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Jūgo stood behind Shinji, demonstrating his choice through action.
"You two!" Deidara said somewhat helplessly. Why were these two acting like this?
"Karin, Jūgo, you go play with Deidara. I can go over myself," Shinji patted Karin's small head.
"But..." Karin clearly didn't want to go out and play, speaking eagerly.
"I have a mission for you," Shinji said with a chuckle.
"What mission?" Jūgo finally spoke. Shinji's words were the highest command for him.
"You three, when you go out to play, help me observe the situation of the Otogakure villagers on the ground. Jūgo, you can sense the villagers' psychological emotions. See if they truly feel a sense of belonging to this Otogakure," Shinji instructed. After all, he knew that otherwise, Karin and Jūgo truly wouldn't leave his side.
"Then... alright," Karin pouted.
"We will complete the mission, Lord Shinji," Jūgo nodded. Since it was Shinji's mission, he would definitely complete it.
"Then let's set off! Karin, Jūgo, let's go over there first!" Deidara, seeing the two had agreed, immediately became excited and took the lead.
"Mmm," Karin glanced back at Shinji, then followed Deidara out the door.
...
After they left, Shinji finally looked towards the corner. "Lord Orochimaru, were you waiting specifically for me in this place?" Shinji stared at the corner. At this moment, a small white snake suddenly appeared before Shinji, flicking its tongue.
"Fufufu, didn't expect Boss Shinji to return so quickly. I just left a backup measure here," As the small white snake's body gradually expanded, its large mouth opened, and Orochimaru appeared before Shinji.
"Speak. What happened?" Shinji asked directly. After all, Orochimaru waiting for him so specifically here definitely meant something else was up.
"Short on money. The village has no money left," Orochimaru stated very directly.
"What about Kakuzu?"
"Kakuzu was shocked by the huge expenses these days. At this point, he should have gone to the bounty station to take missions to subsidize the village's finances," Orochimaru shrugged. Kakuzu was indeed a very good partner. Although he said many harsh words before joining, after joining, even now when Otogakure's finances were about to dry up, he didn't leave, but instead went to the bounty station to take missions as subsidies.
"Well now, I brought some supplies here," Shinji smiled, then took out boxes of funds from his system space.
"Hoh, looks like Kakuzu can take a breather next," Orochimaru narrowed his eyes looking at the boxes Shinji brought over. This could really solve the urgent need.
Just as Orochimaru was sighing, the door to Shinji's shop suddenly opened.
"I smell the scent of money." Correct, the visitor was precisely Kakuzu. But at this moment, his eyes glowed green, staring at the money boxes on the table. These past few days had really worn him out. Not only did he have to reshape and establish Otogakure's entire accounting system, but he also had to deal with every expense needed at any time. Moreover, after running out of money, Kakuzu still had to take out some time every day to do missions from the bounty station. After doing this, in just a few short days, Kakuzu had visibly thinned down.
"Kakuzu, you're here?" Shinji looked at Kakuzu.
"Yeah. Is this the money you brought back?" Kakuzu didn't even look at Shinji, but went directly to the money boxes, beginning to count the money piece by piece. This level of concentration was comparable to Orochimaru during scientific research.
"Correct. These should alleviate Otogakure's tight funds for a short period next. But... why did it cost so much before?" Shinji was somewhat puzzled. He had only been away for less than 5 days; unexpectedly, the money brought by Orochimaru and Kakuzu was completely spent?
"Hehe, you really don't know the cost of living until you manage a household. Now, after the initial publicity, our current Otogakure has attracted about 500 villagers. So our current infrastructure is insufficient; we need to continue with new infrastructure construction."
"Yes. And not only that. We have now recruited 20 ninjas. Most are missing-nin from other villages and some unaffiliated wandering ninjas. These people also cost money."
"Indeed. And according to your plan, we have already made contact with the Land of Iron. It's estimated there are two master swordsmiths, but we still need to communicate further to know."
Shinji looked at the dissatisfied feeling in Orochimaru and Kakuzu's words. He indeed gave some planning directions initially, and these planned aspects were particularly expensive in the early stages. Especially villager recruitment and iron smelting technology; these were real money-consuming projects. With a larger population, daily maintenance matters increased significantly, so money flowed out like water.
