From undercover in Konoha, to I am the Hokage!

Chapter 135 Rice Riot (5k)

"The surrender failed."

"We're a step too late!"

The underground chamber was dark and silent, with only candlelight lighting the surroundings.

In this deep darkness, there was the sound of the current Sarutobi clan leader, Sarutobi Saizo, sighing deeply.

Almost immediately after the voice fell, the entire secret room was filled with low curses that were almost continuous.

"Damn it, it must be those bastards from the Nara clan! One clan is worth three clans!"

"I told you to go early after Tsunade comes back, but now there's no room!"

"What should we do now? Are we going to follow that idiot Mitomon En and wait for death?"

"Oh, our clan has so many industries."

The voices coming from the secret room were all from the elders of the Sarutobi clan, with very few young people.

However, the meaning is almost exactly the same.

The Sarutobi clan was about to be defeated by them.

【Always follow the strong】

This is the ancestral precept set by the previous patriarch of the Sarutobi clan, Sarutobi Sasuke, who was also the father of Sarutobi Hiruzen.

He was an experienced clan leader who had experienced many hardships during the Warring States Period. He led the entire Sarutobi clan and successfully dealt with the powerful Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara. He preserved the precious family assets accumulated by the Sarutobi clan for thousands of years in a very complete manner. With his extremely keen sense of smell and ability to judge the general trend, he followed the Senju and Uchiha clans and integrated into the Konoha Village group at the fastest speed. This allowed Sarutobi Hiruzen to successfully enter the Hokage line and become a disciple of Senju Tobirama.

It can be said that the reason why Sarutobi Hiruzen was able to become the Third Hokage is inseparable from the solid family foundation laid by his father.

It is no coincidence that the Sarutobi clan, as the third largest ninja clan after the Senju and Uchiha clan, could have such power as it did in later generations.

Precisely because of such achievements, and because he seized the greatest political benefits of the Senju and Uchiha clansmen as a weak person, many of the ancestral teachings left by Sarutobi Sasuke are firmly remembered by this generation of Sarutobi people - especially the part proposed after the establishment of Konoha Village.

In addition, the powerful strength shown by Sawara Kiri now makes the "Hokage clan members" who were a little proud of Sarutobi Hiruzen becoming the third Hokage have a subtle illusion that they have returned to the era of Senju Hashirama.

Different from the people like Mitokado En who sit high and mighty in the advisory office, the elders of the Sarutobi clan, whether they work as front-line ninjas or provide assistance in the rear as auxiliary personnel, all know very well the importance of "strength" in this era of ninjas.

Perhaps, it is precisely because they are relatively weak, unlike Mito Kado En and Utane Koharu, who both had impressive records of "dominating the ninja world", that they can better understand how to adjust their attitude when facing strong people - and how to identify who is the "strongest" person.

In the past, Sarutobi Hiruzen was the strongest in Konoha, so they all followed Sarutobi Hiruzen closely.

Now that Hiruzen has become paralyzed, they naturally believe that the former Hokage's advisory group are the strongest group of people in Konoha now, and that is why they follow them closely.

But who could have thought that the world would change so quickly?
When the "All Bank Group" first appeared, they felt some threat, but in fact the sense of danger was not that obvious.

Later, when the news of Sawara Kiri's achievements in the Kingdom of Wind spread, they began to have the psychological inclination to play both sides.

As a result, suddenly, Sahara Kiri defeated the Third Raikage who had defeated Sarutobi Hiruzen.

The total time spent in this process was actually less than a month!

For an organization, the speed of change in the world is so amazing that they have no time to conduct any investigation and preparation.

To the extent that, there was quite a bit of controversy on the scene regarding how to choose sides between Mitomon and Tsunade.

It's fine now
No choice.

Sarutobi Saizo listened quietly to the dense noise and cursing of everyone present, even the accusations between each other, and even rolling up his sleeves to fight him, and his expression became increasingly calm.

