Chapter 76: Nine-Tails, Were You Peeking?

Chapter 76: Nine-Tails, Were You Peeking?

In the early morning, as the sun was just rising, Yuki Hayate, dressed in his full ninja attire, knocked on the door of the Senkawa Blacksmith Shop on the commercial street, following the address listed on his mission brief.

He had heard of this shop before; it seemed quite popular among the genin and the students of the Ninja Academy. Some civilian ninjas occasionally shopped here as well.

After knocking, Hayate waited quietly.

Soon, a series of light footsteps approached, and the door opened to reveal a five or six-year-old child with a round face and big, bright eyes, looking incredibly cute.

The child's eyes widened with excitement upon seeing a ninja and immediately turned to shout into the house.

"Bro! It's a ninja, a ninja is here!"

He also tugged at the hem of Hayate's clothes, pulling him inside.

"Would you like something to drink? We have plain water, boiling water, and boiled plain water."

Hayate was momentarily confused by the options. "What's the difference?"

"Big brother says it gives guests the illusion of choice," Senkawa Hikaru replied politely.

Just like their shuriken set, the mid-range option always had the best value, and 90% of customers would choose it, even though the counter displayed three different price tiers.

Hayate: "..."

Are their methods of educating children really normal?

"Little Hikaru, don't be impolite to the ninja. Go stand behind the counter."

A gentle voice called out, and the inner door opened. A tall, young man stepped out and guided the little boy to the shop's counter.

Hayate looked at the young man, about to compliment his appearance, but the thought quickly faded, as if it had never been there. He stood up and approached the young man, asking, "Hello, I'm special jonin Yuki Hayate. Did you post the mission to clean and organize the forge?"

Yuki Hayate?

Is this the Hayate who was always sick before the start of the Gaiden?

In the original story, he always looked so drained. This sudden healthiness almost made Luk miss a beat at first.

Looking at the still-young and vibrant Yuki Hayate, who hadn't been worn down by his beautiful girlfriend yet, Luk nodded, feeling a bit intrigued.

"I did post that mission, but it was for chunin who are good at cleaning. Are you sure you didn't make a mistake?"

"No mistake. I had some free time, so I took it. Don't judge by my gender; I'm quite skilled at cleaning and cooking."

Hayate answered sincerely, feeling a bit helpless inside. He had recently joined the Anbu and was getting along well with his teammate, Uzuki Yugao. Both were sword experts, and their close combat sparring often led to more intimate moments.

Hayate felt he had a good chance. A few more exquisite gifts, and he could finally escape his single life!

In recent years, Konoha's market prices had become increasingly polarized. Low-cost items were in fierce competition, with various discounts and promotions. On the other hand, high-end products were heavily marketed, with lipsticks from the Land of Water and scarves from the Land of Wind, all priced at least double what they used to be.

Ninja tools from the ninja supply stores were also overpriced, making one wonder how these prices were even approved.

Relying solely on his Anbu salary, Hayate knew he needed to take on side missions to afford a girlfriend. So, he was using his days off to earn some extra cash.

"Since the forge is to be used the same day, I specified that the ninja taking the mission must know the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Do you know it?"

Without hesitation, Hayate performed the hand seals and quickly summoned two identical clones behind him.

Luk watched his movements and smiled. "The forge is quite cluttered, so I hope you can create a few more clones to help with the work."

"Three aren't enough?"

Hayate hesitated. The fatigue from dispelling shadow clones could accumulate, and if the work was going to be particularly heavy, he needed to consider that.

"A bit short."

"Then..."

"I can double the mission fee."

"That's no problem at all!"

Hayate's words came to an abrupt halt, and his smile became more ingratiating.

Money talks, and the customer is king.

Forget the differences between ninja and civilians; if you offered a jonin a million ryo, he'd ask if you want a bite!

Hayate performed the hand seals and summoned four shadow clones.

"Can you make more?"

"I can only make up to five," Hayate said, a bit reluctantly.

"That's fine, five will do."

"Alright."

After observing the Shadow Clone Jutsu three times at close range, Luk said no more and smiled, leading Hayate into the forge. The heat inside made Hayate's breath catch.

"Is this where you make ninja tools?" he asked, looking around curiously.

"Not exactly. They're just inferior copies for practice and as expendables. The only advantage is that they're cheaper than the real thing."

Luk pointed to the relatively small amount of clutter inside. "Could you please help clean this up? My mother is not well, and my father and I aren't very good at the details."

"Leave it to me."

Hayate smiled. The workload was much less than he had expected, and he wondered why Luk had asked for more clones earlier.

Probably because civilians don't understand how powerful ninjas are, Hayate thought to himself. A ninja with chakra is naturally much better suited for this task than a blacksmith.

