"Have you heard? Just last night, a major battle took place on our northern border!"
"How could I not have heard! My cousin is on patrol over there, and he said he saw it with his own eyes! A purple giant cleaved a mountain in two with a single sword strike!"
"My God! Really? Isn't that something from mythology?"
"What myth! That's our future son-in-law, Uchiha Lord Gen'yō! I heard that Kumogakure sent hundreds of ninjas to try and ambush us, but Lord Gen'yō wiped them all out by himself!"
"One person?! That's way too much!"
"What's so exaggerated! The most outrageous part is yet to come! Guess where those captured Kumogakure went?"
"Where did you go?"
" Lord Gen'yō sold them to our Lord Tsuchikage and sent them to work in the mines to the west! The one leading them is none other than Raiga, the deputy commander of the Kumogakure's Anbu!"
"Pfft! Really?! Capture the deputy commander of the Anbu and send him to mine? That's so ruthless! I love it!"
On the training grounds of Iwagakure, a group of Iwagakure Ninja had just finished training were huddled together, discussing the earth-shattering "border conflict" of the previous night with great enthusiasm. Each of them wore an expression of shock, admiration, and a sense of pride that bordered them with fervent enthusiasm.
Once upon a time, Kumogakure was a mountain weighing down on them. The Fourth Raikage's unreasonable Lightning Release Armor and speed made countless Iwagakure Ninja tremble with fear.
But now? Their elite troops, which they were so proud of, were as vulnerable as chickens waiting to be slaughtered in front of Uchiha Gen'yō! Even death had become a luxury; they would be captured alive and sold like livestock to do the hardest and most tiring work! This stark contrast made every Iwagakure Ninja feel an unprecedented sense of pride and vindication!
"I used to think it was a bit of a loss for Lord Tsuchikage to marry Lord Akahoshi off, bringing the entire village as a dowry." A young Iwagakure Chunin his head and chuckled foolishly. "Now I realize how brilliant Lord Tsuchikage's move was! It wasn't a loss at all; it was a huge win!"
"That's right! Now that we've latched onto the Uchiha clan, our Iwagakure can practically roam the Shinobi World!"
"What do you mean by 'walking sideways'? From now on, if anyone dares to mess with us, Lord Gen'yō will chop their entire house in half with a single sword strike!"
"Hahaha! You're right!"
In an instant, the entire training ground was filled with a joyful atmosphere. In less than half a day, the name Uchiha Gen'yō had soared from "a powerful ally" to "an untouchable god"! The morale and public support of Iwagakure had reached an unprecedented peak!
In the Tsuchikage's office, Ōnoki looked out the window at the group of spirited ninjas on the training field below, a broad smile spreading across his old face.
"Father, your gamble of 'marrying off your granddaughter to give away the whole village' now seems to be the most correct investment we've ever made since the founding of Iwagakure," Kitsuchi said sincerely, standing to the side. He was now completely convinced of his father's wisdom.
"Investment? No, this isn't an investment." Ōnoki shook his head, his cloudy old eyes gleaming with an unprecedented shrewdness. "This is called 'offering tribute.' We're not making a deal with the Uchiha; we're offering our most sincere loyalty to a new era, to the future God of the Shinobi World!"
" Kitsuchi, remember this," Ōnoki's tone became incredibly serious, "From this day forward, the interests of the Uchiha are the highest interests of our Iwagakure! The enemies of the Uchiha are the mortal enemies of our Iwagakure! If Lord Gen'yō tells us to go east, we will never go west! Even if one day he orders us to use the entire Iwagakure to attack Konoha, we must carry it out without hesitation! Because only in this way can our Two Scales Clan, and our Iwagakure, gain a place in the new world of the future!"
"I understand!" Kitsuchi nodded heavily.
Just then, there was a knock on the office door. An Anbu Ninja slipped in, knelt on one knee, and held a small, exquisite box in his hands.
"Reporting to Lord Tsuchikage, these are samples just delivered by the Uchiha Chamber of Commerce, who specifically requested your inspection."
"Oh? Lord Gen'yō has something new again?" Ōnoki immediately became interested and personally stepped forward to take the box. Upon opening it, he found a vibrant green potion, brimming with life force, lying quietly inside. A label was affixed to the bottle, bearing the words " Uchiha No. 1 Life Elixir - Body Tempering Version" in a domineering font.
Below is a smaller line of text explaining, "One drop daily can effectively improve physical condition and prolong life. Long-term use can give ordinary people physical qualities comparable to Genin. The effects are even better for ninjas."
"Hiss!" Ōnoki and his son, Kitsuchi, gasped simultaneously! Although they had long heard of the Uchiha's " Shennong Project " producing some kind of miraculous elixir, they never expected its effects to be so incredible! Giving ordinary people the physique of Genin? What did that mean? It meant that as long as there was enough of the drug, the Uchiha could even raise a "biological army" composed of ordinary people, whose combat power was no less than that of regular ninjas!
"This, this thing, they're willing to sell it to us?" Kitsuchi's voice trembled. This kind of strategic material, which could change the course of the war, would be treated as a top secret and kept tightly under wraps by any other village!
"What did the letter say?" Ōnoki suppressed his shock and asked in a deep voice.
The Anbu Ninja quickly handed over the letter. Ōnoki opened it and saw that the contents were very simple:
"To my dear father-in-law: This is a small token of my appreciation. This medicine will be exclusively supplied to the Iwagakure as part of the Uchiha - Iwagakure alliance, at cost price in unlimited quantities. Specific business details can be discussed with my clan's Uchiha Inabi. Signed: Uchiha Gen'yō."
Thump! Ōnoki's hand went limp, and the letter fell to the ground. His body trembled violently from extreme excitement!
Unlimited supply! And at cost price! This isn't just a gesture of goodwill; it's treating Iwagakure as one of their own, truly "family"!
"Quick! Kitsuchi! Quickly organize our best caravans!" Ōnoki was so excited that tears streamed down his face. He pointed at the bottle of potion, as if he could see the future of Iwagakure's dominance of the world! "Bring as much money as you can! Go to the Uchiha Sacred Land! Buy back all the potions we can! With this, the overall strength of Iwagakure will at least double within three years! Hahaha! That idiot Raikage is still furious over a bunch of prisoners. He has no idea that he's missing out on an entire era!"