Chapter 82: Monopoly
When Kei said he wanted to increase the village's income and diversify it, everyone present agreed.
After all, if the village's finances became abundant, it would benefit them as well.
The question was how.
What were the Department of Commerce and the Department of Transportation for?
How would they make money?
"The so called Department of Commerce will be responsible for foreign trade and for managing village run enterprises."
Kei explained.
Foreign trade?
Village run enterprises?
"Foreign trade is easy enough to understand, but what are village run enterprises?"
Koharu looked hesitant. "Are we going to do business?"
"Why not?"
Kei spoke calmly.
"The number of residents in the village is not small, and the supplies needed each day are not few."
"This is a ready made market. If we start village run enterprises, then as long as the quality is not too bad, we can produce results immediately."
To speak honestly, Konoha's consumption potential was considerable.
Even though the village only had hundreds of thousands of residents, something like an ordinary city from his previous life, these were high end people with high spending power.
Anyone who could live in Konoha was either part of a ninja clan or connected to shinobi families.
And in this era, shinobi were unquestionably the high end class.
Even an ordinary genin earned solid compensation through daily missions. Compared to common people, they were wealthy.
Serving this group alone was enough to support a large number of businesses.
What was even better was that Kei was the Hokage.
He represented Konoha's authority and legitimacy.
With a single order from him, no one inside the village could compete against him.
In the end, when authority personally enters the market, it becomes a monopoly.
And a monopoly can only make money.
Of course, Kei did not intend to go too far.
To avoid turning everything into chaos, for now he only planned to take back a few of the highest profit industries, the ones with huge margins and low technical requirements.
"Pass down my order."
He spoke at once.
"Establish Konoha Tobacco, Konoha Entertainment, and Konoha Grain Group."
"From today onward, any tobacco sold by enterprises other than Konoha Tobacco is illegal. Once discovered, it will be confiscated according to the law."
What?
You could do business like that?
Everyone present was stunned.
On one hand, he opened a tobacco enterprise and sold tobacco himself.
On the other hand, he declared all other tobacco products illegal and banned them from Konoha's market.
Business could actually be run this way?
"This… does sound like it can make money."
Torifu and Homura exchanged a look, both feeling that this truly could be profitable.
The shinobi profession carried tremendous pressure.
Because of constant missions, many shinobi had their own methods of relieving stress.
Tobacco was certainly one of them.
Among Konoha shinobi, there were plenty who smoked.
Later, Asuma Sarutobi, whose head would be worth thirty million ryo, was a heavy smoker.
If all the money those people spent could be pulled into Konoha's official pocket, the future outlook would be excellent.
"What about Konoha Entertainment?"
Koharu asked again. "What is that for?"
"The enterprise is called Konoha Entertainment, so naturally it is for entertainment venues."
Kei spoke as if it was obvious.
"From today onward, all privately run casinos and pleasure quarters, except those opened by Konoha authorities, are illegal."
As expected, it was the same method.
Everyone understood instantly and stopped questioning him.
If he played it like this, then it would be unreasonable not to make money.
Tobacco and gambling were both classic high profit, low tech industries.
An official monopoly over them would not cause real harm. Instead, it could even standardize the entire market.
As for Konoha Grain Group, that was not a monopoly. It was for acquiring and stockpiling grain.
This was a move Kei made almost on instinct, ensuring food security.
"Senior Koharu."
After giving those orders, Kei looked at Koharu.
"You will take charge of the newly established Department of Commerce."
"Danzo will be your deputy."
Establishing a Department of Commerce and village run enterprises would inevitably affect many people's interests.
But that did not matter.
The combination of Koharu and Danzo was enough to handle anything.
If someone did not know what was good for them, Danzo could teach them what cruelty meant.
"Send a letter to the Daimyo."
Kei continued.
"There are bandits causing trouble throughout the Land of Fire. We in Konoha are willing to help the Daimyo clear them out for free, to protect the security of the Land of Fire's territory."
"For free?"
Torifu frowned, confused.
Even though the Great Ninja War had eased, the internal situation of the nations was far from peaceful.
Public security in this era was poor. Bandits frequently caused trouble.
This had always been part of the shinobi business.
Because bandits were everywhere, merchants and nobles hired shinobi for handsome rewards.
Sometimes shinobi were hired to clear out bandits, but often after one group was eliminated, new bandits would appear later.
And now Kei wanted to clear bandits for free?
For Konoha, that sounded like a losing proposition.
Everyone tried to persuade him, but seeing how firm he was, they did not press further.
In the end, Kei handed the matter to the Uchiha Clan.
That alone was enough to silence objections.
Since they did not have to expend their own effort, there was no reason to argue.
After that day, changes appeared rapidly within Konoha.
Residents discovered that the casinos and pleasure quarters of all sizes along the streets had vanished, replaced by grand venues with a clear official presence.
These casinos were all run by Konoha authorities, and anyone spending there enjoyed the village's guarantee that no one would dare default on debts.
Meanwhile, in shops across the village, all the various tobacco brands disappeared as well, leaving only a few newly released Konoha brand cigarettes.
The change made many people quietly curious.
But for most, the impact was not large.
Cigarettes had not vanished. Only the brands had changed.
And to ease concerns about acceptance, even the prices were reduced by a noticeable amount.
TL: Check out my newly released fanfic:
Transmigrated into The Legendary Mechanic
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