In Amegakure, after a friendly exchange with Yahiko and the others, Takeshi hurriedly left, leaving behind a Flying Thunder God kunai and carrying a letter personally written by Yahiko and the others for Jiraiya.
...
"Dad! I used a hundred million ryō to buy a massive silver mine!"
Upon returning to Danzo's base, Takeshi couldn't wait to share the good news, proudly announcing that he had successfully established friendly relations with the Akatsuki on behalf of Konoha.
"A silver mine?"
Danzo didn't even raise his head, simply extending his hand, signaling for his son to hand over the signed treaty.
"Wait a second."
Seeing Danzo's gesture, Takeshi suddenly remembered he had casually thrown the treaty to Kakashi. He quickly rushed outside the cave, retrieved the document from Kakashi, and handed it to Danzo.
"Hmm..."
Danzo leaned back against the chair in a relaxed posture, like an old man reading a newspaper at a street corner. He remained silent for a long time.
"A hundred million ryō for five years of mining rights—it's not exactly a loss. But, did you know... shinobi aren't allowed to operate mines privately?"
He put away the treaty and immediately threw a bucket of cold water on Takeshi's excitement.
"Huh?"
Hearing that, Takeshi was dumbfounded.
Shinobi aren't allowed to mine silver?
What kind of bullshit rule is that?
"According to regulations, shinobi are a military force employed by the daimyō. They are not allowed to own property independently. Even if they engage in business, it must be done within Konoha's lands. They absolutely cannot hold private assets on the daimyō's land."
Danzo adjusted his posture and, expressionless, began explaining to his big dumb son.
So...
He had spent a hundred million ryō on a mine he couldn't even use?
If Sarutobi-sensei found out, would he beat him to death with Enma?
After all, the treaty bore his name. As a disciple of Hiruzen, he was naturally considered part of Hiruzen's faction. Hiruzen would have to take the fall for this.
"So, what do you plan to do now?"
Danzo stared at his son, a strange light flashing in his eyes, hoping to hear the answer he wanted.
The daimyō, huh...
If the daimyō truly forbade mining, then someone as cautious as Hiruzen would never allow this.
After all, no matter how wealthy Konoha was, they wouldn't just give away real money to Amegakure. Even if it was technically a loan, all materials would have to be purchased from Konoha.
But what if he bypassed Hiruzen and the daimyō altogether?
Suddenly, Takeshi thought of a possibility.
What even was a daimyō?
Just someone who sat high above and wielded a sliver of power, enough to make shinobi bow and scrape.
Even if he brought people in to mine the silver, what could the daimyō actually do?
Send someone to eliminate him?
With just those samurai of his?
But if he bypassed the daimyō, what about the loan?
Even if he didn't have to hand over the cash, the supplies still had to be delivered.
Where would those supplies come from?
A flood of thoughts swirled through his head, making Takeshi heat up again.
Sigh, his intelligence really...
Seeing Takeshi's face flush red again, Danzo sighed and closed his eyes, finally accepting that his son had no redeeming qualities beyond being able to fight.
No—his tactical thinking was far too simplistic, even in battle.
"Bypass the daimyō. Start mining the silver immediately."
Just as Danzo was about to speak up and clean up his foolish son's mess, Takeshi made a decision.
Start the mining first. Worry about the supplies later!
When he heard that his son had finally reached a conclusion—and that it was exactly what he wanted to hear—Danzo's lone eye gleamed before he quickly masked it with indifference.
"And after you extract the silver, how will Amegakure purchase the supplies?"
"That's where you come in, Dad~"
Takeshi dragged out his words and leaned in with a flattering smile, massaging Danzo's shoulders.
Hiruzen cared about the daimyō, but Danzo didn't.
In fact, Danzo had always been indifferent toward the daimyō.
Satisfied with his son's massage, Danzo nodded.
"Not entirely hopeless. At least you know to come to me."
After a while, Danzo waved Takeshi back to his original position, then stood up, ready to give his son a little history lesson.
"During the Warring States era, the daimyōs suppressed shinobi numbers by hiring clans to slaughter one another. Back then, with their large samurai armies, the daimyōs held the upper hand in terms of combat strength."
Hands clasped behind his back, Danzo recalled stories passed down by his ancestors.
"But ever since the First Hokage established the village system, the combined power of the shinobi clans rivaled the daimyōs' armies. So the daimyōs had to resort to limiting production and other strategies to keep the shinobi in check."
"Even then, their samurai could no longer stop the shinobi. Hence, the shinobi world wars became a convenient outlet."
"In the mission system carefully curated by the daimyō and the upper nobility, shinobi from various villages constantly clashed over meager commissions, each hoping to improve their village's survival chances."
"Hmph. Do you know why Root doesn't appear in the village's fiscal records, yet still maintains such a massive scale?"
As he reached the key point, Danzo turned around and stared straight into Takeshi's eyes.
"You mean..." Takeshi seemed to realize something.
"On the surface, I use the Shimura clan's wealth to fund Root. But behind the scenes, I leverage my influence to control certain fallen nobles, using their identities to conduct businesses strictly forbidden to shinobi by the daimyō."
Damn, no wonder the old man's such a legend!
Back in the original story, when Hiruzen was still worrying about missions and budgets, Danzo not only ran ANBU, but also supplied Orochimaru with endless research funding.
When it came to ignoring the daimyō's authority, his old man was second to none!
Takeshi looked at Danzo with admiration all over his face.
Seeing his son's expression, Danzo nodded inwardly with satisfaction.
If one of Hiruzen's followers—or Hiruzen himself—heard these words, they'd be screaming about treason and throwing Danzo in jail.
But his son didn't flinch—he looked excited.
This child is like me.
Takeshi's reaction made Danzo even more determined to place him in the Hokage's seat.
If, before, he was doing it to make up for regrets...
Now, he was doing it to create the ninja world he truly envisioned.
"So..."
Danzo intentionally paused.
"So?" Takeshi eagerly waited for Danzo's answer.
"A mere hundred million ryō in supplies? I can handle that. As for mining the silver—don't concern yourself with that either."
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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