A Clever Trick, Confiscating Nine Hundred Thousand

"My monthly allowance is only three million ryo. It's not even enough for my own gambling, so if I give it to you, what am I supposed to gamble with?"

"No, absolutely not. You're just a kid, what do you need money for?"

Hashirama Senju muttered to himself, thinking that since his own monthly allowance was only three million ryo, how could he possibly just hand it over?

That was a third of his entire fortune; if he gave it all away, what would he have left to gamble with?

"Dad, even though I'm only ten, I need to start saving up a dowry for when I eventually get married, don't I?"

"You're out gambling all day and losing the pants off your back every single time. If you don't give me the money, I'm not going to the Ninja Academy. You can figure it out yourself!"

"Heh heh! I'm off!"

Senju Fujima knew full well that his father spent his days soaking in gambling dens, where the villagers secretly referred to him as a "fat sheep."

He lost every single bet he made; it was a mystery how he could be so capable at everything else, yet rank dead last when it came to gambling.

"You...!"

"Get back here, you brat...!"

Caught red-handed by his son, Hashirama Senju's face flushed red as he pointed at Senju Fujima and shouted.

"Heh heh!"

"Dad, how about it? Have you changed your mind?"

Hearing Hashirama Senju, Senju Fujima quickly turned around with a smile and asked his father.

"No! I told you to get lost...!"

Clutching his coin purse, Hashirama Senju roared at Senju Fujima.

"Oh, then I'll be going now."

"Bye, Dad!"

Senju Fujima looked at Hashirama Senju with a smile, waved at his miserly display, and turned to leave.

"You...!"

Watching Senju Fujima walk away again, a flash of bitterness crossed Hashirama Senju's eyes.

"My money, oh my money!"

"It's a sin that I can't take you with me to charge onto the battlefield; I've failed you!"

Finally, Hashirama Senju lowered his head and pulled a scroll from his robes—most of his money was stored inside. To ensure Senju Fujima attended school, he decided to bite the bullet.

He resolved to hand over a third of his wealth to Senju Fujima.

"Kid, get back here."

"Snap...!"

Hashirama Senju stared at Senju Fujima's retreating back, his face beet red as he shouted. As the words left his mouth, he felt as if his heart were shattering.

"Heh heh! Dad, have you thought it over?"

Hearing Hashirama Senju's voice again, Senju Fujima appeared before him in an instant, looking at him with a grin.

"Take it...!"

Seeing the smile on his cheapskate son's face, Hashirama Senju really wanted to give him a beating. Knowing he was about to lose a third of his fortune, his heart was filled with extreme reluctance.

"Haha, then I won't stand on ceremony."

Senju Fujima laughed, reaching out to grab the scroll Hashirama Senju was holding out.

"Hmm?"

"Dad, why are you holding on so tight? This is my money now. Let go, let go...!"

As he tried to take the scroll, Senju Fujima clearly felt a massive force resisting him. He quickly spoke up, not forgetting to use his left hand to pat his father's hand, trying to force him to release his grip.

"Ah...! My money...!"

Hashirama Senju was a thousand times unwilling, but there was no help for it. Despite his deep attachment, he ultimately chose to sacrifice this massive fortune in exchange for Senju Fujima attending the Ninja Academy.

"Hmph."

Finally, Hashirama Senju let go. With a look of utter reluctance, he let out a cold snort, though his eyes remained glued to the scroll, his heart still bleeding.

"Heh heh! Then I won't stand on ceremony."

"I'll be sure to report to school tomorrow, haha!"

Senju Fujima tucked the scroll away, laughed heartily, and vanished.

"My money! My money...!"

After Senju Fujima left, Hashirama Senju was overcome with grief, howling toward the heavens.

"Which lunatic is that?"

"Probably lost his money, I guess!"

"Is it worth wailing like that just for losing some money? Did he lose millions or tens of millions of ryo? Pfft."

"Haha, maybe someone just lost a few million ryo?"

Hashirama Senju's voice carried far, and many who heard it began to whisper among themselves.

"Haha! One million ryo, that's enough for me to spend for several years, hehe!"

Just like that, Senju Fujima's choice was finalized. He had not only successfully dodged the system's original reward, turning a non-existent prize into one million ryo, but he was also feeling smug, grinning from ear to ear at the thought of his newfound wealth.

"Ding! Detected that the host has made a successful choice and completed the task. Reward obtained: Empty Fart (absolutely nothing)."

"Ding! Detected that the host is profiteering to obtain one million ryo. The system is now imposing sanctions: confiscating nine hundred thousand ryo for recharge and exchange."

"Ding! Confiscation successful. The remaining one hundred thousand ryo has been deposited into the system inventory; the host may claim it at will."

"Recharging nine hundred thousand to exchange for the Chakra Absorption ability, capable of absorbing any attribute of chakra (including Sage Chakra, Yin Release, and Yang Release chakra)."

Just as Senju Fujima was reveling in his joy, the system prompts suddenly appeared, and the scroll containing the one million ryo on his person vanished instantly, swallowed whole by the system.

