The situation in the Land of Fire had changed.
And so, under the introduction of Takahashi Tōmaru, the famous director of the Land of Fire, Hakuzawa Akira, personally came to Akatsuki Village with a heavy gift to visit the supreme Lord Light Shadow.
Hakuzawa Akira sat in the reception room, his nervous expression hiding a deep fear.
Even though the weather was gradually getting colder, beads of sweat couldn't stop forming on his face. The terrifying news he had learned last night swirled in his mind... The Qinghua family, with its centuries-long heritage, had been wiped out overnight?
What kind of joke was this!
Such a noble... Akatsuki Village killed them just like that?
Then the next one... Hiss...
"Tōmaru-kun, are you sure I'll be okay?"
"I was quite rude before..."
Takahashi Tōmaru said nothing, merely looking at him with a pitying gaze.
So now you're scared?
Back then, I came to you personally with money, a script, almost absolute creative freedom, and the full sincerity of Lord Light Shadow, but you, due to certain concerns, very rudely rejected his goodwill.
However, out of their friendship of several years...
Takahashi Tōmaru still offered a few words of comfort:
"Don't worry, Lord Light Shadow is a benevolent ninja. Honestly, I have never seen such a kind-hearted ninja. As long as you don't oppose him, don't harm his interests, and try to become his friend, you will surely benefit for a lifetime."
"You have no idea..."
These were Takahashi Tōmaru's heartfelt words. He began to speak of Uchiha Makoto's recent plans.
Uchiha Makoto had divided his plan for the Arasaka Corporation into three parts.
The first part was to let the local people survive. Winter was coming soon, and talking to them about anything else was meaningless.
Because Uchiha Makoto had once received a good education, he loathed certain things, such as people freezing or starving to death.
With ninja present, rebuilding destroyed houses into simple shelters was not difficult.
It was nothing more than consuming a bit more chakra.
As for the grain and winter coal needed by the disaster victims, the assets left behind by the nobles who were murdered by the despicable Takigakure ninja were more than enough to cover it.
Even Uchiha Makoto had to marvel at the wealth accumulated by the Qinghua family over generations.
There are houses of gold in books... The gold bars hidden in their basement could truly build a house of gold!
"Three meals a day, with some white congee at night!"
"Add some pickles, and we'll make do with that!"
"And if any of the local grain merchants dare to jack up the prices... we'll send them a gift of free exploding tags at night. It's a good time to clear out our inventory."
Of course, Uchiha Makoto still had to consider his image. To avoid suspicion, he did not appear on the scene, but his orders were carried out perfectly.
Whoever dared to openly defy Lord Light Shadow's orders, the ninja of Akatsuki Village dared to take their head.
Due to the mission, the Akatsuki ninja could only eat such meals themselves. For them, this was a downgrade of several levels... After all, they couldn't be seen feasting on fish and meat in front of a group of refugees.
But for these common folk who had suffered and starved for half their lives...
What was three meals a day?
What was drinking white congee every night?
The problem of poverty is more a problem of distribution; this saying was absolutely correct.
In an instant, Uchiha Makoto had saved countless lives.
His fame quickly spread from the ninja circle to the world of ordinary people, and the Akatsuki ninja who participated in this operation were revered as heavenly soldiers.
"I've never seen such a ninja in my life..."
"Long live Lord Light Shadow!"
The local people held their bowls of white congee, spreading word of Uchiha Makoto's deeds.
Of course...
Uchiha Makoto couldn't let them eat for free forever. This led to the second part of his plan.
That was to develop cash crops, promoting the conversion of rice paddies to mulberry fields. This was something that could genuinely make money.
In the coming years, as capital and technology became highly concentrated in the Land of Fire, the country would become a huge consumption black hole. There was no need to worry about not being able to sell.
Whatever was produced, the Land of Fire could consume it.
The reason those wealthy merchants had so decisively invested their money and companies in Uchiha Makoto was partly due to this... If they didn't seize the initiative during this golden age, they would fall one step behind, then every step behind, and be utterly defeated in the bloody battle of capital, eventually being devoured completely.
