On a secluded mountain road along the border between the Land of Soup and the Land of Fire.
"Lord Kitano, thank you very much. Konohagakure will remember your help," said the ninja wearing a Konohagakure forehead protector sincerely as he looked at the fully loaded convoy.
Compared to three years ago, Kitano Izumi was dressed ever more lavishly. He smiled kindly and said, "It's nothing, it's only right. When the time comes, I hope your village can offer a little consideration to my business in the Land of Fire."
"Rest assured, I'll report this truthfully!"
Watching the convoy disappear into the distance, Kitano Izumi gradually let his smile fade.
Over the past few years, with Kumogakure at his back, Kitano Izumi, once merely the owner of a blacksmith shop, had long since become a different man. He had risen into a major figure in the business world, controlling numerous industries throughout the Land of Soup.
The two most important decisions of his life had been giving up on forging famous swords to focus exclusively on producing sword blanks, and throwing in with Kumogakure—or rather, the Yotsuki Clan.
Back then, the Yotsuki Clan had valued his experience and business acumen. At Dada's suggestion, they had brought him into the "blacksmith shop" plan while retaining ten percent of the shares for him.
At first, he had thought it was too little and had complained privately. But now that the blacksmith shop plan's businesses were spread throughout the Shinobi World, that ten percent was worth dozens of times more than all his previous assets. Instead, it made him uneasy, afraid that he did not deserve those shares, and he eagerly sought to prove his worth.
And Kitano Izumi truly did have a talent for business. He was now the person in charge of