Naruto: The Information Broker from the Uchiha Clan.

Chapter 451 Black-hearted Nara

"call……"

Minato stood up and stretched, glancing out of the window of the Hokage's office. Below, his three disciples were still whispering among themselves.

However, judging from the pig-headed appearances of Kakashi and Obito, they must have just had a fight.

Looking at Lin sitting between the two, one can imagine that if it weren't for her, there would probably be a fight going on.

Although he failed to protect them at that time, Minato was still very clear about the personalities of his three disciples.

At that moment, Shikaku, standing beside Minato, also looked over.

"The housing prices in Konoha are indeed getting higher and higher."

"The expanded area can be used to designate more than ten plots of land, which can solve part of the funding problem for the tram planning."

"The new residents need houses. The original population of Konoha has a near-zero mortality rate due to peace, and the new generation will also need houses as they grow up."

Shikaku's gaze gradually turned serious: "With abundant resources, population growth is explosive. If a couple has four children, the population will double in twenty years. People who have transitioned from war to peace have a high enthusiasm for having children."

"In this scenario, the new generation will need housing again in just twenty years. Two, four, four, sixteen, forty years later, if all the children are boys, then a family of two will become twenty-six people."

"Even if you have two children, and half of them are girls, it will still be two, one, one, two, and in forty years, there will be six people."

"Recently, the prices of necessities such as food and clothing in the commercial district have started to rise, and this trend is already evident."

Minato rubbed his forehead; he felt his hair was falling out much faster these past few years.

The golden glitter is almost gone, leaving only glitter and no longer the gold.

"What did the Ministry of Economic Development say?"

"We cannot throw the baby out with the bathwater. The economy needs to develop steadily. The advice given is that after the tram plan is completed, subsequent plans need to be smoothly transitioned."

As Yun once said: Professional matters should be handled by professionals, regardless of their strength. Plan the overall direction well, slow down the pace, and respect their opinions.

After the two talked for a while, Minato frowned, still racking his brains about where to find the remaining funding gap in the tram plan.

After all, the decision to slow down has just been made, so it's impossible to issue an order now for Konoha to continue expanding its territory.

Shikaku looked down at Obito: "I remember Yun saying that when you're short of money, don't focus on the lower class, but on the truly wealthy."

Minato paused, then said, "You're not planning to attack your own Nara family, are you? I heard your deer antlers are selling very well lately."

Uh……

Shikaku fell silent.

"The Uchiha clan pays taxes on time, and although they earn a lot, if you don't have a legitimate reason, Yun could probably sue you instead," Minato reminded him again.

Shikaku smiled wryly: "Playing tricks under the rules—the Cloud, having participated in the rule-making process, is definitely more familiar with the rules. I wasn't thinking about the Uchiha; after all, it's just an upscale residential area and a fried chicken shop. Those who make nearly two or three times the profit by buying low and selling high are still the traveling merchants."

……

Rin treated him to some food, but Obito, still looking dejected, returned to the memorial stone.

Obito leaned casually against his own memorial stone, growing angrier the more he thought about it.

The ninja world is at peace now. Nagato's leg has been healed by Uzumaki Sora, and Yahiko is alive again. Those three bastards are probably running rampant in the Land of Rain right now.

With the Vortex Void protecting them, the five great ninja villages dared not cause trouble; they only needed to listen to Konoha and keep up with the pace of reform.

Just think about what happened in the Hokage Building today. That rotten guy Shikaku got nearly 20 billion ryo with just a few words.

This is the size of this village. The Land of Rain is also a country, so those three bastards must be living the high life!

The more I think about it, the angrier I get!

And there's the little nine-tailed fox, who actually dared to betray itself!

No, I need to use a kaleidoscope on it every now and then, or at least make it look really bad.

Do it when you think of it!

Obito flipped himself up and slapped the ground.

Spiritual communication!

As the smoke cleared, the little nine-tailed fox, having just been summoned, took off running.

These days, the only ones who can communicate with it, besides Ban, who is sealed away by Boss Yun in the dark, are this bastard.

Given that the incident has recently occurred, and knowing they are in the wrong, why aren't they running away?

"Trying to run away?!"

Obito stretched out his hand, and a section of giant tree emerged, directly binding the Nine-Tails.

