Raikage: The Godaime Hokage is Still Too Young

With a cloud of gloom, the meeting ended.

Everyone's morale was low.

Because of the coming war.

Because of the upcoming tax spike.

It was even more because of Makoto's unreliable countermeasures no matter how you looked at it.

Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night - but obviously, Danzo was not among them.

After the meeting, Danzo returned to his office alone. He was in such a good mood that he even opened a bottle of beer.

In any case, he was also trained by professional ninjas, and he usually doesn't drink alcohol.

But today is an exception.

He poured himself a glass of beer, savoring the bitterness slowly.

Not long after, there was a sound outside the door.

"Come in."

"Danzo-sama!"

With a call, a familiar face appeared in front of Danzo.

"Sit."

Danzo greeted and poured a glass of beer for the opposite party.

The person sitting opposite can be regarded as an old acquaintance, so it is not polite.

After taking a sip of wine, the other party explained his intentions.

"Danzo-sama, the Godaime is really too young. –

"Kumo is about to close the door, but he still cares about cigarettes! –

"How much money can that kind of thing make? It's better to let a few Jounin go to rob the treasury of the Land of Lightning!"

The visitor spoke angrily, making no secret of his dissatisfaction with Makoto.

This is also the dissatisfaction of many young people.

At their age, they prefer to fight with real swords and guns.

But Danzo didn't continue the conversation and just continued to drink wine leisurely.

After a long time, he said quietly.

"After all, he is a young man, so he will inevitably make some mistakes. There is nothing you can do about it. –

"As seniors, what we have to do is to be considerate and guide."

On the surface, there is nothing wrong with what Danzo said, just like an old man who is sympathetic to the younger generation.

But this guest is obviously very aware of the relationship between Danzo and the Hokage faction.

Ever since Danzo was robbed of Hokage's position by the Sandaime, his heart was filled with resentment.

With the passage of time, this resentment was gradually controlled by his rationality. But it never disappeared, it was always there burning in his heart like wildfire.

He hated why the Nidaime didn't choose him.

He hated why the Nidaime didn't recognize him.

He hated... why it had to be Sarutobi Hiruzen?

He was always looking for an opportunity to wreak havoc.

But now...

"You mean..."

"Young people don't like to listen. When they make a mistake, get caught in the wrong, and are criticized by everyone, we'll stand up and correct it. This is also a way of teaching, isn't it?"

Danzo's eyes were lowered, his expression was serene, without showing any sharpness.

"Is that so? I see."

The visitor nodded and took another sip of beer.

So Danzo sat down again with a peace of mind and waited for Makoto to exhaust all his efforts and fail in vain before giving him a fatal blow.

... ...

Uchiha Fugaku returned to the Uchiha mansion with a solemn expression.

When he came back, the Uchiha family elders were already waiting for him.

Uchiha Fugaku looked at the faces, barely cheered up, and then told them what happened before.

In this regard, the elders all spoke.

"Is it war again... Hey, it's war again. I don't know how many good guys from the clan will die this time."

"Hmph, Kumo! How dare they come! This time I will make sure they never come back!"

"War or something, it's nothing. After so many years of ups and downs, it still came. It's just the money in Konoha now... even if it's a few robbery missions, it's better to be shameful than a deficit. It's inappropriate for the Godaime to call the patriarchs of the major clans to make some cigarettes!"

The elders sitting in front of us all came from the war. Most of them participated in the Third Ninja World War, and some of them even participated in the Second Ninja World War.

For them, war is already a part of life.

Going to war with Kumo doesn't make them feel intimidated.

What they are worried about is the current situation in Konoha.

The Godaime is too young, and the policies promulgated now are really... not like a leader.

These elders talked one after another, and quickly focused their attention on Makoto's criticism.

Uchiha Fugaku sat in the crowd without saying a word. It wasn't until everyone's discussion came to an end that they asked one of the elders in charge of finance.

"How much liquidity can be mobilized in the clan now?"

"Patriarch-sama, what do you mean... how can this be done!"

"What's wrong, is now the time to care about this!"

Uchiha Fugaku stared at the old man with an uncompromising tone.

"I'd rather throw all my money into the war reserve than sign the defeat document!"

"And...Konoha is created from Senju and our Uchiha! The ancestors died and injured so many back then, and it was hard to build Konoha. But if we lose it. You asked me how to face the ancestors in the future?"

When the elders of the Uchiha family heard the words, they were just dumbfounded, speechless.

