Konoha Notes

Chapter 124 Long-term
After listening to Chiyo's words, Shuji simply poured himself a cup of tea.

"I've been to Sunagakure twice and have seen some of the lives of Sunagakure ninjas."

"Indeed, compared to ninjas from other countries, even some small merchants who travel between countries seem to live a more comfortable life than many Sand Village ninjas."

Chiyo's wrinkled face seemed to relax for a moment, as if the young man in front of her was finally beginning to understand their situation.

However, Shuji's next words froze the atmosphere that had just eased.

"If that's the case, why not consider moving to another place?"

"How about Sunagakure abandons the Land of Wind and negotiates with the Daimyo of the Land of Tea to settle there?"

"The Land of Tea is wonderful. It has a pleasant climate, abundant resources, and faces the sea. If Sunagakure were willing to relocate as a whole and negotiate with the Daimyo of the Land of Tea, it would surely receive far greater treatment and respect than it does now."

"As for the vast but barren homeland of the Land of Wind, there shouldn't be many troubles to deal with. If the Daimyo of the Land of Wind has any needs, Konoha will be happy to provide the necessary assistance."

Chiyo's fingers trembled, and she almost couldn't resist hitting him. She laughed angrily, "Boy, do you know what stupid things you're saying?"

Shuji met her gaze without flinching: "Perhaps I should be the one asking you that question, Elder Chiyo. Do you know what you just said?"

"Since Sunagakure finds the Land of Wind's provisions unbearable, why don't I offer you a better option?"

"Or do you also know that no matter how barren the Land of Wind is, it is still one of the five great nations, and that the vast desert is the strategic depth that the Sand Village ninja can call their home and rely on for survival?"

During the Warring States period, were the ninja clans who chose to live in the Land of Wind inherently fond of hardship? When the Sand Village was established, were they unaware of the situation in the Land of Wind?

If they could compete with other ninja clans in other countries, why did those ninjas ultimately choose to settle in the Land of Wind?
Chiyo's lips moved, but she was speechless for a moment.

Shuji smiled and said, "Since you don't like jokes, let's get back to reality."

He stood up, his demeanor still composed: "If Sunagakure truly seeks the aid of allies, the first thing they should consider is not how to intimidate, but what tangible things they can offer in exchange."

"A mere threat cannot bring Sunagakure a single grain of food or a single piece of cloth."

"I will not disturb you any longer today. Farewell, Elder Chiyo."

Leaving behind the Sand Village advisor, whose face was ashen and who was sulking alone, Shuji returned to the Hokage Building to report on the content of the conversation.

Tsunade laughed heartily after hearing this. In the past, if Sunagakure acted like hooligans, especially if the advisors and elders did such things themselves, Konoha really had no one who could deal with it.

"Well done, Xiu Si!" She patted Xiu Si's back hard. "Someone should have said that to that old woman a long time ago!"

"Alright, Tsunade, Sunagakure is still an important ally of ours."

After telling his disciple to stop, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned to Shuji and asked, "What are your thoughts on Sunagakure?"

Shuji straightened his wrinkled clothes, thought for a moment, and then said, "I believe that among the four existing ninja villages, Sunagakure is theoretically the most suitable and should be Konoha's long-term and steadfast ally."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, agreeing with the advisory elders' opinion, but he still asked, "What's the reason?"

"There are few conflicts of interest, and the geographical complementarity outweighs the competition."

"Having suffered numerous defeats, the expansion ambitions of Sunagakure have been greatly diminished by reality."

"The cost of forming an alliance with a Sand Village that is internally troubled and focused on self-preservation is relatively low, while the potential benefits are high."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded slowly, signaling him to continue.

"But the problem is that the Sunagakure leadership, especially Elder Chiyo's generation, have a deep-rooted sense of antagonism and distrust towards us. It's unrealistic to expect them to completely change their attitude through a contract or a few negotiations."

"So?" Tsunade also stopped smiling, crossed her arms, and asked, getting serious.

Shuji said, "We need to think outside the box of this deal."

"In this negotiation, Konoha should not focus on how much material goods or mission share they can immediately obtain—they can't afford to give that, and even if they did, they would inevitably harbor resentment. What we should really demand is the future."

Tsunade pondered: "The future?"

“Yes, in the future,” Shuji affirmed. “Using this negotiation, we will propose to Sunagakure that the joint Chunin selection between the two villages be made a regular event.”

Hiruzen Sarutobi gestured for Shuji to continue.

"The current alliance is mostly limited to high-level dialogues and written agreements. For the vast number of lower and middle-ranking ninjas in Sunagakure, especially the younger generation, Konoha is still just a vague symbol that was once an enemy and now only exists on paper."

"The regular joint Chunin Exams can forcefully create a platform, allowing the young ninjas of Sunagakure to truly set foot on Konoha's soil, and live, cooperate, and compete with our ninjas."

