[Kirigakure signs the Konoha-Kiri Treaty, Konoha and Kirigakure become allies. Prosperity +66]
[Kirigakure signs the Konoha-Kiri Treaty. Konoha's military presence in Kirigakure greatly increases control over the political climate. Commercially, Konoha gains a dominant position, exporting finished goods to Kirigakure with tariff exemptions. Politically, Konoha's prestige in the shinobi world reaches new heights. Prosperity +233]
[Kirigakure signs the Konoha-Kiri Treaty. Mei Terumī enters Konoha as a hostage. Prosperity +100]
[The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, enters the Konoha hospital for treatment. Prosperity +66]
[Kakashi privately gifts Kirigakure's new generation of ninja with Deluxe Edition - First Love Time, Deluxe Edition - The Tale of the Hidden Kunoichi, Deluxe Edition - Hypnotic Ninja Chronicles, and Collector's Edition - The Demon Ninja... mentally corrupting Kirigakure's youth. Prosperity +33]
[…]
[New Milestone Unlocked: Five-Star Chunin - The Nightmare of Kirigakure]
[Rewards:]
[Space-Time Ninjutsu: Limitless – Mastery (Expertly thrown shuriken, kunai, explosive tags, and conventional jutsu of Chunin rank and below will have no effect on you)]
[Summon: Mahoraga – Unusable (Can extract trace amounts of its chakra, significantly increasing chakra reserves and recovery rate)]
[Space-Time Ninjutsu: Blue – Proficient]
[Space-Time Ninjutsu: Red – Proficient (Manifests as repulsive force centered around the "Red" jutsu. Minimum power is twice that of Blue, maximum output approaches infinity, similar to Rasengan. No hand seals required, can be used multiple times, and has derivative applications similar to Blue). (Consumes a massive amount of chakra, use with caution)]
[Genjutsu: Unlimited Void – Beginner (Traps the opponent in the Limitless genjutsu space, forcing their brain to repeatedly process countless "perceptions" and "transmissions" for survival, creating an overload of useless information, rendering the brain useless, leaving them standing to die. Only Gojo Kaigetsu and those he touches are unaffected).
[(Can paralyze the target. Chakra consumption varies greatly depending on target's chakra reserves and Kekkei Genkai. Use with caution)]
[Taijutsu: Black Flash – Beginner (Spatial distortion caused when the gap between a physical blow and chakra impact is within 0.001 seconds. Power is related to the user's physical strength)]
Back home, listening to the belated system announcements, Gojo Kaigetsu wore a grin wider than an AK-47.
Essentially, he had completely shed the Chunin label. In terms of practical combat ability, he might be slightly inferior to the average Jonin due to his lack of experience.
But just look at these overpowered abilities! Their mechanics and sheer power were off the charts.
Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, Genjutsu… all he needed was Senjutsu to complete the set.
Activate Unlimited Void to immobilize the enemy, then spam Red, Blue, and Black Flash for damage… Maybe some unsuspecting village should provoke Konoha soon. Gojo Kaigetsu started fantasizing about himself on the battlefield-
Floating in mid-air with Red and Blue, clapping his hands, summoning whatever he desired, trapping all enemy ninja in Unlimited Void, and then…
"Cough, that's a bit too overpowered. I'll save the gloating for when I have enough chakra to spam abilities after using Unlimited Void. Or maybe when Minato and I develop a combination attack."
Gojo Kaigetsu stroked his chin, focusing on [Black Flash]. Looking at the skill description, he had a feeling he wasn't the optimal user for Black Flash.
"I'll have to drag that Gai kid along for some training in a few days."
As Gojo Kaigetsu indulged in his fantasy, the system's notification sounded again, but this time, it wasn't good news:
[Green Card Villager - Honey Merchant - Big Boss's honey sales are stagnant. He complained that Konoha isn't what he imagined and is spreading negative rumors, intending to write letters informing his friends and family. Prosperity -5]
[Green Card Villager - Ninja Tool Shop Owner - Kobori Taiten refuses to cooperate with the *Iki III* promotion, believing it's false advertising and will negatively impact his shop. Prosperity -3]
[Green Card Villager - Bookstore Owner…]
"Damn these ungrateful peasants!"
