The Days of Being the Richest Man in the Ninja World

Chapter 96. What Do You Think?

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If he said it was better than Sarutobi Hiruzen's… wouldn't that be disrespecting the Hokage?

If he said it was worse than Sarutobi Hiruzen's… wouldn't that mean he was implying Danzo was inferior to Hiruzen?

And if he said it was the same… well, damn—wouldn't that offend both sides?

Just look at what happened when the Second Hokage was choosing his successor.

Danzo hesitated for just a moment—and because of that, Tobirama handed the Hokage position to Hiruzen without a second thought. Ever since then, Danzo had been obsessed with proving that he was no worse than Hiruzen, leading to all the ridiculous things he had done over the years.

Konoha had a tradition…

Every man who seeks power has another man standing behind him.

So… why the hell did all these people like selling calligraphy so much?

Yuto felt a headache coming on as he looked at the scene before him.

To his left—Sarutobi Hiruzen.

To his right—Shimura Danzo.

The two men stared at each other with deep intensity.

Meanwhile, he—Uchiha Yuto—felt like he had been completely forgotten.

So… are we still selling calligraphy?

If not—I'm leaving!

Standing here like a damn third wheel… this is awkward as hell!

"Uh… if there's nothing else, I'll be heading back. Got some stuff to take care of at the shop!"

But before he could move—

"Sit down!" x2

The two spoke in unison.

Then, silence.

An awkward silence.

No one knew how much time passed before—

"Didn't expect your calligraphy to improve so much, Danzo." Hiruzen was the first to speak, chuckling as he showed his signature kind old man smile. "Not bad! Not bad!"

"Hmph! It's fine, I suppose! Still not as good as yours, though." Danzo snorted. "I heard your Will of Fire piece was pretty impressive. You must've sold it for a lot of money."

"Not a single cent." Hiruzen's expression turned serious. "Do you take me for that kind of person? Yuto has a heart full of the Will of Fire, and seeing that Konoha has a bright future ahead fills me with relief. So, I simply gifted it to him."

"I was moved to tears!"

"Ridiculous!" Danzo ignored Yuto's words and kept his cold gaze on Hiruzen. "Enough. Why are you here?"

"You and I—we're like family, like brothers. I merely came to have tea with you!"

"Bah! You wouldn't even give me 40 million and still dare call me brother?"

"You misunderstand! Konoha is struggling!"

"I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it! You clearly have 80 million hidden away!"

"That's nonsense! Danzo, where did you even hear such rumors? You'd believe those rumors over me?"

"You're lying!"

"I'm not!"

"You're definitely lying!"

"I swear I'm not!"

"You'll regret this, Hiruzen!"

"I am the Hokage, Danzo!"

"..."

Yuto watched the scene unfold, his face blank with disbelief.

For some reason, deep inside… he had an inexplicably strange feeling.

His stomach hurt.

If there's nothing important, can I leave now?

Itachi's waiting for me to take him out for a late-night meal!

But—

It seemed like he had been completely forgotten again.

The two old men were completely focused on each other, paying zero attention to the increasingly uncomfortable Yuto.

They just kept staring at each other in silence.

Time passed.

Then—

"Sigh. I thought you understood me." Hiruzen let out a disappointed sigh, shaking his head. "Forget it. Let's not talk about this anymore."

He turned to Yuto with a calm smile. "Yuto, what are you doing here?"

"I—" Yuto barely got a word out—

"Obviously, I invited him here!"

Danzo snorted, staring straight at Hiruzen. "You wouldn't even give me 40 million! I'm practically starving here! I had no choice but to borrow some money from this kid!"

"..."

That didn't sound like a loan at all! x2

Hiruzen's expression didn't change, but his brows furrowed slightly.

"I already told you—I don't have it! All of Konoha's funds went into the war. Where am I supposed to get 40 million for you? If you don't believe me, ask Yuto! He knows exactly how much he donated back then—it's all on record!"

"I—"

Obviously, it was three hundred million!

Definitely three hundred million!

