-----------
This high quality machine translation is powered by: https:// geriatrictranslations.com/
Special Permission was given to upload the novel on WebNovel.
Geriatric Translations can be supported on patreon (https://www. patreon.com/geriatricvibes) where additional chapters can be enjoyed.
You can also join the Geriatric Translations Community on Discord to connect with other readers: https:// discord.gg/NSWvfN7vua
-----------
Yamanaka Clan.
For Uchiha Yoru's visit, the Yamanaka Clan showed great respect and even invited Akimichi Chouza over.
"Nara Shikaku is still at the front lines, so the two of us represent the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan to welcome your arrival, Lord Yoru."
Sure enough, the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan truly acted as one. As soon as he arrived, the Yamanaka Clan informed Akimichi Chouza and even mentioned that Nara Shikaku was at the front lines and couldn't come.
This respect was for the Uchiha clan and Orochimaru behind him. Both clan heads met him with great solemnity, showing their respect for his strength.
The three of them sat in the living room, the aroma of hot tea filling the air. Uchiha Yoru put on a political smile and raised his cup, saying, "Thank you for your hospitality, seniors. I am the one who is imposing."
Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza wore kind smiles, but they were internally very tense. Could it be that Orochimaru was here to recruit them, the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan?
Damn it, Nara Shikaku had already informed them. They knew some of the situation, so they were now filled with solemnity.
However, Uchiha Yoru's fake smile hid a cold sneer. His teacher was about to be driven out of the power center in a pitiful state. He had to seize this opportunity to pull out all the stops and take advantage of the situation, or he would never have another chance.
"Seniors, the achievements of Front Line's Shinno-sempai are remarkable. When Orochimaru-sensei heard about them, he was very pleased and believes that Konoha has a bright future..."
Good grief, Uchiha Yoru started with a long speech, but Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza were on edge. Orochimaru truly had a keen political sense, guessing the situation from this small detail.
Konoha's current praise for Ape Fly Shinno's achievements was clearly to boost his reputation, much like Minato Namikaze in the past.
"Orochimaru-sensei believes that Konoha is about to enter a period of peace, but there are constant frictions along the border with the Land of Water. He plans to apply to go to the Land of Water, but Konoha is currently in a state of reconstruction, and research funds are lacking."
With such a clear message, no one in the room was a fool. Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza saw the hint of bitterness in Uchiha Yoru's smile and sighed inwardly.
Could it be that Orochimaru sensed the political winds and chose to give up? They thought about it, and it didn't seem impossible. In the election for the Fourth Hokage, didn't Orochimaru choose to go to the front lines after the Third Hokage signaled his intentions?
It was exactly the same, except for the person. Ape Fly Shinno's reputation was far from that of Minato Namikaze.
He's here to borrow money! Since he can't become Hokage, he needs funds for his research.
Akimichi Chouza and Yamanaka Inoichi exchanged a glance, both filled with shock. Orochimaru asking for money? This seemed out of character.
Uchiha Yoru lowered his head, not revealing Hyuga Hizashi, as the branch family still relied on him to rally support. He knew the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan, as direct descendants of the Hokage, must have heard some rumors, or why would Nara Shikaku have gone to the front lines to seek support?
He lowered his head and gave a hoarse smile, "Orochimaru-sensei's research has hit a bottleneck and requires a large amount of funding. Therefore, I represent my teacher to borrow money from the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan."
Borrow money?
Akimichi Chouza and Yamanaka Inoichi were stunned. They had never encountered someone who came to borrow money before. Uchiha Yoru, however, sneered inwardly. He represented his teacher, and they could ask Orochimaru for the money later.
"I hope the two seniors will support this. After all, I still need to represent my teacher to visit the Sarutobi Clan and the Hokage."
The trump card! When Uchiha Yoru said this with his head lowered, the two of them secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If he was visiting the Hokage, it probably meant that Orochimaru was truly disappointed and had given up. Although the situation was awkward, as clan heads, they were thick-skinned.