"Then how is the situation now?" Shinji asked.
"Now, after coordinating with the villagers, our Otogakure is funding the construction of some relatively simple factory buildings. Only this way can the subsequent plan continue."
"I understand. Then what about the teachers? Have you found suitable candidates?"
"Orochimaru and I discussed this. Initially, Orochimaru's shadow clones + transformation technique will handle the teaching. After all, considering Orochimaru's image issue."
"Huh? Orochimaru serving as a teacher???"
"What? Is it embarrassing for me to be a teacher?" Orochimaru saw the astonishment on Shinji's face, and his face immediately became somewhat unhappy.
"Of course not. Lord Orochimaru personally taking action will surely pose no problem. After all, everyone has witnessed Lord Orochimaru's teaching ability. Just... don't casually implant your seal on others," Shinji reminded. After all, Orochimaru had such precedents before.
"Fufufu, naturally. Speaking of this matter, I haven't seen my cute apprentice for a long time," Orochimaru said with a smile. Speaking of which, it had been some time since he last saw Anko Mitarashi. He wondered how she was doing in Konoha now.
"Anko? Her situation in Konoha isn't very good right now," Shinji said. Anko's current situation in Konoha was very awkward. As the apprentice of the missing-nin Orochimaru, Konoha naturally tied her together with Orochimaru. Although Orochimaru left a Cursed Seal of Heaven on her, it was ultimately still a ticking time bomb.
"Is that so," Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, a fierce look flashing within them. Speaking of which, he still had some emotional foundation with Anko. So, Konoha's actions, in Orochimaru's view, touched his minefield.
"How about it, Lord Orochimaru? Should I go communicate with Anko? Bring her over to Otogakure?" Shinji suggested.
"Let's talk about this later. Ahem, let's first focus on Otogakure's current planning," Orochimaru coughed twice to cover his embarrassment.
"Alright then. How about we go to your Otokage office building?" Shinji said with a chuckle. He could feel a ripple passed through Orochimaru's heart just now. Since that's the case, then next...
"Alright. Let's go take a look. But I rarely stay in that place nowadays," Orochimaru shrugged indifferently. Subsequently, the three pushed open the room door and walked towards the Otokage office building.
Along the way, some villagers, upon seeing Orochimaru and Kakuzu, although nodding in greeting, still had a trace of fear in the depths of their eyes.
"Looks like Lord Orochimaru's path is still long," Shinji watched their actions. This was really something difficult to change.
"Orochimaru's image still makes many villagers afraid, hahaha," Kakuzu watched Orochimaru being put in his place and felt very happy for a moment.
"Kakuzu, you're the pot calling the kettle black. Your appearance clearly makes them very afraid of you too," Shinji looked at Kakuzu's smugness, momentarily unsure what to say. Why were these two always like this?
"Fufufu, looks like I need to properly improve my image next," Orochimaru said with interest. Speaking of which, he still held the dream of becoming Hokage in his heart. So, for this position of Otokage, he still wanted to practice it according to the Hokage's execution standards.
"Then let's see how Lord Orochimaru changes next. I suggest you can change your gloomy expression. It makes many people afraid," Shinji said bluntly. A qualified Kage must have one condition: being close to the people. Only by gaining the support of all villagers can development continue.
"Is my expression gloomy?" Orochimaru pointed at his own face.
"Yes."
"Isn't it obvious?" Shinji and Kakuzu said in unison.
"Hmph hmph!" Orochimaru turned his face away. This really was...
"Lord Orochimaru, this should be the Otokage office, right?" Arriving before a building, the design clearly imitated the style of the Hokage office.
[Shixie: I forgot about this village.]
"Yes. Let's go in," Orochimaru pushed open the door and walked in. The current Otogakure only had a few ninjas; naturally, they wouldn't waste manpower guarding the so-called Otokage office. These ninjas were either sent out on missions or guarding the surroundings of Otogakure.
Arriving in the office in the shadow area, Shinji looked at the environment. Indeed, still this layout. If it weren't for the different main color scheme, it really would be exactly the same.
"By the way, since you're both here, I have another idea," Orochimaru suddenly said.
"What idea?" Kakuzu asked curiously.
