Promoting the Konoha threat theory, and talking about the Hidden Mist Belt!

To everyone's surprise, the daimyo envoy, who had been sitting quietly and listening as if he were invisible, suddenly spoke up, and he did so in support of Hozuki Shingetsu.

Ren frowned. If anyone else had interrupted him, he would have sent them to meet the Sage of Six Paths with a shuriken long ago. But out of respect for the daimyo, he still needed the daimyo's financial support. It would be a loss to offend the daimyo's envoy over such a trivial matter.

"Then let's set May as the deadline. I hope you can keep your promise and throw Konoha into chaos by then."

After saying this, Ren walked out of the conference room with a cold face. He never expected that the Daimyo's envoy would speak up for Hozuki Shingetsu.

Of all those present, perhaps only Hozuki Zangetsu and Hozuki Shingetsu knew why.

"Ten million taels for four sentences, that's really expensive! That's enough to buy a third of Asuma!"

Hozuki Shingetsu felt a pang of regret, but when she thought about how all the goals of this plan had been achieved, she felt that the money was well spent.

Chapter 8: If you don't occupy the battleground of public opinion, the enemy will.

Indeed, the daimyo's envoy was able to say those words only because Hozuki Shingetsu paid for it.

The fact that this courtier acted as an envoy to Kirigakure to participate in this Jonin meeting can be said to be the result of Hozuki Shingetsu's meticulous planning.

Of course, the price is one-third of Asuma.

Even if you start by contacting this courtier, inquiring about some inside information about the daimyo, and cultivating his goodwill towards the Hozuki clan, the expenses would amount to the equivalent of one Asuma's.

However, all of this is worthwhile compared to what Hozuki Shingetsu can gain.

He went through all this trouble, going out to kill and earn merit, and using the position of Ninja Academy principal as a cover. His ultimate goals were twofold: the position of foreign affairs officer and the seemingly insignificant right to propaganda.

Since arriving in this world and setting his goal, Hozuki Shingetsu has been contemplating how to achieve it. Immortality and beauty can wait, but unification requires paving the way ahead.

Even someone as powerful as Hashirama Senju was able to make peace with Madara Uchiha at the last moment and bring peace to the world only because of the bond he formed with him in his childhood.

Limited by his age and the strength of Kirigakure, Hozuki Shingetsu could only resort to underhanded methods to wear down his opponents while secretly improving his own strength.

Currently, Hozuki Shingetsu has a comprehensive set of methods to deal with the Third Mizukage. In fact, if he waits another five or six years, Hozuki Shingetsu is confident that he can forcefully bring him down. The difficulty lies in the presence of Uchiha Madara and Zetsu behind him.

Based on the information Hozuki Shingetsu possesses, it's speculated that Uchiha Madara should have already made contact with Ren by this time. It's unclear whether it was genjutsu or some other incentive that lured Ren into cooperating. Therefore, maintaining this state of struggle without outright conflict with Ren is actually the best course of action until there's complete certainty.

After all, if Madara Uchiha were to be drawn out, even if he were only clinging to life thanks to the God Tree and in a semi-crippled state, no one in Kirigakure would be able to withstand him. Not to mention Madara, even the God Tree creation "White Zetsu," who knows Wood Release, would likely be difficult to deal with.

Therefore, Hozuki Shingetsu could only focus his attention outwards, using various means to weaken Konoha's strength in preparation for the future, while also seizing credit and expanding his influence in the process.

Although his identity allowed him to act with impunity in Kirigakure, his status could make people bow their heads, but it could not command their respect.

Looking at the current situation in the ninja world, it can indeed be described as "one superpower and many strong powers".

First, there is Konoha, located in the center of the continent, backed by the Land of Fire, the richest and most populous country on the continent. What is even more commendable is that the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and the successive Hokage have maintained good personal relationships and have never been stingy in their support for Konoha.

Although the village has shown signs of decline due to the deaths of Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju, it still boasts the support of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Inuzuka, and Aburame clans, the rising Sannin, and powerful figures like Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo, and Sakumo Hatake. Furthermore, it benefits from the rich legacy left to Konoha by Tobirama Senju. Despite internal conflicts, Konoha remains one of the top ninja villages in the world.

To put it bluntly, Konoha could easily take on three opponents at once.

Looking at the other ninja villages, none of them had the ability to counterbalance Konoha.

Since the rebellion of Kinkaku and Ginkaku led to the deaths of their Raikage and Tobirama Senju, Kumogakure has been quietly licking its wounds. In recent years, it has only just begun to recover its strength. It has the ambition to become the strongest ninja in the world, but lacks the corresponding strength.

In Iwagakure, despite the fact that the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, had only been in office for a little over a decade, the village was already facing a talent shortage. This was because Onoki had implemented a centralized system after taking office, severely suppressing individual heroism and promoting collectivism. While this led to a surge in the number of Iwagakure ninjas, it also made it almost impossible for newcomers to rise to prominence.

