A few days later—
Uchiha Kuro suddenly noticed that the ever-reliable Kakuzu had disappeared.
Instead, a representative from Akatsuki showed up and solemnly stated:
"Kakuzu has fallen ill and requires rest for a period of time."
"However, rest assured—the mission you commissioned will absolutely be completed."
And just like that—
The bodyguard was replaced.
A mature woman with short purple hair, dignified and composed.
Yes.
It was Konan.
"…What kind of illness did Kakuzu come down with?" Uchiha Kuro paused before asking.
"Madness. I've already treated him," Konan replied coolly.
"Don't worry. He'll recover in a few days… During this time, I'll transform into Kakuzu and protect your Uchiha clan."
Uchiha Kuro: "???"
He didn't recall Konan having any medical ninjutsu expertise.
In fact, the best "healer" in Akatsuki was probably Kakuzu himself—with his stitching techniques.
And now he was the one lying in bed…
Still—
This wasn't a bad deal.
Kakuzu might be reliable when money was involved, but how could he compare to having a beautiful woman as your bodyguard?
"Then I'll leave it to you," Uchiha Kuro said with a bright smile.
"It's no trouble. This was our side's oversight to begin with," Konan replied calmly.
Her voice was slightly cold, and there was a hint of irritation in her eyes.
Uchiha Kuro didn't think much of it.
Women like her—capable, independent, and lacking nothing—usually disliked men who indulged in excess and surrounded themselves with women.
Understandable.
Not worth worrying about.
After exchanging a few more words, Uchiha Kuro went off to handle his own matters.
Konan watched his back and sighed softly.
"He's quite handsome… but why are all his commissions so strange?"
"And worst of all—he pays so much that Kakuzu keeps targeting me every time!"
Yes—
The irritation in her eyes wasn't directed at Uchiha Kuro.
It was directed at a certain veteran of Akatsuki.
Honestly, if Kakuzu weren't contributing to the organization and doing his job well—
She would've killed that old man already.
How many times had this happened now?
"Female ninja growth curves… physical data…"
Those reports even included body measurements!
Kakuzu… you really dare to ask for anything…
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.
She stood up and walked toward Kakuzu's room, planning to beat him up again—just to vent.
Yes.
The injuries covering Kakuzu right now?
Also her doing.
Meanwhile—
The collection of female ninja data was still ongoing, so Uchiha Kuro wasn't in a rush.
He had already hired medical ninja from Konoha to design daily training schedules—for both himself and his wives.
Though not highly specialized, it was sufficient for now.
At the same time, Uchiha Kuro began seriously studying medical knowledge himself.
He understood one thing clearly:
Although Konoha Hospital was the best in the ninja world, it had only been established for a few decades.
Its techniques and theories were still developing.
Without Tsunade—
It was, frankly, nothing extraordinary.
And Tsunade was wandering the world—there was no way she would come to the Uchiha as a personal doctor.
So it was better to learn himself and develop targeted solutions.
"For now, I'll follow the current training plan… Later, I can develop something like a body enhancement serum."
Hashirama cells.
Jugo's cells.
Curse marks…
None of these were impossible to integrate into such research.
For this reason, Uchiha Kuro even hired a medical jonin specifically to teach him.
But medical ninjutsu was a long-term goal.
In the short term—
To attract more high-quality female ninja, Uchiha Kuro raised the rewards once again.
Chunin-level rewards remained unchanged.
For jonin-level female ninja:
The A-rank jutsu reward stayed the same.
But the payment increased—
From 50 million ryo to 100 million ryo.
Double.
Enough to rival the bounty of three Asumas.
As for Kage-level female ninja?
The rewards were outrageous.
1 billion ryo.
Two S-rank jutsu scrolls.
Enough to instantly become fabulously wealthy.
The entire village was shaken.
Even Kakuzu—lying in bed—struggled to get up, his eyes flickering between:
"Let's gamble it all…"
and
"It's just my life—I'll risk it!"
Only to be slapped back down by Konan.
"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking!"
Konan glared at him furiously, completely losing her usual composure.
"If you dare say something like 'go have a child with Uchiha Kuro and we'll split the money,' I'll kill you first!"
In short—
Everyone who heard about these rewards was stunned.
Eyes reddened.
Breathing heavy.
Completely tempted.
And yet—
The man behind all of this, Uchiha Kuro—
Was facing a completely different problem.
He stared at the woman sitting in front of him, his expression complicated.
"…Is it really this accurate?"
"…One shot, and it hit?"
That's right.
Kurenai Yuhi—
Was pregnant.