Red chakra filled the air, tree branches exploded and shattered, and the little Nine-Tails kept its eyes closed and refused to open them, unleashing a flurry of wild punches.

"Oh? We agreed to share the good times, and you just betrayed me like this?"

The little nine-tailed fox kept its eyes tightly shut: "That's right! We share the good times and the bad! If I'm captured, I have to share the bad times!"

Obito, his face dark with anger, thought about it carefully and realized he was right!

"You bastard, you betrayed me! Give me back my money! If you don't, I'll make you dance in the street today!"

The nine-tailed fox, resigned to its fate, gave up struggling: "It's no use, I've seen enough. I've tried every way to make money, and I'm still poor!"

→_→

Obito, whose forehead veins were bulging, eventually calmed down because he knew that what the Nine-Tails said was true.

This guy is even more shameless than me; he's probably already done all the money-making stuff.

The tree was freed from its restraints, and the little nine-tailed fox plopped down on the ground.

He patted Obito with his paw: "I'm thinking of pulling off a big heist recently, but the time isn't right yet. I'll let you know when the time comes."

Just then, a voice rang out.

"Going to pull off a big heist? What are you planning to do?"

The familiar voice made the Nine-Tailed Fox immediately bristle: "Holy crap! The Great Demon King of the Nara Clan!"

"Whoosh!"

Nara Shikaku's figure appeared on the large tree behind Kurama: "It's very impolite to address someone who always helps you escape imprisonment like that..."

→_→

The Nine-Tails scoffed, "Don't think I'm stupid. Boss Yun said: You just want to let me out and cause trouble. The tailed beast plus the identity of the Uchiha clan will make those rich people have ideas."

"Then, after I've made a fortune, spent some on food and drinks, and covered the fines from those guys, I can reduce the amount of hair you lose."

Uh!

Lu Jiu was a little depressed.

It's not surprising that Yun could guess his thoughts, but it was still a bit awkward for Nine-Tails to say such things.

The Nine-Tails sneered: "Although you old codger have ill intentions, I, the Nine-Tails, have a broad perspective. From the perspective of Konoha's reform and development, it's not wrong for those rich people to contribute a little more."

Lu Jiu replied, "Wasn't that what Yun said? You're certainly putting it into practice. Never mind, hurry up and leave, I won't bother you today."

The Nine-Tails glanced at Obito, and although it was unwilling, it still made a face and disappeared in a flash.

Under the prevailing trend of peace, the negative emotions within the Nine-Tails' chakra had long since vanished.

Nara Shikaku is a high-ranking member of Konoha, and even if the Nine-Tails could defeat him, he wouldn't dare to make a move.

……

A gentle breeze blew by, and neither of them spoke a word under the earthen wooden house outside the memorial tablet.

One was angry, and the other was still thinking about how to say it...

"In fact, I was against your coming back at first."

Shikaku's voice made Obito catch his breath.

A few years ago, this statement would have been laughable to him.

But now... Konoha has Rin, Kakashi, Minato-sensei, and Kushina.

Compared to the dark days he once lived, it is clear that he has been living a much more relaxed and enjoyable life in recent years.

He couldn't lie about his inner peace and contentment. He was satisfied with the result and didn't want anyone to ruin it.

"Obviously, it's not up to you."

Shikaku landed on the tree beside Obito: "Yeah, I don't have the final say. Although I've made suggestions regarding the implementation of reform policies because of this brain of yours, and because that guy Yun is unwilling to take the position... but when it comes to you, I really don't have the final say."

"Yunhe imprisoned you in Konoha, and Uzumaki Sora revived Nohara Rin with the Rinnegan. There may be deeper reasons for their actions, but I still feel..."

Shikaku looked at Obito: "Your existence... can only bring trouble to Konoha and become an obstacle to the unity of the five great ninja villages."

Obito frowned.

He had no way to refute such a statement.

Others might not know, but he was certain that Uchiha Yun and Uzumaki Sora were essentially the same person.

Reviving Rin, giving herself two choices, and forcing herself to return to Konoha was just that person's twisted sense of humor.

It has no superfluous meaning, but its very existence can indeed evoke different thoughts in some people.

Scratching his head, Obito felt that his brain had become a bit sluggish in recent years.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "As the Hokage's assistant, you shouldn't be so free at this time. It's unlikely you can kick me out, after all, the teacher is still the Hokage, and there hasn't been any major problem."

