Naruto: Starting from Eating the Gold Fruit

Chapter 224 The Urban Legend of Konoha in its Forty-Second Year [Bonus Chapter of 2000 Words]

"Hahahahaha!"

A hearty laugh echoed from the Hokage's office.

Yuya looked at the number of Konoha Ninja Academy graduates this year in the newspaper in his hand and was extremely satisfied.

After more than a decade of development, the total population of Konoha Village has exceeded three million. Regardless of how many of them are temporary residents or residents of the outer city, they all live in the inner city, so they should be counted in the population.

After many years of silence, the Ninja Academy finally experienced a concentrated surge in activity.

The number of students who enrolled in the ninja academy this year...

More than 500 people.

Five hundred people!

Don't be fooled by the fact that this number may seem small; in reality, these 500 people may just be the beginning.

After more than a decade of development, many people do not have children immediately after reaching adulthood, either waiting until their jobs are stable or until they are not yet of childbearing age.

Theoretically speaking, while the annual birth rate and marriage rate may not reflect certain issues, there is a corresponding relationship between the birth rate and the marriage rate twenty years later.

For example, if a country has 10 million births in a year, then based on this ratio, we can roughly estimate what the situation will be like in 20 years.

Of course, the calculation method here is very complicated, and a single year cannot tell us anything specific.

Who knows, the number of newborns might be even higher the following year?

Well, it can't keep going down forever, right?

If that's really the case, then there's a problem.

As for what kind of problem might arise, we'll have to analyze each case individually.

Anyway, Yuya is very satisfied with the number of students enrolled in the Ninja Academy.

It's no wonder he never cut off the high welfare and benefits of the ninjas.

This year's 500 ninjas mean that at least 400 more will graduate in three years, and this number will continue to grow.

With the increasing number of ninjas, many of Konoha's development plans can be put on the agenda.

As for the potential work pressure caused by the population increase...

Has the film industry taken off yet?

High-end manufacturing can only produce extremely simple computers and mobile phones these days, and it is impossible for them to make it into high-end exports.

Basic industries also need upgrading, not to mention the game manufacturing and related development industries that Youya is piloting.

If all else fails, then develop sports, and provide corresponding lottery systems, stadiums, teams, support staff, and so on...

These factors combined are enough to solve the employment problem for millions of people, not to mention that the working population in Konoha's inner city is not that many at all.

Ultimately, we still need more people...

After going through this in her mind, Youya's previously wonderful mood inexplicably turned sour again.

It's like having a gold mine right in front of you, but you don't have the tools to mine it; that feeling can drive a person crazy.

Nara Shika also glanced at Yua, finding it particularly interesting that Yua, who had just been laughing heartily, had suddenly fallen silent and looked grim.

However, he still wouldn't budge on that issue.

However, his refusal to do so does not mean that Youya will not assign him any tasks.

"Shika, call Hiruzen Sarutobi over here later."

Nara Shika nodded in agreement, and half an hour later, Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived at the office.

Looking at the other person's noticeably rounder body and goatee, Yua narrowed his eyes: "Recently... Hiruzen-nii has been doing quite well."

Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hand: "Hey, don't mention it. Third Hokage, you know what kind of person Torifu is. He really eats meat like it's rice."

You Ya realized what was happening.

Ah, right, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who is in charge of news media, also has an assistant named Torifu Akimichi.

As for the Akimichi clan, you'll definitely be treated well if you follow them and live off them.

As for the rest, that's a matter of opinion.

"Well, you still need to pay attention to losing weight; your health is the most important thing. Um, well, what's up with that? The Sarutobi clan's territory, there should still be some, right? I have a new organization that needs to be set up here..."

Before Yua could finish speaking, Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hands repeatedly, "Wait, wait, Third Hokage, you can't fleece us like this! Our Sarutobi clan has always been the most cooperative with you, and now our clan territory is only a third of what it used to be!"

Yuya protested, "But there's still a third left! Let me tell you, this organization is incredible. If it's built, your Sarutobi clan will be bound to it, which means you'll be bound to Konoha Village. Isn't that better than just your clan alone?!"

The Sarutobi clan waved their hands, saying, "No, no, absolutely not! If our clan continues like this, we won't be able to survive in Konoha."

Yuya became even more dissatisfied: "The way you're saying this makes it sound like I'm targeting your ninja clans! Honestly, I've always aimed for mutual development and prosperity! And ask yourselves honestly, over the years, haven't I given you at least 20 billion, if not 30 billion? Don't you like that money?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked constipated. "You son of a bitch, how shameless! How can there be such a shameless person?"

