Chapter 47: Protecting the Company

The two started by throwing shurikens at each other, followed by a competition of taijutsu and ninjutsu. Naruto focused on defense, primarily using ninjutsu to force Sasuke into certain movements.

Half an hour later, Sasuke was exhausted and panting.

"Sasuke, are you okay?"

Naruto felt like he'd already given him an ocean's worth of leeway, and yet... Sasuke was out of stamina. He was too weak. If this continued, forget about revitalizing the Uchiha clan or even building a harem. Sakura, could you handle him? Uh, why Sakura? Naruto felt Sakura had the highest chance of success. As they say, "the early bird catches the worm," and "love grows with time"—it was simply like that.

"Hmph!"

Sasuke merely snorted. Naruto's shurikens and ninjutsu had already drained him of all chakra and stamina. At this moment, he couldn't even maintain his last shred of dignity and could only lie on the ground.

"Alright, the battle ends here."

Just then, Kakashi appeared. From the battle, Kakashi had already seen it. Both of them, in terms of chakra volume, number of ninjutsu, and proficiency, had long surpassed the strength of a Genin, even exceeding Chunin.

Comparatively:

Sasuke: Chunin-level chakra, proficient in a few Fire Style jutsu and Chidori.

Naruto: Still impossible to gauge his depth.

Chakra: Many, many times more than his own.

Ninjutsu: All five nature transformations complete, numerous types, plus self-developed ninjutsu with various techniques.

The most baffling thing for Kakashi was their combat experience and techniques; they didn't seem like novices, nor like recently graduated academy students. Where did they learn this? Could one learn these things without actual combat experience?

'Is this what genius looks like?'

But then he thought again. He, Kakashi, was also called a genius, but he had never seen a genius improve so quickly.

"Both of your growths are incredibly fast, far exceeding your teacher's expectations." Kakashi praised them first. At this rate, he felt like he'd be completely drained. Especially Naruto.

Kakashi continued, "However, there are still many areas where you can continue to improve."

"Sasuke, your Chidori is coming along well. Next, you can try to master deeper nature transformations. I will personally train you for that." Kakashi said, looking at Sasuke. Sasuke's Chidori progress was rapid; he had only taught it to Sasuke a few days ago, and he was already proficient.

"Understood." Sasuke nodded.

Kakashi then looked at Sakura. "Sakura, your chakra control is improving quickly. I have medical ninjutsu scrolls here, and a Genjutsu: Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique, which I can teach you."

"Okay, Kakashi-sensei." Sakura was delighted inwardly; Kakashi-sensei had praised her!

Finally, Kakashi looked at Naruto, his expression complex. On the last C-rank mission, the Naruto-brand juicer had completely squeezed him dry. There was nothing left to teach.

"Naruto, you... you just continue to cultivate well on your own."

"Uh..." Naruto looked at Kakashi-sensei, quite speechless. He thought Kakashi-sensei, as an experienced Jonin, would surely have some profound insights, but... that's it?

"Alright, Kakashi-sensei."

Naruto nodded, pulled an orange from his bag, and continued to supplement his vitamin C. However, seeing the other three already busy with their cultivation, Naruto thought, 'I've been ostracized by the small group.'

Taking advantage of this lull, Naruto glanced at the channel messages. Perfect, Zabuza had already made his move. He used the Flying Thunder God Jutsu to join the excitement.

The scene shifts to Gato's mansion.

"Mr. Nine-Tails."

Seeing Naruto, who was wearing the Nine-Tails mask, Zabuza, his hands stained with blood, greeted his elusive benefactor. Haku was beside him, his gaze curiously studying Naruto.

Naruto was quite surprised to see Haku, who was beautiful but a boy. So beautiful, yet a boy? What a shame... sigh... a pity. He wondered if Haku had any sisters or anything he could introduce.

"Hmm, where's Gato?"

Zabuza pointed in a direction. "He's dead."

Following the direction of his finger, Naruto saw Gato hanging on the wall. He was quite gruesome, his eyes wide open even in death.

However, seeing him made Naruto's eyes light up. This composition was excellent.

The brightly lit white wall, Gato in dark clothes nailed to it. Blood flowed down the wall from the corpse, branching out like small rivers, eventually pooling on the ground, a striking dark red under the sun's rays. All of this, under the dazzling sunlight, seemed quite profound. This was rare sunshine in the Land of Waves. It had great commemorative significance.

The 'Annual News Award' was in the bag!

He pulled out his game interface, selected the photo function, and recorded it. The next headline was produced!

"How should we deal with these subordinates? Should we..." Looking at the over one hundred thugs outside, Zabuza revealed a bloodthirsty smile, his meaning clear. He, Zabuza, was no good person. Moreover, having just gained great power, he was eager to test his skills.

However, this demeanor displeased Naruto. Someone who was going to be the next Mizukage, still acting like this? This was not good. It seemed he needed to help Zabuza with some image management.

And also, Naruto looked outside.

That was a group of obvious villains. They were arrogant, smiled maliciously, and dressed like thugs. They clearly weren't good people. They seemed to be Gato's henchmen, assisting him in his evil deeds.

These were all excellent material... no, these were good comrades. As the saying goes, "learn from past mistakes to avoid future ones, and treat the illness to save the patient." Killing was only a last resort. He believed that after his 'admonition,' these thugs would definitely recognize their mistakes and reform themselves. They would certainly contribute to the revolutionary work.

"Don't worry about them, you leave first. I'll handle this here." Naruto replied.

"Alright then."

Zabuza was a bit disappointed, but since it was Nine-Tails' arrangement, he chose to respect it.

"Oh," Naruto suddenly informed them before they left, "Stay in your hideout. Later, I'll send someone to find you. He will help you plan your route to becoming the Mizukage."

"Understood."

After Zabuza left, Naruto began to 'transform' these people. There were 145 individuals, all with Jonin templates. However, these people were usually ordinary civilians, and would only display their strength to protect assets.

Naruto already had a plan for them. They would primarily be used to build a sales channel. And they wouldn't operate in major countries, focusing mainly on smaller countries without ninja villages to do business.

Media: Newspapers, books, magazines. He'd test the waters in smaller countries first, sounding out the market reaction. Later, they would enter the Five Great Nations, grow stronger, and achieve new glories.

Xiaoyaowan (Carefree Pills): Fully roll out the male-specific Xiaoyaowan to start making big money. And launch 'Xiaoyaowan No. 50' (which is 1/50 strength Xiaoyaowan) and 'Xiaoyaowan No. 100' specifically for civilians. Xiaoyaowan No. 100 could restore 100 health, enough to bring an ordinary person from near-death to full recovery. It was simply a miracle drug. He believed it would become popular worldwide!

Price: 1000 ryo. This was a miracle drug everyone could afford. As for the formula being leaked, who said there was only one type of Xiaoyaowan? Old Xiong also had senior and junior disciples, and a sect, right? This would also relieve some pressure on Old Xiong; recently, the pressure from the Hokage's assistant, that old dog Danzo, had been quite significant. That old dog didn't look like a good person. He was actually eyeing Naruto's business. Just wait.

Old Godfather Fast Food: Forget about the Land of Waves; this would only be opened in wealthy small countries to ensure enough customers.

"The business is getting bigger and bigger. What's a good name for it?"

"How about... Umbrella Corporation!"