Kakuzu's eyes were swollen on both sides from being punched, and he could only squint helplessly as he watched Renya calmly store the stacks of cash into his sealing scrolls one by one.
All that money… was everything he had earned through endless nights of taking bounties without rest.
And now, it was all gone. Not a single coin left on him…
If only he could beat Renya, he would've already gotten up and fought to the death.
Every time he encountered this bastard, nothing good ever came of it. Compared to the last two times, this one was far, far worse.
He had not only nearly been beaten to death but also had all his hard-earned money stolen.
Damn that Uchiha brat! One day, he would take back everything he lost today!
At this moment, Kakuzu's hatred for the Uchiha clan had surpassed even that of Senju Tobirama. His desire for revenge reached its absolute peak.
But the pain coursing through his body soon brought him back to reality.
What the hell had Renya been eating? How had he grown this monstrously strong in just a few short years?
Back then, Kakuzu could still trade blows with him. Now, he couldn't even get a proper hit in before being utterly crushed.
Renya had even mastered Senju Tobirama's signature technique—the Flying Thunder God Jutsu.
During their fight just now, Kakuzu hadn't even seen Renya's figure clearly before four of his hearts were shattered.
A monster.
That kid was an absolute monster!
For the first time, Kakuzu felt true despair—could he really defeat this monster one day and take revenge?
Renya's power had already far surpassed his own.
Even if Kakuzu trained as hard as he could, surpassing Renya would be nearly impossible.
Still, when he thought of the money that had been stolen, the flames of vengeance reignited in his eyes.
No matter what, he would get stronger—and one day, he'd take back every single coin!
Just you wait, Uchiha Renya!
Someday, I'll knock you flat on the ground, take all your money, and count it right in front of your face!
...
"Six million ryō in just a few years, Kakuzu?"
Renya had spent half a day counting the cash and spoke with a hint of disappointment.
After all these years, Kakuzu had only earned that little?
Was he even trying to make money?
Five years, and that averaged out to just over a million ryō per year. Was he even working properly?
Renya couldn't help doubting Kakuzu's ability to make money. At this rate, how was this guy even qualified to call himself a bounty hunter?
Honestly, Renya couldn't blame himself for thinking Kakuzu was slow—before meeting him, Renya had robbed several bounty hunters and made eight million ryō in no time at all.
After rounding, that was already one-sixth of Kakuzu's entire fortune.
And now that Kakuzu had "donated" his six million, that meant Renya had earned 6.8 million in just a few hours.
That was literally hundreds of times faster than Kakuzu.
...
Kakuzu: "???"
Bastard, do you even hear yourself?!
Making money isn't that easy!
Most bounty targets only had a reward of around one million ryō. And that was before you accounted for the time spent tracking them down, setting up assassinations, and all the other logistics—half a month gone just like that.
And sometimes the assassination even failed, meaning two weeks of work with no pay.
Earning over a million ryō a year was already decent.
Those with higher bounties were either extremely powerful or heavily guarded—successfully assassinating them was easier said than done.
And yet this damned Uchiha brat actually dared to say he hadn't earned enough over the years!
Did he think money just fell from the sky?
What, did he expect to stumble upon some idiot who'd kindly tell him where a vault full of gold and cash was hidden?
Kakuzu wanted to argue back, but for the sake of his own survival, he swallowed all his curses.
Just then, the old manager hurried over, bowing deeply as he spoke respectfully.
"Renya-sama, there's actually a hidden vault inside the exchange hall."
Earlier, White Zetsu had secretly contacted the old manager, telling him to find a way to transfer the vault's contents to Renya.
And that's how this scene came to be...
Upon hearing that, Kakuzu's expression twisted as if he'd seen a ghost. He turned to the old manager in disbelief.
No way… had he really just encountered an idiot like this?
If Uchiha Renya hadn't shown up, all that vault money would've been his!
Now it was all going to this damn kid!
Damn it! Damn it all!
Kakuzu felt like the sky was falling. He could only pray the vault didn't contain too much money, or else he really would die of rage...
Sometimes, watching someone else get rich hurts even more than losing your own money.
Especially when the one getting rich is the bastard who just robbed you.
...
"Why are you telling me this?" Renya asked, puzzled.
First, the exchange hall's owner had refused to let anyone post his bounty, and now the old manager was personally telling him where the vault was.
Something was definitely fishy.
He could sense that the person behind the exchange hall was up to something.
Could it be... that he actually knew the owner?
Renya began recalling everyone he had ever met, trying to figure out who could possibly fit the profile of the exchange hall's mysterious boss.
But no matter how much he thought about it, he came up empty.
If he really had to name candidates, only Senju Tobirama and Uchiha Madara fit the bill—but if it were them, they would've told him directly.
Since he couldn't figure it out, he decided not to dwell on it. For now, the owner clearly had no ill intentions toward him—
Not only had they forbidden the posting of his bounty, but they were also giving him money now that he was short on funds.
"Your boss is really a good person!" Renya couldn't help but sigh.
He'd never met the man, yet the guy treated him so well—it made him genuinely want to meet him in person.
Don't get the wrong idea—he just wanted to express his gratitude and maybe become friends.
Renya liked making friends with people like this... truly kind-hearted benefactors.
Like Kakuzu, for instance—Renya now saw him as a kind of living ATM friend.
...
"Please, follow me, Renya-sama," said the old manager, quickly leading the way.
Seeing no signs of ambush or traps around, Renya followed.
"Wait for me…" Kakuzu groaned, struggling to get up from the ground. He wanted to see just how much money this vault actually held.
If it wasn't much, fine.
But if it was a lot… that would hurt worse than death.
The heavy iron doors slowly creaked open, and a blinding golden light flooded out.
Gold—so much gold!
Piles upon piles of gold bars neatly stacked on custom racks, reflecting dazzling brilliance under the flickering torches along the walls.
Stacks of cash were tied up with hemp rope into brick-like bundles, piled high on the floor to form a literal mountain of money.
"This…" Renya's voice trembled for once. "All this… is really for me?"
"Yes, Renya-sama."
This amount of money could probably buy his life several times over!
Even Konoha's annual budget for a decade wouldn't come close.
No wonder this was the biggest exchange hall in the ninja world—they were insanely rich!
Kakuzu, who had stumbled in behind them, froze as his breathing quickened. His eyes gleamed with greed.
Money—so much money!
But the moment he remembered that none of it was his, his vision went dark, and he collapsed on the floor.
It seemed he had fainted from sheer rage.