Chapter 4: The Art of the Money Escape
"In that case, being a chūnin in Konoha isn't half bad."
Compared to his previous life, his current status and income were leagues above. He was, without a doubt, a high-level corporate slave in one of the five great nations, the kind of valuable employee the company wouldn't easily lay off, but would gladly work to death. The only downside was that, like those corporate slaves, the risk of sudden death was ridiculously high.
But I don't want to die prematurely.
He needed to get his hands on some high-level ninjutsu. This ninja world was far too dangerous. His current arsenal—the three basic academy techniques and a single C-rank Water Prison—gave him no sense of security at all. He only had a water-nature affinity, and though his transmigration had blessed him with strong mental energy and decent chakra control, it wasn't enough. He needed to awaken a second chakra nature to solve his deficiency, but how? The damn ninjutsu monopoly blocked every path.
No matter where you went, you couldn't escape the consolidation of class and the monopolization of advancement. In the end, he was right back where he started: working himself to the bone for Konoha, trying to complete high-level missions to earn enough merit points to trade for knowledge. It was like bleeding yourself dry just for the slim chance to pass the civil service exam.
Damn this ninja world, he thought, and damn Sarutobi Hiruzen. This system was so strictly designed to keep civilian ninja down while the clans prospered.
He was all too familiar with the preferential treatment given to the children of Konoha's ninja clans. In his own squad was Ryo, from a branch family of the Inuzuka clan. While not a top-tier family like the Uchiha, the Inuzuka were still a respectable second-rate clan, and the benefits that came with the name were not insignificant. Ryo didn't need to worry about obtaining ninjutsu; he could easily learn the powerful secret techniques of his clan. He didn't need to grind for merit points. He was born with a huge advantage.
In conventional ninja battles, where intelligence was king, Ryo's Inuzuka perception abilities made him a master of reconnaissance. A ninja's body was fragile; even Kage-level shinobi could be killed by a single well-placed kunai. Mastering intelligence was mastering the lifeline of the battle. Ryo, by all rights, shouldn't have been assigned to a cannon fodder squad like his.
But he had gotten him. He'd traded a small, custom-made Sand Village blade in a "friendly exchange" with Nara Shikaku. The blade itself wasn't particularly valuable, but Suna was poor. The weapons they issued to their ninja were the shabbiest of the five great nations. A custom blade was a rare treasure, a symbol of honor. And the small notch Sasuke had deliberately added to the blade was the finishing touch, adding a story and immeasurable value.
Of course, a simple blade wouldn't have been enough to get an audience with Shikaku, the Jōnin Commander. But Sasuke had an in: his family's history as vassals to the Sarutobi clan, which made him naturally aligned with the Ino-Shika-Chō alliance and, by extension, the Hokage's faction. Shikaku, a man of profound political wisdom, would have been keeping tabs on him. Assigning a perception-type ninja like Ryo to his squad was a small, casual move for Shikaku, but for the Umino Patrol Squad, it was a gesture that could change their fate.
Keeping Ryo, however, was another challenge. He was a typical clan ninja: dutiful and obedient to his family and superiors, but also rigid. He could be transferred away at any moment. Sasuke had been racking his brain for a way to secure his loyalty when the newest member of his team, the unassuming Chōmi, managed it effortlessly.
Chōmi was a civilian-born girl, plump and cheerful, with a rare lightning-nature affinity. Her greatest asset was her personality. In less than half a day, she had completely captured the heart of Ryo's ninja hound, Akimaru. And in less than a week, Ryo, who was used to the rich food of his clan, had fallen in love with Chōmi's simple, light cooking. A week after that, he had become her devoted follower, much like his dog.
Unfortunately for Ryo, flowers may bloom, but water flows on, unfeeling. Chōmi's affections lay with the other member of the squad, Tekudō, who was even larger than she was.
Tekudō was his oldest subordinate, carefully selected after his previous team had been wiped out. His ninjutsu talent was average at best, but he possessed a powerful secret technique, one that Sasuke valued above all others: the Money Escape.