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"I have a trade route in the Land of Tea. The risk is a bit high, but the profits are immense."

"I wonder if you gentlemen are willing to make some money together?"

Masaki Uchiha finished speaking, yet the room remained deathly silent.

One must understand that the trade routes of the Land of Tea have always been monopolized by the Daimyo and the nobles of the Land of Fire.

To intervene in this matter now is no different from pulling teeth from a tiger's mouth; to put it politely, it is trading, but in reality, it is 'smuggling' tea.

After all, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and those nobles do not look like kind-hearted people.

If discovered, one might end up with a bounty on their head, hunted by those very nobles.

Even Konoha might be compelled by the Daimyo's demands to arrest the ninjas involved in this 'smuggling.'

It is truly a mystery where the Uchiha Clan found the audacity to snatch a piece of the pie from the nobles.

And to drag us into this mess—isn't that just jumping straight into the tiger's den?

However, out of respect for the Uchiha Clan, no one spoke up for the time being.

Masaki Uchiha watched the silent crowd, well aware of their concerns, and continued: "Perhaps you all do not fully grasp the value of this trade route."

"As everyone knows, ninety percent of the tea in the entire ninja world is supplied by the Land of Tea."

"And tea, as a commodity, is a source of exorbitant profit no matter where it is sold!"

"Especially high-priced teas like 'Gyokuro' and 'Sencha'—those are profits upon profits."

"A cost of 100 ryo can sell for 50,000 ryo!"

"According to my Uchiha Clan's investigation, all the trade routes controlled by the Daimyo and nobles of the Land of Fire combined bring in 5 billion ryo annually."

"5 billion ryo! You couldn't fit that much money into dozens of carriages!" As he spoke, he held up his hand, gesturing with a 'five' to the crowd.

Some in the audience began to breathe heavily, and many eyes turned red with greed.

"But how much of that actually reaches our mouths?!"

"None! Not a single cent!"

Masaki Uchiha grew increasingly agitated as he spoke.

"During the Third Shinobi World War, how many of our clansmen sacrificed their lives to protect the Land of Fire, to protect the interests of the Daimyo and the nobles!"

"Yet to this day, the pensions and disability allowances for those who retired due to injury or sacrificed their lives have not been paid in full!"

These words silenced the clan heads present, as everyone knew the current situation in the village.

The Daimyo refuses to allocate funds, and the village has no surplus money to pay the pensions and disability allowances.

The Fourth Hokage has communicated with the Daimyo many times, but the Daimyo always makes excuses, claiming that "the war has just ended, and the Land of Fire has many places where money is needed," evading the issue at every turn.

If even the Hokage is helpless, what can be done?

One must find a way for oneself.

The medium and large ninja clans are slightly better off, at least having some foundation to sustain themselves for a while.

But the small ninja clans and civilian ninjas have truly suffered the worst.

With the pillars of their families gone, it is bad enough that their income has plummeted.

The fact that pensions and disability allowances are not distributed on time is adding insult to injury.

Without money, how can one train ninjas? Without ninjas in the family to earn money, how can the clan continue to develop?

And so, it has become a vicious cycle.

"Therefore, for the sake of our own survival, we must make a change!"

"Now, this path is laid out before you; it is up to you to decide."

Masaki Uchiha sat down after speaking, nonchalantly picking up the teacup before him to take a sip.

The other clan heads looked at one another, staring blankly.

The Kurama Clan Head was the first to break the silence, standing up with reddened eyes and saying: "Clan Head Masaki, my Kurama Clan is definitely walking this path!"

"Otherwise, I would be failing those clansmen who sacrificed their lives!"

"Even if it means entering the tiger's mouth, I will break off two of its teeth!"

A sudden round of applause rang out; Masaki Uchiha was clapping.

"Good!"

"The Kurama Clan Head is a man of his word! Truly worthy of being a genjutsu clan as famous as my Uchiha! I admire you!"

"I wonder what the other clan heads think? Everyone is free to speak their minds."

No sooner had the words fallen than a sound was heard.

"Bang!"

The Inuzuka Clan Head slammed his teacup heavily onto the table.

"Clan Head Masaki, my Inuzuka Clan is definitely in on this too."

"Since the Daimyo and the others don't care whether we live or die, we shall find our own way out!"

Seeing that even the Inuzuka Clan, a family typically aligned with the Hokage, had stepped forward, the other clan heads no longer hesitated.

"Clan Head Masaki Uchiha, the Gekko Clan is in!"

"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 the corner, had stood up.

Seeing that it was Hatake Kakashi, everyone felt significantly more at ease.

Even the Hokage's disciple had agreed.

This was a sure thing.

To say the Hokage was unaware would be a lie.

Since the Hokage had tacitly approved, what else was there to consider?

It came down to one word!

Do it!

Making money is business; there's no shame in it.

Watching the crowd's excitement grow, Masaki Uchiha stood up and pressed his hands downward in a calming gesture. "Everyone, quiet down!"

"The path the Uchiha Clan has found will yield at least one billion in profit per year!"

Upon hearing the mention of one billion, the crowd immediately quieted down, their minds racing to calculate how much of that profit they could claim.

"Now, let us properly discuss the distribution of profits."

Understanding that the main event was about to begin, everyone sat down immediately, pricking up their ears to listen to Masaki Uchiha.

"The Uchiha Clan will take 50 percent, and the remaining 50 percent of the profit will be divided among everyone present."

"The distribution method will be based on how many jonin each clan provides; the more you provide, the larger your share."

"After all, this trade route requires people to help escort the goods every time."

"If the strength isn't sufficient, it's easy for information to leak."

"As for the procurement and sale of the tea, that will be the responsibility of the Uchiha Clan."

"You are all welcome to arrange for your own professional personnel to serve as financial auditors."

"Anyone else can supervise the execution."

"I have finished speaking. Who approves, and who opposes?"

Upon hearing that there was a 50 percent profit share—five hundred million—what was there to oppose?

Getting 50 percent profit was already a massive bargain. Regardless, the path was found by the Uchiha, and the procurement and sales were handled by the Uchiha.

The others only needed to provide manpower to ensure the safety of the goods, without needing to invest large amounts of capital.

Where else could you find such a good deal?

Everyone knew that Konoha's escort missions had low pay, endless trouble, required a cut to be taken by the village, had to be split among the squad, and required them to cater to the employer's whims.

They had practically been reduced to kneeling and begging for scraps.

Now, following the Uchiha to engage in 'smuggling' business meant not only zero investment but also more money, less hassle, and no need to look at anyone else's face.

They could earn money while standing tall.

How could they refuse this?!

"I approve!"

"I approve!"

"I approve!"

If anyone were still hesitant about something like this, they would truly be too slow to even catch a fresh meal.

The Inuzuka Clan Head suddenly spoke up: "Clan Head Masaki, since we are all making money together, do you think we should form an organization?"

"As the old saying goes, nothing can be accomplished without rules. Forming an organization would allow us to huddle together for warmth and provide unified command."

It was exactly what he needed; Masaki Uchiha, who had been about to suggest it himself, his eyes lit up: "I agree."

The others had no objections and raised their hands in agreement.

The Inuzuka Clan Head looked at Masaki Uchiha with a flattering expression and said: "Then please, Clan Head Masaki, name our organization. What do you think?"

"Then I shall not decline," Masaki Uchiha laughed, thinking to himself, This Inuzuka Clan Head is quite sensible.

"Since this is an organization that only jonin can participate in, let's call it the Jonin Cooperation Organization, or for short..."

"Shanghai Cooperation Organization!"