A few days passed by in a blur of preparation. Ron meticulously packed his basic survival gear, checked his supply of explosive tags, and secured his weapons. He left the Uchiha clan grounds alone under the pale light of dawn. On that morning, a small group of clansmen actually gathered at the gates to see him off. They looked at him with a mix of confusion and respect.
This treatment was already much better than what Madara would receive in the future. Ron comforted himself with that thought as he adjusted the strap of his bag. In the deep pockets of his robes, he carried the travel funds that Madara had given him. It was a staggering total of ten million ryo in cold cash.
To be fair, Madara was not stingy at all. His generosity was quite impressive for a clan leader facing the end of a long war. According to the future mission rankings of the hidden villages, only the most difficult S rank missions would offer commissions in the millions. Such tasks usually required a team of elite Jonin and carried a high risk of death. Ten million ryo was equivalent to completing ten such suicide missions. For Ron, this was a massive fortune that made him feel like a wealthy man overnight.
However, he knew that in the grand scheme of things, it was still far from enough. To build a proper hidden village from the ground up, the required capital would surely be measured in the billions. Infrastructure, specialized training facilities, and a steady supply of ninja tools required a mountain of gold. If he followed the traditional path of taking mercenary missions to gather funds, Ron would work himself to death before he ever reached his goal.
Ron realized he could learn from the history of the future. In the world of shinobi, every major hidden village had a powerful backer providing massive funds. The Land of Fire supported Konoha. The Land of Wind supported the Sand Village. The Land of Earth supported the Stone Village. Of course, no gift from fate is ever free. The lords of these nations provided gold in exchange for the absolute loyalty and protection of the shinobi clans.
The lords needed the power of the ninjas to maintain their grip on society. The nobles of this world were often cruel and lived in luxury while the commoners struggled to survive. The starving people would not always wait quietly for death. Uprisings and riots against the ruling class were a common occurrence. In such cases, the ninjas were always the ones used by the lords to suppress the people and keep the status quo.
Ron decided to follow the example of the future Konoha. He sat down by a small stream and opened the detailed map he carried with him. To find a backer, he had to find the biggest one possible. He immediately ignored the small, weak nations that would only be a burden.
He passed on the Land of Wind because it was a harsh place of endless sand and poverty. That land was barely fit for human survival and Ron had no desire to build a village in a desert where every breath tasted like dust. The Land of Water was too far away across the sea and isolated from the mainland. If he built a village there, he would be a permanent outsider to the politics of the continent.
The Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning were decent choices with strong militaries, but the Land of Fire was the undisputed prize. It occupied the perfect location in the center of the world. It possessed the most fertile land and a massive population that could provide endless human resources.
If Ron could win the support of the Fire Lord, it would be the perfect start for his village. As for the future Konoha, Ron wondered if the vast Land of Fire could not simply hold two hidden villages. To say it could only support one would be an insult to the massive wealth of the Fire Daimyo.
Hashirama was a famous nice guy who could be easily pressured by the needs of others. However, Ron knew he had to be careful with the calculating mind of Tobirama. Ron shook his head as he realized his thoughts were moving too far into the future. First, he had to convince the Fire Lord to become his primary investor. This was the first major obstacle in his path to power.
Regarding how to convince the lord, Ron already had a clear strategy in mind. He would focus everything on one central idea: the Hashirama Senju Threat Theory.
What do rulers fear the most? The answer is simple. They fear a power so great that it threatens their own position. The world created by the shinobi was inherently broken. The ninjas possessed all the martial power, yet they never held the highest political authority. Instead, they were treated as hired tools. Clans fought each other for small missions while the lords stayed safe behind their political walls. This order had lasted for a thousand years.
But now, the order was being shattered. The power of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha was too great. Either one of them could flatten the entire world on his own. In the past thousand years, there had been many strong ninjas, but never anyone like these two. They were the most powerful versions of their bloodlines to ever exist. Their strength was nearly equal to that of the ancient legends.
Under normal circumstances, these two would fight each other until the day they died. They would be too busy with their own war to care about the politics of the lords. But now, these two chose to stop fighting. They chose to join hands and build a village together.
When this happens, how can a lord sleep peacefully at night? Two of the strongest men in history are uniting to bring their version of peace to the world. The lords will feel a cold shiver down their spines. Even if Hashirama is a simple and kind man who does not want to rebel, the problem is not what he wants to do. The problem is what he is capable of doing.
In history, many loyal men were killed by their rulers simply because they became too powerful to control. In this world, the lords have no defense against a unified Uchiha and Senju force. If Hashirama decided to change the ruling order, no one could stop him.
"I am sorry for targeting an honest man like you, Hashirama," Ron whispered as he looked at the horizon. "But I really want to move forward in this world, and your shadow is simply too large."
Ron pulled out a brush and began to write down the details of the Hashirama Senju Threat Theory on a scroll. He would present himself as the necessary counterweight to the power of the Senju.
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