Expansion

After more than a month of preparations, a simply styled cake shop opened for business.

The cake shop was not large, but its decor was quite distinctive—clean, bright, and warmly inviting, refreshing to the eye.

Although the shop did not yet offer many varieties, Hyuga Iwa believed the villagers would definitely come to love these delicious, novelly designed treats, especially women and children.

To make a splash right from the start, Hyuga Iwa even persuaded his mother to use what little money they had left on an unconventional promotional campaign.

The promotion worked quite well. On opening day, aside from the free samples, every pastry and snack was sold out. They even received several orders for custom cakes.

The cake shop's success made Hyuga Yuko breathe a sigh of relief. After opening the shop, their family had truly been left without a single cent. If the business had failed, she would not have known what to do in the future.

But now, the success of the first day gave Hyuga Yuko tremendous confidence. She firmly believed their family's future would only get better and better!

And that was indeed the case. As the days passed, a month later, the cake shop's business showed no signs of slowing down. Instead, as its reputation spread, more and more people came specifically to buy from it.

Even people from outside Leaf Village came after hearing about it.

As sales continued to rise, Hyuga Iwa began considering opening branch stores.

Running just one shop was manageable, but if they wanted to open several, Hyuga Iwa would not have the energy to oversee them all. Relying on his mother alone was absolutely impossible. She was already exhausted managing a single shop; how could she handle several more?!

After all, his mother was currently making everything herself. Once new stores opened, the demand would be far beyond what she could handle alone.

He also had to consider future imitators and competitors. With his mother's gentle, conservative nature, the thought of it made opening new stores seem like more trouble than it was worth.

But Hyuga Iwa was reluctant to give up the profits that were plainly within reach. After thinking it over, he decided it would be best to find a partner.

After careful consideration, Hyuga Iwa took the initiative to approach Hizashi Hyuga, hoping to receive help from the clan. All he needed to give in return was a portion of the profits.

He could gain manpower, make use of the clan's connections and resources, and receive the clan's protection as well. Why not?

As for why he sought out Hizashi Hyuga rather than clan head Hyuga Hiashi, it was because the management of the Hyuga Branch Family had already been entrusted to Hizashi. Hyuga Iwa could not very well bypass him and directly contact Hyuga Hiashi. Besides, if Hizashi Hyuga knew, would Hyuga Hiashi, as clan head, not know? How could a matter requiring the clan's strength possibly bypass Hyuga Hiashi?

To better persuade Hizashi Hyuga—or rather, Hyuga Hiashi behind him—Hyuga Iwa produced an even more detailed proposal for him to review.

In Hyuga Iwa's plan, he painted an enormous vision for the clan's upper ranks: first, establish themselves in Leaf Village and open several branch stores as quickly as possible. Then, use the clan's connections to rapidly expand into the major cities of the Fire Country, striving to capture the entire Fire Country market in the shortest possible time. Finally, they would continue developing existing markets while entering new countries and opening international branches.

The general plan was simple, but the details were numerous. Hyuga Iwa had considered every matter as thoroughly as possible.

When Hyuga Hiashi saw the proposal, he fell silent for a moment.

That Branch Family brat had truly given him quite a surprise.

Although he had thought highly of Hyuga Iwa for some time, Hyuga Hiashi had never expected that this boy, who had only recently transferred to the Medical Class, would present him with such enormous profits!

Hiashi knew clearly that Hyuga Iwa's plan was already quite comprehensive and had a very high chance of success.

After all, it was obvious from the cake shop his family had run for over a month. Its distinctive food and steady stream of customers surely meant it had earned a great deal of money.

But that boy was clever. He knew his own limits and knew when to let go. Only people like that could live longer and more comfortably.

Still, for someone so young to have so many thoughts, he did not know whether that was good or bad. But no matter what Hyuga Iwa became in the end, his identity as a member of the Hyuga Branch Family could never change. The Caged Bird was enough to guarantee his loyalty. That was sufficient.

With that in mind, Hyuga Hiashi agreed to Hyuga Iwa's plan and instructed his younger brother, "Go speak to him on my behalf. Tell him I agree to his plan. He will not need to manage matters from now on, but give him the title of consultant. If anything comes up, you may ask for his opinion.

Also, leave him two shops in Leaf Village. But during the early stages, he must take charge of training personnel.

At the same time, establish a food company as he suggested, specifically to handle this matter. Give him ten percent of the profits in the new company."

