Chap 20 - Daimyo's Work And War Compensation.

A month passed quickly after Ryuuji returned to Uzushiogakure and the redhead couldn't be busier. After making sure that his achievements in Konoha would be spread across the ninja world, Ryuuji devoted most of his time to his new role.

Aside from maintaining his daily training routine and spending time with his loved ones, Ryuuji found that his responsibilities in his new position as Patriarch and Daimyo weren't as simple as he imagined they would be.

Although his grandfather was not successful in developing the military power of Uzushiogakure, as far as the country's socio-economic development was concerned, Ashina Uzumaki was certainly successful.

In addition, the technology of the ninja world was far more advanced than it appears to be in the original work, which prevented Ryuuji from influencing the world with the few useful memories of his past life.

Ryuuji's only thoughts were on how to expand said infrastructure and increase the country's military might, but just the few projects necessary for that already had him spending hours and hours in front of the country's map and having meetings with the people responsible for each sector.

The first thing Ryuuji did as Daimyo was to start the project of an educational institution, which wouldn't only teach the curriculum that he considered the essential, such as literacy, mathematics and others basic subjects, but would also function as a professional institution, no matter if the profession is military (shinobi) or civilian.

Ryuuji has also already made it clear to his people that education in his country will be mandatory for young people and that even the elders are invited to become professional at the new institution, which thanks to Ryuuji's clones and the other shinobi helping in the construction, it wouldn't take long much to inaugurate.

Perhaps because of the country's geographical position and isolated character, the population of the Land of Whirlpools is small and Ryuuji wants to make the most of this small population, enabling most of them to further enhance their long-term development.

The second thing Ryuuji did was to implement one of his grandfather's projects, which consisted of expanding the roads and building more lookout posts around these roads, ensuring the country's internal trade while the foreign trade routes weren't defined and assured.

His grandfather never put into practice his desires for commercial expansion abroad thanks to the constant risk of someone malicious discovering the shipping lanes to the Land of Whirlpools.

Ryuuji, of course, did not need to fear the invasion of other shinobi villages in his country, so he set about building a large harbor in a strategic location, as well as hiring the best boat builders available to start designing a fleet of commercial ships.

Fortunately, the Uzumaki Clan has reigned supreme in the Land of Whirlpools for almost a thousand years and has made a very large fortune during those centuries, which added to the fact that the small taxes paid by the population are usually higher than the country's public spending, allowing Ryuuji to make investments in his country safely and comfortably.

Another point that makes him safe is the fame he and Uzushiogakure have achieved during the last month.

When news of what happened in Uzushio and Konoha traveled around the Ninja World, the already famous name of Ryuuji and the Uzumaki Clan climbed even higher rungs on the ladder of fame.

All this fame can be well capitalized when the trade routes are well defined, after all, there are many more civilians than shinobi around the world and these civilians always need different types of services from shinobi.

Ryuuji wants to change the paradigm that chakra is only for killing, so he started posting small missions in his village, asking for the help of shinobi to assist in several other fields besides the military, such as farming and infrastructure.

Fire Release to assist in the metallurgical industry, Water and Earth Release to increase the production of the agricultural industry and even the use of Earth Release in conjunction with Lightning Release to speed up the mining process.

These were just some of the most basic uses, which if taught correctly from childhood, would greatly increase the ways in which chakra could be used.

Of course, this expansion of the use of Chakra will be widely spread in the new educational institution, which for this reason was not just called the Ninja Academy as in other Villages.

That way, Ryuuji hopes that when Uzushiogakure starts selling shinobi services to the rest of the world, those services can cover a wide range of areas of expertise, which will differentiate Uzushio's shinobi from other ninja villages.

Another thing that kept Ryuuji busy was the post-war negotiation with Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure.

As the villages were already preparing for a second ninja world war, it was not in their interest to continue fighting Uzushiogakure, decreeing an absolute defeat for these villages.

Of course, even with an absolute defeat the said villages wouldn't just accept everything Ryuuji asked for as compensation and as a ransom for the shinobi in his possession, which made the negotiations stand even a month after the end of the war.

