vncnus Chapter 71 Kaori Uzuki
Chapter 71 Kaori Uzuki
Chapter 71 Kaori Uzuki (Part 2)
There was no way out.
They were truly at their wits' end.
He couldn't get any jobs, couldn't borrow money, and even got arrested for doing illegal work.
Kaori walked down the shopping street, surrounded by bustling crowds. Some were talking about the victories at the front, while others were complaining about soaring prices.
She felt as if there was a thick layer of glass separating her from the world.
In her world, there was only her daughter's face with the oxygen mask on.
"Have you heard? There's a big one in the underground arena tonight."
Two wandering samurai are talking by the roadside.
"Yes, I heard he's a prisoner of Iwagakure, a strongman. The boss offered 30,000 taels as a challenge fee; whoever could last three minutes would get the money."
"Thirty thousand taels? That's money to buy your life, isn't it? That Iwagakure prisoner tore a wandering ninja apart last time."
Arena.
Kaori stopped in her tracks.
That's the gray area of Konoha. It's also where the Root and some powerful clans secretly amass wealth and vent their violence.
There are no rules there, only interests.
Ninjas usually disdain going there because they would be treated like animals for people to watch.
But that's where you can make money the fastest.
Half an hour later.
Kaori arrived at the underground arena.
The place is incredibly noisy, and the air is stuffy and smelly.
Inside the iron cage, two burly men with bare upper bodies were wrestling, blood splattering, drawing frenzied roars from the surrounding gamblers.
Kaori found the person in charge. A bald man.
"I want to fight," Kaori said, pointing to the iron cage.
The bald man looked her up and down and sneered.
"You? Little girl, this isn't child's play. You'll be torn to shreds if you go in."
"I am a Chunin. And I'm going to take down that Iwagakure prisoner."
The bald man paused for a moment, then revealed a cruel smile.
"Interesting. Beauty and the Beast. That's a good gimmick; those perverts will definitely love it."
"How much money did you win?"
"You beat that big guy? Fifty thousand taels." The bald man held up five fingers. "But if he kills you, we're only responsible for collecting the body, not burying it."
"make a deal."
Ten minutes later.
Kaori stood inside the iron cage.
Her opponent was a giant man who was 2.5 meters tall, with muscles as hard as granite.
That was a striker from Iwagakure. Although his chakra pathways were sealed and he couldn't use ninjutsu, his brute strength was enough to tear apart tigers and leopards.
"roar!"
The giant roared and charged forward.
Kaori did not make a direct connection.
Although she was weak and had been hungry for two days, her skills were still intact.
The core of Konoha-ryu swordsmanship lies in agility and exploiting weaknesses.
Knives were not allowed, but there was a metal bar on the ground that looked like trash. She picked it up.
boom!
The giant slammed his fist into the ground, sending shards of stone flying.
Kaori easily dodged the attack, then viciously stabbed the giant's armpit with the iron bar in her hand.
Ding.
It couldn't be pierced. The giant's muscles were too hard, almost like he was wearing a layer of armor.
"Damn it—"
Kaori's heart sank. The iron bar was too blunt; it couldn't break through the defense at all.
The battle turned into a one-sided escape.
Kaori jumped around in the cage, using her size advantage to avoid attacks.
But the loss of physical strength is fatal.
Two minutes passed. Her movements began to slow down.
One mistake. She was cornered.
The giant grinned maliciously as his enormous hand swept across.
There is no escaping it.
Kaori could only cross her arms and draw upon her chakra to withstand the attack.
She was sent flying, crashing heavily into the iron cage, and spitting out a mouthful of blood.
"Kill him! Kill him!"
The gamblers outside were shouting wildly.
Kaori lay on the ground, her vision blurred; she had unfortunately suffered from low blood sugar.
The giant man approached step by step, raising his huge foot, ready to crush her head.
Is this the end? To die in this cage?
Evening Glory — Still Waiting —
She moved. The instant the giant landed, her body twisted inexplicably, squeezing through the gap between his thick legs.
The iron bar was aimed at the giant's weak point: his groin.
*Thud.* A sharp weapon pierced flesh.
"ah!!!"
The giant let out a chilling scream, clutched his groin, and collapsed to his knees, his body convulsing.
There was a moment of silence. Then, an even louder cheer erupted.
That was so exciting! That was so cruel!
Kaori stood up unsteadily, her right hand covered in blood.
She won. In the most undignified way.
Backstage.
Kaori leaned against the wall, drenched in cold sweat from the pain. The blow she had just received had caused her internal injuries.
The bald man walked over, holding a stack of banknotes in his hand.
