The money hadn't been wasted for nothing.
A smile appeared on Uchiha Ren's face. In his view, it was only a matter of time before the Uzumaki Clan officially joined Konoha.
After all, Konoha's explosive development was obvious to anyone with eyes. Give it a few more years, and the village would completely leave the rest of the ninja world behind.
Even now, shinobi from smaller villages who visited Konoha for the first time experienced a massive cultural shock. Their hearts filled with envy and awe.
This…
This was the true paradise of the ninja world.
The land blessed by the Sage of Six Paths himself.
Why hadn't they been born in Konoha?
So long as the Uzumaki Clan wasn't stupid, they would naturally move closer to Konoha, integrate themselves into Konoha, and eventually merge into Konoha through a democratic vote.
It was just happening slightly faster than Uchiha Ren had originally expected.
Still—
Good news was good news.
"Konoha welcomes the Uzumaki Clan at any time."
Unlike Uzumaki Ashina, who kept speaking in vague formalities, Uchiha Ren chose the direct approach.
When it was time for a straight ball—
You threw it boldly.
"Since the Hokage himself has extended the invitation, how could the Uzumaki Clan possibly refuse?"
Uzumaki Ashina immediately accepted.
From this day onward, the Uzumaki Clan could proudly call themselves shinobi of Konoha.
That very afternoon, Uchiha Ren convened an emergency high-level meeting.
Inside the conference room, the senior officials looked tense.
At a time like this, suddenly calling an emergency meeting…
Could it be war?
"The Uzumaki Clan has decided to join Konoha and become part of the village."
Seated at the head of the table, Uchiha Ren briefly explained the reason for the meeting.
Uzushiogakure was an independent ninja village.
For an independent village to merge into Konoha, the proposal had to pass through a high-level vote. It was a necessary procedure.
Although Uchiha Ren ruled Konoha with overwhelming authority, he still valued procedural justice greatly.
The proper process had to be followed.
The sudden announcement immediately stirred discussion throughout the room.
The Uzumaki Clan was a bloodline clan that possessed the most advanced sealing techniques in the ninja world.
Their inclusion would dramatically strengthen Konoha's foundation.
Of course—
That also meant another powerful bloodline clan would now sit at Konoha's table and share the massive cake called Konoha.
Naturally, some clans felt pressure.
Still, no matter how they looked at it, the advantages far outweighed the disadvantages in the long run.
Everyone understood that today's meeting was little more than a formality.
After all—
The Hokage himself, the leader of the Uchiha Clan, had already raised his hand in approval.
Who would dare openly oppose the Hokage's will?
And so, the resolution for the Uzumaki Clan's merger into Konoha passed unanimously.
Completely democratic.
Completely fair.
Completely just.
Without the slightest trace of coercion.
Uzumaki Ashina watched the entire process with a broad grin.
Soon after, the meeting shifted toward discussing the Uzumaki Clan's settlement arrangements and future profit distribution.
"These are the village's industries and financial ledgers from recent years. Nearly all of Konoha's clans hold shares."
"Since the Uzumaki Clan is boarding midway, you'll need to buy into the system. Konoha will issue additional shares."
After reviewing the books, Uzumaki Ashina was stunned.
He knew Konoha was rich.
But he hadn't realized it was this rich.
The mere billions of ryo Konoha had allocated to the Uzumaki Clan this year could only be described as scraps from the table.
Joining Konoha truly had been the correct choice.
But soon—
Ashina began feeling waves of hostility directed toward him.
Profit disputes had always been like this.
Even if the Uzumaki Clan's relationship with Konoha was extraordinary, outsiders were still outsiders.
The existing balance inside Konoha had just been disrupted by a newcomer.
You wanted to steal food from other people's bowls?
Then come and take it.
The meeting room quickly transformed into a different kind of battlefield.
Taking everyone's shares was not going to be easy.
At first, everyone still tried to maintain basic decorum.
Then things devolved into a war of words.
They argued fiercely over fractions of percentage points.
And since Konoha had always valued martial spirit—
When negotiation failed…
They followed tradition.
A boxing match.
The medical-nin were already standing by.
"You brat! That move wasn't honorable!"
"I'm an old man! And you're still attacking below the belt?!"
"Lord Ashina, forgive me! I'm fighting for my clan! Ahhh—! Why are you two just standing there?! Jump him together! The Uzumaki are monsters with absurd vitality! Even old, Lord Ashina can't be beaten one-on-one!"
