Although Yokokawa Yoshihiro wanted nothing more than to tear up Seiryu's invitation, reason told him he had no choice but to attend the banquet.
After the Land of Fire moved its capital to Konoha, anyone with a sharp eye could see the enormous business opportunities, let alone a seasoned shark like Yokokawa. So, he invested nearly all his liquid assets into setting up his business in Konoha. When his assets were frozen there, it impacted his other businesses in other countries as well. In just a week, Yokokawa's company faced a severe cash flow crisis.
It wasn't that Yokokawa lacked a sense of crisis; he just had never personally experienced Seiryu's methods. With his wealth and status, even the daimyo of the Five Great Nations would treat him with courtesy, and smaller countries' rulers often had to defer to his whims. He'd never met anyone like Seiryu, who turned hostile at a moment's notice.
Though Yokokawa was extremely frustrated, his top priority now was survival.
That evening, Yokokawa brought a gift and arrived at the banquet venue—a high-end restaurant recently opened by Gato.
When Yokokawa arrived, Gato was standing at the entrance, greeting guests with an air of self-satisfaction. Seeing Gato's smug look, Yokokawa nearly ground his teeth to dust. It was this bastard who took the lead in slicing up his business as soon as the police sealed it, causing him to lose nearly 20% of his assets in less than a week.
Now, even though it was Seiryu's banquet, Gato was playing host at the door, not even bothering to hide his intentions.
"President Yokokawa, how have you been?" Gato noticed Yokokawa and walked up with a smile to greet him.
"Hmph." Yokokawa snorted coldly, ignored Gato, placed his gift on the table by the door, and walked straight into the banquet hall.
Gato's smile twitched. "Barbarians from the Land of Lightning really have no manners."
Inside, Yokokawa discovered that nearly everyone present had also been at that recent merchant gathering. After exchanging a few words, he found that he was not alone—any merchant who hadn't paid that seventy percent tax had seen their assets targeted by the police.
However, a few, led by Gato, who had submitted investment plans for the Land of Fire, were thriving in Konoha. With police protection, they were gobbling up the assets of the opposition.
Yokokawa wanted to vent to some old friends, but just then, Seiryu entered, wearing the Fifth Hokage's ceremonial robe and hat, surrounded by a team of ninjas. He swaggered to the main seat and sat down.
The others fell silent.
Seiryu took off his Hokage hat, set it on the table, glanced around, and then said, "Is everyone here? Take your seats."
Once everyone was seated, Gato, who was sitting near Seiryu, clapped his hands. A team of servers wheeled in the food and drinks.
Seiryu picked up his wine glass and swirled the dark red liquid. He didn't speak, so no one else dared to either.
After a few moments, Seiryu finally spoke: "You are all business magnates of the ninja world. For you to gather here in Konoha is our honor."
"Grand Minister, you flatter us. It is our honor to be invited by you," Gato quickly chimed in, his sycophancy making Yokokawa and others frown.
"No need for that," Seiryu waved his hand, then looked around the table.
"In business, I may not match you all," Seiryu said, swirling his glass. "But as Hokage and Grand Minister, I've learned one thing: my power is unlimited."
At those words, an uneasy silence filled the banquet hall.
"For example, if I reach out to help a business, it will survive," Seiryu said, glancing at Yokokawa and the others who had resisted his tax plan. After draining his glass, he continued, "But if I want to wipe out a business, that's not hard either. That's the magnitude of my power. Isn't that right, President Yokokawa?"
Yokokawa's mouth twitched, but knowing his fate rested in Seiryu's hands, he could only force a smile and say, "Grand Minister, you're absolutely right."
Seiryu smiled, shaking his empty glass without a word.
Yokokawa, seeing this, respectfully rose to refill Seiryu's glass.
But Seiryu waved him off. "I have more official business tonight, so I won't drink. Gato."
"Yes?" Gato sidled over with a fawning grin. "How may I serve you, Grand Minister?"
"Have this drink with President Yokokawa for me," Seiryu said.
Gato smirked at Yokokawa and raised his glass.
Yokokawa almost bit through his lip. Before he came to the Land of Fire, he'd always thought of Gato as a mongrel whose fortune he could destroy on a whim. Now, he had to pour Gato's drink and down his own in one go.
Only then did Seiryu finally smile, casting a meaningful look at Yokokawa and the other unruly merchants. "I may not know much about business, but I do know this: only when the country is stable can businesses prosper. So, I believe enterprises have an obligation to give back to the nation. Don't you agree?"
"Grand Minister, that's profound!" Gato put down his glass and applauded.
