Chapter 146: A Major Harvest

Chapter 146: A Major Harvest

While Danzo was engrossed in his newspaper, Ino officially brought the bandit Baki into her fold as a subordinate. As for the traitorous East Wind, she'd seized the opportunity during the prison chaos to capture him. Now, she unceremoniously dumped him at Baki's feet, allowing the bandit to finish off the scumbag with a single, swift slash.

Karin, clutching a letter from Ino, was tasked with its delivery. Though her combat skills left much to be desired, Karin was still a legitimate kunoichi a far cry from Baki, a mere civilian who couldn't possibly swim through the Great Waterfall of Takigakure for seven or eight minutes without running out of breath. Ino dispatched Baki to the Land of Rivers to rendezvous with Karin, leaving the actual work to herself.

Meanwhile, Ino escorted the suspected rogue ninja, Morino Idate, back towards Konoha. En route, she bumped into her senior, Shizune, who as usual possessed a pair of remarkably shapely legs.

"Shizune-nee, did you come all this way just for me? That's so sweet of you! We're practically family, no need for such formalities!" Ino exclaimed, delighted. Wow, even my 'commuter training' comes with a personal pickup service? Lady Tsunade really does have a heart!

But Shizune's next words quickly burst her bubble.

"No, no, I'm actually here for… him."

Shizune gestured towards Idate, making her true target clear.

"You're taking him back to the village?" she asked Ino.

"Yep, I suspect this guy's a Konoha rogue ninja. Since I stumbled upon him, it's only right I bring him in," Ino declared, her tone laced with unwavering loyalty.

Shizune glanced around before pulling Ino aside, lowering her voice. "Idate's current boss is Jirocho from the Land of Tea. And Jirocho has always been on good terms with Lady Tsunade…"

She continued in hushed tones, trying to persuade Ino to be flexible. After all, if the village remained ignorant, and neither of them breathed a word, the whole situation could simply be swept under the rug, right?

Her explanation was vague, particularly concerning the precise nature of Jirocho and Tsunade's relationship. Ino couldn't help but let her imagination run wild. Wait a minute, is this some kind of May-December romance? Poor Jiraiya, getting cheated on like this…

Noticing the mischievous glint in Ino's eyes, Shizune frantically waved her hands, her voice dropping to an even lower whisper. "No, no! It's nothing like that! Jirocho is just a civilian. His… organization has helped Lady Tsunade settle a few gambling debts, that's all!"

By the end of her explanation, Shizune looked both pained and deeply embarrassed.

Ino feigned sudden understanding. Ah, so he's Tsunade's sugar daddy!

She had never quite wrapped her head around how these civilian organizations operated. On the surface, they seemed shady extortion, racketeering, the whole nine yards yet many local power players, even minor country governments, openly acknowledged these "vigorous social groups." Some daimyo were even close friends with their leaders. The whole thing was a bizarre, warped system.

With Shizune making her case, Ino relented on her insistence on dragging Idate back to Konoha.

"So… how's my big brother doing?" Idate, now relieved of the prospect of facing his older sibling, regained some composure and inquired about Morino Ibiki's current state.

Shizune, having been away from the village for years, was clueless. She and Ibiki had been classmates along with Kakashi, Asuma, Kurenai, and others from their generation. Shizune's ninja registration number was 010800, while Ibiki's was 010913, meaning they'd likely graduated around the same time, if not known each other since they were kids.

Hearing Idate's question, Shizune also turned to Ino, curious about their old classmate.

"Morino Ibiki? Oh, he's doing great! He lifts rocks this big" Ino gestured to something the size of a millstone. "every single day just for kicks. Then he hurls them at people. Dead accurate within a hundred meters!"

Shizune: "…"

Idate: "…"

This version of Morino Ibiki sounded… less than intelligent. A far cry from the iron-willed man they remembered.

Ino grinned, embellishing her tale further. "Eh, it's just a hobby. Rocks for relaxation. He's still plenty busy with work, though."

In truth, Ibiki was one of the stronger Special Jōnin a man who could hold his own against the Animal Path. But by the Boruto era, the once-feared interrogator had been reduced to a glorified rock-thrower, having even forgotten most of his ninjutsu.

Since Tsunade was currently in the Land of Tea, Ino traveled with Shizune and Idate to meet her. Along the way, she took stock of her recent gains.

And wow, the "Scapegoat King" really came through.

Pinning everything on Danzo had netted her five Scapegoat Points her biggest score yet. Combined with the two she'd been hoarding, she now had a grand total of seven points. She'd never felt so flush!

First, she invested three points into Stamina. Chakra was one of those things where more was always better.

Seven was a crucial threshold. Below it, each point represented gradual improvement something an average person could achieve through hard work. But beyond seven? That was the realm of prodigies. Each boost required multiple points, and the leaps in power were substantial.

With three points poured in, her Stamina hit 9, just a hair's breadth away from "Chakra Tank" status. Instantly, her cells pulsed with vitality, her chakra reserves swelling to near-bursting levels.

Unlike ninjutsu talent, which was often elusive to measure, chakra was straightforward more meant more, less meant less.

Going from 7 to 8 cost two points, tripling her original reserves. Now, going from 8 to 9 with three points had quadrupled that. The sheer volume was overwhelming, almost uncontrollable.

Originally, she'd planned to dump her remaining four points into Stamina to reach 10, but with 9 already pushing her control to its limits, she hesitated. She needed time to adjust before further upgrades.

With the Chunin Exams just a month away, mastering this surge seemed unlikely. Letting four points sit idle felt like a waste, though.

After a moment of contemplation, she bundled three points into upgrading her Yin Release from Lv. 3 to Lv. 4.

If things played out as expected, the Third Hokage would still employ the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. This time, Ino wouldn't be facing some diluted remnant of the Second Mizukage or a half-senile summon she'd be dealing with a genuine god, one who had survived Kaguya's reign and thrived.

Lv. 3 Yin Release simply wouldn't cut it. She needed Lv. 4 to stand even a sliver of a chance at bargaining with the Shinigami itself.