December 28.
Konoha entered the New Year holiday. Even the Anbu were off-duty, leaving only a small duty crew.
After breakfast, Kitazawa went to the Anbu base.
"Kitazawa."
Konan was waiting in the office as usual.
"This is for you." Kitazawa handed her a packet.
"'Silver Jewelry Promotion Plan'?" Konan read the title aloud without thinking.
"You're aiming those silver pieces at the down-market segment. New Year's is perfect—everyone's free." Kitazawa smiled.
"I get it. I'll tell them to open," Konan said, unable to hide a flash of excitement. They'd prepared for so long; it was finally time to execute—time to make money.
"Promote first, then open," Kitazawa said, tapping the plan with a finger.
Konan nodded and started reading.
There was a lot inside, but it boiled down to four approaches:
1. Media blitz—TV, film, newspapers. It sounded wild, but the shinobi world had all three. Once they made some money, they could even shoot a movie or TV drama and hire stars to push the brand.
2. Sponsorships—shrines and small shops. As long as they weren't direct competitors, no one refused free money. Many small businesses could cross-promote too—gift shops, matchmaking agencies, and so on.
3. A New Year's gala with a beauty pageant as the main event. Akatsuki's silver shops numbered only three for now, located in the Metropolis of the Land of Earth and in Iwagakure, with the Metropolis being the focus. With New Year here, Konan could leverage Akatsuki's connections and funds to stage a gala. Why a pageant? It draws eyes—and entrants would have to wear their silver.
4. New Year promos—raise prices to the market level, then discount. Good-looking and inexpensive items will always sell. Their silver designs came from Kitazawa—classics from his previous life—already far prettier than the competition. Discounting on top of that meant volume.
Kitazawa dared to discount because Akatsuki's costs were minimal to nonexistent. Ore from the Land of Rain: free. Kakuzu doing the mining: no labor cost. Transport handled by summoned beasts: no shipping costs.
The only expense was paying workers at the processing plant—residents of the very poor Land of Rain, whose wages were generally low.
Honestly, if Konan were ruthless, she wouldn't have to pay at all; Akatsuki ran the Rain. Push it further and Kakuzu could crank out shadow clones—or put the countless White Zetsu to work.
Konan finished and sat there stunned. The plan was a shock to her—or rather, to her traditional shinobi mindset. Most of these methods she'd never seen before. It wasn't just her; merchants in general hadn't, either.
Outside shinobi villages, the world was essentially feudal; promotion was old-fashioned. Kitazawa's ideas were common in his previous life—almost unseen here. More than ever, Konan felt that relying only on bounties and missions was far too narrow.
"Head back to Akatsuki today," Kitazawa reminded her. "Move fast or you'll miss the best window."
"Thank you." Konan carefully put the plan away.
"It's nothing—I'm your consultant, remember?" Kitazawa said lightly. "I want you to make a fortune."
"Without you, we wouldn't make nearly as much," Konan said, shaking her head.
"We haven't even started yet," Kitazawa laughed. "Let's skip the thank-yous for now."
Konan blinked, the corner of her mouth lifting for a moment before she composed herself. She said her goodbyes and left Konoha.
Looking back, she saw a peaceful village and felt a pang of envy. When would the Land of Rain be this prosperous? Her thoughts drifted to Kitazawa. The longer she spent with him, the more he showed—so unlike a typical ninja.
Two days flew by.
December 31—Ōmisoka, the last day of the year. After a night of snow, the skies finally cleared.
In the yard, Kitazawa activated his body with Yang Release chakra. It felt like being yanked from sleep at midnight to go to a bonfire—his whole body woke up, cells buzzing with life.
He didn't know how long had passed before the door opened.
"When did you get up?" Yūhi Kurenai yawned.
"Same as always—seven," Kitazawa answered offhandedly.
"Freak!" Kurenai couldn't help muttering. She meant his body. They'd spent the same time and effort yesterday, but by morning he was lively as ever, while she was wiped out and groggy, needing three extra hours to feel human. Keep this up and even a jōnin couldn't handle it.
"Thanks for the compliment," Kitazawa said, stopping his training. "Let's go out after breakfast."
"Let's just eat out," Kurenai stretched. "It's late, and I'm not cooking."