You know perfectly well whether the needle was actually aimed at you or not!

but……

Thinking of those small sums of money, Hiruzen Sarutobi could only offer a fawning smile: "Third Hokage, what you said is true, but the problem is... our clan needs a piece of land of our own, otherwise, otherwise, otherwise we won't even have a place to worship our ancestors, what kind of order would that be?"

Yua stared blankly at Hiruzen Sarutobi, then looked at him suspiciously, stroking his beard. "Did someone teach you to say that?" Yua asked doubtfully.

Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hands repeatedly: "Hey, Third Hokage, that's not right. You and I both know that I don't have anyone like that around me."

Yuya thought about it carefully and nodded: "That's true, Akimichi Torifu doesn't have that kind of brain."

Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a wave of shame wash over him: Torifu, he's slandering you! He said you're brainless!

However, considering the benefits the Akimichi clan receives from Yua every year...

Hiruzen Sarutobi would probably just chuckle and nod, clutching a chicken leg, if he heard this: "Yes, yes, the Hokage is right."

After all, the Akimichi clan is not as large as the Sarutobi clan. The Akimichi clan only has a limited number of people and their territory is not large. Even if they become Yua's target, they will definitely be ranked after the Sarutobi, Shimura, Hyuga, Uchiha, and other clans.

There's absolutely no way that Youya and them could have any conflict now.

Fortunately...

I have a wonderful wife.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was secretly pleased. Although Biwako Sarutobi was his arranged wife by his family, the two had met many times before their marriage, but their feelings for each other were just so-so.

However, after getting married, Hiruzen Sarutobi gradually came under Biwako Sarutobi's thumb.

After all, many of Hiruzen Sarutobi's decisions are made after consulting with Biwako Sarutobi. If it were up to his personality, he might gradually back down in his confrontation with Yua.

After all, Yuya truly holds the great responsibility of the entire village in his hands, and a single sentence about the village's development is enough to kill the game.

Fortunately, this time he unleashed his ultimate move with the help of Sarutobi Biwako.

That is the worship of ancestors.

If a ninja clan's ancestral rites are conducted strictly according to regulations, they can be very elaborate, costly, lively, and troublesome, with many procedures. Therefore, generally speaking, many large ninja clans in Konoha do not hold extravagant clan ancestral rites.

However, just because they are too lazy to hold an event doesn't mean that Yua can say things like, "You used to just do things carelessly, why are you making such a big deal out of requisitioning your land?" If Yua were to say such things, it would be accusing their ninja clan of wasting manpower and resources.

However, in this respect, Youya has no grounds for argument whatsoever.

After all, in any country, saying that you shouldn't worship your ancestors is pure idiocy. No matter what you think in your heart, you can't say it out loud.

You Ya was helpless. After thinking it over, he realized that this reason was absolutely flawless.

He couldn't possibly tell the Sarutobi clan to stop worshipping their ancestors, could he...?

Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi turned against him, Hiruzen Sarutobi was in the right...

With a sigh, You Ya finally decided to stick to the old method.

So he handed Hiruzen Sarutobi a proposal: "I must build and complete this organization this year. You can take a look. Whether you give it land or not is your choice, but once it's built, there will definitely be many benefits."

Take it back and have a look. If they still don't agree in the end, then I'll go to other families.

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned as he took Yua's proposal, then said goodbye and left.

After Hiruzen Sarutobi left, Nara Shika licked his lips and said to Yua, "Our Nara clan has a pasture in the northeast of the village and raises a herd of deer there..."

You Ya waved his hand: "Let's keep that area as a nature reserve. Building this there... is too remote..."

After saying that, Youya muttered, "Although it's true that it can't be built in the very center of the inner city."

……

After taking the proposal back, Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at it with his wife.

Yua's original intention was to have Hiruzen Sarutobi discuss these matters with the elders of the Sarutobi clan.

However, for Hiruzen Sarutobi, the elders of the Sarutobi clan were all money-grubbing types who couldn't resist money. Yua was always very generous with money, so even if he had to discuss it with the elders, he should first discuss it with his wife.

His two sons, Shinnosuke and Asuma, are currently being sent to math tutoring classes by Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Shinnosuke is feeling utterly bored with life. Shinnosuke will be attending the Ninja Academy next year.

Since Shinnosuke became famous after asking Sai to draw him an animated 2D wife, he has matured quite a bit since being double-teamed by Hiruzen Sarutobi and Biwako Sarutobi.

But no matter how mature you are, you'll still not be good at math.

Therefore, tutoring is still necessary.