This was a pure taijutsu match.
The Uzumaki Clan's sealing techniques were completely banned.
And Ashina himself was a legendary veteran of the ninja world.
Combined with the Uzumaki Clan's monstrous vitality, he was no joke.
The younger generation of Konoha's smaller clans showed him no mercy.
They rushed him together.
If they won, it was a huge profit.
If they lost, it wasn't embarrassing.
Uchiha Ren watched the chaotic battle with great interest.
As expected—
Youth feared experience.
But age feared reckless young men.
Ashina didn't gain much advantage.
The only other Uzumaki present, Uzumaki Mito, didn't join immediately.
If her Ashina-nii could hold on alone, she wouldn't interfere.
These youngsters were hot-blooded and ruthless, especially when medical-nin were present to keep everyone alive.
The rules for the boxing matches had personally been established by Uchiha Ren.
Once you stepped into the ring, status no longer mattered.
No retaliation afterward.
Anyone who violated the rules would be despised by the entire high-level leadership and heavily punished.
Even Uchiha Tomita had once been beaten black and blue.
Mito seriously suspected Uchiha Ren had created these rules on purpose.
After all—
He had never personally entered the ring.
Naturally, he could say whatever he wanted without suffering.
After several rounds of chaos, Ashina's face had swollen into something utterly ridiculous.
He looked like a pig-headed caricature.
The medical-nin had already revived him once after he passed out.
Ashina had taken a full Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms from Hyuga Takuma.
As for why it wasn't Sixty-Four Palms—
Because Ashina had already fainted before Takuma could finish the combo.
Only an Uzumaki could survive this kind of group beating.
"Cough… cough…"
"Ashina-nii… are you still going?"
Mito couldn't bear watching anymore.
"The Uzumaki Clan already secured an excellent share allocation."
"Konoha has countless opportunities to make money. The Technology Department is releasing another new product in a few days. There's no need to rush."
Especially the power plant shares.
Those clans refused to give up even a tiny portion regardless of how much money was offered.
But Ashina had stubbornly forced his way in using pure endurance.
Then victory went to his head, and he kept pushing for more matches.
In the end, Hyuga Takuma personally stepped in and shut him down with a single Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms combo.
Normally, Takuma rarely fought personally.
The Hyuga Clan truly was born for this kind of boxing match.
If Uchiha Ren hadn't forbidden it, Takuma would've already started taking paid substitute-fighter jobs.
Three-seven profit split.
"No more…"
"If this continues, I'll actually die…"
After saying that, Uzumaki Ashina collapsed flat onto the ground.
He had reached his limit.
Still—
A blissful smile remained on his face.
Although he had been beaten into a pig's head, the results were worth it.
From now on, the Uzumaki Clan could lie on Konoha's financial ledgers and enjoy endless dividends.
Soon, news of the Uzumaki Clan officially merging into Konoha spread across the ninja world.
But it didn't cause much commotion.
The Four Great Ninja Villages were already used to it.
In outsiders' eyes, the Uzumaki Clan and Konoha had never been much different.
They had always worn the same pair of pants.
The ninja world's attention remained focused on Amegakure.
Just last night, Sunagakure clashed with the Rain Village.
Using the cover of darkness, the Sand shinobi attempted a surprise attack.
But the Rain shinobi were already accustomed to fighting in rainstorms and constantly guarded against ambushes.
Additionally, Sunagakure's techniques were heavily weakened in rainy weather, while the Rain shinobi's techniques became significantly stronger.
The initial assault achieved little and was eventually repelled by Rain reinforcements.
Television broadcasts continuously updated the latest developments from the Rain Village.
Public opinion continued fermenting.
A small number of rogue shinobi chose to support Amegakure.
But the overwhelming majority sided with the Four Great Ninja Villages.
After all—
Ideals were ideals.
Reality was reality.
There were very few fools willing to die for heroism.
Meanwhile, the daimyō had practically gone insane.
Bounties targeting Rain shinobi flooded the underground exchange.
Hanzo of the Salamander now occupied the top spot on the bounty rankings.
Even Hatake Sakumo temporarily had to concede defeat.
Bounty hunters across the ninja world surged toward Amegakure, hunting isolated Rain shinobi.
Some even killed innocent people and falsely claimed credit.
Obtaining a Rain uniform and badge wasn't difficult.
Recently, the exchange's verification process has become extremely lax.
What interested Uchiha Ren most, however, was ordinary public opinion.
