Monday, Hokage's Office.
Tsunade studied the packet Kitazawa handed her, shock and deep thought flickering across her face.
The packet laid out the reforms Gato Shipping would undertake and the role it could play in the future.
Kitazawa had given her a quick rundown last night, but it was too brief. Seeing it laid out like this made the significance and importance hit home.
To her, this was a way to change how ninja operate.
Traditional shinobi wouldn't go do something like this.
But what if it made a ton of money?
Then the great villages wouldn't keep playing by the old rules. No one ever complains about making too much money.
Besides, the stipends from the great nations are often inadequate. The Land of Wind, for example, is notoriously stingy, leaving Sunagakure strapped for cash—Fourth Kazekage Rasa literally turned himself into a gold miner.
The Land of Fire is comparatively generous right now.
But if war breaks out, it still won't be enough.
Kitazawa also knew that after Uzumaki Naruto became Hokage, the Fire Daimyō, Ikkyū Madoka, even approached him about cutting Konoha's funding.
In short, better to be prepared.
If Gato's shipping company really could do everything Kitazawa claimed, then Konoha could gradually shake off its dependence on the Land of Fire.
"How did you come up with all this?" Tsunade lifted her eyes to Kitazawa, unable to help asking.
"I did on-the-ground research," Kitazawa replied. "These are improvements based on what I found."
"You really don't act like a ninja." Tsunade chuckled.
"Ninja or not, I'm a Konoha man," Kitazawa said, straight-faced.
"That I don't doubt." Tsunade set the packet down. "Keep this as quiet as possible. If it leaks, the other villages won't sit still."
"As long as we don't let them realize we're making money, we're fine." Kitazawa smiled.
No one understood the power of trend-chasing better than he did. In his previous life, once something got hot, copycats flooded in until the market was saturated.
In today's shinobi world, villages rely on national stipends; the nations themselves are still feudal—there's a lot they simply don't have.
To Kitazawa, that's white space everywhere—first-mover territory.
And ninja are bound by traditional thinking. Unless they personally see him raking in cash, they won't follow suit. By the time they do, he'll have locked up most of the market.
"You know this better than I do. I trust you," Tsunade coughed lightly, then asked, "So how are we splitting the profits from this shipping company?"
Right now, Kitazawa looked like a walking bankroll in her eyes.
"Same as the Sea Exploration Team," Kitazawa said with a grin. "You get ten percent."
For the Sea Exploration Team, Konoha took fifty percent, Tsunade ten, the Aburame clan ten, and he took thirty. But Gato's shipping business obviously wouldn't cut in the Aburame. Aside from Konoha's usual share, he and Tsunade would divide the rest.
"Excellent." Tsunade nodded, very satisfied.
Kitazawa knew the ropes. She liked that.
"But I'll be the one holding your ten percent for safekeeping," Kitazawa added promptly.
"You'll regret saying that!" Tsunade's smile froze; she barked in anger.
If Kitazawa weren't so generous with money, she'd have flattened him with a punch and stepped on him for good measure.
Kitazawa's expression turned wry.
Isn't that my line?
"The Sea Exploration Team has already found a vein," Kitazawa said, getting back to business. "I want to send an Earth Release squad to the site to build access tunnels on the seabed."
Technically, he was the most suited for the job himself. With Magnet Release, he could learn from Rasa and become a gold miner.
But the same issue remained—he couldn't station himself on an island long-term. At best he could help occasionally.
"Konoha doesn't have many Earth Release ninja, but we do have some. Whoever's free, I'll send them," Tsunade said generously.
After all, this was tied directly to her money-making plan.
And the ten percent Kitazawa was giving her didn't have to be turned over to Konoha—it would be her private stash.
"Good."
The first person Kitazawa thought of was Hatake Kakashi. But Kakashi had classes and missions with his students. No time, and he probably wouldn't want to go.
As for the remaining Earth users, Kitazawa didn't have strong impressions.
No matter—just call them all up. Get those seabed tunnels open ASAP to make mining easier.
"I've got a jutsu for you." Tsunade suddenly remembered something and produced a scroll.
Kitazawa glanced at it and raised an eyebrow.
It was the S-rank medical ninjutsu usable only after releasing the Yin Seal: Ninja Art Creation Rebirth — Strength of a Hundred Technique.
"Your Yin Seal training is almost finished," Tsunade said by way of explanation. "Go over this for the next two days, then I'll teach you."
Kitazawa nodded.
He'd obtained the Yin Seal through the system. After putting on the act for so long, he could finally stop pretending. The only pity was that he had to learn the Strength of a Hundred himself.
He still preferred when the system just maxed things out—saves time and effort.
In theory, there should be a system task that rewards Creation Rebirth—Strength of a Hundred.
But Kitazawa wasn't going to wait around or gamble on it.
He had the scroll in hand—time to learn.
Fortunately, for Kitazawa, it wasn't that hard.
Once he completed the system task of getting five medical ninja to learn Limb Regeneration, he'd gain mastery-level Yang Release nature transformation.
Then Yang-based ninjutsu would come quickly.
