002 Village Governance Thoughts, The Safest Way Is to Make the Pie Bigger

Hiruzen Sarutobi shifted his gaze to the portrait of Senju Tobirama in the office and smiled faintly.

He cupped his hands in salute.

The key to how smoothly his conversation with Shimura Danzō had gone this time was that he had used the reputation of "Senju Tobirama's disciple" as a guarantee.

Rounding it off, he had basically spent the Second Hokage's credit score.

But loans alone would not do. He still had to give Danzō a little sweetness and make him feel as though he had actually come out ahead...

When it came to internal conflicts, political credibility was extremely important.

"Those fan-made videos focused on using fire as a metaphor for history. There wasn't much substantial information."

Hiruzen Sarutobi considered his intelligence advantage.

"The information currently confirmed is, first, that evaluations of me in my previous life's videos were polarized. Yet both sides believed that, had I done better, many tragedies could have been prevented..."

"This means there are many angles from which I can carry out my work, and most people can be won over."

"Second, this world seems to have a Deus ex Machina problem. Personal strength must never be neglected."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi analyzed the current situation, he pondered the five major modules in the Red-Headed Document within his consciousness.

Authority, Diplomacy, economy, military, Education...

Aside from the combat awareness that still needed some polishing and integration, these were important sources of his strength!

What kind of help they could provide was still uncertain.

But judging by the memories he had digested while pretending to be ill, compared with his former self, not only had his hidden ailments vanished, but his body had grown noticeably healthier and his energy had become tremendously abundant...

They were worthy of his trust.

Gazing at the five major modules, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled in relief.

This was far too familiar to him...

It was simply an ultra-simplified Performance Appraisal Form!

It required him to devote his full effort to improving every aspect of Konoha.

He had to grasp all five areas; every one of the five fingers had to be strong!

But for Hiruzen Sarutobi, this was practically a blessing.

He had gained a body capable of flying through the sky and burrowing through the earth, and could even experience life in a new world...

So what if he had to do a bit of work for the village!

"First, let's look at the scroll Danzō left behind." Hiruzen Sarutobi carefully read through it.

This was clearly the dirt Shimura Danzō had prepared against Orochimaru. Naturally, he did not believe it was an entirely truthful record.

But this dirt had been mixed with some truth, so parts of it were still worth considering.

All he could say was that the old fellow had swiftly settled into his role as a Hokage candidate.

And had begun tripping up his competitor...

Present-day Konoha.

While the overwhelming majority still believed Orochimaru would succeed Hiruzen Sarutobi, some among the uppermost ranks had already keenly noticed that, ever since the Second Shinobi World War, the relationship between the Third Hokage and his beloved disciple seemed to have undergone certain changes...

"Using trade to obtain experimental subjects from tribes within the Land of Fire that have not joined Konoha?"

"The Iburi Clan, the Tsuchigumo Clan..."

"Ninjas from other countries abducted by Root..."

When he saw that some of the experimental subjects were quite young, Hiruzen Sarutobi instinctively felt uncomfortable.

After smoking half a pouch of tobacco, he quickly accepted the reality and reminded himself inwardly:

This was a world where children had been slaughtering one another on the battlefield just decades ago.

For the so-called geniuses of today, it was commonplace for teenagers barely in their teens to have dozens of lives on their hands.

It was an age of utter chaos.

"Orochimaru truly is a valuable talent, and a rare research-oriented one at that. After all, science and technology are the primary productive forces."

"I need to find a way to make the fullest possible use of his talent..."

"But he must be placed under supervision. Ninjutsu cannot be allowed to become a wild horse that has broken free of its reins!"

"Abandoning one's bottom line in the name of research will only destroy public trust and derail progress. Even if there are short-term gains, they are far outweighed by the hidden long-term losses."

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered.

Orochimaru was a disciple he had treasured immensely since childhood. When Orochimaru was young, the bond between them had been like that of father and son.

But after Hiruzen became Hokage, his extremely conservative style of governance gradually began to clash with the grown Orochimaru.

This was why, after the Second Shinobi World War, Orochimaru had actually been more willing to join the rougher, more freewheeling Root and work under Shimura Danzō!

Without a doubt, this was a failure on his part—as both Hokage and teacher.

But fortunately, there was still room to salvage things.

From his memories, he and Orochimaru had not yet clashed openly. Rather than differing political views, it was more like a sulking son leaving home to start his own business...

Hiruzen Sarutobi contemplated the path ahead.

The immediate problems were tangled and endless: the combat shortcomings exposed by the Second Shinobi World War, outdated institutions, and the shadow of the next war;

internally, there were fiscal shortages, divisions among the upper ranks, and conflicts between the ninja clans and the Hokage Office Building.