"Yes, without national development, where would any of us be?" echoed several other merchants who had profited from the crackdown on the opposition.
"Do you really believe that?" Seiryu raised an eyebrow.
"Of course, it's straight from the heart!" Gato declared.
"Good. Since you benefit from the nation's prosperity, shouldn't you do something in return?" Seiryu's gaze was sharp as an arrow, pinning Yokokawa and the others. In mere seconds, cold sweat drenched their backs.
"If anyone thinks they can profit without giving back, then it's my failure as Grand Minister to allow it, don't you think?" Seiryu's killing intent swept the room, and even ninjas would have struggled to endure it—how much more so these pampered businessmen?
"Grand Minister, it was all a misunderstanding! Our Yokokawa Group is already preparing to set up factories in the Land of Fire. The plan will be on your desk soon!" Yokokawa immediately dropped to his knees, sweating profusely.
The others followed suit. In an instant, the hall was filled with kneeling men.
"That's best," Seiryu said coldly. "Don't test my patience. There may be few wealthy people in the world, but there's no shortage of people looking to make money. Understood?"
"Understood! Understood!" everyone echoed desperately.
...
After dealing with the unruly merchants, Seiryu returned to his office. Once he'd finished his paperwork, he took up his sword and headed alone to the Naka Shrine.
Seiryu deliberately slowed his pace, knowing that White Zetsu would be watching, so he needed to give Black Zetsu time to get to the shrine.
When Black Zetsu got news that Seiryu was heading there, he panicked and hurried to prepare.
Soon, Seiryu entered the shrine's underground chamber.
The Uchiha clan's ancestral stone tablet shimmered, and a mass of black material took human form.
"You've come, descendant," Black Zetsu intoned. "It seems you've completed your eye's evolution."
"Sorry to keep you waiting, ancestor." Seiryu opened his Mangekyo Sharingan, now evolved to the Eternal level. Perhaps because he'd used a special method, the pattern hadn't changed, but the human Sage Chakra interwoven in his eyes naturally brought him into Sage Mode.
The special eye markings appeared at his sockets, the red in his eyes now tinged with gold.
Seiryu's aura stunned Black Zetsu—he was now on par with Nagato, who wielded Madara's Rinnegan.
"What's wrong, ancestor? Surprised I succeeded?" Seiryu narrowed his eyes at Black Zetsu.
"Not at all, just feeling sentimental. In thousands of years, you're only the second to evolve the Sharingan to the Eternal level on your own," Black Zetsu replied, quickly regaining composure.
"Now that you've reached this level, you're qualified to see the true path to peace." Black Zetsu stepped aside, revealing the Uchiha clan's stone tablet. "Use your ocular power to read it."
As Seiryu gazed at the tablet, the writing shifted from describing the evolution of the Sharingan to the Moon's Eye Plan and Infinite Tsukuyomi.
"The Moon's Eye Plan? Interesting," Seiryu said with a wry smile.
"This is the path to peace pursued by our clan's greatest geniuses!" Black Zetsu declared.
"Even Lord Madara?" Seiryu asked.
"Of course. He came closest to success," Black Zetsu replied.
"Using Infinite Tsukuyomi to create a new world? Sounds plausible. The ninja world is full of hate; why patch it up when you can shatter and rebuild it? Our clan has such power!" Seiryu laughed, sending shivers down Black Zetsu's spine.
'As expected, all Indra's descendants are lunatics!'
"So what should I do?" Seiryu abruptly turned to Black Zetsu.
"Madara once summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. Now, you must gather the nine tailed beasts and channel their chakra into it," Black Zetsu explained. "That will allow you to trigger Infinite Tsukuyomi."
"Nine tailed beasts, huh? That's tricky. Aside from the Seven Tails and the Nine Tails we control, the rest are in the other Great Nations," Seiryu mused.
"Did Madara leave any backup plans?" Seiryu asked.
Black Zetsu hesitated, then said, "Yes. Madara left some tricks in the Land of Water and the Land of Earth. He imprinted his power on the Three Tails, allowing him to influence its jinchuriki."
"The Three Tails' jinchuriki?" Seiryu's eyes narrowed. "Isn't that the Fourth Mizukage?"
"Yes," Black Zetsu confirmed. "I can teach you how to control that imprint."
"Please, ancestor," Seiryu replied with a smile.
...
Now, the Land of Fire was developing as Seiryu had envisioned. In a few years, when its transformation was complete, he'd be able to challenge the entire ninja world.
What he needed now was time.
To buy time, it was best to plunge his enemies into chaos—which was why he was acting for Black Zetsu.