Different People's Schemes

Outside Konoha Village, the once desolate Naka Shrine did not take long to become bustling and prosperous.

Kei could not understand why ninjas, such highly efficient working machines, were not being used for proper construction and development, but instead wasted on the inefficient business of war.

War has always been a drain on GDP; unless one is at death's door, who would risk their life? Therefore, farming is the only absolute truth.

The genes buried deep in Kei's bones erupted.

Earth Style is used for construction, Water Style for irrigation; ninjas are far less dependent on the natural environment than ordinary people when it comes to large-scale planting and animal husbandry.

Even the production efficiency of Uchiha Oboro, a waste with only F-rank strength, is stronger than a hundred ordinary people, yet her consumption is far less than ten. It is quite inconsistent with the law of conservation of energy.

The level of development in the Hokage world is too low, and the production efficiency of the people is also too low.

Ordinary villages can only choose to farm near water sources, and to this day, villages still fight tooth and nail over water rights.

Yet ninjas, who are proficient in Water Style, seem to have no intention of farming at all; this is simply a waste.

Uchiha Kei does not allow such things to exist.

Just like that, Naka Shrine visibly transformed into a series of pastures and farms.

This place, once considered a desolate land unsuitable for survival, was, in Kei's eyes, actually fertile ground.

Due to years of abandonment, the black soil on the ground was so rich it seemed to glisten with oil at a mere touch.

As for the lack of water, forcing plants to rely on rainfall, that was merely due to the ninjas' lack of effort. Is a lack of water a problem for ordinary people? Is it still a problem for a ninja?

Isn't that something that comes with a simple clap of the hands?

While integrating resources and accumulating strength in the Land of Fire, Uchiha Kei enclosed large swaths of wild mountains and forests, developing them everywhere.

He set up trading posts on the essential routes to Konoha, opened hot springs in the mountains, took in refugees at strategic junctions, and even corralled wandering ninjas in dangerous areas, going so far as to issue them missions.

In short, every drop of blood flowing through Konoha must be tasted by me, Uchiha Kei, to determine its saltiness.

Even without the system, Uchiha Kei could support a massive population in less than two years. Not to mention with the system's blessing, the mission hall in Konoha is now nothing more than a decoration to Kei.

Yet even so, Uchiha Kei was still not satisfied.

With a strategy of surrounding Konoha with the wilderness, sooner or later, Konoha would become his inner city.

Surrounding Naka Shrine, Granny Ogen led the Iga Clan to establish forty-nine mountain hermit dwellings centered around a main hall dedicated to the Maitreya Buddha, naming the place the "Iga Forty-Nine Temples."

From now on, this would be an academy for teaching Iga-style ninjutsu.

Those wandering ninjas could come here to study as long as they performed meritorious service for the Uchiha.

The Konoha Ninja Academy's opening of the Three Basic Techniques sparked a revolution in the ninja world, making the mass cultivation of genin the mainstream.

The "Iga Forty-Nine Temples" went even further, teaching everything from the basic Three Basic Techniques and chakra refinement to the "Five Ways and Seven Methods of the Ninja" and the "Food, Incense, Medicine, Qi, and Body" disciplines.

Those with talent, after passing the tests, would even be taught the ninjutsu textbook, "Bansenshukai."

It contained various basic applications of the five elemental releases, as well as the Iga-style simplified hand seal casting methods.

Even if you were clumsy, as long as you graduated from the Iga Forty-Nine Temples, you could perform a Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet with only three seals, and you would certainly not be much slower than those flashy seal-weavers.

Thus, if the Ninja Academy is merely an elementary school for cultivating cannon fodder, then the "Iga Forty-Nine Temples" is a vocational college ranging from basic to specialized training.

Those who graduate from here can at least become the backbone of the ninja world: chunin.

With Iga playing such an open game, Koga was not idle either.

The small hill behind Naka Shrine was occupied by the Koga Clan.

They named this previously nameless hill Handosan and began to worship the Mahavairocana; this would be the Koga dojo.

