Pretending to be Friends

Prince Huang Ren spoke softly, but Lan Ren listened intently. "Father, please tell me."

"There is a girl in Konoha. She is the granddaughter of the First Hokage. You are only a few years older than her, so I hope you will spend more time with her."

(PS: There won't be any melodramatic plot here. This guy is just a minor character, and his ending will be something like stepping on an Explosive Tag and getting blown to death.) The implication was obvious. Lan Ren had been raised in extreme privilege. Even though his father had just impressed upon him how much one needed to guard against shinobi, he still looked down on them from the bottom of his heart, believing them all to be country bumpkins.

He pointed at his own nose, his face full of disbelief. "Huh? You want me to marry a commoner as my wife? Father, you're not joking, are you?"

The moment he finished speaking, Prince Huang Ren gave his son a resounding slap across the face, teaching him a lesson he would not forget. "I do not want to hear such words from your mouth again."

"Father..." Lan Ren covered his swollen, reddened cheek, feeling terribly wronged. From childhood until now, his father had never directly slapped him like he had today.

Prince Huang Ren said sternly, "I hurt you so that you would remember this. There is a saying: walls have ears. You never know what form your words may take as they spread, nor what irreparable harm they may cause. I should have taught you this before. The best way to prevent such things is to watch your mouth. As a qualified politician in the future, the first thing you must do is control your mouth. You must always be mindful of every word and action, so that no one can use them against you."

"Yes, Father." Lan Ren lowered his head.

Prince Huang Ren continued his instruction. "The Senju Clan is one of the only two super ninja clans in the world today. They are renowned for the immense physical energy within their bodies. This girl is also the direct granddaughter of Senju Hashirama, the God of Shinobi. She is extraordinarily gifted. If you marry her, it can greatly improve the physical constitution of our descendants. After several generations of development, our family will possess the power of the Senju Clan. By then, the weakness of us Nobles having no strength of our own will be made up for, and the world will remain firmly in our grasp forever."

"In this world, wealth and power are merely things outside oneself. If they are gone, you can earn them again. Strength is different. In any era, the biggest fist speaks the loudest. As long as you have strength, money, fame, and status are all within easy reach. Sometimes, I cannot help finding shinobi laughable. They clearly possess such formidable power, yet they are willing only to earn a little mercenary money, selling their lives to others and acting like dogs. If it were me, I would have long since proclaimed myself king and replaced all the Nobles and Daimyo outright. Still, it is fortunate that those fools have no vision. Otherwise, there would have been no place left for us Nobles long ago."

After this round of instruction, Lan Ren solemnly declared, "I understand. I will certainly live up to your expectations, Father."

Seeing that his son had finally come to his senses, Prince Huang Ren was relieved. "I will have someone send this girl's information to your room. Study it carefully. Then, after some time, I will send you to Konoha. I will use my connections to create opportunities for the two of you. This girl's great-uncle has just died in battle, and she is emotionally vulnerable right now. Take this chance to enter her heart and win her affection."

"Remember, you must act quickly. I am sure I am not the only one with this idea. There may even be people within Konoha who have sent children of suitable age to approach Hashirama's granddaughter. Setting everything else aside, the political status she represents alone means that marrying her would save you at least twenty years of effort and provide enormous help in becoming Hokage."

Lan Ren said seriously, "Understood."

Prince Huang Ren nodded slightly and prepared to leave. "Then I should also go see whether these newly appointed Hokage have enjoyed themselves enough."

After their exertions, Sarutobi Hiruzen clutched his head in anguish. "What foolish thing have I done?"

Huang Ren angrily rebuked the two kneeling dancers. "You two wretches actually took advantage of the Hokage's drunken state to commit such a monstrous crime!"

The two dancers sobbed and begged for mercy, claiming that the Hokage was so handsome and imposing that they had been momentarily tempted by his "beauty," which had led to this disaster.

Prince Huang Ren made it clear that he would hear none of it, waving his hand broadly. "Guards, drag them out—"

"Wait. This is my fault. Do not harm the innocent. If I had not let drinking interfere with my affairs, this would never have happened." Yuanfei's Diary beat his chest in remorse and swore, "From this day forth, I will give up drinking."

"Hokage-sama is truly kindhearted. Even at a time like this, you are still thinking of others. Such magnanimity fills us with admiration. Please accept my bow."

Prince Huang Ren bent at the waist, and Sarutobi Hiruzen hurriedly supported him, saying it was unnecessary.

Sarutobi Hiruzen said shamefully, "Sigh, I do not matter. It is the two women whose chastity has been ruined."

Prince Huang Ren seized the opportunity. "Then how about I give these two women to you in marriage?"

There were no mandatory requirements for monogamy in this era. It was perfectly normal for wealthy men to take multiple wives, though this was generally based on the vast disparity between men and women's social standing.

He knew Sarutobi Hiruzen was fond of women, so giving him women catered to his tastes. Of course, simply handing them over would not do. Yuanfei's Diary was the Hokage, after all, and cared about his reputation within the village.

Therefore, his next move was to remove the other man's concerns. Before Sarutobi Hiruzen could speak, he immediately continued, "Since ancient times, beauties have belonged with heroes. Hokage-sama, please do not refuse. Besides, this is not your fault. You drank for the prosperity and flourishing of the village. I believe everyone will understand your difficulties once they know the truth."

"But..."

"Rest assured, Hokage-sama will not be put in an awkward position. I will support your wives for you. I will arrange a house in the city for your two concubines, provide them with a regular monthly allowance, and you need only visit whenever you have time. What do you think?"

"But..."

"Hokage-sama, do not refuse. Even if you do not consider yourself, you should consider these two women. They have now lost their chastity, and they may find it difficult to marry into good families in the future. You would not want to see them suffer others' judgmental gazes for the rest of their lives, would you?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a long sigh, looking extremely reluctant. "All right."

Prince Renwang was very satisfied with how thoroughly he had him under control. He glanced at the two dancers. "What are you still standing there for? Why are you not thanking Hokage-sama for pleading on your behalf? If not for him, after doing something so filthy, did you think the two of you would still be allowed to live?"

The two dancers said through tears of gratitude, "Thank you, Hokage-sama."

Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a seemingly helpless sigh.

After their round of pretending to be friends, Sarutobi Hiruzen began discussing serious business, speaking in a weak tone. "Um, Prince Huang Ren, regarding the village's funding... could you raise it just a little?"

"Oh!" Prince Huang Ren slapped his forehead and said loudly, "It is all my fault. I drank too much today and misremembered this year's revenue. I left out a zero."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's face lit up. "So...?"

"How about I increase this year's budget for Konoha tenfold?" Prince Huang Ren smiled. "That way, Hokage-sama can use this money to swiftly stabilize the effects caused by the unfortunate death of the Second Hokage."

Sarutobi Hiruzen beamed. "Then, on behalf of Konoha, I thank you, Prince Huang Ren."

With this money, his position as Hokage would truly be as secure as Mount Tai.