"Masaki, what exactly is going on between the Uchiha and the Daimyo?"
Minato had barely sat down when his expression turned serious.
"Although I trust that you would never betray Konoha, getting involved with the Daimyo is something no Hokage has ever been able to tolerate."
"Don't you think you should explain yourself?"
Masaki poured Minato a cup of tea without hurrying, then said, "The Fourth Hokage should know that the war only ended recently, yet Kumogakure still hasn't signed a ceasefire agreement with us. That's the first issue—the threat of war remains."
"Since the war began, Konoha hasn't paid all the disability allowances and death benefits. That's the second issue—we can't guarantee that people will be willing to fight in the future."
"We have no objections to signing peace treaties with the other villages, but as the victor, Sarutobi Hiruzen gave up all the reparations. As a result, the compensation and subsidies owed to us Konoha ninja vanished like a bubble. That's the third issue—we can't get what we're owed."
"The clans, big and small, in the village all need to keep making a living. The Uchiha are no exception. To put it bluntly, we can't develop without money, so I set my sights on the rich."
"So who's the richest person in the Ninja World? The Daimyo!"
"Who else am I supposed to ask for money? You? Do you have any?"
Masaki's words left Minato speechless. Everything he'd said was true; the village's finances really were in a difficult state.
It wasn't that they hadn't asked the Daimyo for money. The Daimyo just kept making excuses to put them off, all so he could make the Hokage, the Land of Fire's highest military authority, submit to him.
What could they do?
They had no choice but to make the ninja who'd sacrificed so much for Konoha suffer first.
And that only led to a vicious cycle.
Without money, they couldn't train ninja. They'd lose wars, and losing meant even less money to train ninja.
The Ninja World didn't drag ordinary people off to fight wars. It trained ninja for battle, and only one person in dozens, or even hundreds, had the talent to become a ninja.
How could they train those ninja without money?
It all came back to the same problem—money!
If the Lord Third hadn't given up the reparations back then, I might never have become Hokage myself. Honestly, what a mess. Minato's mood sank.
Seeing that Minato was still silent, Masaki pressed his advantage. "And even that much, I had to swallow my pride and beg the Daimyo for!" There was unmistakable bitterness in his voice.
At those words, Minato's expression softened. He hadn't expected someone as proud as Masaki to swallow his pride and do something like that.
"Masaki, I had no idea you'd done so much for Konoha. Thank you for all your hard work." Minato straightened his expression. "So what does the Daimyo want?"
"The Daimyo wants the Land of Fire to have only one person holding the reins of power!"
Minato was so shocked he froze.
The person holding the reins of power could be understood simply as the one who called the shots.
Under the one country, one village system, the Land of Fire's Daimyo was one such figure.
The Hokage of Konoha was another, though nominally subordinate to the Daimyo.
But in practice, the Hokage was responsible for all the Land of Fire's wars against other countries. The Daimyo couldn't command Konoha's ninja at all.
How was the Daimyo supposed to feel? I spend so much money every year to support all these ninja, and then you tell me they're not under my command.
Wasn't that money wasted?
Of course, the Daimyo wasn't a fool. During a war, he couldn't cut off the funding. If he did, and an enemy nation invaded the Land of Fire, wouldn't he be the one to suffer the greatest losses?
So now that the war was all but over and Konoha had a new Hokage, the Daimyo saw his chance.
He'd be a fool not to put pressure on Konoha now.
"Impossible! The First established the one country, one village system. It's an unbreakable rule!" Minato furrowed his brow and loudly protested. "If that system is destroyed, you and I will both be criminals in Konoha's eyes!"
"That's why I'm pretending to submit. I need to get us through the crisis in front of us first. A little loss of reputation means nothing to me. As long as Konoha is doing well, I'm doing well," Masaki said calmly.
But the tremor in his shoulders betrayed his inner turmoil.
Seeing this, Minato softened his tone. "I know what you've sacrificed, but the Daimyo's idea simply isn't realistic."
How is it unrealistic, my little sun?
In the future, there will only be one person calling the shots in the Land of Fire and Konoha—and that's me.
Masaki held firm to his resolve, but his expression remained unchanged as he said, "I understand. That's why I asked Kakashi to invite you here: I wanted to discuss how we can make money from the Daimyo and use it to develop Konoha."
I knew I was right about you, Masaki.
For Konoha, you're willing to sacrifice everything, just like me.
Minato was very pleased with Masaki's response.
"About what I mentioned last time, bringing the Ino-Shika-Cho clans into the Police Force—I've already worked it out with them."
"Since this matter with the Daimyo has come up, I'm thinking of having them join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization you created as well. What do you think?"
Masaki was ecstatic inside. He was another step closer to his plan. But he put on a troubled expression. "I have no objections to them joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. I'm just worried that it might disrupt Konoha's normal operations."
"After all, we'd be transferring quite a few of their people."
Minato laughed. "The small and medium-sized clans that joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization are doing just fine. The Ino-Shika-Cho clans will have no trouble at all."
Masaki's eyes shifted as if he'd thought of something. "In that case, I'll have someone deliver your share of the earnings every quarter."
"Ah, I'm Hokage now. It's not convenient for me to accept money."
"Then I'll give it to your wife instead. After all, your child will be born soon, and you'll have plenty of expenses."
Both men felt they'd accomplished what they'd set out to do that day. The tension between them had eased, and the mood grew warmer.
"In that case, I'll support you for Jonin Squad Leader. You'll have my vote."
"Then I'd better thank you in advance, Fourth Hokage." Masaki was in high spirits. He reached out and shook Minato's hand. "For Konoha!"
......
After seeing Minato off, Masaki returned home.
Suddenly, an idea struck him.
[Summoning Technique]
"Poof!"
A small white snake appeared out of nowhere in front of him.
Then Orochimaru's characteristic raspy voice came from the snake's mouth. "Masaki, there's been progress with the experiment you gave me. If you're free, you can come take a look now."
Looks like Orochimaru's finished.
The title of the Ninja World's leading scientist is well deserved.
Today really is a double blessing.
After arranging to meet Orochimaru right away, Masaki took his guards to Orochimaru's laboratory.