A Troublesome Brat

"Lord Daimyo, the Scroll of Seals is far too important for me to decide on my own. We'll need some time to discuss it."

The Daimyo gladly agreed to the Third Hokage's request. He gestured for the Third Hokage to do as he pleased, then leaned back on the sofa with a satisfied look, letting the group leave the Hokage's office.

Ye Ning also began to ponder in silence.

His cheap old man had made his position perfectly clear: unless they lent out the Scroll of Seals, Konoha would receive no funding this year.

Though he was furious, Ye Ning figured that the Third Hokage, Danzo, and the others were completely powerless to do anything about it.

After all, they were only ninja, not magicians. They couldn't conjure money out of thin air.

So it was obvious that even if the Third Hokage and Danzo were deeply unhappy, they could only swallow their anger and obediently lend out the Scroll of Seals.

Still, being unable to refuse openly didn't mean they couldn't pull a few strings behind the scenes.

After all, the Scroll of Seals was kept by the Third Hokage, and only a handful of people knew what kinds of jutsu it contained. It wouldn't be surprising if they handed over a censored version.

Given the Third Hokage and Danzo's personalities, that was very likely.

"Xiaoning."

The Daimyo's cheerful call brought Ye Ning out of his thoughts.

He was grinning smugly and wiggling his eyebrows, having completely lost the imposing air he'd had while facing the Third Hokage. "Well? I did pretty well just now, didn't I?"

Of course he did.

Throwing his weight around like that? Absolutely badass.

"Your father here is, at the end of the day, still a politician. You might think I'm a bit unreliable, or even ridiculous, but this kind of skill is in my bones. It's something you'll have to learn, too."

"When you negotiate with the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, the Land of Earth, and the like, you'll have to use tactics like these. In a situation like today's, what you want is to borrow the Scroll of Seals, but you can't just say that outright. Otherwise, you'll have revealed all your cards."

"Start by making a proposal or argument they could never accept, or describe a consequence they can't bear. Then make your real request. That's the key to negotiation. Pay attention and learn. You'll have to deal with other Daimyo plenty in the future."

Ye Ning nodded thoughtfully.

This method was a little like the window effect, though not quite the same.

However, Ye Ning disagreed with his cheap old man's advice.

"I don't think I'll need this kind of negotiating tactic. If the other Daimyo don't agree, I can just beat them up! Ninja aren't allowed to attack a Daimyo, but I can! Who says only ninja can use jutsu?"

The Daimyo was instantly speechless.

For a moment, he actually thought that made perfect sense.

If he knew jutsu and had his son's talent, would he still waste time arguing with those distant relatives?

He'd have punched them already!

Inside another office in the Hokage Building.

Danzo's face was dark, fury barely contained. He looked like a ravenous beast.

"How dare he! Instead of staying quietly in the Capital of the Land of Fire, he comes to my Konoha and throws his weight around! Who does he think he is?"

"Keep your voice down. The most important thing right now is to figure out what to do."

"What do you mean, what do we do? He wants to borrow the Scroll of Seals? He can dream on!"

"Danzo, stop venting. What happens if we really offend the Daimyo and lose this year's funding? Konoha's finances are already tight. I was hoping to ask the Daimyo to increase our funding!"

"Enough, all of you! Stop arguing!"

The Third Hokage interrupted them, looking troubled and helpless. "Konoha can't function without the Daimyo's support, so we absolutely mustn't anger him. Let's focus on figuring out how to handle this."

Mitokado Homura, who had barely said a word until now, suddenly suggested, "The Daimyo only asked to borrow the Scroll of Seals. He has no idea what jutsu it contains. Why not copy down a few at random and fob him off?"

The others' eyes lit up.

That was a great idea!

It would satisfy the Daimyo's unreasonable demand without offending him, and Konoha's funding would come through as well. Three birds with one stone!

"Lord Daimyo, sorry to keep you waiting."

Now that he had a solution, the Third Hokage's smile returned.

After entering the office, the Third Hokage spoke before the Daimyo could say anything.

"Lord Daimyo, we can lend the Scroll of Seals to His Highness for study. However, some of the jutsu recorded in it are beyond the ability of even our Konoha ninja to learn, and practicing them is extremely dangerous."

"For His Highness's safety, we'll remove some of the most dangerous jutsu and leave in a few that pose no real risk. What do you think?"

Hearing this, Ye Ning couldn't help clicking his tongue.

Just as he'd expected.

But that was only natural.

Some of the jutsu in the Scroll of Seals really weren't suitable for lending out for people to learn.

Take the Impure World Reincarnation, for example.

At the least, it was an evil jutsu that desecrated the dead. At worst, it could threaten the entire Shinobi World!

Still, to make sure they didn't censor the Scroll of Seals too heavily, Ye Ning added another safeguard.

"I've heard a lot about the Scroll of Seals. The jutsu inside must be comprehensive, right? Surely it has at least one genjutsu? I heard that the First once had a genjutsu called the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique. It should be recorded in the Scroll of Seals, shouldn't it? Oh, and some of the jutsu developed by the Second Hokage—I've heard they're all forbidden techniques. Surely those are recorded in the Scroll of Seals too?"

"Oh? Is that so?" The Daimyo immediately perked up.

The First had ended the warring era and was a renowned figure. The Daimyo had certainly heard of him.

The First's jutsu had to be impressive!

The Third Hokage's mouth twitched.

What a troublesome brat!

The Third Hokage didn't find it strange that Ye Ning knew such inside information.

After all, the Daimyo's family had close ties with the Senju Clan, including marriage ties. A former Daimyo had even dealt directly with Senju Hashirama, the First. It wasn't strange that the family would know a few secrets.

Ye Ning's words really put the Third Hokage in a difficult position.

He'd planned to copy down a few random jutsu for the brat and pass them off as a simplified version of the Scroll of Seals. But the brat actually knew a thing or two about the jutsu inside!

Now things were tricky.

It seemed he'd have to add a few more jutsu.

The Third Hokage's expression didn't change, but his heart was bleeding. Faced with the Daimyo's questions, he could only force a smile and nod.