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"Old Man, can you believe it? Half the village was destroyed last night, but our shop didn't even lose a single roof tile." Kakuzu stood outside Ichiraku Ramen, staring at the untouched building in disbelief.
Manji barely reacted. "I told you there was nothing to worry about. There's something in this shop even the Nine-Tails wants no part of. It wouldn't come anywhere near this place."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say." Kakuzu grinned and nodded.
"Let's open up." Manji walked inside with his hands behind his back, then paused in the doorway. "Kakuzu, go to the Hokage's office later and make a donation for me."
Kurama was behind the destruction, and some villagers lost their homes before they could even finish paying off their loans. Since Manji was Kurama's master, he felt it was his job to help clean up the mess.
Manji saw himself as a respectable sage, not someone who would cause trouble and leave others to handle it. He held himself to higher standards. If people were suffering and he could help, he did.
"Old Man, do we really have to donate? Earning money isn't easy." Kakuzu's face fell at the idea.
"You just don't want me to touch the money in your cashbox..." Manji said.
"Of course I don't. That's our money. It hurts just thinking about giving it away." Kakuzu pressed a hand to his chest, looking like he'd been stabbed.
"Who said I was taking anything from the cashbox?" Manji smiled. "I'll give you something to sell. It should bring in at least tens of millions."
Kakuzu's eyes went wide. "Tens of millions??"
Manji reached into his sleeve and pulled out a calligraphy scroll. "Here. Sell this, and we'll have all the money we need."
Kakuzu took the scroll and opened it, looking suspicious. As soon as he saw the calligraphy inside, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"This is… This is the real thing! That's Senju Tsuru's calligraphy! Where did you get an antique like this? Something this old should have been destroyed in all those wars."
Any artifact from before the Six Paths Purge could sell for a fortune. A real piece of calligraphy from someone as famous as Senju Tsuru was worth even more.
"You don't need to know where it came from." Manji didn't say anything else.
Rare? Mount Myōboku still had plenty of relics from that time. Manji had picked this one without much thought. If he wanted, he could bring out artifacts from as far back as the Ninshū era.
..............
Not long after the donation was made, Hashirama came to Ichiraku Ramen himself.
"Shopkeeper, I can't thank you enough. Your donation covered all the damage from last night's attack. The whole village is grateful!" Hashirama gripped Manji's hand with both of his, his face shining with gratitude.
"It was nothing, Mr. Hashirama." Manji brushed it off.
"Nothing? You donated tens of millions!!" Hashirama still couldn't believe the amount.
Manji changed the subject. "Were there any casualties?"
Hashirama's excitement faded, and guilt showed on his face. "There were. I acted too late, and two families suffered losses. Two infants about Tsunade's age lost their parents because I didn't act quickly enough."
"I see. You're not to blame for that," Manji said.
"I still remember their names. One is Jiraiya, and the other is Orochimaru. Their parents had just named them." Hashirama's face grew tense. "They're no older than little Tsunade, but they've already lost their families."
Manji paused when he heard the names. Jiraiya and Orochimaru?
The timing made sense. Both should have been born by now. Orochimaru's birthday was in October, and Jiraiya's was in November. They had arrived one after the other.
The timeline had changed again. Orochimaru's parents were supposed to die on a mission, but in this world, they were killed during the Nine-Tails' attack.
Both children were connected to the sage regions in the original story. Jiraiya trained at Mount Myōboku, and Orochimaru had ties to Ryūchi Cave. Now Manji was in charge of all three Great Sage Regions.
"Mr. Hashirama, where are those children now? I want to adopt them." Manji looked up, his voice calm.
"You want to adopt them?" Hashirama's eyes lit up.
"You really mean it? That's wonderful! Thank you, on behalf of those two children!"
Hashirama stood up and bowed to Manji. "You've donated to Konoha again and again, and now you're taking in two orphans. No one deserves the title of Konoha's greatest philanthropist more than you."
He clapped his hands, and several Senju clansmen came into the restaurant. One of them carried a commemorative plaque, which Hashirama took and handed to Manji with both hands.
Three large golden words were carved across its face:
[PHILANTHROPIST OF KONOHA]
"The Philanthropist of Konoha… Not bad. I'll hang it up in the restaurant." Manji nodded in approval.
"Sign this, Shopkeeper, and Konoha will never forget what you've done for us." Hashirama set a form in front of him. "From now on, Ichiraku Ramen won't have to pay any village taxes. If you ever have trouble, come straight to me!"
With a wave of his hand, Hashirama gave Ichiraku Ramen a permanent tax exemption. No business had ever gotten that kind of treatment since Konoha was founded.
The Senju clansmen behind him stiffened. Lord Hashirama must have lost his mind. Ichiraku was one of the busiest restaurants in Konoha, and letting it skip taxes would cost the village a fortune every year.
Even when Manji was the First Hokage, he never gave any business that kind of privilege.
Kakuzu watched from the side, amazed by the old man's methods. One donation had earned the restaurant permanent tax-free status. They had traded about a year's income for a lifetime without taxes.
'So this is how Lord Manji does things…'
Manji picked up the pen and signed the paper. As soon as Hashirama saw the handwriting, he froze.
"Shopkeeper, your handwriting… Why does it look so much like the First Hokage's?" Hashirama leaned in, studying the signature.
"NO, IT'S NOT JUST SIMILAR. IT'S EXACTLY THE SAME!"
"..." Kakuzu tensed up. He should have signed the document himself. Hashirama had worked under Manji for years and knew his old Hokage's handwriting.
Manji's expression stayed the same. "To be honest, I'm a big admirer of Lord Manji. I've always respected the First Hokage, so I spent years practicing his handwriting."
He smiled like his explanation made perfect sense.
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