After a lavish meal…
Inside the private banquet room, surrounded by opulent décor and a large round table now stripped clean of its dishes, several clan heads were left with flushed cheeks, clearly recalling their earlier hesitation when Danzo had invited them.
At first, they had all declined.
After all, for a guy as shady as Danzo to suddenly host a feast—there was no way that was normal!
But once the Third Hokage showed up, they had no choice but to come along.
And besides—
"What kind of food could a dump like Sunagakure even offer? As long as it's not sand, I'll count myself lucky."
So, no one had held any real expectations for this Grand Sail Restaurant—a joint venture between Sunagakure and Danzo.
Sure, the exterior looked fancy.
And the interior décor was clearly crafted by one of Sunagakure's master artisans.
But in terms of taste?
It had to be garbage.
Everyone knew that the Land of Fire had the best cuisine in the entire shinobi world. Even outsiders agreed—just a single bowl of Ichiraku Ramen was enough to lure in ninja and merchants from every hidden village.
Truly world-class food!
As for the Land of Wind?
They could barely grow enough crops to feed themselves. How could they possibly have gourmet food?
But now—
"Delicious!" Hiruzen Sarutobi wiped his mouth, his usual warm and grandfatherly smile spreading across his face.
"To think Sunagakure could serve something like this… A while back, Naruto told me their food was amazing. I thought it was just a kid being easily impressed, but now—haha! That little rascal didn't lie to me after all."
The other clan heads nodded in agreement.
Especially the towering red-haired current head of the Akimichi clan—Choza Akimichi—who looked wistfully at his now-empty plate.
"The only downside is the price. Just one look at that menu, and this meal alone costs more than what I'd spend at a yakiniku place for an entire month."
Even among Konoha's prominent clans, it was doubtful many could afford to eat here regularly.
Forcing himself to turn his head away from the plate, Choza changed the topic.
"I heard the first floor is a barbecue joint, and the second floor is hot pot…" He gulped. "Can't even imagine how good that must be."
If their clan wanted to eat here, given the Akimichi appetite, even an S-rank mission's reward would barely cover one meal for one person.
"Too expensive. Way too expensive."
But now, as Choza looked across the table at Danzo, who was still wearing his usual cold, grim expression…
He suddenly felt like this guy, who always acted like a villain, might actually be… a pretty decent person.
"Danzo-sama... what a good guy~ I wonder if he'll treat us again tomorrow?"
Just then—
"Danzo-sama."
A woman entered the room, wearing a long crimson gown tailored in Sunagakure's signature fashion—elegant, stylish, and accentuating her curves.
"Please sign the bill."
"Mm." Danzo nodded silently and signed without hesitation.
According to the business agreement, this entire banquet would be deducted from his profit share later. In the future, he could either pay in cash or keep signing tabs like this—his share of the restaurant's profits would simply take the hit.
Still…
With the Third Hokage and all the clan heads watching him in confusion as he calmly signed the receipt…
It felt amazing.
Expressionless as always, Danzo gracefully finished the signature, then handed the bill back to the waitress.
"That's all."
"Thank you for your time." The waitress bowed with a smile, then clapped her hands.
Another woman in identical attire entered, holding a tray.
"Danzo-sama, as per your request, this batch of Grand Sail VIP membership cards has been prepared and registered."
She placed the tray before him.
"These cards identify the holder as a premium customer of the Grand Sail Restaurant. They grant a 15% discount on purchases made on any floor of the establishment. However, due to their real-name registration, only the registered individual may use them."
Danzo blinked in surprise.
He hadn't heard anything about membership cards from that damned Kazekage.
Weren't they just supposed to host a meal, let the Konoha clans get familiar with the restaurant, and that was it?
Now there were VIP perks too?
"A 15% discount… That's a lot of lost revenue. Just what is that damn Kazekage thinking?"
But at this point—
Noticing how the clan heads kept sneaking glances at the tray of sleek black cards, Danzo knew he couldn't just tell the waitress to take it away.
Grinding his teeth and swallowing his pride, he gave a small nod.
"Hand them out."
Because Danzo… still had his reputation to maintain.
Elsewhere…
"Naruto, you've actually eaten here before?"
Little Naruto was surrounded by a group of newly made friends. Ever since winning first place in the 4WD Tournament's children's division, he'd become quite popular.
Everyone was curious about the event and wanted to hear how he'd managed to win.
"This must be what Ji-chan meant by 'recognition'!"
Naruto proudly puffed out his chest.
"Of course I've been here! The Grand Sail Hotel in Sunagakure is even taller and fancier than this one—and the food there? Super expensive!"
"Really?" asked a pudgy brown-haired kid as he continued stuffing snacks into his mouth. "More expensive than yakiniku? My dad took me to a BBQ place last night, and it cost us nearly 5,000 ryo for just the two of us!"
"..."
Naruto, who'd never actually eaten at a barbecue restaurant, had no idea how the prices compared.
But as the children's division champion, he couldn't let them realize he didn't know.
So, he put his hands on his hips and let out a confident laugh:
"Of course it's more expensive! This is the Grand Sail Restaurant! Not only is the food pricey, but it's also super delicious! I've never tasted anything so good—not even Ichiraku Ramen or BBQ can beat it!"
"That good?"
The chubby kid gulped, eyes locked on the hotel's gold-plated doors.
"I've gotta make my dad take me here. But if it's not good... Naruto, I'm not gonna stay friends with a liar!"
"O-of course it's good!" Naruto nodded quickly.
"Definitely better than anything you've ever eaten!"
After all, if it was better than Ichiraku Ramen, it had to be better than barbecue too!
"Choji."
A spiky-haired kid with a lazy look—clearly Shikamaru—rolled his eyes and muttered.
"Look at the sign—Today's Special: Claypot Porridge, on discount… still over 1,000 ryo. With your appetite, you'd need at least ten bowls. You think your dad's gonna pay for that?"
He sighed.
"I doubt Uncle Choza would come eat at a place like this."
But before he could finish—
"BURP~!"
A thunderous belch echoed from the entrance.
"Man, that was delicious. Way better than the BBQ Choji and I had last night. I'd love to try the first floor's grilled meats next time too."
All the kids looked up, stunned.
There stood Choza Akimichi, patting his belly contentedly.
Choji's snack instantly lost its flavor. He sealed the bag, tucked it under his arm, and stared at his father, eyes full of betrayal and longing.
"Dad ate without me?! How could he?!"
He made a decision on the spot—
If his dad didn't agree to bring him next time, he was gonna tell Mom!