Choza and Shunsui regrouped with Genma and Guy back at the main camp and immediately left towards Konoha.
The rest of the Shadow Platoon remained busy fighting on the other fronts of the Konoha-Kumo battlefield so the four of them were the only ones cleared to return.
They travelled for a couple of days while taking the longer route to Konoha to avoid mercenaries, bounty hunters or any of the Kumo informants.
By the time they reached a town they were only one day away from the village itself. Choza used the short stop to obtain the newest copy of the Kumo bingo book from a contact who dealt in such information.
Choza opened the book and scrolled through several pages before he suddenly stopped. He let out a long sigh and mumbled the words that showed he had expected this moment. "It was inevitable."
He then handed the open bingo book to Shunsui and spoke in a flat voice. "Read it." Shunsui took the book and stared at the page in his hands.
His expression grew more complicated the longer he studied the words and the rough sketch that accompanied them.
The first words had caught his attention immediately.
Kyoraku Shunsui
A Rank Threat
Bounty: 30,000,000 Ryo for confirmed death.
His eyebrows rose slightly as he continued reading the next line.
Additional 30,000,000 Ryo for the delivery of his corpse to Kumogakure.
Shunsui paused and read that sentence a second time before his eyes moved farther down the page.
100,000,000 Ryo for his capture and delivery to Kumogakure.
For several long seconds he simply stared at the paper without speaking. Guy had already stepped up beside him and was leaning over his shoulder to read the same thing.
Shunsui slowly looked at Choza, Genma and Guy before he returned his gaze to the printed words. "So Kumo has officially decided that my head is worth thirty million ryo, my corpse is worth sixty million, and apparently my living self is worth a hundred million. I have to admit that is a rather flattering assessment of my market value."
Choza gave him a tired look,"You're twelve years old. Stop thinking about your market value."
Shunsui ignored the warning completely and continued reading the his information that had been attached to the bounty. There were several pages dedicated to his known abilities.
The first section began with his swordsmanship. The report described him as an exceptionally skilled practitioner of samurai kenjutsu who fought with two swords at once.
It also recorded observations about his unusually fast movement technique and his ability to close distances before opponents could properly react.
Shunsui nodded to himself as he finished that part. Guy looked over the same page with growing interest and pointed at the next block of text. "They also seem to have spent a lot of time trying to understand your strange abilities."
Shunsui turned his head toward his teammate with mild offense in his voice. "Strange? They're perfectly reasonable abilities. It's the people getting attacked by them who insist on making things complicated."
The following section was dedicated almost entirely to some of his games.
Kumo had recorded his ability to manipulate shadows and to teleport through them. They had also noted that he could somehow grant the same ability to other people who fought near him.
Shunsui could tell they still did not know it was a structured game. At the same time they were beginning to piece parts of the truth together. The report mentioned that anyone facing him sometimes gained the ability to move through shadows as well, which was technically correct only for participants of that specific game.
Shunsui's mouth twitched upward as he read the confused paragraphs. "I like this section. They are so close and yet so far from the real answer."
Choza shook his head and pointed toward the next set of pages. "Keep reading." Shunsui turned the page and immediately became more interested.
The new section described both the Rock Paper Scissors game and the recent Tower Defense battle. Kumo had apparently witnessed enough of the valley fight to determine that Shunsui could create an entire battlefield filled with defensive structures and different types of towers.
They had recorded that the towers possessed separate offensive and defensive functions. They had also written that he could somehow grant hundreds of people the power to use free summons.
Shunsui looked genuinely pleased by the last detail. "Free summons? I see. That's probably why they want me alive. They want me to hand their entire Kumo force a set of free summons. This is hilarious."
He chuckled quietly while Guy continued to read over his shoulder. Shunsui glanced up from the page with clear satisfaction. "They wrote three full pages about me and still don't understand how any of my abilities actually work."
Guy smiled at the comment. "Shunsui maybe you should have explained it to them. Your ability is really complicated. Even I don't understand all of it and I am your teammate. And you just keep bringing out these new games every time we fight."
Shunsui answered with an easy smile of his own. "You should always let your enemies keep guessing Guy. The moment they understand the rules the game, it becomes far less interesting."
The report then moved on to his elemental abilities. Kumo had observed him turning one blade into a weapon engulfed in flames and spinning it rapidly to increase its temperature before releasing powerful fire slashes. They had labelled the technique as advanced ninjutsu when it had only been the Diabolo, the yo-yo game.
They had also recorded his ability to launch sharp wind slashes from a blade which was another game entirely. The only nature transformation they had correctly identified was his real Water Release and they had specifically noted the Water Forge Jutsu he had used on a few occasions.
There was even a short paragraph claiming he possessed some form of ice kekkei genkai based on observations from his Chunin Exam match against Mangetsu.
Shunsui read through the entire elemental section with growing amusement. Almost every conclusion the Kumo analysts had reached was inaccurate or incomplete.
He looked at the bounty numbers one more time. Thirty million for a confirmed kill. Another thirty million for delivery of the body. One hundred million for capturing him alive. He slowly lowered the book and stared into the middle distance while a familiar thoughtful expression settled on his face.
Choza noticed the look immediately and spoke in a warning tone. "Whatever you're thinking don't."
Shunsui answered without turning his head. "I haven't said anything yet."
Choza remained unconvinced. "I know that look." Shunsui placed one hand against his chin and continued as though the conversation were completely reasonable.
"I'm just considering the economic possibilities here. If I could somehow hand myself over to Kumo collect the hundred million escape with the money and return to Konoha I could probably spend the rest of my life without worrying about ordinary expenses."
Choza's expression became completely flat. Shunsui kept speaking as if he had not noticed the reaction. "Think about it. A hundred million ryo is enough to buy almost anything I might want. I could get a massive house good food enough books to last for years and I could probably afford to drink whatever I wanted every single day."
Choza interrupted him at once. "You're underage." Shunsui looked at his sensei. Choza stared back without blinking.
Shunsui glanced down at the bounty notice again and considered his next words with care. "Then I'll simply put the money aside until I'm old enough."
Choza let out a long sigh.
-------Author Notes--------
Thankyou Skinmelder for supporting me!
Would appreciate power stones if you can spare any!
Y'all can read the next 20 chapters of the fanfic on my pat*reon.
pat*reon.com/snipergoku
Thankyou for supporting me!