Unlike Hyuga and the other clans that joined later, Uchiha and Senju are the two original creators of Konoha. They do have lingering feelings for Konoha.

For the Uchiha, Konoha is no longer as simple as Hidden Village.

This is their hometown.

Especially after the Senju actually disappeared...

... ...

After Makoto's order came down, the entire Konoha senior management was in chaos.

Kakashi saw everything, but he couldn't do anything.

Because on the day Makoto gave the order, he and Sandaime headed toward the capital of the Land of Fire.

Makoto seems to be constantly thinking about Kakashi lately. Whenever the topic of enhancing qualifications arises, as an envoy, Kakashi is the first person that comes to Makoto's mind.

... Although Kakashi would rather not have this honor.

In order to save time, the Sandaime and the accompanying Jounins can be said to be eating and sleeping in the open.

For Kakashi, who is used to living in the wild, this was normal. But... this time, almost everyone on the team has become a chain smoker.

With them here, the environment can almost be said to be suffocating.

Among ninjas, the proportion of smokers has never been too high. Because for ninjas with sensitive five senses, the smell of smoke is actually very obvious.

On a complex battlefield, it is obviously very stupid to spend more effort to cover up the smell of smoke.

Therefore, except for guys like Asuma who likes tobacco, his ninjutsu is also developing in this direction, most ninjas choose not to smoke.

However, following Makoto's order, no one knows about the other details. Anyway, the Jounins who went on this mission have already started smoking.

If Makoto forced them to smoke, they might not obey.

But Makoto only added a pack of free cigarettes to people's daily supplies, so the proportion of smokers among ninjas rose rapidly.

After the free cigarettes are out, they went to buy them themselves.

There's nothing that can be done, the pressure of being a ninja is too great.

It's okay if you don't usually touch it. Now that Makoto opened Pandora's box, people couldn't hold back anymore, they're already a thousand miles deep.

Kakashi was choked by the smoke, but he was also a ninja who crawled out of the dead.

Knowing what the front-line ninjas are usually facing, the words that he originally wanted to speak turned around and then swallowed silently.

Comrades have today and no tomorrow, and they are not even allowed to smoke, that's a bit too much.

With this in mind, Kakashi chose to remain silent.

Running all the way, everyone soon arrived at the capital of the Land of Fire.

Kakashi had been here before. But compared to before, the capital is obviously bare and empty.

The war that swept through the nation was traumatic for the entire country, and the capital wasn't even spared.

But Kakashi didn't have the time to be sad. They didn't even have time to eat, and they went straight to the Ministry of Finance under the leadership of the Sandaime.

After handing over their ID and waiting for about half an hour, Sandaime and his followers finally saw a tall and fat official.

They found a living room and sat down. After some simple greetings, Sandaime handed over a thick envelope.

"It's been a long time since I came to visit. It's really presumptuous to come here suddenly. –

"The leaves in Konoha are barren, and there aren't any decent local products. Just this little tea leaves, please accept it."

The official weighed the envelope and smiled even wider.

"Tea is better, it's different from other things. Don't talk about food, even just smelling the leaves will prolong your life."

Everyone was smiling and laughing.

Seeing that the atmosphere was good, the Sandaime expressed his intention of coming.

Konoha's lack of money is linked to the size of the military, but if Konoha is willing to be squeezed dry a little, he can still come up with a large sum of money, which is considered a huge amount of money for ordinary rich people.

That's enough money for acquisitions and integrations.

– And in practice, they don't need to pay immediately.

"So that's the case... but if it's just like this, then your luck will come."

Sandaime hurriedly smiled and asked.

"Why do you say that?"

"What else could be the reason? In the past two years, we have been fighting every day, and there is no real gain. Even if you are as rich with a big name, it is still very difficult to maintain. Even those who are richer are stretched and have to liquidate some assets. –

"If you want to take over at this time, they will be very happy. –

"Speaking of which, those guys are really too much, relying on the protection of the officials. They don't pay taxes on this one and they don't plan to pay that on that one. They also make the accounts like that, it really makes me mad... If you are willing to come out and punish them, That's fine too. –

"Don't worry, don't worry about accidents, they dare not tell the officials."

The Sandaime was stunned for a moment, and then understood – it was nothing more than some deception.

Even those who are protected by the officials, they are still willing to lie.

This sounds very bold and desperate, but in the Land of Fire, this is actually the norm.

In a modern industrial country like this, they still have such an inexplicable position as a Daimyo, it is enough to know what is going on in the Land of Fire.