Sarutobi Biwako took the proposal from Sarutobi Hiruzen, opened it, and saw nothing else, but a string of numbers in bold made even the most composed Sarutobi Biwako's heart skip a beat.

10 billion taels...

And they explicitly stated that they invest this much money every year...

If this is truly implemented, then this organization will indeed be the most important organization in the entire Hidden Leaf Village, just as Yua said. It wouldn't be a waste of the Sarutobi clan's territory, and the Sarutobi clan might even be bound to it, ensuring their interests in every aspect are protected...

but……

If this is agreed to, the Sarutobi clan's territory will be completely divided. From now on, members of the Sarutobi clan will first say they are from Konoha Village before referring to themselves as members of the Sarutobi clan...

While that is indeed the case, in that case, the Sarutobi clan would be completely bound to Konoha...

Sarutobi Biwako was immediately in a real bind.

Over the years, she has helped Hiruzen Sarutobi handle many work-related matters, with Yua's situation being the most troublesome.

It's not that You Ya is smarter than her or that she uses underhanded tactics.

On the contrary, Youya always played his cards face up, both the cards on the table and the cards in his hand.

His goal was very clear, his conditions were very clear, and the benefits he could offer were also very clear.

Its main strategy is an unsolvable, overtly clever scheme.

Nobody dislikes money, and Youya has always been generous with his spending...

After carefully reading through the proposal, an hour later, Sarutobi Biwako sighed helplessly. She covered the proposal in her hand, and the words "[University...Construction...]" could be vaguely seen in the title at the top.

Sarutobi Biwako handed the proposal to Sarutobi Hiruzen: "All the terms are fine. Of course, his intentions are obvious to everyone. The problem is... can the clan elders resist this temptation?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi bit his finger. Indeed, if this so-called university project were successfully implemented, the annual figure of 10 billion yen would be enough to drive those clan elders crazy.

The crux of the problem is...

The Sarutobi clan... they really have nowhere left to live...

……

In the 42nd year of Konoha, with the increase in population in the inner city of Konoha Village, the original Hyuga Kindergarten was already feeling somewhat stretched thin.

However, the Hyuga clan suggested that they could expand the area, so they bought two plots of land in the western and northern parts of Konoha's inner city and opened two branch kindergartens.

These two places are basically frequented by high-ranking officials, politicians, or wealthy families.

Therefore, the fees at Hyuga Kindergarten are exceptionally high.

There are also many children in the eastern and southern parts of the inner city, so naturally someone will occupy this vacant market.

One of them is Southeast Kindergarten. Although its location is not very good, it's because the kindergarten principal doesn't have the financial resources of a wealthy family like the Hyuga clan, who can buy land and houses in prime locations in the West and North districts and convert several floors of housing into a kindergarten.

Although it was a difficult start, Southeast Kindergarten is much busier this year compared to the first year when there were very few students.

"So you're the new students who enrolled this year?! My name is Sarutobi Asuma! I'm the boss of this kindergarten!" A six-year-old brat pointed at himself arrogantly with his thumb.

Then a girl who looked to be about twenty years old next to him pinched his ear with her hand.

"Ouch! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts..."

The girl smiled and playfully scolded, "You only came here last year, so you're not allowed to say things like that."

Then the girl looked at the thirty-odd children in front of her, her eyes curving into crescents. The fees for Southeast Kindergarten were indeed not high. In contrast, the location of the kindergarten was not very good. However, since the buildings in Konoha Village were built uniformly, there was no situation of disrepair over the years. It was just that the location was not good. The buildings were still very new.

Although she had a feeling there would be many new students enrolling this year, the fact that there were more than thirty children was still beyond the girl's expectations.

"Xiaoyu, don't restrict these kids too much. Now that they're here with us, they should just enjoy every day as they please."

A middle-aged man walked to the gate. The several hideous scars on his face immediately silenced the previously noisy children, and no one dared to utter a sound.

"You're the one who's deliberately scaring the child, Uncle Jian. Be careful you don't have nightmares tonight," the girl said softly with a smile on her lips.

Then she looked gently at the thirty-odd children in front of her: "Hello, children, my name is Yakushi Nonou. Let's spend the next two years together and make the most of every day~"

"..."

There was silence.

The scarred man raised an eyebrow and snorted coldly, "Hmm?"

All the children were immediately startled and shouted in unison, "Yes!!!"

The girl gave the middle-aged man a reproachful look, shook her head, and led the thirty-odd children into the kindergarten.

……

The first day of kindergarten has ended, and many parents have come to pick up their children.

