"Who the hell are you?"
Kado didn't feel even the slightest hint of impending doom. Instead, he focused on Izayoi's earlier disrespectful remark. Pointing at him, he shouted loudly, "What the hell are the people outside doing? They don't even notice an outsider getting in? What a bunch of useless trash!"
Izayoi touched the bottom of his mask, sighing, "So, it's not Kirigakure's fault. It's that those ninjas have been tamed by people like you to the point they've lost their fighting spirit. That explains a lot. Like how a rogue ninja, who would be considered a trump card even in one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, could meet a billionaire and not think of killing him to take his wealth—but instead settle for earning money through employment."
Upon hearing that, Zabuza Momochi furrowed his brows and instinctively glanced at Kado. He couldn't help but think Izayoi had a point.
"W-What are you talking about?"
Izayoi's words also seemed to trigger something in Kado's mind. He suddenly remembered that he was just an ordinary man, surrounded by ninjas with supernatural powers—rogue ninjas even, who were wanted by major shinobi villages.
Realizing this, Kado immediately took a few steps back, his face filled with panic. He then shouted at Zabuza, "Zabuza! I'll give you ten million ryo! Kill that guy now!"
"You were curious how I got in, right?"
Izayoi raised his hand toward Kado and smiled lightly. "It's because… of this."
In that instant, Kado's body lifted into the air and flew straight toward Izayoi.
Losing all control over his body, Kado panicked. "Zabuza, save me!"
Whoosh—
Zabuza shoved Haku aside, turned sharply, and hurled the Executioner's Blade with full force.
The massive sword, spinning like a giant Fūma Shuriken, sliced through the air with a deafening whoosh as it flew toward Kado.
Yes, it was aiming not at Izayoi—but at Kado.
To be more precise, Zabuza intended to kill both Kado and Izayoi at once.
"This guy's my cash cow. Can't let you kill him." Izayoi said with a smile, then raised his other hand.
The next moment, the spinning Executioner's Blade suddenly froze in mid-air, as though the surrounding space had been locked in place.
It was the first time Zabuza and Haku had seen this kind of power. Their expressions drastically changed, and their pupils shrank.
"There once was someone who called himself a god—because he wielded a power no one could resist."
Izayoi grabbed Kado by the neck with one hand, then opened the fingers of his other hand, smiling playfully. "So, do you want to witness the power of a god?"
Before Zabuza and Haku could react, Izayoi calmly uttered a technique name:
"Shinra Tensei."
—BOOM!
A formless repulsive force twisted the space itself, draining the color from Zabuza and Haku's bodies until they turned into monochrome like a manga drawing—then were consumed by a blinding white light.
A thunderous explosion erupted at the heart of the Land of Waves.
A thick cloud of dust rose into the air, forming a massive mushroom cloud.
Many of the local residents were startled by the explosion. But when they saw that the mushroom cloud was coming from Kado's estate, their faces lit up with joy.
Some even put their hands together in prayer, hoping that something had happened to Kado—best case, he had died in the blast.
The mushroom cloud rose quickly but also dissipated fast.
Before it could even reach its peak, a man-made whirlwind swept it away.
The mansion was reduced to complete rubble. Izayoi floated in the air, holding Kado by the back of his collar.
Beneath the white mask, his Rinnegan eyes swept across the ruins—and then locked onto a specific spot.
He lightly waved his hand.
Instantly, gravity pulled the rubble aside, revealing Zabuza and Haku underneath—both soaked in blood, bones broken in multiple places, and with severe internal bleeding.
Though unconscious, they were still barely alive.
"Shadow Clone Technique."
Izayoi landed on the ground and formed a one-handed seal, creating a shadow clone.
He instructed the clone to heal Zabuza and Haku, making sure they didn't die too easily. Then he turned to Kado, who was already so terrified he couldn't speak, and gently patted his cheek.
"Your money's in the basement safe, right?"
"Y-Yes… yes, yes!" Kado suddenly snapped back to reality as if grasping his last lifeline, nodding frantically. "All my money is in the safe! I have more money elsewhere too—lots and lots of money! Just spare my life, please don't kill me!"
By now, tears and snot were running down his face—he was completely broken by fear.
And who could blame him?
To ordinary people, ninjas were lofty, unreachable figures.
But to daimyo, nobles, and the ultra-rich, ninjas were just convenient tools.
Once Kado became wealthy, he used rogue samurai, stray ninjas, and defected shinobi like tools.
As long as you paid them, they'd do anything.
If they succeeded, he got what he wanted.
If they died, he saved money.
None of those rogues or defectors had ever gone after his wealth.
People like Kado—and even the nobles—subconsciously believed that ninjas would never betray them, that they had a code of honor.
Even someone like Kakuzu, who was practically obsessed with money, still stuck to jobs and hunted bounties on the black market. He never considered robbery or looting.
But then came someone like Izayoi—completely unreasonable, with zero professional ethics. A madman.
Faced with this kind of wild card for the first time, Kado being scared out of his mind was only natural.
"You've got other stashes too?"
Izayoi raised an eyebrow, then tapped a pressure point on Kado's body, knocking him out.
"Let's see how much is in this one first."
He casually tossed Kado over to the shadow clone, then raised both hands.
With gravity unleashed, rubble began to float into the air.
Soon, a stairwell leading to the basement came into view.
Izayoi had already spotted the safe's location earlier—otherwise, he wouldn't have used such destructive force so recklessly.
But since there was no light inside the safe, he didn't know how much was in it.
That's why he kept Kado alive.
Descending the stairs into the basement, Izayoi stood before a two-meter-high safe.
It was made entirely of metal and secured with a combination lock.
He didn't know the password, nor did he bother to wake Kado up to ask.
He simply placed his hand on the safe door's edge.
BANG! With a loud crash, the door and its frame caved in and broke apart.
Izayoi hit it with controlled bursts of repulsion force a few more times until the door completely fell off.
The contents of the safe finally revealed themselves.
With the door gone, dazzling light spilled out, bathing Izayoi in a golden glow like divine radiance.
Hands on his hips, Izayoi stood before the safe.
If someone removed his pure white mask right then, they would see that his Rinnegan had vanished—replaced by two enormous $ symbols in his eyes.
Jackpot!