They're promoting the "Konoha threat" theory, and spouting nonsense about the Hidden

Chapter 143 Nara Shikahan's Statement: Economic Hegemony Forever Depends on Military Hegemony

"Lady New Moon, after the Konoha envoys settled in the embassy district, their chief envoy, Tsunade, secretly went to the Uzumaki clan's territory. The specific conversation took place as follows."

A Kirigakure ninja dressed as an ANBU member knelt on one knee before Hozuki Shingetsu and handed him a piece of intelligence.

"Heh, that old fox Yoshio Uzumaki really took this opportunity to vent his anger..."

Hozuki Shingetsu casually took it and found that it was exactly as he had expected.

The report vividly described even the pauses in Tsunade and Yoshio Uzumaki's speech, as well as the expressions and postures of everyone present, clearly indicating that the Uzumaki clan was actively trying to curry favor with him.

As relatives of Kushina Uzumaki, the Uzumaki clan's position in Kirigakure is practically invincible.

Yoshio Uzumaki was a man who had seen a lot, so naturally he wouldn't disregard the interests of Kirigakure because of his past with the Senju clan. Moreover, considering that Mito Uzumaki had stood by and watched, he was even less likely to seek his own death.

So all of this, including initially refusing to see him and then turning against him, was simply a way of showing loyalty to Hozuki Shingetsu.

Of course, there must also be some personal grudges involved, and they want to take this great opportunity to vent the grievances they suffered in Wochao Village.

Hozuki Shingetsu was naturally happy with this, and most importantly, after this incident, the group of Konoha envoys had completely lost their support in Kirigakure.

Everything depends on tomorrow's meeting, which undoubtedly puts enormous psychological pressure on the other side.

"Negotiation? What a coincidence! I happen to have some knowledge of this."

Hozuki Shingetsu put away the intelligence in his hand, looked at the new moon outside the window, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.

-

The following morning, after a simple breakfast, Tsunade and her group arrived at the Mizukage Building as agreed, hoping to meet with Hozuki Shingetsu as soon as possible to discuss the matter of providing support.

However, as we all know, in negotiations, the more anxious the party is, the more disadvantaged they tend to be, and the less composed the party is, the more they expose their lack of confidence.

So, knowing that the other party needed his help, Hozuki Shingetsu kept them waiting for a while until the sun was high in the sky before instructing Akiba Masanobu to bring everyone into the Mizukage's office.

Although it was quite strange that Hozuki Shingetsu was sitting in the Mizukage's seat as the headmaster of the Ninja Academy, neither Kirigakure nor Konoha seemed to care about it, and even considered it perfectly normal.

It wasn't until everyone began to pay their respects in a perfunctory manner that this began.

"Tsunade, the Konoha envoy, greets... greets Lord Hozuki."

Theoretically speaking, the person who should receive the Konoha envoys here should be the Mizukage, but due to Hozuki Shingetsu's special status, Tsunade was stunned for a long time and could only vaguely refer to him as "Lord Hozuki".

Taking this opportunity, Tsunade also took the chance to observe the famous "Ninja Demon Fox" in the ninja world, the biggest mastermind who has stirred up trouble in the ninja world since he entered the service.

The actual ruler of Kirigakure appeared remarkably young and as handsome as rumored.

However, for some reason, his hair was not the traditional white hair of the Hozuki clan, but rather resembled that of the Uzumaki clan, with bright red hair.

At this moment, he was sitting imposingly on the Water Shadow Throne, looking at them with a smile.

"Haha, the granddaughter of the 'God of Shinobi,' the famous 'Tsunade Princess' of Konoha, I've heard so much about you."

At this point, Hozuki Shingetsu finally met the real Tsunade in person.

Upon first meeting, Tsunade's impression of Hozuki Shingetsu could be summed up in one word.

Big!

Unlike the characters I've seen on paper, this live-action Tsunade exudes a particularly strong sense of oppression towards Hozuki Shingetsu.

There's no way around it; it's humanity's instinctive submission to the origin of life, and Hozuki Shingetsu is no exception.

Under this oppressive atmosphere, even the usually carefree Yukinagi became unusually self-conscious and remained silent.

Because Hozuki Shingetsu knew the importance of taking the initiative in negotiations, he changed the subject and ignored Tsunade's subtle hints, starting to chatter along with her.

From the past of Hashirama Senju to the current state of Konoha, from the rumors of the Uchiha Mangekyou Sharingan to the battle at the Valley of the End, he just pretended to be confused and kept going in circles with Tsunade.

Tsunade was already annoyed because Hozuki Shingetsu had ranked her first on the Heavenly Ranking and there was a false rumor that she possessed Wood Release.

Adding to the various grudges between Hozuki Shingetsu and Konoha, as well as Tsunade's own dissatisfaction with this journey, her temper flared up suddenly. Just when she was about to throw caution to the wind, Nara Shikahan stepped in.

"I originally thought that Lord Hozuki, who quelled the 'Bloody Mist Rebellion' at such a young age and even willingly became a Jinchuriki of a Tailed Beast to protect the villagers, must be a remarkable person. But now it seems that what people say is far too exaggerated."

