Under the Association's system, Masashi had access to the accounts of all the village's financial institutions whenever he wanted.
Nobody dared to refuse him this privilege.
Noticing his piercing gaze, the head of the administrative departnt let out an awkward laugh, lowered his head, and pretended to be jotting sothing down in his notebook.
He was thankful he hadn't yet accepted that bribe—he always completed tasks before taking money.
But in his heart, he was a bit resentful.
Was it really necessary for Konoha, in its current position of strength, to target Kumo so pointedly? With the Land of Lightning's vast market, the village could earn so much more, and them taking small gifts here and there wasn't too much to ask, was it?
"I'm just going to say this for everyone's benefit." Masashi withdrew his gaze and addressed the heads of other departnts. "Don't think making money for the Association is so easy! When soone earns money, soone else inevitably loses it. So if we're all trying to co out ahead... who exactly is taking the hit? Konoha? It's not like everyone's going to dip into their own pockets, right?"
The military departnt heads nodded in agreent.
When it ca to financial decisions, if they didn't include sothing like "as Masashi suggested," they would even doubt the reliability of the plan.
anwhile, the non-military departnts, like the administrative departnt and the education departnt, had a different take.
The education departnt had always been Uchiha's no-go zone. They were staunch supporters of the Hokage faction, as many of its mbers descended from the now-defunct Senju clan.
Still, they bore no particular animosity toward the Uchiha. Their sole responsibility was the training of shinobi and assigning graduates to appropriate roles, keeping them in a relatively isolated bubble. To them, the other departnts were all the sa.
As the veritable "First Departnt of Konoha," they didn't stir up trouble for others, and no other departnt dared show them disrespect.
Regarding Masashi's views, they truly had no opinion—finance wasn't their field. As long as their funding wasn't cut, they didn't care.
The administrative departnt, however, felt that his remarks were pointedly critical of them, though they couldn't openly say so without essentially admitting guilt.
Of all departnts, the administrative departnt had the weakest relations with others except for education. Given the chance, most departnts would happily gang up against them.
After his stern remarks, Masashi's tone softened.
"Kumo and Suna are both militarily strong villages, but their thods are crude and their foreign strategies lack consistency. Relying on economic enticents won't work on them. They can only be subdued through military strength. Negotiate when necessary, but don't get entangled with them beyond that. For their formations, I suggest using comrcial ans to plunder their resources. If the opportunity arises, eliminate their top fighters to prevent them from launching military actions at will."
"That doesn't seem conducive to long-term peace," soone comnted.
"Long-term peace would eliminate the need for ninja villages," Masashi countered. "Konoha needs opponents. Controlled conflict strengthens us, and during warti, plunder significantly supports our financial stability."
The speaker was taken aback, not expecting such a response from Masashi.
Even the pacifists in the room began reevaluating him.
This Masashi was a far cry from the one who had been in Iwa.
"Alright, let's wrap up today's eting," Minato clapped his hands. "I've got a general idea of everyone's views. Thank you all for your input."
As people rose from their seats, it beca clear.
Minato had decided to adopt Masashi's proposals.
The rumors were true—Masashi really had no love for Kumo.
The administrative departnt head had already planned how to sternly reprimand the Kumo envoy upon returning to his office.
Trying to shake his loyalty to the village for such a small amount of money? Ridiculous!
---
When the eting adjourned, the heads of various departnts and representatives filed out, leaving only a handful behind.
The five senior mbers of Konoha remained, along with Masashi.
Minato leaned back in his chair, stretching.
Hiruzen, who hadn't smoked during the eting, now pulled out his pipe and lit it leisurely.
Back when the Uchiha clan was always opposing the Hokage's office, he found them troubleso.
Now that Masashi was targeting Kumo, he felt at ease.
He wholeheartedly agreed with the idea that Kumo were savages. How else could a people capable of such barbaric acts exist?
With Konoha now a global power, wealthy and populous, even another clash with Kumo wouldn't faze him.