"Works for me," Kitazawa nodded. Even on holiday plenty of shops stayed open—New Year foot traffic was the best.
"Heading out?" came Shizune's voice.
"Happy New Year, Kitazawa-sensei!" Karin beamed.
"Here, a red envelope," Kitazawa said, handing one to her.
"What about me?" A fair hand appeared in front of him.
"Shouldn't you be giving me a red envelope, Tsunade-sensei?" Kitazawa deadpanned, meeting Tsunade's eyes.
"No red envelope—how about an IOU?" Tsunade said shamelessly. "Take as many as you like."
"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune protested.
"I'm kidding," Tsunade sniffed. "Gimme."
Kitazawa handed her a red envelope.
"Shizune, he gave me this of his own accord—I didn't ask," Tsunade said with a grin, taking it and peeking inside—then froze. Normally New Year envelopes for juniors were a token amount—hundreds or a thousand ryō. Inside hers was a bankbook.
"Come on, let's all go for a stroll," Kitazawa said, smiling. In truth, he was just the messenger; the money was Tsunade's share from the Heart of the Ocean jewelry shop.
"Tsunade-sama, no gambling these next two days!" Shizune suddenly remembered, face turning stern.
"It's vacation. Why are you still on my case?" Tsunade scowled.
"You're still the Hokage on vacation. If people see you at the casino on New Year's—what does that look like?" Shizune shot back.
"Tch." Tsunade tugged at the corner of her mouth, annoyed but with nothing to say.
An idea sparked in Kitazawa's mind: open a casino and siphon business from Konoha's other houses. The business itself didn't matter—just attracting Tsunade did. However much she lost would be money from one pocket into another.
He could build a "new-style" casino from memories of his past life—better service, more games, truly fair odds—and steal the spotlight. He wouldn't front it himself; Kado's shipping company could. If Tsunade knew it was his, she probably wouldn't go—she craved the "real" gamble.
They wandered the streets, eating whatever smelled good, playing whatever looked fun—completely relaxed. That happy routine lasted five days. On January 5 the holiday ended. The academy wasn't open yet, but shinobi returned to work and missions—and the diligent students resumed training.
When Kitazawa reached the academy field, he found Sasuke, Naruto, and the others going at it hard. Naruto and Rock Lee were especially loud. Alongside the students were Hatake Kakashi, Chen Baojun, and Maruboshi Kosuke.
"Sasuke, Naruto, Hinata, Neji," Kitazawa called after a moment's thought. "Over here."
"Sensei," Hinata arrived first.
"Happy New Year, Sensei!" Naruto greeted him with his usual enthusiasm.
Hinata winced—she'd forgotten to say it.
"Happy New Year," Kitazawa nodded. "I've got a special mission for you four."
"What rank?" Naruto was instantly hyped.
"S-rank," Kitazawa said.
"S-rank?" Naruto's eyes went wide. Sasuke, Neji, and Hinata all looked stunned—way beyond what they'd expected.
"Meet at Konoha's main gate tomorrow at nine," Kitazawa said, clapping Naruto on the shoulder. "Don't stress—you'll have plenty of teammates."
The three—other than Naruto—caught on: this clearly wasn't for the four of them to carry alone. They were tagging along to see the world.
"Got it!" Naruto pumped a fist. "Sensei, I'll definitely complete the mission—feel my youth!"
"Idiot," Sasuke muttered.
"All right, back to training," Kitazawa chuckled. When they dispersed, he found a spot and practiced Wood Release: Nativity of a Sea of Trees.
The next day, January 6.
"What?" Sasuke blurted, delighted. "Nii-san, you're coming too?"
"Mm." Itachi smiled. "Our first mission together."
"Awesome!" Sasuke grinned, full of confidence. "Watch me shine, nii-san!"
If Naruto had heard that, he'd be confused—he'd said something similar yesterday and Sasuke called him an idiot.
"This is S-rank. Be careful," Itachi said, tapping Sasuke's forehead.
"With you here, S-rank will be a breeze!" Sasuke declared without hesitation.
"Itachi, take care of Sasuke," Mikoto said, worried. If Kitazawa hadn't specifically named Sasuke, she would've refused.
"Don't worry, Mom!" Sasuke waved her off. "We'll be back in no time!"
