[Payment confirmed. You may take one volume.]
Shazan admired the technology behind this purchasing system and praised it inwardly before taking his volume.
Then, before returning to his seat, he signaled the other Sunagakure shinobi.
Upon receiving the signal, they hurried to buy the second volume, while others left to organize the entry of civilians and more shinobi into the Art Store.
In the end, Rob obtained official authorization from the village leaders to distribute his manga within Sunagakure—though everything would remain under surveillance.
Rob sighed in relief as he watched this unfold. His gamble had succeeded in the end.
…
Far from the desert climate and raging winds of the Land of Wind, the Land of Fire was its complete opposite—lush forests, a spring-like climate, and abundant wildlife.
In Konohagakure, the day was unlike any other that month, as it was the most anticipated day for the villagers.
It wasn't only civilians who were waiting for it; Konoha's shinobi themselves were on edge with anticipation.
The day the next volume of Naruto manga will be released!
…
"The store usually opens at nine in the morning and stays open until ten at night. Then the lights automatically go out and the golden doors close."
"Even if you don't want to leave, you'll be forcibly kicked out. The store has a strict internal policy regarding time."
"I know. Last week I drank too much and passed out. When I woke up, I found myself on the grass in front of the store… I slept outside all night."
"Hahaha! You're not the only one, man. This has happened to a lot of people. The alcohol served at the Art Store is the best. I used to think no sake could get me drunk, but I passed out after just one glass of champagne! Can you believe that?"
"Looks like Konoha's taverns are going to declare bankruptcy soon. Prices at the Art Store are cheap, and on top of that, the place makes me feel absurdly luxurious inside."
"I really love the Art Store!"
"When will the next Naruto chapters be released?"
"Today's the promised day, right?"
Throughout Konoha, the only topic occupying people's minds was the Art Store and the next Naruto chapters.
At that moment, at exactly nine in the morning, the golden doors of the Art Store opened, sending a golden radiance across the entire village.
Everyone within the village's boundaries could see what was happening simply by looking toward the village center.
…
The Third Hokage stood on the balcony of the Hokage's office, gazing toward the center of the village.
[New! Volume Two — Naruto Manga — Now on the Shelves!]
The bold letters gleamed with golden brilliance on the massive advertising board of the Art Store.
"You're finally here…" Hiruzen said with a smile.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 54: The Meaning of Failure.
Chapter 55: Teamwork. And Reactions.
Chapter 56: Defining Trash. Sakumo's Tears.
Chapter 57: Shinobi Rankings and Missions in Konoha!
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BlackStar_BH:
The chapters currently available on Patreon are up to Chapter 78.
There are 25 advanced chapters available now:
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In the coming days, chapters will be made available for all tiers, reaching up to 50 advanced chapters… Enjoy!