Although some of these ten people were senior jōnin—including veteran shinobi who had fought in the First and Second Ninja Wars and served for more than forty years—Ebizo could not bring himself to believe they were actually undercover agents.
But out of trust in Li Fan and a sense of caution,he gave a slow, deliberate nod.
"Next, I'll send someone to monitor these ten people in secret."
Li Fan didn't reply immediately.Instead, he drained the tea in his cup.Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he asked:
"How are the war preparations coming along?"
As the designated successor to the position of Fourth Kazekage, Li Fan was naturally entitled to ask.
Ebizo finished signing a document in his hand, then lowered his voice.
"We've gathered enough supplies to sustain two thousand ninja for thirty days. The stockpiles have been moved to both the Fire Defense Line and the Lightning Defense Line.
"The village's usual reserves have also been tripled. If war really breaks out, prices shouldn't rise much—at least for the first month.
"The training schedule at the Ninja Academy has been tripled as well. I've personally taught them basic offensive ninjutsu. Normally, they'd have to seek this training on their own later.
"Even students who were set to be eliminated and denied graduation have been kept on."
The teacher–student relationship at Sunagakure's academy was not as selfless as in Konoha.There, it was little more than an official arrangement.
The Sand Village's ninja education system was far less complete or mature compared to Konoha's.Given the poverty of Sunagakure, most learning came from imitation.
They called it a Ninja Academy, but in truth it was little more than an advanced version of a Boy Scout training camp.
Students were taught basic reading and writing, the principles of chakra and how to refine it,followed by basic substitution techniques and ninja tool throwing skills.
If a graduate was lucky enough to be selected as a genin,everything after that depended on their own effort.
Because of this, the mortality rate for genin in Sunagakure was particularly high.But those who survived were undeniably the elite—an alternative form of Gu breeding.
Hearing this, Li Fan's brows gradually drew together.
Yes, Sunagakure had prepared in advance—but only this much.
Enough supplies for two thousand ninja for thirty days might sound like a lot,but in a real war, thousands from the village would be sent to the front.
Given how long past wars had dragged on,this would be consumed in no time.
The Fourth Shinobi World War more than a decade later had ended in three days—but that was a once-in-history anomaly and no reference at all.
As for the stored village supplies,keeping prices stable for just a month was hardly reassuring.
Li Fan found this strange,but he knew Chiyo and her brother were not ignorant of war's cruelty.It was impossible they would prepare so little out of negligence.With their personalities and status, there was no way they would cut corners in such matters.
So he probed gently:
"Logically, we should've been fully prepared within the past two days."
Ebizo, sensing Li Fan's displeasure, hesitated before answering.
"Li Fan, we know this much preparation won't help much… but the truth is, our village has no money left!"
The Third Kazekage's proxy slumped weakly in his chair.It was hard to tell whether his tone was sad or simply resigned.
"Given Sunagakure's current finances, buying these supplies in one go was already remarkable.
"We've only got five million silver taels left. It sounds like a lot, but tens of thousands of ninja still need to be paid for their missions.
"Even if we prioritise paying the jōnin, the mission pay for chūnin and genin can't be delayed for long.
"If we keep buying supplies, it'll cripple the village's operations."
Ebizo's voice grew weary.
"You know the daimyō's attitude toward us—he's been cutting our funding for years.
"The number of missions we get drops every year. Many clients prefer to hire Konoha, or even the more distant Kumogakure."
The daimyō saw Sunagakure as little more than a tool—one to work hard without complaint.
Li Fan didn't know what the saddest thing in the world was,but he knew what it was today:to know war was coming, yet have no money to prepare for it.
He had long known Sunagakure was poor,but living through it made him understand the hardship more keenly.
"I'll go pan for gold later," Li Fan said after a pause."That should help ease the shortage."
Then he added,"As for the daimyō… I'll go to the Wind Country's capital myself in a few days."
Ebizo's face lit up at first—but the moment he heard Li Fan's next words, his expression froze.
Taking a slow breath, Ebizo asked cautiously:
"Li Fan… what exactly do you plan to say to the daimyō?"
Seeing the doubt and fear in the old man's eyes, Li Fan waved a hand.