"The best approach is to make the pie bigger and use newly created benefits to correct old flaws—but making the pie itself is difficult."

Hiruzen Sarutobi understood clearly that the Hokage's core responsibility was ensuring the village could fight and had money.

Building combat strength could not be done overnight.

But he already had an idea for "making money."

Konoha's finances relied on appropriations from the Daimyo Mansion and mission rewards.

He had once considered taking over the Daimyo Mansion by force, but after digesting his memories, he temporarily shelved the idea.

The risks were high, and the returns low.

By rough estimate, the Land of Fire's population numbered well over tens of millions. Though ninja held an advantage in force, they lacked administrative ability and could not replace millions of bureaucrats.

And having the already scarce ninja take on tax collection would only weaken their combat power.

Moreover, the Land of Fire's tax laws were outdated. Without war, ninja could naturally gain power like shoguns after a few generations. But the ninja population was too small now; acting rashly would only drive the Nobles to flee and give enemy villages an excuse to deploy troops.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sorted through the documents in his hands.

This was the "money bag" he had prepared for Konoha.

"Taking taxes from the Nobles' pockets is hard, but getting them to spend willingly is easy."

"To harvest the rentier class, sell anxiety, sell health, and add virility as an eye-catching gimmick."

As long as virility was involved, men would always be willing to spend unreasonable sums trying it.

Longevity, health, virility—combine all three and create a "Konoha Special Ten-Complete Tonic Pill," and it would absolutely become a smash-hit product throughout the shinobi world.

Why worry that those Nobles would not scramble to throw money at him, stuffing his pockets while shouting, "Lord Hokage, I want more!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi was confident no one else could replicate this move.

It had the three top-tier IP endorsements of Hashirama's story of self-healing without hand seals, Tobirama's reputation as an inventor of ninjutsu, and Mito's Yin Seal.

Orochimaru and Tsunade, the foremost medical ninja in the shinobi world, could fine-tune it in real time, while the pharmacological tomes of the Akimichi Clan and Nara Clan could serve as references.

Add him, a rejuvenated living advertisement—who would care whether it was a Golden Finger or a tonic pill?

As for the actual effects...

As long as it did roughly something and did not kill anyone, the placebo effect plus a little genuine stuff would be more than enough!

"So many ideas, yet putting them into practice is the hardest part..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed inwardly.

This first step

was to rebuild a solid teacher-student relationship with Orochimaru!

Hiruzen Sarutobi shifted his gaze to Shimura Danzō's incriminating material.

This was an important tool.

Sarutobi Clan Grounds, the Hokage's residence.

Hiruzen Sarutobi returned to the spacious, brightly lit house.

The moment he came home, Sarutobi Biwako and the servants helped him remove his conical hat and Haori.

At a glance, the house was spotless.

"Hiruzen, you've worked hard today. What would you like to eat tonight?"

Sarutobi Biwako asked softly.

Usually, whenever he returned home, a hot meal would already be prepared. If he came home late, the Anbu would deliver it to the Hokage Office Building.

But today, he had gotten off work early for the first time ever, so she had not finished preparing anything.

The previous Hiruzen Sarutobi had worked overtime until late every night. By the time he returned home, he would be too exhausted to have any appetite, often unable to finish even one bowl of rice.

"Tonight, I asked Orochimaru to come over for dinner. We agreed on six o'clock..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered. "He likes hot food. Make sure there are apples and eggs; anything else is fine. Warm two pots of wine."

"Thank you for your hard work."

Sarutobi Biwako looked up in surprise. Seeing the Hokage looking several years younger, standing tall and straight, she gave a slightly shy smile. "What are you saying?"

Her lighthearted departing figure left Hiruzen Sarutobi feeling somewhat moved.

So easy to appease!

Rather than his wife, Sarutobi Biwako was more like the "chief steward" of the entire Hiruzen Household. She had never once defied his orders, and attended to every aspect of his clothing, food, and daily life with meticulous care.

Even in bed, Hiruzen Sarutobi had the final say...

All he could say was that these feudal Ninja Clans did have their merits!

Hiruzen Sarutobi paced into the rear courtyard, changed into training clothes, and headed for the training ground.

Though his stats had gone up, combat reflexes and execution also accounted for a huge part of one's strength.

A top-tier account could produce vastly different results in the hands of an expert and a novice.

Training was something that could never be neglected.

At the training ground.

"Senju... Uchiha..." Hiruzen Sarutobi silently repeated the two surnames as he warmed up with his staff. The Adamantine Staff tore through the air, making it hum.

He thought as he integrated his battle instincts.

In his memories, the two legendary shinobi, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara, had left him deeply shocked.