The two of them chuckled, and Akimichi Chouza even patted his belly, feigning a harmless smile, "Orochimaru-sama has done a great deal for the village. The Akimichi Clan has benefited greatly on the battlefield. We are willing to provide the funds without charge."
"Three hundred million."
Cough, cough. Akimichi Chouza was immediately choked by his tea when he heard the number, coughing violently. His fat face turned red, but he still forced a hoarse smile, "Sure, sure, the Akimichi Clan is willing to lend the money to Orochimaru-sama."
Good grief, he thought it would be a few million, but it turned out to be three hundred million. Did they think his money came from the wind?
At that moment, Akimichi Chouza shut his mouth and didn't dare to say anything about lending it for free. Even for the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan, a hundred million was a significant amount.
Yamanaka Inoichi, on the other hand, showed a pained expression. As the head of the intelligence department, he knew that Orochimaru had joined Root and was researching some forbidden techniques.
After exchanging glances, Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza both showed pained expressions. It was a headache that Nara Shikaku wasn't there. The main issue was that the other party represented the Uchiha clan and Orochimaru. They didn't want to offend either, especially considering the future.
After all, no one expected the Fourth Hokage, who was proficient in space-time jutsu, to die after only a year in office. If something like that happened again?
"Cough, cough, Lord Yoru, you know the Third Great Shinobi War just ended, and everything is in a state of reconstruction. Although it seems peaceful now, there are still many frictions along the borders. Three hundred million is a bit hard to come up with right away."
As Yamanaka Inoichi tried to dodge the issue, Uchiha Yoru took out a scroll from his chest and placed it in front of them with a solemn expression.
They had thought he was trying to bluff, but Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza were stunned when they saw the opened scroll.
Could it be done like this?
The scroll was filled with loans, essentially IOUs. It started with the Inuzuka Clan lending thirty million, the Aburame Clan lending fifty million... almost all the major clans in Konoha were listed, except for the Hyuga and Uchiha.
Good grief, Konoha had only so many clans, and they had all been borrowed from. It seemed that the next visit would be to the Sarutobi Clan, and they were prepared for that too.
Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza exchanged glances and showed helpless expressions. It seemed they couldn't escape this time. After all, they had to give face to one of the Sannin, Orochimaru.
Other clans might not know the situation and think they were investing in the future Hokage, which was better than directly taking sides. Investing some funds would yield a good return, at least earning Orochimaru's friendship.
But they knew the current political dynamics in Konoha. After exchanging glances, Akimichi Chouza showed a pained expression, as if saying, it seems they really need to take a hit this time.
Yamanaka Inoichi, however, shook his head in pain. A hundred million! They had plenty of assets, but this was liquid capital. Taking out so much at once really hurt.
"Cough, cough, Lord Yoru, it's not that our three clans don't want to support Orochimaru-sama's research. It's just that we're a bit tight on funds." Yamanaka Inoichi made a determined expression and extended his hand, "We, the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan, are willing to lend Orochimaru-sama eighty million each."
Seeing Yamanaka Inoichi's determined expression, Uchiha Yoru nodded gratefully, "I represent Orochimaru-sensei to thank the Ino-Shika-Cho Clan for their support. Thank you!"
After saying that, he gestured, and Yamanaka Inoichi was stunned by his immediate agreement. He immediately regretted it, thinking he should have offered less. Clearly, Uchiha Yoru was just following orders, taking whatever he could get without trying to get more for his teacher.
But the words were out, and Yamanaka Inoichi helplessly looked at Akimichi Chouza, who, despite his seemingly honest appearance, was very cunning. He shook his head and sighed, pretending not to see his friend's gaze.
In the end, Yamanaka Inoichi had no choice but to pick up the brush and write down his loan amount on the scroll, signing his name and leaving a blood imprint.
As soon as he pressed his blood fingerprint, the scroll emitted a white smoke, and a duplicate IOU appeared.
"Thank you, Senior Yamanaka. Here is the IOU. You can collect the funds from Root when they are disbursed, and then you can find Orochimaru-sensei."
