No sooner had Hibari finished his 'magnanimous' words than the rigid Number Two breathed a slight sigh of relief. He was just afraid that Hibari would insist on using public funds, which would have been troublesome.
Generally speaking, the Anbu's annual budget might not even reach the enormous sum of forty million ryo. Yet, within the Anbu, there were two hidden magnates: Commander Hiruzen Sarutobi and Deputy Commander Senju Hibari. To them, forty million ryo, while a huge sum, probably wouldn't cause them financial distress.
"Where is that guy named Kakuzu? Tell him forty million ryo is no small amount, so we need to inspect the goods first, then exchange money for goods! It must be a face-to-face transaction!" Hibari said, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
He had originally come to the Anbu to arrange for some personnel to help him search for Kakuzu's whereabouts and then find an excuse to meet that scoundrel.
As it turned out, the big deal he put out was actually taken by Kakuzu, which meant an opportunity had conveniently presented itself! His hope of reclassing as a 'necromancer' had greatly increased!
In the past, when he had no use for this guy, Hibari always thought that if he ever got a chance to meet that scoundrel, he'd give him a good beating, and if he didn't beat the crap out of him, it would be a clean bowel movement.
But now that he had a use for him, he suddenly found Kakuzu quite endearing, with clear features and no overly extreme personality traits, aside from being somewhat greedy.
But was greed such a major flaw? Perhaps to others, but to Hibari, it didn't seem to be an unforgivable fault. On the contrary, Kakuzu's greedy nature made him quite easy to exploit...
'Thinking about it, this guy is quite a talent. If he's sensible this time, I'll see if I can recruit him as a subordinate. As for past grievances... A great man doesn't quibble over trifles. As long as he doesn't hold too much against me, I, Hibari-sama, am magnanimous enough to forgive him...' Hibari thought to himself, stroking his chin.
The rigid Number Two, upon hearing Hibari's inquiry, quickly replied, "Forty million ryo is indeed a big business, so even if you, Deputy Commander, hadn't made this request, the other party had already made it. That guy named Kakuzu wants to meet you, Deputy Commander, during the transaction... This perfectly aligns with your request."
Hibari was momentarily stunned, then a smile spread across his lips. No wonder Kakuzu, that scoundrel, hadn't bothered to hide his identity; he wanted a 'face-to-face meet-up.'
As for where this idea came from, Hibari quickly made a reasonable inference. Undoubtedly, Kakuzu wanted to see if he could connect with the wealthy patron who was generously spending money on corpses. If there were similar big deals in the future, he would be the first to know the information, and neither party would have to let the black market earn a markup. At the same time, the fewer people who knew, the more confidential all sorts of intelligence would be.
Thinking of this, Hibari smiled and said, "Very good. I also want to meet this Kakuzu. Go arrange it... in Tanzaku Quarters!"
The rigid Number Two quickly nodded upon hearing Hibari's words, saying, "Yes, Deputy Commander!"
In truth, Hibari wanted to conduct the transaction in Konohagakure, but then he feared Kakuzu wouldn't dare to come, and his own identity might be exposed. After all, while there were many wealthy people in Konohagakure, very few were as rich as Hibari. With Kakuzu's intelligence, he likely wouldn't fail to figure it out. If he then worried it was a trap and too dangerous in Konoha, and simply fled, Hibari would have nowhere to cry.
As for Tanzaku Quarters, from a shinobi's perspective, it wasn't too far from Konohagakure, just a two-day journey.
Moreover, Tanzaku Quarters was a bustling, diverse place, very open, a small town primarily focused on entertainment and commerce. Many people from various countries passed through here.
Due to Konohagakure having recently reduced certain commercial activities to lower the probability of espionage, Hibari's Mitsumine Group also complied with this policy, gathering their merchant caravans in Tanzaku Quarters, not far from Konohagakure.
So, even though the world was currently embroiled in fierce fighting, there were still ambitious individuals here who dared to take risks, hoping to profit greatly from the rising prices of various goods and luxury items due to the war.
After all, no matter how brutal the war became, it was only the ordinary populace who suffered. The extravagant 'upper' class remained as they were, as if victories and defeats had nothing to do with them.
The more diverse the crowd, the more Kakuzu could perhaps feel a little more at ease, even if he did have some suspicions.
Two days later, in Tanzaku Quarters, inside a super-sized hot pot restaurant owned by Hibari himself, in the topmost private VIP room...
Hibari was currently cooking hot pot, using his chopsticks to pick up tender, perfectly cooked slices of meat and swishing them in the broth to eat.
The spacious VIP room was empty except for him, but if one looked at the wall, they would see half a wall piled high with gold bars. Combined with the lighting, it made one's eyes blur slightly; it was gleaming gold!
