Naruto: Recharging With Money System

Ishiwaka Kenichi sat cross-legged on his bed, deep in thought.

"Business is bad. What should I do?"

Before the war, a single day's income started at 2,000 ryo, but in the past three days, he had barely made 3,000 ryo in total.

"This is nowhere near what I used to earn at my peak..."

With the number of ninjas in Konoha severely reduced, foot traffic to his ramen shop had dropped drastically. If things continued like this, it would slow down his money flow, affecting his ability to recharge his system and draw rewards—which in turn would slow his progress in becoming stronger.

And that wasn't an option.

Kenichi frowned. "If I want to stay ahead, I need to find another way to make money."

Missions were out of the question—he wasn't a ninja, and he couldn't just apply for one.

"What else can I do?"

Lost in thought, Kenichi eventually drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, he woke up early and opened his shop as usual. This time of day, most of his customers were ninjas grabbing breakfast before heading out on missions.

Sure enough, a familiar face walked in.

"Hahhh~ Boss, one tonkotsu ramen, please!"

Kenichi looked up, surprised. "Sakuya? You're still alive!"

The white-haired ninja laughed as he took a seat. "What's with that reaction? Were you hoping I wouldn't come back?"

Kenichi smirked. "Of course not! I've been waiting for you to spend more money here."

He headed into the kitchen. "One tonkotsu ramen coming right up."

Sakuya stretched and let out a deep sigh. "I've been craving this for months. You have no idea how bad things were out there."

Kenichi raised an eyebrow as he prepared the dish. "Bad? What happened?"

Sakuya sighed again. "Even though the war is over, border patrols are still tight. I got stuck with a long-term mission monitoring the borders. The conditions were brutal—barely any good food, just ration pills and whatever dried supplies we could carry."

Kenichi chuckled. "With your skills, couldn't you at least catch a rabbit or fish?"

Sakuya scoffed. "You think that helps? Even if we caught something, we had no seasoning. Just roasting meat over a fire gets old fast."

Kenichi brought out a steaming bowl of ramen. "Here, eat up."

Sakuya dug in immediately, moaning in satisfaction. "Ahhh… finally, real food!"

Kenichi sat across from him, thoughtful. "So, you really struggled to get decent meals while out on missions?"

Sakuya nodded. "Yeah, if I could bring your ramen with me, I'd never complain again."

Kenichi paused. "Hmm..."

Sakuya wiped his mouth and grinned. "Too bad you're not a ninja. If you were even a genin, I'd find a way to get you assigned to my team."

Kenichi laughed. "I think I'll stick to cooking. Being a ninja sounds exhausting."

Sakuya finished his meal, paid, and left with a satisfied sigh.

Kenichi, however, remained deep in thought.

"Wait a second..."

His fingers tapped against the counter.

"Portable ramen… cup noodles!"

Naruto had eaten cup noodles all the time in the anime, but in this era, there were no such conveniences.

"If I could create instant noodles, ninjas could have hot meals anywhere, anytime..."

A grin spread across his face. "This could be a game-changer."

Excited, Kenichi disappeared into the kitchen, pulling out ingredients and experimenting with different drying and preservation techniques.

For the next few days, his Shadow Clones ran the ramen shop while he focused entirely on perfecting cup noodles.

One afternoon, as he was deep in thought, a loud voice called out.

"Boss Kenichi! The legendary Jiraiya-sama has returned!"

Kenichi looked up, amused, as Jiraiya strutted into the shop. Behind him, however, were two unexpected guests.

Tsunade, Orochimaru… and Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Kenichi's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Hiruzen? What's he doing here?"

The future Third Hokage gave him a polite smile. "Good afternoon, Boss Kenichi. I've heard from my students that your ramen is excellent. I thought I'd see for myself."

Kenichi smiled as he wiped his hands on his apron. "It's an honor to have you here, Lord Sarutobi. Please, have a seat. I'll prepare something special."

As he turned to the kitchen, his mind was racing.

"Why is he really here? Did I mess up somewhere?"

His chakra had been perfectly sealed since returning from the battlefield. There was no way anyone should suspect anything.

But if Sarutobi was here on Tobirama's orders…

End of the Chapter.

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