A special thank you to all my patrons.
The List of My "Wandering Reader":
-[ ]
-Lord_Clamiral
-Cain
-Shahzaam
-Goha21
-Splendid
-Jacob Mooe
-Nathan king
-Varun Madhu
-Mp Gaming
-Paul Panzer
You can read 30 chapters ahead of everyone on p@treon.
P@TREON - p@treon.com/lessaservantofcosmos
(just replace the "@" with "a")
ps: Please support me on P@treon. I can really use your help!
-------------------------------------------------------------
"I really want to punch you to death, you brat! You're getting more and more outrageous!"
First, you take advantage of me, then you turn around and accuse me of taking advantage of you! You keep teasing me, and on top of that, you call me stupid!
Uchiha Kazuki, do you have any idea what you're playing with? Do you realize you're playing with fire?
Seeing Tsunade gritting her teeth in anger, Kazuki blinked in confusion.
"Shizune, what's wrong with our Hokage? Why is she so angry? Did Jiraiya cause trouble again?"
"Pfft—"
Shizune burst out laughing.
The next second, she was met with Tsunade's deadly glare. She quickly suppressed her laughter and apologized, "Sorry, Hokage-sama, I'll try to hold it in next time."
"Enough! Do you think I don't see what you two are up to?"
Waving her hand impatiently, Tsunade felt utterly exhausted.
Whose secretary are you, anyway?!
You're always siding with him!
It's all your fault, Kazuki! You seduced my little secretary with your looks!
Burning with frustration, Tsunade couldn't help but shoot Kazuki a couple of fierce glares.
"Fine, I'll leave this matter to you! If the Raikage demands that the village send someone, then you go personally. I won't get involved in these things anymore."
After giving Kazuki two more disdainful looks, Tsunade finally turned to leave.
But just as she reached the office door, she paused and glanced back at him.
"You're treating me to dinner tonight. I want alcohol!"
You didn't give her any booze? No wonder she's so resentful.
Kazuki looked at Shizune, who sighed helplessly. He immediately understood.
Ah, the money she managed to save up was squandered again, leaving her broke—no funds for drinks unless she runs up a tab.
If a woman like Tsunade were ever put in charge of household finances, even the richest man in the shinobi world wouldn't survive her reckless spending.
That night, Tsunade mercilessly milked Kazuki dry. To make matters worse, after getting thoroughly drunk, she shamelessly crashed at his place again...
---
Meanwhile, in Kumogakure.
In the Raikage's office building, despite the late hour, the Raikage, A, was still awake.
He was currently reviewing the message Konoha had sent.
Upon receiving the urgent summons, Kumo's high-ranking officials had all crawled out of their warm beds and gathered in the Raikage's office.
"Damn it! Is Konoha trying to fleece me like some fattened sheep?!"
After reading the contents of the scroll, A couldn't help but slam his fist on the table several times in anger.
The others in the room winced, half-expecting the desk to shatter under his force.
"Take a look at this. Konoha is getting more and more brazen. They're treating us like fools, outright demanding money!"
Money?
What is Konoha playing at?
A joint operation, and they have the nerve to ask for payment?!
Since when does Kumo owe Konoha anything?
The officials exchanged puzzled glances.
Only after taking turns reading the scroll did they realize why the Raikage was so furious.
Konoha was really… blatant about this!
"Has Konoha's financial situation really gotten that bad?"
Someone couldn't help but voice their skepticism.
This is taking 'poverty' to ridiculous extremes. Even if you're poor, you don't beg like this!
"Ahem!"
The Daimyo's representative cleared his throat and spoke up.
"The Daimyo has gathered considerable intelligence, including reports of Tsunade repeatedly requesting funds from the Daimyo's treasury. It seems Konoha's finances are in serious trouble—likely due to the deep financial pit the Third Hokage left behind. Tsunade has been struggling with money issues ever since taking office."
Hearing this, the others finally grasped the situation.
Konoha isn't just making excuses—they're genuinely broke!
"..."
At this moment, A had the strong urge to roll his eyes.
He had assumed Konoha was just making up excuses to extort him.
Turns out, they were actually poor—not pretending, not exaggerating.
"No wonder Konoha was willing to sell us intel on the Akatsuki."
A frowned.
"So, how should we respond? Just hand them the money? If we do, the other villages will surely follow suit and demand the same."
Iwagakure might hold back—Ōhnoki's pride wouldn't let him stoop so low.
But Sunagakure and Kirigakure would definitely mimic Konoha's tactics and beg for funds.
Even if Kumo had money to spare, they couldn't afford to play the fool and let others take advantage.
Heh…
Just as everyone was deep in thought, the Daimyo's representative suddenly chuckled.
All eyes turned to him.
Under their questioning gazes, the representative smiled and said,
"Gentlemen, I believe Konoha's demand for money is actually a good thing for us—a very good thing. However, the village must ensure strict confidentiality. If Konoha is too broke to participate in this military operation, then we'll give them the money! But on one condition: they must sign a secrecy agreement. They cannot disclose this arrangement to anyone. Once we pay up, Konoha will have to side with us and support our stance. We can then use this to pressure the other villages into joining as well. In fact, we might as well give them extra, cutting off Konoha's chances of demanding further benefits. We could even require Konoha to help us secure more advantages in the negotiations."
A joint operation among the Five Great Shinobi Villages wasn't just for show.
Matters like troop deployments, resource allocations, and profit distributions required extensive bargaining and political maneuvering.
Konoha wants money? Fine, we'll give it to them—but in exchange, their share of the benefits goes to Kumo!
We won't force Konoha to send more troops or fight harder than necessary. But when it comes to negotiations, Konoha must back Kumo's demands.
At the very least, they can't stay neutral after taking our money.
The more they considered it, the more sense it made.
Many in the Raikage's office began to see the appeal, and even A's furrowed brow relaxed.
Sure, the village would be privately paying Konoha, making us look like easy targets. But in return, Konoha would have to openly support our military campaign—at least superficially.
They'd also have to back us in securing greater benefits.
When weighed like this, paying them didn't seem like a loss. It all came down to how much Konoha was asking for.
If the amount wasn't outrageous, why not fund their participation?
"This is too important. I'll go to Konoha myself to negotiate."
A stood up abruptly, slamming the table.
He felt it was necessary to make the trip personally.
With so much at stake—significant strategic interests and a substantial sum of money—Samui and Mabui didn't have the authority to make such decisions.
Rather than waste time relaying messages (and risking interception), it was better to handle it face-to-face.
If word of this secret deal leaked, the other villages would undoubtedly cause trouble.
Thus, A decided to visit Konoha in person.
No time to waste.
After instructing the elders to keep an eye on Killer B (and stop him from wandering off), A set off immediately, taking only a few guards with him as he raced toward Konoha under cover of night.
---
Back in Konoha.
With Kumo's envoys, Samui and Mabui, staying quiet in their quarters, Tsunade had assumed the negotiations had fallen through.
Then, out of nowhere, the Raikage himself arrived at the village gates, sending word to avoid misunderstandings and leaks.
"The Raikage is here?!"
When she received the news, Tsunade thought the ANBU was joking.
She had been waiting for Kumo's official response—only for the Raikage to show up in person.
This… speaks volumes about Kumo's sincerity...
...or desperation