Reception

Considering the special nature of a Jinchuriki, Utakata took his leave early. He had come out to relax, not to invite trouble.

As a substitute, he directly asked Mei Terumi to fulfill the promise he had made to Xu Yue, then flicked his sleeve and drifted away.

Fortunately, Mei Terumi was fairly willing to do Utakata a favor. Besides, she supported peaceful coexistence between ninja clans and villages, so she did not refuse.

They had now reached the border of the Land of Fire. After traveling through the night, they crossed the Land of Fire and arrived in the desert along the border.

A true lawless zone…

"With this much cargo, there’s no way to hide our tracks. We dealt with the bodies, but since they managed to find us once, they may very well find us a second time."

Wearing a broad hat to shield herself from the blazing sun, Mei Terumi spoke coldly to Xu Yue.

Along the way, she had tried to persuade Xu Yue to abandon part of the cargo, but he had remained utterly unmoved. He even lay atop the crates with the air of a dead fish, as if saying, Just kill me already.

He was completely the type to value money over his life.

"Mei, Lord Utakata already agreed to show himself and draw away their attention. I doubt anyone would have the leisure to come after us. Our travel permits for the Land of Fire are all legitimate."

The uninjured Taketori Clan jonin also spoke up in support.

What a joke. They had come this far already—why would they give up now? What had all these days of effort been for?

Besides, they had already transported so much merchandise into the Land of Wind. Given the prices here, as long as they found the right place to sell it, this already wealthy fellow’s fortune would soar once more.

With that kind of wealth, he was practically a long-term meal ticket. The Taketori Clan would never give that up.

Mei was Mei Terumi’s Anbu codename. Even now, she still wore an Anbu mask.

After hearing the Taketori Clan jonin’s advice, she did not say anything further.

Still, her beautiful eyes drifted toward Xu Yue from time to time.

It was not because she had taken a liking to Xu Yue’s already handsome face. She was assessing whether the man before her had any connection to that hidden expert who used Boil Release!

That was her main reason for coming out here.

Informing Utakata to leave had merely been something she discovered along the way.

Hmph. Don’t let me find out that you’re involved. Otherwise, another handsome man will melt away. What a pity.

After snorting inwardly, Mei Terumi continued silently guarding one side of the caravan, staying close to Xu Yue.

Partly to keep an eye on him and notice any problems quickly, and partly to protect him.

Since she had agreed, she would naturally keep her promise.

Catching the faint fragrance drifting over from beside him, Xu Yue felt that having Mei Terumi replace Utakata was not bad at all. In any case, he had already obtained the Six-Tails’ Chakra.

A beauty was easier on the eyes than a grown man, no matter how one looked at it.

Only…

This future Fifth Mizukage seemed to be suspicious of something about him.

She also possessed Boil Release. Had she gone to the battle site and discovered something? That place had not been in deep water. There were reefs around the islands, so that was probably where he had left a clue.

Others unfamiliar with Boil Release would likely assume the corrosion had been Utakata’s technique. But it was only natural for this young woman, who possessed both Boil Release and Lava Release, to spot the problem.

Considering that she had chased after him all this way, discovering Utakata and informing him to leave had probably just been incidental. Her real goal had been to investigate him.

Did she think he was stirring up internal conflict within Hidden Mist?

That was truly unjust…

Sure enough, no ninja came after them from the Land of Fire. Instead, they ran into several groups of Rogue Ninja.

But none of them were stronger than Chunin.

They were dealt with casually.

Perhaps because they had been particularly unlucky earlier, the rest of the journey went fairly smoothly until they reached Sand Village.

Once the goods were delivered to their destination, the Taketori Clan escort team’s mission was considered complete.

However, Xu Yue’s original agreement with Utakata had been for him to escort Xu Yue around for a while. In addition, Mei Terumi had some thoughts of her own, so she did not hand over the mission and leave.

Escorting cargo to the Land of Wind was one thing, but since Xu Yue intended to buy and sell goods there, the Taketori Clan naturally could not steal Sunagakure’s business on its own turf.

After greeting Xu Yue and reminding him once more to seek out the Taketori Clan the next time he came to the Land of Water, they left lightly equipped.

