Chapter 80 : Konan's Money-Swindling Plan!!

Recalling what he learned last night, Uzumaki Naruto sat on the bed, feeling dazed and overwhelmed.

It was beyond his understanding.

How did he become the son of the Fourth Hokage? Wasn't he the demon fox that the villagers talked about?

Wasn't he an orphan with no one who cared for him? If he is really the son of the Fourth Hokage, then what about the unfair treatment he suffered before? Why did the village hide his true identity?

Why did he have to endure so much injustice?

Why is this happening? Naruto, who usually doesn't think much, started to ponder.

But with his limited knowledge, he couldn't come up with anything useful.

Fortunately, he had a great personality.

To put it nicely, he was lively and cheerful; to put it bluntly, he was carefree.

Anyway, after sitting on the bed for a long time, Naruto finally snapped out of it.

After getting dressed and eating a bowl of instant noodles, he headed out.

Even though he was now a disciple of the Fifth Hokage, Jiraiya, he still had missions to complete.

If he didn't complete the missions, he wouldn't have any income.

Besides, Jiraiya, as Hokage, had to deal with many documents every day.

If Naruto wanted to practice, he only had a few spare moments.

Also, because he had taken Naruto in, Jiraiya rarely went to the bathhouse.

This was certainly good news for the beautiful girls of Konoha!

"Naruto, you're going on a mission so early? Here, have some of the new fruits that arrived today."

"I've got some cookies from the Land of Fire. You can have some too."

"Here, this is a special snack Auntie prepared just for you."

"You can have some of my taiyaki too."

"."

As soon as Naruto entered the commercial street, vendors on both sides immediately surrounded him with their goods, almost as if they had planned it.

Naruto wasn't used to this kind of attention.

He felt like a puppet, thanking people absentmindedly while walking forward with his arms full of items.

By the time he left the commercial street, his arms were completely loaded with stuff.

"Hey, isn't that Naruto? Can you feel their enthusiasm?"

At the end of the street, whether by chance or design, all members of Team 8 except Kurenai Yūhi were there.

Inuzuka Kiba walked up to Naruto and teased him.

"Uh, I don't really get why everyone's suddenly so enthusiastic."

"Do you really need an explanation?"

Inuzuka Kiba patted Naruto's shoulder and said, "You're the son of the Fourth Hokage, so of course, they're treating you well."

"So they all knew about it."

Seeing that Naruto seemed a bit down, Hyuga Hinata gathered her courage and asked softly, "Naruto, what's wrong? Are you unhappy?"

Naruto tried to smile at Hinata and said, "No, I'm just very happy today."

"Hey, try to adjust to your new life."

After giving Naruto another pat on the back, Kiba, Hinata, and Shino left.

"Have you adjusted to your new life?"

Looking up at the clear sky, Naruto smiled and returned to his usual self.

---

The Hidden Rain Village in the Land of Rain.

Today was the day Kakuzu came to deliver his payment.

As the treasurer of Akatsuki, most of Akatsuki's funds came from Kakuzu. Besides the money from missions, he earned a lot by hunting ninjas and selling their heads for money in the black market.

Without Kakuzu, Akatsuki's finances would be in serious trouble.

"Kakuzu, why is the amount so much less this month?"

After receiving the briefcase full of cash from Kakuzu, Konan opened it and was disappointed by the small amount inside.

"There's nothing I can do. Those guys are searching for Shimura Danzo in groups. With so many people, we might not be able to handle them if we're not careful. Didn't Pain tell us to stay low-key? I can't risk exposing Akatsuki."

"It's wise to be cautious."

Konan put away her suitcase and started heading towards the base.

Normally, Kakuzu would have turned around and left. But today was different; he called out to Konan.

"Anything else?"

"I remember that Black Zetsu is in charge of intelligence, right?"

Konan nodded. "Yes."

"Well, ask Black Zetsu to help me find Danzo so I can kill him. His head is worth 100 million."

"I can't help you with that."

Konan was shocked by the 100 million bounty.

If this were before Danzo went to the Hidden Rain Village, she might have asked Black Zetsu to work with Kakuzu.

But now, Danzo has been turned into Naraka Path. We can't let Nagato control Naraka Path just to scam people out of money.

Hmm. Maybe it's not impossible?

The more Konan thought about it, the more it seemed feasible.

"Wait for me here."

Kakuzu, initially disappointed, brightened up when he heard this. But he didn't show it. To maintain his status, he urged, "Okay, please hurry. My time is valuable."

Konan grabbed the cash box and quickly found Nagato, who was resting with his eyes closed.

"Konan, what's going on?"

"I have something to discuss with you."

Konan explained her plan to scam money.

"As long as we're fast enough, we can deceive the second and third parties after deceiving the first, until the scam is exposed."

Nagato was speechless after hearing Konan's plan.

Is Akatsuki really this poor? 

So poor that even Konan has to resort to cheating for money? 

What is Kakuzu doing? Is he on strike?

"Do you know how much Danzo's bounty is now?"

"How much?"

Seeing Nagato's reluctance, Konan had to tell him the bounty amount.

"A bounty of one hundred million ryo."

"How much?"

"One hundred million!"

Hearing this large amount, Nagato immediately became interested. 

Nobody complains about having too much money, and Nagato is no different.

"Alright, I agree."

With that, Nagato controlled Danzo and appeared in front of Konan.

"Everything will go according to your plan."

After leaving the room, Konan met Kakuzu with Naraka Path Danzo.

"Kakuzu."

"You're so slow, Konan. I've been waiting for ages. Is this Danzo?"

As soon as he saw Naraka Path, Kakuzu almost attacked.

This is a bounty of 100 million ryo. Who wouldn't be tempted? 

Luckily, he knew where he was and who Konan was.

Since Danzo was here, it meant he wasn't dangerous. 

After all, there's a god with delusions in the Hidden Rain Village. 

Anyone who dares to act here is asking for trouble.

"Why is Danzo here?"

"Don't worry about that. You just need to take him to various Bounty Stations, and I'll handle the bounty exchange when the time comes."

"Various Bounty Stations?"

"Yes, that's the plan."

Konan then explained her plan to defraud money. 

After hearing this, Kakuzu gave Konan a heartfelt thumbs up and said, "You're not a good person either."

Konan: ???

****

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