Rogue ninja attacking the Land of Whirlpools?
Neither Shisui nor Homura paid much attention to the news, because such things were far too common. Those rogue ninja were either driven into the sea or absorbed by Uzushio Village as unofficial personnel.
Zabuza even volunteered, saying to Naruto, "Lord Menma, I specialize in Water Release. How about I deal with them? The battle will definitely be over within an hour."
Izumi Uchiha glanced at Zabuza, then reported, "The rogue ninja have already been taken out by a patrol squad, but this group was somewhat unusual. They accepted a commission and deliberately caused destruction within the Land of Whirlpools."
"Oh, really?" Naruto suddenly became interested. "Which ninja village is behind them?"
Izumi Uchiha gently shook her head. "There isn't a ninja village behind them, but a wealthy magnate named Gato. Apparently, our development of maritime trade squeezed his smuggling business, so he set his sights on the Land of Whirlpools."
At those words, Naruto, Shisui, and the others were all taken aback.
They had thought it was some formidable enemy. It turned out to be nothing more than a merchant. Where had he found the nerve to provoke the Land of Whirlpools? Even an ordinary Jonin was not someone common people could afford to offend.
After learning the details, Naruto looked out the window, a smile slowly rising at the corners of his mouth.
He had been worrying over how to solve their economic problems, and now the wealthy Gato had come knocking—a business tycoon who controlled an entire country and had nearly monopolized trade along the eastern coast of the Land of Fire.
The moment Naruto smiled, Shisui sensed something and took the initiative to say, "Lord Menma, are you planning to make a move against Gato? If we can seize