But—

Yuto still didn't even get to finish his sentence.

"I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it!" Danzo shook his head furiously, his eyes burning with intensity as he glared at Hiruzen. "Hiruzen! I'm so disappointed in you!"

"Just let me explain!"

"An explanation is the cover up! Bah! You're despicable! You want my body but won't even spend money on me!"

"..."

Yuto watched the two old men start bickering again.

His stomach hurt even more.

What the hell did I do to deserve this?

However…

No one knew how much time had passed.

"Sigh… Danzo, everything you've done for Konoha—Konoha has never forgotten it. You are a hero of Konoha! You belong to Konoha! You must take care of yourself!" Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a heartfelt sigh, speaking with deep sincerity. Then, he looked at Danzo seriously. "So… tell me, what do you need the money for, Root? Why are you suddenly asking to borrow money?"

As soon as he finished speaking—

Danzo also turned serious, looking at Hiruzen with a dark expression.

"For Konoha!"

Of course, there was no way he would tell Hiruzen his actual plan.

After all—

It was a plan that Konoha had already abandoned. If he picked it up again, what would that even mean?

Too bad…

Hiruzen's student, Orochimaru, was still on the battlefield. Otherwise, that guy would have been quite useful.

"For Konoha?" Hiruzen took a melancholic drag from his pipe, his eyes full of emotion. After about ten seconds, he looked at Danzo.

"How much do you need?"

So he really just wanted to borrow money?

As for why Danzo knew the exact funding amount—380 million—Hiruzen wasn't surprised. He knew Danzo had spies from Root everywhere.

"Eighty million!" Danzo snorted coldly. "You can afford it."

"I can't."

Hiruzen shook his head with a bitter smile.

"I already told you—there's not that much money left in the village."

"Heh."

Danzo let out a cold laugh.

However—

Hiruzen ignored him. He fell into brief contemplation.

Recently, he had a rough idea of what Danzo was up to—after all, this was Konoha.

As Hokage, if he really wanted to know something, how could he not know?

Especially when there were so many Anbu watching the entrance.

But he rejected Danzo's actions.

Because he was the Hokage.

And Danzo…

After a moment of silence, Hiruzen turned to look at Yuto.

"Yuto, what do you think?"

"I…"

Yuto forced a bitter smile, hesitating slightly.

"Hokage-sama, you know how it is. Business hasn't been easy lately! And just recently, I already took out 3…300 million for support, so right now…"

He trailed off.

With a sigh, he shook his head in feigned disappointment.

If only Danzo were here, he might have lent him the money and discussed things later. But with Hiruzen present…

Suddenly pulling out another few hundred million—what would that even mean?

Why not just give more in the first place?

So, he remained silent.

However—

Hiruzen pondered for a moment.

"100 million! I will approve a loan of 100 million for Danzo. Konoha is struggling right now, and it has been far too long since Root… I mean, Danzo, has received any funding. That is indeed unfair."

"This…"

Yuto hesitated.

"If you're worried, I can personally guarantee it." Hiruzen gave a slight smile, looking at Yuto. "You trust my character, don't you?"

"Of course, I trust you, Hokage-sama! If that's the case…"

Yuto gritted his teeth, seemingly making a big decision.

"For Konoha! Even if I have to sell everything I own, I will gather 100 million and lend it—"

Before he could finish—

"Hmph!"

Danzo let out a cold snort, his voice still icy but carrying a hint of… arrogance?

He cut Yuto off directly.

"I don't need your guarantee, Hiruzen!"

Then, he turned to Yuto with a calm but menacing expression.

"I am currently worth 600 million…"

"Well? Am I qualified to borrow one hundred million from you?"

The moment he finished speaking—

"?!"

The entire room fell into stunned silence.

Even Hiruzen's pipe trembled slightly, almost slipping from his hand.

He stared at his old friend in shock.

"No! My best friend, you belong to—"

"No! That's final!"

Danzo ignored him completely, his cold eyes locking onto Yuto.

A shadowy smirk curled at his lips.

"Well, kid? What do you think?"