So far, Tsunade and Sarutobi Hiruzen had already learned Limb Regeneration; Yakushi Nonō and Yakushi Kabuto were almost there; Shizune was a little slower.
With business settled, Kitazawa left the Hokage's office and headed for the Anbu office.
"Kitazawa-sama."
The Anbu on duty stood and bowed at once.
"Summon all Earth Release jōnin and chūnin in the village who aren't on assignment and send them to meet the Aburame clan's Sea Exploration Team," Kitazawa ordered. "Once you've got your people, depart immediately. No need to report to me."
"Understood, Kitazawa-sama."
The Anbu vanished.
"Konan," Kitazawa called.
Konan appeared before him.
"It's about time," Kitazawa said, meeting her gaze. "Head back to Akatsuki and bring that patient to the previous spot. I'll have a shadow clone examine him and adjust the prescription."
"Thank you." Konan nodded. "I'll leave now."
"Mm."
Kitazawa didn't have anything for Konan to do these two days anyway.
After she left, he went to the Anbu training grounds to practice Five Release Great Combo Technique.
Monday was theory day, so he didn't go to the Academy.
By Tuesday, Hiruzen, Maruboshi Kosuke, and Kakashi had returned to Konoha with their students.
The moment Kitazawa reached the training field, he heard Naruto excitedly narrating what had happened during their mission.
This time they went to Sunagakure and even ran into Fourth Kazekage Rasa while he was panning for gold.
Hiruzen and Rasa traded blows, giving Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto a front-row seat to a Kage-level fight.
According to Naruto, that was the showdown he was describing.
Neither side went all out, though.
Hiruzen had to look after Sasuke and Naruto, so he only stretched his limbs a bit. Once Suna reinforcements arrived, he stopped fighting Rasa.
He did, however, specifically pick a Suna squad for Sasuke and Naruto to spar against.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
In the original timeline, Rasa was killed by Orochimaru, who then impersonated him to launch the Konoha Crush during the Chūnin Exams.
Would Rasa still die now?
Kitazawa had a hunch he'd dodge that fate. Orochimaru no longer had a reason to launch the Konoha Collapse Plan—Hiruzen had stepped down, and Itachi hadn't instantly spiral him into an obsession with the Mangekyō.
Even so, Orochimaru remained a threat.
Kitazawa was waiting for him to leave Akatsuki; then he could move to capture him.
Capture, not kill—because Tsunade was Hokage now. She probably wouldn't have the heart to execute an old teammate.
And Orochimaru was extremely talented. Killing him would be a waste; dragging him back as a laborer would maximize his value.
Plus, with Orochimaru around, Kabuto could truly grow into his talent.
All of that, of course, hinged on Orochimaru defecting from Akatsuki.
Given his personality, he was never going to stay there forever. It was only a matter of time before he bolted.
9:00 a.m.
Naruto finally wrapped up his storytelling, still reluctant to stop.
Hiruzen listened with a broad smile, as if he'd found a new hobby.
He was more and more convinced that becoming a teacher at the Academy had been the right call.
The Advanced Class began training.
As usual, Kitazawa coached his study group first, then headed to teach the medical-ninja class.
This time, he made a small adjustment.
He sent a shadow clone to teach the med-ninja, while he went to consult Hiruzen about the key points of Five Release Great Combo Technique.
"You've progressed this fast?" Hiruzen was surprised after hearing his questions.
He'd thought it would be a long while before Kitazawa could start on the technique, but Kitazawa was already in the second phase.
That meant Kitazawa had at least jōnin-level proficiency in all five elemental natures.
A jōnin typically mastered two elemental styles—that alone wasn't easy; many jōnin never go beyond two in their whole lives.
Those who mastered more than two were called elite jōnin.
As for five-style jōnin—there were fewer than ten in the entire shinobi world.
"I'm just doing my best. I'm nowhere near your level, Lord Third," Kitazawa said modestly.
"Your temperament is the complete opposite of Tsunade's," Hiruzen laughed.
If Orochimaru had had Kitazawa's personality back then, Hiruzen would have given him the Fourth Hokage's seat. But the darkness in Orochimaru's heart ran too deep.
"I'll walk you through the essentials of Five Release Great Combo Technique now," Hiruzen said seriously.
It wasn't every day someone could inherit his signature technique; he needed to bring out the real goods.
In that moment, Hiruzen even thought about passing on his mantle to Kitazawa.
After all, Kitazawa was a perfect fit.
He also still hadn't found a successor for Monkey King Enma, whom even Orochimaru had once called the strongest summoning beast.
It was another full day of study.
Kitazawa was busy—two shadow clones lecturing while his real body attended class as a student.
No question about it, Hiruzen's ninjutsu level was extremely high.
One day of lessons, and Kitazawa gained a lot.
He really was a professor of ninjutsu.
Hiruzen's only problem had been not being a particularly competent Hokage, which led to all kinds of messes in Konoha.
Amegakure, Land of Rain.
Konan glided down to the top of the tallest tower.
She folded away her white paper wings and stepped into the room.