Hanzo's rhetoric might win over shinobi—
But to civilians, it was complete garbage.
The daimyō and nobles might be trash…
But they were still fulfilling their duties, allowing ordinary people to barely survive in this miserable world.
Shinobi, meanwhile, were professional killers.
Now these killers had become dissatisfied and wanted to overthrow the current order.
Could people who only knew how to kill truly govern a nation better?
The nobles weren't good people.
But were shinobi good people either?
Shinobi despised civilians.
And civilians feared shinobi just as much.
Some even wanted them exterminated entirely.
The daimyō's political foundation remained astonishingly stable.
The ideology of ruler and subject, father and son—
The common people genuinely believed in it.
Rain Village's public opinion among civilians was almost a total defeat.
Even inside the Land of Rain itself, countless remnants of the old nobility sought revenge against the Rain shinobi.
And they weren't merely talking.
They acted.
Some modified three-wheeled vehicles, loaded them with explosives, and rammed them directly into Rain strongholds.
At first, the Rain shinobi suffered significant losses.
Later, they responded with bloody suppression.
Many civilians were dragged into the violence.
As for shinobi attitudes toward ordinary people—
That was difficult to evaluate.
Especially Rain shinobi who had already been mentally pushed to the edge.
Their philosophy quickly became:
Kill one as a warning to a hundred.
Better to kill the wrong person than let one escape.
Anyone suspicious was executed.
This was normal shinobi behavior.
Even Konoha's shinobi weren't exceptions.
Under the daimyō's manipulation, the conflict between shinobi and civilians intensified rapidly.
When it came to controlling narratives and redirecting hatred—
The Rain Village looked like complete amateurs.
They didn't even realize the severity of the issue.
Meanwhile—
Grenade production had already been pushed to maximum capacity.
The daimyō had begun preparing civilian armies.
Cannon fodder.
And once the Rain Village was destroyed, every crime could conveniently be blamed on Amegakure.
Or even on the ninja world itself.
"Internal chaos and external enemies…"
Uchiha Ren frowned after finishing the intelligence report.
The Rain Village's situation was even worse than he had imagined.
Hanzo had acted too quickly.
Hopefully—
He could hold out a little longer.
Land of Lightning.
"Hatake Sakumo, we're heading back to Konoha."
"Don't call me by my real name!"
"Don't call me by my real name!"
"I'm Ponzi now!"
The white-haired man nearly exploded.
"Relax, White Fang. Nobody's around."
"Bullshit! The Cloud will come after me, not you! What if someone overhears us?!"
"I don't even want to imagine how high my bounty's become!"
"Could it really be higher than Hanzo's?"
Kakuzu casually pulled out a bounty poster.
Hanzo's enormous face occupied the center.
Beneath it—
An absurd string of zeroes.
Hatake Sakumo's eyes widened.
Even his own head wasn't worth that much.
"What an outrageous bounty…"
"The daimyō are really willing to spend."
Greed filled Kakuzu's eyes as he stared obsessively at the number.
If he completed this job—
He wouldn't need to work another hundred years.
Assuming he even lived that long.
"Enough staring, you money-grubbing monster."
"What's a money-grubbing monster?"
"A miser who only takes and never gives."
"Thank you for the compliment."
Hatake Sakumo looked at Kakuzu with complete disgust before continuing to pack.
Dozens of gigantic sealing scrolls needed transporting.
Inside them—
Cash.
Gold.
Jewelry.
Antiques.
Every kind of valuable item imaginable.
All donated by the "investors."
"Kakuzu, did you notify the cleanup teams?"
"Relax. Everything's prepared."
"The Hokage instructed us clearly."
"All scapegoats are Iwagakure shinobi, with a few from Sunagakure mixed in."
"If they get caught, that's just bad luck."
"Good."
Hatake Sakumo nodded.
Dead comrades were better than dead friends.
That was the cruelty of the adult world.
After confirming nothing had been left behind, the two finally departed the base without looking back.
Kakuzu still clutched Hanzo's bounty poster lovingly before carefully folding it and storing it in his pocket.
Then he followed after Sakumo.
Within just two days, the core members of the Ponzi scheme used a "company summary meeting" as an excuse to temporarily shut down branch stores across every city.
At first, the investors noticed nothing unusual.
After all—
Blue Sky Project Corporation had always held meetings frequently over the past year.
Usually, they reopened within a day.
But soon…
The investors realized something was very, very wrong.
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