Chapter 165: The Spoils of War
"Captain, once we've trained up a Lightning Release Squad, we have to go back and tear that undead sea monster to pieces!"
Tekudō hated the undead sea monster with a passion, wishing he could immediately train a Lightning Release Squad, kill the abominable creature, and recover all the gold, silver, and jewels. Tens of millions of ryō worth of wealth. They were about to return safely to the Land of Fire, and yet, it had been stolen just like that. How could anyone accept it?
Chōmi, who was on the scene, didn't care about the money and comforted him, "Well, it's enough that we escaped. If we really anger this undead sea monster, we will all die here."
Ryo also advised, "Yes, money is only a matter of time; it is enough to survive. Improving your strength is the most important thing."
"Let's set off quickly and leave this sea area."
With a wave of Sasuke's hand, the entire fleet set sail, quickly leaving the area. Seeing that the undead sea monster had not caught up despite the huge sacrifice, the crew cheered, grateful to have escaped from death.
However, less than half a day into the journey, they encountered another group of pirates. These pirates turned out to be Mist Ninjas stationed in the Sea Country, disguised as ninjas looking for extra income. They were quite formidable, a typical nine-man Mist Ninja brigade.
The Konoha Hundred had greatly improved their strength, and without even Sasuke's personal intervention, they easily defeated the Hidden Mist Ninja brigade, instantly adding another ocean-going vessel to the Umino fleet.
After defeating the Mist Ninja, the Umino fleet sailed directly to the port of the Sea Country, where they spent a short time resupplying before quickly setting off and continuing their journey.
Although the dust explosion had frightened Suikazan Fuguki and his men, the Hidden Mist Village was still one of the five great ninja villages in the ninja world, and they would definitely send their Mist Ninja troops to intercept them. While Kirigakure was still struggling, it was time to run away.
Sasuke, undoubtedly, had a clear vision. Less than a day after the fleet left the Sea Kingdom, a large fleet sent by Kirigakure arrived there, intending to intercept them, but they completely missed the Umino fleet. The Kirigakure commander who came to stop the Umino fleet was none other than the Three-Tails Jinchūriki, Yagura, a genuine Kage-level warrior.
If it hadn't been for the reckless exaggeration of the Watermelon Mountain Pufferfish Demon about the strength of the Konoha Hundred People, Kirigakure would have taken a considerable amount of time to prepare for battle, and the Umino fleet's swift escape, they might have been met in the Sea Kingdom. Another fierce battle would have been inevitable. Even if Might Duy could have contained Yagura, a battle at sea would have given the Konoha Hundred People no advantage. Even if they could have won, they would have suffered heavy casualties.
Yagura pursued the Umino fleet, but after two days, he failed to catch up and was forced to stop, giving up the pursuit. While the Water and Fire Nations have not yet declared war, the entry of such a large number of Mist Ninjas into the waters of the Wave Ninja Kingdom constitutes a serious diplomatic provocation.
As early as the First Ninja War, the Fire and Water Nations had signed a series of treaties that placed the Sea Ninja Kingdom within the sphere of influence of the Water Ninjas, while the Wave Ninja Kingdom was placed under that of the Fire Ninjas. The Wave Ninja Kingdom, in particular, lacks a daimyō and is entirely influenced by the Fire Ninjas, which fully demonstrates the political influence of the world's leading nation.
The Umino forces, having secretly passed through the Sea Ninja Kingdom without prior diplomatic communication, were intercepted and eliminated by the Mist Ninja. However, if the Mist Ninja pursued them to the Wave Ninja Kingdom, it would be tantamount to an undeclared war. As for the previous annihilation of the Mist Ninja Army by the Konoha Centurions in the River Ninja Kingdom, diplomatically speaking, it could be regarded as an annihilation of pirates. Unless they intended to provoke a Ninja War, the Mist Ninja, pretending to have wiped out the pirates, would have been a silent defeat.
Landing in the Ninja Lands of the Waves freed them from the pursuit of the Mist Ninja, and the Konoha Centurions finally relaxed.
As soon as Sasuke landed, well-informed merchants from the gold black market came, offering to trade his loot in secret. Merchants of all sizes from the Land of Waves also took notice. If they couldn't make a fortune by trading the ninja loot, they could still provide various services to the ninja-sama.
Even more surprising was the arrival of slave traders, eager to divide up the thousands of young people from the Land of River on board. The old, women, and children remained untouched.
"People are the real wealth, not just money."
Sasuke knew the value of people. How could he sell these people, who had been painstakingly abducted from the Land of River? They were the very essence of the people.
"If we could bring them all to the Konoha Village and settle them there, the influence of the Konoha Hundred People would undoubtedly be greatly enhanced."
After all, the Konoha Village was made up of people. The immense influence of the Konoha ninja clans came not only from their strength and wealth, but also from their population. The Senju clan, in particular, held a vast empire of vassal states. Nearly half of the Konoha village was inextricably linked to them.
If these thousands of civilians from the River Country could be brought to the Konoha village to settle down, the influence they would exert would be unmatched by that of any other ninja clan except the Senju clan. While the idea was good, he knew that organizing thousands of people into the Konoha village was unrealistic. The investment was simply too large, making it impossible to achieve.
After a night of deliberation, he finally came up with a brilliant idea. For those with special skills, he planned to provide low-interest loans for start-up capital and bring them directly to the Konoha village for resettlement. Those without special skills would have to fend for themselves.
"Sasuke-sama, I have shed blood and served the Konoha Hundred, why can only adult ninjas choose wives, while I can't choose a young girl?"
Seeing his colleagues choosing beautiful women one after another, many Genin, fresh out of school, immediately expressed their dissatisfaction. They swarmed to Sasuke, demanding that they not be discriminated against and that they also be given wives.
There was no other way. These beautiful women were carefully selected by the Mist Ninjas from the River Country to be sold for the sex trade, so naturally, they were all very attractive. While the most beautiful ones were chosen by Kurama Kon, the others were no less so. It was no wonder these young men were so upset.
Especially after someone started the fight, the young men lost their composure and began to make a scene, even accusing him, the commander, of injustice.
"If you want girls as wives, fine. As long as you have the means to make them come back with you voluntarily, go ahead."
Naturally, Sasuke was happy to use the Konoha Hundred People to attract more people to the Konoha Village and expand his influence. At the same time, this method could also be used to win the support of the Konoha Hundred People.
After hearing Sasuke's acceptance, these young men immediately took action. In order to win over the beauty, they even promised to bring her father-in-law and family along. As for these civilians from the River Country, who had already lost their homes, they were very happy to have the opportunity to move to the big city of the Land of Fire and settle down.
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