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A peaceful night's rest.
Unfortunately, upon waking up in the morning, Sawara Kiri was not greeted by Yuki's sisterly wake-up call, but by an unfamiliar Chakra presence outside his window.
When Sawara Kiri opened the window, he saw an Anbu Ninja, completely clad in uniform, kneeling on the ground.
"Lord Sawara."
"Lord Third requests your presence at the Intelligence Department this morning to report the details of yesterday's attack to the relevant personnel."
Sawara Kiri yawned and waved his hand casually.
"I know, I'll be there in a bit."
"Excuse me."
The Anbu Ninja nodded slightly, and his figure vanished instantly.
Evidently, whether in his previous life or this one, he couldn't escape the fate of being a workhorse, constantly chased by his superiors and tasks. Even without the incessant dinging of a phone, someone would always find a way to deliver messages.
However, since no specific time was set, and he now bore the distinct 'Tsunade Faction' label, Sawara Kiri didn't really take Sarutobi Hiruzen's command to heart.
He first went downstairs, intending to make some breakfast and wake Yuki.
Then, he saw Yuki, who suddenly had dark circles under her eyes, standing like a sleepwalker in front of the kitchen counter, skillfully flipping an omelet.
If she hadn't forgotten to turn on the stove, Sawara Kiri truly wouldn't have noticed anything amiss with her today.
"Yuki?"
Sawara Kiri called out cautiously.
"Hai, Yuki desu."
Yuki still answered robotically, like a sleepwalker, as the flowing egg white and yolk in the frying pan mixed together with her flipping motion.
It wasn't until Sawara Kiri firmly grabbed her shoulders and shook her that Yuki suddenly woke up.
Opening her eyes, she saw Kiri standing before her, looking at her with some concern.
"Yuki, did you not sleep well last night?"
"Huh?!"
The girl's brain was still a bit muddled, but it finally started to function.
Her expression instantly stiffened.
Oh no.
She had a nightmare all night about onii-chan being hypnotized and led away by that bad woman, waking up two or three times in a fright. Every time she closed her eyes, all she saw were scenes of Kiri being pressed down by that person in various positions on the bed, balcony, kitchen, and living room sofa.
It was truly terrifying.
It was so awful!
Even now, the girl's nerves were still a bit frayed.
However, to prevent Kiri from worrying, Yuki forced herself to say, "No, I'm fine."
"Really?"
Sawara Kiri reached out and ruffled her hair.
Feeling the warmth from Kiri's palm on her head, Yuki was startled at first, then her words immediately changed.
"Fake!"
The girl put down the frying pan, took a step closer, and buried her messy-haired little head into her onii-chan's embrace, taking a deep breath and sighing, "I had nightmares all night and didn't sleep at all."
"I urgently need to replenish my onii-chan energy."
"Really, or fake...?"
Sawara Kiri was now a little suspicious.
"Kiri, you've changed." Sawara Yuki suddenly looked at him with a very unfamiliar gaze. "You weren't like this before. When I had nightmares, you used to say, 'Little Yuki, do you want to sleep with big brother tonight~?' You'd even tell me stories when it rained and thundered."
"You definitely have someone else's sister in your heart."
"Waaah."
Yuki fake-cried twice, feigning sadness.
Sawara Kiri stood with his hands on his hips, looking at her.
Looks like she's fine.
"Alright, if you didn't sleep well, go catch up on sleep. I have to go out in a bit."
He shooed his silly sister out of the kitchen, poured out the eggs in the frying pan, and casually lit the stove. "I'll put your portion in the fridge. Don't forget to eat it when you wake up."
"Okay~"
Most Ninja have very regular routines. Although Sawara Kiri was a night owl in his previous life, after more than ten years of discipline, he had developed good habits of early sleep, early rising, and early exercise.
First, he finished breakfast, then ran a few laps around the Village wall as a warm-up, and even picked up a standard Ninja blade at the Ninja tool shop.
The abilities gained from the panel lottery were not merely simple memories.
Sawara Kiri, having obtained the Hinokami Kagura sword technique, was as if he had suddenly become a sword master with decades of experience in swordsmanship, with his body, mind, and even some concepts all seamlessly integrated.
