Transmigrating as the Third Hokage: Make Konoha Great Again!

Although he only knew a few uncertain bits and pieces about the future of this world.

But he has a trump card up his sleeve.

With a slight thought, a page of red-headed white paper appeared in my mind, its black characters solemn and clear.

[Authority], [Diplomacy], [Economy], [Education], [Military].

Five indicators are listed side by side.

After finishing his conversation with Shimura Danzo, a touch of gold quietly appeared at the bottom of the word "authority".

It's like a progress bar.

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002 The safest approach to village governance is to expand the economic pie.

Hiruzen Sarutobi shifted his gaze to the portrait of Tobirama Senju in the office and smiled slightly.

He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.

The key to the smooth progress of this conversation between Danzo and Shimura was that Danzo used the reputation of "a disciple of Tobirama Senju" as collateral.

Rounding it off, it's like I've boosted the Second Hokage's credit score.

However, a loan alone won't suffice; we need to give Danzo a little something in return, making him feel like he's actually making a profit...

Political credibility is very important when dealing with internal conflicts.

"Those derivative videos focus on using fire as a metaphor for history, but they don't have any real substance."

Hiruzen Sarutobi considered his intelligence advantage:

"The information we can confirm at the moment is twofold. First, the evaluations of me are polarized based on the videos from my past life, but both sides believe that if I had done better, I could have avoided many tragedies..."

"This shows that I have many angles to work from, and most people can be won over."

"Secondly, there seems to be a problem of deus ex machina in this world, so we must not relax our personal strength."

While analyzing the current situation, Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered the five major modules of the official document in his mind.

Authority, diplomacy, economy, military, education…

Aside from his combat awareness, which still needs some refinement and integration, this is a major source of his strength!

It's uncertain what kind of help we can provide at the moment.

However, comparing his memories of faking illness with his past self, he is now not only free of his hidden ailments, but also significantly healthier and more energetic than before…

He is trustworthy.

Looking at these five modules, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled with relief.

This was all too familiar to him…

This is a simplified version of a performance appraisal form!

He must do everything in his power to improve all aspects of Konoha.

We must focus on all five aspects, and all five fingers must be strong!

But for Hiruzen Sarutobi, this was a blessing.

They possess a body capable of flying and traversing the earth, and can also experience life in a new world…

What's wrong with doing some work for the village?

"Let's take a look at the scrolls left by Danzo first." Hiruzen Sarutobi carefully flipped through them.

This was clearly a smear campaign by Shimura Danzo against Orochimaru, and he certainly wouldn't believe it was a true record.

However, this mudslinging does contain some truth, so it still has some reference value.

All I can say is that this old guy quickly assumed the identity of a Hokage candidate.

They've started tripping up their competitors...

Konoha today.

Although most people still believe that Orochimaru will succeed Hiruzen Sarutobi.

His preference for Orochimaru was very obvious in the past.

However, some at the highest levels have already keenly sensed that since the Second Shinobi World War, the relationship between the Third Hokage and his beloved student seems to have undergone some changes…

"Are you trading experimental subjects with tribes within the Land of Fire that haven't joined Konoha?"

"The Ibuli clan, the Earth Spider clan..."

"Ninjas from other countries captured by Root..."

When he saw that some of the subjects of his experiment were not very old, Hiruzen Sarutobi instinctively felt uncomfortable.

After smoking half a cigarette, he quickly accepted the situation and reminded himself:

This is a world where, decades ago, children were fighting on the battlefield.

Nowadays, so-called geniuses, teenagers, often have dozens of lives on their hands—this is commonplace.

It was a chaotic world.

"Orochimaru is indeed a valuable talent, and a rare research-oriented one at that. After all, science and technology are the primary productive forces."

"We need to find a way to maximize the use of his talent..."

"But it must be brought under supervision; we can't let ninjutsu develop into a runaway horse!"

"Abandoning one's principles in the name of scientific research will only cause credibility and the direction of progress to collapse. Even if there are short-term benefits, they are far less than the long-term hidden losses."

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered.

Orochimaru was his disciple whom he cherished greatly since childhood, and the two had a father-son relationship when they were young.

However, after he became Hokage, his extremely conservative governing style gradually clashed with the growing Orochimaru.

So much so that after the Second Shinobi World War.

Orochimaru actually preferred to work for the more rough and unrestrained Root organization, serving under Danzo Shimura!

This is undoubtedly a failure for him as Hokage and teacher.

Fortunately, there is still room for salvage.

From what I remember, I've never had any open conflict with Orochimaru. Rather than a disagreement on political views, it's more like a son running away from home to start his own business in a fit of pique...

Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered the direction of his future.

The immediate challenges are numerous and complex: the shortcomings in combat capabilities exposed during World War II, outdated systems, and the shadow of the next war;

Internal financial shortages, internal divisions, and conflicts between the ninja clan and the Hokage Building.

"The best approach is to make the pie bigger and use the distribution of new benefits to correct old problems—but making the pie bigger is inherently difficult."

Hiruzen Sarutobi understood that the core of Hokage was to make the village "powerful and wealthy".

Being able to fight is not something that can be achieved overnight.

But he already had a plan for 'making money'.

Konoha's finances depend on funding from the Daimyo's government and mission rewards.

He had considered taking over Daming Prefecture by force, but put the idea aside for the time being after processing his memories.

High risk, low return.

A rough estimate suggests that the Land of Fire has a population of tens of millions, which is not enough to contain them. Although ninjas have an advantage in martial arts, they lack administrative management capabilities and cannot replace the millions of bureaucrats.

Making the already limited number of ninjas responsible for collecting taxes further weakens their fighting strength.

Furthermore, the tax laws of the Land of Fire are outdated. If there were no war, the ninjas would naturally be able to seize power like the shoguns after a few generations. However, the ninja population is too small now, and taking action rashly would only force the nobles to flee and give the enemy villages an excuse to send troops.

Hiruzen Sarutobi organized the documents in his hands.

This is the 'money bag' he prepared for Konoha.

"It's difficult to rob the nobility of taxes, but it's easy to get them to spend money voluntarily."

"To exploit the rentier class, you need to sell anxiety, sell health, and add aphrodisiacs as a gimmick to attract attention."

When it comes to aphrodisiacs, men are always willing to spend money beyond what is reasonable to try.

Longevity, health, and virility—combining these three into a "Konoha Special Supply Ten-Ingredient Tonic Pill" would definitely be a blockbuster product sweeping the ninja world.

Why worry that these nobles wouldn't rush to take out their silver, stuffing money into his pockets while shouting, "Lord Hokage, I want more!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi is confident that no one else can learn this move.

It is backed by three top-tier IPs: Hashirama's story of healing without seals, Tobirama's reputation for inventing ninjutsu, and Mito's Yin Seal.

Orochimaru and Tsunade, the world's first medical ninjas, made real-time adjustments, with Akimichi and the Nara family's medical texts serving as references.

Add to that his living advertisement of looking younger—who cares if it's a magic touch or a tonic?

As for its actual effectiveness…

As long as it's just a little bit, enough to not kill anyone, the placebo effect plus a little bit of real stuff is enough!

"I have many ideas, but putting them into practice is the hardest part..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed inwardly.

This is the first step.

It's about rebuilding a solid teacher-student relationship with Orochimaru!

Hiruzen Sarutobi shifted his gaze to Danzo Shimura's incriminating materials.

This is an important prop.

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Sarutobi clan territory, Hokage's official residence.