"I have a trade route in the Land of Tea. It's risky, but the profits are huge."
"Would you all be interested in making money together?"
Masaki Uchiha finished speaking, but the room fell utterly silent.
Everyone knew that the Daimyo and nobles of the Land of Fire had long monopolized the trade routes in the Land of Tea.
Getting involved now would be like snatching food from a tiger's mouth. To put it nicely, it was commerce; in reality, it was "smuggling" tea.
After all, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and those nobles didn't look like good people.
If they were discovered, the nobles might put a bounty on their heads and hunt them down.
The Konoha might even act on the Daimyo's orders and arrest the ninja involved in the "smuggling."
No one knew where the Uchiha Clan had found the nerve to take a share of the nobles' profits.
And now they wanted to drag everyone else into it. Wasn't that just jumping straight into a tiger's mouth?
Still, out of respect for the Uchiha Clan, no one spoke up just yet.
Masaki Uchiha saw that everyone was keeping quiet and understood their concerns. He continued, "You may not be fully aware of how valuable this trade route is."
"As everyone knows, the Land of Tea supplies ninety percent of all the tea in the Ninja World."
"And tea is a hugely profitable commodity, no matter where you sell it!"
"Especially the famously expensive varieties like 'Gyokuro' and 'Sencha.' Their profits are astronomical."
"It costs 100 taels and sells for 50,000!"
"According to my Uchiha Clan's findings, all the trade routes controlled by the Daimyo and nobles of the Land of Fire bring in a total of five billion taels a year."
"Five billion taels! You couldn't fit all that money into dozens of carts!" As he spoke, he held up a hand and showed them five fingers.
Some of the people below were already breathing faster, and quite a few had red eyes.
"But how much of that money ever makes its way into our pockets each year?!"
"None! Not a single tael!"
Masaki Uchiha grew more agitated as he spoke.
"During the Third Shinobi World War, how many of our clansmen sacrificed their lives protecting the Land of Fire and the interests of the Daimyo and nobles?"
"And yet, to this day, the compensation and disability benefits for our clansmen who were forced to retire due to injury or gave their lives still haven't been fully paid!"
His words left the clan heads in the room silent. They all knew the village's current situation.
The Daimyo wasn't providing funds, and the village didn't have enough money to pay the compensation and disability benefits.
The Fourth Hokage had spoken with the Daimyo about it many times, but the Daimyo always brushed him off, claiming, "The war just ended, and the Land of Fire has plenty of other expenses."
Even the Hokage couldn't do anything. What else could they do?
Find a way themselves, of course.
The medium and large clans were in a slightly better position. At least they had some reserves to tide them over for a while.
Small clans and civilian ninja were the ones who had really been dealt a terrible hand.
The family's breadwinner was gone, and their income had plummeted.
To make matters worse, the compensation and disability benefits weren't being paid on time.
Without money, how could they train ninja? And without ninja in the family bringing in money, how could the clan keep going?
It had become a vicious cycle.
"So, to save ourselves, we have to make a change!"
"This opportunity is right here in front of us. It's up to you to decide what to do."
After speaking, Masaki Uchiha sat down and picked up the teacup in front of him, drinking as if nothing had happened.
The other clan heads looked at one another, wide-eyed and unsure what to say.
The Kurama Clan Head was the first to break the silence. He stood and spoke with red-rimmed eyes. "Clan Head Masaki, the Kurama Clan is in!"
"Otherwise, we'd be letting down the clansmen who sacrificed their lives!"
"Even if we have to jump into the tiger's mouth, I'll knock out a couple of its teeth!"
A burst of applause rang out. Masaki Uchiha was clapping.
"Good!"
"Clan Head Kurama, you're decisive and straightforward! No wonder your genjutsu clan is as renowned as the Uchiha. I'm impressed!"
"I'd like to hear what the rest of you think. Feel free to speak your minds."
As soon as he finished, a sharp sound rang out.
"Bang!"
The Inuzuka Clan Head slammed his teacup down on the table.
"Clan Head Masaki, the Inuzuka Clan is in too."
"If the Daimyo and the others don't care whether we live or die, we'll find our own way forward!"
Seeing that even the Inuzuka Clan, a family aligned with the Hokage, had come forward, the other clan heads stopped hesitating.
"Clan Head Masaki, the Gekko Clan is in too!"
"The Kozake Clan as well!"
"I..."
"The Hatake Clan is in too!"
The room fell silent for a moment. Everyone turned to look at the speaker. Hatake Kakashi, who had been sitting in a corner, had stood up.
Seeing that it was Hatake Kakashi, everyone felt even more reassured.
Even the Hokage's student agreed.
This was a sure thing.
It would be a lie to say the Hokage didn't know about it.
If the Hokage had given it his tacit approval, what was there left to consider?
Just one word!
Do it!
Making money was business. There was nothing shameful about it.
Seeing everyone growing more and more enthusiastic, Masaki Uchiha rose to his feet and pressed both hands down. "Everyone, quiet down for a moment!"
"The route the Uchiha Clan found will bring in at least one billion in profits each year!"
At the mention of a billion, everyone quickly fell quiet, calculating how much of the profits they could claim.
"Now, let's discuss how to divide the profits."
Realizing that the main event was about to begin, everyone immediately sat down and listened closely as Masaki Uchiha spoke.
"The Uchiha Clan will take fifty percent. The other fifty percent will be divided among everyone here."
"The more Jonin a clan contributes, the larger its share will be."
"After all, every shipment along this trade route needs people to escort it."
"If our strength isn't enough, word could get out."
"As for purchasing and selling the tea, the Uchiha Clan will handle that."
"You can also assign qualified personnel to help with the accounting."
"Everyone else can supervise the operation."
"I've said my piece. Who's for it, and who's against?"
When everyone heard that half the profits amounted to five hundred million, why would they oppose it?
Getting fifty percent of the profits was already an incredible deal. After all, the Uchiha had found the route and would handle both the purchasing and the selling.
The others only had to lend a hand and escort the goods safely. They didn't even need to invest much money.
Where else could they find a deal this good?
Everyone knew that Konoha's escort missions paid poorly, came with a load of trouble, and were subject to a cut by the village. The squad had to split the rest, all while catering to the client.
They were practically begging on their knees.
Now, by joining the Uchiha in the "smuggling" business, they wouldn't just avoid investing money; they'd make more with less hassle and wouldn't have to answer to anyone.
They could earn money on their own terms.
How could they refuse?!
"I'm in!"
"I'm in!"
"I'm in!"
If they hesitated over an opportunity like this, they'd miss out completely.
The Inuzuka Clan Head suddenly spoke up. "Clan Head Masaki, since we're all making money together, how about forming an organization?"
"As the saying goes, nothing can be accomplished without rules. An organization would let us stand together and coordinate our efforts."
The suggestion had come just as Masaki Uchiha was about to bring it up himself. His eyes lit up. "I agree."
The others had no objections either, and raised their hands in agreement.
The Inuzuka Clan Head turned to Masaki Uchiha with an ingratiating smile and said, "Then, Clan Head Masaki, would you do us the honor of naming our organization?"
"Then I won't stand on ceremony." Masaki Uchiha laughed, thinking, The Inuzuka Clan Head certainly knows how to play his cards.
"Since this organization is open only to Jonin, we'll call it the Jonin Cooperation Organization, or..."
"The Shanghai Cooperation Organization!"