"Satisfied now?" Minato asked with a smile, sitting up straight. "But the Kumo envoy is already on their way. Why don't you join the negotiations?"
"Sure," Masashi nodded.
It was obvious Kumo would make outrageous demands.
Personally, he admired the Kumo leadership. Among the five great villages in the original tiline, their strategies were the most effective.
Internally, they maintained unity, unlike Konoha, Suna, or Kiri, which were riddled with internal strife. Konoha was all surface harmony, Suna descended into infighting after the disappearance of its Third Kazekage, and the Bloody Mist era of Kiri was a complete ss.
Externally, Kumo acted only after thorough preparation, never impulsively or recklessly.
Their performances were convincing, and their actions solid.
That's why, after the Third Great Ninja War, they leveraged the Hyūga incident to surpass Konoha and claim the top spot among the Five Villages.
In the original tiline, an unprepared Konoha had been entirely led by the nose. Distracted by the Hyūga incident, they realized too late that they had no other options.
Masashi wouldn't let Kumo have such an opportunity.
He intended to make them suffer.
"By the way, who's in the Kumo envoy?" Masashi asked. "If the envoy has departed, the docuntation must have arrived already, right?"
"Yes, it has," Minato replied. "But their delegation isn't particularly high-ranking. The lead envoy is a head ninja."
"Hokage-sama, you're not seriously going to let them send a head ninja to negotiate with you, are you?"
"Of course not," Minato shrugged. "I've already raised this issue. Even though I don't mind personally, a head ninja can't represent Kumo. I'm thinking of who to send to receive them."
"And their docuntation?" Masashi asked.
"Hmm? Are you interested?"
"Masashi, I know you dislike Kumo, but don't overstep."
Minato and Fugaku offered different responses.
Hiruzen and the two advisors turned their attention to him.
"Oh, I'm interested. But don't worry, I won't overdo it," Masashi said with a smile. "Hokage-sama, let handle the negotiations with Kumo. But I'll need their docuntation."
"Ah, I see," Minato nodded. "I'll have Kakashi bring the docunts to you. Just don't cause any fatalities."
"Rest assured, Hokage-sama," Masashi replied with a grin. "I just plan to remind them about negotiation protocols. A head ninja's rank is too low; we can't accept such docuntation."
"As long as you're clear on that." Minato felt reassured.
---
When Kakashi delivered the docunts to Masashi, he had just finished his afternoon training session.
Compared to before, Kakashi's eyes were much more lively.
Apologies from the villagers might not an much to soone like Masashi, but they ant a lot to Kakashi.
Now, when Kakashi went out to buy so dumplings, vendors gave him a discount.
The bookstore was even more enthusiastic—the owner assured him, loudly, that as soon as the new volu of Icha Icha arrived, he'd personally deliver it to Kakashi's door.
He was delighted. If only the store owner didn't speak so loudly, it would've been even better.
What was the point of shouting so much when he was traveling incognito?
"How have you been?" Masashi casually pocketed the docunts Kakashi handed him, a rough gesture that made Kakashi's eye twitch.
"Um… Masashi-sama, those need to be returned eventually…"
"It's fine. The people from Kumo are straightforward—they won't mind such things."
And if they did, he would happily teach them so manners.
What Madara once did to Mū and Ōnoki was sothing many had secretly wanted to do.
That wasn't considered a flaw of Madara's—in fact, his actions had aligned with the hopes of many in Konoha at the ti.
An alliance with Konoha? Who did they think they were?
That was the prevailing thought of many.
Hashirama's excessive amiability often made people view him as easily manipulated. And after Madara's apparent "death" at his hands, many stopped pretending altogether.
Without Madara, Konoha's deterrence of external threats dropped significantly.
This emboldened the First Kazekage to make outrageous demands during the First Five Kage Summit.
But his greed got the better of him, and he almost ended up getting beaten by the other Kage.
Ideologically, Masashi didn't agree with many of Hashirama's decisions—dividing the tailed beasts was one of them. If not for Tobirama stepping in, he might have given them away for free.
