Chapter Seventeen: The Second Harvest (Seeking Votes)

After arriving at the Hokage’s office, Tsunade was absent as usual, leaving only Hiruzen Sarutobi, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado present.

“Kahn-san, I’m sorry to trouble you, but there’s a matter we need to discuss with you,” Hiruzen Sarutobi said politely. He had no other choice: Konoha simply didn’t have enough medical ninja. If he wanted to save his wounded, he needed Kahn’s medicines. The facts spoke for themselves—since using Kahn’s products, the survival rate of the injured had increased by fifty to sixty percent.

With this improvement, Konoha would be able to preserve its strength during the war and avoid catastrophic losses.

“I understand what you mean, Third Hokage, but I can’t make decisions regarding credit. In fact, the last batch of medicine was fronted with my own money. If I can’t recoup the funds this time, I won’t be able to supply your village with more in the future, and my supplier will likely turn elsewhere,” Kahn said helplessly, getting straight to the point rather than letting them circle around the issue.

Credit and the price of the medicine were non-negotiable. These were his bottom lines, and not even collateral could change that. If his limits were easily bent, the other side would only press harder. He’d rather end their trade altogether than compromise here. There was no need for Hiruzen to talk about the hardships or sacrifices of Konoha’s ninja—they weren’t risking their lives for his sake.

Hiruzen sighed inwardly, forcing a smile as he asked, “Then… what kind of collateral would you accept?”

Konoha had no other options. This was a seller’s market. The only alternative was to burn bridges and make a move against Kahn, but the ANBU had tailed him several times without ever discovering how his supplier delivered the medicine. Kahn’s ability to disappear without a trace kept Hiruzen from taking action. Kahn might be an ordinary man with no chakra, but who knew what seals might be hidden in his mind? If they attacked and gained nothing, the medicine could easily end up in the hands of other villages.

“If you don’t have cash, then jewels or precious stones, gold ornaments, or even artifacts several centuries old would be acceptable. However, I reserve the right to value them—but I won’t deliberately undervalue your goods,” Kahn finished, glancing at Koharu Utatane. Her expression soured, feeling as if Kahn was singling her out after she had named a high price for a few houses during their previous exchange.

“Alternatively, you could pay in missions. I’m about to travel elsewhere in the Land of Fire for some business dealings and will need some protection.”

As for the firearms in Kahn’s backpack, while they could offer some self-defense, they were of little use if a ninja tried a sneak attack.

Homura Mitokado suddenly spoke: “Could we trade with ninjutsu scrolls? Konoha has a substantial collection.”

“Ninjutsu?” Kahn shook his head without hesitation. “That won’t do, Elder Mitokado. I’m not a shinobi—ninjutsu scrolls are less appealing to me than a bestselling novel.”

“I see… what a pity,” Homura replied, saying no more.

Once Homura and Koharu fell silent, Hiruzen turned to Kahn, “In that case, Kahn-san, the quantity of medicine Konoha needs this time is the same as before. We’ll show you a list of items we’re offering in exchange soon.”

“No problem, Third Hokage,” Kahn replied, and an ANBU escorted him out of the Hokage Tower. The medicines were stored in a warehouse behind Kahn’s food shop; after setting aside some for retail, the remainder was just enough for Konoha’s needs.

That afternoon, just after Kahn had finished his meal, ANBU summoned him again to Hokage Tower. This time, he wasn’t brought to the Hokage’s office but to another room, where only Homura Mitokado was waiting. It made sense—the Hokage had too many matters to handle each day to spend all his time on this one issue.

“Kahn-san, please check this. Here’s the inventory list,” Homura said, handing Kahn a document and gesturing to a box on the table.

Forty kilograms of gold, one hundred gemstones, a crate of ornaments, and more than thirty antique artifacts.

When Kahn saw the artifacts, carelessly arranged at the end, he knew these were the so-called ‘antiques’ with a long lineage. Still, he asked Homura for confirmation. The answer was that these were indeed rare and ancient items, even by Konoha’s standards—at least five hundred years old, according to the Senju clan’s records. Homura didn’t try to hide anything. These were contributions from the Senju, and apart from their long history, they were just old bowls, albeit with more elaborate patterns.

Still, Homura instinctively assigned them a high value—by their measure, anyway. The asking price made Kahn chuckle, but he realized that antiquing probably wasn’t a common pastime in the ninja world, so he didn’t mind.

Back home, he could market these as relics of a mysterious lineage and probably get a few million dollars from Japanese collectors.

Besides the gold, Kahn checked the gems and ornaments as well. The gemstones posed no major issues; Konoha probably didn’t have the means to produce fakes. Kahn set aside those with poor clarity or cracks, which made Homura a bit embarrassed. He silently blamed Koharu—if the items were being traded collectively, she shouldn’t have slipped those in.

Fortunately, Kahn didn’t make a fuss, or Homura would have lost face.

As for the box of seemingly precious ornaments, Kahn opened it and quickly determined they were genuine. Two of the most valuable pieces hadn’t even been cleaned and still had bloodstains. Kahn glanced at Homura, holding up the blood-marked ornaments, but Homura simply turned away, as if inspecting a corner of the room that needed repairs. Inwardly, though, he was cursing Danzo—how could Root hand in loot without cleaning it? How disgraceful.

“Other than the items I just set aside, everything else is fine, Elder Mitokado,” Kahn said after a thorough inspection. As for the rejected items, they’d most likely be compensated with houses—Konoha never lacked for buildings. If there was ever a shortage, they’d just expand again.

“Now, as for the fee for the escort mission…” Homura nodded. “Let’s discuss that with the mission department. They’ll have a more detailed evaluation system there.”

Hiruzen could allow Koharu to fiddle with the exchange items, but missions were Konoha’s reputation on the line. Neither Hiruzen nor Homura would tolerate anyone tampering with official mission arrangements.