Without combat power, how could the Land of Wind maintain its status among the Five Great Nations?
"Hehe, the Daimyō of the Land of Wind is well aware of these difficulties. His country is inherently barren—aside from endless yellow sands, they have almost nothing. Years of continuous warfare have long since emptied the national treasury. Besides, for shinobi, occasionally adopting a 'quality over quantity' elite soldier policy isn't necessarily a bad thing," the portly Finance Minister said jovially.
To an outsider, the "elite soldier" policy seemed like a clever way to save money. But the Hidden Sand (Sunagakure), looking at their ever-shrinking funds, was filled with profound anxiety. When funding is perpetually insufficient, a few monstrous geniuses might still rise, but the vast majority of shinobi will find even the rank of Chunin forever out of reach. In a few years, Sunagakure might truly decline into a minor hidden village.
Whenever they thought about the current state of the Land of Wind, Hiruzen and Kakashi felt a chill creep into their hearts.
Sensing the topic had become a bit sensitive, the Finance Minister lightly obscured his face with a folding fan and let out a soft chuckle. "Rest assured, our Land of Fire is not a destitute, weakened nation like the Land of Wind. The Daimyō understands the importance of the hidden village; without powerful shinobi, the Land of Fire cannot know stability."
Then, his tone shifted. "I hear there's some movement on that front. Hiruzen, you'd better win beautifully, or it'll be hard for me to speak up for you."
The Third Hokage could only nod repeatedly in agreement.
As they left, Kakashi couldn't help but ask, "Lord Third, what about the shinobi who came here for the mission? Why haven't they come out yet?"
Hiruzen shook his head and said in a low, heavy voice, "Don't ask, don't think, don't speak. We only need to do what we are capable of doing."
Both men understood Konoha's situation perfectly. While they didn't think Hiruko's "grand vision" would be a miracle cure, every bit of extra profit helped. Everything was proceeding according to Hiruko's design, advancing slowly with the assistance of the Anbu.
When Hiruko entered the Hokage's office again, it was crowded. Aside from Anbu guards, the Third Hokage had already arrived, and Danzō had naturally followed.
Recently, the stirrings within Konoha had grown more frequent. It wasn't just Hiruzen who felt it; a haze of unease hung over the entire village. Danzō, with his twisted obsession with Konoha, was even more attuned to these shifts. Fundamentally, Danzō was the person least willing to see Konoha destroyed—though that didn't stop him from using external threats to achieve his goals, even gambling with the village's survival. That was Danzō: a distorted guardian and a shrewd calculator.
Seeing Hiruzen, Hiruko greeted him with a smile. "Lord Third, you've returned quite early."
Hiruzen smiled back. "After returning from the Daimyō's, I didn't have much to do, so I came by to see if I could be of any help."
"How did the negotiations in the Land of Fire go?" Hiruko asked with concern.
The Third Hokage nodded. "No major trouble. After all, the regional powers surrounding the Land of Fire are quite... 'amenable' to persuasion."
Hiruko shot a meaningful glance at Danzō. He knew that for Hiruzen to say they were "amenable," Danzō's Root must have issued plenty of threats to those who weren't listening.
Over the past two months, Hiruzen had worked tirelessly at the capital, smoothing over various factions to reclaim the salt management rights. He had convinced the "big players" to integrate their resources—joint production, joint shipping, and joint dividends.
In truth, the details were incredibly complex. Unexpected problems cropped up constantly. Most of the "rot" in the system was hidden by middle-management parasites; what they actually reported to the Daimyō was a mere pittance. This was precisely why the Daimyō had handed over the management rights so easily.
While the high-ranking nobles were shrewd, their subordinates were far more cunning and difficult. From a certain perspective, those opposing the salt integration were the "white gloves" of the elite, the ones who manipulated prices for their own gain. These petty nobles hated Hiruko to his core.
Why is a ninja trying to do business?!
Clashes—both overt and covert—had been fierce. Ultimately, Hiruzen decided to cede even more profit, proposing a 50/50 split. The experience had been so taxing that the Hyūga brothers, usually as patient as "ninja turtles," had repeatedly fantasized about smashing these petty nobles' heads in with kunai. This kind of work required a level of patience few possessed.
Fortunately, while the Land of Fire's elite wanted more money, they also valued their reputations. Since Konoha was willing to be the "fall guy" and handle the messy integration, they agreed. Their own underlings had been getting too greedy anyway, and the tribute reaching the top had been dwindling. Using Konoha as a blade to cut out the rot was a commendable move in their eyes.
Overall, the integration was a success. Every "actor" played their part well. They knew salt was profitable, but they had no idea just how much money it would rake in. Konoha had caught the perfect window of opportunity. In a few years, when the Land of Fire's economy fully recovered, the nobility wouldn't be nearly this cooperative.
Because of the vast interests involved, even the "Professor" of the shinobi world had faced several assassination attempts. Messing with a man's money is like killing his parents! Especially when...
The "elite soldier" theory was absolute nonsense in the real world of shinobi. The ninja world is treacherous and unpredictable, with infinite jutsu, hidden techniques, bloodline limits, and sage arts. No matter how strong a shinobi is, there is no guarantee they will survive the battlefield.
The Second Hokage, with his mastery of Water Style and Flying Thunder God, was a titan of his era, yet he still died heroically on the battlefield. The Third Raikage, possessing the "Strongest Shield and Strongest Spear," fell amidst ten thousand enemies. Even Hiruzen didn't dare claim he would die of old age; dying in battle was the destiny of a shinobi.
To reduce the mortality rate of ninjas in war, the only viable way was to increase their numbers—improving the "margin for error" on the battlefield. And all of that required a massive foundation of capital.
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed. Claim early access on Patreon: [email protected]/c/wildsparkstudios
🔓 You hold the keys to bonus chapters:💬 10 reviews ignite 1 bonus chapter🔷 100 Power Stones summon another
🔥 Your power determines how fast the tale unfolds.