The Seemingly Equal Agreement

In the end, Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke for the many Jonin of Konoha: "Tsunade, let's lift the combat alert. Our priority now is to recover our strength."

What else could Tsunade say? In truth, she didn't want to start a war with Iwagakure at this time either. However, if Konoha did nothing, the Land of Earth would essentially gain a huge market, and the strength of Iwa ninja would definitely increase further.

But what else can Konoha do besides threaten war? Even the Daimyo of the Land of Fire doesn't seem to have much objection.

The Daimyo of the Land of Fire had long coveted the trade routes of the Iwa ninja, but the Land of Fire was constantly at war, and during rare lulls in the fighting, they were busy rebuilding, leaving them no time to deal with the bandits and wandering ninjas within their borders.

Now that the Iwa ninja has proposed incorporating the Land of Fire into the trade route system, it means that the rare peace will last for quite some time, at least the Land of Earth will not actively break this peace. This makes the Daimyo very interested.

Over the years, the daimyo has spent a lot of money on wars, and this Nine-Tails' Rampage has cost them dearly once again. Even with the wealth of the Land of Fire, the daimyo is heartbroken.

The Land of Fire needs a stable environment to restore its national strength; this is the daimyo's intention.

"Then let's agree to the request from Iwagakure and allow them to open a trade route." Tsunade finally made her decision.

A few days later, the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth signed Trade Treaty.

The two sides agreed on the following: 1. The other side's ninjas shall not obstruct caravans bearing the signatures of the other side's daimyo for any reason. 2. Both sides may dispatch a certain number of ninjas to escort caravans into the other side's territory, and the other side's ninjas shall not obstruct them.

This agreement is fair; the benefits and obligations that the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire, as well as the Iwa ninja and Konoha ninja, receive are the same.

However, a month after the trade agreement was signed, Tsunade, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and the others were dumbfounded.

Intelligence indicates that a large number of Iwa ninja have entered the Land of Fire under the guise of escorting caravans. Although restricted by agreements, these Iwa ninja have not entered some key areas of the Land of Fire, but they can be seen occasionally in most areas.

However, very few Konoha ninja were sent into the Land of Earth on missions. It turned out that the Land of Earth didn't need ninja escorts at all. The Land of Earth had ninjas patrolling the trade routes, and it was considered the safest and most peaceful place in the entire Ninja World, so not many caravans were willing to waste money hiring ninjas for escorts.

So only at the very beginning would some Land of Fire caravans hire Konoha ninja to enter the Land of Earth, but later on, there were no more such suckers.

Caravans heading to the Land of Earth unanimously chose to make the border between the Lands of Fire and Earth their final destination. The caravans would leave the Konoha ninja at the border and then enter the Land of Earth alone. On the return trip, some caravans chose to leave the Konoha ninja at the border, while others chose to leave the Iwa ninja.

As a result, more and more Iwa ninja can be seen in the Land of Land of Fire, while there are not many Konoha ninja in the Land of Earth.

In the Konoha meeting room, only Tsunade and a few advisors were present. Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a headache, "Tsunade, we also need to put in as much effort as the Iwa ninja to clean up the wandering ninja in the Land of Fire."

Utatane Koharu said, "Hiruzen, this means we won't have enough manpower. And once there are no more bandits and wandering ninjas in the Land of Fire, the village will have far fewer escort missions, and then we'll have a surplus of manpower again."

Mitokado Homura said, "How did Iwagakure do it? They have quite a few ninjas now."

Utatane Koharu said, "Since the Iwa ninja no longer need the manpower freed up from escorting the Land of Earth's merchant caravans, they mainly have two destinations: one is patrolling the trade routes within their territory, and the expenses for these ninjas are borne by the Tsuchikage."

"The other part involves taking on missions in other countries. The small countries surrounding the Land of Earth like to hire Iwa ninja, which gives Iwa ninja a large number of extra mission slots, enough to absorb those extra ninjas."

Tsunade on the table and said, "Then let's wipe out the mountain bandits and wandering ninjas, and then compete with the Iwa ninja for the mission share of small countries."

Utatane Koharu shook her head and said, "There's another problem. If we send ninjas to patrol the country like the Iwa ninja, then we'll probably have to pay for those ninjas' missions ourselves; the daimyo won't."

Tsunade had been Hokage for a while, but after doing some calculations, her expression darkened. The expenses were considerable, and given Konoha's current tight finances, taking on such a large expenditure made Tsunade think, "Maybe we should change Hokage."

Undeterred, Tsunade asked, "Why would the Tsuchikage choose to bear this expense?"

Utatane Koharu sighed and said, "Because the Land of Earth is the center of the trade route, and the trade route brings enormous benefits to the Tsuchikage. Maintaining the trade route is to maintain these benefits. Naturally, the Tsuchikage will not be stingy."

"While our Land of Fire has advantages in resources and potential, we certainly have no chance of replacing the Land of Earth's position in trade routes in the short term. In other words, if we do what the Iwa ninja does, we will only suffer losses in the short term."

Tsunade frowned and said, "So what if we suffer a loss? Doesn't the Daimyo know the benefits that the trade route can bring us in the future?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi continued, "The situation in the Ninja World is constantly changing. Who can guarantee that we can maintain peace until we profit from trade?"