These weren't gold bars worth forty million ryo, but a full fifty million ryo. It was a reserve fund Hibari had transferred from the local Mitsumine Merchant Guild. There was no other meaning in displaying them here than to intimidate Kakuzu.
In Hibari's opinion, using power or other means to intimidate Kakuzu into compliance wouldn't be as effective as simply showering him with money. These gold bars were specifically prepared to 'hit' him with.
This entire hot pot restaurant's top floor only had this one VIP room. Currently, Hibari's hot pot restaurants in this world came in two tiers: one was an affordable hot pot restaurant with lower prices to cater to the general populace.
The other was the high-end hot pot restaurant, like the one Hibari was currently in, where all the food and drinks were top-tier ingredients, and the prices were naturally exorbitant.
The corridors on this top floor were elegantly decorated, looking like a refined place for tea ceremonies, and even the rich aroma of the hot pot was suppressed by the fragrant wood. Anyone who walked in would, imperceptibly, feel this sense of luxury.
Kakuzu's figure soon appeared from the staircase at the end of the corridor. He wore a black robe, his eyes held a hint of caution, and he unreservedly sported the Takigakure missing-nin's forehead protector on his head. A black veil still covered most of his face, giving him a somewhat mysterious aura.
This wasn't Kakuzu's first time in Tanzaku Quarters, but it was his first time at this hot pot restaurant in Tanzaku Quarters, and such a high-end one at that.
His gaze fell upon the entrance of the sole VIP room, where two masked shinobi stood. Just one look made Kakuzu's heart sink slightly, because he recognized them: their standard attire clearly belonged to Konohagakure's Anbu!
As a master who operated in the shadows, Kakuzu naturally understood certain things. Among other things, the reputation of Konoha Anbu was very prominent; there were virtually no slackers within, only the elite of the elite!
And the person he was about to meet was protected by two Anbu members at his side. This level of treatment was rarely seen even in the entire Land of Fire, because it required not only wealth but also power!
At this moment, Kakuzu already had some suspicions and ideas in his mind. This hot pot restaurant... Anbu... Konoha... all seemed to connect to one person, and that person happened to be extremely wealthy. Moreover, if he were collecting corpses, it seemed perfectly reasonable!
Although he had some suspicions, he had already come this far. And he very much wanted to meet the person he suspected. Furthermore, he had revealed his identity from the start, yet the other party was still so openly unconcerned, and even specifically chose Tanzaku Quarters as the meeting location. It seemed... he didn't harbor much malice towards him?
Thinking of this, the sum of forty million ryo flashed through Kakuzu's mind, and he finally made up his mind. Setting everything else aside, for the sake of this huge sum, even if it was a dragon's den or a tiger's maw, he had to enter and take the risk!
He slowly walked to the VIP room door and softly said, "I have an appointment for a business deal."
One of the Anbu members first glanced at the missing-nin forehead protector Kakuzu wore, then, without asking further questions, directly opened the door.
Kakuzu didn't hesitate. With a firm resolve, he stepped inside. The Anbu member then closed the door from the outside.
The moment he entered, Kakuzu froze. The first thing he saw wasn't Hibari, who was sitting there eating hot pot by himself, seemingly at ease, nor was it the table full of delicious ingredients. It was the shimmering gold that almost blinded him.
The small wall accumulated from those seemingly high-purity gold bars made all five hearts in Kakuzu's body pound intensely. He couldn't take his eyes off them...
"Fifty million ryo!" Kakuzu was indeed very discerning. Putting everything else aside, he instantly recognized the total value of these gold bars, which proved he truly loved money like his life!
Just as Kakuzu's mind was captivated by the fifty million ryo in gold bars, Hibari, while picking up a tender slice of premium beef from the bubbling hot pot and dipping it in his oil dish, turned his head to look in Kakuzu's direction as he put the meat in his mouth.
"It's you, after all. What are you standing there for? Come, have some food first..." Hibari grinned, a brilliant smile spreading across his face.
His tone made it sound as if he and Kakuzu were very familiar, or as if they had no past grievances, but were instead good friends.
What Hibari worried about most was Kakuzu not having the guts to enter. As long as he could walk through that door, it proved that at least half of the subsequent matters had already succeeded!
Upon hearing Hibari's greeting, Kakuzu slowly shifted his gaze from the gold bars and looked at the beaming Hibari.
Compared to about four years ago, Hibari's appearance had indeed changed significantly. The person who once looked like a 'fledgling' had now become a mighty eagle.
However, this didn't surprise Kakuzu, as he frequently followed information about Hibari, his 'God of Wealth,' so he was already mentally prepared for Hibari's transformation.
"Senju Hibari... It's really you..." Kakuzu murmured softly.
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