Robbing

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Teuchi, who had been thrown into jail by Akio's scheme, was released in less than two hours—completely unharmed. Akio wasn't surprised. After observing Teuchi up close for nearly a month, he hadn't noticed even the slightest sign that anything was off. Konoha's ANBU wouldn't make things difficult for an ordinary civilian—especially when the team was led by Sakumo.

Akio even went next door to console Teuchi, which earned him the man's gratitude.

"Maybe I went a little too far with an ordinary guy like him," Akio muttered as he continued working with his hands. He had discovered that carving figurines was a good way to channel his feelings of longing. Over the past few days, he'd sculpted numerous lifelike statues of Hashirama, Tobirama, and Madara—each with different expressions—and had found a new kind of joy in it.

"Hm?" Akio looked up and smiled. "Welcome!"

Ever since he'd put up a sign that read "All items: one million each," his shop had become infamous, and not a single customer had shown up since. Not that Akio minded—he wasn't hurting for money and actually preferred the peace and quiet.

But today, someone had come: Hatake Sakumo.

Sakumo gave a slight nod in response to Akio's greeting and walked into the shop, glancing around the interior.

After a long pause, he finally turned and spoke in a probing tone. "Elder Akio?"

Akio's expression stiffened, but he quickly put on a look of confusion. "Who?"

He still wanted to keep his identity hidden, not realizing that Tsunade and Orochimaru had already pieced it together.

"You were the one who laced the ramen with that drug, right? And the one who stirred up that gust of wind?"

Akio looked at Sakumo, who was speaking with such certainty, and cursed inwardly: You're not Hatake Sakumo—you're Detective Conan in disguise, aren't you?

"You're joking, right, ninja-san?" Akio continued to struggle.

Sakumo looked at him again and smiled. "Besides you and Lady Mito, who else would know so much about the First Hokage and the others?"

Akio frowned. It seemed he needed to put some of the figurines away. After a moment of hesitation, he sighed. "Fine, so you figured it out. Did you really have to say it out loud?"

Sakumo gave a wry smile. "An S-rank rogue ninja from the Land of Water got food poisoning around here. How could I not investigate?"

Akio narrowed his eyes. "So, what's your conclusion?"

Sakumo paused. "Well... maybe he just couldn't handle the local food."

"Now that's more like it." Akio muttered, then pointed at a chair in the shop. "Take a seat and tell me—what's going on with that guy who got arrested?"

Sakumo sat down and began to explain. "The man is an S-rank rogue ninja from the Land of Water—Kiba Jūzō, one of the former Seven Ninja Swordsmen..."

Akio waved his hand dismissively, cutting him off.

"I already know that. I want to know his motive."

Sakumo hesitated for a moment before answering, his tone slightly uncertain. "He seems to be a member of the Akatsuki. He was sent here on a mission to sabotage the alliance between the Senju and Uchiha clans..."

Akio frowned and sighed inwardly. So it really was the Akatsuki. Kiba Jūzō had been captured so easily that Akio had started doubting whether he was really with them.

"So this is what the Akatsuki's become? A bunch of idiots like him? They don't deserve the name. No wonder Kakuzu left."

Akio's expression suddenly turned serious, prompting Sakumo to do the same, thinking Akio had realized something important.

"There's one more pressing matter," Akio said, enunciating each word carefully. "How about you give your son a new name?"

"…What?"

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye, and Ichiraku Ramen finally began to show signs of recovery. Previously, business had slumped due to rumors that someone had died after eating there, but thanks to its quality and affordability, customers gradually returned.

Akio's own shop, however, showed no such improvement. During this entire period, aside from selling to the Sannin, the only other sale came from Sakumo, who bought a figurine of Akio himself—clearly just to support his business.

His shop had essentially become a place that only "familiar faces" patronized—all of his customers were acquaintances.

"At these prices, only people in the village who can take on S-rank missions could afford them. Of course they're all people I know," Akio muttered. "This is kind of boring."

Although Akio had mentally prepared himself to stay quietly in Konoha until Year 38 of the village, the monotony was starting to wear on him—especially since there had been nothing remotely "interesting" to discover from Teuchi.

Just as boredom began to set in, a new source of entertainment arrived.

"Another familiar chakra signature, and Sakumo is accompanying them… That rules out the Akatsuki. Must be some kind of envoy."

Akio's shop was situated right in the heart of Konoha, on the main path from the village gate to the Hokage's office. Anyone important entering the village would pass by his storefront.

"I think his name was Suigetsu Hanzuki…? No—Hozuki Mangetsu. And there are a few other unfamiliar shinobi with him." Akio furrowed his brows, trying to recall.

"They're probably here because of that S-rank missing-nin, and the sword." A thought sparked in Akio's mind.

"If they redeem the Executioner's Blade first, and I steal it afterward, that would be even better." He hesitated at the idea of stealing directly from Konoha—it didn't sit quite right. But if he took it from the ninja of the Land of Water, he would feel no guilt at all.

There was no need to rush. He knew the group would pass his shop again on their way out.

Sure enough, a little over an hour later, Sakumo escorted the Water Country ninja on their way out. Hozuki Mangetsu now had a massive sword slung over his shoulder, while the others were transporting a fainted Juzo Biwa. Akio wasn't sure how much they paid—whether in money or resources—but they had successfully reclaimed him.

"Closing up shop," Akio muttered, glancing around before locking the door. He then entered his "Kaguya Will" mode.

Sakumo accompanied the Water ninja to the edge of the village and then turned back, while Akio tailed the group at a distance. He wasn't in a hurry—if he acted too close to Konoha, people might suspect that the village had staged the theft.

"This should be far enough. Any further and we'll be near the Land of Whirlpools," he murmured as he prepared to act.

Suddenly, a violent gust of wind swept through the area. Akio's expression darkened—the scene felt strangely familiar. But this time, it wasn't his doing.

"…Or maybe it was me," he muttered. He sensed chakra fluctuations from one of his shadow clones—it had raced over from the Land of Whirlpools and stolen the sword.

"Of course it was my clone. We think the same way. Looks like I came out here for nothing."

Akio's real body watched as the shadow clone quickly knocked out the group from the Land of Whirlpools and snatched the blade. He let out a long sigh.

"This is no fun. I'm heading back."

Just when he'd found something amusing, his own shadow clone beat him to it. How boring.

Back at his shop in Konoha, Hatake Sakumo was already waiting out front.

"Elder Akio, you didn't go after the sword, did you?" Sakumo asked with a sigh. He knew Akio's personality all too well.

Akio shook his head. "Of course not. I just went out for a walk."

Sakumo clearly didn't believe him, so Akio added, "If I had done it, I'd admit it. But really, I didn't."

Meanwhile, he was muttering to himself in his mind:

"That was my shadow clone. It's got nothing to do with me."

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