"Let's do it here!"
Haku looked at the valley before him and spoke to the four people behind him.
A month had passed since Haku's conversation with Orochimaru. Over the past month, Haku had traveled to several places with the few subordinates Orochimaru had assigned him. In the end, he had come to the Land of Fields.
At Haku's instruction, the brothers Sakon and Ukon said nothing and set about building temporary wooden cabins.
"My lord, why establish a base here in the Land of Fields? It's so far from the other villages, and there aren't any Black Market bounty stations nearby. This doesn't seem like a good place for us to grow."
Tayuya watched the busy Sakon and Ukon, her brows knitting together.
Haku glanced at her. To be honest, he wasn't satisfied with the subordinates Orochimaru had assigned him. They were barely at the level of Genin, approaching Chunin, and weren't much help at all.
But Haku had only just gotten started, and he had no one else to work with, so he had to make do with them for now.
"It's precisely because there aren't any other ninja villages' forces here that we have room to grow. The major villages control those bounty stations from behind the scenes. If we're too close, they'll easily discover our true identities."
"Once the others get back, compile their intelligence and discuss how to develop the village. I'm going to take care of something."
After explaining himself to Tayuya, Haku assigned her a task. He said nothing more and left on his own.
"System, open the panel!"
After walking some distance, Haku stopped in a forest. Before proceeding with what he had planned, he wanted to take a good look at how much he had grown over the past year or so.
Combat Power: 165 S-Cells: 160 System Energy: 1.5 Special Energy: 1 type Sharingan Level: One-Tomoe 10% Abilities: Insight Level 2, Genjutsu Mastery Level 1 Byakugan Level: Unawakened 0% Ability: Insight Level 1 Nine Palace Seal: Eighth Palace 3%
I've reached Elite Jonin strength, but that's not enough for what I want to do. Looks like I'll have to take the path of slaughter.
Looking at the Combat Power shown on the system panel, Haku couldn't help frowning.
Although the Eight Inner Gates Formation Technique could temporarily boost his strength, Haku had no intention of using it out in the open.
The Eight Inner Gates Formation Technique was too recognizable. Anyone in the Shinobi World with even a little knowledge knew it was a Konoha forbidden technique. His identity as a Konoha Ninja still served a purpose, so he wasn't ready to abandon it completely.
I should gather enough energy for the Eight-Tails Seed first. Otherwise, the Nine Palace Seal will keep draining my chakra, and I won't be able to use my full strength. That would be a problem.
But before that, I should take care of the village mission. I might as well get my teacher's organization a legitimate identity while I'm at it.
Haku closed the panel, glanced in the right direction, and headed toward the Feudal Lord's residence in the Land of Fields.
The Feudal Lord's residence in the Land of Fields.
"Come on, can you just give me a straight answer? Are you agreeing or not?"
Haku looked at the Feudal Lord of the Land of Rice before him and spoke impatiently.
"My lord, it's not that simple. Even if I agree, it won't make a difference. The other great nations won't agree to let me establish a ninja village, will they?"
The Feudal Lord of the Land of Rice looked at Haku's smiling face and quietly wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"You don't need to worry about that. Just sign this document approving the establishment of Sound Village. Leave the trouble with the other great nations to me."
"Besides, do you think your son wouldn't jump at the chance to sign this document?"
As he spoke, Haku pointed toward the doorway.
The Feudal Lord of the Land of Rice cautiously glanced at the two ninja lying there.
They were two wandering ninja he had hired at great expense, but the man before him had killed them in an instant.
Seeing that there was no room to negotiate, the Feudal Lord knew that even if he refused to sign, this man would kill him and have his son take his place and sign the document. With no choice, he nodded and accepted Haku's demand.
"I'll sign!"
As he spoke, he signed the document Haku had brought, approving the establishment of Sound Village in the Land of Fields.
"That's more like it! This is good for you, too. From now on, whenever the Land of Fields has a mission to outsource, you can post it directly at Sound Village. It'll cost you less than going through one of the other great ninja villages or the Black Market!"
"Yes! Yes! You're absolutely right, my lord!"
The Feudal Lord of the Land of Rice didn't dare resist.
"I'll send a few ninja to serve as your Guardian Ninja, my lord. You won't have to worry too much about your safety from now on."
Hearing Haku's words, the Feudal Lord seemed to realize there was no changing what had happened. Following the principle that if you couldn't resist, you might as well enjoy it, he spoke up first.
"Honored ninja, how strong are you in this world? Could you become the strongest person alive?"
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