437. Profiting from War

"Retreat, now!"

As soon as Commander Kitsuchi recognized what was falling from the sky, he let out a desperate scream. But it was already too late.

With the first deafening explosion, violent flames erupted like blooming flowers, engulfing the earth in a sea of fire.

The forest where the Iwa troops were hiding was completely consumed by flames in less than half a minute. The terrifying explosions echoed like the wrath of the gods, and the blazing light turned the night sky red.

"Hahaha, Danzō wasn’t lying. These cannons are truly amazing," the daimyo of the Land of Earth laughed heartily as he stood on the capital’s walls with his son, watching the inferno below.

A man standing beside the daimyo, wearing a monkey-like mask with pale white eyes—clearly a member of the Hyūga clan—smiled and replied, "Of course. In business, we value integrity above all. If you need more weapons or services, Konoha is more than willing to provide."

This man was Hyūga Hizashi, a new member specially recruited by Danzō into the Earth Branch squad, codenamed "Monkey."

It was thanks to his Byakugan that they had been able to pinpoint the exact location of the Iwa troops.

Hearing Hizashi’s words, the daimyo nodded. "In that case, I’ll order another hundred cannons to prepare for Iwagakure’s inevitable retaliation."

As the leader of the Land of Earth, the daimyo was no fool.

He knew that while they had repelled this attack, it would only provoke a brutal retaliation from Iwagakure. It was even possible that Ōnoki himself would come.

Therefore, he had to act quickly to strengthen the capital’s defenses and prepare for Ōnoki’s arrival.

Hizashi, pleased with the new order, smiled. "As you wish, Your Excellency."

With that, he disappeared, presumably to prepare the new shipment.

The next day, news spread across the shinobi world: "Iwagakure’s attempt to assassinate the Land of Earth’s daimyo failed, resulting in the annihilation of over 300 ninjas."

The news reached even Konoha.

"Ōnoki has finally made his move," Minato said, relieved, as he read the report in the Hokage’s office.

After the Chunin Exams, Konoha’s strategy had become clear: wait for the other nations to tear themselves apart due to internal conflicts while Konoha transformed into the world’s largest arms dealer, supplying these warring nations with advanced weaponry.

In short, they would profit from the war.

This strategy would not only severely weaken the other nations but also bring substantial income to Konoha and drive technological advancements within the village.

It was a win-win situation.

Over time, the power gap between the Land of Fire and the other nations would grow insurmountable.

This was the grand strategy Danzō had devised even before initiating his reforms.

Therefore, he wasn’t particularly surprised by the news.

However, Shikaku, the strategist, raised a concern. "While the daimyo has purchased a large number of advanced weapons from us, significantly boosting his combat capabilities, he still lacks top-tier fighters. If Ōnoki personally intervenes, the daimyo’s forces will quickly fall into disarray."

This was the deterrent power of a Kage-level shinobi, especially one like Ōnoki, who possessed both flight and large-scale destructive abilities.

While the daimyo’s forces might seem to have the upper hand now, a few Particle Style: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu attacks on the capital would cause devastating losses.

And there was no effective way to counter such a threat...

The best way to restrain a Kage was to send another Kage.

The problem was, the daimyo’s side currently had no Kage-level fighters.

Even the Yellow Group, working together, would struggle to effectively counter Ōnoki’s flight capabilities.

Danzō’s solution was simple and brutal. "Since they’ve bought our products, we should provide proper after-sales service. Tell the daimyo that if he doesn’t want to be killed by Ōnoki, he should consider purchasing Konoha’s security services. Let’s price it at one million ryo per day."

Minato and Shikaku gasped at Danzō’s words. One million ryo per day...

Truly, the "Darkness of the Shinobi World" lived up to his name.

But considering the enemy was Ōnoki, the price seemed almost reasonable. After all, Particle Style wasn’t something just anyone could withstand.

The question then became: who should they send?

"Send Ryoma," Danzō said without hesitation.

To counter Ōnoki, they needed someone with flight capabilities.

In Konoha, aside from himself, the only one who fit the bill was Ryoma, the Seven-Tails Jinchūriki.

"Also, have the Western Military District mobilize and conduct some ‘bandit suppression’ missions along the border of the Land of Grass. Consider it a complimentary service for the daimyo," Danzō added.

Under Danzō’s orders, the Western Military District’s forces moved out the next day, arriving at the Land of Grass’s border.

Officially, they were there for counter-terrorism and bandit suppression, but everyone knew the real reason.

This move, of course, infuriated Ōnoki even further.

"That damned Danzō!" Ōnoki roared, smashing the table in front of him to pieces.

Everyone in the room shrank back, not daring to make a sound.


They all knew that the Tsuchikage was on the verge of losing his temper.

The assassination squad’s failure, the annihilation of the vanguard forces, his son’s severe injuries, and Konoha’s troops stationed at the border—any one of these would have been enough to enrage him.

That he hadn’t already flown to the capital to unleash Particle Style was a testament to his self-control.

After venting his anger, Ōnoki, his eyes bloodshot, said in a low voice, "Recall Rōshi to the village. Have him lead a force to the Land of Grass border to guard against Konoha."

After the Third Shinobi World War, Rōshi, the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, had resigned from his position due to ideological differences with Ōnoki and had been wandering the world ever since.

Ōnoki, out of pride, had never reached out to mend their relationship.

But now, with no other capable fighters in Iwagakure besides himself and Rōshi, Ōnoki had no choice but to swallow his pride and ask Rōshi to return.

If they didn’t act, Konoha’s looming presence would make it impossible for him to sleep at night...