“We can even take the lead in adjusting the exam content, appropriately reducing the proportion of purely confrontational questions and increasing the elements that require teamwork to complete.”

"Let them experience firsthand the tangible benefits of maintaining the alliance, and even build personal friendships with their peers in Konoha."

"Given the rapid generational turnover of ninjas, it will only take five or ten years for these Sand Village ninjas, who have grown up in this environment of exchange, to gradually become the backbone of the Sand Village." "At that time, the relationship between the two villages will truly become resilient and stable. I believe this is the most valuable long-term investment."

A brief silence fell over the office. Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled with satisfaction.

“A very good idea. Go ahead and try it, Shuji. Even if it only takes a small step forward in the end, it will be worth it.”

He paused, then added, "Also, there's something I need to tell you. The Hidden Cloud Village has formally requested that the next Chunin Exams be held in the Hidden Cloud Village, and in the form of a joint exam. We have agreed."

Shuji was slightly taken aback; he had indeed just learned of this news. He subconsciously glanced at Tsunade beside him.

The blonde Sannin immediately glared back.

Shuji looked away.

"Go, Shuji." The Third Hokage's voice softened, carrying a certain expectation. "Perhaps, the vision of peace that Lord Hashirama longed for can truly find a new path in your generation."

Shuji bowed and left the Hokage's office.

The tug-of-war between Shuji and Chiyo continued for the next few days.

The initial hardline threat approach was completely blocked, and Hiruzen Sarutobi made it clear that he would hand over the initiative in the negotiations to Shuji. Chiyo had no choice but to reluctantly change her strategy and devote her energy to repeatedly arguing over specific terms and fighting for every inch of ground.

Shuji did not immediately play the "normalized exchange" card that Konoha truly wanted. Instead, he patiently negotiated with Chiyo on specific issues such as food prices, types of supplies, and border defense cooperation.

Providing food and supplies? Konoha could try to procure them, but could only offer extremely limited discounts on market prices. Alternatively, Konoha could send elite squads to assist Sunagakure in garrisoning certain fortresses on the northern border, jointly resisting pressure from Iwagakure.

The former is still too expensive for Sunagakure; the latter still presents the same problem: if Konoha's people go there, they probably won't be there to provide support, but rather to intensify the war between Iwagakure and Sunagakure.

This is clearly not the outcome that Sunagakure truly desired.

Shuji wasn't in a hurry. The Chunin Exams hadn't even started yet, and the end was still a long way off.

He has plenty of time. If things don't work out this year, he can continue negotiating next year or the year after.

Sunagakure isn't just poor this year; they're making steady progress, one step at a time.

Especially the last piece of news revealed by the Third Hokage—the Fourth Raikage, A, took the initiative to propose holding the next joint Chunin Exams.

Although we don't know why, and it hasn't appeared in the original work, it's unclear whether Kumogakure was planning to lure the people of Konoha away and steal some secret techniques or something.

But in any case, this is a signal.

The Hidden Cloud Village took the initiative to propose a more peaceful and long-term exchange.

This means that the situation in the ninja world, if we don't consider the Akatsuki organization, Obito Uchiha, the Otsutsuki clan...

Hmm, thinking about it that way, the ninja world still doesn't seem to be doing well at all.
-
"What? It's gone?"

Kakuzu, dressed in a black robe with red clouds, could hardly believe what he was hearing.

"Yes, there have been many people hunting down rogue ninjas recently, so there are no new targets for the time being."

That's what the people at the gold exchange said.

Kakuzu snatched the thick list of wanted bounties and flipped through it page by page.

Sure enough, most of the targets that were numerous and of moderate difficulty had been crossed out. What remained were either troublesome individuals or high-risk individuals under the strict protection of various ninja villages.

Ordinary wandering ninjas have almost disappeared, and targets with lower bounties are mostly characters who require infiltrating major ninja villages to take action.

What on earth is going on? Who's messing with me? And they're even faster than me!
"The Land of Grass, the Land of Fire, and even the area surrounding the Land of Waterfalls... they've been cleaned up really well." Kakuzu's voice was somber. "Who did this?"

The person at the exchange replied, "Those people from Konoha, although they're well hidden, are most likely from Root." Those people were considered regular customers of their exchange.

"why?"

"Who can fathom the intentions of these great ninja villages? But I've heard that it was Kusagakure that first launched an unusual large-scale arrest operation, and then Konoha immediately followed suit, conducting an even more thorough cleanup..."

Kakuzu closed the list in frustration.

He had little interest in directly attacking important figures in the great ninja villages; the risks were too high, the consequences would be endless, and it would also violate Pain's current orders to keep a low profile and not to provoke the five great ninja villages.

In the end, he could only take the money and leave the suddenly desolate exchange.

"It seems I need to report to Payne; we must expand our operations to more distant areas."

This really...added a lot of extra work for no reason. His mood worsened.

(End of this chapter)