Konoha: The thirty-year-old Uchiha is not motivated.

Several days passed, and the conflict on the border of the Land of Fire showed no signs of abating. Both sides were holding their breath, waiting to see who would break down first, and the war reached a stalemate for the time being.
As Konoha dispatched its second and third reinforcements, divisions gradually emerged within the allied forces of the Lightning, Earth, and Water armies.
First, Gui, whose injuries were not yet fully healed, felt that his days were numbered and began to consider giving up.
There's a mountain of problems waiting for him in Kirigakure, and he can't waste his precious time on this fruitless tug-of-war.
Next was Xi. The war lasted for almost half a month. During this time, he repeatedly requested the Cloud Village's higher-ups to send troops to help, but was always coldly rejected by Kinkaku.

Not only that, Jinjiao also wrote twelve letters urging him to return immediately. This put Xi, who was eager for military merit, in a dilemma. Every night, he could only curse the higher-ups in his tent for being short-sighted and incompetent.
Onoki was holding on, but his teammates were getting weaker and weaker, and with Konoha's reinforcements arriving, he began to consider retreating.
But he was unwilling to give up. After fighting for so long, if he returned empty-handed, he would definitely be impeached by the daimyo.
Even before the war began, he had confidently assured the daimyo of the Land of Earth that he would definitely take a large chunk of flesh from the Land of Fire.

But now, let alone fat meat, they haven't even managed to get a mosquito's leg.

It's all that wretched Decade's fault. If he could use the power of the Tailed Beast Riders, Konoha would be nothing but a bunch of chickens and dogs.

Command Center of the Three Kingdoms Allied Forces (Lei, Tu, and Shui)

The three pillars of Gui, Xi and Onomu stand on the same tripod.

The three of them looked unwell, especially Gui, whose pale, paper-thin face was already faintly shrouded in an aura of death.

"Cough cough cough, our Hidden Mist Village has decided to withdraw from the alliance."

After a few weak coughs, Gui broke the silence. He didn't have much time left; he needed to get back to the village before he died to settle his affairs.

"You coward!"

Xi, who was already in a bad mood, became even angrier upon hearing this.
"The fate of a ninja is to die on the battlefield!"

"I am a ninja, but I am also a shadow."

Gui silently endured Xi's anger without arguing. Xi was different from him; he bore far more burdens.
"You Mist People can leave, but you must compensate both of our families for their losses."

As a fellow Kage, Onoki could understand Katsura's predicament in deserting the battlefield, but war is not child's play; to withdraw from the alliance, one must pay the price.
"No money."

Kirigakure is already in such a difficult situation, how dare you guys make such a statement?
"It doesn't matter if we don't have money, we can use supplies to pay the debt."

The war hadn't been going on for long when Onoki's supplies were completely depleted. Although reinforcements were being sent from the rear, the distance meant that supplies wouldn't arrive for several more days.
"Can you country bumpkins get used to eating seafood?"

The standard supplies for Kirigakure: a basket of rotten fish and shrimp for each person.
"Meat! We want to eat pig's head meat!"

Hearing the disdain in Gui's words, Xi slammed his hand on the table and loudly stated his demands.
"Pork hock is fine too."

Onoki nodded in agreement, looking on with obvious longing.

There was nothing they could do; they'd been chewing on soldier's rations every day for days, their mouths were practically watering at the seams, and all they craved was cold braised pig's head and braised pork hock.

"No, our Hidden Mist Village has always advocated thrift. We can't afford those high-end ingredients."

Gui swallowed hard, a hint of red appearing on her pale face.
It's all because of these damn prices; he hasn't had his beloved braised pork in a long time.

"Damn it! Why are pork prices so high these days?"

Having their mouths watered, the three began to launch into a tirade about the persistently high price of pork, the conversation clearly veering off-topic.

"Hmph! Once I win, I'll make Konoha compensate me with one hundred... no! One thousand high-quality fat pigs!"

Xi wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and declared with unwavering certainty,
Should I hold on a little longer?
Upon hearing this, Gui, who was preparing to flee, began to waver.
The fat pig or the village—it's such a difficult choice!
At the same time, the Konoha troops were also holding a small meeting.

Looking at the submissive tribespeople before him, Jing, the commander-in-chief, rubbed his throbbing temples wearily.

"Ah Fen, what brings you here?"

He anticipated that the Uchiha clan would send reinforcements, but he didn't expect that the person who came would be one of Uchiha Setsuna's loyal followers.

What exactly happened in the clan?
“Lord Huijing, it was the Grand Elder who sent me.”

Ah Fen replied respectfully.
"Elder Lü Cha's orders?"