By clinging to Akatsuki Village as it feasted, even if they couldn't get the meat and bones, they could at least drink the soup. In any case, it would be better than living under the thumb of the insect-like figures in the Land of Fire, and they could have a few more coins in their pockets.
The disaster-stricken people of the three counties were all organized by Uchiha Makoto's Arasaka Corporation and quickly began to restore production and construction.
The farmers, being illiterate, did not know what the contracts Arasaka had them sign meant, but they still scrambled to sign them.
Because they knew that a master who was generous enough to give them three meals a day couldn't be that bad.
Admittedly...
Their homeland, affected by the flood, was, to put it nicely, in a state of waiting to be rebuilt. To put it bluntly, it was a scene of devastation, a tragedy.
But now, the local farmers were full of vitality.
An unprecedented vitality.
Looking down from the sky, the farmers were like ants, rebuilding their homes on familiar yet strange land. However, compared to their previous numbness and confusion, their eyes now shone with a light never seen before, and their hands and feet were much more diligent than usual... perhaps because their bellies were full.
In short, everything was developing in a good direction.
Except for the poor Qinghua family, murdered by the despicable Takigakure ninja...
As for Akatsuki Village's unauthorized use of their family assets, profiting from their demise to build its own good name... no one cared, and no one dared to mention it.
"It's all for the people of the Land of Fire!"
"Just acting according to the circumstances!"
Akatsuki Village's assertiveness was beyond everyone's expectations, so much so that neither the Land of Fire's Daimyō nor the other major figures dared to raise any objections.
This was also what Uchiha Makoto wanted to see. From the war between Akatsuki and Kumogakure to this incident of converting rice paddies to mulberry fields, he had been consciously building his persona—as long as everyone gets along peacefully, everything is fine. But don't you dare provoke me. If you do, I will slap you hard, and I won't wait until the next day!
The third part of the plan was built on the foundation of the first two, a natural progression.
It was to vigorously promote propaganda among the farmers whose futures had been changed with Akatsuki's help, to reverse their impression of ninja, to establish a noble image of Akatsuki Village in their minds, and thus make it smoother for Uchiha Makoto to eventually take the Daimyō's place... If the people of the Land of Fire could believe in him as steadfastly as the ninja of Akatsuki Village, persisting no matter what... then he could declare his ascension to the throne right now.
Of course, this matter could only be taken slowly for now.
The ill repute of ninja was still too widespread among the common people of the world.
"In... incredible..."
"Lord Light Shadow is truly... benevolent..."
Takahashi Tōmaru explained everything he could, and Hakuzawa Akira was deeply shaken.
Due to the huge status gap, those who could pursue art in this era and gain great fame were almost all of noble birth.
Hakuzawa Akira had a noble father, he just wasn't the eldest son.
With Hakuzawa Akira's status, he could not only eat white rice and drink white congee every meal but could also enjoy delicacies from the mountains and seas every day.
But as someone of noble birth, he had also heard of how disaster relief was handled.
It came from a debate between two high-ranking officials of the Land of Fire.
"Replacing grain for people with bran and fodder for livestock, isn't that appalling?"
"I know..."
"Then don't you feel ashamed?"
"I am greatly relieved. One catty of grain can be exchanged for three catties of bran. The grain that could have saved one person can now save three..."
"But bran is not for people to eat, it's for livestock..."
"Are people who are about to starve to death still considered people..."
"..."
"The character for 'official' has two mouths."
"Usually, only when the top mouth is full can the bottom mouth get to eat. (Of course, I'm talking about the ninja world.)"
"It's difficult for me too... I need them to get things done!"
The two argued endlessly, and in the end, the matter was left unresolved.
One core problem could never be solved, and that was—"Are the people of the Land of Fire considered human?"
Such a complex and profound question, Hakuzawa Akira naturally could not answer, nor did he dare to.
But it was very clear...
Uchiha Makoto had answered this question directly.
This made Hakuzawa Akira's uneasy heart feel much better. The Light Shadow's actions all indicated that he was a good person.
Good people should be easy to get along with... although what Uchiha Makoto had done, in Hakuzawa Akira's perception, couldn't really be called the actions of a good person.
Just as Hakuzawa Akira's mind was racing, Uchiha Makoto summoned him.
