Bribery Raikage

Inside a studio apartment in Kumogakure, Land of Lightning, a youth looked with a grim expression at his long sword, which had broken again due to training.

"Teacher's expression has been increasingly off these past few days, and he looks at us with a mix of helplessness and resignation. If I recall correctly, the Second Great Ninja War is about to begin."

Recalling his teacher's expression over the past few days, Tamura Hiroshi could tell something was wrong.

As a transmigrator who had "run" from Earth, he was resistant to the idea of this being the Naruto world. After all, this was a ridiculous world where even terrorists yearned for and fought for peace!

Especially now, nearly ten years had passed since the official end of the First Great Ninja War, and the Second Great Ninja War was on the horizon.

And yet, he was on the verge of graduation. Even if he deliberately failed to gain his supervising teacher's approval, he likely wouldn't be sent back to repeat a year. Instead, he would be kept to prepare for the war.

Thinking of the impending Great Ninja War, Tamura Hiroshi's face was filled with worry.

"All the ninja in the village are preparing for war now. Even some of the Jonin teachers at the academy have been called away. I doubt any excellent supervising Jonin will be assigned to our class.

Students like me in the regular classes will probably just get a Chunin to lead and teach us. It's unrealistic to expect to learn good ninjutsu from a supervising teacher."

Don't get him wrong, in Naruto, the Konoha 11 all had Jonin teachers, but they were in the elite classes, like the "gifted classes" in his previous life, filled with geniuses.

Even Sakura Haruno, Tenten, and Rock Lee, who seemed like ordinary civilians among the Konoha 11, were not simple. In fact, anyone with a surname in this world was not an ordinary civilian.

Because civilians didn't have surnames. Tamura Hiroshi didn't have one, at least his parents didn't. This current surname was something his father had taken himself the day he was recruited into Root, so he wouldn't be looked down upon. His current given name was a compressed combination of the name his parents gave him and his previous life's name, which fit perfectly. His original name was too embarrassing and carried too much karma; he couldn't handle it.

And being a civilian meant average talent, mainly reflected in Chakra Quantity. His father died at thirty, yet his Chakra Quantity was still pitifully low, struggling to even release a D-rank ninjutsu. Tamura Hiroshi, now ten years old, found his Chakra depleted after releasing the Basic Three Jutsu once.

With such strength, he'd be cannon fodder on the battlefield.

"I can't drag this out any longer!"

He glanced at the calendar. Graduation was in half a month. Tamura Hiroshi took a deep breath and made a decision that went against the Will of Fire and the Will of Lightning.

He had to take a gamble, or he would die on the battlefield.

Without delay, he retrieved two pre-prepared storage scrolls from a hidden compartment under his bed and headed straight for the Raikage Building.

Kumogakure was different from Konoha. Konoha was built on flat ground, while Kumogakure was characterized by towering, cloud-piercing peaks. This made it easy to defend and difficult for enemies to attack, but it also increased the difficulty of ascent.

Fortunately, Tamura Hiroshi was a ninja. Not only had he constantly imitated the training regimens of Konoha's three "hardcore" ninja, but he also had the aid of Chakra, giving him a physique far beyond that of an ordinary person. He reached the Raikage Building in not too long.

However, he didn't go to the mission hall but to the intelligence division.

"I am Tamura Hiroshi, a student from Class 9, Grade 5 of the Ninja Academy. I have A-rank intelligence to report to Lord Raikage. You can forward these two storage scrolls to Lord Raikage first. He will definitely see me after reviewing them."

Tamura Hiroshi handed the two storage scrolls he brought to the middle-aged ninja sitting behind the desk, along with his student ID.

He was still a student at the Ninja Academy. The current system was different from the beginning of the story, at least in Kumogakure. Children enrolled at age five, with a five-year program, meaning they could graduate at ten.

"A-rank intelligence! Kid, do you know how serious it is to falsely claim intelligence of this level?"

The middle-aged ninja was startled, and even an old man drinking tea by the office window couldn't help but look over.