Slightly delayed by the news, Uchiha Kagami was unaware of the changes within the clan and still believed the First Elder was the familiar Uchiha Ryōza.
"No, it's Elder Setsuna."

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Kagami paused, a bad premonition arising subconsciously deep within him.

"Is Elder Lü Cha dead?"

In his mind, the only factor that allowed Setsuna to be promoted to Grand Elder was the burial of Uchiha Ryuzaki.

"Lord Ejing, Elder Lücha is alive and well. Elder Shana was elected by the clansmen one vote at a time."

Ah Fen defended his boss with a resentful expression.

"It seems I've missed out on quite a few interesting things."

Upon learning that Uchiha Lucha was safe and sound, Jingzi finally felt relieved.

Since my uncle tacitly approved of Shana's rise to power, it means that everything in the family is still under control.

Seeing that Uchiha Kagami's expression relaxed, A-Fen seized the opportunity to embellish Uchiha Setsuna's "great achievements" in his report.
Things like bringing warmth to widows, giving eggs to the elderly, and so on.
"Elder Shasana is very kind."

Jingzai nodded in approval, surprised that Uchiha Setsuna, who usually seemed so gloomy, also had a gentle side.
"You've come at a good time; today is a truce day, and we're preparing a banquet. Why don't you join us?"

Because the allied forces of Lei, Tu, and Shui have serious internal problems that need to be resolved, they have specifically announced a one-day ceasefire.
Konoha took this opportunity to properly reward their brothers who had fought for many days.
"No wonder when we arrived, there were pigs and sheep being slaughtered in the camp. I almost thought we had gone to the wrong place and entered a slaughterhouse."

Ah Fen suddenly realized what was happening, and his fear of war lessened somewhat.
As he said, the camp was filled with a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere at that moment.
"huh huh huh huh!"

"Don't run, you big fat pig!"

A large, fat pig, having broken free of its restraints, charged wildly through the camp, its head covered, causing the cook, who was holding a butcher's knife, to break out in a cold sweat.

"Hey you over there, get out of the way!"

Just then, he noticed the fat pig that had escaped was running in a panic and was about to bump into a passing figure, so he shouted a warning.

However, the figure merely glanced up at the approaching fat pig, without moving an inch.
"It's over!"

The cook saw the man frozen in fear, then cover his eyes in utter despair.
"Buttock Escape. Thousand Blade Slash".

A gentle breeze swept by, and the rampaging, fat pig froze on the spot, its tiny eyes filled with terror.

"what?"

The expected scream did not occur. The cook, puzzled, removed his hand, only to find that the figure had already disappeared into the distance.
Seeing the large, motionless pig, he curiously stepped forward to examine it, gently tapping its enormous head with his finger.
The next second, countless fine lines appeared on the body of this 360-kilogram fat pig.
Boom!

With the cook's touch, the large, fat pig collapsed to the ground with a thud, its flesh and bones separating, leaving only its head intact, its eyes still moving.

It didn't even realize it had been decomposed.

"Wow, what excellent swordsmanship!"

The cook gasped in astonishment. This skill and level of expertise could not be achieved without at least ten years of experience slaughtering pigs.

"Thank you, Ninja Master!"

"You're welcome. Remember to save the pig's head meat for Danzo."

Danzo, having helped the cook resolve the crisis, left without a trace, concealing his merit and fame.

"Lord Danzo!"

"I've said it so many times: when we're out in public, you should address me by my title and call me Advisor."

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Danzo frowned and turned around.
"Yes, sir."

The people who greeted Danzo were members of the Shimura clan who had come to offer their support.
"Did the Hokage ask you to bring anything?" Danzo nodded in satisfaction, then asked.
"The Hokage asked me to pass on a message to you."

"Oh? What are you talking about?"

"Where are my three thousand ape soldiers?"

"."

Upon hearing this, Danzo's expression instantly turned ugly.
He had expected Hiruzen Sarutobi to offer some praise, or at least a few words of comfort, to him, a hero of the army. Instead, he immediately launched into a tirade.
On the battlefield, swords and spears have no eyes; he didn't intentionally cause the Ape Clan Army to suffer heavy losses.

"Is that all you have to say?"

"That's it? Just this one sentence."

"call"

Danzo breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

Is this what brothers are supposed to be? It's utterly unreasonable to argue over such a trivial matter.

It's just three thousand ape soldiers; at worst, he can compensate with breeding pigs.

The arrival of reinforcements boosted the confidence of the Konoha troops, allowing them to boast about having two extra bowls of rice when eating pork stew.

"Danzo, how long do you think this battle can last?"

Kagami, who was sitting around the campfire eating grilled pork ribs, suddenly asked Danzo, who was beside him, a question.