"enough."

It was not until the very end, when the two elders were already pinching each other's collars, that he suddenly spoke.

The secret room was silent.

In fact, Sarutobi Saizo knew very well that he had just been elected not long ago, and even relied on some of the energy of the Mito clan during the election process. In fact, he did not have that much weight in the hearts of the elders.

The reason why others shut up as soon as he opened his mouth could only mean that the noisy scenes they had just been making were just for show, while waiting for someone to take over this big, dark and heavy pot.

However, he no longer cares.

Just as he had done before.

Whether he was lying in front of Mito Kado En to show his loyalty, or lying in front of Tsunade to act like a traitor to show his loyalty, there was actually only one purpose.

That is the power that saves the Sarutobi clan.

His actions never deviated from this purpose.

To achieve this goal, let alone kowtow to a young junior, even asking him to lie down and lick Tsunade's feet is not something that cannot be done.

As long as it's for the Sarutobi clan, he can do anything!
Now that nothing can be done, we can only choose another path.

Sarutobi Saizo looked at the people present quietly and said calmly: "Since there is no place for us on the "All-Line Group" side, we can only let those three adults see the strength of our Sarutobi clan."

"After all, if they don't see our value, they probably won't be willing to make room for us."

"Fighting back is for better bargaining chips."

"As for any problems that may arise in the future, I, as the clan leader, will bear all the responsibilities. Please do not worry, elders."

The secret room suddenly became silent again.

In such a situation, seeing Sarutobi Saizo, who was one of them not long ago, showing such courage, even the elders of the Sarutobi clan couldn't help but sigh in their hearts.

However, for the sake of their own survival and interests, everything they do is actually inevitable.

Until the end, the Great Elder stepped out and knelt in front of him, leaning forward and saying:
"Please give the order, Chief."

"boom--"

The teapot hit the ground hard, making a crisp and dull sound.

"Bastard!"

"They are all a bunch of ungrateful bastards!"

Mitomon En didn't even spare a glance for the teapot that fell to the ground. He cursed loudly and kept walking around in his own courtyard, his brows knitted tightly together:
"I've explained everything to them so clearly, why don't these guys understand my good intentions?!"

"Only if we unite as one can we avoid the impending disaster!"

"It's just a little bit of truth, is it so hard to understand?"

"What are they afraid of?!"

"In this huge Konoha Village, do people like Tsunade and Orochimaru dare to slaughter your entire clan?"

His anger was not without reason.

After noticing that the three ninjas had unanimously rejected all contact with them, Mitomon En keenly realized that this time the "entire team" was going to get to the bottom of it and root out all of their consultants.

In this situation, if they fail to take the initiative, then with their already limited military strength, they will inevitably end up being crushed unilaterally.

Under such circumstances, they had no choice but to take action.

But now, out of the dozens of letters he sent out, only a few have been replied to so far - and even in these few letters, the wording was about various difficulties, support, needs, and help - even so, he accepted it. At a time of life and death, there must not be the slightest hesitation or stinginess.

However, even with this response, there was almost no movement in the village.

As quiet as a pool of stagnant water.

This is not to say that it has little to do with the scene he had imagined at the beginning where "one man shouts and ten thousand men respond", but it can also be said that it has nothing to do with it at all.

Damn it, why did they all betray me?
The only thing that made him feel relieved was the Sarutobi clan leader whom he supported to take the throne.

Mizuto Menyan exhaled heavily, as if grasping the last hope, and read the letter tightly held in his hand again.

"In the end, it all comes down to Hiruzen's legacy."

"Look!"

"We will start controlling the market price in three days, and await further response from Lord Mitomon En."

“We have to be old friends!”

He kept repeating this sentence, murmuring it several times as if to comfort himself, as if this could change the current extremely unfavorable balance of power and allow him to seize the opportunity of victory once again.

Like a drowning person grabbing the last straw.

