Cooperation

At this point, Minato Namikaze finally realized Yichen's intentions: to recruit him into this so-called team for the sake of Ninja World reform?

Thinking this, Minato Namikaze straightened up, looked directly at Yichen who was staring at him, and slowly said, "After I become Hokage, I will eliminate the suspicion between villages and establish a relationship of mutual trust between countries."

Before Minato Namikaze could finish speaking, Yichen interrupted him with a cold laugh, "Heh, I thought Minato Namikaze was so capable, but it turns out he's just a hot-blooded youth with these naive ideas."

"The chaos in the Ninja World stems from human desires. People want to gain benefits, and nations want to gain benefits, so as long as they have enough strength, everyone will start a war for those benefits."

"The Land of Fire occupies the best territory in the Ninja World and doesn't want to lose its benefits, but the other Four Great Nations are eyeing the Land of Fire's wealth and all want a piece of the pie."

"Under these circumstances, what makes you think you can gain everyone's trust? Just through empty words?"

Minato Namikaze pondered for a moment. Although he had never heard of the term "talk-no-jutsu," he could understand Yichen's meaning.

"So, you've opened up trade routes, and you want to bring everyone along this path, so that everyone can see the benefits and profit from it. You believe that with shared interests, no one will start wars anymore, is that right?"

"However, a single trade route is insufficient to satisfy all countries. Once they become accustomed to the benefits of the trade route, they will still feel dissatisfied."

"What will you do then?"

Yichen laughed, a very happy laugh. As long as Minato Namikaze followed his own plan, his goal would be achieved. As for the outcome, it didn't matter; Minato Namikaze would inevitably be defeated by Obito anyway.

As long as he sees himself as a ninja who wants to change the Ninja World, that's fine.

So Yichen continued his charade, "When I was pioneering the trade route, I was just a Special Jonin. My abilities were limited. If I become a high-ranking member of Iwa ninja in the future, I will find more ways to unite everyone together."

"You're right about one thing: the profits from business aren't enough to deter people from the idea of war. But what if there were countless other networks of interests like business?"

"If we make this network of interests large enough, wouldn't more people stand up against the war? If the voices against the war are loud enough, could we avert war?"

Minato Namikaze was taken aback. "You can do that? It seems like it's possible?"

Regardless of whether this method will succeed, combining it with one's own methods should improve its feasibility.

Thinking of this, Minato Namikaze's gaze towards Yichen became somewhat complicated. Although this Iwa ninja was not as strong as him, he had indeed surpassed him.

"You've convinced me. I agree with your point of view. If I become Hokage, I will strive to gain everyone's trust while building a network of interests with various countries, trying my best to foster mutual trust and bring common benefits to everyone."

Yichen smiled and said, "That's great. It's a pity our two countries are about to go to war, otherwise we could use our respective camps as transit points and try to open up trade routes."

Minato Namikaze's heart stirred slightly. Konoha didn't want war, or at least wanted to delay it. If this could be achieved through trade routes, perhaps the village would agree.

So Minato Namikaze Yichen said, "Our Konoha should agree to open a trade route."

Yichen was taken aback, but quickly recovered. After thinking carefully, he said, "If we can make a promise when we open up the trade route that we will not disrupt it even if war breaks out, I can try to persuade the village's leaders."

Minato Namikaze weighed the pros and cons and nodded, "I can give it a try too. "Minato Namikaze's promise was not as clear Yichen's, because his influence in Konoha was far less than Yichen's influence in Iwa ninja.

Moreover, as a pioneer of business ethics, Yichen's influence in this regard is even greater.

However, Yichen had another idea. "Regardless of whether Konoha and Iwa ninja can ultimately establish a trade route, I suggest you contact the Akatsuki Organization."

"Because of Danzo's affair, the Akatsuki Organization doesn't really trust the Konoha ninja. But you're different; you're also Jiraiya's disciple, so you should be able to gain their trust."

"You can take the lead in establishing a trade route between the Land of Fire and the Akatsuki Organization."

"However, the Akatsuki Organization are currently operating in the Land of Bears and the Land of Birds. In that direction, your Konoha is currently fighting against the Sunagakure. Whether you can accomplish that, I don't know."

Minato Namikaze's eyes lit up at first, then dimmed again. He clearly understood that the Sunagakure wouldn't let Konoha make money.

With that topic settled, Yichen had achieved his goal for this trip. He didn't know whether Yichen Minato Namikaze would deliberately spare him in future Minato Namikaze if he had the ability to kill him, but he felt that Yichen wouldn't intentionally cause him any more trouble.

So Yichen took his leave.

With his hands forming four hand seals, Yichen took to the air. His study of the Banshō Ten'in Yichen had deepened his understanding of gravity and Earth Release, and his mastery of the Yichen and Light-Weight Rock Technique had become even more refined.

Watching Yichen leave, Minato Namikaze made no further moves and turned back to his camp.

After returning to the camp, Minato Namikaze wrote a letter to his teacher, Jiraiya.

The letter contained Yichen's account of the Akatsuki Organization, as well as Yichen's methods for ending the war. Finally, it asked Jiraiya to help persuade Hiruzen Sarutobi to try to open two trade routes.

