"How foolish. If you had told me you had money stashed elsewhere, I might have spared your life."
After cutting down the jonin wielding a katana, Kakuzu kicked the corpse aside and spoke coldly.
Keeping all your valuables on you?
Utter stupidity.
If he let someone like that live, he would be the real fool.
As he searched the bodies of the two jonin, Kakuzu found several sealing scrolls filled with stacks of ryo.
"Robbery seems to be far more lucrative than bounty hunting."
"Maybe I should reconsider my money-making strategy."
Staring at the banknotes in his hand, Kakuzu couldn't help but muse.
"Only children make choices. I'm a man who has fought the God of Shinobi himself—I'll take both methods."
His momentary dilemma quickly vanished as he continued on his way toward Jiraiya.
Since Kakuzu had killed several bounty hunters along the way, his progress had been slightly delayed.
"Didn't expect so many people to compete with me for the bounty."
Not long after, he spotted another group of bounty hunters.
"You lot have no chance of claiming Jiraiya's bounty. Only I can handle it. So, you all can die now."
Without hesitation, Kakuzu launched his attack.
"Damn you, old man! You think you can take all the money for yourself?! You're the one who should die!"
Enraged by Kakuzu's attack, the bounty hunters retaliated with ninjutsu.
"You make a good point. I am getting old. My opportunities to make money are dwindling, which is precisely why I need to seize every last one. You, on the other hand, have plenty of years ahead. So, for now, leave the money-making to this old man."
Black tendrils erupted from Kakuzu's body, lashing out and entangling the bounty hunters.
Before long, they all lay dead at his feet.
"I warned you. The bounty hunting world is deep waters. You should have stayed out of it."
With a sigh, Kakuzu began looting the corpses for money and valuables.
"Captain, Kakuzu has killed most of the bounty hunters heading for Jiraiya. Should we intervene?"
A Root ninja following behind Kakuzu frowned as he spoke.
If Kakuzu hadn't eliminated them, these bounty hunters could have all attacked Jiraiya together, increasing the odds of success.
Now, however, at this rate, Kakuzu might be the only one left to confront him.
"No need," the Root captain shook his head. "Jiraiya is one of the strongest among jonin. If these bounty hunters were weak enough for Kakuzu to kill easily, they wouldn't have posed a threat to Jiraiya anyway."
"From what we've observed, Kakuzu's strength is among the top tier of elite jonin. He alone is enough to take down Jiraiya."
His voice carried a tone of absolute confidence.
No matter how strong Jiraiya was, he was no match for Kakuzu.
"Besides, even if Kakuzu fails, we're still here."
"If Jiraiya somehow manages to escape from Kakuzu, he'll be exhausted and vulnerable. Finishing him off will be effortless."
The captain's eyes gleamed coldly as he continued.
They had been trailing Kakuzu for precisely this reason—to eliminate Jiraiya if he survived the initial fight.
The possibility of Jiraiya defeating Kakuzu had never even crossed their minds.
From what they had seen, Kakuzu was strong enough to stand among the elite of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
Jiraiya, on the other hand, was still rising to prominence. His experience and arsenal couldn't compare to Kakuzu's.
Even in the worst-case scenario, if Jiraiya somehow killed Kakuzu, he would be gravely wounded. Taking him down afterward would be a simple matter.
"And if Kakuzu does succeed but sustains serious injuries," another Root ninja said, his eyes flashing with murderous intent, "we'll eliminate him as well. That way, we save Lord Danzo a hefty sum."
Root's primary concern was always Danzo's best interests.
Their minds were constantly scheming ways to serve him.
...
"The Land of Rain is performing quite well today—they've delivered two waves of contributions to my merit count."
Jiraiya plunged his Lightning Flame Blade into a Rain ninja's chest, a smirk playing on his lips.
Around him, four enemy corpses floated on the water's surface.
Sliding his blade back into its sheath, Jiraiya collected their headbands and sealed their bodies into a storage scroll.
Since eliminating Shinden Ichiro, several Rain ninja squads had attempted to infiltrate the Land of Fire through these waters.
But without exception, Jiraiya had intercepted and slaughtered them all.
The later squads were even weaker than Ichiro's elite unit.
Most were merely chunin-level. Killing them was as effortless as drinking water.
With this latest skirmish, the number of Rain ninja who had fallen to Jiraiya's hand had reached twenty-nine.
Once he returned to the village, he could exchange them all for a hefty sum in merit points.
Because Jiraiya never left survivors, the Rain ninja had failed to report his presence.
As a result, the higher-ups of the Land of Rain mistakenly believed their squads had successfully infiltrated the Land of Fire and begun wreaking havoc.
Of course, as time passed without any reports, they would eventually realize the truth.
"Jiraiya-sama, the fortress will be completed today! Thanks to your presence, we've been able to finish construction much faster. Without you, it would have taken far longer."
A Konoha chunin beamed with admiration as he spoke to Jiraiya.
After witnessing him single-handedly eliminate so many enemy shinobi, the ninja stationed at the fortress had developed nothing but awe for him.
Each battle had been a spectacle, reinforcing Jiraiya's reputation.
And every time they watched him fight, they learned something new.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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