…

Looking at the extremely detailed map of the Land of Whirlpools spread out on his desk, Ryuuji heaved a sigh of relief, finally having finished all the work and renovation plans for the place's already advanced infrastructure for the next few years.

" Now we just have to make sure that everything goes as expected. "

Ryuuji ignored his office door opening and sat back in his chair. Ryuuji abandoned all thoughts and watched as his mother walked towards him.

" Mama, please tell me you brought the answer from those insolent old mens? "

Benihime let an amused laugh escape her lips and slowly approached Ryuuji. The red-haired MILF approached her son and sat on his lap.

"Yes, Ryuuji. They finally gave you the positive answers you've been wanting. "

Ryuuji let out an irritated huff and hugged his mother's body.

" I was starting to lose my temper, you know? I don't consider myself an unbalanced person to the point of killing thousands of innocents for no reason, but these old men were really testing my limits. "

Benihime laughed and spoke with a mocking tone:

" Is this serious, Ryuuji? You demanded the equivalent of the life of these villages. In fact, I can't believe you got these things from these old mans. "

Ryuuji ignored his mother's mockery and took the documents from her hand.

" We should thank Konoha and the Land of Fire…who told them to be a great target now that they're without a Bijuu? "

Benihime rolled her eyes and pinched her son's cheek:

" And whose fault is it, you cheeky brat? "

Actually, Benihime isn't wrong to make fun of Ryuuji because his requests were really excessive.

Not that Ryuuji minded that, after all, in the ninja world, force is the law.

To return the Third Raikage, the future Fourth Raikage, and nearly 300 Jounins to Kumogakure, Ryuuji asked for the Black Lightning and Lightning Armor training method, as well as monetary compensation worth one billion Ryo, which is on average 50% of the annual budget of one of the Big Five Villages.

To return Kitsuchi and 100 more jounins to Iwagakure, Ryuuji asked for the Earth Release: Light-Weight Rock Technique, the Earth Release: Added-Weight Rock Technique, all of the Second Tsuchikage's notes on the Dust Release's development, and a monetary compensation in the amount than 750 million Ryo.

To return the Third Mizukage and 400 Jounin to Kirigakure, Ryuuji asked for 2 S-Rank, 5 A-Rank, 10 B-Rank, and 20 C-Rank Jutsu, as well as monetary compensation of one billion Ryo.

These absurd orders and amounts were actually the corrected amount after almost a month of negotiations, which shows how much Ryuuji is taking from these Villages.

Ryuuji wasn't afraid to exaggerate his requests, after all, if he didn't exist, the Land of Whirlpools would literally be wiped off the map by these very villages.

With the exception of Iwagakure and Onoki, who wanted to ensure the safety of his son and possible successor, the other villages were unwilling to give in to the negotiations, but as Ryuuji literally invaded Konoha and left after stealing the Kyuubi, the villages chose to give in and focus on what really mattered now.

The Second Shinobi World War.

The Uzumaki Clan and their Fuuinjutsu may be something that other villages want and fear, but these techniques don't compare to the value of the fertile and rich land of the Land of Fire.

Ryuuji's feats in Konoha showed that the strongest village in the world was weakened and lacking in Jinchuuriki and this was a very good opportunity for the other villages to simply ignore.

With Ryuuji's reputation in the ninja world, it would be foolish of these villages to insist on fighting Uzushio when a rich and fertile Konoha was available.

" Mom, since we got what we wanted, let's take advantage of today to celebrate. "

Ryuuji's body began to levitate, making Benihime hug her son's neck to keep from falling to the ground.

With a smile on her face, the red-haired MILF asked:

" My baby, where will you take us? "

" You really like snow, don't you? How about taking a walk through the Land of Snow? "

Benihime's eyes widened, but before she could ask Ryuuji not to do anything crazy, Ryuuji sped through the clouds while laughing at his mother's screams.

…

At that moment, Ryuuji was walking around Uzushiogakure with a three-year-old sitting on his shoulders.

" Konan-chan, did you warn your mother that you were going out with me? "

The little blue haired girl squeezed Ryuuji's red hair for balance and replied:

" Yes, Ryuu-nii. "

Ryuuji smiled and continued walking.

