This made Hibari's proposal even more attractive.
To be honest, if the Third Raikage had to manage the economy himself, he wasn't very good at it and didn't have much confidence. He truly felt that if he invested such a huge amount of money, it might not even make a ripple in the end.
But the Mitsumine Group was different. Although it was a commercial group from the Land of Fire, its reputation was very well-known. It had small businesses in various countries, but they hadn't grown large yet. On one hand, it was because of the war; on the other hand, it might be because they hadn't fully saturated the Land of Fire yet, so they naturally wouldn't easily shift their focus.
All in all, the Mitsumine Group's ability to make money and develop the economy was obvious to all. If they were willing to invest in the Land of Lightning and Kumogakure, then the possibility of driving economic growth and reversing the disadvantage was indeed very high.
At least it was much more stable than them investing themselves. The only thing that made the Third Raikage feel a bit unwilling was that the Mitsumine Group wouldn't do something unprofitable. They would definitely earn a lot of profit from the Land of Lightning, but it was business, and you couldn't expect them to do charity.
Overall, the Land of Lightning wanted economic development, and the Mitsumine Group wanted to make money. There was no conflict; it was a win-win situation.
Adding to that, the alliance and other matters, this meeting truly greatly inspired the Third Raikage. He felt that if he followed this pace and joined forces with the Land of Fire, it would indeed be a good opportunity for the Land of Lightning and Kumogakure!
Thinking of this, the Third Raikage gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, and said, "Alright, let's do it this way. On behalf of Kumogakure, I express our deep apologies for the previous peace talks and am willing to pay Konohagakure one hundred million ryo in compensation in the name of Kumogakure, and send our sincere blessings to the Second Hokage-sama, Senju Tobirama, wishing him a speedy recovery. At the same time, I extend our most sincere apologies and hope to gain forgiveness, allowing the relationship between our two nations and two villages to turn enemies into friends and embark on a path of common prosperity and strength as allies!"
This time, it wasn't Hibari's turn to speak. Hiruzen's face showed a satisfied smile, and he said, "In the name of the Third Hokage of Konohagakure, I represent all of Konohagakure in accepting Kumogakure's apology and blessings. At the same time, I announce that after Kumogakure's compensation is implemented, the Mitsumine Group will immediately invest in Kumogakure's economic construction at the fastest speed, with a minimum amount of two hundred million ryo. May our two villages and two nations deeply realize the terrifying and disastrous consequences of war, and from now on, turn swords into plowshares, forge friendly relations, and embark on a path of allied development!"
When the leaders of both sides spoke like this, it meant that the matter was settled. Thus, the atmosphere naturally changed. They were opponents in the war before, but now they were future allies. The changes in the situation came so suddenly. Whether you accepted it or not, the facts were before your eyes.
"Then, let's draft the relevant agreements and terms. There's no need to delay anything. Let's also finalize the alliance here and sign it together, shall we?" Koharu said with a smile.
The others had no objections, and soon, they began to negotiate and draft the relevant terms.
The alliance and such matters had little to do with Hibari. Hokage Hiruzen could make the decisions. He probably wouldn't let Konoha suffer a loss. However, the compensation and investment in the peace treaty were directly related to Hibari, so he naturally had to pay more attention.
"Two hundred million ryo is just the baseline. Third Raikage-sama, please rest assured. Our Mitsumine Group is very optimistic about the development prospects of Kumogakure and the Land of Lightning. As long as this alliance between both sides is signed and we become friendly allies, we will continue to add large investments. After all, this is a place where money can be made, and I won't say any hypocritical words to you. If necessary, we can even invest at least two hundred million ryo in economic construction in the Land of Lightning and Kumogakure every year..." Hibari waved his hand and said domineeringly.
The Third Raikage, who had taken office in a hurry, naturally needed some political achievements to stabilize his position. This peace talk was one, the alliance was two, and being able to attract large sums of money to turn around the economic situation of Kumogakure and the Land of Lightning was three, and it could be said to be the most important.
Therefore, when he heard Hibari boasting here, his heart was very moved. Then he said, "Hibari-dono, is that true?"
"Absolutely no false words!" Hibari immediately said.
The Third Raikage was silent for a moment, then said, "This matter is also a major issue that benefits both of us. How about we discuss it in detail and preferably sign an agreement? This way, it will be a strong guarantee for both of us. What do you think, Hibari-dono?"
Hibari was waiting for the Third Raikage to say this, so he immediately said, "No problem. It will also put both of our minds at ease."
In Hibari's view, as long as the Land of Lightning opened its doors to him, it would be a great thing. At that time, he could completely take advantage of the Land of Lightning's relatively weak economy to make large-scale investments and seize the leading position in various important industries.
At the same time, due to the economic downturn, it meant that the unemployed population of the Land of Lightning would inevitably be more than that of the economically prosperous Land of Fire. In this way, it would further prove that they had more cheap labor.
