At night, in the forest outside Kusagakure.
Yugito looked at the sixteen shinobi standing before her. Her eyes were fixed on her own teacher, her face filled with pride.
"How about it?"
"Not bad, right?"
Gekko Chizan looked at the fifteen shinobi in front of him. Six of them were from Kusagakure, and the rest were probably wandering shinobi.
The Land of Grass was, after all, a land of war, so the presence of wandering shinobi was perfectly normal.
One fat man, however, caught his attention. If he was not mistaken, this fat man should have been the Preta Path—one of the original Six Paths of Pain?
Yugito had actually taken in even this guy?
But it did not really matter. In any case, they were all people taken in to build an intelligence network.
"Not bad."
"Let me introduce myself. I am Yugito's teacher. You do not need to remember me."
"However, Yugito should have already told you about the mission."
The fifteen people curiously examined Gekko Chizan in front of them. At this moment, Gekko Chizan had already changed his appearance using a Transformation Technique.
He looked like an unruly, arrogant fanatic.
"Establish an intelligence network for Kusagakure."
"The war is already over. From now on, this is the era of intelligence. Whoever controls intelligence controls the world."
"Intelligence in the Land of Grass is extremely important. After all, the Land of Grass itself survives by selling intelligence."
"I see that some of you are shinobi of Kusagakure. You should be very clear about this."
Hearing his words, the shinobi belonging to Kusagakure immediately nodded.
Kusagakure selling intelligence was common knowledge. There was nothing to hide about it.
"So, from now on, I need you to collect intelligence about the Land of Grass from everywhere. Inside the village, the daimyo's residence, outsiders—any useful intelligence must be gathered."
"Of course, I will not let you collect intelligence for nothing. Every time intelligence is compiled, rewards will be distributed. I am not afraid of you bringing useless intelligence. As long as it is intelligence, it will be classified according to its importance, and rewards will be issued."
"Do you understand?"
A trace of yearning immediately appeared on the faces of the fifteen people. It was a paid job, and just collecting intelligence—there was practically no danger at all.
"Yugito, I will talk to you separately about the follow-up matters. You do not need to rush."
Yugito, standing to the side, had already widened her eyes the moment she heard about money. Where would she get money from???
Gekko Chizan clearly knew what she was thinking and shut her down with a single sentence.
"Alright, that is all I have to say. From now on, Yugito will still be your leader."
"Yugito."
Yugito understood what Gekko Chizan meant—it was time to disperse.
"You can all withdraw for now. Stay over by the canyon. I will come find you later."
"Okay!"
Very quickly, the fifteen shinobi left, leaving only Yugito and Gekko Chizan behind.
"You do not need to be anxious. You can open a dojo or a similar shop in some town and accept challenges from others all day."
"You can earn money and hone yourself at the same time. This is the most suitable job I can think of for you."
"I believe you already have the startup funds. No need for me to give you any, right?"
Yugito, who had originally wanted to ask for money, gave an awkward smile after hearing Gekko Chizan's words. She really did want some money.
After all, her money did not come easily.
"Hmph, without long-term vision, you will never accomplish anything big."
"Do not underestimate the idea I gave you. Challengers have to pay. That money is all yours."
"Of course, you have to pay for the intelligence collection. What remains after that is yours."
"Alright, I am going back to Kusagakure. I will be staying here for the next few days. If you have any questions, come ask me."
With Flying Thunder God, he left directly, leaving Yugito alone scratching her head.
...
The next day, Gekko Chizan leisurely walked along the streets of Kusagakure.
He was searching for his target. Soon, a medical clinic appeared in his line of sight.
"Do you have snakeberries? I want all of them."
The clinic owner, who had been bored out of his mind, immediately became delighted upon hearing this, smiling broadly as he began preparing the goods.
"Customer, take them carefully. This is all the snakeberries I have."
Gekko Chizan paid the money and looked at the several large baskets of snakeberries in front of him, nodding. However, he did not leave immediately. Instead, he asked the owner a question.
"Is there a red-haired shinobi in Kusagakure?"
"Red-haired? Why are you asking that?"
The owner was surprised, but more than that, he was cautious. In Kusagakure, one had to be careful about everything. Otherwise, one would not even know how they died.
"Hehehe, I am looking for an old acquaintance. But judging from your expression, you should know, right?"
"Could you tell me her whereabouts?"
Gekko Chizan revealed what he believed to be his most friendly smile, but in the owner's eyes, it only looked even more threatening.
"Sir, since you have already finished buying, please leave."
"Probing for information in Kusagakure is taboo. For the sake of your purchase, I will not notify the patrol team."
"Please leave."
The owner's attitude had already turned cold, which made Gekko Chizan pause in surprise.
He really had not expected Kusagakure to be this strict.
But what kind of person was Gekko Chizan? He was someone who would not stop until he achieved his goal.
"Sigh, why make things difficult..."
"Chōmei."
"Got it! Sleep powder! Plenty of it!"
Gekko Chizan casually waved his hand, and scale powder immediately drifted into the air.
Before the owner could react, he was already hit and collapsed straight down.
"Bang!"
However, the process of collapsing was not very smooth. His head hit the cabinet, then knocked against the table. It sounded painful.
Mm, he was bleeding too.
"Uh, this guy is really unlucky."
"Forget it. I only want some information. I do not want to kill anyone."
"Coiling Serpent Technique... Tagitsuhime, come out and help!"
A red glow began to surge, and Tagitsuhime slowly revealed her serpentine body.
"What is it? You called me—"
"Wow! Snakeberries!"
Gekko Chizan looked at Tagitsuhime already charging toward the snakeberries, the corner of his mouth twitching.
How did he forget about this...
"Hey, hey, hey, stop eating first. Work first. Later, I will let you take all of these back!"
"Wait! Slurp! Delicious!"
"Stop eating!"
Watching Tagitsuhime continue to gorge herself, Gekko Chizan felt his blood pressure soar to 200. He hurried forward and dragged Tagitsuhime back.
Then he threw her directly in front of the clinic owner.
"Use Genjutsu and make him tell everything about the red-haired woman."
"Oh? You want me to use Genjutsu to help you pick up girls? Keep dreaming!"
Tagitsuhime had thought it was something serious, but in the end, it turned out to be about a woman?
That made things difficult. She had to be paid in snakeberries—one basket was not enough. At least five baskets!
"Stop messing around. She is a very talented person. Keeping her in Kusagakure is a waste!"
"She must be taken away!"