"Just this," Orochimaru knocked on the wall several times. Then a secret door appeared before the three. Subsequently, Orochimaru took out two scrolls from inside. One was like Konoha's Scroll of Seals, with various seals on it. The other was relatively ordinary, just of the same size but without seals.
"This is the Scroll of Seals?" Shinji said somewhat surprisedly. Could Orochimaru have stolen Konoha's Scroll of Seals?
"This is naturally not the original version. But I've seen most of the ninjutsu on it, so I copied them down. Of course, this thing isn't very complete," As Orochimaru unsealed it, the Scroll of Seals appeared before the three. Edo Tensei, Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, Eight Gates, etc., were all on it. But it lacked ninjutsu of the level like Flying Thunder God Technique.
"So, Lord Orochimaru means?"
"I want you both to contribute your respective ninjutsu as well. After all, we need to properly manage Otogakure now, so we still need to contribute some of our respective ninjutsu. Of course, the ninjutsu I know are also all on it," Orochimaru spread his hands.
"This is fine. I have no objections," Kakuzu naturally had no objections. Besides, he had taken so many hearts; he had his own collection of Five Elements ninjutsu. Of course, he could also contribute the most important Earth Grudge Fear. After all, this ninjutsu wasn't that easy to master, so contributing it wouldn't matter much.
"This... mine aren't ninjutsu," Shinji was somewhat stumped. His were Zhongli's skills. How could he even cultivate them, let alone quantify them into something learnable?
"Oh?" Orochimaru and Kakuzu's eyes instantly changed. What? You don't want to contribute?
"Of course, I can provide some special ninjutsu. Can give them to you tomorrow..." Shinji smiled. Fortunately, he could exchange some skills from the system. Anyway, it was to expand Otogakure's personnel reserves. Consuming some points himself wasn't a problem.
Soon, Kakuzu recorded all his ninjutsu onto it.
"Lord Orochimaru, this sealing technique looks rather rudimentary," Shinji looked at the sealing technique on the Scroll of Seals. Can only say it was a relatively simple seal.
"Not particularly proficient in sealing techniques, after all," Orochimaru didn't hide it, but admitted it openly.
"How about this? Later I'll have Karin come over and set a new sealing technique for you," Shinji said after thinking for a moment.
"Karin also knows sealing techniques?" Orochimaru was somewhat curious. He had visited the All-Purpose Shop frequently before, but never discovered Karin knew sealing techniques.
"Naturally. Karin is a descendant of the Uzumaki clan. And what the Uzumaki clan is best at, Lord Orochimaru should know, right?" Shinji looked smilingly at Orochimaru. Remember, Karin wasn't biased towards only cultivating Sky Dragon Slayer Magic. She also spent some time cultivating the Uzumaki clan cultivation techniques given by Kushina.
"That's great. Subsequently, we also need a sensory barrier covering the entire village. This seems to be something the Uzumaki clan is very good at, right?" Orochimaru's eyes instantly lit up. If this could also be done, then Otogakure's safety factor would definitely rise by a large level in the short term.
"Hold on, hold on. Karin helping once is already good enough. A sensory barrier covering the entire village? Karin is only 5 years old!" Shinji looked somewhat helplessly at Orochimaru. Using child labor isn't done like this, right?
"Ahem," Orochimaru was choked by his own imagination for a moment, directly wanting to change the subject.
...
...
In the evening, after Karin and the others returned, Shinji first had her come to the Otokage's office, let her put a brand new seal on the Scroll of Seals, then taught the seal release method to Orochimaru. Only then did the two return to the All-Purpose Shop in Otogakure. At this time, Jūgo and Deidara were already waiting here.
"Lord Shinji," Seeing Shinji walk in, Jūgo stood up directly and greeted respectfully.
"Sit. How was it? Did you have fun today?" Shinji looked at the excited Deidara. Clearly, he found new fun in this place.
"Yes, yes! So many fields here! We saw various kinds of crops today!" Deidara said happily. Although the Land of Fire also had many fields, most were outside Konoha village. So many things Deidara actually hadn't seen.
"Also! There are some foods here that we haven't eaten in Konoha. Very delicious!" Deidara took out a small bag of snacks from behind and handed it to Shinji.
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