" You're a well behaved girl, aren't you, Konan-chan? "

The little girl nodded.

"Yes, Ryuu-nii. Since I'm a good girl, can you start my training? "

Ryuuji shook his head no and raised his hand to pinch Konan's tiny nose.

" Don't be anxious. The time for you to train will come and I guarantee you'll become one of the strongest Kunoichis in the world. "

Konan pouted cutely, but nodded to show her older brother that she understood.

Ryuuji smiled and continued walking until he reached a large training ground, where Kushina was fighting against Morgiana.

" Young Master, don't you have work to do? "

Ryuuji smiled at Mikoto and walked over to her side, sitting next to the beautiful icy beauty of the Uchiha Clan.

" Don't be like that, Mikoto-chan…I also need to take a break. "

Mikoto smiled and placed Konan on her lap before replying to Ryuuji:

" You take a lot of breaks, Young Master. In the last year, you spent a lot more time with us than doing your work. "

Konan responded in Ryuuji's defense:

" Mikoto-nee, Ryuu-nii is awesome so he can finish his work really fast to play with us! "

Mikoto and Ryuuji laughed to see Konan acting so cute. The trio continued to watch Kushina and Morgiana fight until Benihime arrived at the scene carrying a letter, accompanied by a royal-tempered elderly lady.

Ryuuji smacked his lips in irritation.

" Another letter from that old monkey? "

Benihime nodded and sat next to Ryuuji. Mito Uzumaki also sat with the group. Over the past year, Uzushiogakure has received several letters and ambassadors from Konoha, trying to reattach the alliance with Uzushiogakure.

Ryuuji was always very clear about this. The only way for Uzushio to ally himself with Konoha again is if Hiruzen commits Seppuku in front of the entire population of Konoha for the crimes committed by Konoha against the Uzumaki Clan.

" Ryuuji, can't you give a face to Konoha? If not for them, for me, your grandmother. "

Ryuuji let out a sigh.

He actually got closer to Mito now that she was a "guest" of Uzushio, especially when the two of them studied Fuuinjutsu.

But he was the leader of the entire country and couldn't accept things so easily with just one request of apology, so he denied his grandmother's request.

" Grandma Mito, you know I can't do this. All I can promise you is that I won't take the initiative to attack Konoha and that if war does break out, I won't wipe Konoha off the map. "

Mito let out a sad sigh, knowing that with Hiruzen in Konoha's power the war between the two villages was inevitable.

She had already tried to remedy the situation, but Ryuuji was unwilling to hand over the Kyuubi to Konoha, much less a member of the Uzumaki Clan to become Jinchuuriki.

How could someone of her age and experience not realize that Ryuuji doesn't want to dethrone Hiruzen and stop the war?

Mito Uzumaki surely knew that Ryuuji also wanted this conflict between the villages as the conflict didn't just bring bad things from a political point of view, especially if the preparations for this conflict were made in a preventive way.

After this conflict, Uzushiogakure's fame and notoriety would surpass all existing barriers. The new strongest village would be the village of redhead devils and that would bring a lot of business for Ryuuji.

As she didn't have the strength to fight Ryuuji, she could only accept fate as it is and hope Konoha wouldn't be harmed too much. She would also not blame herself and live in depression when the main culprits were her husband and brother-in-law.

Who told them not to choose their disciples more carefully. Whenever Mito remembers Hiruzen and Danzo's faces, the anger in her heart makes her agree with her great-nephew's actions.

Ryuuji looked at the letter in Benihime's hand and stood up.

" Where are you going, my son? "

" Isn't it obvious, mother? I'll begin the preparations for war. I have some things I want to test before putting into practice for the benefit of the Village. "

Saying goodbye, Ryuuji returned to his office and call for his Uncle and Grandfather, his top advisers.

In the year after receiving compensation from the three villages, Ryuuji had advanced a lot in his research with Fuuinjutsu and it was time to put these new Seals to use to prepare his army for the future conflict against Konoha, as well as take the girls' training to the next level.