"So what do you want me to do? In the name of Konoha, something I can't refuse, right?"

Shikaku smiled, and the slightly oppressive atmosphere from before vanished instantly.

"Obito..."

As soon as the sound came out, Obito felt goosebumps rise all over his body.

"Please don't... I'm scared of you."

Shikaku coughed: "No need for that. That fox has a deep misunderstanding of me. After all, there is a generation gap between tailed beasts and humans."

After a pause, Shikaku continued, "What I want you to do is what you're used to doing. You saw it at the Hokage Building before; those bastards' profits are enormous, so enormous that these merchants' mentality has changed."

Despite being a businessman, he was able to own a residence in a bustling area of ​​Konoha.

In terms of food, clothing, housing, and transportation, everything was more extravagant than that of ordinary people or even ninjas.

The Daming Prefecture no longer exists, but only a few years have passed. Old ideas remain unchanged, and some people even believe that they might become the new nobility.

And indeed, things seem to be moving in that direction; aside from a title, they've started some innovative ways to have fun.

In a world with the extraordinary energy of chakra, transportation is actually not difficult. At least in Obito's alternate dimension, transporting supplies is very easy.

But the reality is that Obito was just one person.

Meanwhile, the research department's work is progressing rapidly, and there are too many places where policies need to be implemented, from every town and village to more than a dozen small countries and the five major powers...

Therefore, initially, the Hokage Building decided to give merchants certain benefits, because only benefits could motivate them.

But now...

"The planning of the tram is now imperative. The Hokage Building has decided to invest a lot of manpower and resources, and you are even part of it."

Obito was stunned for a moment: "Me? What am I supposed to do there? Shouldn't the Akimichi clan be the most suitable for this kind of thing?"

Shikaku shook his head slightly: "The combination of Fire Release and Wind Release allows the steel mill to produce high-quality rails, but these steel materials need to be transported to each node. This can improve efficiency and save costs."

"Of course, that's for later. You can rest assured, the reward will be quite substantial. What I need you to do this time is to continue what we did before and get more caravans involved in the S-crossing."

(○Д○)

Obito waved his hands repeatedly: "I'm telling you, I have no money left. If you still want to fine me, I really don't have a single tael left."

Lu Jiu's lips curled up: "Yun once said: 'Focus your attention on the truly wealthy, don't fixate on the meager resources of the lower classes.' You were ordered to do this, so why would you be fined?"

After he finished speaking, Obito frowned and pondered deeply.

Compared to how he thought when he tricked Nagato, he felt that his intelligence had really deteriorated.

However, after a while, Obito understood.

"The planning of trams has rendered them largely obsolete, hasn't it?"

"Previously, they were needed to transport the most important seeds and a series of fertilizers to key areas. Now that there are trams, the maximum distance is no longer needed for them after several lines, so the profits will naturally decrease."

"You want to take back what you gave me before?!"

After figuring it out, Obito clicked his tongue and said, "The Nine-Tails is right. You Nara family people are really heartless."

Nara Shikaku showed no embarrassment: "The label of 'heartless' is inappropriate, because I didn't act for myself. Steel and labor costs, along with the taxes of the five great nations, all converge in Konoha, yet it's still a huge expense."

"The research department is asking for money every day. The planning of the tram tracks involves many things, and the newly established Research Department II has directly quoted prices for manpower, which can be described as openly asking for money."

"And so, the Hokage Building couldn't say anything. After all, every new thing needs countless trials to achieve the optimal result..."

Obito waved his hand to stop the other person's long-winded explanation: "I'm not interested in any of that. What I want to know is, what can I get in return?"

Lu Jiu laughed: "You only need to hand over half of the payment you received from the merchant."

Obito's face darkened instantly, and he almost punched him. This kind of risk-free business is simply outrageous!

However, it was obvious that the other party had calculated that Obito would definitely agree, because he needed the money.

"Are you so sure those guys will fall for it again?"

Lu Jiu replied, "Where there is profit, there will be competition; where there is competition, there will inevitably be cliques. Those eight have learned their lesson; they won't be kind enough to remind you. Even if they do, they might be misunderstood as wanting to monopolize your line."

"Moreover, the new policy will force them to choose you. And next, you'll need to reach out to these people on the list..."

……

(End of this chapter)