"Tch, these street stalls... Hey! Got any pork cutlets?! Gimme a big portion!"
"I want raw beef liver slices. Make sure there's still fresh blood on it."
Hidan and Kakuzu each ordered something they liked—after all, even S-rank rogue ninjas still needed to eat. As for Sasori, he had no need for such trivial food.
"Seriously~ are those people idiots? Throwing out millions on useless little wooden and clay dolls—I really wonder if they've lost their minds."
Grumbling in frustration, Hidan was clearly at his wit's end. Deidara, on the other hand, shot him a smug sideways glance.
"Hmph~~ What do you know? Like that cute collaborator of ours said, art is priceless~ Mm~!"
"I don't care about priceless or not. All I know is, based on the current situation, your art is definitely very valuable."
Kakuzu spoke blandly, arms folded.
"So... have you two forgotten something?"
"Huh? Forgotten what?"
Munching on his food, Deidara blinked innocently.
"The launch was a big success. It already proves our art is wildly popular. What else?"
"..."
Kakuzu's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. Even at ninety-plus, he was still shaken by Deidara's utterly clueless response.
"You two... is your only concern whether the launch succeeded?"
"Of course it is. Our art is justified. More and more people will pursue the path of art we believe in."
Eyes closed, Sasori spoke calmly. He was already thinking that the next batch of figures should use even better materials.
"You morons... I'm talking about money!!"
Even with all his patience, Kakuzu finally snapped at the two stubborn artists. As the Akatsuki's treasurer, he threw up his hands.
"Do you two even know how much your figures made today?? And you're seriously just going to give them away to outsiders for free?!"
Kakuzu's angry interrogation finally got Deidara—who had been happily stuffing his face—and the ever-indifferent Sasori to turn around. Exchanging glances, the artistic duo tilted their heads in sync, clearly not finding his question all that relevant.
"Well then~ how much?"
Deidara asked casually, mostly just to placate Kakuzu. Resisting the urge to explode, Kakuzu replied stiffly,
"Cutting off the spare change, it's at least forty million ryo! Do you even understand how huge that sum is?!"
"So, what's your point?"
Sasori, clearly losing patience, cut in. As an artist, he made it obvious that he had no desire to share a wavelength with someone who reeked of money.
"You have to demand the compensation you're owed from that girl. You're part of the Akatsuki—there's no way you should be offering your work without proper payment."
Kakuzu narrowed his eyes.
"Of course, if you two don't want to do it, I'd be happy to step in."
There was no doubt that forty million ryo was a staggering sum even for the Akatsuki. And it didn't involve hunting any major ninja targets. Kakuzu absolutely wasn't about to let that money slip away, especially with these two clueless artists showing zero awareness about demanding what they were owed. He decided it was time to intervene personally.
"No need to trouble yourself, Brother Kakuzu. How could I possibly pocket that money for myself? Those figures are Deidara and Sasori's blood and sweat—I wouldn't dare be that shameless."
A cheerful voice sounded from behind Kakuzu. Turning, Deidara greeted her enthusiastically, "Oh~~ it's you! Hey, want something to eat? It's on me~!"
"Shut up, Deidara!"
Seeing that Deidara wasn't just skipping his payday but also offering to treat others, Kakuzu immediately shut him down and firmly stepped between him and Hinata. Until this was settled, he wasn't letting that airheaded blond face off with this cunning girl.
"Hehehe~ No need to be so tense. I came here to give you your payment. Sai."
Hinata nodded lightly, signaling Sai, who was dressed like a maid, to follow. Silently, he placed two large chests of money before Kakuzu.
"A total of sixteen million ryo. Please verify."
"Oh~! That much, huh~ this is kind of embarrassing~"
Deidara peeked out cheerfully from behind Kakuzu, only to be shoved back down with a thud. Glaring at Hinata, Kakuzu spoke sharply, "You've got guts, girl. By my calculations, the figures sold for at least forty million ryo. Even a split would come out to more than this, wouldn't it?"
"Mm~ good math. That's right—if you go by sale prices alone, Mr. Sasori and Brother Deidara's figures brought in forty-five million ryo total. But this is Konoha territory. After taxes and staffing costs, this is what's left."
Looking him straight in the eye, Hinata showed no fear at all. She knew Kakuzu wouldn't dare make a move on her—not while she was the only link between the Akatsuki and the Konoha troupe. Unless Kakuzu wanted to give up on this entire figurine venture, he'd have to play nice.
