In a Exchange base in the Land of Grass.
Hidan sat on the steps by the door, watching the ants crawling on the ground with boredom. He had become more open-minded now and rarely used Kunai to poke the ants anymore.
After waiting for quite some time, they saw someone approaching from a distance; to be precise, one person was carrying another person's corpse on their back.
"Ha... you're finally here! Do you know how agonizing it is to wait for someone?"
Kakuzu looked at the chuunibyou (delusional) boy in front of him and frowned. "You're the intern the organization assigned to me as an assistant?"
"What do you mean, 'helping out'? Speak more politely, you jerk!"
Hidan's arrogant personality wouldn't allow anyone to slander him like that. He opened his eyes wide, grabbed the Triple-Bladed Scythe, and swung it at Kakuzu.
"Oh? You've got quite a temper."
Kakuzu threw the corpse behind him to the ground, rolled up his right sleeve, and with a whoosh...
puff!
His right fist detached from his body and flew out, piercing straight through Hidan's chest, instantly killing him.
"Ouch... that hurts!" Hidan, exasperated, reached out and grabbed Kakuzu's right arm, pulling it out from his chest.
" Your Lord Jashin, I will immediately send this bastard to hell."
Kakuzu was slightly surprised. "This guy actually has an immortal body?!"
It was even more powerful than his immortality, which piqued his interest.
Huff... huff... huff...
While dodging Hidan's scythe, he observed Hidan's strength and discovered that the latter seemed to only know Taijutsu.
He then kicked Hidan away, not going to tolerate this hothead.
"If that's all you're capable of, then just work properly as my assistant and don't bother me unless it's absolutely necessary."
Kakuzu picked up the game he had hunted and took it to the Exchange exchange it for money.
"Damn it!" Hidan had never been treated like this before, but there was nothing he could do; Kakuzu was very strong.
We can get our revenge someday if we can get even a drop of Kakuzu's blood. For now, let's just bear with it.
When Kakuzu came out of the Exchange, he found that Hidan had returned to the arrogant look he had when they first met, grinning as if nothing had happened.
"Hmph, trying to find a chance to get revenge on me? I won't be so polite next time."
With Iwagakure currently at war with neighboring small countries, it was the perfect opportunity for him to earn commissions, so he immediately began hunting day and night with Hidan.
They're incredibly busy.
The ceasefire agreement between Amegakure was not made public, but Iwagakure leaked it.
This caused quite a stir, with neighboring small countries that were still struggling to survive expressing their willingness to follow suit, declaring neutrality as long as Iwagakure abandoned its invasion.
They also promised not to hire Xiao's people again.
This completely exposes that Iwagakure's true intention in launching this war was to target the Akatsuki.
Upon hearing this, Aoki Tsuki was so enraged that he vomited blood. "Ah... that treacherous old scoundrel!"
Xiao had just planned to instigate wars between small countries, attempting to expand his business into the field of war mercenaries, but this immediately provoked a backlash.
While the other major powers remained silent, Ōnoki decisively nipped the idea in the bud.
Despite the fierce fighting among the Five Great Nations, if any organization were to threaten their position, they would likely unite without hesitation.
As Xiao grows stronger, it has gradually attracted the attention of major powers, and it's likely that no amount of keeping a low profile will help anymore.
It's unimaginable what it would be like if the Five Great Nations joined forces to expel Akatsuki.
At this moment Konan, in the high tower in the western district of Amegakure, Tobi was in his room discussing countermeasures with Pain and Pain.
He calmly stated a fact. "This test has failed."
It's as if it's saying: See, you're no good, you'll have to listen to me from now on.
Konan replied, "After all, it was a test of the most sensitive military restricted area of Five Great Nations. This result was expected, but we didn't expect Iwagakure to be the first to jump out."
The original plan was that the most radical Kumogakure, would be the first to retaliate, as the Raikage had expelled Akatsuki a few years ago.