"Not bad, that's ruthless."
He pulled out a few banknotes and threw them in front of Kaori.
"This is yours."
Kaori looked down at the money on the ground.
There are only five thousand taels.
"Isn't it fifty thousand?" She looked up abruptly.
"Fifty thousand is the prize pool," the bald man sneered. "Don't you need money for venue fees, agency fees, and compensation for ruining my cash cow?"
"You bastard—"
Kaori tried to rush forward, but two bodyguards immediately restrained her. These two bodyguards were very strong.
The bald man squatted down and patted her face.
"Be content, you bitch. I'm already being kind by taking five thousand taels with me alive."
"If you want to make money next time, you can go to those red tents over there. That's where they sell meat, and you don't need to fight."
"roll."
Kaori was thrown out of the arena.
She clutched the blood-stained five thousand taels in her hand.
This amount of money is far from enough.
It was just getting light. There were very few people on the streets.
She plans to go home to recover from her injuries.
She stopped as she passed a shop. It was a high-end ninja tool shop.
In the shop window, there was the knife she had pawned. Priced at 150,000 taels.
The old man at the pawnshop immediately sold it to a ninja tool shop for five times the price.
Kaori didn't look again.
She returned to her apartment.
She just wanted to go back and lie down for a while. She needed to rest and take two ration pills to maintain her blood sugar.
However, when she walked down to the second-floor hallway, she saw that her front door was wide open.
Several men, who appeared to be movers, were throwing her belongings out.
The bedding, her husband's clothes, and the cardboard box containing Xiyan's toys were all thrown into the hallway.
"What are you doing?!"
Kaori rushed forward, trying to push those people away, but the intense pain almost made her fall. Her internal injuries had flared up.
"Oh, Mrs. Uzuki is back?"
The landlord was a thin old man who was standing at the door smoking a pipe, looking impatient.
"This house has already been rented out. The new tenant is someone who sells military rations; he paid a year's rent upfront."
"But—the notice says there are still three days left—"
"That's an old almanac. It's wartime now, and houses are in high demand. You owe me a month's rent; I'm being generous by not having the garrison arrest you. Take your things and get out of here."
The landlord snorted and closed the door.
Kaori stood in the hallway, stunned. Her home was gone.
However, she was already mentally prepared.
She found the half-empty bottle of expired military ration pills and ate two. Then she wrapped a piece of clothing around herself to keep warm.
Like a homeless person, she huddled in the corner of the stairs to rest. To earn money, she needed to regain her strength first.
Kaori stayed in the hallway for two hours.
The soldier's ration pills provided a little warmth. My internal organs were still aching slightly; this was internal injury, and recovery wouldn't be quick.
She stood up and dusted herself off.
Can't fall down.
This hardship is nothing to a ninja.
She cheered herself up.
Since working illegally wasn't an option, she decided to take on legitimate jobs.
She walked toward the mission posting area of the Hokage Building.
There were very few people in the lobby.
Most of the combat power was transferred to the front line, and those who remained were mostly the old, weak, sick, or disabled, or Chunin like her who stayed behind for special reasons.
"I want to take on a C-rank mission." Kaori handed her ninja registration card to the Chunin at the window.
The Chunin glanced at the card, then at Kaori's disheveled appearance.
"Kaori Uzuki — Chunin (former ANBU candidate)."
The chunin frowned.
"Your condition doesn't seem suitable for combat missions. Moreover, all missions in the village now require a team of at least three people to prevent infiltration by enemy spies."
"I can do it by myself," Kaori said eagerly.
"No, that's the rule." The Chunin coldly refused. "A single person can only take on D-rank enemies."
Grade D. The pay was pitifully low. But she had no choice; Grade D it was, she could just do more.
"—D-grade is fine too. How many are there? I'll take them all."
"All received?" The Chunin scoffed, flipping through the logbook.
"You're overthinking it. Even D-rank missions are in high demand now. Veteran ninjas who retired due to injuries, as well as newly graduated genin, are all vying for these jobs."
He pulled out a form and threw it on the counter.
"There's only one left."
[Mission: Clean up the abandoned ninja tools and explosive tag remnants around the Third Training Ground.]
[Reward: 6000 taels.]
There's only one.
And then there's the cleaning up of the explosive tag residue? That's hard work, and you might even encounter unexploded ordnance. Nobody wants to do that kind of dirty, tiring work.
"I'll take it." Kaori picked up the order form.
6000 taels. Adding the 5000 taels I already have, that's 11,000 taels.
Although it's still far from 50,000 taels, it can at least cover Xiyan's medical expenses for two more days.
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