"Hmph~~ Taxes? Do you think we pay taxes to Konoha?"
Kakuzu's green eyes narrowed dangerously, a trace of killing intent slipping out.
"Besides, Konoha... brings back some very bad memories."
Sai instinctively gripped his sword, stepping in front of Hinata. But she gently pushed him aside and simply smiled. Kakuzu wasn't the patient type. If he were serious, he'd have already thrown a punch—either an Earth Grudge attack or a sneak assassination. This posturing? Just a bluff to pressure her for a better deal. And a childish one at that.
"I understand how you feel. But~ it's thanks to Konoha's existence that the Konoha Publishing House exists, which brought Fox Tales to life. The figurine industry thrives only because of this foundation. Without Konoha, all of this would be nothing but empty talk."
Spreading her arms slightly, Hinata's voice remained calm and composed.
"However~ like you, I also resent this kind of unjust exploitation. That's why I worked hard to acquire a Licensed Peripheral Use Agreement with the author. If paying taxes to Konoha is a problem, we can always move elsewhere."
Her pale eyes narrowed as she stared directly at Kakuzu.
"But first—we'll need a proper, professional figurine production facility. So, you—no, your organization—do you have the guts to join forces with me?"
No doubt, Hinata's bold words shocked all four Akatsuki members present. It was the first time someone had looked them in the eye and directly questioned their courage. But right now? She had every right to do so.
Kakuzu closed his eyes, silent. The ring on his left middle finger—the one marked with the kanji "北" —faintly glowed. Clearly, he was already contacting the Akatsuki's leader, Pain.
About ten seconds later, the tall rogue ninja opened his eyes again and looked at Hinata.
"You. Come with us."
"Leader Pain wants to meet you."
Pain. The meaning behind this name wasn't hard to grasp. It literally sounded like "Pain" in English, and that was exactly the point: [Pain], just as he defined himself—a god who brought salvation through suffering.
Using a word like that as your name? The cringe factor was off the charts. From the start, Pain—well, "they"—never saw themselves as ordinary people. In the real world, someone like him would've been locked up in a padded room.
But in a world like this, where individual power reigned supreme, and Pain had some of the most terrifying abilities out there—well, there were only two ways to deal with him:
First, you're stronger than him. Whether through ninjutsu, taijutsu, or even the fabled Talk-no-Jutsu—if you can beat him, his whole "suffering is salvation" schtick doesn't matter.
Second, you can't beat him. Then you either do what he says, or get turned into a pizza via Shinra Tensei.
Hinata, as things stood, couldn't beat Pain. She didn't have any of those cheat-like protagonist powers that let you crush gods on day one. If she wanted to fight him, she'd need at least three to four more years of training.
But that didn't mean she planned on rolling over for his emo god doctrine either.
It's all about strategy. If you can't win a frontal assault, then take a detour. Can't detour? Dig underground. Too rocky to dig? Strap a parachute to your back and drop in from the sky.
In short: there's always a way. Even if she had to pretend to accept Pain's ideals, Hinata could think of at least ten ways to exploit the loopholes. After all, that's exactly what she specialized in during her past life.
So here were the known variables:
Pain—extremely stubborn, immune to logic, god-tier power levels, and ultimate edgelord.
Akatsuki—founded by Pain, desperate for money, filled with strong S-rank rogue ninjas, a perfect labor force.
Hinata—holder of official licensing rights from the Fox Tales author, and full of business savvy from the world of otaku merchandising.
Goal: Hold a pleasant business negotiation with Pain, with both sides walking away satisfied.
Honestly? For Hinata, this wasn't even hard. Definitely easier than memorizing all the Eight Trigrams pressure point sequences.
So without hesitation, she accepted Kakuzu's invitation and prepared to meet Pain in person.
"The boss might be a bit mysterious, but he's a good guy, really. No need to be nervous~ By the way, I still don't know your name, Mm~"
Deidara, trying to ease the mood, spoke kindly to Hinata sitting behind him. She was riding comfortably in the passenger cavity he'd fashioned on his clay bird—a considerate touch so she wouldn't get wind-whipped.
"My name, mm~~ Just call me Suigin Tou. I really like that name."
Flipping through options in her mind, Hinata picked one decisively. Sasori tilted his head slightly. "Suigin Tou? Hm. Not bad, actually."
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(That's 69)😎