After thinking about it, the Sandaime agreed with a smile.

"However... After all, this matter involves many people, and it is better to choose a safe person to advance it..."

It appears that this official is approachable, however, they tend to shift topics abruptly at the end of their sentences, leaving others feeling confused.

How can an old monster like Sandaime not understand what he's saying?

"I understand, the Hyuuga brothers, Hizashi and Hiashi, will be in charge of this matter in the future, and I'm sure they won't disappoint the officials."

The devil is easy to meet, but the imps are hard to deal with.

T/N: above, "the King of Hades is easy to meet, but the small ghosts are difficult to deal with", but the Chinese idiom feels weird in this situation

Before starting, Makoto said that some profits can be ceded, and the Sandaime will naturally not be entangled in such trivial matters.

The official also heard the implication of the Sandaime, and the smile on his face became softer.

"The Hyuuga? Are you talking about the Hyuuga Clan?"

"Exactly."

"Oh, that's really a trustworthy clan that stayed wealthy for generations. Compared with some unknown small clans, they're much more reliable."

Both the host and the guest had a good time, so they're naturally happy. The official was in a good mood. After finalizing the business, he dragged the Sandaime to chatter for a while.

Somehow, the two chatted about the Land of Wind.

The official told theSandaime that the Land of Wind would cut Suna's budget.

"The Daimyo of the Land of Wind wants to cut the budget of Hidden Village? This... is this..."

Is this a little too stupid?

Even the Sandaime couldn't help but want to say that.

From the very beginning, ninjas have emphasized obedience and patience.

But no matter what, ninjas are people too, and they have to support their families. No matter how strong their will is, there is nothing you can do without money.

Ninja tools need money, medicine needs money, war death benefits, and more money is needed to pay for war deaths and cultivate new soldiers.

The fighting power of a ninja is really directly proportional to the budget.

Land of Wind cutting Suna's budget is equivalent to directly cutting Suna's combat effectiveness.

"Hey, why doesn't the Daimyo of the Land of Wind know this?"

"Is there any way? The Land of Wind is already poor and has nothing except sand."

"There have been wars all these years, and their family property has been wiped out, even the Hidden Village... it is very good to follow the elite soldier policy once in a while."

Sandaime and Kakashi were speechless.

It is estimated that only outsiders can say such offensive words.

The ninja's fighting methods tend to be weird, and various Ninjutsu, Hiden, kekkei genkai, and Senjutsu emerge endlessly. No matter how powerful a ninja is, there is no guarantee that he can live forever to the end.

T/N: Hiden - secret techniques that are passed down from generation to generation

The Nidaime, who is a Fuinjutsu master and can use Suiton (Water Release), still died in battle.

The Yondaime, who can quickly intersperse in various battlefields, is also dead.

Even the Sandaime himself was not sure that he could die peacefully on the bed.

Facing the high death rate of ninjas during the Ninja World War, the only feasible way is to increase the number of ninjas and increase the fault tolerance rate.

If the Land of Wind cuts the funds, it is simply to break the roots of Suna-nins.

In the case of insufficient funds, there may still be a small number of monster-level geniuses who can rise, but most ninjas...

After a thousand years, Suna might become those little small ninja villages.

Even if they are enemies, Sandaime and Kakashi still felt chills when they think of the actions of the Land of Wind.

Maybe the Minister of Finance also felt that it wasn't good to say these things, so he covered his face with a fan and smiled lightly.

"Don't worry, our Land of Fire is not a poor and weak country like the Land of Wind, and Daimyo-sama also knows the importance of Hidden Village..."

"I heard that there is a change on Kumo's side. Hiruzen, it's better to win. –

"Otherwise, I won't be able to help you talk."

Sandaime nodded again and again.

Finally, the conversation ended, and the ninjas came out silently after they completed their tasks.

Kakashi: "Sandaime-sama..."

Sandaime: "Don't ask, don't think, don't talk... let's do what we can do...even if it's just a little..."

Konoha's situation, how can the two of them not know?

But as Sandaime said, Konoha's situation is really difficult. Although they didn't think Makoto's plan would be of any use... But as long as you do good deeds, you don't worry about your future.

... ...

At the same time, the wild laughter of the Yondaime Raikage also came from Raikage's office in Kumogakure in the Land of Thunder.

"Hahahahahahaha, it's almost time for a war, but what kind of cigarettes are you still in the mood for?"

"Hahahahahahaha, the brat is just a brat!"