"Join Orochimaru?"
Shinju turned, asking calmly.
With his refined chakra sensing, he already knew the black-robed man standing before him was none other than Yakushi Kabuto—the same man who had forfeited during the Chunin Exams.
Back then, Shinju had noticed plenty of suspicious things about him but hadn't bothered to dig deeper.
Later, during the chaos of the Chunin Exams, Kabuto had openly sided with the Sunagakure shinobi to attack Konoha.
Shinju held no goodwill toward him whatsoever.
"Following Orochimaru isn't such a bad thing," Kabuto said as he toyed with a kunai in his hand.
"He pursues the highest truths of ninjutsu, and he despises Konoha."
Behind his glasses, Kabuto's eyes were unnervingly clear.
"Back when you were a kid in Konoha, you must have been looked down on plenty too, right? Wouldn't it be better to join us and destroy Konoha together?"
"Konoha's still my home, no matter what," Shinju replied casually.
"Besides, if you want me to join your side, shouldn't you at least put something tempting on the table?"
Shinju asked with interest.
Orochimaru always carried an air of mystery, and Shinju just happened to be the type who loved to poke into mysteries.
So naturally, he wanted to know what exactly Orochimaru was researching.
"A genius like you can't possibly be satisfied with ordinary ninjutsu," Kabuto said smoothly. "So Orochimaru-sama asked me to deliver this message: he can grant you—eternal life."
Kabuto's voice dripped with temptation.
Shinju frowned.
That condition didn't stir him in the slightest.
Old daimyo, bloated with wealth and titles, might dream about eternal life.
But Shinju was only thirteen. He had no concept of, let alone desire for, immortality.
When Kabuto didn't offer anything else beyond immortality, Shinju asked with a disappointed look,
"So that's all? Don't you guys have anything else worth offering? Something like… oh, say, a hundred million ryo?"
Kabuto: (´இ皿இ｀)
He hadn't expected Shinju to be more interested in money than eternal life.
And of all things, money was the one thing Otogakure lacked most!
After all, Orochimaru-sama's endless experiments—reagents, syringes, instruments, test subjects—all required funding.
But as a newly established village, Otogakure had received very few missions. The money they earned barely kept the village afloat, leaving no surplus at all.
Seeing Kabuto go silent, Shinju immediately guessed the guy was broke. He waved his hand, looking disappointed.
"Boring. If you're broke, don't go around trying to recruit people. ┐(´-｀)┌"
Kabuto: -_-||
In all his years alive, this was the first time he'd been looked down on for having no money!
Shinju sighed, wearing a look of regret.
"Too bad you're not on Konoha's wanted list. Otherwise, if I dragged you back, I could've collected a nice bounty."
Kabuto: T_T
He hadn't expected to be spared… simply because he wasn't worth enough.
"The offer I gave you—think it over," Kabuto steadied himself and said.
"Within the next three years, if you ever decide to join us, you can come to Otogakure anytime. I believe if you want to come, Konoha won't be able to stop you."
With that, Kabuto vanished like a ghost.
Shinju shook his head, not even bothering to take the encounter seriously, and strolled into the black market to shop for tools.
In the shadows of the street, a group of assassins hunched low, eyes filled with killing intent as they stared at Shinju's back!
...
Inside the black market.
Kunai, explosive tags, ninjutsu scrolls...
Shinju bought everything that caught his interest.
Money, as it turned out, burned fast.
Within half an hour of shopping, half of his funds were already gone!
And he still had plenty more things to buy.
Suddenly, Shinju realized he didn't own a proper long weapon.
Every time he fought in close combat, he had to make do with short kunai—not exactly ideal!
So he bought an assortment of weapons—broadswords, short blades, spears, katanas...
All of them sealed into a scroll.
Two hours later, Shinju walked out of the black market clad in armor, a short blade of about thirty or forty centimeters at his waist, and a scroll strapped to his back.
The scroll contained everything he had just purchased.
But barely a street away from the black market, Shinju sensed something was off.
His sensitivity to chakra told him there were more than ten strong chakra signatures lurking around!
Under normal circumstances, encountering even one shinobi in the human world was rare.
But more than ten at once could only mean one thing:
They were acting as a group—on a mission.
Given that he'd been the target of several assassination attempts lately due to his growing reputation, Shinju guessed the ambushers' target was almost certainly him.
And sure enough—just as Shinju stepped onto the crowded main street, a shuriken came whistling straight for his forehead!!
At the last instant, Shinju drew the short blade at his waist.
Clang!
Steel clashed—the shuriken was deflected!
These people were definitely after him!
By now, Shinju had a decent grasp of his own strength.
Among shinobi, he was definitely one of the strong ones.
So he wasn't panicked.
But with more than ten opponents attacking at once, even one mistake could mean death. Worse, they were in the middle of a bustling district—innocent civilians could get hurt.
So, to play it safe, he chose to use the Flying Thunder God to jump to Jiraiya...
...
Kabuki theater.
Jiraiya was red-faced with drink, a girl in his arms, laughing uproariously as he joked and played with the women.
At that moment, Shinju appeared in a flash of Flying Thunder God.
He had placed his mark on the hem of Jiraiya's clothes.
So when he teleported, he popped in exactly where Jiraiya had been sitting—with the girl on Jiraiya's lap being knocked aside and replaced by Shinju...
Shinju, now sitting on Jiraiya's lap, locked eyes with his master.
Shinju: (||๐_๐)
Jiraiya: !!!∑(°Д°ノ)ノ
The air froze instantly.
A long moment passed...
"Shinju!! Didn't I tell you kids to play on your own? What are you doing barging in here?!"
"And what's with that getup?!"
"It's not wartime anymore—why are you dressed so ridiculously?!"
Jiraiya jumped to his feet, visibly annoyed.
"You're one to talk! Weren't you supposed to be gathering intel? What intel did you gather off a woman?!" Shinju shot back, standing straight with righteous indignation.
"You're just a kid who can't even drink—you wouldn't understand," Jiraiya muttered defensively.
"Anyway, you got any money left? Hand me ten thousand..." He held out his hand.
Shinju: (°ー°〃)
"Seriously? A sensei asking his student for money? Don't you feel the slightest bit ashamed? (￣△￣;)"
Jiraiya's neck bulged with veins.
"What do you mean asking you for money? I'm over fifty years old—you think I don't have money? I'm just making sure you don't waste yours!"
Shinju turned away. "No money. Spent it all on ninja tools. Also... on my way back just now, I got ambushed."
Jiraiya's expression instantly turned serious.
"Ambushed? How many of them? From which village?!"
Shinju shrugged. "No idea. Once I realized they were after me, I slipped away."
Jiraiya nodded. "Good. You did the right thing. Still, they won't give up so easily. Stay alert... Alright, now get going. Don't bother me while I'm drinking with the ladies. (๑‾ ꇴ ‾๑)"