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The next day, the five great villages were strangely quiet.
The sun rose over the Art Store in Konoha, which was livelier than ever.
The ban imposed yesterday by the Hokage's ANBU and Danzo's Root had already become a joke.
Simply put, Konoha's leaders, and everyone in the village without exception, now understood that the ban could not be enforced under the strange ability of the Art Store, through which any physical resistance or political restriction could be ignored.
A person would already find themselves inside the Art Store without even asking to enter… This ability made the other merchants of Konoha secretly envy Rob. After all, what merchant wouldn't want customers to be drawn into his shop against their will?
The Root shinobi had disappeared from around the Art Store. That was the first difference Rob noticed at that moment.
"It seems things will remain like this for a while," Rob smiled as he reflected on what had happened and the reason behind the unusually calm atmosphere.
Through the eyes of his clones spread across the world, Kiri's clone, Kumo's clone, Suna's clone, Iwa's clone, and Nami's clone (Land of Waves), Rob could see the same peaceful scenes... Art Stores packed with energetic crowds, both returning customers and newcomers discovering the stores for the first time.
After all, the Art Store's fame had only just begun to spread widely.
People from all five great nations, outside the hidden villages, were now visiting his stores.
Residents of the Lands of Lightning, Wind, Water, Earth, and Fire, including their rulers, the Daimyōs themselves.
Just by looking at his personal balance of Art Coins, Rob could truly grasp the astonishing reach the manga and the Art Store had achieved in recent months.
[Art Coins: 20M]
That's right. His Art Coins had doubled compared to just the previous day.
"And this as well…"
Rob smiled as he looked at the system interface, where the system level was clearly displayed.
[System Level 5]
[Unlocked Feature: Natural Restoration. From now on, normal bodily functions can be restored inside the Art Store. In other words, the blind can see again, the deaf can hear once more, and the mute can speak anew, all to make the reader's experience more immersive.]
When Rob first saw this feature, he was speechless for a long time…
Just imagining how revolutionary it was, that it would activate automatically the moment a customer entered the Art Store, left him deeply shocked.
"Just think of how many people in this world cannot see, hear, speak, or even move… If they could regain their bodily functions, even temporarily, inside the Art Store, wouldn't they want to stay there forever?"
Rob sighed at the thought that they would inevitably have to return to their disabilities once they left his store.
Even so, this feature was incredibly precious… His audience was no longer limited to healthy people; it now included everyone in the world.
…
Beneath Konoha, Danzo stood in the shadows, his eyes closed in contemplation.
He had always believed that remaining in the dark and increasing his power by any means necessary, legal or otherwise, would one day allow him to achieve his goals.
'Everything was going smoothly until this man appeared… Where did I go wrong?'
Danzo thought, still with his eyes shut.
'Where did he obtain such power? It makes no sense… Wasn't he just a medical shinobi four months ago? What truly happened?'
Danzo opened his eyes. This time, a candle flared to life, casting its light over numerous scrolls spread open across the floor.
These scrolls contained all kinds of information about one man.
Uzumaki Rubiro.
His origins, his parents, when he was born… when he first spoke… when he learned to walk… when he entered the Academy, his academic performance throughout his studies, when he graduated, how he became a medical shinobi, the number of missions he participated in, the battles he fought… In short, every detail of his life lay before Danzo.
'His life before four months ago…'
That was how Danzo saw it. Because the Uzumaki Rubiro of four months ago and the Uzumaki Rubiro after that...
"…are two different people."
This time, Danzo said it aloud.
Another candle ignited, this time behind him. He turned to look.
By its light, four scattered manga volumes lay open on the ground, each at its final chapter.
"This is the most terrifying thing about the current Uzumaki Rubiro," Danzo said calmly.
"Yes… more terrifying than his power."
Yesterday, Danzo had confirmed news that had reached him earlier through his own channels.
News of a devastating battle between one man and a great village, Kumogakure, and that man had emerged victorious.
It was the kind of news a rational mind would struggle to believe, yet it had truly happened.
That was what led to the current situation; none of his existing plans were capable of threatening him or the Art Store.
"What should I do?"
Danzo was not someone who surrendered easily. In fact, he would never surrender unless he was killed.
So he had to think of a solution, how to subjugate Uzumaki Rubiro and the Art Store.
"Before the Naruto manga reveals a future that is unfavorable to me…"
That was his true objective.
…
"Are you done?"
"Yes… It's finished."
"What a ridiculous mission…"
"Haha! There have been way too many runaway cat capture missions lately… Do you think it has something to do with the Naruto manga…?"
"Haha! At least we found a mission to do together."
"My team doesn't like taking on such small assignments, but there's no harm in trying one with you…"
Mebuki smiled at the man unusually, making his heart skip a beat. He quickly blushed and looked down.
Haruno Kizashi was covered in scratch marks from the cat's claws. He had been used as bait to lure in the runaway cat. In the end, they captured it, returned it to its owner, and completed the mission.
Both of them were Genin, and this was the kind of mission available to them, at least for now. With things having stabilized after the war, there was nothing dangerous outside.
Mebuki smiled lightly at his embarrassment, then pulled out the latest volume of the Naruto manga.
"Do you see how Sasuke encouraged Sakura here by praising her analytical ability and her knowledge of ninjutsu, calling her the best in the team in that regard?"
"I see it. Sakura has been quite depressed lately, and Sasuke noticed… That's a positive point."
The embarrassment disappeared from Kizashi's face the moment the discussion returned to the manga's events.
"Do you think Sasuke has started accepting Sakura's love?" Mebuki asked playfully, sticking out her tongue.
"Oh, I don't think so. Maybe he just doesn't want to disrupt teamwork…"
"If Sakura is depressed because she feels inferior to him and Naruto, she won't be able to cooperate efficiently. That would completely threaten their teamwork," Kizashi gave his opinion.
As a man, he clearly sensed that Sasuke felt repulsed by Sakura's childishness and obsessive attachment to him, or perhaps she simply wasn't his type.
He would never have imagined that in the end, Sasuke would actually marry her.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 118: Natural Restoration, The Shock of the Shinobi World!
Chapter 119: The Mighty Rock Lee!
Chapter 120: A Humiliating Defeat for Sasuke.
Chapter 121: Amegakure's Art Store!
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