It's Too Troublesome to be Hokage

Denka padded softly across the plush carpet, inching closer to Nekobaa's feet with nimble, precise steps. He twisted sideways, rolled onto his back, stretched his paws, and flipped his belly upward—every movement fluid and practiced. His light yellow tail gently curled around Nekobaa's slender white ankles, rubbing back and forth. The contrast of his soft fur against her delicate, silk-like bare skin glimmered under the light.

"Hello, Nekobaa," Nara Shikadan said calmly, meeting her gaze without hesitation. "I'm here to customize ninja tools."

Sniffing the air, Nekobaa didn't respond immediately. Instead, she flared her nostrils and delicately scratched Denka's chin with a slender finger. The ninja cat let out a contented purr.

"That's the scent of catnip~"

She withdrew her fingers and glanced at Shikadan with a mixture of anger and reluctant admiration.

"Little brother from the Nara family, such an expensive drink will surely make cats picky."

Shikadan pursed his lips and bit the tip of his tongue in silent amusement, focusing his mind.

"I just figured most cats prefer plants like catnip."

Nekobaa chuckled softly.

"You truly live up to being a child of the Nara family~"

"I do accept commissions for custom ninja tools here. What type are you looking to customize?"

"Ninja swords," Shikadan replied, the answer long prepared.

"To be precise—a kodachi."

"Sword weapons, huh?"

Nekobaa's eyes flickered as she responded without hesitation.

"In that case, I recommend commissioning the forging in the Iron Country."

"The Iron Country is rich with samurai—they have far more experience forging swords than even the craftsmen of the Craftsman Country."

"The Iron Country?" Shikadan raised an eyebrow, recalling the great mystery surrounding it.

"Do you mean I have to go there myself?" he asked.

"If convenient, yes," Nekobaa said, switching to a more formal tone.

"After all, forging weapons requires deep understanding and compatibility between ninja and blade."

"Of course, I understand Konoha's current troubles... war."

"So if you entrust me with forging and supervising the kodachi's creation, it's doable... though the fee will be higher."

Nekobaa's thumb and forefinger pinched a small space, and a sly but charming smile spread across her face.

"It's inconvenient for me to leave the village."

Shikadan nodded.

"Then I'll entrust the forging and supervision to you, Nekobaa."

"No problem!" she replied confidently, patting her chest.

"Let's talk details."

"First, what's your budget for this weapon forging?"

Like detonating tags, the price varies widely depending on complexity and quality.

Shikadan estimated.

"At most... about two million taels."

He had already received a one million tael research fund from the clan leader. Advancing another month's worth of funds seemed reasonable.

"Two million taels?"

Nekobaa's purple pupils narrowed, and her breathing grew slightly heavier beneath her upturned nose.

"That's more than enough to hire the best swordsmiths in the Iron Country."

The bigger the budget, the more profit she could squeeze.

Since leaving the cat village clan, this was the first massive commission she'd taken on.

"What about materials?"

Nekobaa licked her lips, eyes gleaming.

"There are plenty of high-quality ores in the Iron Country."

"I can also help source special ores from the black market—for an extra fee."

"I'll provide the materials myself."

Shikadan produced a scroll and opened it as instructed by the clan leader.

"Chakra metal."

Bang—

One piece of black ore after another materialized before Nekobaa.

She inwardly gasped.

What a rich little brother of the Nara clan!

Just this chakra metal alone was worth over one million taels.

Such a wealthy client was a goldmine—not to be let go lightly.

"Since you provide the materials, the forging price can be reduced quite a bit."

Nekobaa discreetly wiped her lower lip.

"My estimate: no more than one million taels to forge your sword."

"One million taels?"

Shikadan blinked, surprised.

"Is that really enough?"

He remembered wanting to ask the clan leader about the price of [Chakra Crystal], only to be brushed off.

Nekobaa placed a hand over her heart, feigning injury from his extravagance.

"Don't compare a ninja's view of money to that of ordinary folks."

"Even among ninjas, one million taels is the upper limit for commissions."

"Alright!"

Shikadan readily accepted.

"One million taels is well within my budget."

"These chakra metals will primarily be used to forge small swords."

"If there's any leftover, please mix it with other metals to make special kunai."

"No problem!"

Nekobaa agreed smoothly.

"For now, the forging commission is set at one million taels."

"Before work starts, a 20% deposit is required."

"Also, there's a 5% commission fee. Is that okay?"

"Five percent?"

Shikadan shook his head.

"Just draw up the contract."

"That's straightforward, Nara-kun!"

Nekobaa smiled, clearly pleased with her customer.

She called Denka to fetch the contract scroll—two copies for each party.

Shikadan handed over the chakra metal and 200,000 taels as deposit.

"How long will forging take?"

"From experience, Iron Country masters take no more than a month for kodachi-sized weapons."

Shikadan nodded, shifting topics.

"I noticed many ninjutsu listed in your catalog."

"Do you sell ninjutsu scrolls here?"

"Of course!"

Nekobaa's eyes gleamed—she still underestimated this big, clever 'deer' in front of her.

"Denka, show Nara-kun the product catalog!"

Denka quickly retrieved the scroll Nekobaa requested.

Shikadan unfurled it, scanning for techniques to fill his gaps.

He still needed physical, illusion, and medical ninjutsu.

He wasn't interested in general physical techniques—he already had the C-level [Arhat Fist].

For medical ninjutsu, he could consult pharmacist Nono.

His eyes caught a familiar technique:

Water Style.

He searched the catalog carefully.

He had Yin, Earth, Wind, and Fire ninjutsu, but no Water escape yet.

He intended to buy a B-level Water Style ninjutsu scroll.

But perhaps he expected too much.

Nekobaa only offered one B-level water escape technique: Water Dragon Bullet Technique—a convoluted jutsu requiring forty-four hand seals. Even Hoshigaki Kisame would need half a minute to perform it.

Shikadan quietly closed the scroll and asked Nekobaa:

"Do you have any advanced, unsealed water escape ninjutsu?"

For once, Nekobaa looked puzzled and silent—a rare break from her usual cunning.

"Advanced unsealed water escape ninjutsu?"

Nara Shikadan thought.

Does she even know what I'm talking about?

Seeing Nekobaa's face, Shikadan abandoned the topic.

"I need to buy two illusion scrolls instead."

He handed the scroll back.

"D-level illusions: Kasumi Servant Technique and Hell Viewing Technique."

"Two illusions, 50,000 taels total."

Nekobaa sent another ninja cat to fetch the scrolls.

"Kasumi Servant Technique—15,000 taels. Hell Viewing Technique—35,000 taels."

These were basic illusions, common in Konoha, so prices were reasonable.

Shikadan paid and easily obtained both scrolls.

The panel promptly popped up:

[D-level technique [Kasumi Servant Technique] detected. Learn now?]

[D-level technique [Hell Viewing Technique] detected. Learn now?]

With a click, both appeared in his [Technique Ability] list.

"One last thing."

Shikadan looked at Nekobaa.

"Do you have any black market info on [Chakra Crystal]?"

"[Chakra Crystal]? How do you know of this treasure?"

Nekobaa stared at Shikadan in surprise.

"Since we just did business, here's a free tip:

"Recently, news of a [Chakra Crystal] circulating the black market surfaced—but it seems someone from the north bought it."

-End Chapter-

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