Therefore, it felt quite unaccustomed not to have a relatively suitable blade on him.
However, since it was a standard Ninja tool, the quality naturally wasn't anything to boast about.
He'd have to get a better one once he saved enough money.
"Sawara-kun!"
As soon as he entered the building, he heard a familiar voice from behind him.
Turning his head, Sawara Kiri smiled.
"Lord Shikagoe."
That familiar pineapple head with dark circles under his eyes was none other than Nara Shikagoe, his former superior in the Intelligence Department.
However, compared to the faint eye bags before, Nara Shikagoe's insomnia symptoms had clearly worsened significantly.
"How did you get so worn out?"
Nara Shikagoe waved his hand with a look of regret. "Don't even mention it. My wife suddenly wants a child, so lately I've been busy during the day and even busier at night."
"My back is constantly aching, it's worse than working overtime in the office... sigh."
"You've truly worked hard."
Sawara Kiri gave him a rather sympathetic look.
Is this the plight of a sad, married middle-aged man?
Even intimacy was becoming torture.
"What about you?"
"Why are you suddenly free to come over?"
"It's about yesterday's incident; I need to give a summary to the Intelligence Department." Sawara Kiri answered truthfully.
"Oh, I see." Nara Shikagoe suddenly remembered yesterday's events, his expression subtly changing. After a brief moment of thought, he said, "Then when you report later, remember to pay a little attention to your attitude."
"You should know about the things between Lady Tsunade and Lord Third recently."
"In short, some people might have a bit of an issue with you all."
"So, you have to be careful not to let them get a handle on you."
Sawara Kiri was startled by the words. Meeting Nara Shikagoe's eyes, which were framed by dark circles, he seemed to understand something and suddenly smiled.
"Then I thank Lord Shikagoe for the reminder."
"Oh, what kind of relationship do we have..."
After a few more words, Nara Shikagoe quickly found an excuse to leave.
Sawara Kiri continued towards the Intelligence Department.
Should it be said that the Nara clan truly lives up to its reputation as a gathering of intelligent people?
They would offend neither the Hokage faction nor the Tsunade faction, which had only recently gained independence due to his actions. Instead, they strove to become 'useful people' to both sides.
Such a family was clearly difficult for anyone to dislike.
As expected.
When Sawara Kiri entered the Intelligence Department and began his report, he encountered several intelligence officers whose attitudes were clearly unfriendly. Their tone was quite forceful, and they repeatedly questioned several combat details, asking the same things over and over again.
A report that should have taken only twenty to thirty minutes was dragged out for more than two hours.
Sawara Kiri didn't know why they were angry.
They might have been Root intelligence officers who lost significant power after Danzo's faction fell from grace.
They might also have been propaganda and public relations personnel who were forced to give up lucrative positions due to Tsunade's demands last night.
Or perhaps, they were simply Hokage supporters who were dissatisfied with Tsunade and others 'flaunting themselves' around the Village these past few days.
Whatever it was.
Sawara Kiri didn't care.
The arena of power was just such a place.
One group of people wanted to gain status, so they had to push another group down.
It wasn't until Sawara Kiri patiently reported the entire process and personally drew a rough sketch of Kakuzu's appearance that he was finally released by those verbose individuals.
However, after stepping out, he unexpectedly encountered a group of people.
"Excuse me, are you Lord Sawara Kiri?"
"Yes, that's me."
Sawara Kiri looked at them in confusion, "And you are?"
It was a young woman with no Chakra reaction, clearly an ordinary person, clutching a small notebook in her hand, her expression clearly a little nervous.
"H-hello!"
"We are reporters from the 'Konoha Daily.' My name is Nori Hanai, and this is the sketch artist, Ijima Gentaro."
"Today, we're here to interview you about last night's attack in the Village."
"Do you have some time?"
Hearing her, Sawara Kiri couldn't help but be stunned.
The Konoha Daily was currently the newspaper with the largest circulation in all of Konoha, and it even had good sales throughout the Land of Fire.
However, he hadn't expected that he would one day be interviewed.
But then, Sawara Kiri seemed to think of something and suddenly smiled.