"I will take responsibility for my words!"

Tamura Hiroshi's expression was solemn and serious. If he didn't have a "Golden Finger," he wouldn't have come here taking such a risk.

"A Ninja Academy student!"

The middle-aged ninja looked at Tamura Hiroshi intently for a while, then took his student ID to inspect it. After confirming it was genuine, he looked at the two storage scrolls.

"What's inside?"

"Scroll number one contains one billion ryo. You can inspect it. What's inside scroll number two is top secret and can only be unsealed in front of Lord Raikage."

Tamura Hiroshi's expression remained solemn and serious, but his words caused the two people in the office to jump to their feet.

"One billion ryo!"

They both stared at the scroll, unable to comprehend how a kid could possess such a vast sum of money.

Currently, a bounty for a Jonin at the Bounty Office was only ten million ryo, an Elite Jonin was twenty million ryo, and only those with special identities commanded thirty million ryo.

How many Jonin was one billion ryo worth!

The middle-aged ninja looked at the old man. If it were truly one billion ryo, then this kid's problem was significant.

The old man didn't say much. He calmed his mind, gave Tamura Hiroshi a deep look, then took the scroll marked with "one," opened it, and after confirming there were no issues, he formed hand seals to unseal it, revealing ten boxes.

Upon opening one box, he found neatly stacked banknotes, all of the highest denomination. Judging by the size of the boxes, each one should contain one hundred million ryo.

The old man was even more shocked. He then opened the remaining boxes and conducted a thorough inspection. After confirming everything was in order, he resealed them back into the scroll.

"Come with me to see Lord Raikage."

The old man glanced at the second scroll without opening it and beckoned Tamura Hiroshi before leaving the office with the two scrolls.

Regardless of what intelligence the kid had, or what was inside the second scroll, that one billion ryo alone was enough qualification to meet the Raikage.

One billion ryo was not a small sum, especially since the village was in dire need of money recently. The Raikage had already lost his temper several times.

Tamura Hiroshi quickly followed. Before long, they arrived outside the Raikage's office on the top floor.

After waiting outside the door for a while, they were summoned. The old man first unsealed the first storage scroll, revealing the ten boxes within.

And as the money was presented to the Third Raikage, Tamura Hiroshi was momentarily stunned. He felt something enter his mind but couldn't identify it. It wasn't a good time to sense it carefully, so he could only maintain eye contact with the Third Raikage.

He had to admit, he was indeed the strongest Raikage of all time. That aura was no joke; it made him feel incredibly oppressed.

"You may leave now!"

The Third Raikage glanced at the ten boxes, then at the youth who was trying hard to appear calm, before finally waving to the old man.

The old man didn't say much, took a look at Tamura Hiroshi, and turned to leave.

"Kid, what information do you have for me?"

The Third Raikage was very curious. A combination of one billion ryo and a ten-year-old child was too strange; there had to be something wrong.

Beside him, Dodai and Yozuki A were also sizing him up curiously, intrigued by the origin of the one billion ryo and the information he claimed to have.

"Cough... the information can wait. I've come primarily to ask to become a disciple of Lord Raikage. This one billion ryo is my betrothal gift. Please accept it, Lord Raikage."

With a dry cough, Tamura Hiroshi forced himself to calm down and declared his intention to become a disciple.

As soon as he said this, even the Third Raikage's composure faltered, and his eyes twitched slightly. Yozuki A and Dodai also wore strange expressions.

Is this a bribe?

"While one billion ryo is a considerable sum, it's not enough to become my disciple."

Maintaining a dignified expression, the Third Raikage didn't outright refuse, his gaze falling on the second storage scroll.

One billion ryo was indeed a lot, especially at this critical juncture. Both he and the village were in dire need of funds.

With this one billion ryo, they could procure more supplies, making the upcoming Great Ninja War much easier.

However, compared to the one billion ryo, the kid seemed to place more importance on the second storage scroll, meaning its contents were definitely more significant than the money.

Yozuki A and Dodai also looked toward the second storage scroll.