Uchiha Fugaku's Theme / A Fairly Successful Speech

The four bigwigs on stage also laughed, watching with great interest.

Namikaze Minato laughed the loudest.

However, although Nara Shikaku is someone who hates trouble, he can handle any situation quite well.

So he turned a speech into a stand-up comedy routine, and the audience roared with laughter.

However, he still managed to express his theme very well in this way.

Stay true to our original aspirations and look to the future.

The Ninja World is dangerous. Although the past was glorious, we still need to work hard for the future and should not underestimate ourselves.

The smoother things are for the village, the more vigilant we must be against potential crises, lest the efforts of our predecessors be ruined by the slackness of our successors.

After the conversation, the ninjas nodded frequently, deeply agreeing with the sentiment.

The villagers felt reassured.

My initial spectator mentality has become much more serious.

But this formality only lasted until Nara Shikaku bowed to everyone and stepped down from the stage.

Let's not make a fuss over this; let's watch the show first!

Compared to the first two candidates, the atmosphere was not so peaceful with the remaining two.

Uchiha Fugaku and Sarutobi Saizo at each other, the air heavy with tension.

"Clan Chief Saizo, aren't you being too nervous?" Uchiha Fugaku asked with a smile.

But his heart was not so calm, because he saw in Sarutobi Saizo's eyes a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve.

This guy is clearly going to make a big splash, and it's very likely related to that.

Uchiha Fugaku recalled what Uchiha Shingen had said in his letter, feeling both relieved and puzzled.

Does this kid know a little too much about the Sarutobi Clan?

Moreover, Shingen is a dishonest fellow; he never finishes what he's saying. I really didn't expect him to have this idea at first.

Sometimes, Uchiha Fugaku really didn't know whether Uchiha Shingen was proceeding cautiously step by step or just doing whatever came to mind.

The main issue is that the cautious, step-by-step approach doesn't quite fit the persona that Uchiha Shingen presents to the public.

He personally thinks the latter is more likely.

"Clan Chief Saizo, would you mind if I went up first?" said Uchiha Fugaku.

"Actually, I do mind." Sarutobi Saizo stern at first, but then he smiled broadly. "Just kidding, we're not enemies, let's just do our own thing."

In Uchiha Fugaku's eyes, the resolute determination in the other party's eyes had not diminished in the slightest.

"Then I'll shamelessly go first." Suppressing his unease, Uchiha Fugaku Sarutobi Saizo and then stepped onto the stage.

The first thing you see is a pair of eyes that are as bright as light bulbs.

I almost annoyed him.

He turned and greeted the four bigwigs first.

Namikaze Minato and Sarutobi Hiruzen had kind and encouraging expressions, and the expressions of the two advisors and elders were perfectly appropriate.

For some reason, Uchiha Fugaku remembered something Uchiha Shingen had said when he was jokingly asking Shingen for funding.

Some people become Hokage because there's no higher position for them, while others become advisors or elders because that's the only position they can hold.

Although this statement was full of personal bias, at that time, Uchiha Fugaku felt it was quite fair.

Stopping thinking about these things, Uchiha Fugaku turned around, faced the onlookers below, and spoke his first words.

"Hello everyone, I am Uchiha Fugaku, I..."

Before he could finish speaking, someone below immediately shouted.

"Fugaku, please don't bother with your self-introduction. We all know you're terrible at games and love to have fun. Just get to the point."

Uchiha Fugaku's face immediately darkened.

Are you an idiot?! How could you say that in public?!

I, Uchiha Fugaku, urge you to be kind!

"Wh... what kind of dish... I have absolutely no interest in calligraphy!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

The voice that had angered Uchiha Fugaku rang out again.

"We didn't mention calligraphy, so please get straight to the point. We've all been waiting for you!"

Chapter Seventeen: The Theme of Uchiha Fugaku

Watching Uchiha Fugaku "interact" with the crowd on stage, Sarutobi Saizo felt a pang of envy.

Uchiha Clan, after all, is Uchiha Clan, and will always hold a special place in the hearts of Konoha Ninja.

