"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river—never bully a poor youth!"
"Today you ignore me. Tomorrow, I'll make you someone you can't afford to offend!"
Uchiha Makoto sat silently in his chair, his brows tightly furrowed. His expression was dark enough to chill the room.
His mood was terrible—
well, to be precise, it was entirely because his efforts to recruit ninja clans had gone disastrously.
After being rejected again and again by the major clans, Makoto was finally forced to confront a harsh reality.
The Akatsuki Village was still far too weak.
It simply wasn't attractive enough to draw in clans that possessed secret techniques or Kekkei Genkai. As a result, Makoto lowered his expectations and shifted his attention toward the lesser-known minor clans scattered throughout the shinobi world.
In truth, these small clans were the real backbone of the ninja world. Clans with Kekkei Genkai and inherited secret arts were rare in the grand scheme of things.
Still—who doesn't have dreams?
It was just that Makoto's dream had been temporarily shattered.
Some minor clans showed great interest in Akatsuki Village and had already sent preliminary members to settle there. If those clans went to a great village like Konohagakure, they would be insignificant at best. But in a fledgling village like Akatsuki, they could become pillars of support.
Better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.
However, other minor clans left Makoto seething with rage.
Clans that could barely scrape together one or two jōnin—
even they dared to look down on him.
Rejection alone would've been tolerable.
But mockery?
That crossed the line.
"Akatsuki Village wants to talk about peace in the shinobi world? Who do you think you are—"
Makoto could wipe out their entire clan by himself.
He truly wanted to storm into those short-sighted clans single-handedly and slaughter them all.
But…
he endured.
At this moment, if he lashed out in humiliation and massacred clans simply because recruitment failed, his reputation would be ruined beyond repair. Once that kind of infamy spread, he would have no place left in the shinobi world.
Endure for now.
There would be time to settle accounts later.
Makoto had already written down the names of every clan that had mocked him—carefully recorded in his personal notebook.
"Sigh… starting from nothing is hard."
"If I had money, I'd just smash them with it. Smash them until they're dizzy."
"I'd directly offer five billion ryō as relocation compensation!"
Makoto sighed, imagining a future where money was no longer an issue.
In terms of raw power, Akatsuki Village could never compete with Konoha, nor attract major clans. But if he had enough money, things would be different.
Money alone could lure in even great clans.
After all, why did big clans go to villages like Konoha in the first place?
For better living conditions.
For more missions.
In the end—
it was all about ryō.
"Judging by the timing, Kazuma and the others should've reached the Fire Country Capital by now."
"Hopefully everything goes smoothly. Once this batch of funding is secured, a lot of problems will solve themselves."
"Any problem that can be solved with money isn't really a problem."
Makoto muttered to himself as he stood up, stretched, and glanced sideways at Aqua, who was half-asleep at her desk.
"Aqua, don't slack off!"
"You already agreed last night—when you were drunk at the banquet—to hand over your medical ninjutsu and all your experience to the village."
"Don't worry. The village won't forget your contributions. You'll be the nominal head of Akatsuki's Medical Department."
"Your name will spread throughout the shinobi world alongside the rise of Akatsuki Village. Who knows—one day people might even worship you as a goddess because of this achievement."
Makoto delivered these empty promises with practiced ease.
"That's cheating! You're cheating!" Aqua cried.
"This is all my life's work!"
She clung to Makoto's leg, bawling like a child. High-level medical ninjutsu—just like that—had been tricked out of her.
Makoto showed no mercy.
He grabbed her by the ear and dragged her back into her seat.
"Sit down. Right now."
"Write a textbook."
"Three years to train medical-nin. Five years to train elite medical masters."
Yes.
Even while struggling to recruit clans, Makoto hadn't forgotten to fully exploit the individuals summoned by the system—Aqua and Megumin.
Megumin's inherited Explosive Fire Release was truly terrifying. A single blast rivaled a Tailed Beast Ball in power.
Unfortunately, her chakra reserves were insufficient—she could only fire it once.
According to Megumin, the requirements to learn this jutsu were absurdly high. The Crimson Demon Clan hadn't produced a single successful user in generations, to the point where the clan had abandoned the technique altogether.
Megumin, however, sacrificed all time that could've been spent learning other ninjutsu or taijutsu and brute-forced her way to mastering it.
If she could be given a tailed beast…
…then again, with a tailed beast, the explosive technique would become redundant.
After all, tailed beasts could fire Tailed Beast Balls themselves.
As for Aqua—
Despite acting like a freeloading waste of space, she was still a goddess.
Never underestimate spare rations.
Aqua could use revival techniques as casually as breathing.
Even with her power heavily suppressed by the shinobi world's rules, her mastery of medical ninjutsu surpassed Tsunade-level expertise—Tsunade Plus, even.
The only limitation was that without the Senju physique, she couldn't become a front-line monster who both healed and fought like Tsunade.
Still, a pure medical specialist like Aqua was more than enough to support the future medical system of Akatsuki Village.
Though such planning might seem premature, Makoto didn't think so.
In his previous life, even nations that started with nothing had planned monumental projects—satellites, infrastructure, long-term development—from the very beginning.
Thinking ahead was never a bad thing.
Fire Country Capital
Kazuma and Darkness finally arrived after days of hard travel.
After submitting their credentials, a portly palace attendant emerged from the gates to receive them.
They were escorted into a reception hall and seated. After brief pleasantries, Kazuma stated their purpose and discreetly handed over a thick red envelope.
It's easier to deal with the King of Hell than the little devils beneath him.
If money could solve it, then solve it with money.
Maintaining good relations with attendants close to the Fire Daimyō was essential.
Everyone knew this truth: power often depended on proximity.
A boss's personal secretary often wielded more influence than a department manager.
Kazuma understood this well.
Spend a little to accomplish a lot.
"We're here on behalf of Akatsuki Village," Kazuma said.
"We seek an audience with the Daimyō to discuss an important matter."
The attendant's eyes narrowed into a pleased smile, his enthusiasm immediately rising.
"His Highness already gave instructions. If an envoy from Lord Makoto arrives, we are to inform him at once."
"Please wait here, Lord Kazuma. His Highness will arrive shortly."
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Chakraflow789