Land of Fire.
A certain underground black market.
Within the dimly lit basement, a figure cloaked in a long black robe slowly walked into the black market's mission assignment hall. Judging from their imposing and robust physique, it could basically be determined that this was a man.
In the gloomy hall, over a dozen black market bounty ninjas were currently milling about, some handing in completed missions, others looking for new ones. Most of these individuals were heavily cloaked and masked, their true identities carefully concealed. They gathered in small groups of two or three, some accepting new bounties, others reporting their successes.
At the main counter, a black market manager, nearly two meters tall with a terrifying, jagged scar across his face, was currently attending to these bounty ninjas.
Seeing the black-robed man walk slowly into the hall, many of the bounty ninjas instinctively lowered their voices, an unconscious reaction to the palpable aura of power and intimidation emanating from the newcomer.
"Ah! If it isn't the esteemed Master Fujin! What can this humble one do for you today?" Seeing the black-robed man, the scar-faced black market manager at the counter immediately plastered a stiff, obsequious smile on his face and spoke in a fawning tone.
This man in the black robe was none other than one of Tatsuya's permanent clones, Fujin. After several years of growth and development, Fujin's physique was noticeably more robust and powerful than when he was first created. This was the result of Tatsuya continuously cultivating his body using the Fujinhoin and the Body Activation Secret Technique.
Nowadays, Fujin, having perfectly fused with Hashirama's cells, had seen his strength elevate to an extremely terrifying level. Whether he could truly compare to the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, in his prime, Tatsuya himself wasn't entirely certain. However, if Fujin were to face any of the current Kage from the Five Great Shinobi Villages, it would undoubtedly be an absolute, overwhelming victory for him.
Over these past few years, the Fujin clone had been traveling far and wide, operating under the guise of a bounty ninja. In the underground black market, Fujin had already established a considerable and fearsome reputation. Although he rarely took action personally, every time he did, it was a major event that sent shockwaves throughout the entire black market network. More than a year ago, four members of the Land of Fire Daimyo's elite Guardian Shinobi Twelve had died at Fujin's hands. He had personally delivered all four of their severed heads to the black market to exchange for their bounties.
Faced with the fawning and ingratiating behavior of this rather unpleasant-looking black market manager, Fujin remained completely unmoved. He took a scroll from within his robes and tossed it onto the counter, his voice cold and devoid of emotion. "This piece of intelligence… did it originate from your network?"
The black market manager hastily picked up the scroll Fujin had thrown and began to examine its contents with feigned diligence. After reading the information on the scroll, the manager then cross-referenced it with his own records. After a moment, he looked up at Fujin with a puzzled expression. "Master Fujin, this piece of intelligence indeed was sold through our black market. Is there some problem with it?"
Fujin stated flatly, "I want more information about this individual. Money is not an issue."
Hearing this, the black market manager's face took on a somewhat troubled expression. "Master Fujin, this particular piece of intelligence is extremely old. Our black market only has this single record of it; we have no further information available." The manager had just cross-checked the scroll against their archives. It turned out to be an intelligence report from over a hundred years ago, containing only a small amount of information about a peculiar old man. The black market manager truly couldn't understand why Fujin would be interested in such an ancient and seemingly insignificant piece of information.
"Mobilize all your resources and find out as much as you can. The more information, the better," Fujin said, his voice heavy with command. "Regardless of whether you find any useful information or not, I will pay you a generous reward for your efforts."
The black market manager hesitated. "This… this will be very difficult, Master Fujin…" This reward wouldn't be easy to earn. Digging up detailed information from over a century ago was an incredibly challenging task.
Thump!
Seeing his hesitation, Fujin didn't waste any more words. He directly pulled out a thick wad of cash from his robes and slammed it heavily onto the counter. It was a substantial stack of high-denomination bills, each worth 100,000 ryo. This single stack amounted to at least fifty million ryo.
Seeing the massive pile of cash Fujin had thrown down, the black market manager's hesitation vanished instantly. He quickly reached out and swept the money towards himself, then declared with unwavering conviction, "Master Fujin, please rest assured! Our black market will definitely uncover any useful information for you as quickly as possible!" A full fifty million ryo! Even for a black market manager who dealt with large sums of money regularly, this was an irresistible temptation. According to what Fujin had just said, this money was theirs to keep, whether the mission was successful or not. Only a fool would refuse such a generous offer. Even if Fujin was incredibly strong, could he really take on their entire black market network head-on?
"Very good. Then I will await your good news," Fujin said with a satisfied nod, seeing the black market manager accept the task. After uttering these words, he turned and left without any further comment.
Only after Fujin had departed did the black market manager begin to formally register and post this new high-value information-gathering mission. In the mission assignment hall, some of the bounty ninjas who had witnessed the entire exchange now had flickering, calculating looks in their eyes. Clearly, many of them were very interested in this exceptionally lucrative bounty.
"I hope they can find some useful information," Fujin murmured softly to himself after leaving the underground black market, letting out a soft breath. Then, his figure flickered and vanished from the spot.
Konoha Village. Tatsuya's home.
In the kitchen, Kyoko and Mitarashi Anko were busy preparing dinner. As they worked, they chatted and laughed softly with each other. Judging from the cheerful sounds of their voices occasionally drifting out from the kitchen, both Kyoko and Mitarashi Anko seemed to be in quite a good mood.
Tatsuya, meanwhile, was lounging alone in the living room, relaxing. He was sprawled comfortably on the sofa, a look of utter contentment on his face. Only in his own home could Tatsuya truly feel so completely at ease.
Suddenly, Tatsuya, who had been lying back with his eyes closed, sat up, his expression changing slightly. "Kyoko, Anko, something's come up. I have to go out for a bit. I'll be back soon!" he called out towards the kitchen. With that, his figure vanished from the living room.
In the kitchen, the two women's cheerful laughter stopped abruptly. Mitarashi Anko poked her head out of the kitchen and, seeing that Tatsuya was already gone from the living room, grumbled, "Kyoko, that guy just disappeared suddenly again!"
Kyoko's gentle voice replied, "Tatsuya-kun probably had something important to attend to."
In a dense forest just outside Konoha Village, Tatsuya's figure flickered through the darkness, moving with incredible speed. He was using the Flying Thunder God Technique to travel rapidly.
Soon, Tatsuya arrived at the Valley of the End. On the shoulder of the colossal stone statue of Hashirama Senju, Kabuto Yakushi, cloaked and hooded, was supporting an extremely weakened Kimimaro, who stood there silently. The cold night wind whipped around them, causing their clothes to billow and snap.
Swoosh~
A figure flashed, and Tatsuya appeared before the two of them. Seeing Tatsuya suddenly materialize, Kabuto immediately bowed respectfully. "Lord Tatsuya."
Kimimaro, being supported by Kabuto, also weakly opened his eyes and looked at Tatsuya.
"Hmm?" Looking at Kimimaro, who was being supported by Kabuto, Tatsuya let out a soft, inquisitive sound. He could clearly sense Kimimaro's life energy continuously and slowly draining away.
Seeing this, Tatsuya instantly understood why Orochimaru had dispatched Kabuto to bring Kimimaro here to find him.