Before the clan meeting, he did indeed intend to try for the position of Hokage's assistant, but once the clan meeting began, he gave up.

The Sarutobi Clan is now in a very dangerous situation.

The danger is not a decline in strength, but a change in mindset.

The decline in the Sarutobi Clan's strength is only reflected at the highest level. In terms of overall strength, they are still among the top in Leaf Village, and in the current environment, this is not a problem.

But mindset is crucial.

Not all ninja clans are the same. Strength can be cultivated and endured, but the ability to survive is very difficult to improve later in life.

Organizations like ninja villages are the natural enemies of most ninja clans.

Leaving aside the legendary Ninshu, all the ninja clans of today originated in the Warring States period.

The ninja clan was born out of the need to pass on Ninjutsu, thanks to the ancient social structure of clans.

However, ninja clans with bloodline limits and those without bloodline limits have an inherent difference in their ability to survive.

Without a bloodline limit, or rather, without a sufficiently powerful bloodline limit, the very foundation that sustains the ninja clan as an organization is the inheritance of Ninjutsu.

The ninja village model created by Senju Hashirama inherently provides a better platform for ninjas who do not possess bloodline limits—ninja villages have the most comprehensive Ninjutsu library and a relatively fairer mechanism for acquiring Ninjutsu.

A ninja clan without bloodline limits, or even a special system of secret techniques, is easily overwhelmed by the onslaught of ninja villages.

Ninjas are very pragmatic. Ninja clans without bloodline limits are essentially just places to acquire Ninjutsu. They don't value blood ties that are already far removed from each other; their focus is limited to their own families.

After all, this is a group of people who are essentially pursuing power.

The First Shinobi World War accelerated this evolution.

During the Second Shinobi World War, a significant portion of the civilian ninjas who had grown up in number were former ninja clan members. These individuals chose the ninja village over their former clan and became ninjas in small family units—at that time, it was common for all three members of a civilian ninja family to be ninjas.

The Sarutobi Clan has been able to survive to this day not only because they have a relatively independent system of Ninjutsu, but also because Sarutobi Hiruzen held the high position of Hokage.

However, the Sarutobi Clan's Ninjutsu system has limited independence, while the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans, as well as the Aburame Clan and Inuzuka Clan, as secret ninjutsu families, have Ninjutsu systems with uniqueness and independence comparable to bloodline limits.

Needless to say, pure-blooded clans like the Uchiha Clan and Hyuga Clan are even more powerful. Their Dōjutsu rely on their bloodline to maintain, giving them an unparalleled cohesive force. The ninja village system has virtually no impact on these clans.

Although we are all called the Ninja Clan, we are not the same thing in essence.

However, such ninja clans are extremely rare; the Sarutobi Clan is not among them.

Sarutobi Saizo realized from the behavior of the clan members at the clan meeting that the Sarutobi Clan members were completely unaware of this.

The Third protected them too well.

As the clan leader, I also bear some responsibility.

From a personal perspective, Sarutobi Saizo had no need to participate in the candidate for Hokage's assistant. If he had been a little more selfish, he could have lived a good life for the rest of his days. But having grown up in this clan, he didn't want to see that kind of future; just thinking about it made his heart ache.

Everyone dies. Even a strong person like Sarutobi Sasuke, after death, will only have one identity: a strong member of the Sarutobi Clan.

He did not want the "Sarutobi Clan ninjas" to one day disappear from the world.

This method might be clumsy, but for the Sarutobi Clan at this point, there's no better way...

Sarutobi Saizo composed himself and turned his gaze to the stage, wanting to hear what Uchiha Fugaku would have to say.

At this moment, on the stage, Uchiha Fugaku began his presentation.

"What I want to tell everyone today is that a strong village is essential to better protect everyone, and financial resources are indispensable for a strong village," said Uchiha Fugaku. "The only way to make the village financially prosperous is to make everyone rich."

This topic is not only not new, but also very old-fashioned; it has been mentioned before.

Everyone can recite it by heart, since it is actually the policy of the Third generation.