In that case, if Hibari wanted to engage in any real economy, he could completely open factories in the Land of Lightning and gradually 'adjust' the Land of Lightning's economy to be dominated by 'contract manufacturing' industries. In this way, the Land of Lightning wouldn't see any clues in the short term, or rather, as long as Hibari didn't show any malice, they wouldn't understand at all.
Once Hibari showed some malice and the relationship between the two countries began to decline, then these industries in Hibari's hands would be a killer move. He would directly stop using your products, no longer employ your workers, close the factories, and leave directly.
At that time, the Land of Lightning would have a large number of unemployed workers, and there wouldn't be too many other economic pillars. Just this one move could completely collapse their economy.
And then, once internal conflicts arose, how could they contend with Konoha? Impossible!
Of course, at that time, the Mitsumine Group would inevitably suffer significant losses, but such significant losses could be completely recovered through wartime means and even make huge profits, just like the 'East India Company' in his previous life.
As expected, Hibari then began to draft relevant investment agreements with the Third Raikage, who clearly couldn't understand these twists and turns. The general idea was that the Land of Lightning would open its doors to the Mitsumine Group, and except for essential lifeline industries, such as military industries, all others would be open to the Mitsumine Group, allowing them to invest in various industries.
Hibari, on his part, also signed an agreement that for the next ten years, as long as the two countries maintained their allied relationship, they would invest no less than two hundred million ryo in economic construction in the Land of Lightning every year and provide a large number of corresponding employment opportunities.
For Hibari, this was no problem at all. As long as the plan could proceed according to his thinking, let alone two hundred million, even two billion, he would be willing to invest. There was no downside to investing!
When the Third Raikage got his hands on this agreement, he was truly delighted. At this moment, he looked at Hibari with great satisfaction, completely without the feeling of gritting his teeth in anger that he had when Hibari had provoked him earlier.
Aside from anything else, this agreement, once announced to the public, would first boost morale and let everyone know that this peace didn't come for free and that the end of the war was beneficial to everyone.
See? Economic assistance was coming, and everyone didn't have to worry about not having food or work. Investments were coming immediately, with a baseline of two hundred million and no upper limit, for ten consecutive years!
Coupled with the alliance agreement and peace treaty, the Third Raikage would undoubtedly secure his position, and his prestige within Kumogakure would be unmatched, completely reaching the level of Second Hokage Tobirama's absolute authority!
At that time, he would grasp the economy with his left hand, government affairs with his right hand, and military power under his behind. As long as he didn't want to step down, who could force him to? Impossible!
The same was true for Hiruzen. Why was the Second Hokage Tobirama indisposed and stepping down early? It was to allow Hiruzen to quickly achieve good results upon taking office.
Now that the peace treaty was settled, the alliance was also settled, and they had even received one hundred million ryo in compensation from Kumogakure, no one in the village would say anything more. They would only feel relieved and proud.
As for the Mitsumine Group's investment and such... it didn't have much to do with them. This was just an 'external boost.' After all, the Mitsumine Group wasn't subordinate to the Hokage Residence, nor did it belong to Konohagakure or the Land of Fire. It was merely the private property of three families.
Others had no right to dictate anything. If they liked to invest in the Land of Lightning, what business was it of yours? Anyway, even if someone thought this was inappropriate, it wouldn't fall on Hiruzen's head as the Hokage.
In this way, his position as the Third Hokage was firmly secured. Isn't that wonderful?
And for Hibari, this meeting was an absolute windfall. After this, he could openly 'harvest leeks' in the Land of Lightning! It was simply too wonderful!
His Mitsumine Group would also use this opportunity to officially expand beyond the borders of the Land of Fire and become a multinational group!
Thus, the interests and demands of all parties were satisfied, and this meeting could truly be called perfect.
After the relevant agreements were drafted, the Third Raikage and Hiruzen Sarutobi carefully reviewed them. Then they looked at each other and simultaneously said, "Thus, a new era for our two nations and two villages has arrived!"
After speaking, both of them simultaneously picked up their pens, signed their names on these agreements and alliances, and stamped them with the Kage's official seal!
At this point, the two countries officially ended their state of war and, at the same moment, turned enemies into friends, becoming allies, writing a new chapter in the relationship between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Fire, Kumogakure and Konohagakure!
The Third Raikage, looking at the documents in his hand, was filled with emotion. He had originally thought that coming to Konoha this time, it would take at least ten days to finalize these matters, with a lot of back-and-forth haggling.
In the early stages, it was indeed as he expected, with both sides having great conflicts and neither willing to back down. However, ever since Senju Hibari walked into the meeting, things had progressed unexpectedly smoothly. It was truly beyond his imagination.
This time, he looked at Hibari and said with great emotion, "You truly live up to being a member of the Senju clan. A hero in his youth!"
Unlike the previous two praises, this time, the Third Raikage truly meant it!
At the same time, in his heart, he placed Hibari in a very high position. If he was an ally now, it was fine, but if he were an enemy, he would need to be vigilant at all times, because he had realized that this guy was not only powerful in terms of combat, capable of defeating Kinkaku and Ginkaku, but also equally capable in other aspects!
In the future, he might even become the new Hokage of Konohagakure!
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