Seeing the IOU in hand, Yamanaka Inoichi, though pained, felt a bit relieved. It seemed the other party was principled and well-prepared, indicating that the research was truly in trouble. They could always pay later.
Putting away his copy of the scroll, Uchiha Yoru bowed respectfully, "Thank you, seniors, for your hospitality. I still need to visit the Sarutobi Clan, so I won't stay longer."
"Please have the clan heads prepare the funds as soon as possible, preferably in gold. You can deliver them to my office in the Police Department's Seventh Squad. The Aburame Clan, Inuzuka, and Inaba have already delivered their loans."
"Alright, we will prepare and send it over tomorrow."
Good grief, the other party was truly professional. As Yamanaka Inoichi watched him leave, he sighed, "Chouza, do you think if we had offered fifty million, he wouldn't have haggled?"
But Akimichi Chouza gave him a reproachful look, "What do you think, Inoichi? Clearly, this guy is just following orders. To put it bluntly, even if we didn't give a single coin, he wouldn't have said anything."
Of course, he was just saying that. With the current reputation of the Sannin, they had to give face to Orochimaru, who had his apprentice come to borrow money.
"Sigh, it seems Danzo is really ruthless, cutting off so much of Orochimaru-sama's research funds."
Clearly, they had misunderstood. They thought Danzo had cut the funds, and with Orochimaru's proud character, he had turned to other clans for loans. Once the research was completed, the funds would be reimbursed, and their money would come back.
"Chouza, we're not doing too badly. Look at the Hyuga and Uchiha clans. They must have invested a lot, and you didn't see their names on the loan list."
Though pained, Yamanaka Inoichi tried to find some comfort. Thinking about it, he even showed a smug smile. The Hyuga and Uchiha clans would lose both their women and their soldiers, a huge loss. They had bet heavily on Orochimaru, even offering free support. Tsk, tsk.
"Yes, I hope this matter is resolved soon, so we can get our money back."
Clearly, Akimichi Chouza was most concerned about his finances, while Yamanaka Inoichi had already figured it out and laughed, patting his friend's thick back.
"Ha, Chouza, don't worry. This matter will be resolved in two to three years at most."
...
Sarutobi Clan.
When Uchiha Yoru arrived at the Sarutobi Clan, it was already evening. The setting sun gave Konoha a golden glow.
In the spacious living room, the current Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was holding a brush and calmly writing the character 'Nin' (忍).
Uchiha Yoru, sitting opposite, looked at the calligraphy on the white paper and inwardly sneered. You're doing calligraphy in the ninja world? Do you really think you can combine ninjutsu with art? There are only two artists in the entire ninja world.
"Hehe, I'm old, so I can only write calligraphy to pass the time."
After finishing the stroke, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled kindly, satisfied with his work. Looking up at the young man, he could see from his eyes that he couldn't appreciate the calligraphy, and sighed, "Talking to a cow about the moon, indeed."
"Uchiha Yoru greets Master's teacher."
Under the roof, one had to bow. Though inwardly cursing, Uchiha Yoru showed a respectful and admiring expression.
Technically, since Orochimaru was the Third Hokage's student and he was Orochimaru's student, he was part of the Hokage's lineage. However, political struggles were always ruthless. One could see this from Anko's mastery of a few jutsu in the original story.
And Konohamaru, who could freely enter the Hokage's office and set traps in the archives after the Third Hokage's death, showed how the Sarutobi Clan treated the Hokage as family, demonstrating their power.
Looking at Uchiha Yoru, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, puffed on his pipe and let out a long sigh.
"Orochimaru is still angry with me, isn't he? He didn't even consult me about taking you as a disciple."
Clearly, Hiruzen Sarutobi was both resentful that Orochimaru had taken an Uchiha as a disciple without considering his feelings and conflicted because Orochimaru was once his most favored student, but now he had to suppress him for Konoha's sake.
Thank you to 'Xianyu Hualong' for the 100-point donation and 'Black Puppet Master' for the 100-point donation.
(End of Chapter)