Various investment promotion efforts began around the time of the Third.

But people are willing to give more patience to Dark Horse.

"Drawing on the Uchiha Clan's experiences over the years, I believe the village needs to establish a deeper partnership with the Daimyo's Court, effectively pooling funds and leveraging the power of concentrated resources to drive common prosperity for all organizations and individuals in the country, including the village. The wealthier organizations and individuals can then contribute back to the village's finances, and the village's ninjas can receive more missions and earn higher rewards."

In fact, Fugaku Uchiha Shingen didn't quite understand all the stuff Uchiha Fugaku was talking about, but that didn't stop him from explaining it based on his existing understanding.

The Uchiha Clan's success is not unfounded; at most, his account might be incomplete, but it's unlikely he's wrong.

Furthermore, many of Uchiha Shingen's original words cannot be directly quoted.

Is it appropriate to say something like "Robin Hood" in public?

The ninja clan members present would probably be furious.

Even if Uchiha Shingen- like philosophy wasn't actually what it seemed, with so many mouths involved, a slight misstatement could cause trouble.

As for the audience, they understood even less; Uchiha Fugaku started talking in a long, rambling way, leaving them completely bewildered.

What are you saying?

But there was one thing they understood.

Uchiha Fugaku said he wanted common prosperity. Hmm, that sounds pretty inspiring!

Next, they were even more bewildered by the barrage of words.

However, due to individual differences, everyone hears different things.

However, everyone roughly understood Uchiha Fugaku's basic meaning. He was talking about how to use the power of the village to concentrate and organize idle financial and material resources, provide them to organizations or individuals who are short of such resources, help them solve problems, and then recoup them in the form of currency or goods. The village mostly acts as a guarantor and supervisor in this process.

It's just lending, nothing unusual. What's refreshing is that Uchiha Fugaku designed a very detailed system to ensure that lenders cannot obtain unreasonable benefits and borrowers cannot maliciously defraud or use the money in a way that does not conform to the agreement.

But Uchiha Fugaku didn't just talk about that; he also talked about various subsidies. Although the process wasn't clear to everyone, the result was. It was a "privilege" for Konoha: many of their expenses would be subsidized by the village's finances, such as public transportation and the purchase of production tools.

On the stage, Namikaze Minato and Hiruzen listened attentively, especially Sarutobi Hiruzen, who understood that if Uchiha Fugaku's plan could be implemented, the village and its inhabitants would indeed benefit.

To be fair, although many of Uchiha Fugaku's measures involved borrowing, they were indeed pragmatic management aimed at contributing to the village. They were able to meet both the village's financial needs and the villagers' desire to become wealthy, without prioritizing making money above all else.

But there's a problem: where will Uchiha Fugaku get the money to cover these losses? There aren't many philanthropists who can afford to spend that much money.

As Uchiha Fugaku gradually unfolded his plan, Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes lit up.

Chapter Eighteen: A Relatively Successful Speech

Anyone in the Uchiha Clan Hidden Leaf Village probably list a few of their shortcomings.

But after dealing with this family for decades, Sarutobi Hiruzen believes that the Uchiha Clan has only one flaw.

I can't just make empty promises.

Or perhaps you're too pragmatic in your speech, only talking about the present and not the future.

Entering the Hokage Building and discussing one's vision for the future is a fundamental quality.

However, when Uchiha Clan interact with others, they are always dry and taciturn in their speech. If you force them to talk about the future, they will seriously come up with a plan. If they can't do it, they can't do it, and they won't lie to you.

Often, if you speak too bluntly, you won't meet other people's expectations.

But today, Uchiha Fugaku made Sarutobi Hiruzen re-evaluate this clan.

The Uchiha Clan has finally figured it out.

In Uchiha Fugaku's plan, practicality and idealism were combined very well.

As for the logic of absorbing resources from outside the village to replenish it, Sarutobi Hiruzen had no objection whatsoever.

The Land of Fire itself is also leveraging its national strength to draw resources from the surrounding countries. Not all of the Land of Fire's allies are there to serve as military buffer zones.