Networking events are generally not the best place to meet people with business problems -- they tend to attract a bit more of an aspirational audience. Business owners with budget congregate in predictable places: conferences for their industry, their own offices, locally organized meetups, the Chamber of Commerce, etc etc. If you absolutely can't find an appropriate event, throw one yourself. I'm totally serious. Throw a seminar on How to (Put Any Business Goal Here) With (Pick A Technology They Have Heard About Recently) For (Pick An Industry). Rent out a room for a few hours at the local civic center or whatever you have in your neck of the woods. Buy coffee/donuts for everyone. Teach folks for an hour. Give a five minute sales pitch at the end. Let folks mingle for a while so they can enjoy your coffee and donuts. Many people will come up and introduce themselves to you.

(This can be done on approximately a $100 budget in Ogaki, so that's probably the upper bound for you. If you can't afford that, write up how this advice actually worked out for you in a blog post and I'll reimburse you.)

Invite people via pre-existing networks like e.g. the Chamber of Commerce, which is generally happy to tell their members about free events which aren't (explicit) sales pitches.

When meeting people, ask about their business problems. Listen. Tell them that you understand those problems. If appropriate, say that you think you can produce a solution to those problems, since you are in the business of doing that as a technology consultant, and offer to discuss that problem in more detail after the event.