"Yes!"
Seeing the sealing scroll tossed by Toshiro, the middle-aged man with a weathered face waved off the staff who had been following Toshiro since he entered the shop. He knew that anyone capable of producing such an item wouldn't be here for a small transaction.
He raised his hand to take the scroll, about to open it on the spot. After glancing at Toshiro, he rose and walked toward the back of the shop.
"Shisui! You stay outside!"
"Understood!"
Without much hesitation, Toshiro followed the man into the back room of the shop. The contents of the scroll were not suitable for public display. Even if the shop owner did not take the initiative to avoid it, he would have given some kind of reminder.
"Release!"
After bringing Toshiro to a spacious room with nothing but a large table in it, the shop owner immediately undid the seal on the scroll he was holding and took out the contents.
"This..."
Even though he was mentally prepared, upon seeing the items in the sealing scroll, he couldn't help but twitch his eye. He had mingled in this black market for a long time and had seen a lot of things, but what the other party had brought out still left him feeling uneasy.
The drugs on the table were fine; they were always in high demand in these war-torn times. He could take as much as he could get. But the three corpses were different; one misstep, and he'd be hunted to death by Iwa shinobi.
"Customer, these three corpses..."
Though he didn't spell it out, Toshiro understood the man's concerns—they clearly didn't want to deal in goods that might bring trouble.
"You might as well examine them before making a decision."
Toshiro had anticipated this reaction. But given the precarious situation of the man and those behind him, he believed the man would seriously consider the business proposition.
The shop owner meticulously examined the three corpses, his expression becoming increasingly conflicted. He also gained a clearer understanding of the strength of the tardy customer near the end of the market.
Such a person was definitely not someone they could afford to offend.
"So, do you want to do business this time or not?"
Gritting his teeth, the shop owner decided that, while this deal might bring some trouble, being cautious would minimize the risks. The profits were too tempting. The human trafficking and prostitution trades couldn't compare to this.
After all, these were two Jōnin-level shinobi and one Special Jōnin from Iwa. Selling them to places that specialized in collecting such corpses would yield substantial rewards. He just had to prevent any leaks of information, ensuring no one knew the corpses came from him.
He then examined the twenty or so bottles of medicine Toshiro had brought. Although he had some doubts, he didn't show any signs.
"These three bodies will fetch eight million ryō, and the medicines, though only half-filled, will go for two million ryō~"
He quickly named his price and added, "If you have more medicinal items, our shop is always open for business!"
Ignoring the shop owner's request for more medicines, Toshiro, though dissatisfied with the offered price, didn't argue much and instead began inquiring about the owner's other capabilities.
"Yes! Give me ten minutes, and I can prepare everything."
Though gathering six hundred explosive tags required some external resources, it wasn't a major issue.
"Then, I'll take the rest in cash!"
"No problem!"
...
Ten minutes later, having successfully completed the transaction, Toshiro, accompanied by a somewhat dazed Shisui, leisurely exited the black market.
"Hmm?"
Just a few steps out of the abandoned village, Toshiro felt he was being watched.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Several shuriken were swiftly thrown. Hearing the muffled groans and footsteps of people dodging behind him, he was not surprised. In places like this, if there were no spies from various villages, he'd be shocked. Being targeted after making a large transaction at the black market was to be expected.
As long as he exposed these tails, they would sensibly retreat—no need to worry excessively. He had chosen this relatively clean shop for the transaction to avoid complications.
He was selling sensitive items. If the village discovered anything, there would be severe consequences. According to village regulations, enemy Jōnin corpses had to be handed over to the village. But the reward was paltry.
The village might offer about a hundred explosive tags for such corpses, a loss-making business he would never tolerate. It was unfortunate that inflation had caused the value of two Jōnin and one Special Jōnin corpses to drop to eight million ryō. He recalled that Asuma's bounty in the original story was thirty-five million. Clearly, as the major shinobi wars approached, profits from the dead were dwindling.
The medicines were collected empty vials, filled by his resourceful uncle. To avoid drawing attention, every batch was small and only half-filled to mimic battlefield loot. This was a one-time visit to this black market to prevent any tracking or adverse consequences from the village.
"So, what do you think?"
As they headed back to meet their companions, Toshiro took a moment to ask Shisui about his thoughts. He was curious about the feelings of the future 'Shisui of the Body Flicker' on witnessing such scenes for the first time.
"I believe we should work harder to protect the village and comrades so that this never happens in Konoha!"
"Did I do something wrong?"
Toshiro hadn't expected such a sentiment from Shisui.