First, I'll Tax You Sixty Percent

The more shops one owns, the higher the income, and consequently, the more tax one must pay.

This tactic is specifically aimed at the wealthy.

In any case, these ninja clans do not support Orochimaru; they find him difficult to control, too opinionated, and lacking in sentimentality.

So, tormenting them is the logical conclusion.

Those being taxed at sixty percent are the wealthy, the ultra-rich.

This has nothing to do with the civilian jonin who pay a fifteen percent income tax and can collect a pension in their old age; in fact, they are hoping for this to happen. The wealthier the village, the better their benefits will be when they retire.

"Sixty percent tax? I have to give Konoha six hundred thousand ryo for every million I earn?!"

"Are you talking nonsense?!"

"Third Hokage, if you agree to this guy Zhengyi's suggestion, it's nothing short of a..."

"Silence!!"

The words of the jonin with business interests were cut off just as he was about to threaten defection, as Choza Akimichi punched him, sending him flying.

After he recovered from being sent flying, he realized what he had almost said.

"Sumimasen, I spoke without thinking, Third Hokage." He hurriedly performed a dogeza after getting up.

"Hoo." Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a long cloud of smoke and waved his hand to signal him to rise.

He was contemplating something.

If Orochimaru becomes Hokage, what is the probability that Zhengyi will sit in the seat of the Fifth? If Zhengyi were to become Hokage and implement something like this, would Konoha fall apart?

Is Minato truly more suitable after all?

This intensified his resolve to prevent Orochimaru from becoming Hokage; Konoha's current situation is not suited for reform.

"This matter..." Hiruzen Sarutobi was about to open his mouth to reject the proposal and win back the hearts of the people.

Danzo, sitting in the upper seat, suddenly stood up. "Third, I support Jonin Zhengyi's proposal."

Hiruzen Sarutobi: "?"

"Danzo, what kind of nonsense are you spouting now?" Hiruzen Sarutobi's head was throbbing; they were in the middle of a war, so stop causing trouble.

Danzo's reason for supporting Zhengyi was simple! This order was exactly the style of their teacher!

Tax you sixty percent!

Damn it! Why hadn't he thought of that?!

The teacher must have vigorously supported the ninja clan enterprises back then for this very moment!

He had wondered why the teacher was so kind, handing over medical animal industries to the Nara, medical herbs to the Yamanaka, the meat industry to the Akimichi, fruit production to the Sarutobi, and the pet industry to the Inuzuka...

He even supported the Uchiha in the arms industry.

So that was it!!

The wealth accumulated by the ninja clans as they branched out and flourished over these years is no small sum.

The teacher must have foreseen that the village would be short on money, so he arranged for a money bag that could be emptied at any time.

Originally, Zhengyi's proposal had no hope, but with Danzo—that troublemaker, or rather, that heavy hitter—stepping in, the success rate skyrocketed.

Money! Could Danzo possibly turn down money that could be so easily snatched?

When it was just Zhengyi speaking, the jonin in the village felt no pressure.

Now that Danzo was speaking, the pressure was immense!!!

Who among those present hadn't been extorted by Danzo, forced to contribute one or two clan geniuses?

This piece of trash prides himself on being like the Second Hokage.

In reality, he has neither the form nor the spirit; he is a complete mess, a mad dog!

If Danzo were to come after their money, could they really defect from the Konoha they had been rooted in for years just for the sake of wealth?

In the jonin conference room, faces wore expressions of every color.

Everyone's gaze turned toward Hiruzen Sarutobi.

In the end, it all depended on whether he would support it.

"Meeting adjourned! We will discuss this later." Hiruzen Sarutobi dared not offend so many people at once; he hurriedly ended the meeting, deciding to discuss it among the top brass first.

The jonin breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed the Third Hokage was still on their side.

Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi act so cowardly, not even daring to accept the grand gift their teacher had left behind.

In the Hokage's office.

Danzo was fuming: "Hiruzen, the village has reached this point, what are you still hesitating for?! Being so indecisive, how did the teacher ever see anything in you!"

"Danzo! You are thinking too simply. Would the Shimura Clan agree to you doing this?"

"Heh, what do you think? Regardless of who they are, the people in the village should be just as the teacher said: a ninja's duty is to execute orders. Once a mission is issued, you execute it; don't think about anything else. Anyone who dares to question the village should be arrested for treason."

"Danzo! This is not the same thing; taxes for ninja clans and commoners should be treated with equality."

The two of them were arguing incessantly again today.

"Enough, both of you. Danzo, the Third Hokage has his reasons as well."

Hmm.

You regret, I shadow.

Bang~~~

Hiruzen Sarutobi's intended successor for the Fourth Hokage was Minato.

However, in order to paralyze Orochimaru, he still granted him a portion of the Hokage's authority.

What if the Third Hokage disagrees?

We shall simply find a "Three-Point-Five Hokage" to agree instead.

Inside the Root base, Danzo, Zhengyi, and Orochimaru were in a secret meeting.

"Orochimaru, if this succeeds, I want thirty percent for Root's operational funds."

"Is that so? But I also require thirty percent for my research expenses."

The two of them taking thirty percent each? How could that work? They were already going behind the Monkey's back to act first and report later; were they supposed to leave only forty percent for the village treasury afterward? The Monkey would summon Enma to beat them to death.

"Research expenses..." Danzo really wanted to say that the research expenses could be cut down a bit.

"Hashirama Cells."

Researching Hashirama Cells was incredibly expensive; the cells were extremely sensitive.

Change a batch of serum → the results changed.

Temperature fluctuated by 0.5℃ → the results changed.

Operating with a slightly lighter or heavier hand → the results changed.

To ensure reliability, one had to repeat the process dozens of times.

One failure, and all the previous money went down the drain.

Not to mention the maintenance of the equipment.

As soon as the words "Hashirama Cells" were uttered, Danzo compromised, but his Root funding could not be reduced.

"Then I..." Zhengyi also wanted ten percent; he needed it to build welfare facilities in Konoha to win a golden reputation!

Competing with Minato for the position of Hokage was a protracted war.

Politics, after all, is about making those who support us as numerous as possible, and those who oppose us as few as possible.

Since the ninja clans opposed them, they would strike first to strangle them.

Commoners were their base, so they would go and secure their approval ratings!

Zhengyi had already mapped out a whole strategy for Orochimaru to become Hokage in his mind.

However...

"What do you need money for?" Danzo asked with a cold face, as if he would throw him into a water prison to feed the Kikaichū the next second.

"Are you in love with that student of Minato's?" Orochimaru was also skeptical.

"No." It sounded ridiculous, but he hadn't managed to pursue her when they were younger.

"Then what do you need money for?" Orochimaru certainly wasn't going to give him any.

Danzo and he were both money pits; if he gave some to Zhengyi as well, heh.

"I..."

When adults are talking, children should not interrupt.

Everything else could be conceded, but not money.

Talking about money really hurt their relationship; Orochimaru and Danzo almost started fighting over the uneven distribution of spoils.

The policy hadn't even been implemented yet, and these two were already acting like this.

Zhengyi didn't know how many times he had felt worried about the future.

He really wanted to smoke a cigarette, but unfortunately, smoking was bad for his health.

Sigh.

It's exhausting.