The Wandering Shrine Maiden

"Lord Cheng."

The newcomer had a slender figure, a swan-like neck, a slim waist, and long legs that even her slightly oversized black-and-white nun's habit could not conceal.

She had a delicate, fair oval face, with large, thin, round black-rimmed glasses perched on her nose. Behind the clean, transparent lenses were a pair of hazel-green almond eyes, adding a touch of quiet intellect to her appearance.

Yakushi Nono!

In the original story, Yakushi Nono had become a Root elite to earn money for her orphanage. For years, she had infiltrated other nations as the "Wandering Shrine Maiden," gathering intelligence on other villages for Root.

Basically, she was that kind of female spy. Nobles wanted one, but could not say so outright, so they claimed they wanted to invite a shrine maiden to drive away ghosts. As for how she drove away those ghosts...

Well, those who understood, understood.

Now, she was an employee of the Uchiha Consortium, occasionally moonlighting as Uchiha Cheng's dialogue box when he spoke to others.

A red-haired woman around her age stood behind her.

"Sit."

Uchiha Cheng raised his head in greeting, then handed over teacups. "Ladies, please."

The two women took their seats one after the other. Uzumaki Rieko quietly studied the "Lord Cheng" before her.

As a ninja who had wandered through more than half the ninja world, Rieko had naturally seen many people and experienced many things.

That included no shortage of nobles and dignitaries.

Yet in her eyes, even the noble who had once aided the Uzumaki clan in the Land of Fire had not possessed such a temperament.

Even at Uchiha Cheng's side, Rieko could not sense the slightest trace of parting or pain from him.

Instead, he radiated hope and freedom. It made her inexplicably uneasy.

Was this what one should expect of Konoha?

"You are the exchange student sent by the Golden Consortium?"

"I am Uzumaki Rieko. It is a pleasure to meet you. Please take care of me!"

"Mm. As agreed, once you report to the Hokage, I will arrange suitable work and lodging for you, as well as ensure your safety."

"Thank you very much for giving me this opportunity, and thank you as well for your help!"

"You should thank Konoha. Konoha is the one that gave us this opportunity!"

Uchiha Cheng exchanged the usual pleasantries, though he was also a little surprised. Rieko was quite good with words!

Was this Nono's ideological work?

"Sanjie."

"Here."

The moment his words fell, a figure dressed in ANBU attire appeared at the door.

"Take this lady through the procedures later. I recall there are several vacant properties near Minato's home. Handle her move-in arrangements while you are at it."

As Uchiha Cheng spoke, a hint of amusement flashed through his eyes.

Tsk, tsk. If Kushina found out that the Golden Consortium still had a group of Uzumaki clansmen, what good thing would she do?

And which bastard at the Golden Consortium came up with this idea? Damn him!

What?

It was me?

Then never mind.

Pulling his thoughts back, he subconsciously glanced at Nono beside him.

Her pretty face remained as gentle as ever. When she sensed Uchiha Cheng's gaze, she gave him a soft smile.

"You've gone to a lot of trouble over Rieko's matter this time!"

He smiled lightly. He had originally put considerable effort into arranging for Rieko to come to Konoha, but now it had become an optional, insignificant move.

Yakushi Nono froze for a moment before bowing.

"Not at all. I am happy to be of service to you!"

"Mm, I happen to have a mission for you."

"Ah?"

"I said, I happen to have a mission for you."

Seeing Nono's face fall the instant she heard the word "mission," Uchiha Cheng leisurely sipped his tea.

Being a capitalist who casually exploited his employees really was satisfying!

"During your business trip, the Police Force has been protecting your orphanage, so you need not worry about that."

"And... Nono, war is coming!"

At his words, both women's expressions tightened as they cried out, "How could that be?"

Seeing their reactions, Uchiha Cheng set down his teacup and said solemnly, "According to reliable intelligence we obtained in the Land of Wind."

"The Third Kazekage has disappeared—or rather, he is dead. According to reliable intelligence, Sasori of the Red Sand likely turned him into a human puppet!"

Cheng smacked his lips. He truly could not get used to drinks like barley tea. He did not understand why so many people liked it.

Nowadays, anyone with status liked to keep a full set of high-end tea utensils. Whenever guests came over, they had to personally brew a pot.

After looking at the two women before him, he organized his thoughts and continued, "I can say with certainty that aside from our three major consortiums, the Kage of the various villages know very little about this."

"I do not need to tell you that the Uchiha Consortium's business spans the entire Land of Fire, making us the undisputed commercial king within the Land of Fire. The Golden Consortium has an even wider reach, extending into the Lands of Lightning, Earth, and Wind, while the Umbrella Consortium dominates the smaller nations."

"Our every move can even influence the daimyo's policies. Our annual profits exceed ten billion ryo, which is why we bear the title of consortium."

"But war is highly likely to destroy all of this! We must join forces and weather this crisis together!"

Uchiha Cheng took another sip of tea, swept his gaze across the room, and continued.

"To prepare for what may come, the consortium has already begun purchasing explosive tags. This is also the reason and mission for you to leave the village next, Nono."

"I hope that, with sufficient funds, you can keep the prices slightly suppressed and purchase no fewer than one hundred thousand!"

That was already putting it modestly. With the system at his back, if he wanted to, those 1,000 points were enough for him to produce ten billion explosive tags! If converted into banknotes, he could add a few more zeroes!

The system could be unreasonable, but the market had to make sense. He could deal with that later!

The coming years would be the best time to expand their industries into every nation. He did not want to miss it.

Back when the Second Shinobi World War had just ended, there had been countless refugees, causing plenty of trouble for the daimyo of every nation.

Combined with the war's destruction of the existing economic order, the Uchiha had taken the opportunity to secure good positions in every nation and seize vast portions of the market.

The so-called three major consortiums had also been established under his direction at that time, and their achievements thus far had been remarkable.

But now, the Uchiha's economic interests were being obstructed from all sides. They had to stabilize their economic position!

More than one hundred thousand?

Nono, who had been sitting rigidly upright, completely lost her composure.

Even Konoha's usual stockpile of explosive tags was only around five hundred thousand. Even with increased wartime purchases and production, it would not exceed one million.

Explosive tags were strategic materials and consumables. Considering depreciation and other factors, Konoha would not stockpile too many of them.

And now, this guy in front of her casually opened his mouth and demanded one hundred thousand. Was he really treating her like some kind of—

"Don't worry. Sanjie will go with you. You won't need to fear running into Sasori of the Red Sand."

"Sanjie, when the time comes, just activate the Transcription Seal on your body."

Uchiha Cheng said calmly.

The number one puppeteer in the ninja world? I'll just bombard his cognition and shatter his worldview!

Why play with puppets? By then, he'll probably switch to playing with Gundams, Star Destroyers, and orbital cannons!

What? He still won't come?

Then I'll give him another two hundred million ryo in research funding every year!

No way you won't take the bait!