Naruto: I'm really not an evil scientist!

"Even if it's just ninjas occasionally being sent out as elite troops, that's a good policy," the obese finance minister said with a chuckle.

It's not unreasonable for ninjas to occasionally implement an elite force policy; this is just an idea that might seem like a way to save money to outsiders.

This talk of elite troops is absolutely nonsense.

The world of ninjas is full of strange and unpredictable events, with all sorts of ninjutsu, secret techniques, blood feats, and sage arts emerging one after another.

Even the most powerful ninja cannot guarantee that he will have the last laugh on the battlefield.

The Second Hokage, skilled in Water Release and Flying Thunder God Technique, was a formidable force, yet he ultimately died a heroic death on the battlefield.

The Third Raikage possessed the strongest shield and the strongest spear, yet he still perished amidst a vast army.

Even the Third Hokage himself dared not claim that he could live out his days in peace; dying on the battlefield was perhaps the fate of a ninja.

The only feasible way to reduce the death rate of ninjas in war is to increase the number of ninjas and improve the margin for error on the battlefield.

However, all of this requires substantial financial support.

The Sand Village ninja were extremely anxious as they watched their budget dwindle.

With funding consistently insufficient, perhaps a few geniuses will rise like monsters, but most people will probably never even reach the level of Chunin.

Years later, it's possible that Sunagakure might indeed have degenerated into a small ninja village.

Whenever they thought about the current state of the Land of Wind, both the Third Hokage and Kakashi felt a chill run down their spines.

The Minister of Finance seemed to find the topic somewhat sensitive, so he gently covered his face with his fan, chuckled, and said, "Don't worry, our Land of Fire is not a poor and weak country like the Land of Wind."

"The Daimyo also knows the importance of the ninja village. Without strong ninjas, the Land of Fire cannot be at peace."

Then he changed the subject: "I heard there's been some activity over there. Hiruzen, you'd better win convincingly, or I won't be able to speak up for you."

The three generations could only nod in agreement.

When they came out, Kakashi couldn't help but ask, "Third Hokage, why haven't the ninjas who came to complete their missions come out yet?"

The third generation shook his head and said in a deep voice, "Don't ask, don't think, don't say. We just need to do what we can do."

They both knew the situation in Konoha all too well.

As the Third Hokage said, Konoha's situation is indeed somewhat difficult.

Although they didn't think Hiruko's idea would be of much use, they figured they could earn as much as they could.

Everything proceeded smoothly according to Hiruko's plan, with the assistance of the secret service.

When Hiruko arrived at the Hokage's office again, there were quite a few people in the office besides the Anbu members.

The Third Hokage had arrived there first, and Danzo naturally followed.

Recently, unusual activity in Konoha has become increasingly frequent, which has not only alerted the Third Hokage but also cast a shadow over the entire village.

Danzo, who harbored a twisted obsession with Konoha, was well aware of this.

Fundamentally, Danzo was the one who least wanted to see Konoha destroyed.

Of course, this does not prevent him from using external forces to achieve his own goals, even at the cost of Konoha's survival.

This is Danzo, a twisted guardian of Konoha, and also a shrewd and calculating individual.

When Hiruko saw the Third Hokage, she greeted him with a smile, "Third Hokage, you're back so early!"

The Third Hokage smiled and said, "After returning from the Daimyo's place, I didn't have much to do, so I came to see if there was anything I could do to help."

Hiruko asked with concern, "How are the negotiations going with the Land of Fire?"

The Third Hokage nodded: "There's not much trouble. After all, the surrounding forces of the Land of Fire are quite obedient."

Hiruko glanced at Danzo with a smile, knowing in his heart that Danzo's presence here must mean that those disobedient fellows had been threatened by him quite a bit.

Moreover, the Third Hokage sincerely stayed with the Daimyo for two months, painstakingly smoothing things over with all parties, and finally regained all the salt business rights.

During these two months, the Third Hokage worked hard to persuade those important figures to agree to integrate all resources, jointly produce, jointly ship, and jointly share profits.

To be precise, the details involved are incredibly complex.

Pain and unexpected problems arise one after another, leaving one overwhelmed.

To understand the interests of those powerful figures, most of the corrupt officials in the middle choose to remain hidden, and what is handed over to the Daimyo of the Land of Fire is only a drop in the ocean.

Otherwise, the daimyo of the Land of Fire wouldn't have so easily relinquished control of the salt industry.

While the powerful figures in the Land of Fire are shrewd, their subordinates are even more cunning and difficult to deal with.

From a certain perspective, those who oppose the consolidation of the salt industry are the front men of those powerful figures, who control the price of salt.

The lesser nobles especially hated Beiliuhu.

What kind of business do you, a ninja, do?

