Keep Digging

Kakashi turned around immediately and ordered the Konoha Ninja guarding the area to bring Kuroki Ichi over. "The Hokage wants to speak with me,"

Qingcheng looked at Tsunade, who was still excitedly standing there, and said with a look of disgust, "Old Baby! Go out and play first! This place is not suitable for you. I have important business to attend to later."

Tsunade, still blushing, waved her hand dismissively and said with a smile, "No, I have to stay here and keep an eye on you. If you embarrass Konoha, I need to cut my losses here."

Upon hearing Tsunade's words, Qingcheng said with a serious expression, "You look like you're in heat, almost like a drunkard. Staying here will only make you more embarrassing. Go out and have some fun, see what's interesting. Or you could catch a few dark-skinned Cloud Shinobi and practice your Chakra Enhanced Strength, let them test your power. Or you could try strangling the Fourth Raikage; he's the Endurance King of Shinobi World."

Tsunade took out a small mirror and looked at her face again. Then, blushing, she said, "My face is really red. I drank too much just now. I'll go out first. If you manage to get any side dishes, remember to save some for me. You can't keep them all to yourself."

Upon hearing Tsunade's words, Qingcheng shook his head and said seriously, "Do you think the Shinobi World? There are still a few Kamizuru Clan. The Kuroki Clan raises Ninja Ox Ninja Sheep. Do you want to take a couple of pieces of beef with you before you leave?"

Qingcheng slapped his thigh again, looking disgusted, and said, "You snatched Royal Jelly we just received in one go! Your sense of justice has been dispelled by materialism. You're utterly hopeless."

Upon hearing this, Tsunade immediately retorted, "I'm here to supervise you! If we're talking about depravity, you're far more depraved than I am, you greedy Uchiha Clan!"

Qingcheng watched Tsunade leave and said with a serious expression, "I am an inherently Evil Uchiha. I allow my subordinates to steal things, and I manipulate events in Konoha. Do I need a reason for that? I am an evil person by nature."

Kakashi and a squad of Konoha ninja, carrying the surrendered Kuroki Ichi, walked to the wooden hut. Kakashi immediately called out, "Hokage -sama! Kuroki Ichi has been brought here. We request your approval."

Qingcheng wiped his face again and called out, "Come in, all of you! I want to see this Kuroki Ichi Ichigo."

Kakashi then addressed Black Fang Kurokazu, saying, "The Hokage is inside. You must show him respect and awe."

Kuroki Ichi was a middle-aged man in his forties with yellow skin. Qingcheng disliked dark-skinned Cloud Shinobi, fearing they would corrupt the Konoha bloodline. Therefore, all those poached were usable ninja clans, and they had to be white-skinned! Or yellow-skinned ninja, or even dark-skinned Cloud Shinobi, not just any Cloud Shinobi from a bloodline clan.

As Qingcheng looked at the Kuroki Ichi had entered, he said with a serious expression, "Clan Chief Ichiho, I've heard of your deeds. We're all respectable people, so I'll get straight to the point."

Qingcheng held up two fingers and said seriously, "The first option is for you to die right now and be exterminated by us. The second option is for you to leave Hidden Cloud Village and join Konoha. We, Konoha, can give you a settlement fee of one hundred million."

Kuroki Ichi was a very capable man, with a composed and dignified expression, but upon hearing Qingcheng's words, he was immediately terrified.

Kuroki Ichi, looking utterly panicked, said, "Hokage -sama! Why is this? Our Kuroki Clan is a very steadfast ninja clan. We simply cannot accept your request to betray us!"

Qingcheng simply waved his hand, signaling Kakashi to take him out and kill him.

Kuroki Ichi, seeing the Hokage's unpredictable actions, was utterly shocked and said in a panic, "Hokage- sama! Our Kuroki Clan is a major clan in Hidden Cloud Village, and many of our clan members serve as Hidden Cloud Village there. If we were to relocate the entire clan, we would be hunted down by the ninjas of Hidden Cloud Village!"

Qingcheng directly addressed Kakashi, saying, "Go and kill all those Cloud Shinobi who are chasing us! Ensure the safe evacuation of the Kuroki Clan from Hidden Cloud Village, and release any Kuroki Clan who have been captured."

Kuroki Ichi said in a panic, "Lord Hokage, the Fourth Raikage is extremely vengeful. If we betray him, he will definitely hunt us down. If we meet again, he will surely kill us."

At this point, Kuroki Ichi looked at Qingcheng with a panicked expression, and then said, "Are we afraid of the Fourth Raikage?"

The Hidden Cloud Village's approach to missing-nin is ruthless extermination; not a single one is missing-nin. There are no Hidden Cloud Village missing-nin in the Akatsuki. It's not that the Hidden Cloud Village doesn't have defecting ninjas, but very few dare to roam the Shinobi World. If they encounter Cloud Shinobi, it's an endless hunt."

Therefore, the Kuroki Ichi was also terrified. Even though they were severely angered by the Fourth Raikage and extorted a lot of money, they dared not defect and could only grit their teeth and swallow their anger.

Qingcheng waved his hand, then said seriously, "That's easy. Just kill the Fourth Raikage, and then your Kuroki Clan can just herd cattle and sheep in Konoha. I won't let you participate in any ninja missions."

Kakashi was shocked when he heard that Qingcheng wanted to kill the Fourth Raikage, but he asked seriously, "Hokage- sama! Are you going to kill the Raikage now?"

Qingcheng thought for a moment, then shook his head and said seriously, "Don't kill him yet. We'll kill him next time we come. If he dies, Hidden Cloud Village will go berserk, which will be detrimental to the current situation. We need to boil the frog slowly."

Looking at Qingcheng's serious expression, Kuroki Ichi was already terrified. He couldn't help but think to himself, "This Fifth Hokage's behavior is absolutely terrifying. He's even more insane than the Fourth Raikage. He's willing to kill other ninja village kage at the slightest provocation. Are they afraid of the spittle of the Shinobi World?"

Looking at the trembling Kuroki Ichi, Qingcheng said with a serious expression, "I'll spare Black-Skinned Lao Ai for now, but if you don't relocate to Konoha, I'll kill you immediately. Then I'll choose another Black City member to become the Black City leader, and he'll come with us to Konoha. Hurry up and make your choice! We in Konoha are very humane; we won't force you at all."

Kuroki Ichi, sweating profusely and looking utterly terrified, said, "Thank you, Hokage -Hokage sama! Thank you for giving us this opportunity! We are willing to join Konoha!"

Looking at Kuroki Ichi was sweating profusely, Qingcheng said with a serious expression, "Why are you so scared? I've given you so many choices. This is your own choice, isn't it? Don't say I forced you. I, Uchiha Qingcheng, never force anyone."

Upon hearing Qingcheng's words, Kuroki Ichi exclaimed in panic, "That's right, that's right, it was all our own choice. Hokage didn't force us!"

Kakashi looked at the panicked Kuroki Ichi, then said with a bewildered expression, "Persuading someone to surrender can be done like this? It's incredibly brutal, but I've learned something new."

After speaking, Kakashi looked quite moved, then respectfully looked at Qingcheng, awaiting the Hokage's orders.