Chapter 91

In this world full of hypocrisy, the only thing to trust is money.

This is the life creed of a man who has been a bounty hunter for decades.

The body he was carrying was not just a body to Kakuzu, but a heavy load of money.

The price of this body, if handed over to the underground money exchange, could fetch a high price of twenty million ryō.

In his career as a bounty hunter, this was considered a high reward.

Thus, another big deal was completed.

Indeed, in this cold and hypocritical world, only money could bring a bit of warmth.

Walking on the rural paths of the Land of Tea, he was the only one walking alone.

Kakuzu looked up at the sun, it was almost noon, and the sunlight was a bit blinding.

Just as he turned his gaze and continued walking forward, five people suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his way.

The leader was exactly the Worm Man, just as the underground money exchange staff had said, he would stay in a country for a period of time each time he arrived, and now it was his active time in the Land of Tea.

It took a day to finally find this extremely famous bounty hunter of the underground money exchange, the "Immortal."

"Are you Kakuzu? We are..."

"Wait."

Kakuzu interrupted the Worm Man's words, gently putting down the body in his hand. In the strange looks of the five Worm Men, he casually took out a small booklet from his chest.

Each page of the booklet recorded a portrait, name, and bounty amount of a person.

At the beginning were the current Five Kage, followed by famous ninja from various countries. In the first few pages, the name "Sakumo Hatake" was also recorded, with a bounty of one hundred and ten million ryō.

One of the highest bounty targets outside the current Five Kage.

But this page had been scribbled out by Kakuzu.

Because the White Fang of Konoha was dead, this bounty mission was now over.

He kept flipping through the pages, and the five Worm Men exchanged glances, not knowing what this guy was looking for.

Kakuzu looked up at the Worm Man while holding the booklet, his eyes glowing green, filled with a kind of obsession for something.

But even when he flipped to the last page, he didn't find the Worm Man's information.

Kakuzu frowned and then took out another small booklet from his chest.

The previous booklet recorded bounty targets with bounties over ten million ryō.

The current booklet recorded bounty targets with bounties under ten million ryō.

He finally found the target on the last page of the booklet.

"Finally found it, so you're here? Your name is Worm Man, bounty fifty thousand ryō... quite a cheap head."

No wonder he felt familiar but didn't see him on the high bounty list.

"..."

The Worm Man didn't know what to say.

It was not uncommon for bounty hunters of the underground money exchange to be targeted by the same exchange.

So, many times, they also had to be wary of attacks from their peers.

He had only joined the underground money exchange for about two years, and his reputation wasn't very big, so fifty thousand ryō was already a good estimate of his worth.

"Your skills are quite good, and you should have a lot of potential for appreciation in the future. I'll keep your head on your neck for now, and I'll come back for it when it appreciates."

Kakuzu said with a fair evaluation.

Fifty thousand ryō as a reward, to be honest, didn't quite match the man's skills.

From his flawless stance, his current market value should be at least six million ryō, and it could even be higher.

Killing him now would be a waste.

"..."

The Worm Man was speechless.

Kakuzu, ignoring the Worm Man's reaction, put the two booklets back in his chest, picked up the body on the ground, and prepared to leave.

"Please wait, Mr. Kakuzu. We are here to hire you."

The somewhat helpless Worm Man had to say this to Kakuzu.

"Hire?"

Kakuzu, finding the idea somewhat interesting, stopped his departure and turned to look at the Worm Man again.

"We plan to establish a company, and we currently lack a capable financial manager. The salary is negotiable. You just need to regularly organize the company's financial issues each month."

"How much?"

Kakuzu directly asked about the reward.

Whether it was a bounty mission or a hiring mission, as long as it could make money, it was fine for him.

Moreover, the other party wasn't asking him to join some messy organization, just to help their company find financial issues and loopholes.

A part-time financial expert who wouldn't accept any orders.

If he could earn a substantial side income while doing bounty missions, there was no reason to refuse.

"The reward is fifty thousand to one hundred thousand ryō per month."

As for whether he could get fifty thousand or one hundred thousand ryō per month, it depended on his own abilities. This was the meaning the Worm Man was conveying.

"I'll take the twelve million ryō side income per year."

Kakuzu's tone was calm, but he was very confident in his financial abilities.