Tsunade paused for a moment, then concluded, "Is it because of the performance of the Iwa ninja in the Third Shinobi War and Fourth Shinobi War that they gained credibility? Those merchants trust the Land of Earth and the Iwa ninja?"

As a seasoned gambler who had borrowed and owed money Ninja World, Tsunade understood the importance of credit. It was precisely because Tsunade never robbed, stole, or used ninja tricks that casinos welcomed Tsunade.

Tsunade's debts were eventually repaid by treating the nobles' illnesses, which is why Tsunade was able to keep borrowing money.

However, getting Tsunade to repay the money will require a battle of wits and courage.

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in agreement with Tsunade's words.

Tsunade thought about it and realized that whatever she did was not a good idea. Being too proactive in suppressing bandits would waste manpower. Diverting the already strained manpower would give the Iwa ninja more opportunities to enter the Land of Fire for escort missions.

If nothing is done, the Iwa ninja can freely come and go in the Land of Fire, which poses a huge threat.

While Tsunade was still pondering a solution, Danzo spoke up, "Fifth Hokage, send the Anbu and Root forces into small countries to assassinate Iwa ninja and Iwa ninja their reputation. Alternatively, send them into the Land of Earth to disrupt trade routes."

Danzo didn't say much, but his meaning was clear: since he couldn't benefit from the caravan, then no one should expect to have an easy time.

Hiruzen Sarutobi voiced his opposition before Tsunade could. "We can't afford to clash with the Iwa ninja now. We need to recover our strength, and we have to wait until the new girl who inherited the Will of Fire has fully grown up."

Danzo wanted to continue opposing, but considering that the main target was the Uchiha Clan he needed to obtain their Sharingan, he ultimately chose to remain silent.

The Konoha High-ranking Officials Meeting ended without any results, Tsunade approved of the Iwa ninja roaming freely within the Land of Fire.

Danzo returned to the Root Base and went to a secret laboratory within Root: "Hey, how's the experiment going?"

"Lord Danzō, Orochimaru's research direction is probably correct; the Sharingan can indeed suppress the First Hokage's Cells. However, to achieve this, we need a large number of Sharingan. If we only have one or two, they can easily be devoured by the First Hokage's Cells."

"Furthermore, our research on the First Hokage's Cells is not as advanced as Orochimaru's. Even if we obtain a large number of Sharingan, it's impossible for us to develop transplantable First Hokage's Cells in a short period of time."

Danzo's face was extremely grim. After hesitating for a moment, he said to Bing, "Go and contact Orochimaru. See if Orochimaru needs anything. If so, I want to cooperate with Orochimaru."

"Yes," Bing responded immediately, then quickly left the Root Base.

Orochimaru wasn't the Danzo one who wanted to get close to Orochimaru; for example, Nagato had his eye on him.

Unlike the original story, where Nagato and Konan frequently left Amegakure to recruit missing-nin, in this life, neither Nagato nor Konan wanted to leave Yahiko. Therefore, the task of recruiting Orochimaru was assigned to Juzo Biwa, Sasori, and another unknown extra who had already joined the organization.

To ensure the mission's success, Nagato also contacted Yichen, hoping Yichen could help Juzo Biwa and the others.

The Ninja World knew about Yichen's cooperation with the Akatsuki Organization, but few people in the Ninja World knew that Yichen joined the Dark Akatsuki in his personal capacity.

Yichen didn't want to be exposed, not even in front of other Akatsuki Organization members. He had mentioned this to Yichen the Nagato before.

Yichen was afraid that Obito would find out about his joining the Dark Akatsuki too early and then do something to target him.

After receiving Nagato's request, Yichen crafted a black trench coat and mask. The entire outfit was also decorated with Sealing Jutsu to prevent the Byakugan from spying on them.

However, Yichen needs the approval of the Advisor Group before leaving.

This is actually not an easy task. The Akatsuki Organization has grown too fast, and Ōnoki and his Akatsuki Organization have become increasingly wary of them.

Including Konan and Sasori, the Akatsuki Organization already has four Kage Level. Fortunately, Ōnoki and the others haven't yet considered Sasori as a Kage Level member.

Sasori in this life was defeated by Yichen twice, even losing the Third Kazekage Puppet. This made the Ninja World less wary of the so-called Sasori of the Red Sands.

However, the Akatsuki Organization's attempt to recruit Orochimaru, a true Kage Level S-rank Rogue Ninja, will inevitably raise concerns among Ōnoki and the others.

This kind of thing can't be overlooked just because Yichen has a good relationship with the Akatsuki Organization.

The Akatsuki Organization's growth will inevitably lead to a direct confrontation with the Five Great Ninja Villages. Now that Konoha is no longer a superpower, Ōnoki and others occasionally consider the position of Iwagakure as the Ruler of the Ninja World.

From this perspective, the Akatsuki Organization is undoubtedly a threat.

"How can I convince the Advisor Group?" Yichen was having a headache.

Before long, the Advisor Group, having received Yichen's notification, gathered again at Tsuchikage's Office.

As soon as Ōnoki and the others entered, they could tell what Yichen was up to from Yichen attire: this restless Tsuchikage was about to cause trouble again.

Having had countless experiences, Ōnoki and the others exchanged glances, then silently looked at Yichen.