The Way to Redemption Lies Within
Kakuzu's ears rang with a crackling buzz, and for the first time in a long while, he felt lost.
All those years he had spent diligently taking bounty jobs to earn money now seemed absurdly laughable.
Could money really be made like this?
Was it only this little white-haired brat playing the game this way, or had everyone else been doing it too?
But none of that mattered anymore.
Master, please teach me!
This was basically making money while lying down. If he did not learn it, he would be a fool.
"Kid... no... that's not right... Sir, could you teach me?"
Kakuzu's hoarse voice trembled slightly. Asking a brat for guidance in front of so many people was a first for him.
His pitiful little self-respect was still struggling, but Kakuzu ignored it. How much money could self-respect be worth?
If it was worth something, he would sell all of it. Besides, right now he was using that self-respect to make a withdrawal.
"You want to learn futures from me?"
White Fang was a little surprised. He did not actually understand futures either. Every move he had made had been carried out under Hokage-sama's direct guidance.
But White Fang did not panic. Hokage-sama had already prepared everything for him.
How could a proper expert not have a few disciples?
Without followers, what kind of expert would that be?
"Yes!"
Kakuzu's tone was sincere, and his eyes burned as he stared at White Fang. A method this profitable was something he absolutely had to learn.
White Fang pulled a small booklet from inside his clothes. It was filled with Haru's stock-trading insights from his previous life. As long as someone learned it, they could become a qualified leek.
There were no real secrets to stock trading. Only insiders and the market makers actually made money.
"The way to redemption lies within."
White Fang handed the booklet to Kakuzu.
On the cover were a few shining gold words:
From Zero to Stock Trading Master!
After saying that, White Fang left his seat and drifted away under the eyes of the crowd.
Hokage-sama had instructed him to maintain the image of an expert. He only needed to give an occasional speech, but when passing on the secret manual, he had to remain mysterious.
People only believed you were profound if you said things they could not understand.
That line just now had also been taught to him by Hokage-sama, who had said that when he handed over the booklet, he had to say it exactly like that.
White Fang did not understand why, but if Hokage-sama had arranged it, then there had to be a deeper meaning behind it.
Kakuzu accepted the booklet and, watching White Fang leave, quickly asked one more question.
"Please, Sir, leave your name!"
"Just call me White Fang."
A trace of reverence rose in Kakuzu's heart. It seemed he had really met a master.
To obtain a secret manual so easily...
Knowledge monopolies in the ninja world were severe. If you wanted to learn anything real, either you had to be born well or join an organization like a ninja village and sell your life to them.
Kakuzu impatiently opened the manual.
The people nearby surged forward all at once, all wanting to know what exactly was written in the secret text White Fang had left behind.
"The essence of investment lies in taking what others cast aside."
"..."
"Everyone else dies, but I don't."
"..."
Kakuzu had only flipped the first page and was just about to study it carefully when he noticed a crowd had already gathered around him.
He immediately snapped the booklet shut.
This was a secret manual Master White Fang had given him.
Did they think they could freeload off it?
If they all learned it too, then how was he supposed to make money?
"Get lost!"
Kakuzu erupted with killing intent. The temperature in the hall seemed to drop several degrees. That unrestrained murderous aura made the crowd scatter immediately.
A sense of mortal danger crawled over them, and they shuddered. Compared to money, life was obviously more important. Besides, just because you got hold of a profound secret manual did not mean you could actually learn from it.
In one world, the road to success might be full of free knowledge like advanced math, physics, and chemistry.
But how many people could truly master them?
Seeing that everyone had backed away, Kakuzu nodded in satisfaction. He found a seat in the service hall and began reading carefully.
The content inside really was full of golden truths. As he read, Kakuzu kept nodding. He deeply agreed with the theory of leeks.
No wonder Master White Fang had managed to make money.
Hokage Office
The office looked different from before.
There was now a long couch inside.
Haru had his head resting on Faye's thigh. Her smooth, pale legs were cool to the touch, and the feeling was excellent.
Faye's fair little hands were gently massaging his head, while Lynn sat nearby peeling grapes and feeding them to him.
Luxury.
Pure, shameless luxury.
Haru had finally given up struggling over dignity. The whole village already knew about Faye and Lynn anyway, so there was no point pretending anymore. He had simply brought them into the office and made them his secretaries.
That way, they would not sit around bored at home all day, only to have too much energy at night and cling to him endlessly.
At first, Haru had enjoyed it immensely.
But after a while, it became a little hellish.
It was deeply tragic when the hardware could not keep up.
Knock knock knock.
A series of knocks sounded at the door, breaking Haru's enjoyment of life.
He rose with some reluctance. This was still working hours, and as Hokage he could not slack off too blatantly in front of his subordinates.
After straightening his clothes, Haru called for the person to enter.
Tomita stepped inside holding an urgent report.
The moment he entered, he saw Faye and Lynn and frowned slightly. Broad daylight, the door closed, and two beautiful girls in the room.
Hokage-sama, you really cannot keep slacking off like this.
Still, Tomita said nothing. This was his superior's private matter. It was not his place as a subordinate to comment on it.
"Faye, Lynn, step outside for a moment."
Seeing the anxious look on Tomita's face, Haru knew something must have happened on the front lines. There was important intelligence to discuss.
After Haru spoke, Faye and Lynn obediently left, leaving only Haru and Tomita in the room.
"There's urgent military news from the Kirigakure front!"
Haru's heart skipped. The attack timing had not yet arrived, so why was there already trouble on the Kirigakure side?
"Explain the situation in detail!"
"Kirigakure and Uzushio's ninja have already clashed..."
"..."
Tomita gave a full explanation.
Kirigakure sat isolated overseas, a giant island nation. Its geography was somewhat like an island power from another world that loved stirring trouble, though clearly Kirigakure did not have the same fate. Its strength was not enough, and its strategy of balancing the continent had never really worked.
This time, in preparation for a surprise attack on Konoha, Kirigakure had been secretly moving troops and supplies.
But even with all that secrecy, something still slipped through the cracks and was discovered by Konoha's good brother, Uzushio.
The Uzukage personally led Uzushio's ninja in a surprise raid on Kirigakure's harbor, trying to burn the warships Kirigakure planned to use for its sneak attack on Konoha.
They had not even sent Konoha advance notice.
What a truly devoted brother village.
The Land of Whirlpools was a small nation, and Uzushio was likewise a small ninja village. Though the Uzumaki clan had some real strength, against a great village like Kirigakure, they were still like an egg hitting a stone.
Normally, when small villages ran into something like this, they hid as fast as they could. The Land of Grass, for example, sat between Konoha, Sunagakure, and Amegakure, which in the future would try to become the sixth great ninja village. Whichever side looked stronger, Grass would lean toward them. They were pure fence-sitters.
But this time, Uzushio had acted first.
In another timeline, Konoha had not exactly behaved like a proper ally. Good brothers in the heart, but somehow unreachable whenever trouble came.
This raid had probably planted the seeds of the Uzumaki clan's destruction.
(End of Chapter)
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