The collaboration between the Shadow Clones and the main body went smoothly, and before long, the forge was tidied up.

Moonlight Gale slowed down his work, worried that finishing the task too quickly might make the client feel the money wasn't worth it. He started chatting with the employer to buy some time.

"The weather has been great lately, hasn't it? It hasn't rained for half a month."

Moonlight Gale started the conversation in a dry, mechanical way. He could chat smoothly with girls, but with a common civilian man, he could only ask about the weather or if he had eaten, meaningless topics to drag out the time.

No emotion, no skill, just stalling!

Luk glanced out the window at the clear sky and nodded in agreement. "Yes, usually August and September are rainy months, but most of the rain is short and intense."

He chuckled. "It feels like this clear weather will continue for a while, and then a heavy storm will come, maybe with strong winds."

"Ha, really?"

"Have you heard the saying, 'After long sunny days, there will be rain, and after long rainy days, there will be sunshine'?"

"I haven't, but it makes sense."

Moonlight Gale scratched his head, feeling that the blacksmith was quite knowledgeable. The Shadow Clones finished organizing the clutter and started carrying out the trash bags one by one.

"The task is almost complete. You should come and inspect it."

"No need, I trust the abilities of a ninja."

The analysis progress bar had already completed, and Luk smiled as he escorted the client out. Just as he was about to return, he noticed a small figure peeking around the corner, watching him.

Their eyes met, and the small child shuffled out from the corner to stand in front of Luk, blushing and looking down without speaking.

It was Naruto Uzumaki.

"Is there something you need?"

Seeing him hesitate, Luk took the initiative to ask. The scene reminded him of a light novel where a character confesses to their crush, especially when the other party is a young boy. He wasn't that kind of person.

"Um... that... can you... can you..."

"No!"

A firm voice interrupted, and Genkai Kousuke, who had seen Naruto from the counter, rushed over, his eyes full of challenge.

Where did this seductive brat come from? Clearly here to steal his brother's attention!

Luk patted his brother's head to calm him down, his voice gentle. "Can you what?"

"Can you attend my opening ceremony?"

The interruption by Kousuke had dispelled his embarrassment, and Naruto quickly blurted out the request.

Most students had parents accompanying them, and he felt out of place being alone.

Kousuke's face immediately turned red. The brat in front of him was actually talented enough to attend the Ninja Academy!

He sized Naruto up, and seeing his dirty clothes made him even more irritated.

Someone who could afford the Academy dressing like this to gain sympathy, too manipulative!

"So, you don't have a brother to attend your opening ceremony?"

Naruto shook his head. "I don't have a brother."

Kousuke's move had failed, and he huffed, not giving up. "Then have your parents go with you!"

"I don't have parents."

Naruto's lips trembled as he ran away, feeling dejected.

Kousuke stood there, unprepared for the emotional impact. He couldn't help but slap his own face.

He really was a jerk!

Unlike his brother, who ran into the shop crying in shame, Luk felt the analysis progress bar slowly disappear, his expression thoughtful.

When he analyzed Naruto, he noticed two progress bars. The first one ended almost immediately, while the second one was excruciatingly slow.

The second progress bar wasn't Naruto's.

It belonged to the tenant in his body.

The Nine-Tails, Kurama!

A figure descended from the sky, and it was the familiar top-tier client, Kakashi.

He spoke in a serious tone to Luk, "I warned you, Naruto Uzumaki is a special target. You need to keep your distance from him."

Luk shrugged. "I didn't initiate anything. This kid is just starved for affection. He'll stick to anyone, even if they're not nice to him."

Hearing this, Kakashi fell silent for a moment before looking up at Luk. "Do you plan to attend his opening ceremony?"

"I have no relation to him, so it might not be appropriate." Luk answered honestly.

"However, if I can, I would like to go."

Through his experiments, he discovered that the transformation skill only granted four techniques per analysis. If he didn't get the desired jutsu, he would need to delete the data and analyze again.

Even if Luk planned to unlock the entire Konoha ninja roster in one go, a high-quality group of ninjas would still be his target because he couldn't guarantee getting the desired techniques in one analysis.

This was why, while analyzing Moonlight Gale, he also observed and learned the Shadow Clone Jutsu, as he couldn't be certain the four techniques would include it.

At the opening ceremony, aside from the Third Hokage, there would be a bunch of elite ninjas among the parents to analyze!

Of course, a bit of sympathy for Naruto was also a reason.

Kakashi, hearing Luk's words, recalled the encouragement he once gave him, his eyes softening.

"Luk, you're still as kind as you were. That can make you vulnerable."

Luk rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed.

Kakashi was always so honest...

Always telling the truth!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end