Of course, Sora knew nothing about all this. He waited patiently until the middle of the night before sneaking up to the room of that middle-aged rogue ninja.
Standing outside the paper-screen window, Sora had the urge to poke a hole and peek inside.
But he hesitated, worried that the noise might wake the ninja within.
After all, he had no sensory skills and didn't know how strong the guy actually was.
Worse still, Sora realized he didn't have any stealth-based ninjutsu for silent infiltration.
"My experience is still too limited, and my ninjutsu repertoire isn't nearly complete."
In that moment, Sora's inflated confidence deflated a bit.
He had thought he was powerful for being able to toy with someone like Kakuzu, but looking back, that was mostly because Kakuzu had underestimated him.
"I'll definitely need to get my hands on some genjutsu, escape techniques, and sensory jutsu in the future!"
Not wanting to end up in this kind of helpless situation again, Sora made up his mind about his next development path.
For most ninjas, mastering even one path is difficult—but Sora had the system. He didn't need to learn ninjutsu the conventional way.
That was why he aimed to master taijutsu, ninjutsu, and genjutsu all at once.
After mulling it over and confirming he couldn't take down the enemy like an assassin, he decided to rely on the method he knew best.
"A warrior should act like one!"
As those words fell from his lips—bang!—the door in front of him exploded into splinters.
At the same time, Sora channeled all his strength and dashed inside, moving at full speed—over 200 points in agility bringing him to the bedside in an instant.
A prepared sealing jutsu was slapped down onto the person in bed, sealing their chakra entirely.
But just then, he noticed something—there were two people in the bed! In a moment of panic, his right hand shot out like lightning.
The sensation that met his hand was... soft, smooth, and slightly bouncy.
"Uhh—!!"
A second later, the person he touched let out a startled sound and promptly fainted.
Making sure there was no immediate danger, Sora turned on the light in the room and looked at the scene on the bed.
The rogue ninja, whose chakra he had sealed, obediently crouched in the corner of the room like a frightened schoolboy.
On the bed lay a stark naked body—none other than the massage girl from before!
"Pah! Filthy pair!"
Realizing what had been going on, Sora cursed them bitterly. Then he turned a more hostile gaze on the rogue ninja in the corner.
"Alright, introduce yourself." Sora sat down in a chair and began questioning.
"Sir, my name is Mata. I was a Genin from Sunagakure but now I'm a pitiful rogue ninja. My father was... my mother was..."
Mata started rattling off his family history like beans spilling from a bag.
Seeing how long it was going, Sora finally interrupted, "Stop! Stop! Just tell me where the nearest bounty exchange station is."
"The nearest one is in the restroom about 800 meters east of the hot spring inn. Open the second stall, push the back wooden panel, and you'll be inside."
Mata answered without hesitation—so much so that it made Sora feel a little guilty. The guy was so cooperative, and he'd barged in so violently. This didn't feel right!
Still, that didn't mean he was going to trust him that easily. So he said coldly, "Your chakra has already been sealed. No one can undo it but me. I'll go check the place tomorrow. If I find out you lied—"
He didn't finish the sentence, but he was sure Mata got the message.
After receiving a series of tearful assurances and oaths that Mata wouldn't leave the inn, Sora turned and left the room.
Since he had destroyed the door, he didn't bother to close it.
In fact, he even muttered darkly to himself, "No door now. Let's see you pull off a live performance in there, huh?"
The thought cheered him up immensely.
Back in his room, Sora sat and thought through his plans for the next day.
Just before falling asleep, it dawned on him what he had actually grabbed earlier.
Round… smooth… soft! Combined with that naked body… yeah, there was no mistaking it!
…
He woke up around noon the next day. After freshening up, he checked on Mata and found the man still obediently there, so he left the inn.
Grabbing a quick, half-hearted bite somewhere, he headed straight for the bounty exchange station.
Before long, he reached the second stall in the restroom, just as Mata had described.
Suspiciously, he extended a hand and pushed gently against the wooden wall.
Creaaak—the panel swung open like a door.
"So it really is here. Mata wasn't lying."
Sora was slightly speechless. He'd thought Mata's cooperation was part of a trap.
But it turned out the guy really was just scared for his life. Were there really ninjas like that?
For a moment, Sora felt like his entire worldview had taken a hit.
Still, he was already here—no point in hesitation now. He stepped inside.
It was worth noting that from the moment he raided Mata's room until now, Sora had maintained the appearance of adult Naruto. So his identity remained hidden.
The space beyond was a room about 200 square meters in size.
Though a few lamps provided dim light, the place still felt gloomy.
And aside from a young woman behind the counter, the exchange station was completely empty.
"Is the bounty station always this quiet?"
Puzzled, Sora walked up and asked the girl behind the bar.
She looked around seventeen or eighteen, wearing a pale blue dress and her hair tied in a ponytail—very easy on the eyes.
"It's usually busy here," she said with a soft smile. "But lately there's been a big bounty posted, so everyone's gone off to try their luck."
The moment she saw Sora, she seemed surprised—but quickly smiled as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
Sora nodded knowingly. He didn't even have to ask to guess the big bounty was on him.
No point in beating around the bush, so he said directly, "I want to know who issued that bounty."
"Sorry, our exchange station doesn't reveal client information. And I don't know who issued it, anyway."
She kept her gentle smile and answered softly.
"If you don't know, then bring me someone who does."
She didn't look the least bit surprised by his demand. With a small nod, she gestured for him to wait and disappeared through a hidden door.
After a short while, she returned with a young man, likely around twenty-five or twenty-six, with a sharp, handsome face.
The moment the young man appeared, Sora tensed up.
He couldn't sense his exact strength, but one thing was clear—this guy was definitely a ninja.
"I assume you're looking for me. If this is about the bounty, I'm afraid I can't help you."
The man's tone was polite, but Sora immediately frowned.
Despite his formal words, the man gave off a distinctly condescending aura.
And seriously—no self-introduction?
So Sora asked bluntly, "And what if I insist on finding out?"
"Then I'll have no choice but to enforce the exchange station's rules."
The young man didn't back down in the slightest. His eyes locked onto Sora's, and a hint of killing intent flickered within them.
Narrowing his eyes, Sora's mind raced. Unable to judge the man's strength, he said, "In that case, I'll be on my way."
With that, he turned and began to walk off.
The young man watched him go, a smirk of contempt curling his lips.
But in the very next moment, a sudden change occurred—one that made his eyes go wide in shock!