Chapter 85: Gold Style: Budget Reduction Jutsu
Maeda left the Rain Shadow Tower meeting room with a smile all over his face.
He did not go to the armory, which was filled with the smell of exploding tags, but instead turned toward the most dazzling den of vice in Amegakure—the "Sleepless City" shrouded in neon lights.
In a secret room, Maeda opened a black box engraved with complex sealing formulas. At the bottom lay a stack of specially made encrypted letters.
"Although the boss says 'killing is the worst option,' sometimes making life worse than death is easier than killing."
Maeda picked up a fountain pen and wrote only four words on a piece of black stationery, then stamped it with the Seal representing the Amegakure Chamber of Commerce... Land of Fire, Daimyo Mansion.
There was no mud or blood from the trenches here, only the luxury of milk and honey.
Deep in the inner palace, incense smoke curled. The Daimyo's Wife leaned lazily on a fox-fur couch, boredly playing with a jade cup.
"Madam, a representative from the Amegakure Chamber of Commerce requests an audience, saying he has brought the latest 'local specialties'," a maid knelt to report.
"Amegakure? What good things could come from that poor place where it rains all day?" The madam curled her lip, but out of curiosity, she waved her fan. "Let him in."
A moment later, a well-dressed merchant with a gentle smile knelt on the silk carpet. Without wasting words, he held up two items with both hands.
The first was a set of jewelry made from "Luminous Crystals." These were unique Ores from deep within the Land of Rain, polished with Sasori's Puppet craftsmanship, now emitting a dreamlike blue glow in the dim palace.
The madam's eyes instantly widened. This luster put even the treasures in the Land of Fire's treasury to shame.
"A small gift, nothing much," the merchant's voice was full of allure, "and this... 'Supreme Black Gold Card'."
He gently placed the second item—a card with a black background and gold patterns—on the table.
"This is the highest authority token for Amegakure's Sleepless City. With this card, you can spend freely in the Land of Rain, whether it's casino chips or these luminous jewels... it's all charged to Lord Rain Shadow's account."
The merchant's voice lowered slightly, with a well-timed hint of regret: "Unfortunately, Konoha seems to intend to take military action against us. Once war breaks out, that shopping paradise prepared for you will likely turn to ashes."
"What?!" The madam sat up abruptly, grabbed the jewelry, and her gaze turned sharp. "War? Who allowed those boors who only know how to ask for money to destroy my shopping mall?"
...Front Hall, Meeting Chamber.
The bloated Land of Fire Daimyo was frowning at a long scroll. It was the "Special War Readiness Budget Application" just submitted by Konoha.
The long string of zeros in the numbers made the Daimyo's heart skip a beat.
"Two hundred million ryo... why don't these Ninjas just go rob someone?" The Daimyo clutched his chest in pain.
Just then, a fragrant breeze blew in.
The madam, having just put on her new jewelry, walked over gracefully and leaned against the Daimyo. She whispered into his ear: "Your Highness~ I heard that although Amegakure is small, the people there are very sensible and speak so nicely. On the other hand, our Hokage from Konoha only comes to cry poverty or ask for power every time. It's such a killjoy."
"But... that's a joint operation between two great nations..." The Daimyo hesitated.
"great nations or small, aren't they just a bunch of bodyguards fighting with Kunai?" The madam traced circles on the Daimyo's chest with her finger, which bore a luminous ring. "If Your Highness gives this money, the funds for me to renovate the villa next month will be gone. Besides, it's just teaching a few thugs a lesson; is there any need to use the full power of the nation?"
Under the double assault of beauty's temptation and instinctive greed, the Daimyo's already scant reason completely collapsed.
"My dear, you are right!"
The Daimyo snapped his folding fan shut. He picked up a red brush and ruthlessly drew a line through Konoha's detailed strategic budget.
"Pass down the order! Amegakure is just a tiny place; why the fuss? Konoha Ninjas usually pride themselves on being elites, so why do they need so much money to fight a small country?"
The Daimyo snorted and wrote a comment at the end of the scroll that would make countless frontline Ninjas cough up blood:
[A punishment is enough, no need for extravagance. Military budget... cut in half!]
...Land of Wind, Daimyo Mansion.
The style here was completely different from the Land of Fire, filled with the ruggedness and coldness of the great desert, but the greed for profit in the air was exactly the same.
"Is this Amegakure's sincerity?"
The Land of Wind Daimyo sat on a high platform, his eyes fixed on the three heavy open chests in the center of the hall.
Gold bars.
Neatly arranged pure gold bars, emitting an alluring luster under the candlelight.
The Amegakure Chamber of Commerce representative stood by the chests, his expression neither humble nor arrogant: "Your Excellency Daimyo, our leader said that the Land of Rain is willing to help you'save' an unnecessary expense."
The Land of Wind Daimyo narrowed his eyes. Unlike that fool from the Land of Fire, he was much more shrewd and sinister.