After returning to the camp, Yichen spoke with Kitsuchi about establishing a trade route with Konoha, and then washed his hands of the matter. Although he was the initiator of the trade route, this matter was no longer under his jurisdiction.

Whether the village ultimately agrees or not is a headache for the higher-ups; it has nothing to do with me. I have a lot of things to do.

The three disciples had just been promoted, and with the help of intensive training using Medicinal Food, their strength had all improved. Yichen needed to help them adapt to their new level of power.

Especially for Tomoko strength is improving rapidly, and she has three more B-rank Wind Release to learn, so she has a lot to do.

Yichen also had many things to do.

The Chakra Fusion practice cannot stop; it's part of the main storyline.

It's time to start practicing Lightning Release techniques. Having another attribute can be surprisingly effective in crucial moments.

Of the three B-rank Ninjutsu that Yahiko gave him, he also needed to practice the B-rank Water Style Jutsu and the B-rank Sword Technique. Especially the swordsmanship; Yichen guessed that it was the masterpiece of Hanzo, a top-level swordsmanship master, and it was worth Yichen some time on.

Fortunately, Yichen doesn't plan to delve deeper into the Water Cutting Technique in the short term, and he also doesn't need to practice Earth Release) extensively for the time being. Both of these things free up a lot of time for Yichen.

Kitsuchi was also somewhat troubled by the troublesome matter that Yichen had thrown at him, but after thinking about it, he decided to pass the matter on to the higher-ups. He wrote a report, entrusted a small team of Anbu to be sent back to the village, and then left it alone.

After stabilizing Minato Namikaze, Yichen stopped paying attention to the situation in Land of the Falls and focused all his attention on his training.

However, the training process was not smooth. Chakra Fusion requires patience and perseverance. Yichen was prepared for this, so although the progress was slow, he was not disappointed.

Swordsmanship was never my forte, and I was prepared for the fact that I hadn't been able to master it for a long time.

However, the progress in cultivating the Lightning Release was too slow, which Yichen found unacceptable.

Yichen's Lightning Release talent was too poor, and his training progress was far behind that of other attributes. In addition, there were very few records of Lightning Release in Iwagakure, so there was not much experience to draw upon.

Yichen felt like he was crossing a river by feeling for stones as he learned to use Lightning Release. In peaceful times, he could just endure it and it would pass, but now, Yichen couldn't calm his mind.

After spending a few days at the camp instructing his three disciples, Yichen decided to go out and have some fun again.

Kitsuchi was used to Yichen's restlessness; after all, he always made a profit whenever he went out. Let him have his fun.

Amidst Kitsuchi's impatient murmurs, Yichen left the camp and flew towards the Land of Hot Water.

The Land of Hot Water Springs is famous Ninja World for its hot springs, which have led to numerous related industries, making it one of the wealthiest countries in the Land of Hot Water Ninja World. Its per capita wealth may even exceed that of large countries like the Land of Earth.

The prosperity of the Land of Hot Water far surpasses that of the Land of Earth. It is precisely because the common people are wealthy that religions are thriving, since the followers are rich and offer more to the religion.

However, that's all history now. The Land of Earth became much wealthier due to the flourishing of trade routes.

However, the Land of Hot Water is now in ruins due to the war between the Cloud ninja and the Konoha. Its former prosperity has vanished.

Although both the Cloud ninja and the Konoha Village exercised considerable restraint and largely refrained from entering the city, the number of travelers to and from the Land of Hot Water inevitably decreased significantly.

Yichen used Camouflage Jutsu and Light-Weight Rock Technique to Hiruzen a village in the sparsely populated Tang.

Yichen didn't have much information about the battle between the Cloud ninja and the Konoha Village. In such a large Land of Hot Water, it wasn't easy to find two sides probing each other with small groups of troops.

This is already the fifth village or town that Yichen has visited.

Although Yichen has not shown up to inquire, if a battle has taken place nearby, he should be able to hear some news from the common people of the Land of Hot Water.

Unfortunately, in the villages and towns we passed through, no one mentioned the battle between the Cloud ninja and the Konoha.

"Perhaps both sides are engaging in small-scale battles in remote locations," Yichen could only think.

The village was small; Yichen entered from one side and flew to the other side in no time. Along the way, the villagers didn't mention anything about the war in their conversations; instead, they talked most about some sacrificial activities related to the Jashin Cult.

Yichen, who thought he would gain nothing like before, involuntarily stopped at a crossroads on the edge of the village.

About ten meters away from Yichen, several adults were pulling a little girl away from the two bodies.

The Ninja World was not as peaceful as it had been in the past, Yichen had encountered similar situations quite often while on missions. He originally did not intend to intervene, but the attire of these Yichen caught his attention.

The group's clothes had a matching pattern, a simple red circle containing an inscribed equilateral triangle. Their faces also had some peculiar markings.

"Jashin Cult?"

It seems the intelligence reports mentioned that Danzo is cooperating with the Jashin Cult, and perhaps the Jashin Cult can be used to locate the location of the battle between the two sides.