Glancing at the remaining gold coins, which weren't sufficient to unlock a battle slot for Inuzuka Kiba, Charles decided to use the 350 energy cubes received from Tayuya through the spirit realm.
Recharge!
Ding · Recharge successful, obtained 63,000 gold coins!
Without hearing any news about a VIP level increase, Charles shook his head. It seemed that as he progressed, VIP levels became more challenging to upgrade.
He wondered whether the next level-up would unlock the opportunity to purchase the Nine-Tailed Beasts.
Spending 30,000 gold coins, Charles once again opened up a battle slot. He sighed, finding the cost increasingly expensive.
Placing Inuzuka Kiba's ninja card in the battle slot, he summoned him to his side. Next, he called Shizune and entrusted him to her. Now only Kurenai Yuhi is left for completing the lineup for Team 8.
With everything settled, Charles was about to head downstairs for a meal when he received a report from his subordinate about Coulson's visit.
"Take him to the reception area; I'll be there shortly."
Coulson had come over late as he had initially visited Charles Agency and found he wasn't there. Then he was forced to drive to Charles's base again.
Charles went to the dining area, ordered breakfast, and after finishing, he strolled leisurely to the reception area. Upon entering, he saw Coulson waiting on the sofa.
"Coulson, you've been coming over quite frequently lately. Didn't we part ways just a few days ago?"
Coulson gave a bitter smile, "Mr. Charles, I didn't mean to disturb you."
"But something has happened in S.H.I.E.L.D., and I had no choice but to come."
"Alright, you are after all my customer, but the payment for the mission commission must not be a penny less."
Coulson nodded, not paying attention to the matter of mission commission fees.
"So, what brings you here this time?"
Coulson took out a photo of Uchiha Itachi from his briefcase. It was not his ordinary profile photo but one of him in a black cloak with red clouds, wearing a straw hat, standing on the sea.
"Mr. Charles, yesterday S.H.I.E.L.D. organized a mission to capture the rogue ninja Hidan from the Hidden Steam Village. In the process, another ninja named Uchiha Itachi appeared and rescued him just as the mission was about to succeed."
"It is known that this ninja used to be with you and is a member of the Uchiha clan from Konoha."
Hearing Coulson's words that somewhat whitewashed the situation, Charles couldn't help but find it amusing. Wasn't it their organization that initiated the capture operation?
Charles looked at the photo, placed it on the table, and said, "Are you looking for information about Uchiha Itachi, or are you interested in his identity?"
"Can you first share the free information released by Konoha?"
Charles looked at Coulson and smiled, "Free information?"
"Uchiha Itachi has currently betrayed Konoha and has been declared an S-rank rogue ninja. Konoha has dispatched a pursuit force to capture him."
"Any organization or individual who captures S-rank rogue ninja Uchiha Itachi, alive or dead, will receive an S-rank mission reward."
Coulson's eyes brightened upon hearing Charles's words.
"I wonder what this S-rank mission reward is."
Charles looked at Coulson and chuckled, "Why, is S.H.I.E.L.D. interested too?"
Then, with a disdainful tone, he added, "It's not that I underestimate your S.H.I.E.L.D., but Uchiha Itachi is even more powerful than Hidan. With your strength, you might end up dead before getting close to him."
"As for long-range attacks, are you planning to start a nuclear war?"
Hearing Charles's words, Coulson found himself at a loss for words. It seemed indeed challenging to deal with someone like Uchiha Itachi with the power of S.H.I.E.L.D. However, Coulson didn't want to expose his weakness. Instead, he smiled and said:
"Mr. Charles, if we could almost capture Hidan, naturally, we have ways to deal with Uchiha Itachi."
"If the reward for this S-rank mission is really attractive, S.H.I.E.L.D. is willing to pay a price for it."
Hearing Coulson's words, Charles found it somewhat amusing but continued to play along. He looked at Coulson with a hint of surprise and then said, "The S-rank mission reward is primarily for ninjas, and it might not be useful for your organization."
"But if S.H.I.E.L.D. can really capture Uchiha Itachi, then bringing him here, I'm willing to offer four sets of Konoha's special Body Enhancement Serums."
"Let your S.H.I.E.L.D. form a superhuman squad."
Upon hearing Charles's offer, Coulson carefully analyzed the situation. Konoha's special serum, were there similar things in other ninja villages?
"I wonder what Mr. Charles means by Body Enhancement Serum?"
Charles directly responded, "I've researched the history of this country, and during World War II, the government developed a super-soldier serum."
"Captain America!" Coulson blurted out. He idolized Captain America, the first and foremost superhero.
Charles nodded, "Yes, Captain America!"
"Our Body Enhancement Serum in Konoha is equivalent to the strengthening serum that Captain America used, and it has no side effects."
Hearing that it had no side effects, a greedy expression appeared in Coulson's eyes. This was the best news he had heard since dealing with Charles.
"Mr. Charles, our special ops team has twelve members."
Charles looked at the greedy Coulson and shook his head, "The configuration of a ninja team is four people. The most I can provide is enough for one ninja team."
Seeing Charles's serious expression, Coulson didn't say much. The pricing power was in Charles's hands, meaning he couldn't get more than one set.
He then spoke, "I wonder about the intelligence on Uchiha Itachi?"
Charles smiled, "This will come with a fee."
"Is it still 50 energy blocks, no problem."
Charles shook his head, "This is S-rank rogue ninja intelligence, it's going to cost extra.'
Hearing about the additional cost, Coulson was taken aback. He felt like he was about to be swindled again.
He even considered going to the Sand Ninja Puppet Shop to gather information. However, thinking that Uchiha Itachi was a ninja from Konoha, outsiders might not be aware of the details.
"How much exactly?"
Charles extended two fingers, "200 blocks!"
Coulson took in a sharp breath, "It's that expensive?"
"He's worth the extra payment. Otherwise, you might sacrifice countless lives and still not get anything valuable."
Upon hearing Charles's words, Coulson nodded. Relying on Charles's consistent honesty in their multiple collaborations, he agreed.
"200 blocks it is, hope this information is worth it, or the Director will have my head when I get back.
Charles handed over a mission scroll, smiling, "Don't worry, you won't be disappointed."
"As usual, sign the intelligence mission commission."
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