With just a few words, Hyuga Hiashi ceded part of the benefits. After all, the only people who could make that kind of food were Hyuga Iwa and his mother, Hyuga Yuko.

"I understand." Hizashi Hyuga did not say much, merely nodding in agreement.

"Mm, let's do this. The Hyuga Main Family will hold sixty percent of the company, the Hyuga Branch Family twenty percent, and give him ten percent. Use the remaining ten percent to open up the market. Mm, if necessary, the Main Family can also offer up part of its shares." After thinking for a moment, Hyuga Hiashi continued.

He had realized that although the Hyuga Clan's existing connections were strong enough, there were still many powerful wealthy merchants and great nobles within the Fire Country. Building good relations with them would make future operations more convenient.

When Hyuga Iwa received the news, he breathed a sigh of relief. Although he knew there was a high chance his plan would be approved, this involved enormous profits. Perhaps someone might have objected.

But it seemed Hyuga Iwa's worries had been unnecessary. Hyuga Hiashi had not taken his share of the benefits and had even given him part of the profits. It seemed he did have some foresight.

Then again, that made sense. Hyuga Hiashi was, after all, a Jonin. He had this much sense of the bigger picture.

Every Jonin had been confirmed only after passing layer upon layer of examinations. Each possessed great strength and exceptional intelligence, standing at the pinnacle of all ninja. To him, matters of business were probably nothing worth mentioning.

After receiving the news, Hyuga Iwa got to work. He first told his mother about it and persuaded her to help train the new employees. Then he contacted Hizashi, asking him to help arrange ingredient supplies, find shop locations, handle renovations, and deal with a whole host of other matters...

Hizashi looked at the eloquent young man before him and felt a surge of emotion. He could not help thinking that when he had been that age, he had probably only been thinking about where to play.

Before long, observant Leaf Village residents noticed that several new shops had opened in the village at the same time. After learning from the renovation workers what the shops would be selling, they immediately began discussing it animatedly.

Who would have thought that the Hyuga Clan would suddenly enter this line of business as well!

Several merchants who had originally been optimistic about the project and had already taken action beat their chests in regret. But they soon realized there were considerable profits to be made, quickly rushing elsewhere to prepare to open similar shops.

However, with the Hyuga Clan's connections and resources, and following the plan provided by Hyuga Iwa, a food company was swiftly established.

Just over a month later, the first branch store opened in the capital of the Fire Country and achieved enormous success.

These results further strengthened Hyuga Hiashi's confidence. Almost at the same time, branch stores rapidly opened in the remaining major cities of the Fire Country, initially capturing the market and establishing a reputation.

A month later, when Hyuga Hiashi once again received the reports from each shop, the massive figure on the reports stunned him!

He stared blankly at the reports for a long while before slowly recovering. His younger brother Hizashi, who had already known the figures, was not much better off. Both were thoroughly shocked.

"As expected of Hyuga Iwa, the one known as a genius!" Hyuga Hiashi could not help praising him aloud. This was the first time he had ever praised a member of the Hyuga Clan!

Hizashi, standing beside him, also revealed a satisfied smile. No matter what, Hyuga Iwa was still a member of the Hyuga Branch Family, and Hizashi was now the one managing it. The more outstanding Hyuga Iwa's achievements were, the greater Hizashi's influence would become.

Inside the Hokage's Office, Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the information he had just received, his face revealing not the slightest expression.

But as he read to the end, even he could not help showing a trace of surprise.

"I did not expect him to understand business management as well. I truly underestimated him!"

At Root headquarters, Danzo received a report from his subordinates about Hyuga Iwa's recent situation and felt a burst of delight. As expected of someone he had taken an interest in—who would have thought the boy possessed business talent? Perhaps he could have him offer Root some advice. After all, he was still rather short on money!

But now it seemed that his previous methods might not be reliable enough. What method should he use to control him?!

Danzo fell into deep thought.

On a bustling street somewhere in the Fire Country, Orochimaru, who was carrying out a mission, looked curiously at the crowd lined up before him.

When he learned it was a cake shop opened by the Hyuga Clan, he was greatly surprised. As far as he knew, this kind of shop had originally been opened by a brat named Hyuga Iwa. Yet in only a few short months, it had already spread thousands of miles away!

"What an interesting little brat. It seems I can find an opportunity to make contact with him." Orochimaru spoke slowly in a voice only he could hear.

No one knew that, in merely a few months, Hyuga Iwa had once again drawn the attention of Leaf Village's upper ranks!