However, Sunagakure, under the leadership of the Second Kazekage Shamon, showed a brief trend of revival. Shamon not only learned from Konoha in terms of systems, but also created the Sand Secret Technique and Puppet Technique, two secret techniques used by Sunagakure, making him the patriarch of Sunagakure's revival.

As for Kirigakure, it goes without saying that it is plagued by internal conflicts between ninja clans, conflicts between ninja clans and daimyo, and conflicts between daimyo and ninja villages. In addition, it has now closed itself off from the world, so in terms of strength, it can be said to be the weakest of the five great ninja villages.

Therefore, under the current circumstances, if Hozuki Shingetsu really wants to disrupt the ninja world's power structure and buy himself time to develop, then it would be best to start with Konoha.

As the undisputed leader of the ninja world, whatever happens in Konoha will affect the minds of the other ninja villages. When the situation becomes chaotic, opportunities will naturally arise.

As for how to throw the enemy into chaos... that was Hozuki Shingetsu's final request.

If you don't occupy the so-called propaganda front, the enemy will.

In the current stage where mutual checks and balances prevent the use of force, propaganda is undoubtedly the best approach.

Especially when public opinion campaigns are combined with diplomacy.

Public opinion is invisible and intangible, but it can sow discord and kill silently.

Even without considering his past life, in the not-too-distant future, after the Second Shinobi World War, Hatake Sakumo will commit suicide because of rumors circulating in the village. While his faith may have crumbled as a factor, the destructive power of public opinion is undeniable.

As for the specific operations, Hozuki Shingetsu, who was used to seeing the operations of the "beacon of light" in newspapers and on the internet in his previous life, was extremely skilled at them.

For example, stigmatizing leaders, interfering in internal affairs, and distorting history.

Coincidentally, Konoha's various objective conditions perfectly matched the premise for these operations, such as Konoha's strength and the Uchiha problem.

At the same time, propaganda can be used not only to attack the enemy, but also to promote oneself.

The timely rain that Kirigakure provided was the result of Hozuki Shingetsu's initial foray into martial arts.

When the time comes, we can hire some writers to write novels, biographies, news articles, etc., that glorify the beauty of the Water Country. In an era where public opinion is not valued by various countries, wouldn't that lead to a chaotic and indiscriminate killing?

Extending this to the national level, it can not only evoke a subconscious aversion when people mention Konoha, but also inspire a longing for the Land of Water, the Hidden Mist Village, and the Hozuki clan.

Yes, he looks forward to the day when someone from the Land of Fire will shout, "The air in the Land of Water smells sweet."

Chapter 9 The Threat of Konoha

After the Jonin meeting concluded that day, the numerous resolutions announced by the Third Mizukage spread throughout Kirigakure at lightning speed.

First, the genius of Kirigakure, the young head of the Hozuki clan, was appointed as the Foreign Affairs Officer. The general reaction to this was actually quite mild. After all, considering Hozuki Shingetsu's status, achievements, and strength, the position of Foreign Affairs Officer, a ministerial-level post, was more than suitable.

From this perspective, no one could find fault with what the Third Mizukage did.

As for Hozuki Shingetsu's previous role as the headmaster of the ninja academy, only a few people knew about it. Most people agreed that Ren hadn't followed Hozuki Shingetsu's wishes and instead gave him a nominal position to allow him to settle down and learn.

Although I don't know what you want to do, it's my instinct as an enemy to make you uncomfortable.

Judging from the fact that the daimyo's envoy spoke up for Hozuki Shingetsu at the end, Ren's wish to have the daimyo's envoy disgust Hozuki Shingetsu failed. But it doesn't matter. When it comes to the New Year's greetings, Hozuki Shingetsu can lead the team again. According to past practice, it would be abnormal if the Kirigakure envoys didn't get a severe scolding from the daimyo.

Moreover, Ren had learned from rumors that because the Land of Water had implemented a policy of national isolation, the daimyo, feeling much safer, was considering further reducing military funding for Kirigakure. Once Hozuki Shingetsu's New Year's shrine visit was over, they could easily spread the word and pin the blame on him, claiming that he had offended the daimyo, leading to the reduction in Kirigakure's military spending.

He'll see then what kind of reputation the "Timely Rain" of Kirigakure still has!

The second resolution announced by Ren at the meeting—following the Daimyo's policy of tactfully sealing off and maintaining secrecy regarding Kirigakure—received a much stronger reaction from the lower classes. After all, as a military stronghold, the livelihoods of the civilians in Kirigakure depended entirely on the spending of the ninjas.

Now that we're in a closed-off, outside supplies can't get in, so what ninjas would come to spend money?

However, the voices of these commoners and low-ranking ninjas were not taken seriously. After all, even if the country was closed off from the world, powerful families could still access those resources. Under this policy, they actually became the monopolists. As beneficiaries, they naturally wouldn't oppose it, but of course, they still had to play along and wail on the surface.

