Having broken through the Sixth Gate of the Eight Inner Gates, Uchiha Ryōsuke naturally set his sights on the Seventh Gate. Opening the Seventh Gate posed no threat to his life; at most, it would consume some of his vitality. Since his vitality could naturally recover, he had nothing to worry about.
Of course, he wasn't in a desperate hurry to force it open immediately. Having experienced a smooth, injury-free breakthrough this time, he knew that by gradually increasing his physical attributes to a certain threshold before attempting the Seventh Gate, he could avoid the excruciating pain. This was undoubtedly a better approach.
His current targets were, at the very least, the future members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan. He wasn't entirely sure if his current strength was enough to contend with those guys yet, but facing the future Six Paths Madara or Six Paths Obito with his current power would likely be a dimensionality reduction strike.
Furthermore, Uchiha Ryōsuke didn't fear them even now; in the future, he would utterly crush them. As for facing the Ōtsutsuki Clan in a dozen or so years, that would be an equally one-sided slaughter. He preferred this kind of absolute advantage—beating up children, so to speak.
A few days later, the Daimyō's envoy, Sasaki, arrived at the Leaf Village accompanied by personnel from the Daimyō's estate. Their arrival was, naturally, met with a reception hosted by Tsunade. Nara Shikaku and Uchiha Fugaku attended as well, as they were now the Leaf Village's Consultant Elders and part of the village high-ups.
Envoy Sasaki represented the Fire Daimyō. Inside the meeting room of the Hokage Building, Sasaki looked at the three people before him and directly relayed the Daimyō's intentions.
"The Daimyō has approved the appointment of Lady Tsunade as the Fifth Hokage."
None of the three were surprised; after all, this was only to be expected. Shikaku spoke up.
"In that case, we invite the envoy to enjoy the village's hospitality for a few days. Please, let the Leaf Village fulfill its role as your host."
Sasaki waved his hand dismissively. "I am not finished. The Daimyō has brought other instructions as well."
Tsunade frowned and asked, "What instructions does the Daimyō have?"
Although the Hokage was nominally a subordinate of the Daimyō, in practice, the two sides rarely interfered with one another. Sasaki didn't mince words and stated directly, "The Third Ninja World War has ended. The Land of Fire has been heavily impacted by the war and requires a massive amount of capital to restore the people's livelihoods. The Daimyō wishes to reduce the financial aid provided to the Leaf Village, intending to spend more money on the citizens of the Land of Fire instead."
The faces of the three Leaf consultants darkened. This was a polite way of saying the Daimyō didn't want to pay.
Tsunade rejected the proposal immediately. "How can that be acceptable? Having endured the chaos of the Third Ninja World War, the Leaf Village also requires a vast amount of capital for reconstruction. Furthermore, the ninjas disabled during the war and the families of those who tragically sacrificed themselves require significant pensions. We cannot agree to this request."
How could she possibly agree? If she did, what was the point of her even being the Hokage? Ninjas weren't paid exceptionally well to begin with. She was unwilling to make a decision that would cause such intense dissatisfaction among her subordinates the moment she took office.
Seeing Tsunade's decisiveness, Sasaki explained, "Regarding those pensions, the Daimyō's estate will naturally contribute a portion. The rest will depend on your village's Mission Center. Now that the war is over, the Mission Center should be pulling in a fortune every day, shouldn't it? Between those two sources, there should be enough to cover the pensions for the disabled and the families of the fallen."
From the side, Shikaku spoke up. "The income from the Mission Center alone is nowhere near enough. The village only takes a small fraction of the commission fees; the rest is given to the ninjas who complete the missions. That money is barely enough to cover the village's overhead expenses; it cannot possibly sustain such massive pension payouts."
Sasaki said impatiently, "In that case, just raise your cut. Wouldn't that solve the money problem? Sacrificing a bit of personal interest for the sake of the village... shouldn't that be in line with your shinobi spirit?"
Fugaku watched silently, waiting for his turn to act. In any case, he would never agree to this.
Hearing the envoy's words, Shikaku felt even more exasperated. "Lord Sasaki, commissions with low rewards already pay very little. If we take a high percentage, the money the ninjas receive will be even less, and no one will be willing to do that kind of drudgery. As for high-reward missions, those involve risking one's life. If we take a large cut of that, they won't be willing to take the risk either. Therefore, relying on the Mission Center for funds is simply unrealistic. Please ask the Daimyō to reconsider his decision carefully. The ninjas who suffered due to the war deserve their compensation."
Sasaki was very displeased by Shikaku's words and countered, "It wasn't just you ninjas who suffered in the war. The civilians of the Land of Fire suffered equally devastating disasters and also need large sums of money to recover. Furthermore, your Third Hokage turned out to be a rogue ninja who leaked military intelligence, which has made the Daimyō extremely unhappy. Even your previous consultant, Danzō, was conducting inhumane human experiments, which has caused severe public outcry among the civilians. Shouldn't you take responsibility for this? Reducing your funding is actually a light punishment. You are the ones who should reconsider. If it comes down to it, just cut the pensions and make do for those disabled ninjas and the families of the fallen."
The expressions of the three Leaf leaders changed. This kind of 'making do' was something no one with a conscience would choose to do. It was extremely difficult for disabled people to find a way to survive. A small pension was already barely enough to look after them for the rest of their lives. As for the families of the fallen, the standard pension was already insufficient to console them, let alone a reduced one.
Tsunade felt a surge of anger. To use those two guys as an excuse... damn it. Even in death, they left behind trouble for the village. She hadn't expected to encounter such a thorny issue so soon after taking office.
Uchiha Fugaku decided it was time to step in. As a Consultant Elder of the village, he naturally had to voice his opposition to the funding cuts. The envoy's measures were each more absurd than the last and were absolutely unacceptable for the village.
"I do not agree to this. The Leaf Village's funding absolutely cannot be reduced."
Sasaki glanced at him. "Who are you? What right do you have to participate in this conversation?"
Fugaku felt a twinge of dissatisfaction. Had he changed his clothes to the point that the man didn't recognize him as an Uchiha?
"Uchiha Fugaku of the Uchiha Clan. I currently hold the position of Consultant Elder of the Leaf Village. May I ask if I am qualified now?"
Ryōsuke had instructed him earlier that he should handle general matters himself. To Ryōsuke, this was likely a trivial affair, even if it was a major issue for the village.