"Pfft...!"

"System, I'll screw your grandmother...!"

"But at least replacing it with Chakra Absorption is decent; it barely makes up for the loss."

"If you wanted to spend my money to buy your Chakra Absorption technique, you could have just said so."

Hearing the system's prompts, Senju Fujima spat out a mouthful of blood and nearly fainted, howling at the sky. Fortunately, the system provided a supplementary reward, otherwise, he would have suffered a massive loss.

And so, both father and son were left in utter despair—but in the end, who actually profited?

"This brat, what's wrong with him today? So jumpy. System? What the hell is a system?"

Kurama, residing within Senju Fujima, was somewhat confused. Awakened by the roar, the beast had been sleeping soundly until it heard the boy's voice. After opening its eyes and hearing that remark, it muttered to itself.

It was fortunate that Kurama had no idea what a system was, or the secret would have truly been leaked.

"Clan heads, I have already given you three days to consider. What have you decided?"

"Tomorrow is the opening day of the Ninja Academy, so I hope you can provide a definitive answer."

The Konoha Council Hall was packed with people—the heads of every major clan. Madara Uchiha was the first to bring up the topic. They had discussed this issue three days ago, but many clan heads had expressed their disagreement.

Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, serving as Hokage and Deputy Hokage, sat at the head of the table, looking down at the leaders of the various large and small clans.

Present were: the Hatake Clan, Hyuga Clan, Sarutobi Clan, Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Senju Clan (Tobirama Senju), Uchiha Clan (Izuna Uchiha), Shimura Clan, Aburame Clan, Inuzuka Clan, Kurama Clan, and the Uzumaki Clan (a branch, invited by Senju Fujima to prevent the total annihilation of the Uzumaki).

As for the other smaller clans, they obeyed unconditionally, sending all their children to the Ninja Academy. Only these relatively powerful clans harbored such doubts.

Upon hearing Madara Uchiha's words, the various clan heads felt more or less hesitant, while others were simply waiting to see; if someone agreed, they would follow suit immediately.

"The Yamanaka Clan agrees."

"The Nara Clan agrees."

"The Akimichi Clan agrees."

"The Senju Clan agrees, and we will send Senju Fujima to the Ninja Academy."

"The Uchiha Clan agrees, and we will send Kagami Uchiha to the academy."

Following this, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio initiated the first wave of consensus, as their clan secret techniques were relatively singular and could be learned just as well at the Ninja Academy.

Then, Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha dropped a bombshell, as Kagami Uchiha was currently the strongest of the Uchiha Clan's younger generation.

As for Senju Fujima, it went without saying; among those present, aside from the two Hokage, no one was his match.

By now, even Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju would likely find dealing with Senju Fujima to be a tricky affair.

After all, Senju Fujima now possessed Kurama. The chakra of the Nine-Tails combined with the massive reserves within his own body was a powerful synergy, dozens of times more terrifying than Naruto's chakra.

Naruto's chakra reserves were already vast, but as the son of the God of Shinobi and the son of the former primary Jinchuriki of the Uzumaki Clan, his chakra was undoubtedly even greater.

Furthermore, the Kurama within him was the complete Nine-Tails, not the half-portion inside Naruto, and he also possessed Wood Release and the Mangekyo Sharingan. He was practically invincible beneath the two gods.

"I didn't expect the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan to send Senju Fujima and Kagami Uchiha themselves just to get our children into the Ninja Academy. It seems that sending our children to study there is inevitable, isn't it?"

"Oh well, closing ourselves off to build a cart is not a viable strategy. It is not a time of war, after all; at worst, I can have them train hard within the clan during their free time!"

Tenshi Hyuga, the current head of the Hyuga Clan, furrowed his brows, finally making the decision to agree to the Hyuga Clan's participation in the Ninja Academy.

"The Hyuga Clan agrees."

In the end, Tenshi Hyuga consented, as the two most powerful clans had already made their stance clear.

"The Sarutobi Clan agrees, and we will send Hiruzen Sarutobi to the academy."

Sasuke Sarutobi followed suit, allowing Hiruzen Sarutobi to enter the academy.

"Hmm?"

Tobirama Senju, hearing Sasuke Sarutobi's words, was momentarily stunned, but he quickly lowered his head and said nothing more.

In the end, one clan after another agreed, marking a perfect conclusion that allowed the children of every clan to enter the Ninja Academy.

"Very well, then school starts tomorrow. I hope to see all of your children at the opening ceremony."

Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju exchanged a smile before standing up to address the crowd.

This result left Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju deeply satisfied, as their past dreams were being realized step by step, providing them with a measure of comfort.

By the next morning, Senju Fujima was walking toward the school with his hands in his pockets, whistling a tune.

Along the way, many parents were escorting their children to school, each of them wearing a happy and joyful smile on their face.

The Ninja Academy was indeed the first of its kind in this world; in the past, commoners had almost no chance to become ninjas, but now that there was a school, things were different.