However, despite this, the common people of Kirigakure were still able to make a living after the country closed itself off. However, the last decision, the fixed number of ninjas and the mechanism of promoting the capable and demoting the incompetent, was the one that truly aroused the dissatisfaction of the vast majority of common people in Kirigakure.

What does this resolution mean?

For ninja clans with a long and established tradition, this is easy to solve. If all else fails, they can simply create a "guaranteed job" system and implement an inheritance system.

For ordinary people, this means that unless they hit the jackpot, their hopes of turning their lives around by becoming ninjas have been completely dashed.

Well, to use an academic term, it means that the common people of Kirigakure lost their upward mobility mechanism.

However, as the saying goes, in this world where extraordinary powers exist, and where special bloodlines do indeed provide a huge boost to combat strength, the opinions of ordinary people are sometimes truly worthless.

A few unwilling people went to Hozuki Shingetsu, hoping that this "timely rain" of Kirigakure could bring some rain. However, unfortunately, our foreign affairs officer was forced to sign a pledge due to persecution by "traitors" and was studying foreign policy day and night at home, temporarily refusing all foreign guests.

So after a period of turmoil, the storm caused by this meeting of all Jonin gradually subsided in Kirigakure. In contrast, those who had calmed down turned their attention back to Hozuki Shingetsu, wondering what kind of method this genius of the Hozuki family would come up with to use the propaganda power of Kirigakure that he had obtained from the Mizukage to achieve his "continental balance policy".

"Hmm...that's about it. With a little polishing, it'll be ready to be released!"

Looking at the manuscript he had painstakingly compiled over several sleepless nights, Hozuki Shingetsu smiled with satisfaction.

"The Konoha Threat Theory..."

"According to reliable intelligence, Konoha Village's military expenditure has been on the rise since its founding, especially since the First Shinobi World War, with military spending increasing by 1000% over the past decade. Furthermore, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, has spared no effort in supporting civilian ninjas, resulting in a massive, ever-growing number of Konoha ninjas, who are so numerous and of such high quality that they can overwhelm the four great ninja villages of Kumo, Iwa, Suna, and Mist..."

"According to statistics, Konoha Village has a population of one million, but it produces tens of millions of kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags every year. On average, each person has ten and there are still some left over. So many weapons and equipment are probably not used for setting off fireworks or cutting wood."

"According to a Sharingan user who wished to remain anonymous, the Hokage, under the powerful military strength of Konoha, even made arrogant remarks, claiming that 'one Konoha is worth five ninjas,' and shouting the arrogant slogan that he would destroy Kumo in one month, Iwa in two months, Suna in three months, Kirigakure in four months, and sweep across the world in five months to establish a pan-Konoha sphere of co-prosperity."

"Through my in-depth investigation, I have found that there is a reason why this 'Dark Ninja' said this. From the very beginning, Konoha has been inherently brutal. According to research, Mito Uzumaki, the current noblewoman of Uzushio Village in the Land of Whirlpools, was once forcibly taken away by Hashirama Senju, the founder of Konoha, and is now being used as a prison to imprison monsters. It is truly infuriating."

Below are some figures listed by this editor.

What about the 50,000 standing ninjas, 5,000 Jonin, 3,000 Kekkei Genkai ninjas, Konoha's 33-year military expenditure of 50 billion yen, the dozens of countries secretly controlled by Konoha, and even rumors that Konoha still holds the power to depose and install the Daimyo of the Land of Fire? The current Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, even complains that the title "Kage" doesn't reflect his prestige and wants to change it to "Fire Emperor"...

At the end of the article, the editor went so far as to declare that as long as Konoha remains, the world will never be at peace, calling Konoha the "original sin" of world turmoil.

In the end, this editor surnamed Gan, who wished to remain anonymous, even went so far as to write down a solemn vow: "If Konoha does not abandon its martial arts, I will fast for one day."

What stands out is its eloquent writing and passionate expression.

Meanwhile, Qing and Gui Deng Can Yue, who were standing to the side, had indescribable expressions on their faces after reading the document, especially its title and contents.

How to put it, it's hard to comment.

"Hmm, Crescent Moon, is all the data in this document accurate?"

Ao was a little curious. Logically speaking, this data should be Konoha's most core secret. How did Hozuki Shingetsu, an outsider, know it?

Could it be that the spies planted in the village have already gained access to this level of classified information?

But that doesn't make sense either. Unless it was a spy planted by the Hozuki clan themselves, why would Ren give such information to Hozuki Shingetsu?

"So you think Konoha is the root cause of the turmoil in the ninja world?"

Instead of answering him directly, Hozuki Shingetsu asked him a question.

"Of course not. Although Konoha has its flaws, they have absolutely nothing to do with the original sin of the turmoil in the ninja world, right?"