Naruto: The Hidden Protector

184: You Made A Very Wise Decision, Jiraiya

Time went by in a flash. Without Izanami's intervention, Naruto's life went through the same plot. He was sent to Team 7, with Kakashi as their teacher. Just like in the original work, he went through a whole month of doing boring D-class missions until they finally got a C-rank mission, all of which led to them fighting Zabuza in the Land of Waves.

However, unlike what was shown in the original plot, Naruto this time didn't need Kurama's power to complete this mission. Because this time, Naruto was strong enough to fight Zabuza to a draw with the help of Kakashi and Sasuke.

And at the end, Naruto didn't hesitate to use his greatest weapon to bring two rare talents back to Konoha. He threw more banknotes than any person had ever seen at the two of them, making these two poor rogue ninjas defect to his side immediately. Facing a literal mountain of cash, all their thoughts of fighting completely vanished.

And just like that, Naruto managed to bring a great bodyguard and a great mascot for his booming auction house business. Zabuza was perfect for keeping any troublemakers in line, while Haku's pretty face was the best tool to attract customers.

When Izanami heard this news, she was very happy about it that she even gave the barely surviving toad clan to Naruto as a group of pets. Yes, that's right, she gave the newly conquered toad clan that had sages to Naruto as a gift.

To Naruto, this was the ultimate jackpot. He didn't care about the history of Mount Myōboku or how legendary these creatures used to be. In his eyes, a toad was just a toad, but a toad gifted by Izanami was a golden business opportunity!

Well, this is because he saw many other animal tribes in Izanami's shadow. And each of these tribes is far stronger than the toad clan, making him lose the reverence one has for one of the Three Great Sage Lands.

He immediately put the smaller toads at the front doors of the auction house, dressing them up in tiny suits to bow and greet the wealthy merchants. The giant warrior toads, who used to wield massive swords, were now forced to carry heavy boxes of treasure and act as delivery mounts for VIP clients.

As for the ancient toad sages, Shima and Fukasaku? Naruto found the perfect role for them. Because of their unique, wrinkled looks and old voices, he put them on display inside glass showcases as "rare talking artifacts" to attract massive crowds.

And just like that, Naruto's auction house became more popular. After all, no ninja had ever seen such a luxurious line of. Especially in Konoha, where the three great sage lands are very revered because of the three Sanins.

The proud toad clan could only weep silently in their hearts. After all they are now at their weakest moment, with 80% of the sage toads being in deep sleep and injured. And what's more, the terror that Izanami caused them to have nightmares every day.

When Jiraiaya found out about this, he was silent. Then, using his excellent espionage skills honed by peeping into bathhouses for many years, he sneaked inside the auction and found Fukasaku to learn about what happened.

When Jiraiya heard the complete story, he fell silent. In one hand, he wanted to go and storm into Izanami's place and ask her why she was this ruthless, but in the other hand, he didn't dare to appear in front of her after she gave him a death order.

He still remembered the terrifying killing intent Tsunade gave towards him the last time he had gone to provoke Izanami. He didn't doubt for a second whether Tsunade's fists would come straight at his face if Izanami decided to cut the village's funding because of him. To Tsunade, money and the village's economy were way more important than his perverted old life.

So, the great Toad Sage could only sit in a dark corner of a tavern, drinking his sorrows away in complete helplessness. His beloved Mount Myōboku was gone, his contract summons were now acting as circus animals and door greeters for an auction house, and he couldn't do a single thing about it.