Apart from these, the only ones who still supported him were the ones he founded himself and some small forces that were inseparable from the Mito clan because they were caught with various evidences of crimes.

Mizuto Menyan couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

However, by this time, even Utane Koharu, the most useless member of the advisory group, had already noticed the gap in strength.

She sat on the side and spoke to Mitomon Yan with some hesitation:

"Otherwise, let's just call it a day."

"After all, they are Konoha's ninjas, so they wouldn't dare to do anything to us."

Even though she was still tough verbally, the fact that Koharu Utane could say such things said a lot.

She started to get scared.

They were afraid that if everything went to waste, they wouldn't get any good results at all.

"Forget it?" Mizutomon Yan turned his head and looked at her: "Are you willing to give up the power you hold now?"

"Besides, even if we lose, won't the result be the same in the end?"

"In that case, why not give it a try."

“It can’t get any worse.”

Utane Koharu opened her mouth, but seemed to think that what Mito Kado En said made sense, so she finally closed her mouth.

Yeah, how bad could it get?
Could it be that after they were defeated, those three little guys dared to kill them?

impossible.

They both thought so as a matter of course.

However, they did not seem to realize that it was no longer the time for their close comrade-in-arms, Sarutobi Hiruzen, to manage the village.

three days later.

Rice shop.

The elderly and somewhat wealthy woman looked at the price tag in front of the store in astonishment, and immediately walked over to the clerk inside and asked:
"Wait a minute, wasn't the price of rice still 60 taels yesterday? Why did it suddenly rise to 90 taels today?"

"Feel sorry."

"Because of the intense fighting on the front lines, all the extra rice in the store was requisitioned."

The clerk seemed very helpless: "Not only is the price of rice this high today, but it may be even higher in a few days."

"As you know, the first thing the village needs to do is to ensure food supplies to the front line."

The old woman was startled when she heard this, and she counted the banknotes in her purse, gritted her teeth, and immediately said, "Weigh ten kilograms for me first."

It's not just her.

Unlike ninjas who have a guaranteed living, most civilians in the village in wartime have a very difficult life and have to budget their daily lives carefully.

Even a slight change in the price of rice can make an already struggling family's situation even worse.

Therefore, most people are very concerned about the changes in prices of various commonly used commodities.

After a short while, three or four more people noticed the price change in the rice shop. Most of them were still hoping for a lucky break, while the rest seemed to have sensed some influence and immediately bought more at this price.

One passes two, two passes three
More and more people have noticed this seemingly insignificant change in rice prices.

More importantly, it’s not just this one.

The price of rice on the entire street began to change after the small signal gun sounded.

In the first one or two days, the civilians were able to remain calm, perhaps because they had no money, and they also hoped that the village could control the rate of price increases.

But after the third day, many people could no longer sit still.

Rice shops everywhere have raised the price to over 120 taels.

Not only that, the prices of ninja tools also began to rise accordingly.

Just as the Nara clan monopolized most of Konoha's medicines and medical materials such as deer antlers, and the Akimichi clan monopolized the catering industry, the key industries controlled by the Sarutobi clan were food and some ninja tools.

As the pillar industries of the entire Konoha Village, any slight change in the prices of these two commodities can cause a considerable impact throughout the entire village.

This was also the reason why the Sarutobi clan was able to support such a large ninja clan and ensure that it would not decline, and even to form an independent fire escape unit - training ninjas is a very costly thing.

What is even more frightening to the villagers is that although the village has issued a series of notices during this process stating that it is importing rice from foreign countries, with a total population of hundreds of thousands, the impact will not last too long and will subside on its own.

But panic itself is irrational.

Most people just want to make sure their families don’t go hungry.

After some people started scrambling to buy rice, more and more people began to join the rush to buy.

As for the batch of rice that the village initially shipped back from foreign countries, it was all eaten up by some people at the original price, and ordinary people who really needed it could not get much at all.