"The Hidden Mist Village is now facing imminent disaster, yet Lord Hozuki remains oblivious and leisurely here. Konoha, unable to bear seeing the Hidden Mist Village's promising future destroyed, and remembering our friendship from the first Five Kage Summit, traveled a great distance to warn them. To expect this is the kind of treatment we receive. It seems the Hidden Mist Village is nothing special after all!"

Upon hearing this, Tsunade turned around in shock to look at her strategist, her eyes filled with an indescribable look.

If we're not brothers, how come you're even more reckless than me?

Now that you've said that, how are we supposed to ask for their help?

Besides, we're still on Kirigakure's territory. Aren't you afraid they'll just chop us up if you talk like that?

chap!

Just as Tsunade had predicted, all the Mist Ninja who heard these words drew their ninja swords from their backs in unison, their eyes fixed on Nara Shikakan with a sinister glint in their eyes.

The saying goes, "A subject dies when his lord is humiliated." After more than three years of training by Hozuki Shingetsu, the Kirigakure ninja who appeared here undoubtedly regarded him as their spiritual pillar and the true hope for the rise of Kirigakure. How could they possibly accept him being insulted by outsiders like this?

Hozuki Shingetsu squinted at Nara Shikakan, lost in thought.

Saying such things in this context could easily be considered a diplomatic incident. Kirigakure used this as a pretext to execute the group, leaving everyone speechless.

As Konoha's strategist, Nara Shikakan certainly knew this. And there's only one reason why he did it despite knowing this.

"...deliberately intimidating and then bluffing to find a weakness?"

Hozuki Shingetsu chuckled inwardly. Seeing this classic persuasive technique from Romance of the Three Kingdoms in the ninja world was quite a unique experience.

So Hozuki Shingetsu, following the script, took the initiative to put himself in the role and wanted to see what Nara Shikakan was trying to say.

"Oh? In that case, I should thank Konoha?"

Hozuki Shingetsu slowly stood up, her bright red hair gradually turning scarlet.

"However... your words have insulted Kirigakure. If I do nothing, it would be a laughing stock. If you cannot give me a satisfactory explanation, then you may all stay here today."

As soon as he finished speaking, a layer of scarlet vapor suddenly appeared around Hozuki Shingetsu, and a strong chakra aura reverberated in the office. Under this surging aura, the papers in the office moved without wind and flew wildly in mid-air.

!

"This aura is in no way inferior to Sakumo's... Kirigakure has truly produced a remarkable figure!"

Tsunade squinted, ignoring the way her clothes were billowing in the wind, and gained a completely new understanding of Hozuki Shingetsu's strength.

Nara Shikahan, who was standing to the side, was also greatly shocked. He had not expected that Hozuki Shingetsu would have such strength at such a young age.

Having such strength is not the main issue; the key factor is Hozuki Shingetsu's age.

At sixteen years old, Hozuki Shingetsu is still in a period of rapid growth in strength. He already has such strength now, it's unimaginable how much his strength will improve in ten years.

and so……

"This time, I'll have to drag you down with me even more..."

Nara Shikahan organized his thoughts and slowly explained what he had said earlier.

"Looking back on our journey, we have truly been amazed by the development of your village's commerce and economy. Compared to Konoha, it is no exaggeration to say that Kirigakure is now the commercial capital of the ninja world."

However, one cannot simply belittle the other party. Nara Shika first affirmed the other party, and then used this to introduce the main point of his conversation.

"But has Lord Hozuki considered that Kirigakure's current prosperity is entirely built on the war between our four great ninja villages? All the demand for supplies and the merchants' sourcing locations all stem from this."

"But war certainly can't go on forever. Once the war stops, has Lord Hozuki considered the consequences for Kirigakure?"

Nara Shikahan paused, then looked at the Mist Ninja present and described the scene.

"The flourishing commerce made Kirigakure what it is today, but with the war over, the market demand has vanished. Each ninja village will surely seize this opportunity to vigorously develop its economy and restore its strength. But how will Kirigakure cope with the situation where its market share is taken away, and it produces a large quantity of goods with nowhere to sell them due to its greatly increased manufacturing capacity?"

Nara Shikakan, as expected of Konoha's strategist, drew the same conclusion as Hozuki Shingetsu based solely on what he had seen and heard along the way.

That is economic hegemony, which will always rely on military hegemony.

Although Kirigakure has greatly improved its strength after three years of recuperation, there is no doubt that Kirigakure is still not the strongest in the ninja world.

Even now, after three years of war in Konoha, it remains the same.

There's no other reason than that Kirigakure's foundation was too weak before.

Therefore, when the war ends and the various ninja villages turn their attention back to commerce and the economy, that will be the time when Kirigakure's current prosperous economy collapses.

"It doesn't stop there. Kirigakure's use of our war as an opportunity to develop its commerce and restore its strength is indeed a good move. However, after the war, the weakened villages will have other ideas when faced with the wealthy Kirigakure. Only heaven knows."

Nara Shikahan looked at Hozuki Shingetsu and revealed his sharp teeth.

"We, Konoha, inherit Lord Hashirama's will and love peace, so naturally we wouldn't do that. But whether the three legendary ninja villages that have already formed an alliance, especially the Kumogakure village which is known for its aggression, would do the same is really uncertain."

"When the village's economy collapses and it's surrounded by the Three Ninja Armies, how will Lord Hozuki handle that situation?"

(End of this chapter)