Three hours after Chinatsu left Konoha, Naruto and Sasuke finally got out of bed, forced to accept the fact that she had truly departed.
Since graduating from the Ninja Academy, their daily routine had already shifted into missions under Kakashi Hatake, their assigned Jonin sensei. Normally this would involve simple D-rank work like catching cats or weeding fields, but with Naruto and Sasuke's abnormal growth rate, Kakashi had long since stopped treating them like normal genin.
The problem was that they were not yet officially Jonin-level, but already far beyond average genin strength.
This created a very awkward situation.
Kakashi scratched his head in front of Team 7, clearly exhausted.
"This is troublesome… two near-chunin elites, plus Sakura… what mission rank am I even supposed to take anymore?"
When he looked up at them, his expression froze.
Naruto was slouched with his hands behind his head, eyes half-lidded. Sasuke stood beside him with arms crossed, expression cold and distant. Sakura stood slightly behind, trying to maintain composure, but even she felt the atmosphere was off.
Kakashi: "Yo…yo…"
Sasuke: "Hmm."
Naruto: "…"
Kakashi blinked.
"…What is wrong with these kids?"
Internally, Kakashi already felt a headache coming on. Ever since Chinatsu had been influencing their training indirectly, their growth curve had stopped making sense even by Uchiha or Uzumaki standards.
That night.
Far away from Konoha, Chinatsu was already moving through the forest at high speed using ninja-style sprinting, chakra reinforcing her legs with each step.
She was closing in on the first marked location from the underground bounty network scroll she had obtained earlier.
However, she did not travel as herself.
Before entering any place tied to the underworld, she had already decided identity concealment was mandatory.
Transformation Jutsu.
White smoke burst around her body.
The shape shifted.
She considered several options for disguise. Female identity would be risky in a bounty exchange environment, where strangers were unpredictable and violent.
She needed something forgettable.
A passing-type identity.
Kakashi Hatake was immediately rejected.
Too recognizable. Too dangerous.
"…This one will do."
White smoke dispersed.
A man stood there instead.
Short brown hair, dark circles under the eyes, thin build, slightly fatigued expression, and a standard black shinobi outfit.
Moonlight Hayate.
A Konoha Anbu swordsman known for his frail appearance and early death during the Chunin Exams arc.
Chinatsu adjusted her posture slightly.
"Perfect. No one remembers him too clearly anyway."
She continued forward.
Soon, she reached the underground bounty organization.
Inside the facility, the atmosphere was heavy and metallic. Shinobi and rogue nin were scattered across the hall, all operating under anonymity. The central wall displayed countless bounty notices.
Chinatsu's eyes swept across it casually.
Then paused.
Hyuga Hiashi.
Kakashi Hatake.
Might Guy.
"…Konoha really doesn't hold back on internal pricing," she muttered.
Hiashi Hyuga's bounty made sense given his status as clan head.
Kakashi's was absurd but understandable due to his Sharingan reputation.
Might Guy's was even worse anyone who had seen his Eight Gates potential would know he was not someone money could solve.
Chinatsu exhaled lightly and continued scanning.
Then she stopped again.
A familiar name.
[Uchiha Chinatsu female age 17 Uchiha survivor estimated Jonin level bounty: 5,000,000 capture alive preferred, Sharingan intact]
She stared at it for a moment.
"…Five million?"
Her expression darkened slightly.
"That's it?"
In her mind, her value had clearly increased over the past four years. At minimum, she estimated she should be worth double that.
Preferably more.
"…I'm being undervalued."
For a brief moment, she even considered removing the poster herself, but restrained the impulse.
Instead, a different idea formed.
"…This might actually be useful."
She tilted her head slightly.
If she used this bounty strategically, she could bait out certain groups, control encounters, and even flush out Akatsuki-related movements indirectly.
A free tracking system.
Chinatsu's lips curled slightly.
"Not bad."
She created a Wood Release clone silently beneath her cloak, attached a restrained chakra rope to it, and prepared it as bait in case anyone attempted to claim the bounty.
Then she blended into the crowd.
Her eyes kept moving.
Hidan… Kakuzu…
According to her scroll, this was one of their known exchange points.
Even if they were not here today, she would eventually encounter them.
Time was on her side.
"I knew it wouldn't be that easy to find them on the first try…" she muttered internally. "This isn't Ichiraku Ramen where Naruto appears randomly "
She stopped.
Her eyes narrowed sharply.
Two figures entered her field of vision.
Black cloaks.
Red cloud patterns.
One tall and thin with stitches across his face.
One carrying a massive scythe-like weapon.
Hidan and Kakuzu.
Chinatsu's pupils slightly widened.
"…No way."
For a brief second, she actually considered whether luck in this world had become broken.
"If this world had a lottery system, I'd definitely win first prize."
Without hesitation, she lowered her head and followed them out.
Outside the base.
The two continued walking.
Then paused almost simultaneously.
"…Something's following us," Kakuzu said flatly.
"Probably a rat," Hidan replied casually.
"Idiot. It's a person."
They exchanged a glance.
Then moved instantly.
Hidan's scythe spun forward with lethal speed. Kakuzu's black threads erupted like spears from his body.
However
A shadow slipped through the attack range.
In an instant, it repositioned behind them.
Chinatsu stood there calmly.
Hands in pockets.
"No need to be so tense. If I meant harm, you wouldn't have even noticed me."
Hidan clicked his tongue.
Kakuzu's gaze sharpened.
"Two against one," Kakuzu said. "You're confident."
Chinatsu smiled slightly.
Then raised her hand.
"Let me ask you something."
Her chakra subtly shifted.
"…Would you two be interested in becoming my subordinates?"
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