Konoha Notes

Chapter 399 Expansion
The matter of aid funds between the Country of Rice Fields and the Hidden Sound Village could not be kept secret from the other members of the secret service.

Konoha didn't intend to hide it, after all, from the very beginning of the plan, they intended to treat this issue as a serious matter.

As for the response, Iwagakure continued to hint at coordinating the funds, since they didn't have anything else on their schedule for the rest of the year.

Yunyin did not react further for the time being. They had many things to do. Konoha opened a door within its own territory first, indicating that it also intended to handle this matter slowly, which was in line with Ai's expectations.

Anyway, they can't control it.

After all, in addition to cooperating with Kirigakure to set up the stronghold barrier of the Land of Forest, Kumogakure also needs to deal with the challenge from the Land of Snow.

The Land of Snow absorbed a significant amount of quicksand generated by the joint actions of the ninja world.

Those wandering ninjas and rogue ninjas may not be able to fight the five great ninja villages head-on, but they are quite capable in small-team battles.

The Cloud Hidden and Mist Hidden suffered some considerable losses in their clashes with them at sea.

This situation has now been communicated to all the ninja villages.
-
In the underground archives of the secret unit.

Yamato squatted in front of the waist-high wooden box, reached his arm into the box, took out the rolls of files, spread them out, quickly checked the cover numbers, and then sorted them and stacked them on the empty shelf next to him.

Footsteps came from above the spiral stone staircase.

Shuji walked down the last step and went straight to the wooden box that Yamato was tidying up, then casually pulled out a scroll.

He unfolded it, read a few lines, then rolled it up again and put it back in the box.

“Compile all the information on registered wandering ninjas and rogue ninjas,” Shuji said. “After you have compiled it, make a copy and send it to the Joint Affairs Bureau.”

"Yes." Yamato didn't even look up, continuing with his work.

"Also," Shuji said, turning and heading towards the stairs, his voice coming from behind, "when you go to the secret service building, take a look around and see where there's a suitable place to build a new building."

Yamato's movements stopped.

He turned his head and looked at Shuuji's back as he stepped onto the stairs: "You're joking, right, Shuuji-senpai?"

"Kakashi is exhausted." Shuuji stopped at the corner of the stairs. "Just do him a favor and think of a way to get him a more spacious place."

The footsteps gradually faded into the distance.

Yamato stared at the empty stairwell for a few seconds, a smirk playing on his lips.

Bad sense of humor.

He made his judgment.

The frequency of large-scale inter-village conflicts has decreased, and Uchiha-related affairs have also entered a stable track. Although the workload of the Anbu has dropped from its peak, daily guard duty, intelligence screening, and special monitoring tasks are still fully scheduled.

In any case, the expansion plan for the Joint Affairs Bureau building should never have been his responsibility.

Three days later, several large boxes were delivered to the Joint Affairs Bureau.

The weasel was already waiting there, meticulously checking the scroll list and counting the quantity.

Yamato only headed towards the main building after Itachi handed him the receipt stamped with the secret service's seal.

Upon opening the door to Kakashi's office, the first thing that catches the eye is the sheer volume of documents that almost completely submerges the desk. Various files, reports, and budget sheets are piled up haphazardly, some stacks already tilted at a dangerous angle.

Kakashi was slumped in the chair behind the mountain of documents. His silver hair was sticking up in a messy manner, and the headband that usually covered his left eye was pushed up to the top of his head, revealing his Sharingan.

He was facing a thick booklet spread out in front of him, his eyes moving slowly, but his gaze was somewhat unfocused.

"Oh, Yamato."

"Kakashi-senpai." Yamato placed the handover list on the only remaining empty space on the table. "The backups of the information on the wandering ninjas have all been delivered."

“Hmm…” Kakashi’s gaze didn’t even drift towards the list. “Thank you for your hard work. I’ll look at it tomorrow… no, the day after tomorrow.” “Shuji-senpai said you were very busy at the secret service, I didn’t expect it to be this much.”

"Busy?" Kakashi snorted briefly. "If it weren't for him throwing out one idea after another, at least half of the secret service staff could leave on time."

"The new idea is to build a shared intelligence database across ninja villages—specifically targeting wandering ninjas and rogue ninjas. Each village will enter all known information, such as their identities and abilities."

"From now on, no matter which village's border patrol team encounters an unexplained attack or is pursuing a specific target, they can quickly access the relevant information."

Yamato remained silent for a few seconds.

“Such a system can indeed improve response efficiency,” he said carefully, “but other villages may not be willing to hand over all relevant intelligence.”

Kakashi said, "Any amount is fine, even if it's just the publicly wanted list, it will still be useful."

"Intelligence is always better than nothing. Besides..."

"The focus is not entirely on the intelligence corps itself."

Yamato awaits further developments.

“Once the basic framework is in place and the data reaches a preliminary scale,” Kakashi continued, “Konoha will propose issuing identity certificates to wandering ninjas who are still active within the territories of the five great ninja villages and are willing to abide by the rules.”

“Certificates can participate in martial arts competitions under the Joint Affairs Bureau and earn rewards through official channels. Those who perform exceptionally well may even be qualified to accept secondary requests from various ninja villages.”

Yamato frowned: "How effective will this be, Kakashi-senpai?"

Kakashi didn't explain further, but instead said to Yamato, "Speaking of which, since you're here, Yamato... do me a favor."

Yamato had a bad feeling.

"The expansion plan for the new office building has been approved, but there will still be some issues with the actual construction."

Kakashi said, "You were involved in the construction of the building last time, right? If..."

“Kakashi-senpai,” Yamato took a deep breath, “this isn’t a particularly urgent project, and I’m currently in charge of the Anbu—”

"I've always considered you my most trustworthy junior," Kakashi interrupted him, his voice suddenly lowering and becoming hoarse.

"Outstanding ability, strong sense of responsibility, reliable in critical moments... so after I left the Anbu, I'm entrusting it to you."

"However... there's nothing we can do about it. After all, you're already in charge of the Dark Division, and your tasks are heavy. This little thing is nothing..."

He sighed, a long and weary sigh.

"Looks like... I'll have to look for other candidates. There aren't many suitable people, and time is so tight... Sigh, if all else fails, I'll just keep an eye on things myself, even if it means pulling a few more all-nighters..."

Kakashi's voice grew softer and softer, gradually turning into a muttering that was almost a soliloquy.

Yamato looked away.

He looked at the wooden crates piled up in the corner, at the cold cup of tea on the windowsill, and then he heard himself say, "...I understand."

"Then I'll leave it to you."

Kakashi sat up straight instantly.

His headband was neatly pulled back into place, covering his Sharingan, and he clasped his hands together.

"With you here, the security of the new building can be guaranteed."

Yamato closed his eyes.

These predecessors... one by one, they were all like that.

(End of this chapter)