In the current shinobi world, Hiruzen Sarutobi should have been considered a top-class expert...

But he was not on the same level as those two.

Studying history was a good way to understand the world.

"Since ancient times, every few decades to a century, the Uchiha and Senju would each produce a shinobi capable of defining an era, leading the entire shinobi world into war..."

The Adamantine Staff spun once in his palm, producing a faint whistle through the air.

"And every time, they appeared in such perfectly matched pairs, locking the Warring States era into its pattern for nearly eight hundred years. Only when Madara and Hashirama unprecedentedly shook hands and made peace was the deadlock finally broken."

"Was it a coincidence?"

The Sarutobi Clan Chronicles recorded that the Senju and Uchiha were descendants of sages in ancient times, but the words carried the insubstantial air of myth.

Could it be that the protagonists of this world were the "Senju" and "Uchiha"?

But so what?

The problems before Hiruzen Sarutobi could not be solved by waiting for a "saint to descend from heaven."

It was obvious that another shinobi world war would break out within a few years. Who knew when the Uchiha and Senju would produce another pair?

Besides, apart from Madara and Hashirama, the other "era-defining Senju and Uchiha" recorded in history had not all been as invincible as those two.

Their recorded strength could only be called exceptional, not despair-inducing.

"If true immortals do appear, the Senju would be easier to deal with. The Second scattered their clan members and integrated them into Konoha, so they would ultimately stand with the village."

"But what about the Uchiha?"

At the thought of the Uchiha Clan, Hiruzen Sarutobi developed quite a headache.

How absurd—there was actually a Ninja Clan with such a setting?

They were naturally sensitive, with profound love in their hearts, yet after suffering a blow, their temperament could change drastically. Their hearts would be reflected in their eyes as the Sharingan, and as they immersed themselves in power, they would grow arrogant...

It sounded extremely troublesome, as though they had some terrifying hereditary mental illness.

More troublesome still, the Uchiha Clan were founding members of Konoha, and their combat strength held immense value for political unity. Yet politically, they always seemed to step on minefields and cross red lines.

First, Uchiha Madara inexplicably left the village and fought Hashirama to the death, causing the First to die far too early.

Fortunately, the clan members had not followed Madara in rebellion and had all remained in Konoha.

Then, during the Second's era, Uchiha Setsuna launched a Hawk Faction rebellion. After Senju Tobirama suppressed it, the Dove Faction rose to prominence and fought bloody battles for the village during the First Shinobi World War, which counted as paying their Blood Tax.

But now that it was his turn to govern, the Hawk Faction was stirring again.

Although the Uchiha Clan was difficult to handle, as Hokage, he absolutely could not choose the convenient path of crudely isolating—or even cutting away—the Uchiha Clan with a one-size-fits-all approach...

Besides, the village's Performance Metrics were right there.

If he could make the Uchiha Clan develop complete loyalty toward Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi believed his Performance Metrics would certainly rise considerably...

"The strongest fortresses are often breached from within..."

"If only I could find someone within the Uchiha Clan who could carry out my will."

"But that's difficult. This person would need to understand the Uchiha well enough, possess the strength to subdue everyone, and also comprehend my line of thinking..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed, feeling that he was being a little too idealistic, then focused on his martial practice.

He shook the sweat from his temples and felt thoroughly refreshed.

Ever since he had transmigrated here, this body had grown stronger by the day. Even his understanding of ninjutsu, which had previously been stuck at a bottleneck, had begun to loosen, waiting for him to test each insight one by one.

In his youth, he had been a tall, upright man. But when the Hokage position had suddenly fallen upon him, the pressure seemed to have taken the form of a mountain—not only weighing his mind down to exhaustion, but visibly shrinking his height and frame as well.

The body was the vessel of politics. Though true Authority should transcend superficial appearance and be built upon achievements...

But unnatural aging was clearly harmful to one's prestige.

In a sense, the rise of the Uchiha Hawk Faction was also somewhat related to his previously aged appearance.

"A clan that worships strength?" Hiruzen Sarutobi swung the Adamantine Staff fiercely, and a blast of air erupted, sending sand and stones flying across the training ground.

As the staff rose and fell, his insights into techniques and his battlefield experience gradually fused into one. In every abrupt withdrawal and release, each strike carried the seamless harmony of hand and heart, along with the vigorous vitality of renewed youth.

The staff technique, balancing hardness and softness, also seemed to reflect Hiruzen Sarutobi's intended approach toward the Uchiha Clan.

And at that moment, Orochimaru stood at the entrance to the training ground, staring blankly at that familiar yet unfamiliar, ferocious figure.

This... was the teacher who had called him over for a meal?!