Chapter 129: Refusal Is Also an Art
Does Deidara not live in the village?
Kenichi was a little confused at first, but when he remembered the boy's bloodline limit, it stopped feeling strange.
Deidara's power was dangerous. Letting him live alone outside the village made perfect sense. If he got bored one day and casually cooked up something like C4, the Hidden Stone Village might end up destroyed by its own genius.
At that moment, Onoki noticed the student running up behind him. He looked helpless, but still lifted a hand and motioned for Deidara to come closer.
"Heavenly Demon, this is my student, Deidara," Onoki said, pulling the blond boy to his side. Then he laughed loudly and patted Deidara on the head. "He's been clamoring to meet you."
Deidara immediately puffed out his cheeks, dodged away, and hurriedly fixed his hair. All the while, he kept stealing glances at Kenichi, the look of a fanboy who had just seen his idol in person.
"Does your disciple not live in the village?" Kenichi asked. He already had a guess, but he wanted to hear it from Onoki, and he also wanted to get a better read on Deidara's personality.
At this age, most kids had already formed their basic values. You could usually see someone's temperament early. Of course, with the right guidance, it was not impossible for them to change later.
"This kid keeps saying he wants to be independent, so I let him go out and suffer a little," Onoki said with a smile, refusing to reveal the real reason.
At the same time, he shot Deidara a glare.
Deidara had been indignant, clearly ready to argue, but the moment he met that stare, he swallowed his words and shut his mouth in frustration.
Kenichi kept his face calm, but his thoughts moved quickly.
Onoki clearly cared about Deidara.
But what kids Deidara's age craved most was recognition and like minded friends, not the heavy handed care of elders. That was the whole reason adolescent rebellion existed.
If that gap kept widening, it made perfect sense that Deidara would eventually abandon the village and join Akatsuki.
"Alright then, Lord Tsuchikage," Kenichi said, getting to the point. "How much are you planning to offer?"
He was pressed for time. Once the deal was settled, he could leave. Talking business right next to someone else's village always felt a little unsafe. It was better to finish quickly.
Once money entered the conversation, Onoki's expression turned serious.
He waved his hand, dismissing the ANBU nearby, then signaled for them to take Deidara away. Deidara resisted, of course, but it was obviously useless.
For shinobi meeting him the first time, Deidara was troublesome. But these ANBU knew his abilities well. With a single Lightning Release, they subdued him neatly and dragged him off.
Kenichi watched without commenting. Future Deidara was genuinely terrifying. The current Deidara was talented, but he was not at that level yet, so taking a loss like this was not surprising.
What mattered was how much Onoki was willing to pay.
Sasori, meanwhile, did not care about Deidara at all. He focused only on Onoki. Even if the Tsuchikage probably would not attack, Sasori still preferred caution. Better safe than sorry.
"Heavenly Demon, I asked your Akatsuki organization earlier," Onoki said evenly. "Konoha gave you one billion ryo, but that was for two transactions, and one of them was used on the battlefield."
Kenichi did not mind that the number had leaked. Even if Nagato had kept his mouth shut, Iwagakure would have found out sooner or later.
"Personally, I think offering one billion twice and five hundred million once for Konoha is a very reasonable price," Onoki continued. "If it's on the battlefield, I'm willing to offer four hundred million."
Kenichi fell quiet, weighing it.
The price was not unreasonable. Konoha had paid heavily back then because he had caused massive damage to Kumogakure itself. He had also severely injured Killer Bee, the Eight Tails jinchuriki at the time. That alone justified the extra money.
Still, Kenichi shook his head. "No. Add another one hundred million."
Onoki blinked, more confused than angry. "Another one hundred million? Why?"
Kenichi smiled, confidence overflowing. "Because I improved my ninjutsu."
This time, his thermobaric round was not the old version. He had upgraded it, and he had been reluctant to waste it on casual testing after it was finished. Every detonation meant making another one later, and that hurt. Worse, he did not even have enough raw materials to guarantee a replacement.
If he was taking missions, he had to claw back his research costs. Otherwise, he would be bleeding money.
"I want to see the results," Onoki said, frowning as he studied Kenichi. After a moment, he nodded. "If it's really as amazing as you claim, I'll add another one hundred million."
"Deal." Kenichi rubbed his hands together, excited, then suddenly realized something and twitched. How had he ended up becoming an arms dealer?
Onoki spoke as if it were obvious. "Konoha. Can you do it?"
Kenichi stroked his chin.
Konoha was not impossible, but it would definitely be troublesome, and it could cause changes to the plot he knew.
Putting everything else aside, Anko should still be in the village. Kenichi was quite fond of his junior sister.
But he also knew that if Onoki could somehow read his emotions right now, things could turn annoying fast. And if he wanted to persuade someone, there were better approaches than saying no directly.
So Kenichi did not answer.
Instead, he asked calmly, "Have you seen what the Cloud Village shinobi looked like after their village was bombed?"
Sasori glanced at his friend.
That was a well chosen line.
Onoki understood immediately. When Kumogakure was bombed, even he had assumed they would stop fighting. Instead, Kumogakure had somehow become even more terrifying.
They smashed Konoha hard on the battlefield. The A and B duo fought personally. They nearly invaded the Land of Fire.
If Konoha itself were bombed and went berserk, it would not benefit the Hidden Stone Village at all.
Onoki wanted meat, but he did not want the meat to beat him into the ground.
"Fine," Onoki said at last. "Keep it on the battlefield in the Land of Grass."
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