He had long pursued a national policy of "reducing the number of Ninjas and hiring elites," resulting in a chronic lack of funding for Sunagakure. But he did this not just out of stinginess, but also out of fear.
Fear of the growing military power in the hands of the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa.
"That fellow Rasa is asking for triple the military budget this time under the guise of 'recovering the Third Kazekage's remains'." The Daimyo stroked his chin, his gaze shifting between the gold bars and the memorial. "If I let him have this money, will Sunagakure turn around and bite me?"
The Amegakure representative added at the right moment: "The Land of Rain only wants to do business. As long as you nod, we guarantee that Lord Rasa's army will encounter some 'unavoidable' obstacles in the Land of Rain and will never threaten your rule."
These words struck a chord with the Daimyo.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Especially when this enemy has sent so much gold.
"Interesting."
The Land of Wind Daimyo let out a cold laugh, picked up his pen, and heavily wrote a red "Rejected" on the memorial requesting the special budget.
[Rejected! Maintain minimum supplies. Strictly order Rasa not to use this as an excuse to expand the army!]
...Konohagakure, Hokage Office.
The rain outside was still drizzling, as if it would never stop.
"Bang!"
An Anbu appeared out of thin air, knelt on one knee, and presented a scroll bearing the royal emblem of the Land of Fire.
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath and undid the Seal. His originally grave expression froze on his face as if petrified the moment he saw the contents.
"Hiruzen, what is it? Did the Daimyo approve the funds for the exploding tags?" Utatane Koharu stepped forward, and with just one look, the hot tea in her hand crashed to the floor.
"The... budget was cut in half?!"
Homura Mitokado's voice cracked, sounding like a rooster being strangled. "And he wants a quick resolution? Does the Daimyo know how much money war burns through?!?!"
"Bastard!! Simply a bastard!!"
Danzo Shimura, who had been dark-faced, finally exploded. He smashed the solid wood desk in front of him with one palm, his single eye bloodshot. "This is a conspiracy! It must be Amegakure's conspiracy! That foolish Daimyo actually cut off his own hands and feet before the war even began!!"
The Jonin in the meeting room looked at each other, and Nara Shikaku felt a bone-chilling cold.
This wasn't a duel of Ninjutsu.
This was a dimensional strike.
That man named Yahiko didn't even use a single soldier; with just a piece of paper and a few words, he crippled half of Konoha's combat power.
"Phew..." Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a heavy smoke ring, looking as if he had aged ten years in an instant.
What could he do? Rebel?
That was the Daimyo, Konoha's benefactor, and their legal sovereign.
"Pass down the order..." The Third Hokage's voice was as raspy as sandpaper. "Activate... the Village's strategic reserves. Inform Shikaku to redraw the battle plans. This war..."
A hint of helpless sorrow flashed in the old man's eyes. "We'll have to fight while tightening our belts."
...Meanwhile, Sunagakure, Kazekage Office.
Boom!!!
The entire building shook violently.
It was a riot caused by the loss of control over Magnet Release Chakra. Countless fine grains of gold dust, like violent wasps, instantly ground the desk representing the Kazekage's authority into powder.
Rasa clutched the thin rejection document, his knuckles white from the force, veins bulging like earthworms.
"You'd rather trust the enemy's gold bars... than your own Kage?!"
Rasa gritted his teeth, the killing intent in his eyes almost manifesting as a physical surge.
Granny Chiyo sat in the shadows of the corner, watching the mess, and let out a chilling sneer. "Cough... this is the Daimyo we serve, Rasa. In his eyes, we aren't even as good as a loyal dog."
"That old bastard..."
Rasa took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the Chakra raging within him. But the cold light in his eyes grew even icier.
Without money, there's no equipment. Without equipment, if the elites are lost, Sunagakure is truly finished.
But he had to fight. Not only for the Third Kazekage's body, but also to maintain his position in the Village.
If there's no money to buy lives... then use lives to fill the gap!
"Order!"
Rasa turned his back to Chiyo, his voice cold and devoid of warmth.
"Suspend the gathering of the Jonin forces. Order the Third and Fourth Battalions, composed of Genin and Chunin... to set out immediately!"
"Let them enter the Land of Rain as the vanguard."
Chiyo lifted her eyelids, a hint of shock flashing in her cloudy eyes. "Rasa, are you trying to send them to their deaths? Those are thousands of children..."
"They are cannon fodder!"
Rasa whipped around, his eyes as hideous as a demon's. "Without supplies, the elites cannot be moved! Let those low-level Ninjas exhaust the Akatsuki's Chakra! This is for the future of Sunagakure!"
Outside, sand and wind filled the sky.
Two urgent letters filled with an aura of despair flew toward the frontline headquarters of Konoha and Sunagakure, respectively.
Before the war even began, the invisible "Blade of Gold" from the Land of Rain had already pierced the defenses of the two great nations, leaving the so-called "Justice Alliance" bloodied before they even set out.
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