Wetland Bridge

However, these matters had little to do with Yuya. He wasn't the Hokage, so why bother thinking so much?

Working himself to the bone to help the First and Second Hokage develop Konoha, only to end up with nothing to show for it in the end—that was something Yuya would never accept.

He was, by nature, the type of person who wouldn't get out of bed unless there was something in it for him.

Take this current situation, for instance. Even though he knew the dozen or so kilograms of gold would have to be handed over to avoid any future investigations, Yuya still intended to squeeze out some benefits for himself.

The fact that the Second Hokage taught him the Flying Thunder God was something Yuya hadn't expected.

How should he put it? This jutsu was incredibly difficult, but also incredibly powerful.

Even so, after pondering it for a while, Yuya felt he could still fish for some other perks.

Thus, he approached Tobirama and expressed his desire to learn the Clone Technique.

His target, naturally, was the Second Hokage's Shadow Clone.

Still, one cannot become a fat man in a single bite; he would have to take it slow.

It was just that...

Time might be running out.

Come to think of it, there was one thing Yuya had never been able to figure out.

How exactly did Senju Hashirama die?

Did he die of illness?

Looking at this guy running off to the gambling den every day, full of spirit and throwing money around, he didn't look like someone whose life was nearing its end due to sickness.

If Yuya weren't a transmigrator, and someone told him that this Senju Hashirama—who could run and jump with such vigor—was on his deathbed, Yuya would have spat a mouthful of salt soda in their face.

But honestly, that was just a manga. Kishimoto was just a manga artist; what the hell did he know about the real Naruto world?!

This was the real Naruto world.

Because I am here right now.

Yuya thought this with great bravado, then lowered his head to continue writing his next set of suggestions for Kagami Uchiha on the Ninja Scroll.

Gathering the people was only the first step; the second step was to start the work. There was no need for a grand opening ceremony, because in a time when most people couldn't even fill their stomachs, spending money on firecrackers was far less practical than boiling a pot of bone broth to distribute among them.

Therefore, what Yuya valued most was the work efficiency of these commoners once the project began.

So, he had Kagami Uchiha divide these people into ten groups, with the work done by each group tracked by their respective team leader and reported to Kagami Uchiha upon completion.

Then, wages would be distributed based on the quality and efficiency of the work, settled on a daily basis.

This was an experience Yuya had learned back when he was moving bricks on construction sites in his past life.

Hiring people specifically to supervise? That would likely only lower efficiency further.

Therefore, it was better to lay the cards on the table: tell them exactly how much they would earn in a day, but warn them that if the quality of their work wasn't up to standard, their pay would be docked.

Of course, the deductions wouldn't be too severe.

But given the current cost of living, where one hundred ryo could buy a catty of rice, these commoners certainly wouldn't want to lose even ten ryo of their daily wages.

Yuya didn't believe in human nature, but he did believe in self-interest.

As long as these commoners could see and touch the benefits placed right before their eyes, their motivation would persist until the day the bridge was completed.

This was the second step: using self-interest to drive these people to work hard.

In fact, with these two steps, the construction of the bridge itself shouldn't face any major issues.

As for the rest, that would be the impact of this collective action.

For example, maintaining the stability of the village: Yuya truly didn't believe that giving tens of millions of ryo to a few Jonin was better than paying the monthly wages of hundreds of commoners.

Not to mention anything else, just looking at value creation: when commoners received their wages, they would spend them, and they would spend them on daily necessities.

Grain shops, vegetable vendors, clothing stores for new garments, and perhaps some might even splurge at a restaurant—the total number of people involved would be far more than just a few hundred.

That meant thousands of people could benefit from it.

True, the value circulating was the same, but how much would the level of happiness increase after just one cycle?

Not to mention that Konoha could collect taxes as the money changed hands.

After a few more cycles, a portion of that money would return to the village coffers.

But giving it to a few Jonin...

What could they do with it?

Spend it at a barbecue restaurant? Buy some kunai, shuriken, or other ninja tools?

It was true that these were major areas of consumption, but more importantly, they didn't create happiness.

Ninja tool shops were already there to serve ninjas and were never short on cash (a daily reminder that Tenten was a little rich girl), and barbecue restaurants were also establishments for the wealthy, at least at this stage.

Compared to giving it to those few Jonin, Yuya still felt it was more important to let these commoners live better lives.

Although he had no interest in being Hokage and no desire to labor for Konoha, if he could help these commoners, Yuya wouldn't refuse.

It is truly not easy for the ordinary people in the world of Naruto who live day to day without knowing if they will see tomorrow.

The entire Naruto manga focuses solely on Naruto Uzumaki, never even mentioning the tens of thousands of ordinary residents living in Konoha.

Yet, whether it was the Nine-Tails Incident or the subsequent attack during the Chunin Exams, it was always the common folk who suffered the most casualties.

Yuya put down his pen and sighed. Life is already difficult enough for ordinary people, yet they are still exploited by Konoha; every year, at least half of the grain they toil to harvest must be handed over to the village as "reserve rations" to prepare for the ninjas.

Even so, this is considered benevolent by their standards.

Because by leaving them the other half, while they cannot eat their fill at every meal, they can at least manage to survive.

It is just a pity that Konoha itself is not actually safe...

Yuya rested his hands behind his head as he lay on the tatami, then shook his head.

Why bother thinking so much? I am not the Hokage, so why should I exhaust my heart and energy?

What Yuya did not know was that Kagami Uchiha had carried out the contents of the scroll they had exchanged without the slightest compromise.

Yuya was very clear about his own situation; he was just a little brat. It was impossible for anyone in Konoha to take a child like him seriously right now, so whether his opinions and suggestions would even be considered was one thing, let alone implemented.

However, that sly fox Kagami Uchiha did not possess the arrogance of the rest of the Uchiha clan—the "I am the best and everyone else is trash" mentality—and he had no intention of acting on his own authority.

Furthermore, the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, had intentionally concealed Yuya's true identity.

Therefore, while Yuya assumed his suggestions were merely idle talk, he never expected that Kagami Uchiha would execute his advice as an "advisor" without cutting a single corner.

During the construction of the bridge, he even took a hands-on approach, sometimes helping out personally without taking a single cent, and would even act as a mediator whenever the workers quarreled.

Since he was a ninja, the others naturally gave him face.

The result of this was...

Things went unexpectedly smoothly.

It went so smoothly that even Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama had their attention drawn to this place after a week.

The reason was simple: the living conditions of these construction workers—who were exhausted every day from moving bricks, cutting stones, and assembling the bridge—were improving at a visible rate.

Tsk, why is the currency in Naruto called Ryo? Writing "Ryo" makes me think of the ancient unit of weight. One hundred yen for a catty of rice is normal in Japan, but in our ancient times, if you dared to set that price, people would be rebelling the very day it was announced. Whatever, I should get used to it as I keep writing, lol.