Pushing open the door to the Light Shadow Office, Hakuzawa Akira saw Uchiha Makoto, as handsome as he was in the newspapers.
"Lord Light Shadow, there seems to have been a misunderstanding between us... please forgive my ignorance..."
'Is that so... is it really just a misunderstanding?'
"Absolutely... I have seen the script you gave me. Without a doubt... this will be a film that goes down in the history of ninja cinema."
"..."
After a simple threat, Uchiha Makoto let Hakuzawa Akira off the hook.
After all, he wasn't a natural-born killer. Small people have their own ways of survival... The world couldn't always go his way.
At least the result now was very good.
"Then, a pleasure working with you!"
"A pleasure!"
...
At this time.
Konoha.
"This is difficult... so difficult..."
"Brother, why can't you understand my good intentions..."
Senju Tobirama sat in the Hokage's office chair.
His eyes stared at the desk before him, his expression momentarily dazed.
The recent troubles swirled in his mind.
Originally, Senju Tobirama had wanted to use the incident of his brother, Senju Hashirama, being assassinated by a Takigakure ninja to show off Konoha's might to the entire ninja world.
He wanted to deploy Konoha's ninja forces and teach Takigakure a severe lesson with the force of a thunderbolt!
This time, Takigakure would pay a painful price!
Konoha would force a major reshuffle of Takigakure's leadership. The lower-ranking ninja of Takigakure would tremble at the mere mention of a Konoha ninja's name... Even the watchdog at the village gate would have to be kicked by a Konoha ninja. The yolks of Takigakure's eggs would be scrambled by Konoha ninja, and even the earthworms would be split vertically.
Finally, Konoha would force Takigakure to sign a series of unequal treaties, just as Akatsuki Village had done to Kumogakure. Only by doing so could Konoha's muscle be displayed, and its prestige truly established in the ninja world!
Unfortunately, such a proposal...
Senju Hashirama would never agree to it.
There was nothing to be done...
Senju Tobirama could only find another way, hoping to use public opinion within the village to force his brother to submit. Unfortunately, the direction of public opinion did not become as fanatical as he had imagined.
At the very beginning...
When Senju Tobirama spread the news of Senju Hashirama's assassination, the villagers and ninja of Konoha were indeed filled with righteous indignation, clamoring for revenge. Everything seemed to be developing as he had expected.
But...
The First Hokage was an out-and-out peace fanatic. After sensing this terrifying war sentiment, he immediately stood up and began to talk at length about Konoha's Will of Fire.
Even in public...
Senju Hashirama openly declared that he would resolve this matter peacefully: "For the sake of peace in the ninja world, I absolutely cannot disregard the peace, security, and future of the entire ninja world for my personal interests... Besides, I was not injured... This must all be a misunderstanding..."
"The Will of Fire..."
The Konoha ninja were, of course, unwilling to let it go. Their neighbor, Akatsuki Village's glorious military achievements and their domineering attitude towards Kumogakure had filled them with longing. But as Konoha's First Hokage, Konoha's number one warrior, no one could refute the Will of Fire he spoke of, and no one dared to publicly oppose the decision he made.
This was the intangible deterrent of a strong person!
Coupled with the indoctrination of the ninja code and the theory of ninja as tools, although they were resentful, they could only return dejectedly.
And the non-ninja villagers of Konoha, who had once been bold enough to storm the Hokage Building in protest, had, to Senju Tobirama's surprise, also fallen silent.
The reason was simple.
The "No Talking of Village Affairs" signs in Konoha's public entertainment venues had still not been taken down.
Senju Hashirama did indeed look thick-browed and easygoing... but his younger brother, Senju Tobirama, was a ruthless character.
The Konoha ANBU had struck with a heavy hand, beating the villagers until they cried out.
The villagers had received the ten-baton-strikes-per-second combo meal.
It had only been a few days...
The more seriously injured villagers hadn't even fully recovered. The lesson that the Hokage's dignity and authority were not to be offended was one they had learned with their bruised bodies.
To dare to challenge authority again at this time... did they really think they were that brave?
Just as Senju Tobirama was suffering from a headache, an unexpected guest arrived.
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