"One Piece? Manga?"
Shamon, who had been researching and refining his Magnet Release techniques, was genuinely taken aback.
"Yes, Teacher. The books they brought aren't actually useful knowledge—they're just for entertainment."
Sankai looked deeply troubled.
Knowledge can grant strength, but this kind of leisurely reading only erodes one's fighting will.
Shamon flipped through the pages and began reading.
After a few seconds, Sankai nervously asked, "Teacher, what do you think?"
"Not bad. The story is pretty interesting."
Shamon answered calmly.
"That's it? Don't you think it's another form of poison!"
Sankai argued.
The Second Kazekage glanced at him, then put down the manga and the scroll in his hand, sitting on a chair as he said, "Sankai, it's fine. The war is over."
Hearing his teacher say this, Sankai stood frozen for a moment before his voice rose with agitation, "But our Sunagakure Village still isn't at the point where we can afford to relax, are we?"
"Sankai, you must understand, policies suitable for wartime may not work during peacetime."
Shamon shook his head, his face growing serious. "If simply developing military readiness and power was enough, what would be the point of spending so many resources hosting the Chunin Exams?"
Sankai opened his mouth, but ultimately held his tongue. Instead, he reluctantly muttered, "Then are we just going to let them spread like this?"
"Of course not."
Shamon stood up and walked outside.
He had already decided—earlier, he had simply been displeased with Sankai's response.
Since the First Generation, Sankai had been cultivated as Shamon's successor.
Yet even until now, he still hadn't become the perfect Kazekage successor.
"Akaba, they're here."
Sakuma Shanyuan sensed the presence and immediately nudged Akaba urgently.
"It's fine. Even if banned, we don't lose much."
Akaba shrugged nonchalantly.
Even if banned, they were only losing a few manga books. Moreover, Akaba had already earned nearly a hundred Points—fair compensation for their efforts.
"Is that so?"
Sakuma Shanyuan didn't understand, but he didn't ask further to avoid the Kage overhearing anything.
Less than half a minute later, Shamon arrived.
As soon as he appeared, the overwhelming aura caused everyone to immediately stop their work—including the children outside.
"Greetings, Kazekage-sama."
Sakuma Shanyuan bowed respectfully. Naturally, Akaba did the same with proper courtesy.
"There's no need to be so formal. I heard from Sankai about the misunderstanding regarding your books. Therefore, I sincerely apologize."
Shamon gave a slight bow—completely without the arrogance a Kage might carry.
Afterward, Sankai couldn't help but feel confused.
Why go this far?
"I assume Sankai-san has already told you—we weren't carrying the kinds of informative books you might expect, just some manga."
Holding up one of the manga volumes, Akaba explained.
"Of course, I already know."
Shamon nodded, casually dragged over a chair, and sat down with a friendly look. But with his rough features, he couldn't quite pull off the gentle aura that came so naturally to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Then you certainly understand our intentions by now."
Smiling slightly, Akaba judged from Shamon's expression and actions that he had no intention of banning them.
That alone was enough reassurance.
"I've read some of it. It's good for casual reading in your spare time. However, there aren't that many people in Sunagakure Village, so I suppose we won't need a large sales team."
"You mean your people will come to our store?"
Akaba understood his meaning.
"You're already selling this *One Piece* manga in the Land of River. We can just buy it there."
Shamon narrowed his eyes slightly, as if hinting at something.
"This saves us quite a bit of expense, but the manga you purchase must remain exclusively within Sunagakure Village."
Akaba replied with comprehension.
As expected, King Sand came from Sunagakure.
Shamon had certainly received information and gathered substantial intelligence, suspecting that King Sand was likely killed by someone from Konoha.
But there must be no evidence; otherwise, he would have used it already to gain more benefits.
Now Sunagakure doesn't care about the matter of King Sand, and Akaba doesn't mind how many copies Shamon buys or whether he prints extra copies afterward.
Both sides turned a blind eye, and everything worked out smoothly!
"Nice doing business with you."
Shamon nodded and got up to leave.
Sankai hesitated momentarily before following him.
All the way to the Kazekage's office building, he couldn't help asking, "Teacher, what do we do next?"
"What do you think?"
Shamon opened the door himself and casually asked in return.
Sankai began thinking.
As the Kazekage's successor, he was quite qualified—except for being somewhat radical in his thinking.
The plan was already in motion, forcing him to shift his thinking accordingly.
After pondering briefly, he said, "Use the sea-themed storylines in the manga to inspire the people's fighting spirit."
"What else?"
"Distribute the manga as rewards; only winners shall receive them."
Sankai continued.
As he spoke, his eyes grew brighter.
"Anything else?"
"Oh right! We could also print additional copies and sell them cheaply to other parts of the Land of Wind!"
When Shamon heard the third suggestion, he froze momentarily, looking at Sankai with an odd expression.
Sankai felt uneasy, paused thoughtfully, and then realized his own foolishness—the Land of Wind was so poor, ordinary people wouldn't even consider buying such things.
"What you said makes sense, but those ideas alone aren't sufficient."
Shamon remarked, "I'll put some of the manga on the first floor, freely available for villagers to read."
"But then what reason would others have to strive?"
Sankai didn't fully understand.
"If there is Volume One, there will surely be Volume Two. I'll place Volume One inside the building while using Volume Two as a reward. And so on."
Shamon explained calmly.
"I see! Why didn't I think of that earlier?"
Sankai murmured to himself.
Compared to Shamon, he truly felt inferior.
"Go draft a plan."
Shamon waved his hand, dismissing Sankai to avoid disrupting his further study of Ninjutsu.
"The Kazekage sure has vision. Perhaps my style will finally flourish here in the Land of Wind!"
Jiraiya exclaimed with hopeful excitement.
"Why are you so happy? Do you currently have any manga sold in the Land of River?"
Shinku Yuhi ruthlessly burst his bubble.
"Eh?"
Jiraiya looked surprised, but quickly came to his senses—it actually was exactly as she'd said.
Shinku Yuhi ignored him.
She looked at the drawing in her hand, paused thoughtfully, and tore off the distasteful page. He understood.
Akaba had only summoned them for appearances. There was nothing truly important he needed their help with.
Now that the deal was finalized, he no longer needed to keep drawing these insincere illustrations.
As for Jiraiya...
He's just an idiot anyway. Not worth worrying about!
Shinku Yuhi leaned on his chin in thought. He decided to shift gears and finally draw what he truly wanted to create.
"Hey Akaba, can I print some copies and sell them in the Land of Wind?"
Jiraiya whispered while leaning in closer.
After a moment's thought, Akaba carefully replied, "Once you can impress The Third with your manga, then you can go find your own co-publisher."
"My teacher?"
Scratching his head, Jiraiya still failed to grasp the essence of those words.
Sakuma Shanyuan also didn't understand — showing this kind of manga to The Third was like asking a long-lived immortal to hang himself!
"After all, isn't successfully captivating the hardest-to-please person proof that the manga has succeeded?"
Smiling, Akaba fed Jiraiya a spoonful of empty inspiration.
"That actually makes sense!"
Jiraiya nodded, once again filled with fiery determination in his eyes.
For my teacher! For art!
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