As soon as Takayama Haru stepped out with Kushina, she grabbed him by the arm and tugged him along.
"What now?" he asked.
"We're going to buy a gift for Mikoto. We can't show up at the Uchiha compound empty-handed tomorrow, can we?"
The moment Haru realized he was being dragged along for shopping, his heart sank.
If there's one thing that irritates a man the most, it's going shopping.
But Kushina, on the other hand, looked delighted.
She hadn't been out in several days. Plus, after Mikoto had mentioned that those awful higher-ups had been dismissed and the rest no longer posed a threat, she'd checked in with Granny Mito, who had also said there was no problem.
So, regardless of how Haru felt, Kushina had already made up her mind.
As the two strolled through the village streets, they suddenly came across a group of people.
Leading them—Danzo!
Next to him stood none other than Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang of Konoha, and Minato Namikaze.
Danzo noticed Haru, gave him a quick glance, then looked away without a trace of emotion.
As they were about to pass by, Haru quickly pulled Minato aside.
"Hey, what's going on?"
Minato shot him a look. "It's a classified mission. I can't tell you."
"Seriously? Not even a hint?"
"Nope. Lord Hiruzen is watching."
Haru glanced around. Although he didn't spot any crows this time, he could definitely feel eyes watching him.
That sneaky old man again.
Still, Haru let go of Minato and waved him off.
As they continued walking, Sakumo turned to Minato and said, "You seem pretty close with him."
"We trained together."
"He's strong."
Minato nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah. I was planning to challenge him again this week and settle the score, but now this mission popped up."
"You won't win."
Minato frowned. "Come on, Sakumo-senpai, do you have to crush my spirits like that?"
Sakumo shook his head. "Not trying to. I just think he might actually be stronger than I am."
Minato's eyes widened in disbelief.
…
Kushina, ever curious, asked, "Where do you think they're going?"
"That guy Minato wouldn't tell me. All mysterious and stuff… Wanna follow them?"
Kushina shook her head. "What's the point? We still need to order the cake and buy the gift."
Ugh, shopping again.
Haru's protests went ignored. Kushina dragged him around the entire Hidden Leaf Village, hitting up every decent cake shop.
In the end, they settled on one particular cake.
In the world of Naruto, the currency is called "ryō." Whether paper or coin, everything is measured in ryō.
Mission rewards are typically:
D-rank: 5,000 to 50,000 ryō
C-rank: 30,000 to 100,000 ryō
B-rank: 80,000 to 200,000 ryō
A-rank: 150,000 to 1,000,000 ryō
S-rank: Over 1,000,000 ryō per mission
1 ryō = 10 yen.
A basic pork cutlet set meal runs about 800 yen. Add some extras and you're looking at 1,000+. A fashion magazine from a street vendor? Close to 600 yen. Just three skewers of oden can cost you 500 yen…
This cake Kushina bought? 10,000 yen—or 1,000 ryō.
Then she picked up a pair of earrings—38,888 yen.
Altogether, nearly 50,000 yen. That's 5,000 ryō.
The base pay of a D-rank mission.
Clearly, this girl had some cash.
Meanwhile, Haru only had 1,000 ryō left in his wallet, which was his monthly salary from the treasury—standard base pay for junior ninja. If he needed more, he'd have to go on missions.
As the saying goes, "You get what you pay for."
Sometimes, even heroes can't escape budgeting.
If not for living rent-free at the Uzumaki estate, Haru would have had to go out and earn his keep by now.
…
The next day at noon, they arrived at the Uchiha compound—also the headquarters of the Konoha Military Police Force.
The Uchiha were one of Konoha's two founding bloodlines. From the founding of the village, they'd always held the post of head of the police force.
The Senju clan used to be among them too, one of the three founding bloodlines.
But two decades had passed. The Senju had all but vanished, with most of their fighters lost in battle. Tsunade, self-exiled, was now the only known descendant.
With the Senju nearly extinct and the Hyuga remaining quiet, the Uchiha naturally began seeing themselves as Konoha's premier clan.
These days, most Uchihas were arrogant and aloof, rarely mingling with other families.
But today, there was no way they'd look down on Takayama Haru.
He was, after all, the last known heir of the Senju.
And in less than a week, he had foiled a plot from the Hidden Cloud, ousted Danzo, and helped bring down key figures like Mitokado Homura and Koharu Utatane. His reputation was at its peak.
Some even said his status rivaled that of Uchiha clan head—Uchiha Junai.
In terms of strength, Haru had awakened the powerful bloodline traits of the Senju and defeated ten Root operatives on his own. No one in the Uchiha could match that.
So today, young elites like Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto were waiting at the gates to welcome him.
Haru and Kushina arrived right on time, bearing cake and a gift. When they spotted Mikoto at the gate, they hurried over.
"Mikoto! Happy Birthday! Here's a cake from me and Haru, and a little gift too. Sorry it's a bit rushed!"
"Thanks, Kushina! I'm really happy you came. The cake is beautiful! And these earrings—so pretty!"
Mikoto took them out on the spot and put them on.
"How do they look?" she asked with a smile.
Kushina turned to Haru. "Well? Do they look good?"
Are you seriously putting me on the spot right now?
"I must be blind," Haru muttered. "I can't tell."
Both girls immediately let out a disapproving "hmph."
[Ding! Kushina affection +5]
[Ding! Mikoto affection +10]
Wait, what?! System, what are you trying to pull here? I didn't even compliment her!
How did Mikoto's affection go up by 10?!