Gojo Kaigetsu abruptly sat up in bed, his expression unusually serious.
While -3 and -5 seemed like insignificant penalties, if left unchecked, their grievances and dissatisfaction could ferment and spread, potentially triggering a chain reaction.
If Big Boss relayed this information to his friends and family, it could lead to a contagious spread of negativity.
According to an unknown scientist's research, it only took eight people, leveraging their respective networks, to spread information to every corner of the shinobi world.
In layman's terms, it was the classic "word of mouth" phenomenon.
This would effectively eliminate potential Green Card users. If people learned through word of mouth that "Konoha's air isn't that sweet" and the "business environment isn't that great," then no amount of Iki updates or endorsements from "experts" or "influencers" would help.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
After all, people tended to trust what they heard from others more than what they read.
"My friend," "My buddy," "My childhood friend," "My relative"…
"Eliminating Big Boss would be the most straightforward solution. Dead men tell no tales. But I can't do that. The Green Card villagers have their own little community."
"So, he's essentially the head of the Land of Water Green Card Union?"
Gojo Kaigetsu hated two kinds of people: bosses who didn't meet salary expectations and troublemaking union leaders.
"Giving him money directly is out of the question. Nobody gets a single ryō from me. In that case, the only way to appease him is… advertising."
…
…
*Kumogakure*
Live free in Kumogakure, rob every day!
This was a dark joke circulating among the villagers.
As everyone knew, Kumogakure championed the rule of the fist. The village laws, to a certain extent, yielded to brute force. Might made right. This principle, combined with the nature of the refugees from the Land of Water, created an interesting chemical reaction.
Most of the refugees who came to Kumogakure were those rejected by Konoha: individuals with criminal records or impure intentions.
If even Kumogakure refused them, these people might become idle scoundrels, bandits, rogue samurai, or rogue ninja, becoming the muscle for mafia-like merchant guilds.
But Kumogakure accepted them, even offering generous benefits!
And some chose to repay this kindness with… well, let's just say they weren't exactly model citizens.
The most obvious indicator was the skyrocketing crime rate in southern Kumogakure. Some refugees, emboldened by the village's special treatment, even dared to publicly stop native Kumogakure villagers carrying swords, pointing at the ground between their legs and saying:
"You Kumogakure people, though tall and muscular, are nothing but cowards. If you're not afraid of punishment, stab me. If you are, crawl between my legs!"
As it turned out, the young Kumogakure villager actually killed the refugee. This incident sparked an "anti-refugee wave" within Kumogakure.
The elder of the southern Kumogakure clan stepped forward, declaring that if these "water devils" weren't expelled, he would lead the southern clans and families to secede from Kumogakure, reverting to the pre-First Shinobi World War state.
The various hidden villages were essentially a collection of clans and families, united by geography, culture, and customs to fight against villages with differing ideologies.
They coexisted, and if one day they couldn't coexist anymore… legally speaking, there was no basis for attacking a seceding faction.
Following this declaration, the southern clans dispatched ninja to engage in armed standoffs and muscle-flexing contests with Kumogakure ninja, while secretly transporting cartloads of refugees to the vicinity of the clans backing the Raikage's elder council.
Such actions infuriated the elder council, especially A's adoptive father.
But for the same reason as Danzo, if they didn't adhere to their own policies, how could they maintain order within the village? How could the elders continue their work?
In the end, they had to swallow their anger, issuing a public statement condemning the southern clans for their defiance and prioritizing their own interests over the village's, while secretly plotting to erect fences to prevent the refugees from being dumped on their doorstep.
It was complete chaos.
Inside the somewhat gloomy meeting room of the Raikage Tower,
Raikage A broke the silence. "Is there still no news from Samui?"
Mabui, his secretary, clutched a file, quickly reporting, "It's been fourteen days since the last transmission using the Heart-to-Heart Communication Jutsu. Tomorrow… Samui should send back the latest intel from Konoha."