"Good," Fugaku said, pleased. Not yet eight and already being taken on an S-rank by Kitazawa—that meant Sasuke had become a core next-gen shinobi. Fugaku felt his son's Hokage odds rising. If there were no rivals, he might have laughed out loud. Unfortunately there were—Naruto, Neji, and others.
"Nii-san, what's the mission?" Sasuke asked as they walked. "What do I need to do?" It was his first mission with Itachi; he was eager to impress.
"Kitazawa-sama will explain," Itachi said. "We'll find out at the gate."
"Okay," Sasuke said, happily trailing beside him.
Soon they reached Konoha's gate. Since Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu had joined the Curse Mark Unit, the "gate gods" were new faces—at least new to Kitazawa. With so many shinobi in Konoha—nearly ten thousand mobilized in the Fourth Great War—there were plenty of genin and chūnin he'd never met.
"Sasuke!" Naruto waved wildly.
"Why aren't you saying hi?" Itachi nudged.
"Morning, Naruto," Sasuke said obediently.
Kitazawa couldn't help smiling. Itachi was the only one who could dispel Sasuke's "cool act." In front of his brother, he wasn't so aloof. Good thing Sakura wasn't here; she'd think she was trapped in a genjutsu.
"Everyone's here. Let's move," Kitazawa cut the chatter.
"Just the six of us?" Naruto scratched his head. He remembered Kitazawa saying there'd be lots of teammates. Where were they—one extra didn't count.
"Of course there are more than six," Kitazawa said. "You can come out."
Shadows surfaced one after another—soon the area around them was full. Anbu numbered about seventy; this time Kitazawa brought twenty-eight—seven full squads. With a wave, they melted away again.
"So cool!" Naruto cried. They came and went like ghosts.
"They're all Anbu," Kitazawa said casually. "Different from regular shinobi—they're used to working in the dark."
Naruto nodded. Neji, however, noticed the troubling part: that was a lot of Anbu. To be Anbu you were at least an elite chūnin; most were tokubetsu jōnin. Were they going to assassinate a Kage—or a national leader?
Hinata didn't overthink it. She was just happy to be going out on a mission with Kitazawa. Sasuke felt the same; if Itachi wasn't here he'd be analyzing things—since he was, Sasuke relaxed.
"Our target is the Box of Ultimate Bliss," Kitazawa briefed them.
"It grants any wish?" Sasuke asked. "If I wished to be as strong as my brother—would it happen?"
"It would," Kitazawa said, blinking.
"Huh?" Sasuke hadn't expected a straight yes and was momentarily stunned.
"If you're going to wish, wish to awaken the three-tomoe Sharingan," Itachi advised. He worried the box wouldn't interpret "as strong as my brother" the way Sasuke meant; Itachi didn't have three tomoe—he had a Mangekyō.
"It's real?" Naruto puffed his chest. "Then I'm wishing to become Hokage!"
"I'll wish first!" Sasuke snapped back to reality. If he could unlock three tomoe, he could beat Naruto and Yakumo Kurama and take first in the Genius Class.
"Fine by me," Naruto said generously. "You go first."
"You two don't have wishes?" Kitazawa asked Neji and Hinata.
"I don't believe a tool like that exists," Neji said coolly.
"I don't really have any wishes," Hinata said, glancing at Kitazawa and shaking her head. Her life felt full; she had no regrets.
They chatted as they traveled. After leaving the Forest of Death they went quiet and picked up the pace. By nightfall they crossed the northwestern border of the Land of Fire into the Land of Grass.
Hozuki Castle sat on an island ringed on all sides by water—more like an inland sea than an ocean. After a night's rest, they reached the shore.
"Konoha shinobi?" Four prison guards approached.
Kitazawa glanced at the boats. Normally, villages delivered inmates to these guards, who ferried them to Hozuki Castle.
"Where are your prisoners?" one guard asked.
"Itachi," Kitazawa said, walking toward the boats.
"You—" the guards started, but a flash of crimson filled their eyes and they dropped.
"Amazing!" Naruto blurted. One glare from Itachi and the four guards were out cold—effortless and stylish.
"That's the three-tomoe Sharingan!" Sasuke said proudly. "Once I awaken mine, you'll never beat me again!"
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 100 Chapters Ahead of Others!