"what?"

Danzo, who was engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the pig's head, looked up in confusion upon hearing this. After a brief moment of thought, he slowly spoke,

"almost."

Despite his appearance, Danzo has a very keen sense of smell. During the recent battles, he has already discerned the underlying discord among the Rai, Tsuchi, and Shui families.

Three different outfits, three different headbands, and three different factions in battle—they had absolutely no coordination and couldn't work together at all.

"I think so too, let's hang in there a little longer."

In the past few days, during his battles with Katsura, Kagami could sense that the Third Mizukage before him was on his last legs, his life hanging by a thread.
He was afraid that during the fight, the other party would suddenly die on the spot.

“Mirror, the war will definitely end, but when victory will come is uncertain.”

Danzo suddenly spoke, and his words made Jingzai frown deeply.

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, there are no real winners in this war."

If everyone fails to get what they want, then the conflict is meaningless.
But these meaningless conflicts are constantly playing out in the ninja world.

"Let's eat meat!"

After a brief moment of confusion, Kagami seemed to understand Danzo's words, and her expression suddenly darkened considerably.

"Eat meat, eat meat~ Pork is so expensive now, you have to eat more!"

"Isn't it good that pork is expensive? Aren't you Shimura people pig farmers?"

"Hey! You can't be too sure of things. New talents emerge in every generation. Who knows, a competitor who also raises pigs might appear one day."

Danzo smiled modestly, but his eyes were full of smugness.
Today, the Shimura clan has essentially monopolized the supply of live pigs in most of the Land of Fire, and has the basic pricing power. Anyone who dares to compete with them is undoubtedly throwing an egg against a rock, and is destined to lose everything.

Konoha,

Uchiha clan territory
With a slightly pale face, Uchiha Setsuna, clutching a business plan in his hand, paced hesitantly back and forth in front of Uchiha Ryōzai's residence.

This was his masterpiece, created after a sleepless night, which he intended to present to Fugaku Uchiha for review.

Since being promoted to Grand Elder, Uchiha Setsuna sadly discovered that life was not as carefree as it used to be.

With Fugaku's son overshadowing him, he couldn't fully unleash his potential.

"Setsuna? What are you doing wandering around here?"

Just as Uchiha Setsuna was pondering how to explain his grand plan to Uchiha Fugaku, Uchiha Ryōzashi, who was about to go out to collect eggs, looked at the suspicious suspect looming at his doorstep with a look of astonishment.

"Elder Lü Cha, is Young Master Fu Yue here?"

He quickly composed himself and asked in a humble yet assertive manner,
"You've come at a really bad time. Young Master Fugaku and Mikoto went to the Honey Ice Cream Shop at the edge of the village together."

Setsuna decided to visit because it was the weekend, but Fugaku wasn't home yet.

"Didn't you say when you'd be back?"

A moment of anxiety passed before he continued to ask.

"That's hard to say. They've also made plans with their classmates. You know how kids are; once they start playing, they never know when to stop."

"Ok."

Somewhat disappointed, Uchiha Setsuna could only leave dejectedly. Uchiha Ryōza noticed the scroll in his hand and, driven by curiosity, asked about it.

"Setsuna, what are you holding in your hand?"

"Planning... Never mind, I'll just show it to you."

He was initially concerned about the confidentiality of the plan, but then he thought to himself, "Why should I be afraid of Uchiha Ryōshō, an elder who has retired to the second line?"
Taking the proposal with a puzzled look, Uchiha Lucha flipped through a few pages, his pupils slightly contracting.
"This is... Are you sure you didn't take the wrong one?"

He even suspected that the proposal was written by someone who was drunk and just wrote it down.

"I was serious."

Having already mentally prepared himself for ridicule, he nodded firmly.

"Nonsense, have you ever raised pigs before you want to?"

Lu Cha looked at the confident Uchiha Setsuna with a pained expression on his face.

"Raising pigs for the rise of the Uchiha!"

Now, the only way for the Uchiha clan to grow rapidly is through pig farming.
Do you know how difficult it is to raise pigs these days?

In Konoha, if you want to raise pigs, you must obtain official permission.
There is only one designated pig-raising family in Konoha.

"I know, I'll figure out how to get the permit."

He had his own reasons; in order to get rich by raising pigs, he was prepared to go all out.
"Have you asked the Shimura family?"

"The Shimura family? That's a thing of the past. From now on, there will only be one brand in the entire pig farming industry."

P.S.: The last chapter was inexplicably reviewed repeatedly, so it probably needs major revisions. These days, even repairing a tank can get you banned; I'm speechless. (End of Chapter)