I, Naruto Uzumaki, don't need your approval.

After pausing for a while, the villagers noticed that Changmen had difficulty walking. They quickly invited Changmen to sit in their home and asked him to stay overnight. They said that after the rain subsided the next day, they would take him to town.

Although Nagato tried his best to decline, he still accepted the villagers' kindness and felt somewhat moved.

When he, Yahiko, and Konan were wandering, they relied on stealing to make a living. They were often cursed by the villagers and would often curse them in their hearts.

But when they grew up, they realized that the villagers had tacitly approved of their orphans' theft.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for a few malnourished kids to steal anything from adults.

Later, he reciprocated by eliminating Hanzo the Salamander, the tyrannical ruler of the Land of Rain, thus providing the inhabitants of the Land of Rain with a relatively stable environment and the peace they had longed for...

At this moment, the villagers brought Nagato mushroom soup and bread.

While eating bread, Nagato inquired about the villagers' situation, such as how they were doing recently and whether there were any wandering ninjas harassing them. Under Pain's rule, wandering ninjas were not allowed to attack the villagers.

The villagers shook their heads: "Thanks to the blessings of the gods, we haven't been attacked by wandering ninjas in recent years, and we've been able to have enough to eat, but..."

Nagato noticed the villager's hesitation and immediately asked, "Is there some other difficulty?"

After looking around, the villager said cautiously, "Compared to before, things are not so bad, but taxes have increased, and there is some dissatisfaction in the village regarding the lockdown order."

"Our Land of Rain is too barren. If we don't communicate with the outside world, we simply can't buy what we want."

Nagato frowned: "Being able to eat your fill is already a blessing. The lockdown order was for the safety of the people. Do you want to return to the chaos of war from back then?"

"That's true, but people always want to pursue a better life. Although our lives are safe now, it's really too depressing. When I first met you, some people even suspected that you were a spy from an enemy country."

The villagers expressed their thoughts, but remained silent on certain phenomena.

Nagato fell silent. He had only wanted to leave the Land of Rain to hunt down Orochimaru on a whim, but he did not expect to encounter such a thing as soon as he left Amegakure.

But he had no clue how to change it, nor did he know how to make changes.

Although he possesses the martial prowess of a god, he has only received three years of education from Jiraiya-sensei. Whether in personnel management or other aspects, he is not as good as Guizui of the Land of Rain.

With a soft sigh, Nagato left the small village after finishing his meal.

Let's wait until Konan returns to address the people's livelihood issues in the Land of Rain. She's managed Amegakure quite well over the years, and she'll surely be able to resolve the villagers' problems.

As for the god Pain, all he needs to do is ensure peace.

Whether it's peace in the Land of Rain or peace throughout the entire ninja world, peace is always better than war.

……

Wandering through the Land of Fire, Orochimaru recruited new subordinates while searching for suitable small countries to build villages.

He didn't have high demands for the country. First, there were no ninja villages in the area. Second, the transportation was convenient. It would be even better if it could be inconspicuous. After all, if Akatsuki and Konoha found out, it would be a big problem.

In the end, Orochimaru selected two small countries suitable for establishing ninja villages: the Land of Rice Fields and the Land of Waves.

The Land of Fields is located to the north of the Land of Fire, and is neighbors with the Land of Grass and the Land of Earth. It also meets the conditions of convenient transportation and inconspicuousness. The only problem is that there is already a small ninja village with a few dozen people on it.

Dealing with such a small ninja village is easy, but there will be trouble with the daimyo afterwards.

The Land of Waves is even simpler. It's a country without any ninja villages, and even the daimyo is a figurehead. The entire country is an affiliate of the Gato Shipping Company. As long as Gato is dealt with, the country can be directly taken over.

However, the Land of Waves has always been a focus of Konoha's attention, and Danzo has also expressed considerable interest in taking it over. Forcibly taking it over would be very troublesome.

Although Danzo has always cooperated with him, once Danzo finds out his location, the other party will deal with him without mercy in order to prove his stance.

Being targeted by Jiraiya and the old man will also cause a lot of trouble.