Hearing this, A's furrowed brow relaxed.
He couldn't blame Samui. After all, she was up against one of the Sannin, Jiraiya. It was wise to be cautious. If her identity as a Kumogakure spy was exposed by Jiraiya, all their efforts would be wasted.
Now, it seemed his only hope rested on the accurate intel Samui would send back.
Those old fogies on the elder council… Just thinking about them made A's blood boil. He decided to put them out of his mind. Even with his muscle-bound brain, looking at the mess happening in the south, A realized he had to act like a Raikage, not just blindly follow the elders' instructions.
To overcome his aversion to thinking, he had forced himself to read many books recently. Of course, not the trash Killer B read, but proper, respectable books.
Books like "Strategies of the Land of Fire," "Thirty-Six Stratagems," and "Three Years of the Shinobi World," published by the official Land of Fire publishing house… Although A was reluctant to admit it, just looking at the titles made him feel that the Land of Lightning's cultural level lagged behind that of the Land of Fire.
Not to mention, the "A Thousand ryō for a Shuriken" anecdote mentioned by his adoptive father came from "Strategies of the Land of Fire." There were many similar passages that had enlightened A, so much so that he even skipped his muscle-training routine these past few days.
"Has the official statement been sent out to all corners of the shinobi world?"
"Yes, Raikage-sama."
"Both our Kumogakure statement and Konoha's statement have been announced. This is Konoha's statement, please review it."
A took the report containing Konoha's statement and carefully examined it.
"Heh, I laugh at Minato's lack of strategy and Gojo's lack of wit…" A chuckled, offering his newly learned perspective. "What 'humanitarian aid'? Isn't this subtly pointing out the internal problems within Kirigakure?"
"Those monkeys, seeing such a statement, will rush into Konoha's territory and launch suicidal attacks like madmen."
A shook his head. With newfound wisdom, the world seemed to have changed.
Although there were considerable internal conflicts within Kumogakure, they were generally unfolding according to his adoptive father's predictions.
With the statements from both villages released… A was almost certain that within three days, Kirigakure's emissaries would arrive in Kumogakure to request an alliance against Konoha.
As for the reason… Kirigakure wouldn't dare offend two villages simultaneously, so they would definitely choose to ally with one. Kumogakure had shown Kirigakure respect, while Konoha was subtly criticizing their internal affairs. Kumogakure had already gained a significant advantage.
Next, he would agree to the alliance, offer Kirigakure some small benefits, let them be the vanguard to deplete Konoha's forces, while Kumogakure sat back and watched the tigers fight.
Weakening Konoha while bringing Kirigakure under Kumogakure's influence!
What a wonderful opening gambit!
A experienced the joy of using his brain for the first time. This power of strategy, achieving great benefits without flexing a muscle, was truly addictive.
"No wonder adoptive father and the others enjoy using their intellect." A tapped his temple smugly.
Besides the good news of Kirigakure potentially joining the Greater Kumogakure Co-Prosperity Sphere, the successor to the Two-Tails Jinchuriki had also been chosen. Yugito Nii, a veteran Jonin of Kumogakure, a highly trustworthy individual.
"Kumogakure… is truly thriving. If the old man could see this from above, he would be pleased." A mused.
Just then-
Two hurried sets of footsteps approached from outside.
A looked up. One was Atsui, Samui's younger brother, a seasoned Chunin who had become a confidant of the Raikage due to his sister's influence. The other was a nameless messenger from the elder council.
Raikage A raised his hand, deciding to use the eloquent phrasing he had learned from books. "I know you're in a hurry, but don't rush. Speak one at a time. Atsui, you first."
Atsui wiped the sweat from his brow. "Raikage-sama, it's terrible… those water devils from Kirigakure, they… they've signed an alliance treaty with Konoha!"
"Nanda te! Temee!" A shot up from his seat, red steam seemingly erupting from his dark face. He slammed his hand on the desk, shattering it.
A wave of humiliation washed over him.