Three servings… of everything?
Sarutobi Shinnosuke froze.
The smile on his face slowly stiffened.
"…The portions here are quite large," he reminded carefully in a lowered voice.
Kizaru looked at him with a gentle smile and replied, sounding slightly embarrassed.
"If it's not enough, I'll order more~"
Not enough… order more?
Sarutobi Shinnosuke felt his heart tighten instantly.
He slowly turned to look at Hatake Sakumo beside him.
Seeing the sympathy in Sakumo's eyes, Shinnosuke suddenly felt like he understood something.
Trying to calm himself down, Shinnosuke reached for the teacup on the table with slightly trembling hands.
After taking a sip, he forced a stiff smile.
"It's fine. Just eat slowly. As long as it's delicious and filling."
"Sorry for the trouble, Shinnosuke-niisan~" Kizaru said with a bright smile.
"No trouble at all!" Shinnosuke replied.
Inside, however, his heart was already bleeding.
The barbecue lasted more than two hours.
By the end of it, nearly all the ingredients stored in the restaurant had been consumed.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke no longer remembered what the barbecue tasted like.
All he remembered was that the alcohol here was incredibly strong—
and that his hands were shaking when he signed the bill.
"Lord Shinnosuke, please come again next time!"
Akimichi Hachi personally escorted the important customer out of the restaurant, his face blooming with joy.
Standing on the busy street outside, Kizaru smiled and bowed slightly.
"Thank you for the meal~"
Calculating silently how many months of savings it would take to repay the debt, Sarutobi Shinnosuke forced a smile.
"You're welcome… we'll come again next time."
The moment he finished speaking—
Bang!
Sarutobi Shinnosuke mentally slapped himself.
Why did I say that?!
Trying to save face again!
My money!!
Although his heart was still bleeding, he continued smiling as he said goodbye to Kizaru.
Supported by Hatake Sakumo, he slowly headed toward home.
Standing on the street, Kizaru watched the two figures walk away.
Then he turned around and walked back into the barbecue restaurant.
"Hachi-san," Kizaru said casually, "transfer Shinnosuke's bill to the Shimura family account."
Akimichi Heihachi immediately understood.
"Of course. The usual arrangement."
He had served Kizaru many times before. The young shinobi had an appetite even more terrifying than members of the Akimichi clan themselves.
Naturally, the owner remembered him very well.
"Sorry for the trouble."
"No trouble at all!"
Smiling brightly, Hachi escorted Kizaru out once more and watched him leave down the street.
Meanwhile.
"Don't worry. Your debt was probably already paid by Kizaru."
Hatake Sakumo spoke kindly while helping Shinnosuke walk home.
"Kizaru paid it?"
Most of Shinnosuke's drunkenness vanished instantly.
He looked at Sakumo in surprise.
Sakumo nodded.
"The last time I treated him to barbecue, I didn't bring enough money. I owed quite a lot afterward."
"Later, when I saved up enough to pay the bill and went back to the restaurant…"
"The owner told me Kizaru had already settled it."
"Then why were you acting so sympathetic earlier?" Shinnosuke asked.
Although he said that, a smile had already appeared on his face again.
Sakumo shrugged.
"Because maybe next time… you'll treat us again."
Just then—
A cold wind passed through the street.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke shivered immediately.
"Let's talk about that later… much later!"
Sakumo burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!"
Seeing his minister's reaction, he couldn't help laughing harder.
"Hey! Hey! Sakumo!" Shinnosuke protested with mock dissatisfaction. "You're laughing way too much!"
"Hahaha!"
That only made Sakumo laugh even louder.
Looking at him, Shinnosuke shook his head helplessly.
Thinking back on his own reaction earlier, he couldn't help finding it amusing too.
Far away, in Iwagakure of the Land of Earth—
The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, stared at the intelligence report in his hand with a solemn expression.
The information read:
Shimura Kizaru.
Less than ten years old.
Possesses a mysterious kekkei genkai known as Light Release (possibly even a kekkei tōta).
Capable of high-speed flight.
Possesses unknown ninjutsu—or perhaps genjutsu—that renders him nearly immune to damage.
Six days ago, he infiltrated the Land of Lightning and ambushed the Third Raikage.
The two fought without a decisive victor.
Reading the report from Kumogakure, Ōnoki inhaled deeply.
At first, his instinct was to dismiss it.
Those fools from Kumogakure must be exaggerating, trying to drive a wedge between Iwagakure and Konohagakure by exaggerating Kizaru's threat.
But after thinking about it further, Ōnoki rejected that idea.
He knew the Third Raikage well.
The man might be reckless and proud, but he would never humiliate himself just to elevate the reputation of a ten-year-old child.
Which meant—
The report was most likely true.
Konoha's prodigy, Shimura Kizaru, had truly ambushed the Third Raikage… and fought him to a standstill.
Not even ten years old.
And already capable of battling a Kage.
The thought sent a chill down Ōnoki's spine.
It reminded him of a humiliating memory from his youth—
When he had once visited Konohagakure and been utterly crushed by Uchiha Madara.
Was Konoha about to produce another monster like Senju Hashirama… or Madara?
No.
This cannot be allowed.
If someone like that appeared again in Konoha, the balance of the entire shinobi world would collapse.
And if Shimura Kizaru inherited Madara's ambition…
There would be no Senju Hashirama left to stop him.
Ōnoki shuddered.
Especially when he considered the family Kizaru belonged to—
and his relationship with Shimura Danzō.
"The Darkness of the Shinobi World."
Ōnoki knew Danzō's ruthless ideology and iron-blooded methods very well.
With an uncle like that constantly influencing him…
It was impossible for Kizaru not to be affected.
He had to be eliminated.
Without hesitation, Ōnoki made his decision.
He also understood why the Third Raikage had shared this information despite damaging his own reputation.
Setting the report down, Ōnoki turned to his assistant.
"What bounty do we currently have on Konoha's Shimura Kizaru on the black market?"
The assistant thought for a moment before answering.
"Fifty million."
Ōnoki nodded.
Then he spoke decisively.
"Raise it to three hundred million."
The assistant stared at him in shock.
"Lord Tsuchikage… a bounty that high will greatly affect this year's finances."
"Do it."
Ōnoki's tone was firm.
"And contact the strongest bounty hunter we can find."
"If he accepts the mission, inform him that the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning will jointly offer six hundred million if the target is eliminated."
The assistant froze for a moment.
Then he answered mechanically.
"…Yes, Lord Tsuchikage."
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