Just then, Orochimaru learned some information on the black market and immediately became interested in the Land of Waves.

The message above is simple: the Land of Waves has been occupied by Uzushio Village.

Chapter 145 Gathering in the Land of Waves

The Land of Waves has been occupied by Uzushio Village.

Upon learning this news, Orochimaru was somewhat surprised. Although Uzumaki Village had a powerful ninja like Menma Uzumaki, it was still a newly established ninja village. Even if it might have the support of Konoha, it should have acted more discreetly.

This act of proactively occupying a neutral country undoubtedly provides the other major ninja villages with a pretext for war.

Countries like Kumogakure and Iwagakure would certainly not let go of such an opportunity to annex small countries.

But then he thought, was this Uzushio Village showing off its powerful military strength to gain recognition from other ninja villages? If so, his previous judgment would be completely wrong.

Could it be that Uzushio Village isn't backed by Konoha, but is really supported by Uzumaki Menma's personal strength?

After pondering for a long time, Orochimaru suddenly had the idea of ​​going to the Land of Waves to take a look. After all, he was now a rogue ninja of Konoha and Akatsuki, and there were not many places in the entire ninja world where he could find refuge.

A few days later, Orochimaru appeared at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Waves.

Gazing at the islands of the Land of Waves, which appeared as black dots in the distance, Orochimaru used a summoning jutsu to retrieve a ring from the belly of a viper. After removing the seal from the ring, he crossed the sea with peace of mind.

Upon arriving in the Land of Waves, Orochimaru shed his snake form and transformed into a fair-skinned young man wearing a straw hat, where he began to interact with the fishermen.

After a brief conversation, Orochimaru obtained a lot of useful information.

Kado, the de facto ruler of the Land of Waves, provoked Uzushio Village, only to be defeated by them. He couldn't even save his shipping company, which became a force under Uzushio Village's control, facing a crisis of restructuring.

After conquering the Land of Waves, the leader of Uzushio Village did not follow the shipping company's strategy. Instead, he implemented preferential policies for the people of the Land of Waves, valued scientific research talents, and planned to build a bridge to the Land of Fire.

This behavior made Orochimaru narrow his eyes, showing great curiosity about Uzumaki Menma.

After all, Uzumaki Menma's behavior is not like that of a ninja village leader, but more like that of a secular daimyo. He combines the power of a daimyo and a ninja village leader, and his future ambitions should not be underestimated.

They came from a remote fishing village to the company port in the Land of Waves.

After the great battle that day, the company's port quickly returned to its bustling state. It is said that the Land of Waves will be transformed into a port city, specifically responsible for trade between major powers.

After learning about the new term from the person in charge, Orochimaru became even more interested in the whirlpool-shaped facial mask.

Unlike the corrupt and stubborn Third Hokage and Pain, who considered himself a god, this young leader was clearly willing to accept new things, and if given the opportunity, he planned to meet and talk to him.

Just then, Orochimaru looked at a merchant ship docked in the Land of Waves, and a smile appeared on his lips.

Besides him, many more people were interested in Uzushio Village. Among the people on this ship, there were no fewer than ten ninjas, and even some people he hadn't expected came.

It is foreseeable that in the coming days, the Land of Waves will become a region of concern for all nations.

……

Inside the company building in the Land of Waves.

Naruto frowned as he looked at the thick stack of documents in front of him. Although he was young and did not have the strength of the thirty-year-old Naruto, he was in no way inferior in terms of workload.

With so much work to handle every day, it's no wonder that even at thirty, Naruto, who works overtime every night, hasn't improved much in strength.

Fortunately, his workload is only temporary. Once he gets through this transition period, he can go back to being a hands-off manager and delegate all the work to his subordinates.

Seeing this, Zabuza felt somewhat relieved that he hadn't tried to become the Fifth Mizukage.

If his plan with Hozuki Mangetsu had succeeded, and he had actually become the Fifth Mizukage, carrying such a workload every day would have been no different from being imprisoned in the Mizukage Building.

This was completely different from the carefree life he had envisioned after becoming the Mizukage...

