337. Taking Back What Belongs to Her

Danzo's blatant declaration once again sent shockwaves throughout the entire ninja world.


His statement about centralizing power raised the question: was he planning to centralize it in the capital or in Konoha?

The answer was obvious to anyone with a brain.

After all, the "Darkness of the Shinobi" had just executed a large number of nobles on charges of rebellion, including the younger brother of the current Fire Daimyo.

Danzo's intentions were clear, but his ambitions went far beyond that.

Shortly after the publication of his manifesto, Konoha announced a new policy: in the coming years, Konoha would open its doors to immigration from all over the Land of Fire.

Eligible citizens could legally immigrate to Konoha through proper procedures and channels, becoming new villagers of Konoha!

Not only that, but Konoha also introduced a series of welfare measures for these new immigrants, such as providing free housing, job placements, and solving educational issues.

The announcement of this policy caused an uproar among the people of the Land of Fire.

Despite being hailed as the most powerful nation in the ninja world, the majority of the Land of Fire's population lived below the poverty line, with the exception of Konoha and the capital.

For these people, the capital was where the noble lords lived, and Konoha was where the shinobi lords resided.

Both places were out of reach for the common folk.

Now, with the opportunity to immigrate to Konoha, how could they not be overjoyed?

If Danzo's previous article was a declaration of war against the nobles, this immigration plan was an attempt to undermine their very foundation.

The nobles' luxurious lifestyles were sustained by the taxes and labor of the people in their territories.

The taxes they collected were astronomical, and the local lords imposed even more exorbitant levies, squeezing the people dry.

If these people were to become new villagers of Konoha through the immigration plan, how would the nobles continue to collect taxes and maintain their extravagant lives?

To make matters worse, the damned "Shinobi United News" had been publishing articles on topics like "natural rights" and "all men are born equal."

After reading these articles, many people began to view the noble lords in a different light.

Although it hadn't reached the point of rebellion, if things continued this way, an uprising was inevitable.


As a result, the local lords and nobles issued orders to ban the "Shinobi United News," prohibiting its purchase and distribution within their territories.

Even other countries began to take similar actions.

Despite this, the new ideas continued to spread underground, like a spark that could not be extinguished, gradually gaining momentum.

This situation naturally caused widespread discontent among the nobles, and a flood of complaints poured into the capital, demanding that the Daimyo ban the United News and punish Danzo.

"Damn it! Damn that Danzo!" the Daimyo cursed in the Tenshukaku, struggling to control his anger and keep his voice down.

Standing below him, Kazuma remained calm.

"Your Majesty, please calm down. That old fool Danzo won't last much longer. Just summon him to the capital, and leave the rest to me," Kazuma said, a hint of killing intent flashing in his eyes.

He could already imagine himself taking down Danzo, seizing power, and reaching the pinnacle of his life.

Hearing this, the Daimyo became excited and immediately declared, "I understand. I'll use the completion ceremony of the General's Mansion as an excuse to summon Danzo to the capital!"

The title of General, an ancient position dating back to the Warring States period, was second only to the Daimyo in status and was responsible for the nation's military affairs.

It was only natural for such a high-ranking position to have a mansion in the capital.

To this end, the Daimyo converted his vacation estate into the General's Mansion and bestowed it upon Danzo, all as part of a plan to lure him to the capital and have him surrounded and killed by the Daimyo's guards.

Soon, news of this shocking development spread.

The nobles, who had hoped the Daimyo would take a hard stance against Danzo, were stunned to find that the Daimyo had instead chosen to appease him.

This outcome left the noble lords deeply disappointed.

Only those with a keen political sense sensed that something big was about to happen.

When Danzo received the invitation, he immediately smiled and said to the envoy from the capital, "Tell the Daimyo that I will set out tomorrow and will be sure to thank him for his kindness in person!"

After successfully receiving Danzo's reply, the envoy didn't dare to stay long and quickly took his leave.

Once the envoy was gone, Danzo's smile turned into a smirk.

"Finally, you couldn't hold back, could you, Daimyo?" Danzo muttered.

Seeing Danzo's readiness, Shikaku couldn't help but remind him, "Be careful, Lord Danzo."

Minato even handed Danzo a custom-made Flying Thunder God kunai.

"Senior Danzo, if anything goes wrong, you can immediately notify me through the communication bugs. I'll rush to the capital as soon as possible!" Minato said.

"Thank you," Danzo replied with a smile as he took the kunai from Minato.

The communication bugs Minato mentioned were a new type of insect recently developed by Ryoma.

The bugs were divided into mother and child insects, with an extremely close relationship between them.

If the mother insect died, the child insect would also perish.

This allowed Danzo and Minato to communicate over long distances without relying on summoning animals.


All Danzo had to do was crush the corresponding mother insect when needed, and Minato could interpret the message based on the sequence of the dead child insect, allowing him to take appropriate action, such as using the Flying Thunder God technique to launch a surprise attack from afar.

This added an extra layer of security to Danzo's trip to the capital.

After delegating village affairs to Minato and Shikaku, Danzo set out for the capital.

Danzo's departure brought a sigh of relief to many of the "rats" hiding in the shadows of Konoha, such as Koharu and Homura.

Upon learning that Danzo had left the village, they immediately began mobilizing their resources to prepare for their counterattack.

Their plans proceeded surprisingly smoothly after Danzo's departure.

As a result, Koharu, who had been under house arrest for nearly a year, finally stepped out of her mansion.

This time, she was determined to take back everything that belonged to her!