Without Xu Yue’s merchant caravan holding them back, there was no need to worry about their safety.

As for why Xu Yue had come to Sand Village first, it was because he wanted to use this batch of goods as his calling card and bargaining chip.

Even in the Land of Water, where they were produced, these were considered expensive goods—high-quality coral and high-quality pearls.

Once brought to a desert region, their value became unimaginable.

Even the Fourth Kazekage took an hour out of his busy schedule to meet Xu Yue personally…

"Have we met somewhere before?"

The Fourth Kazekage looked at Xu Yue’s face, feeling that something about it was off.

However, Xu Yue had only struck him once with Cold Sleeve back then. It had been sudden, and Xu Yue had still had the face of a twelve-year-old at the time. His appearance was quite different now, so there was no need to worry about being recognized.

"Ah? I also feel that you look familiar, Lord Kazekage. Since we’re so fated, could you perhaps offer me a cheaper rate for hiring people?"

Xu Yue did not deny it at all. Instead, he put on the familiar manner of a merchant and immediately seized the opening.

Rasa had long possessed intelligence on the man before him. Xu Yue had passed through several small towns along the way, and with so many ordinary drivers and transport workers in his caravan, gathering information had been all too easy.

Thus, he knew that Xu Yue was nothing more than a stingy merchant. Combined with his overly familiar manner, it completely dispelled the last trace of doubt in Rasa’s heart.

He then laughed heartily and said,

"Haha, an honored guest like Mr. Yue will naturally receive preferential treatment. How do you intend to handle this batch of goods? Sunagakure can also issue sales missions on your behalf."

"How could that work? Think of how much you’d skim off the top. I plan to hire some of your ninja to accompany me as I sell these goods throughout the Land of Wind, while also purchasing diamonds and gemstones. And you’ll need to keep the remaining goods stored here safe for me…"

Xu Yue’s expression changed, and he hurriedly rejected the offer.

He looked completely like someone who wanted to handle both wholesale and retail himself. He would rather work harder than let anyone else take even a share of the profits.

As the most overworked Kazekage, Rasa’s Sand Village was in truly terrible economic shape. Naturally, he did not want to give up the chance to earn more.

This shipment was genuinely worth a staggering amount.

It was truly fortunate that they had managed to escort it here safely.

With a faint smile, and without the slightest bit of a Kage’s airs, he said,

"Don’t rush to refuse, Mr. Yue. You should know that the volume of your goods is too great. Although they are all highly sought-after, top-grade coral and pearls, releasing so much at once will certainly affect the price."

At this point, Rasa was not acting like a Kage at all. He was just another merchant!

Perhaps he needed to display a Kage’s majesty before his subordinates and other ninja, but when negotiating business with a wealthy merchant like this, he could lower his stance enough.

He would seize every opportunity to make Sunagakure stronger.

This seemed to touch upon Xu Yue’s concern. A troubled expression appeared on his face as he muttered things like, "What should I do?"

"So, I have a suggestion. You can sell half yourself through retail, while entrusting the other half to our village for long-term sales. We can settle the payment with you in advance. What do you think?"

Since Rasa had personally taken the time to meet him, he naturally wanted to secure this major deal.

Seeing the interest on Xu Yue’s face, he immediately pressed while the iron was hot.

"Not only can you rest assured about the price, but we can also dispatch our finest ninja at the most favorable rates to escort you as you sell goods and purchase supplies throughout the region. Afterward, we can even include a free escort to the Land of Fire. What do you think?"

Perhaps the free escort mentioned at the end moved Xu Yue. He finally relented, though he still looked like he intended to squeeze every possible advantage from the deal.

"That works, then. But you must send your very best ninja. Hidden Mist originally assigned that Six-Tails Jinchuriki to escort me, so you need to show some sincerity as well. As long as you agree to have a Jinchuriki protect me, I have no objections."

Xu Yue looked like someone who had no understanding of ninja strength rankings and only knew how to judge strength by Tailed Beasts. It gave Rasa quite a headache.

Didn’t ordinary people fear Tailed Beasts? This man truly was an oddball—so stingy that he valued profit more than his own life…