"Don't worry. He's a public figure—I won't do anything extreme. I'll just have a talk."
Before Ebizo could answer, Li Fan stood and headed for the door.
Ebizo frowned at his retreating back, then slowly shook his head.He still believed Li Fan—the once well-behaved boy—wouldn't do anything outrageous.
He guessed wrong.
If it were Rasa, perhaps not.But Li Fan, who had taken Rasa's place, cared little for such restraint.
Walking through the village, Li Fan returned greetings from passing ninja and civilians while mulling over his next move.
Those born and raised in the shinobi world naturally revered the daimyō and nobility—even if the daimyō wished them and their village to wither away slowly.They would endure without protest.
It wasn't just Sunagakure;the other four great villages, Konoha included, were the same.
Shinobi respected strength—yet bowed to men without power,holding nothing but a noble title or an ancient bloodline.
Li Fan understood the custom,but as an outsider, he found it laughable.
Killing or directly threatening the daimyō would be foolish—but there were other ways.
He could arrange "accidents" to eliminate the daimyō's closest guards.Drop a hint to an overlooked son.Then make the more favoured heirs suffer fatal mishaps.
Leave only the neglected one.
Perhaps arrange for the daimyō himself to suffer an "accident,"leaving him paralysed and unable to govern.
The rest would fall into place naturally.
Li Fan had many such methods.
The shinobi world prized reputation and bloodlines far too much to consider resisting.When the Fire Country's daimyō formed the Twelve Guardian Ninja, Konoha obeyed without protest.Even the Third Hokage's son, Asuma Sarutobi, joined them—torn between loyalty to his village and the daimyō.
If the Hokage's son could be swayed so,what hope was there for the rest?
But Li Fan cared nothing for noble bloodlines or centuries-old legacies.If they got in his way, he'd simply replace them with someone more obedient.
With such thoughts in mind, Li Fan left the village and travelled to a desert dozens of miles away.There, he refined gold dust from the sands until noon,then returned with over a dozen bulging cloth bags.
Without a word, he dropped them in front of Ebizo.
The old man's eyes widened at the sight,but before he could speak, Li Fan had already vanished,leaving only one sentence behind:
"I've got urgent business. I'll be off."
Ebizo glanced at Chiyo beside him and gave a bitter smile.
Chiyo, who had just entered and set down her teacup, sighed.
"So, your strength has grown. In the past, I could only gather two or three bags in half a day—but you brought back more than ten."
"Sister, he's resentful."
"Yes. Because our village is poor, and we old fools are incompetent."
Her gaze shifted to the gold-laden bags.
"But with these, we can buy enough war supplies for another five thousand ninja for a month.Even during the First and Second Shinobi Wars, we never had reserves like this prepared in advance."
Li Fan, meanwhile, strolled through Sunagakure.He wasn't resentful as the siblings thought—only mildly dissatisfied.
Coming to the shinobi world with a system was a blessing.What was there to complain about?
If the village was poor, so be it.He had plenty of ways to make it rich—though they would take time.
For now, gold panning was the fastest method.
And the "urgent matter" he'd mentioned earlier wasn't an excuse.
Ten minutes later, Li Fan arrived at a warmly decorated house.
Before he could knock, the door opened to reveal a beautiful young woman.
Her fair face lit up with open surprise.
"Li Fan, I just had a feeling—and when I opened the door, it really was you!"
Li Fan smiled, fruit bags in both hands, and stepped inside.
This was the "urgent matter" from before—he had promised to visit Karula's home that afternoon,and, still in the habit of his previous life, had arrived an hour early.
Yasha Lian's eyes lingered on his face,then dropped to the bags he carried.
She let out a soft gasp.
"Ah—! You didn't need to bring anything. Why two bags of fruit? It makes you seem like a stranger."
Li Fan only smiled, saying nothing as he removed his shoes and stepped in.
Some of his views had shifted, and some of his limits had vanished—but habits built over twenty years were harder to change.
Unless he was sure of his relationship with Karula,he would remain politely formal.
After setting the fruit aside, Yasha Lian leaned toward a nearby room and called out:
"Sister, Li Fan's here!"
From inside came a hurried but gentle voice:
"I know, I know!Li Fan, wait just a moment—I'll be right out."