"Of course."
"However, as compensation, I hope you can write a few more 'small details' in the newspaper."
"Do you have any problem with that?"
Nori Hanai's eyes immediately lit up, and she smiled, "Of course not!"
It was exactly what she wanted!
However, after the interview concluded.
"..."
Reporter Nori Hanai lowered her head, looking at the things she had jotted down in her small notebook, her expression very subtle.
"Can these things really be written?"
A few days later.
Kakuzu, who had already escaped Konoha, had just bloodied the underground gold exchange that sold him a bunch of false information, and incidentally captured two usable hearts as replenishment.
Only then did he feel a slight release from the hatred in his heart.
However, he had no intention of letting Sawara Kiri off the hook just yet.
'Hmph.'
'Once that brat's bounty reaches thirty million Ryo, I'll go take his head.'
'But before that, I still need to find suitable hearts.'
Kakuzu thought to himself as he strode into a small tavern in the mountains.
However, upon entering the tavern, he saw that everyone was holding a thick stack of newspapers, intently reading something, completely absorbed.
Even the usual chatter and bragging had significantly decreased, and he wondered what was going on.
"A glass of gin."
"One-third milk."
"..."
"Boss?"
The Boss behind the counter didn't move for a long time, prompting Kakuzu to call out again.
"Hmm, coming."
The Boss said so, but his eyes were still fixed on the newspaper.
This couldn't help but pique Kakuzu's curiosity.
He picked up a stack of newspapers from the counter and glanced at it.
Then, he saw his black and white portrait on the front page.
"S-Rank Wanted: Kakuzu"
"Image.jpg"
"Bounty: One Hundred Million Ryo"
"Dead or Alive"
Seeing this, Kakuzu frowned at first but wasn't flustered.
He had been wanted for more than just a day or two, and those who dared to come after him were few and far between.
It was all thanks to his strength.
However, as he continued reading, his expression suddenly began to change.
"Kakuzu, a missing-nin from Takigakure Village, a Ninja from the same era as the First Hokage, estimated lifespan over one hundred years."
"According to his own claims during combat, this target possesses extremely powerful Ninjutsu and Taijutsu abilities, as well as a very perverse hobby. In his early years, he once attacked the First Hokage with an electric toys, and with this power, successfully left indelible scars on the First Hokage, causing him deep shame."
"Furthermore, his body also contains a treasure called 'Earth Grudge Fear' that grants eternal life."
"According to his own claims, anyone who consumes his heart can immediately extend their life by over one hundred and fifty years—he has five such hearts in his body."
"Konoha Village has now initiated a bounty on him, requiring his complete hearts to be preserved without damage, with a bounty of one hundred million Ryo."
Besides this content, it also listed various locations he had frequented, important figures he had assassinated, and various analyses of his strength.
For an entire week, people across the Land of Fire were inviting powerful Ninja to publicly analyze his weaknesses in the newspapers, discussing where to go and kill him.
All sorts of discussions caused the Konoha Daily's sales to skyrocket by an unknown number of times in just this short week.
Not only that, but the newspaper also featured various elderly wealthy individuals, worried about their lives, continuously adding to Konoha's bounty, relaying contributions non-stop.
In less than a week, the amount in the newspaper had accumulated to a terrifying figure that even Kakuzu himself wanted to rip out his hearts and sell them.
By the end, his entire scalp tingled, the hairs on his back stood on end, and a strong sense of crisis immediately surged through him. He slammed the newspaper onto the table.
"Who?!"
"Who the f*** wrote this fake news?!"
"May his son be born without d***! I'll kill his whole family!"
He was an old man, having lived for so many years, and he could still learn new things?
He had truly never seen such a depraved person in his life!
However, no sooner had he spoken.
He saw that a crowd had gathered outside the small tavern at some point, and they were now staring intently at him through the narrow doorway.
They were eyeing him like tigers.
Even the other people in the tavern seemed to sense the heavy atmosphere and suddenly looked up.
"Hey!"
"Isn't that f***ing Kakuzu?!"
"..."
Kakuzu's face instantly darkened.
From that day on, the man with the highest bounty in the history of the Ninja World began his life on the run.
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