"Quite an impressive confidence. I hope we can cooperate well. We will send someone to draft a formal contract. Is that okay, Mr. Kakuzu?"

The Worm Man smiled slightly.

"Whatever."

Kakuzu walked away with the body, without any hesitation.

The Worm Man watched Kakuzu leave, finding him an interesting guy.

He then took out some information about Kakuzu.

His credibility and ability were among the best in the underground money exchange, with a defense and bottom line like an iron wall.

In terms of money, no one had better credibility than him.

This was the unanimous evaluation of everyone who knew him in the underground money exchange.

A man who would not betray money and would not be betrayed by money.

◎

Two days later, Kakuzu received a document.

It was sent by the man named "Worm Man."

The document clearly stated the type of work he would be doing, the duration, the salary, and when it would be paid.

After a few glances, Kakuzu understood what he needed to do and the workload.

It wasn't too time-consuming, but it required a very professional person to handle it, with no room for error.

The amounts involved were very large.

Any mistake could create financial loopholes, causing problems for the company's operations.

After that, Kakuzu also learned about the new company's information and industry type.

The company was called "Shion Flower Medical Technology."

It was a pharmaceutical company that integrated research, production, and sales.

It was clear that this was a company primarily focused on pharmaceutical sales to make money.

Currently, they had developed over a dozen new drugs that were ready for mass production and would soon be available for sale.

The company's main market was the various countries of the ninja world.

The company's headquarters was located in the Land of Ghosts.

And since the Shion Flower was the national flower of the Land of Ghosts, it was not hard to imagine the close ties between the company and the Land of Ghosts' government.

They might have already established contact with the Land of Ghosts' government to provide convenience as a neutral country.

The ninja world was led by the Five Great Nations, followed by special neutral countries like the Land of Ghosts and the Land of Iron.

Then came the smaller countries.

Among the smaller countries, there were strong and weak ones, with a significant hierarchy.

Countries with ninja villages and those without had a huge disparity in national power.

Among them, neutral countries were a special category.

Unlike the small countries oppressed by the Five Great Nations, they had independent cultures, independent national sovereignty, and armed organizations to protect their country.

They did not participate in wars between the great nations and were not affected by them.

After reading all this, Kakuzu nodded slightly.

In this chaotic era where battles often erupted, establishing the company in the Land of Ghosts was indeed a wise move.

Since the company had not yet officially launched, Kakuzu was not in a hurry to go there to do the accounting.

Instead, he took out the bounty list and looked for targets.

High bounty targets were always his hunting targets.

And mid-to-low bounty targets, if they made it to the list, meant they had potential.

Potential meant appreciation.

So, he wouldn't actively hunt targets with bounties below ten million ryō. He would wait until they could no longer appreciate to maximize his earnings.

Dealing with these potential stocks too early would only reduce his income.

In the bounty hunting business, one needed the patience to wait for the targets to appreciate.

For example, the Worm Man, although currently worth only fifty thousand ryō, Kakuzu believed he could appreciate several times over in a few years.

He would take his head then.

As for the issue of the Worm Man being his employer...

Helping him with the accounting and using his body to exchange for money were not in direct conflict.

He would complete the financial management task based on his principles and bottom line.

But he couldn't miss out on a target with significant appreciation potential.

Therefore, these two things were not in conflict.

Kakuzu put the list in his chest, and what he was carrying was not a body but a black leather suitcase filled with money.

He carried the black suitcase filled with money and set out again on the path of hunting bounty targets.

But he didn't feel lonely, because he had money to keep him company.

Money was his faith.

It could bring him the last bit of human warmth.

Who he killed today and how many didn't matter.

When and by whom he would be killed tomorrow didn't matter either.

Living was not happiness, and death was not worth lamenting.

What mattered was that he was now on a bright and boundless path to making money.

Deeply immersed in a world full of distortion and war.

Because...

In this world where only money could bring glory, everyone was already beyond redemption.

This was the insight of an old man who had survived for decades, experienced betrayal and escape, and then embarked on a path of constant killing and making money.

He carried the suitcase filled with money, left the crowd, and was out of place with everyone, going against the tide.

Then he walked out of the small town, on the rural path under the sunset, his shadow stretching longer and longer, gradually fading away.

Today, Mr. Kakuzu was also setting out alone.