"Why are you still following me?"
In a forest within the Land of Rivers, Renya finally couldn't hold back his irritation as he looked at Kakuzu, who had been tailing him the whole way.
He'd treated him to a meal out of good mood — and now this guy was clinging to him?
If he'd known it would turn out like this, he would never have treated him to dinner in the first place.
Kakuzu's expression darkened. "Give me some money, and I'll leave."
All the cash he had was robbed by a certain shameless bastard, leaving him completely penniless — he didn't even have enough to buy kunai anymore.
And right now, with only one heart left, he couldn't take any bounty missions for the sake of his own safety.
If something went wrong, he'd really be dead this time.
Being the cautious man he was, Kakuzu, after confirming Renya wouldn't kill him, bluntly demanded payment before leaving.
"Sigh, fine, fine." Renya didn't refuse. He pulled out his bulging wallet, grabbed a handful of bills without even counting, and handed them all to Kakuzu.
He was rich now — what were a few tens of thousands of ryō to him?
Consider it a donation to a beggar.
Kakuzu's eyelid twitched violently; he barely managed to suppress his anger.
That damned bastard robbed him of sixty million ryō, yet now gave him only this pitiful amount.
Still, he obediently accepted the money and turned to leave without hesitation.
Sooner or later, he would avenge this humiliation — and take back every last coin from Renya!
"Hmph, Uchiha Renya, your biggest mistake was not killing me!" Kakuzu's eyes burned with hatred.
With the Earth Grudge Fear, he possessed a kind of twisted immortality — as long as he kept replacing hearts, he could keep living.
Though he wasn't Renya's match right now, in twenty or thirty years, Renya's power would wane with age, while Kakuzu would remain at his peak.
By then, Renya wouldn't even stand a chance against him!
A gentleman's revenge — even thirty years is not too late!
In this cruel world, only those who survive can claim victory.
As the saying goes, survival is king.
Even mighty figures like Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara couldn't escape death, could they?
But he wouldn't die — each heart meant another life!
As long as he didn't do anything stupid, death would be difficult to find him.
He could rely on Earth Grudge Fear to live on until the day Renya was old and decrepit.
Kakuzu could already picture Renya hobbling along, trembling with age. By that time, he'd kick him to the ground and count his money right in front of him.
Just like today…
"Uchiha Renya, you just wait for me!" Kakuzu found a safe spot, looked up at the sky, and roared,
"One day, I'll trample you beneath my feet!"
At that moment, Renya and the fat cat were already on their way, completely unaware of Kakuzu's grand ambitions.
Even if he knew, Renya wouldn't care...
The only reason Renya hadn't killed Kakuzu was because he wanted a walking ATM to rob from every now and then.
After all, who could resist a money-hoarding fat sheep?
Every few years, he'd go rob Kakuzu — his steady source of income. And though he was already a rich man now, who ever complains about having too much money?
With his current wealth, Renya could probably crush that old man Senju Tobirama with money alone.
He'd never again have to stop his research into new poisons due to lack of funds. When he returned, he'd rebuild a proper lab.
Hmm, maybe he'd even build one for that old man Senju Tobirama too.
When he got back, he'd renovate his house — after more than a decade of living there, it definitely needed fixing up. He'd even repair Hashirama's place while he was at it.
Perhaps… this was what being rich felt like.
Renya kept daydreaming about all his future plans along the way...
...
Inside the Exchange Hall.
"That cook sure wasn't polite about it!" Black Zetsu stared at the now-empty vault and sighed.
Those funds were the accumulation of decades of profit for the Exchange Hall.
But Black Zetsu didn't mind too much — he'd just consider it the cook's "buyout fee."
The Exchange Hall was just one of countless businesses it owned. And in the shinobi world, there was more than one such hall.
If anyone could claim the title of the wealthiest being in the shinobi world, it was none other than Black Zetsu.
Thousands of years of hoarded wealth had brought its assets to an unimaginable level.
The underground economy was lucrative to begin with, and Black Zetsu had dominated it for millennia — monopolizing exchange halls, the black market, and countless gray industries. Of course it made money.
But money didn't interest it anymore. Once, it had tried to use wealth to free its mother — only to fail miserably.
Since money couldn't save her, what use did it have for wealth now?
Spending a little to "buy" a talented cook was no problem at all. Once Mother was free, that cook could serve her meals and daily needs.
A small price to pay for such a perfect chef — a truly worthwhile investment.
"Mother, I hope you'll like the cook I prepared for you."
She'd been sealed away for a thousand years, unable to taste a single thing. Once she was free, she'd finally be able to enjoy the dishes prepared by this chef.
"You three, take turns watching over the cook," Black Zetsu instructed the three White Zetsu nearby.
"Report his daily activities on schedule."
"Understood, Black Zetsu-sama."
...
"Go back and tell Madara-sama — Renya got his hands on an enormous amount of money at the Exchange Hall. Its full value is impossible to estimate!"
Scar cautiously glanced around as he whispered to a small white cat.
He never forgot who his true master was.
Even though Renya promised to reward him, a loyal ninja cat would never betray his master!
Madara-sama had already been betrayed by his clan and that accursed Senju Hashirama — Scar would never betray poor Madara-sama again.
...
"Madara-sama, I'll take care of you on behalf of Izuna-sama," Scar said softly, gazing up at the stars, his eyes glimmering with tears.
Decades ago, he had been a homeless stray cat, wandering the battlefield with nowhere to go.
If not for Izuna-sama's compassion in adopting him, he would've starved long ago.
...
"You're so small and scrawny — you'll just get bullied by the other cats in the clan."
"I'll name you Scar."
"This way, the others will think twice before messing with you."
For as long as he could remember, his master had been Uchiha Izuna. After Izuna's death, he had become Madara's summoning beast.
If not for Izuna, Madara never would have contracted with a cat in the first place.
"Uuuh… Izuna-sama..." Scar's tears slid down from the corners of his eyes. "Now that you're gone, they all bully me and Madara-sama..."
"Fat Cat, where are you?"
Just then, Renya's voice echoed from afar.
"Coming, coming!" Scar hastily wiped his tears with his paw pads and ran toward Renya.
"You didn't just go rat me out to Madara-sama again, did you?" Renya asked suspiciously, squinting at the fat cat.
"N-no, I didn't," Scar blinked innocently.
"Eh, whatever. If you did, you did."
Renya waved his hand indifferently — this fat cat had tattled more than once, after all.
With that, he continued on his way.
Scar glanced nervously at the blade hanging from Renya's waist, then quickly trotted after him.