Konoha, with a population of only a few hundred thousand, consumed enough food for millions of people in just one week, but many people still could not buy rice, and even some civilian ninjas were affected.

However, the Hokage Building remained silent.

This subtle attitude of acquiescence has aroused the speculative impulse of more and more people, who have joined this feast.

At first, only the price of rice increased, but later it spread to flour, potatoes, and even some meat.

The market, which was already deserted due to the wartime state, seemed to have been hit hard by this series of problems, and some shops closed down.

However, only people with a really keen sense of smell can detect it.

Those ninja clans that are at the top of the entire village and are truly monopolistic behemoths - the Uchiha, Hyuga, Inuzuka, Aburame and other clans - seem to have no intention of joining in this feast at all.

Just waiting quietly for something.

A few more days.

The people whose lives were becoming increasingly difficult because of the "rice riot" seemed to suddenly remember the parade and speech organized by Lady Tsunade some time ago.

More and more people began to reorganize themselves from isolated atoms and took to the streets under the leadership of meritorious ninjas from the First World War. They shouted slogans demanding that the Hokage Building calm down the situation, and led a group of people to march aimlessly throughout the village. Their only goal was to maximize the influence of this public opinion storm.

People of justice began to clamor, and the voices pleading for the people became louder and louder.

Until the end, even some small ninja clans could not resist the huge profits from the feast and took part in it themselves.

In just half a month, the front line had not even had time to push to the central part of the Land of Thunder, but the rear was already in chaos due to various incidents.

There was no sound coming from the Hokage Building.

It seems that I am completely helpless because of all these troublesome things.

Disappointments continue to accumulate.

"Look! I'll tell you."

to the opposite.

Mitomon Yan, who a few days ago was like a drowning man grasping at the last straw, laughed loudly and said to the people who returned to his yard with full energy:
"Just three little ninja kids, what do they know about running a village?"

"You guys have never seen the world!"

"What did I say before?"

"If you don't fight, you will definitely lose. If you fight, you will definitely win!"

"Look."

Mitomon En pointed at the people in front of him with high spirits, especially Sarutobi Saizo who had been sitting in the front row with dignity, and said with great joy: "It's just one round of attack from the Sarutobi clan leader. What else can those guys in the Hokage building do?"

"Can they conjure up rice out of thin air to take away all the Sarutobi clan's money?"

"Impossible, I don't have the financial resources!"

As the top leader of the financial department in the Hokage Building, Mizuto Kado En knew very well how much of Konoha Village's wealth had been lost due to their group of people.

This was also the reason why he believed he would win.

Hokage Building?

Without the support of a few ninja clans, what can you use to fight them?

We are in the village now, not on the front line!
When Mizuto Menyan thought of this, he immediately straightened his chest and raised his head, feeling extremely proud.

Have a look.

It still has to be the methods of these old people!
Without him, the Hokage building would have collapsed long ago.

The leaders of the ninja clans and forces were all speechless when they saw his arrogant look.

Seeing that everyone was intimidated by him, Mizuto Menyan began to arrange the follow-up matters.

"I think those little guys in the Hokage building won't understand what the name of this Konoha Village is unless they suffer a little!"

"The next operations will continue, from food to daily necessities, and then to various consumable materials."

"I don't think those little guys will admit defeat unless we use up all their assets."

Mitomon En put his hands on his hips.

Can fight? What's the use of being able to fight!
To survive in this ninja world, what matters is your background and your capital!
The era when victory could be achieved with fists alone was called the Warring States Period. Now they are civilized people who have established the ninja village system.

"And that guy!"

Mitomon Yan seemed to suddenly remember something and immediately instructed his confidant:

"It's about time that Danzo makes his debut."

"He must have a lot of propaganda in his hands. Let him activate those people and publicize the great achievements of the Hokage Building in the village!"

"If I don't give them a good show, do you really think we are a bunch of soft persimmons?"

　First update.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)