Squatting down, Zabuza remarked to Haku, "Haku, you should become a combat ninja from now on. Clerical work isn't suitable for us."

Haku, however, showed considerable interest in these documents and retorted, "But these are all the work of the higher-ups. It's because the Mizukage neglected everything that Kirigakure became like that..."

"Only a leader who is as diligent and conscientious as Lord Menma is a good leader."

Zabuza was speechless and glared fiercely at the white.

Bai Mingming was the child he had taken in, so why was he now numb in the face of the vortex, which made him feel uneasy.

Just then, an Uchiha ninja knocked on the office door. After receiving permission, he entered and said to Naruto, "Lord Menma, ninjas from Kumogakure and Iwagakure wish to see you!"

Naruto stopped what he was doing, nodded slightly, and said, "Let them in."

Before long, the Cloud Village and Iwa Village ninjas appeared in the office.

Upon entering the office, they immediately spotted Zabuza and Haku, and frowned upon noticing the Kirigakure headband.

After being glared at by Zabuza, he turned to Naruto, who was wearing a mask, and said arrogantly:

"So you're the leader of Uzushio Village? We've received a request from Gato. If you know what's good for you, take your people and leave the Land of Waves right away. We don't want to get involved."

Naruto didn't react much after hearing this, but Zabuza looked surprised.

Are these Cloud Ninja and Iwa Ninja courting death? Or have they simply never heard of the Uzushio Village leader's reputation? However, the Uzushio Village leader certainly doesn't have much of a reputation in the ninja world.

Thinking of this, Zabuza realized that his chance to show his loyalty had come. He immediately drew his guillotine, looking like a ruthless man who didn't talk much and was ready to fight at any moment.

Upon seeing the decapitation sword, the Cloud Ninja and Rock Ninja became much more timid, but they seemed to have realized something in their hearts.

After exchanging a glance, he said in a disdainful tone:

"So that's why the ninjas from Uzushio Village, which was extinct for decades, suddenly appeared. It turns out they're an organization supported by Kirigakure. Aren't you worried about indigestion after Kirigakure occupied the Land of Waves?"

Naruto frowned slightly, made a gesture to Zabuza, and then these people were thrown out of the office.

These ninjas, who weren't even Jonin, were clearly cannon fodder sent by Kumogakure and Iwagakure to test the waters. The real Jonin leading the team was probably still hiding in the Land of Waves, waiting for their reaction.

Talking to these people even a few words would diminish his status as a leader.

At this moment, Shisui, who had been out on patrol, returned to his office, whispered a few words to Naruto, and reported on the various ninja forces hidden in the Land of Waves.

This included ninjas from Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Konoha, and even Sunagakure sent people over.

In addition, Shisui also noticed that the number of snakes in the Land of Waves had increased significantly, which indicated that Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannin, had also sent people over.

Chapter 146 Minato Namikaze's Speculation

After reporting the intelligence, Shisui showed a worried expression.

Unlike the previous confrontation with Orochimaru and Sasori in Uzushio Village, this time Uzushio Village is completely exposed to the eyes of various countries, and it can no longer be hidden.

Orochimaru and Sasori may be strong, but they are both rogue ninjas who left their villages and don't have much real power.

The major ninja villages are different. In addition to Kage-level ninjas, they have tens of thousands of ninjas under their command. They can overwhelm Uzushio Village simply by sheer numbers, not to mention economic sanctions.

Naruto didn't pay much attention to this, as neither Iwagakure nor Kumogakure posed a significant threat.

As long as the corresponding strength is demonstrated, these ninja villages will naturally respond accordingly. Moreover, the ninja villages and the daimyo have never been of one mind. While the daimyo relies on the ninja villages' military strength, he has always been wary of them.

At this moment, he was more concerned about a guest who had arrived in the Land of Waves: Nagato, the leader of the Akatsuki organization.

Unlike the other rats hiding in the Land of Waves, Nagato never concealed his enormous chakra reserves. The moment he arrived, Nagato's malicious senses detected his presence.

However, Nagato did not come directly to them, but instead strolled leisurely around the Land of Waves.