When school was over, the girl held a list, read out the names one by one, and then told them to leave with their parents.

The next day, the girl brought a box of paper cuttings and a box of modeling clay to the classroom, and taught the little girl how to cut paper and the little boy how to make modeling clay.

Day three, day four...

Until the second week...

After a week of getting to know each other, the girl has become a teacher recognized by the children.

Naturally, some children will confide their troubles to the girl.

then……

"Teacher... I think I've fallen in love with someone!" A five-year-old girl said to Yakushi Nonou with a serious and blushing expression.

Yakushi Nonou was completely dumbfounded; her eyes turned into beady eyes.

"Huh? You, you've fallen for...who?" Yakushi Nonou barely managed to keep a smile on her face, though she was already on the verge of a breakdown inside.

She's so old and has never been in a relationship, so why would a five-year-old girl confide such worries to her?!

The girl, her face flushed, whispered in Yakushi Nonou's ear.

Yakushi Nonou stiffly turned her head and saw Asuma, who was showing off, holding a flower in his hand and flipping his hair as he approached a girl with fiery red hair.

Then the girl in front of Yakushi Nonou burst into tears.

Yakushi Nonou panicked immediately: "Shizune, little Shizune, don't cry!"

Asuma heard this, looked over, pointed, and burst into laughter: "Hahaha, look! Shizune's crying! Hahaha, come and laugh at her!"

The little girl with fiery red hair punched Asuma on the head: "Idiot Asuma!"

Then she walked over and pulled the short-haired little girl up: "Let's go! Ignore this idiot!"

Shizune looked at him with adoration, while Asuma, clutching his head with tears in his eyes, gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it! Kurenai, you violent woman! I'll never send you flowers again!"

The parents who came to pick up their children from school that evening didn't feel embarrassed at all listening to their children's antics at kindergarten; on the contrary, they were quite amused.

Pharmacist Nono sighed after a busy day.

This kindergarten...

Every day is so colorful...

I'm just too tired.

The next day, another little girl approached her: "Teacher... do you have a moment? I have something I'd like to ask you."

The smile on Yakushi Nonou's face froze:

Seriously?! Again?!

Fortunately, the little girl didn't have the typical childhood romantic troubles that are often associated with love; in fact, it was a very serious problem.

"Teacher, I... I've been feeling like someone's watching me from the shadows lately..." The little girl looked at Yakushi Nonou with tears in her eyes.

Yakushi Nonou's expression immediately turned serious: "Watching you? Wait, you mean... someone's following you?!"

As Konoha Village develops and people no longer worry about food, clothing, and daily necessities, some people inevitably start to develop in inexplicable directions.

A few years ago, there was a case of molesting a little girl in Konoha Village.

He was only sentenced to twenty years simply because he didn't actually succeed, and it's quite likely he'll get a reduced sentence, probably fifteen or even twelve years, or even ten years if he behaves well.

Since they hadn't actually succeeded, even though everyone hated him to the core, Youya was helpless and couldn't send the child who had been sexually assaulted to meet God.

However, starting from this year, the Uchiha Police Department's tasks became even more demanding, since if even one bastard succeeded, it would completely ruin a child's life.

Security Department: ??? (We're busy enough already!)

And now...

Could there be another bastard like this?

Pharmacist Nonou looked at the little girl very seriously: "Rin-chan, remember, never stay home alone again! If your parents are on vacation and you're alone, call your teacher! Your teacher will come pick you up!"

With that, Pharmacist Nonou wrote her phone number on a piece of paper and slipped it into Nohara Rin's pocket, looking at her with a serious expression: "Did you remember it? Make sure you don't stay home alone or in dangerous places!"

Nohara Rin nodded heavily, her eyes filled with tears.

Then she turned around and went back to playing.

Pharmacist Nono let out a breath, realizing that she still needed to prioritize safety education for children.

However, this was only the beginning...

As Rin grew older day by day, by the end of Konoha Year 42, Rin felt that the gaze behind her had not only not disappeared, but had become more and more intense.

Even the pharmacist Nono, who occasionally went home with Rin, and Rin's parents could occasionally notice this kind of gaze.

Thus, at the end of the 42nd year of Konoha, an urban legend began to circulate in Konoha Village.

That is, there is a devil's gaze in the dark, specifically watching the little girl. If the little girl is playful or disobedient and ends up alone, then a devil that specializes in capturing such disobedient little girls will rush out and take her away!

After the legend spread, countless little girls became exceptionally well-behaved.

This brought good fortune to many families in Konoha.

(End of this chapter)