Those tailed beasts should have remained Konoha's weapons.
After storing the docunts, Masashi chatted with Kakashi briefly before heading toward the prison.
South of the Uchiha clan grounds, past the boundary walls and continuing southeast along the mountains, lay the prison.
In the opposite direction, heading southwest, one would first encounter a circular training ground with a river running through it.
This was Konoha's 44th Training Ground, surrounded by over forty-four locked entrances. It featured a forest and a river, with a tower in the center exactly ten kiloters from the periter.
This was the Forest of Death, where the Chunin Exams were held in another tiline.
Further west was an endless stretch of forest.
This vast expanse, known as the Konoha Forest, belonged entirely to Konoha within the Land of Fire.
In terms of territory, Konoha ranked second in the Land of Fire, second only to the daimyō. The Hokage was essentially a warlord.
This massive area had been designated a military zone since Konoha's founding, with no civilian access.
After leaving the Uchiha grounds, he encountered a team of Police Force ninjas. After exchanging greetings, he continued on his way.
By the ti he neared the prison, he had crossed paths with patrols from the security forces no less than ten tis. The prison staff were well aware of his arrival.
When he reached the entrance, a ninja was already waiting for him.
Although the prison appeared to operate independently, it was directly managed by the police force. With the police force no longer exclusively composed of Uchiha mbers, staffing was no longer an issue.
For instance, the ninja who greeted him was from the Abura clan.
Since joining the police force, the clan had taken on the primary responsibility of prison security.
The prison environnt was ideal for the Abura clan mbers—they could work and tend to their bugs simultaneously.
For the prisoners, the occasional bug crawling over the walls or even their bedding might just be a normal insect—or it could be a companion of the Abura clan.
"Masashi-sama."
"Take to see that Two-Tails jinchūriki," Masashi ordered.
The Abura ninja, maintaining the clan's characteristic taciturn deanor, silently turned to lead the way.
As a high-priority detainee, Yugito was held in the prison's lower levels.
Escape was impossible.
After her capture, Konoha's sealing team had secured her with a thorough set of seals, which they maintained monthly.
The craftsmanship of the Uzumaki clan was far superior to Kumo's sealing techniques. Since then, she had been unable to use her chakra.
At least, that was the appearance she presented.
When Masashi appeared in the expansive underground prison, Yugito imdiately recognized him.
The underground prison was essentially a large pit with a base area of over 100 square ters. The walls were covered in intricate seals designed to detect any chakra activity.
The detainee had plenty of room to eat, sleep, and move around.
Ignoring her hostile glare, he leaped down into the pit, landing directly in front of her.
Startled, Yugito quickly backed away. However, her movents were slow and clumsy—she was entirely unable to use chakra.
At least, that's how it seed.
Masashi glanced at her and nodded.
"A perfect jinchūriki… not bad."
Yugito's expression soured.
Masashi paid her no mind and instead turned to the Abura ninja above.
"Let the sealing team know they don't need to maintain the seals anymore. This one will soon be exchanged back to Kumo. Just make sure her als are decent."
"Understood, Masashi-sama."
After the Abura ninja left, Yugito asked cautiously, "I can return?"
"More or less, but not just yet," Masashi replied after so thought. "Your village sent a high-ranking envoy for negotiations, which voids the previous agreent."
"He carried official docunts and was a formal envoy," Yugito protested, her expression shifting. "If the village is negotiating an alliance, Konoha should at least receive our representatives before deciding."
Masashi sneered.
"For soone in prison, you sure think a lot. Fine, lift your shirt."
Yugito froze, staring at him in disbelief.
"Are you going to… assault ?"
"With your 'two pancakes'? What nonsense are you imagining?" Masashi replied disdainfully. "Hurry up. I need so of Two-Tails' chakra—consider it your pay."
His eyes turned crimson as chakra chains materialized in his hands.
Currently 80 advance /Malphegor
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