They just didn't expect Iwagakure to strike first, and coincidentally, they chose the Land of Rain, and even sent people to infiltrate the village several times to gather intelligence.
This made Konan suspect that someone was secretly sabotaging things.
Tobi smiled and then said, "I heard that Kirigakure has been secretly transferring many difficult missions to Akatsuki?"
"Yes, that's true, it's been going on for a while now."
" The Kirigakure has suffered heavy losses in recent years due to continuous wars and the Bloody Mist Policy, and has had to rely on external forces. The situation of the Iwagakure is different."
Ōnoki's cunning is no less than that of the Third Hokage. He's stubborn, and once he sets his sights on you...
The core issue is the subsequent plan to capture the Tailed Beast; everything else is irrelevant.
In truth, Tobi Fei had no interest in the previous mercenary plan or accumulating wealth, because he didn't need it.
Different ultimate goals lead to different focuses, which is a clash of ideologies.
"Since we can't open up the markets around the Land of Earth, we'll find a way elsewhere. In any case, the plan won't change," Pain replied.
"In the ninja world, might makes right. Only those who possess the same destructive power as the Five Great Nations have the right to engage in dialogue."
Of course, I'm just offering a friendly reminder; ultimately, it's your decision.
Tobi shrugged, indicating that he didn't care.
No one likes to be rejected, especially when their core interests are involved.
"I have something to do, I'll be going now. Contact me anytime if you need anything." Tobi got up, jumped out of the window, and disappeared.
He now rarely displays his spatial abilities in front of Pain, being extremely cautious.
"Could it be that he leaked the information...?" Konan asked softly.
When Aoki Tsuki returned, he mentioned to her that Ōnoki had received intelligence revealing that the person behind the scenes was ' Hanzō '.
The informant was either Danzo or Tobi.
Both are highly suspicious. Tobi has a criminal record; he once used intelligence to attack an organization and even colluded with Danzo.
Danzo, needless to say, had long known of the Rinnegan's existence.
Although they have kept a low profile for the past two years because of the Uchiha incident, it doesn't mean they won't do bad things in secret; their reputation Shinobi of Darkness" speaks for itself.
Deva Path Pain shook his head. "Madara is just testing my limits and putting pressure on me."
"Is he planning to cause trouble again?"
"Let him be."
Pain chose to ignore this kind of thug, letting him do whatever he wanted. None of the core members of Akatsuki were easy to deal with.
They won't speak out about what happened with Scorpion before; nobody's a fool to fall into a trap time and time again.
At this time, Aoki Tsuki was overseeing post-war reconstruction work in the northern Land of Rain, and Konan eventually managed to transfer some funds from Akatsuki's treasury.
He used the money, along with a shipment of supplies he obtained from the Jashin Cult's maritime shipping channels.
Mobilize the masses to participate in work relief, and quickly gather the remaining population nearby for temporary resettlement.
As for their livelihood, they still mainly rely on farming. Amegakure is affected by Pain's jutsu, which causes rain all year round, while other parts of the Land of Rain often have sunny days.
The ninja world is severely fragmented; top-tier laboratories are equipped with computers, various high-precision instruments, and electricity is already widely used.
Other modern industrial products include televisions, refrigerators, instant noodles, boxed milk, surveillance cameras, and headphones.
However, most villages still relied on candlelight for lighting, and nobles traveled by sedan chair bearers, living a feudal lifestyle.
Aoki Tsuki wasn't some STEM genius, and he didn't understand industrialization. All he could do was let these people continue growing rice and barely make a living.
He knew how to make soap, and he had memorized gunpowder, soap, flintlock guns, and so on.
Unfortunately, it's useless; this thing already existed in the ninja world.
The only thing they could do was set up some orphanages to provide shelter for orphans who were homeless due to the war.
The orphanage was temporarily funded by him personally, since all his money was stolen anyway.
"Sigh, how did I become the director? I'll have to figure out a long-term way for these orphanages to make a living."
