Lin Yu's purpose in visiting the Land of Hot Water this time was only partly to advance to the Mangekyo Sharingan. Taking along Obito and Kakashi was incidental, a chance for the two of them to strengthen their bond.
Besides that, Lin Yu had other matters to attend to, such as checking the bounty office to see if Hanzo's bounty had been taken down, and perhaps seeing if the Third Raikage's head fetched a decent price...
Without further delay, Lin Yu donned a black hooded cloak, concealing his tied-up red hair. His figure flickered and vanished into the night.
...
Several days later, in a town near the Land of Fire within the Land of Rice Fields, a man with a pale complexion approached a standalone outhouse. He dragged a sack behind him, briefly identified a mark, and after observing that no one was around, he stooped and entered the outhouse.
The Land of Rice Fields branch of the bounty office, hidden behind a secret underground door, buzzed with activity. It was far livelier here than in the Land of Fire.
"Baji! Look at you, all smug and shiny. Been having some good business lately?"
"Old Ji Ba, don't spout nonsense! I just got lucky and picked up some scraps on the battlefield!"
Upon hearing Baji's words, Ji Ba's face changed in surprise. "Baji, are you crazy? You dare to loiter on a battlefield? Aren't you afraid of being riddled with holes?"
Baji dismissively picked up a wine cup and took a swig. "What's there to be afraid of? Is the battlefield more terrifying than poverty?"
"Hahaha, that's true!"
Ji Ba stroked his beard, a hint of longing on his rough face. He was short on cash lately; perhaps he should go join the fray on the battlefield as well.
The "fray" here, of course, didn't mean launching sneak attacks, which would surely incur the wrath of both Konoha and Kumo. These rogue ninja were only after the fallen, just picking at the leftovers.
Of course, sometimes when entire squads were wiped out, they could make a substantial profit!
It seemed Baji had gotten incredibly lucky and stumbled upon two annihilated ninja squads. But that was unlikely too. Perhaps only one ninja was left clinging to life, and Baji had jumped out and finished him off.
After all, in this world, these rogue ninja would do anything to survive.
The more ruthless ones would directly rob civilians, but that was only feasible in remote villages. Such towns were out of the question unless the rogue ninja could unite, otherwise, they would only be inviting their own destruction.
That's why he, Ji Ba, came to accept bounty missions. If luck was on his side, he might get a few decent ones.
Like assassinating some village elder, or locking up the neighbor's widow's son for a day... simple and profitable tasks!
Ji Ba's strength wasn't great. After years of drifting around the ninja world, he had barely reached Chunin level, and he hadn't mastered many jutsu.
Moreover, ninja with his dark background were not accepted by the ninja villages of any country. He refused to be a dog for some rich merchant, so his only option was to become a bounty hunter, even if it was at the very bottom.
"Hey, have you guys heard? There's a dark horse that recently appeared on the bounty list. Their reward money is skyrocketing!"
"I heard about that! I heard their surname is Uzumaki, a ninja from the Red Hair clan!"
"Heh heh, your information is outdated. He's not just from the Uzumaki clan; he's also a student of one of the Sannin, Orochimaru!"
"What the hell! A disciple of the Sannin? No wonder the bounty is so high!"
Ji Ba listened to the messy chatter in the bounty office and scoffed disdainfully. He had no interest in such matters. The names on the bounty board had nothing to do with him, and he wanted no part of it.
Just as Ji Ba was about to continue talking to Baji, he caught sight of a pale-faced man out of the corner of his eye. His face lit up, and he called out, "Bo Gang, over here!"
Bo Gang, with his pale complexion, heard the call and looked over. Seeing that it was Ji Ba, he raised his hand in greeting. After a slight hesitation, he walked over, carrying the sack.
"Ji Ba, it's been a while."
"I told you to add a word in the middle, call me Ji Lao Ba! Otherwise, it sounds weird," Ji Ba said speechlessly to his companion, who was too rigid.
"Hahaha, I think Gang Zi is right. Isn't that so, Ji Ba?" Baji burst out laughing.
"Speaking of which, what are you sneakily doing with that bag, kid? Got something good?"
Ji Ba slyly glanced at the sack behind Bo Gang, his eyes unreadable.
Bo Gang's face showed hesitation, but thinking of certain possibilities, he gritted his teeth and said, "I can tell you, but you absolutely cannot tell anyone!"
"What's with the big mystery, you shady character?" Baji was also drawn in by Bo Gang's words and leaned closer to look at the sack.
"I found a great treasure today! Inside this... is the corpse of Hanzō of the Salamander!"
After some struggle, Bo Gang finally blurted it out. After all, this wasn't something he could handle alone. It would perish at the slightest hint of exposure. It was better to drag a few brothers down to the underworld together, at least there'd be company.
But he found it hard to resist the temptation. What if he was incredibly lucky? What if it actually worked? Then he wouldn't have to worry about money for the rest of his life.
A full two hundred million!
"Hanzō? Which Hanzō?" Ji Ba was a bit confused. Could it be the Hanzō he was thinking of? That was absolutely impossible!
"Holy hell! Hanzō of the Salamander? Bo Gang, what kind of incredible luck did you stumble upon!"
Baji, who was nearby, reacted and cursed loudly. Then, realizing his slip, he quickly covered his mouth and whispered enviously at Bo Gang.
Bo Gang spread his hands. "It just fell into my lap, I'm helpless."
"So, what do you say? Are we doing this?"
Ji Ba and Baji exchanged glances and simultaneously said, "Let's do it!"
The three of them acted immediately, carrying the sack together to the inner chamber of the bounty office.
With a "click," the door opened. The bounty office manager looked up at the three entering and frowned slightly. "Are you guys together? If not, you have to come one by one. You wouldn't want your mission to be known by others, would you?"
Ji Ba stepped forward. "We're together, and we have a big business deal to discuss with you."
"Big business?"
The bounty office manager picked up the bounty manual from his desk and walked up to the three. "What kind of big business is it? Give me the name, and I'll check."
"Hanzō of the Salamander!"
"What? Hanzō of the Salamander? You must be joking!"
The bounty office manager angrily closed the manual and looked at the three with a furious laugh. Had they gone mad from poverty?
Bo Gang, standing to the side, didn't speak. He took the sack off his back, threw it on the ground, and with a slash of his palm, revealed Hanzō of the Salamander's corpse. There were still traces of frost on it, though it seemed it hadn't been preserved properly, as it was already emitting a faint odor.
The bounty office manager squatted down and caressed Hanzō's body, his eyes gradually becoming entranced, as if he were touching a work of art. He murmured in admiration, "This is indeed the true body of Hanzō of the Salamander. So robust!"
Ji Ba looked speechless. What did "robust" have to do with a corpse? What a peculiar hobby!
"So, how much is it worth?"
The bounty office manager flipped open the manual. "Let me see... Ah, found it. Two hundred million ryō! However... this bounty has already been canceled by headquarters, for reasons unknown."
Upon hearing "two hundred million ryō," Ji Ba's heart leaped, but thankfully, the manager's subsequent words calmed him down considerably.
"Senior! You heard it too, right? Hanzō of the Salamander's bounty is gone!"