In addition, numerous conflicts occurred between the two sides, both overt and covert, and the struggle was extremely fierce.

In the end, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to concede some more profits and proposed a 50/50 split, with each party receiving half of the profits.

These past few days' experiences have almost made the Hyuga brothers, known as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, want to slam their fists on the table in anger.

Countless times I fantasized about smashing the heads of these minor nobles with kunai, but in the end I held back.

This kind of work is not something that ordinary people can do; it requires a great deal of patience.

Fortunately, although the bigwigs in the Land of Fire need more funds, they are, after all, bigwigs, and their reputation is also important.

Some things are quite tricky to do, especially since they themselves have contradictions.

Since Konoha is willing to integrate this resource and is willing to be the sucker, they are naturally willing to agree as well.

The main problem is that the younger ones are a bit disobedient, and the offerings we receive are becoming less and less.

Those in Konoha who were willing to step forward and integrate these resources deserve praise.

Overall, the integration went quite well, and all the "actors" performed very well.

Although they all knew that salt could definitely make money, they never imagined it would rake in so much money in the future.

The opportunity that Konoha seized was absolutely perfect.

In a few years, once the Land of Fire, with its strong foundation, begins to fully recover its economy, those bigwigs won't be so easy to talk to anymore.

We've tried all sorts of methods, both overt and covert, and now everything is going well.

The salt produced in Konoha will be split 50/50.

Amidst the conflict of interests, even Ren Xiong, known for his martial prowess, survived several assassination attempts.

Encroaching on a path to wealth is akin to murdering one's parents! Especially...

Chapter 28 Salt and Iron Monopoly

Hiruko's plan nearly wiped out the entire salt industry.

The people present were all in a very good mood when they talked about it.

"Speaking of which, this month's dividends will be released soon. With this income, Konoha's finances will be a bit more relaxed," the Third Hokage said slowly.

The efficiency of three generations of adults is indeed high. After all, those salt companies are readily available, including raw materials, workers, and even sales channels.

Konoha simply sent ninjas to integrate them completely.

In addition, the newly built factory in Konoha also produces some snow salt, so it's a two-pronged approach.

After all, industrialized countries and agricultural countries are fundamentally different.

Konoha went to great lengths to persuade many people, or simply to make them disappear from the face of the earth.

With Danzo's support behind the scenes, this industrial nation, which was bound by the organizational structure of an agricultural country, suddenly unleashed its true productivity.

Being a daimyo in an industrialized country is absolutely awesome.

"How much bonus do you estimate you'll get this month?" Minato Namikaze asked curiously.

"It should be around fifty or sixty million taels."

The three generations of old men were involved in the whole thing, but if you asked him to gather people and calculate the money like a businessman, that's really not his forte.

When some people fabricated accounts to deceive him, he naturally failed to notice immediately.

However, with Danzo, a guy who uses illusions by any means necessary, tax evasion can't be hidden from him at all.

However, based on his past experience, Hiruzen Sarutobi could roughly estimate a number.

The accuracy of this figure can be seen from Danzo's expression; neither of them seemed to understand economics very well.

"Fourth Hokage, it's about time you ended your entanglements with the nobles of the Land of Fire," Danzo said expressionlessly.

Minato Namikaze looked at Danzo with a strange expression.

"I admit that Hiruko's actions can indeed bring Konoha some extra income, and I am willing to believe that you are genuinely doing what is best for Konoha. But the most important thing now is to deal with external enemies and future wars."

Danzo took a deep breath, his face grim, making it difficult to fathom his thoughts.

He said slowly, "In order to cope with the war with Kumogakure, Konoha itself will have to bear a huge deficit."

"Now you're investing it in other industries, which will make Konoha's deficit even bigger. Konoha isn't a toy you can just control!"

As the group continued their argument, the atmosphere became increasingly tense.

Suddenly, Kakashi, looking flustered, ran in from outside carrying a report.

Minato Namikaze noticed that his little apprentice's face was filled with a strange expression, as if he had encountered something unbelievable.

Danzo shouted angrily, "Kakashi, what are you doing here? Don't you know where you are? How can you be so reckless!"

Kakashi was panting heavily, clearly having something urgent to report.

This scene made the already tense atmosphere even more so.

Minato Namikaze ignored Danzo's reprimand and instead looked gently at Kakashi, asking, "What's wrong, Kakashi? The salt revenue is less than fifty million ryo?"

Kakashi, panting, excitedly replied, "Not fifty million, it's one hundred and eighty billion taels! The first dividend is a full one hundred and eighty billion taels!"

18 billion!!!

What an astonishing number!

In Konoha Village, D-rank missions are considered low-level missions, and both the village chief and ordinary villagers can issue them.