If Tekka could do it, then surely the rest of them could too?
The sight of Tekka's sheer destructive power proved that the "Silver Flower's" effect was far from weak. It was clear that the sudden spike in his ninjutsu's lethality was a direct result of his elevated ocular power.
The four other Jonin simultaneously thought of the silver flowers they had brought home. A silent consensus formed: If I consume it... will I also become this strong?
The resentment that had been brewing within the Uchiha clan regarding the massive expenditures vanished in an instant. What was money compared to such overwhelming, tangible power? The Uchiha were a simple people in that regard: they pursued strength above all else. They began to fantasize about the heights they could reach by combining Hiruko's pills with the Silver Flower.
While the four Jonin were lost in thought, Tekka finished cycling through his familiar jutsu. His overall power had increased by roughly 50%. Considering he was already at the peak of the Jonin rank, a 50% jump was staggering. He was now brushing against a level of strength that was usually reserved for the elite "Kage" tier—all thanks to the flower doubling his spiritual and ocular energy.
The only "downside" seemed to be a clutter of messy, illusory memories in his brain. But once one broke free from the hallucination, the emotional impact faded rapidly. And even if one remained stuck, there were always sealing jutsu to lock those memories away.
"Good! Very good!!"
Uchiha Fugaku couldn't suppress his excitement. His usually stern face broke into a rare, triumphant smile. Tekka's growth translated directly into Fugaku's political leverage within the clan. If his other four confidants achieved the same results, he wouldn't have to worry about the pressure from the conservative elders or the idle gossip in the streets.
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While the Uchiha were undergoing a radical evolution, the rest of Konoha was also changing. Factories were springing up overnight. Hiruko had a massive list of products that needed manufacturing, and he intended to accelerate the transition of the shinobi world's civilian population into a stage of capital accumulation.
Social reform required changing the existing structure. These factories provided jobs for commoners—especially orphans traumatized by the war—giving them a means to survive. Konoha was progressing every single day.
News of this progress spread through the shinobi world like wildfire. Specifically, the rumor that Hiruko was making a fortune selling refined salt had reached a fever pitch. To the hot-tempered Fourth Raikage, Ay, this news was like a sledgehammer to the skull.
They couldn't believe it. That "prosthetics scientist" from Konoha was generating nearly 18 billion ryo a month just by selling salt.
Even if the analysts argued that this was a temporary spike caused by panic-buying and hoarding, the impact on the current geopolitical landscape was severe. Some in the Cloud Village were secretly relieved they hadn't openly declared war yet, using the "joint exercise" as a convenient cover to retreat.
When Ay heard this line of thinking, he didn't hesitate to punch the idiot who suggested it.
Was this a joke? If they retreated now, it wouldn't just be a loss of face. From the perspective of national brinkmanship, it would be a disaster. Konoha was already powerful; with these new revenue streams, the gap would only widen. If they didn't drag Konoha into a war of attrition to bleed their foundations dry, the Cloud would eventually be eclipsed entirely.
Yet, the prospect of starting a full-scale war made Ay's head ache. Despite his temper, he was a Kage who understood the big picture.
He grabbed a fat, well-dressed official from the Land of Lightning by the collar and roared, "What did you just say to me? What do you mean the Land of Lightning has 'special national circumstances' and that what Konoha does, we can never do?!"
Ay, like his father before him, was a man of thunderous action. To a high-ranking civilian bureaucrat, he was a force of nature.
The official, despite being terrified, held his ground, stepping back incrementally while stammering, "The matter of the salt... the Lords have their own arrangements. The Raikage needn't concern himself."
Ay's veins bulged in his forehead. "Needn't concern myself?! Are you bastards planning to sell us out? If the Cloud loses to Konoha, do you think you'll continue living your comfortable lives? Tell those people behind you to use their damn brains!"
The plump official shifted his gaze guiltily. He knew the Raikage was right—if the Cloud wanted to compete, they needed to militarize further. But the aristocrats and the Daimyo had spent years draining the treasuries during the Third Ninja War and now wanted to refill their private coffers.
To touch the money of the nobles was like asking for their heads. These days, life was "hard" for the elite, too—why, the speed at which they could take their twenty-eighth concubines had slowed down significantly!
As for the commoners feeling they couldn't survive? Well, have you tried farming harder? the officials would wonder. Have you tried saving up for a traditional townhouse in the capital? The prices haven't changed in years! If you can't afford it, isn't that a personal failure? Don't blame the Land of Lightning; blame yourselves for not working hard enough!
The official babbled a stream of "economic logic" that the Raikage couldn't—or wouldn't—understand. It was all about "ideals" and "sacrifice for the nation," while the elites continued their decadence.
Then... Holy crap...!
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