We can't follow Kabuto's old path. If these orphans become ninjas, they will be at the very bottom of the Shinobi World, destined to Kekkei Genkai limits.
It's better to just be an ordinary person.
Three months later, after dealing with all of this, he had originally planned to find an opportunity to return to the Jashin Cult, but then decided against it.
My main concern is that I'm not fully recovered yet, so I'm afraid to go back.
They chose to remain in Amegakure, waiting for an opportunity to see what Pain's next move would be.
However, as soon as they returned to the village, they were surrounded by a group of people.
"Lord Yue, something terrible has happened! Part of our war loan has come due, and the village can't come up with a single penny."
"Those creditors are pressing us for repayment, threatening to cut off the village's supplies if we don't pay."
"They also joined forces to pressure the village through powerful figures, reducing the amount of tasks delegated to the village by various parties..."
"Those evil businessmen, they're so wicked."
Everyone chimed in with their own explanations, Aoki Tsuki immediately realized the seriousness of the situation.
"It's only been a short time, and it's already due? Weren't you supposed to be doing long-term loans?"
"Master Yue, under those circumstances, no one would be willing to lend us money long-term. They'd stake everything they could to get the money."
"I even staked my reputation on it, and now I haven't received any work for three months."
"Me too... I haven't had any work in ages, I guess I'm on the blacklist by now."
Aoki Tsuki felt a headache coming on. The war was just the first wave, and the troubles that followed were unbearable.
If this matter is not handled properly, Amegakure's reputation will be completely ruined.
As a military organization, the ninja village was responsible for national defense and security, while the daimyo was responsible for the economy. In their view, war was a matter for the ninjas and had little to do with them.
They don't care about things like the fall of a nation.
"Notify those creditors to come to the village. Perhaps we should have a frank talk. Also, give me a copy of all their information."
"Okay, I'll get on it right away."
In the village, the advisor is known for his eloquence; with him involved, these creditors can be easily dealt with.
The war depleted the village's savings, and Konan had to embezzle Xiao's funds several times. She couldn't keep doing it forever, or she would be discovered.
He had invested all his own money in the orphanage, Jashin Cult had already provided a batch of supplies, so it was difficult to continue, otherwise the people below would harbor resentment.
"The only solution is... to borrow some more from these people?"
Headquarters of the Jashin Cult in the Land of Hot Water.
"Sister Mimoto, Amegakure suffered heavy casualties in this war; it will probably take many years to recover."
"It's not just about the drastic population decline, the post-war economic recovery, and the compensation for ninja casualties; the key issue is that without people, Amegakure won't be able to do missions and earn money."
"War is truly terrible." Izumi fell silent, lost in thought.
Kikuno Momo said happily, "That guy must be in a real mess right now, hahaha..."
Under her management, the Jashin Cult had achieved substantial profits and was waiting for the other party to ask her for money, but it never came.
But she knew that some people couldn't stay erect for long.
"Sister Mimoto, should we increase the production of our Explosive Tag? Several clients are in contact with us, what do you think..."
Quan handed over a list that outlined the general information of each client.
Kikuno Momo glanced at the list; given her intelligence network, finding out the forces behind these people wouldn't be too difficult.
" The Land of Wind, the Gold Dust Chamber of Commerce, Ryōto? Pshaw! What are you pretending for? That poor place, the Land of Wind, has the resources to buy such a large quantity of Explosive Tag. Besides Sunagakure, there's probably no one else."
"It must be them. The rest are arms smugglers who want to take advantage of the situation to resell them to small countries that are at war."
"There's nothing we can do. They've monopolized the sales channels, so we can only suffer a loss."
Thinking of this, Kikuno Momo said, "This client from the Land of Wind is worth paying attention to. Organize the client information; I need to send it to that guy."
"Understood."
Kikuno Momo smiled and, after discovering that Izumi lacked combat talent, simply arranged for her to be her assistant, handling various tasks within the cult.
As expected, it was done very well; the Sharingan is naturally suited for clerical work.