Crushing coarse sand and grinding over gravel.
Cloaked in a black robe that shrouded every inch of his form, Kakuzu walked across the boundless, desolate rocky shores of the Land of Frost. His gaze fell upon a landscape of lifeless wasteland; even the distant ocean, rising and falling against the shore, felt stagnant and dead.
Yet, in this buffer zone between great nations—a chaotic territory where birds rarely cared to fly—active groups of shinobi scurried about for the sake of gold.
Bounty Hunters.
Kakuzu stepped into the hidden underground exchange of the Land of Frost. As he entered, the conversation of two bounty hunters drinking nearby drifted into his ears:
"Have you heard?"
"About those major events from the other day!"
The other hunter raised his glass, shaking his head with a sigh. "Of course I heard. This shinobi world is getting more chaotic by the second..."
"In just one day: the Battle for Hell Valley, the Sannin Orochimaru's surprise raid on Kumogakure, the mysterious extinction of the Chinoike clan, and the riots in the capital of the Land of Lightning! So many massive incidents at once!"
"Especially that battle in Hell Valley... I heard they even deployed Jinchuriki, those strategic human weapons, onto the field."
"The information is still under lockdown, so no one knows the actual outcome yet..."
"But, if one could scavenge a weakened target from the bingo books near the battlefield edge—tsk tsk—they'd be set for life!"
Hearing this, Kakuzu's eyes flickered for a moment. As if remembering something, a trace of mockery crossed his face, and he couldn't help but let out a low snort.
Because in that war, there were no winners.
Kumogakure wanted Hell Valley and deployed the Third Raikage and two Jinchuriki, only to fail because of that Uchiha brat and the "Yellow Flash" who arrived later. Combined with the bizarre massacre of the Chinoike clan, they were forced to retreat empty-handed.
Konoha wanted to use the opportunity to raid Kumo, but Orochimaru, who led the team, was severely wounded by a secret weapon in the village and crawled back in shame.
Even the Uchiha clan—
At this thought, Kakuzu's face twisted into a cold sneer. He recalled that night, after surviving the wrath of Minato Namikaze, the words spoken to him by Hikari Uchiha, who had hired him:
"With your help and the Great Elder's backup, Ren Uchiha might still have a slim chance of survival after falling off the cliff!"
"We will send men to conduct a carpet search of the valley floor..."
Heh. A carpet search.
The result was only news of the Chinoike clan's extinction; their own Young Clan Head had vanished into thin air. In a single night, the clan had lost two of its most powerful pillars. They had become a joke.
However, if one had to find a single winner in this entire campaign—
THUD!
Two heavy cases slammed onto the counter. A bald man with a thick beard unbuckled one of them, revealing stacks upon stacks of large-denomination green bills.
"Mr. Kakuzu," the bald man said with a merchant's oily smile.
"The sixty million from the bounty, the thirty million extra from Sunagakure, the sixty million sent via express from the Land of Lightning, and a massive sum sent secretly from the Land of Fire... after the processing fees, it's all here."
The man's eyes couldn't help but dart toward the other, larger, unopened case. Compared to the first three payments, the contents of that case represented a truly staggering fortune.
"You truly are the greatest bounty hunter. This is the biggest single deal we've ever processed! The exchange looks forward to continued cooperation!"
"Mm."
Facing the enthusiasm of the exchange manager, Kakuzu merely gave an indifferent nod. He gripped the heavy cases and turned to leave.
Indeed. The only winner in this war was Kakuzu.
By "killing" a brat he didn't like in the first place, he had collected four separate massive bounties from Suna, Kumo, the Uchiha, and the Exchange itself. It was a masterpiece of professional efficiency.
And yet—
"Mr. Kakuzu, aren't you going to count it?"
Seeing Kakuzu take the money and leave immediately—acting with a decisiveness that made him seem like a different person—the bald manager froze in confusion.
In the past, Kakuzu would spend half a day here, counting every single bill to ensure no explosive tags were hidden between them and cross-referencing every ledger to ensure the money was spendable. He was a man who haggled over every copper... so why today?
Kakuzu paused. He turned back, staring coldly at the bald man.
"Is there something else?"
"No..."
Meeting those icy eyes—eyes that looked ready to pillage the exchange and slaughter everyone present on a whim—the manager swallowed hard. He forced another fawning smile.
"I just wanted to ask—that pair of Sharingan from the Uchiha Young Head... are they for sale?"
Kakuzu frowned and let out a dry laugh. "What? You actually dare to pull the tiger's whiskers of the Uchiha? Is your death count not high enough?"
The manager chuckled. "Times change. The Uchiha's decline is showing. Their Young Head is missing, and the prestigious Great Elder, Setsuna Uchiha, reportedly died in the battle two days ago. They can't even take care of themselves; why would they worry about rats in the gutter like us?"
Kakuzu sneered. "Your intel is fast."
"It's the nature of the business... even if I haven't been a spy for years, some habits stick." The manager smiled and continued, "Mr. Kakuzu, I have a channel to a nobleman in the Land of Water. For those eyes, I'll name a price—"
He looked at Kakuzu, raising one finger and shaking it. He was certain this was a price the money-obsessed Kakuzu could never refuse. From this middleman deal, he could pocket nearly ten million in commission!
However, in the next instant—
CRUNCH!
Kakuzu expressionlessly seized the finger and twisted it backward. Bone pierced through skin; blood sprayed.
The other bounty hunters in the room flinched, instinctively reaching for their weapons. Kakuzu spoke with chilling indifference:
"Not for sale!"
"Sss—!" The manager trembled in agony, yet he maintained a professional, wavering fake smile. "I... I understand, Mr. Kakuzu..."
Kakuzu tossed the mangled finger into the rotting filth in the corner of the room, snorted, and picked up his cases once more. But as he turned, the manager gasped through the pain:
"Mr. Kakuzu, wait... there is one more bounty you might be interested in."
"In the capital of the Land of Lightning, the Daimyo, who was attacked two days ago, has increased the bounty. The base reward is now thirty million ryo!"
"And the target is—the leader of the undying heretics still causing chaos in the capital!"
"Ren Uchiha!"
Kakuzu's eyes narrowed slightly at the news. Then, as if he hadn't heard a word, he silently walked out of the exchange with his millions.
Only when he was back on the desolate rocky shore did Kakuzu raise his hand. He looked at the bloodstain on his black glove and, for some reason, let out a long, heavy breath.
Yes. He had made a lot of money.
But... after traveling this far and seeing the groups of people driven mad, grieving, or celebrating over that Uchiha brat who fell off a cliff—likely smashed into a bloody pulp—he found that, for some reason, he wasn't happy.
He quickly shoved these inexplicable emotions to the back of his mind. Discerning his direction, Kakuzu headed southeast along the coast of the Land of Frost.
That direction led straight to the capital of the Land of Lightning: Unming City.
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