"Surveillance? Danzo, you still don't understand anything. As Hokage, your job is to be responsible for Konoha, not to secretly send people to assassinate your fellow Konoha members."
It seemed that the word "Hokage" touched a nerve with Danzo, causing Danzo for a long time. However, the Third Hokage did not urge him but instead puffed on his pipe, exhaling smoke.
After a long while, Danzo understood Hiruzen Sarutobi's intention; it seemed he had brought in someone to take the blame... Danzo each word clearly:
"In that case, what do you want?"
Seeing that Danzo had finally caught up with the conversation, Hiruzen Sarutobi his pipe with satisfaction and formally said:
" The Root's lax oversight led to Root ninja assassinating Konoha comrade. As punishment, Root must conduct a rigorous self-examination to identify the enemy village spy lurking within Root. Root leader Shimura Danzō will imprison himself for three months."
This punishment wasn't exactly mild; it was more like a shave. Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his hand high, but then only brought it down lightly. He merely made Root hand over a scapegoat, without even scratching Danzo or Root, intending to let the matter drop and thus sever his ties with Danzo.
Danzo understood Hiruzen Sarutobi's intentions, gave a faint hum, then turned and walked into the dark Root stronghold to continue being the Root that draws nourishment.
Hiruzen Sarutobi gazed at Danzo's Danzo figure, his eyes deep and distant. The Hokage and Root had completely changed them both... Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up his pipe, took one last puff, and gave the order:
"Let's go, everyone, go back."
The news of Danzo and Root's punishment spread among Konoha High Command the very next day, and Tsunade and Naoki received the news immediately.
However, both of them scoffed at it. If it weren't for the previous assassination attempts, they might have actually believed Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo's charade. But now, well, they could only laugh at them.
At lunchtime, Naoki Senju originally planned to visit Ichiraku Ramen famous Konoha landmark, to see the legendary Six Paths Ichiraku. Yesterday was the day of the Ninja Academy's classes, so he didn't get to see any of the other Konoha 12.
Naruto is easy to find because of the Nine-Tails inside him. The Nine-Tails Chakra leaking from the seal is the most obvious guiding light. However, Naruto's identity is sensitive, so he cannot be approached for the time being, otherwise the Third Hokage would definitely go crazy.
But before leaving, Guren tugged at Naoki Senju's sleeve and said, somewhat exasperated:
" Lord Naoki, please help me find an opportunity to contact Lord Orochimaru Lord Orochimaru. I have some important information to pass on to him."
Orochimaru... I almost forgot about Aunt Snake, but Aunt Snake's Konoha Crush Plan is still a long way off, so there's no need to rush.
" Guren, are you sure you want to contact Orochimaru in Konoha? You haven't forgotten that Orochimaru is missing-nin of Konoha, have you?"
However, Naoki Senju's threats had no effect on Guren. If she were afraid, Guren wouldn't have gone into Konoha Ninja Village with him.
"That's why I need Lord Naoki's help; I need a chance to leave the village."
"I can't help," Naoki Senju said very simply.
"Why can't I help?" Guren suppressed the anger that had been building up in Konoha for the past two weeks due to boredom.
"Last time I went out of the village on a mission, I was assassinated by Root. Konoha doesn't really trust us at all. Do you think we can leave the village?"
Naoki Senju is quite adept at playing the game of shifting the focus of ideas; the Root will only target him and won't pay any attention to a wild Crystal Release Kekkei Genkai ninja.
" Naoki Senju!" Feeling somewhat annoyed at being teased, Guren shouted through gritted teeth.
"Um?"
Naoki Senju gave a soft "hmm," glancing at Guren with an extremely irritating expression.
Circumstances dictate her actions. Guren took a few deep breaths, suppressing her pent-up resentment. She hadn't expected Naoki Senju to be even more annoying than before! He'd even spanked her on their very first meeting...
"How can I complete the mission Lord Orochimaru Lord Orochimaru?"
"Poor girl, Aunt Snake didn't leave you any tasks..." Naoki Senju pondered for a moment, then said somewhat awkwardly:
"Well, there are solutions..."
"What method?" Guren asked anxiously.
Naoki Senju, who was already prepared, took out a scroll, broke the seal on it, and with a 'pop', after the white smoke dissipated, several pieces of white paper with strange patterns appeared on the table.
After handing over the rough jewelry drawings he had already prepared to Guren, Naoki Senju explained:
"If you, Guren, use your Crystal Release to make these ornaments, and then I sell them at a high price, I can use the money to hire you to carry out missions, and then I can take the opportunity to leave the village."
This strange plan prompted Guren to immediately object. "That's too troublesome. Why don't you take my letter and use it to mobilize other funds? That would be much faster."
Naoki Senju understood that this plan was convoluted, but how else could he exploit the value of Guren's Crystal Release? How could he develop the luxury goods industry and plunder the wallets of the nobles?
"This is indeed fast, but how do you explain the source of the funds, Guren? The Konoha Anbu aren't blind; doing this is tantamount to exposing Orochimaru's supply chain..."
Upon hearing about the staggering risks, Guren, though reluctant, abandoned her faster plan and unwillingly picked up the still rudimentary jewelry blueprints, officially becoming a proletarian whose surplus value was being exploited.
After glancing at the blueprints a few times, Guren, unsurprisingly, showed a look of disgust and spoke bluntly:
"Your drawing is so ugly. Would anyone want to buy jewelry like this? Why don't you redraw it?"
Naoki Senju shook his head mysteriously. Although he couldn't draw jewelry design sketches, he understood people's hearts. The special price and features of the product aroused envy in others, envy led to comparison, and comparison escalated into impulsive consumption...
The high price, coupled with the uniqueness of the Crystal Release Kekkei Genkai, allows for abandoning the low-end, high-volume approach and focusing solely on the high-end, thus upgrading the industry chain...
"Alright, Guren, hurry up and finish the crystal jewelry. The sooner it's done, the sooner we can leave the village and contact Orochimaru."
Despite her reluctance, Guren took the jewelry blueprints and threw herself into the production.
Orochimaru, far away in the Sound Ninja Village... or rather, Aunt Snake, had no idea that her trusted subordinate had become a ruthless production machine...
Meanwhile, Aunt Snake is diligently planning a grand scheme that will shake the Shinobi World —a grand plan that will encompass Konoha, Sunagakure, the currently powerful Kirigakure, as well as smaller ninja villages like Kusagakure, Otogakure, and Amegakure.
Let's call it: The Konoha Crush Plan!