W-W-What?! Ten million ryo?!
Sakura imdiately did the math—one bowl of ran was sixty ryo, so ten million ryo could buy about 1,667 bowls of ran. Actually... that wasn't that expensive at all.
"Not just inexpensive—it's a bargain!" Sasuke was genuinely surprised. "I thought it would be much more expensive. I didn't expect it to be only ten million ryo per unit!"
Kakashi glanced at Natsuki. Truthfully, he hadn't expected the cost price to be so low either. It was kind of unbelievable, given how valuable the chakra battery was.
Fortunately, Natsuki explained it in detail. "What's valuable isn't the materials, but the technology. The battery is just made from so chakra-conductive tals and special paper that can hold chakra, plus the internal fūinjutsu (seals). The cost price of ten million ryo is already more than enough. But this technique? That's not sothing you can buy, and even if you dismantle the battery, you won't necessarily figure it out."
Unless, of course, the researcher was Orochimaru.
That guy was the strongest scientist in the shinobi world—he'd definitely be able to crack this technology!
But Naruto, as always, was clueless. He was broke, too—where would he get ten million ryo? And considering that the pervy sage had recently swiped his frog wallet, he was lucky not to be starving right now. There was no way he could afford ten million ryo!
The others, though, had money.
Sasuke spoke up imdiately. "Natsuki, sell five. I think five batteries should be enough to et my chakra needs for the ti being."
Sakura also chid in. "Um, I-I want to buy one too. I can probably scrape together ten million ryo."
Kakashi, however, gave Natsuki a thoughtful look. He didn't think Natsuki lacked for money. And given Natsuki's shrewdness, there was no way he'd use such an important technique just to make a quick buck.
So he asked directly, "Natsuki, what are you planning to do with this technology?"
Natsuki imdiately smiled. "As expected of Kakashi-senpai—you understand the true value of this. I don't care about money—my girlfriend is already a rich lady. What I want is to hand this technology over to Tsunade-sama in exchange for sothing far more valuable—ninjutsu, kinjutsu (forbidden techniques), hiden (secret techniques), or other knowledge."
Ah, of course!
Kakashi knew he'd guessed right.
Natsuki didn't need money. His goal had always been to get stronger. Now, the chakra battery technology was a bargaining chip—a chip that could make the Hokage take notice. Using this to trade for things of greater value was the smartest play.
Sasuke also understood now—it was like a light bulb had gone off in his head.
As expected of Natsuki... he was always thinking about how to get stronger.
Everyone knew the Hokage's vault must be packed with all sorts of jutsu, kinjutsu, and secret techniques. If Natsuki could trade this technology for even one of those, he'd beco even stronger.
"When will I ever be like Natsuki..." Sasuke's face remained expressionless, but inwardly, he was filled with envy.
He recalled Natsuki's previous advice: Train. Learn. Adapt.
This chakra battery was yet another example—a product of study and imagination. Natsuki took what he had learned and used it to create this incredibly valuable technology. Then he used that technology to trade for sothing even more valuable, sothing that would make him stronger.
And the more Natsuki learned, the more he would be able to invent. The more he could invent, the more he could trade for valuable things. And the stronger he would beco.
It was a cycle. Hard to imagine just how far Natsuki could go in the future.
"So there's no need for you guys to rush," Natsuki explained. "Once Tsunade-sama has the technology, she'll hand it over to the research departnt. They'll scale up production, and eventually, maybe every shinobi will have one. Of course, I promised Sasuke, so I'll keep my word. Don't worry, Sasuke."
Sasuke nodded.
This was a reserved privilege, after all. He wouldn't be left out.
Granted, once Tsunade set up mass production, the priority distribution would go to the top-ranked shinobi first. Sasuke didn't want to have to wait in line.
Naruto and Sakura, hearing this, didn't say anything more, though they still looked at the battery with envy.
Natsuki seized the mont to change the topic. "By the way, Naruto, when you and Jiraiya-sama went to find Tsunade-sama, did you run into anything interesting? I heard Tsunade-sama likes gambling—didn't you guys find her in a casino or sothing?"
"Yeah! I never got a chance to ask!" Sakura was equally curious. "I didn't know it was Naruto who went with Jiraiya-sama to find Tsunade-sama. What happened?"
They really didn't know anything about it.
Then again, it made sense. While Jiraiya's actions weren't exactly secret, they weren't the kind of thing a regular genin like Sakura would hear about. Even Tenten had only learned the details through Natsuki.
Naruto's expression turned serious at the question. "It wasn't a smooth trip... we ran into Orochimaru!"
Nani?! Orochimaru?!
Everyone's faces changed. Just thinking about Orochimaru's sches against Konoha, the damage he'd caused, and the death of the Third Hokage made them all shiver with dread.
Then Naruto went into the details. How they found Tsunade, how he bet with her, how Tsunade seed to have so shady deal with Orochimaru, how she poisoned Jiraiya and went to et Orochimaru alone. Then how Naruto, Jiraiya, and Shizune went to help, and how they fought alongside Tsunade to drive Orochimaru off.
Naruto's storytelling was a bit scattered. If you weren't good at processing information, you'd probably get completely lost.
The story also included Naruto training in Rasengan, Orochimaru seeking Tsunade to heal his hands, and Kabuto being Orochimaru's subordinate.
All in all, it seed like without Natsuki interfering, everything had followed the original storyline.
Orochimaru had his soul-sealed hands thanks to Hiruzen's Shiki Fujin (Dead Demon Consuming Seal), then he and Kabuto had gone to find Tsunade for help. Jiraiya and Naruto got dragged into it, Tsunade ultimately accepted them, overca her hemophobia, and drove off Orochimaru.
Oh, and Tsunade had given Naruto the First Hokage's necklace—that was her token of acknowledgnt.
Everyone listened with bated breath. Upon learning that Orochimaru and Kabuto had been forced into a retreat after suffering heavy losses, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
Natsuki could imagine it clearly. After all, without the use of his hands, and with Manda already dead at Natsuki's hands, Orochimaru really was in a tight spot.
Sasuke, however, was staring at the necklace hanging around Naruto's neck.
He hadn't expected Naruto to receive Tsunade's acknowledgnt—to the point of her giving him the First Hokage's necklace.
Unbelievable!
"Natsuki was right... this Naruto guy has an absurdly huge chakra reserve, and now that he's learning to control it, he's only going to get stronger. I'm actually feeling the pressure. How interesting..."
(End of Chapter)
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