Normally, it would be hard to get from Konoha to Amegakure in a single day.
But her secret technique, the Dance of the Shikigami, allowed her to fly—much faster.
"You're back?" came the voice of the Deva Path.
Konan looked over instinctively.
Because Nagato's legs were crippled, he used the Rinnegan to control six bodies. The Deva Path was one of them.
He was also the nominal leader of Akatsuki.
Made from Yahiko's corpse.
"Mm." Konan's voice was cool. "Half a month is up. How do you feel?"
"There has been some improvement," Deva Path said after a brief pause.
With the Rinnegan, Nagato could clearly assess the condition of his legs.
Previously his legs were basically numb. Lately, he could occasionally feel changes in temperature.
That meant some recovery.
It wasn't much, but it proved how advanced Kitazawa's medical ninjutsu was.
Back when Nagato's legs were blown apart, he had seen plenty of medical ninjas.
"Good." Konan felt a flicker of happiness, though her face remained composed out of habit.
"I'll go with you to the Land of Fire tomorrow," Deva Path said, guessing why she'd returned.
"I've got a money-making idea," Konan nodded. "Mining."
"Mining?" Deva Path's eyes flashed with surprise. He thought for a bit. "Too slow."
Mining requires ore deposits, then extraction, then refining, then selling. Each step takes time and manpower—nothing like the quick cash of underworld bounties.
In the original timeline, some ninja did mine. Take Kurosuki Raiga, for example—he took over a gold mountain in the Land of Rivers and forced villagers to dig.
"We've got time. We can do both," Konan said after a moment's thought. "Akatsuki handles bounties; Amegakure searches for mines. If we find deposits, put Kakuzu in charge—he's good with Earth Release and can speed up the process."
Deva Path stared, faintly taken aback.
How had one trip changed Konan enough that she was proposing something so… non-ninja? Earth Release mining?
"Make the arrangements," he agreed in the end.
He wasn't about to shut her down over something like this.
And while mining was slow, it was still a path to funding Akatsuki.
Konan quietly exhaled.
She then went to find Kakuzu.
To her surprise, he agreed readily—on one condition: the mining profits had to meet his expectations. If the take was too small, he wouldn't waste his chakra.
The next afternoon.
Training on the Academy field, Kitazawa felt something and walked to a secluded corner.
A second later, Konan appeared.
"How are his legs?" Kitazawa asked. He was confident in his prescription, but Nagato's condition was special—results weren't guaranteed.
"He said there's been improvement," Konan answered. "I came to ask you to go see him with me."
Kitazawa nodded.
He flashed through hand seals and created a shadow clone.
Konan said nothing more and left Konoha with the clone.
Kitazawa continued practicing Five Release Great Combo Technique.
About forty minutes later, the clone's memories returned and he understood Nagato's condition.
All in all, about what he expected.
Kitazawa went back to his office, took out brush and paper, and began drafting the second-stage prescription for Nagato's legs.
Konan knocked and stepped in.
Kitazawa didn't look up, continuing to write.
Half an hour later, he set down his brush and handed her the prescription.
"Thank you," Konan said, tucking it away.
"Now that we're into stage two, we'll need a stronger formula," Kitazawa said after a beat. "In simple terms, this round of medicine will be a lot more expensive than last time."
Konan bit her lip.
They'd barely scraped together the previous ingredients with help from the Land of Rain and Amegakure. She wasn't sure they'd find everything this time.
But no matter what, she had to.
"Start looking," Kitazawa said with a pleasant smile. "If you truly can't find them, I'll think of something."
"Alright." Konan nodded.
Watching her leave, Kitazawa couldn't help but smile.
Nagato had already gone dark; there was no talking him down without beating him first.
But Konan hadn't. He could leverage goodwill.
There was no downside to getting on her good side. If she truly owed him, then when Nagato came to attack Konoha one day, she'd likely tip him off to run.
If Kitazawa didn't have the system, that favor might very well save his life.
Of course, now that he had the system, he wouldn't be helpless when the time came.
Kitazawa suddenly murmured to himself.
Neither forming the Sea Exploration Team to mine nor taking over Gato's shipping company had triggered any system tasks.
So this "Strongest Hokage Training System" had a flaw, huh.
If it's the "strongest," it should cover more than just combat power.
He shook his head.
No system task? Nothing to be done.
Right now, focus on the tasks already triggered.
A week flew by.
The Advanced Class finished their monthly exam.
This time, the combat-practical rankings shifted.
No more three-way tie between Naruto, Sasuke, and Hyūga Neji—Uzumaki Naruto took first place outright.
Hiruzen judged his performance against the Suna squad as the best.
Uchiha Sasuke came in second, Kurama Yakumo third, Hyūga Neji fourth, and Yamanaka Ino fifth.
Beyond the Advanced Class exams, Konoha's mining plan rolled out smoothly.
With Earth Release ninja helping, the Sea Exploration Team began mining.
At the same time, Gato Shipping started building an ore processing plant in the Land of Waves.
It'll still take a bit before the money starts rolling in for real, though.
~~~
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