At the same time, this was also an intelligence and mission center for wandering ninjas.

Compared to Iga, which excelled in teaching, Koga excelled in the crafting of ninja tools. Whether it was the Second Generation Onimaru, the Third Generation Kikuichimonji, or the Twelve Heavenly Crafts, they were all forged one by one with the support of Uchiha Kei's blueprints.

These weapons, regarded as treasures by wandering ninjas, were looked down upon by the Uchiha under Kei's command. The Koga-style practitioners hoped even more to forge these gimmicky weapons using chakra-conductive materials.

A legendary weapon with a story behind it is worth far more than a simple divine weapon, sometimes even a hundred times more.

Rest assured, there will absolutely be people willing to pay for it.

What warrior could refuse the Dojigiri Yasutsuna that slew demons to save warriors, or the martial path that cuts the flesh and severs the soul?

Not to mention, it even comes with its own glowing enchantment.

Kei also felt that no man could refuse the chance to become Luke Skywalker, so it was time to plot the acquisition of a chakra ore mine.

Just like that, under Uchiha Kei's tossing and turning, this place was practically another hidden village, save for the sparse population.

However, Kei believed that sooner or later, this place would also be bustling with people.

The Third Hokage watched everything happening before him, almost unable to control himself.

Those ninjas fleeing from the Land of Water and the Land of Wind had gathered under Uchiha Kei's command, reaching as many as a thousand people.

These wanted criminals from various countries, who previously only hid sporadically within the Land of Fire, were now brazenly gathering in the small village built by the Uchiha.

Although their strength was poor, how many spies from enemy nations were hidden among them? Did Uchiha Kei even have a clue?

"A foul atmosphere, utterly senseless!"

Sarutobi gritted his teeth in hatred, swearing to himself that sooner or later, he would swallow Uchiha Kei whole.

Uchiha Kei remained indifferent to this; he understood that his core would always be the individuals he summoned, and gathering so many rogue ninjas was merely a way to muddy the waters.

While the Third Hokage viewed Uchiha Kei as his sole target for the near future, Uchiha Kei had never once considered the Third Hokage a target of his own.

To follow another's rhythm is to forever compose music for someone else's score.

In the world of Uchiha Kei, the horizon is a sea of stars; wherever his gaze falls, there is love, and wherever his heart turns, there is beauty.

The Third Hokage is unimportant, the Daimyo is unimportant; it is the absence of them that is truly important to the Uchiha.

Right now, Uchiha Kei's gathering of these restless rogue ninjas has only one purpose: to uncover who exactly is backing the existence of the Bounty Exchange.

With the existence of hidden villages and the Ninja Hall, why do so many missions and such vast amounts of capital flow toward the Bounty Exchange instead?

Furthermore, these missions are being funneled to the Bounty Exchange at high prices.

It is not as if Konoha refuses assassination missions; even if one wished to assassinate a ninja from Konoha, other hidden villages would gladly accept the job.

Therefore, the fact that certain unsavory missions are handed over to the underworld seems highly irrational.

So, who is supporting the Bounty Exchange?

Even if an organization spanning the entire ninja world could emerge simply due to the existence of a large number of rogue ninjas, Kei refuses to believe it could function without sufficient financial backing.

Uchiha Kei now intends to make the first move, utilizing the advantages of his system to introduce a hub for missions to the ninja world that offers lucrative rewards, imposes no identity restrictions, and carries a low risk factor.

Once this mission hub appears, it will be a matter of seeing whether this underground establishment raises its prices to maintain its own existence.

If it does not raise its prices, then perhaps the Bounty Exchange was indeed born simply because of the large number of rogue ninjas. Once these rogue ninjas have a better option, the Bounty Exchange will lose its reason for existing.

However, if the mission rewards at the Bounty Exchange also become more lucrative, it will prove that someone is backing these rogue ninjas, and that constant turmoil in the ninja world is the goal of these people.

Then, things will become truly interesting!