"Everyone, take a look. This is the desert highway I designed!" Keiko manipulated Iron Sand into a three-dimensional hologram in the air. As his fingers moved, it continuously shifted form—cross-sections, longitudinal sections, top views, and bottom views—making it easier for everyone to visualize.
"Of course, this is only my preliminary concept. It will be fifty meters wide and five meters high, with half-meter-thick pillar walls and a twenty-centimeter-thick arched roof. These are just estimates, of course. Once the project begins, you'll definitely need to conduct tests and recalculate everything."
The holographic Iron Sand model turned into something resembling a subway tunnel. Baki, Garukei, and the others studied it closely, their eyes full of confusion. Clearly, they were waiting for Keiko to finish before asking questions.
"The entire project will use the Wuzhong Clan's Crystal Release. Brother Wuzhong Ou, show everyone some samples."
Before long, everyone had a palm-sized piece of purple crystal in hand.
"This crystal is extremely strong. Neither heavy blows from blades and axes nor Explosive Tags can damage it. My idea is to first conduct experiments and verify its feasibility. Once the experiments succeed, we'll launch the project immediately! We'll start by building a four-hundred-kilometer desert highway linking Sunagakure and Moon Lake. If this highway succeeds, we can build more highways and connect the entire Land of Wind." Keiko swept his hand grandly. The holographic Iron Sand image turned into a map of the Land of Wind. A black line connected Sunagakure and Moon Lake, while many more black lines radiated outward to link the entire country.
"I have a question. The sand in the desert is highly mobile, so any foundation built there will inevitably be unstable. Although your Crystal Tunnel is very heavy, it could still shift and sink in the sand. Won't the tunnel be buried by sand after a few years?" A Construction Corps staff officer raised his hand and asked.
"Mm, that's a good question. The deserts of the Land of Wind are higher in the west and lower in the east. The stretch from Moon Lake to Sunagakure lies in the eastern region. The average depth of the sand there is one hundred and fifty meters. In other words, if we drive down one hundred and fifty meters, we'll reach solid bedrock. So my plan is to drive two giant concrete pillars into the ground every two hundred meters, ensuring that their bases reach the rock layer. That way, the Crystal Tunnel may look as though it is built on sand, but it will actually be supported by concrete pillars. It won't drift or shift in the wind, nor will there be any risk of sinking. Even if a temporary sandstorm buries it, that won't matter. It would take at least eight hundred meters of sand to crush this Crystal Tunnel. None of you have ever seen an eight-hundred-meter sand dune in the desert, have you? Besides, if a sandstorm really buries the tunnel, Garukei can just wave his fan a few times."
Everyone burst into laughter.
"Lord Kazekage, what if we encounter obstacles such as dunes or quicksand during construction?"
"I was planning to explain that in detail. Garukei." Keiko sat down, and Pakura immediately poured him a cup of water.
"You Construction Corps need to establish a dedicated highway construction department. Garukei, you'll take the lead on this for now. Arrange the personnel from within the Construction Corps. Ninja skilled in Wind Release and Earth Release can all be recruited. If there aren't enough people, submit a report, and I'll transfer more from Sunagakure. For example, regarding the dune problem that was just mentioned, you can simply have a group of Wind Release ninja blow the dunes away. And this highway won't be left alone once it's built. Daily repairs and maintenance will remain a major undertaking. Therefore, the wages, benefits, and logistical support of every ninja involved in the project must be guaranteed. Don't worry about the money—I'll allocate it to you shortly. I'll start with fifty million, with a second round to follow. In short, the same rule applies: as long as you can build this road, if you need money, I'll provide money; if you need people, I'll provide people."
Keiko then answered several more questions from the staff officers, addressing each one in turn. Everyone nodded repeatedly. This could really work! The thought of Moon Lake becoming connected with Sunagakure excited them all. At that moment, Wuzhong Ou timidly raised his hand.
"Brother Wuzhong, go ahead?"
"I... if I... go build roads, what happens to my fields?"
"Hahahahaha!" Everyone laughed.
Keiko smiled faintly as well. He knew what Wuzhong Ou was worried about.
"Looks like Brother Wuzhong still can't bear to part with those few dozen mu of land. Don't worry. Since Sunagakure gave it to you, we naturally won't take it back. But for this road construction, we really will need your family's brothers. As for farmland, if you don't have time to work it yourselves, you can lease it to others. By the way, how many able-bodied men in your family can use Crystal Release? No children, though. They still need to focus on their studies."
"Six."
"Good. Bring them all over. They'll all hold positions on the road construction team, and I'll give every one of them Jonin treatment! Wuzhong Ou, you'll serve as deputy chief commander of the road construction team."
"Ah!" Wuzhong Ou was so excited that his mind went blank.
"Then... I... I'm an official now?"
"Hahahahaha!" The entire room erupted in laughter.
"At present, Moon Lake Base has a population of nearly five hundred thousand. Housing and food have been arranged, the Ninja Academy and technical school have been established, and medical units are also being prepared. At the same time, we've discovered many outstanding ninja and Kekkei Genkai clans among the immigrants." In the official residence cafeteria, Baki reported on his work to Keiko while eating.
"Oh? Tell me more about that." Keiko was very interested in this matter. It could directly increase the village's combat strength.
"There are quite a few of those. There's the Shangshuiliu clan, who excel at controlling bees; the Yuki Clan, who are skilled in the Ice Release; the Ban Clan, who master the Boil Release; the Oto Clan, who are adept at the Light Release; and the Chinoike Clan with their Red Eye..."
"Mm, you've done very well. But you still need to be more thorough."
Keiko was very satisfied with Baki's report. This was strengthening Sunagakure's foundation.
Although Keiko's efforts had allowed Sunagakure to pull itself out of the mire of the Second Shinobi World War ahead of schedule, the village had still lost a great many outstanding ninja during the first and second phases of the war.
Many Kekkei Genkai clans had even died out entirely. In ninja villages with deep foundations such as Konoha and Hidden Cloud, how could young Jonin barely in their twenties like Rasa, Baki, and Garukei possibly hold such important positions?
It was precisely because the generation in their prime had all been sacrificed by the Second Kazekage in Amegakure that they now had to replenish their ranks with fresh blood. Otherwise, Sunagakure's war potential would be exhausted within a few years.
"Not only must we keep these people here, we must also give them a sense of belonging and make them truly regard this place as their hometown. For example, if they left their old village because they were discriminated against, then make sure they are not discriminated against here.
"If they left their old village because they were marginalized, then make sure they are not marginalized here.
"Other places are at war, while we are not. Other places suffer famine, while we have four dishes and a soup every day. Only then will they be willing to stay here, willing to sweat for Moon Lake, and willing to bleed for Moon Lake. This is called working with the people. You, including all the staff officers, must go down there and do this work in a practical, down-to-earth manner. Understand?"
"Yes!" Baki and Garukei were utterly impressed by Keiko's words. No wonder he was the Kazekage.
"Oh, there's one more thing. I'll announce it in advance: I've decided to upgrade Moon Lake Base into Moon Lake New District. While serving as director of the Immigration Bureau, Baki will also serve as the highest administrative officer of Moon Lake New District. Garukei will serve as commander of the Construction Corps and concurrently as deputy chief of Moon Lake New District!"
Thunderous applause broke out in the cafeteria.
Before you continue