Konoha: Uchiha Shisui's Strategist Alliance

Konoha is divided into the inner, core, and outer areas.

Except for the Uchiha who moved to the outskirts for special reasons, other people living in the outskirts are not eligible to participate in the Ninja Academy selection.

This means that people outside Konoha have almost no chance of becoming ninjas.

This is an encouraging policy for the native inhabitants of Konoha; the distinction is necessary to justify their selfless contributions on the battlefield.

However, for Shisui, who became Hokage, this matter had both advantages and disadvantages.

"Is there a way to allow outsiders to enter the Ninja Academy?"

The Ninja Academy recruits anywhere from dozens to hundreds of students each year. To improve Konoha's strength, the number of ninjas is always the top priority.

However, after experiencing so much, Shisui has become much more composed and has not made any direct changes.

A few days later, after the Ninja Academy's entrance exams concluded, Shisui specially gathered the high-ranking officials from various departments under a pretext. Kishimoto Fumio, holding a file, suddenly spoke up: "Hokage-sama, this is a sudden matter. During this Ninja Academy entrance exam period, I was organizing past data and suddenly discovered a serious problem. If it's not resolved, Konoha's days are numbered!"

hiss~

Upon hearing this, everyone gasped and looked at Kishimoto Fumio with strange eyes.

Being called over so early in the morning to hear such explosive news made them somewhat unaccustomed to it. Only after they came to their senses did they begin to carefully savor Kishimoto Fumio's meaning.

"Konoha is destroyed? Bun'o, what nonsense are you spouting? Under the Fifth Hokage's leadership, Konoha repelled Kumogakure and struck at Iwagakure. Furthermore, it has just eliminated internal threats. Konoha is at its peak; how could it possibly be destroyed?"

Upon seeing that Kishimoto Fumio's words were alarmist, some people immediately came out to object.

Shisui glanced at the person who had jumped out and suddenly realized that being a qualified ninja did not necessarily mean being able to govern Konoha. He should carefully consider who should govern.

However, most ninjas were used to being cautious and remained silent, not voicing any discussion.

"Haha, you can't say that. Konoha's success today is inseparable from everyone's contributions and ideas. Every spark of light in Konoha can only illuminate the village when they come together."

Kishimoto's dedication to the village is surely not an exaggeration; if you have any discoveries, feel free to speak up.

"The Hokage is wise."

After a collective sigh, everyone turned to Kishimoto Fumio, who said in a deep voice, "Since the Third Shinobi World War, the number of students recruited by the Shinobi Academy has been decreasing every year. Except for the Fourth Hokage's time, there has never been any sign of improvement. This time, there are only about 80 students. If this continues, let alone restoring the village to the glory of the First Hokage, I'm afraid the next Shinobi World War will be the day Konoha is destroyed."

Even in farming, fewer people are tilling the land, so the harvest will naturally decrease, not to mention having children.

During the Ninja War, almost every household had someone leave Konoha. At the height of the conflict, even children had to go to the battlefield, so population growth naturally couldn't keep up with the demand.

Moreover, over time, the difference between the two will only grow larger.

The crowd reacted differently to this; some nodded in agreement, while others were indifferent.

"Lord Hokage, the Ninja Academy system has always been like this since its establishment. Even though not many people were recruited this year, it will be restored in a few years now that the war is over. Every Ninja War has been like this."

This was true, prompting everyone to nod silently in agreement.

"In just a few decades, three Shinobi World Wars have broken out, but this year only more than eighty people were recruited. Who knows when the next Shinobi War will break out, three years or five years?"

At this rate, how many ninjas can we train? How many years will it take us to recover? I'm afraid it won't be enough to make up for the number of ninjas who died in this war.

So how do we survive the next Shinobi World War? How do we protect Konoha?

Even if we survive the Fourth Shinobi World War, what then? Can we survive the Fifth or Sixth Shinobi World War?

"Aren't you all aware of Konoha's performance on the battlefield?"

Now no one objected. They carefully reviewed Konoha's performance in previous ninja wars and discovered the problem.

The situation in Konoha is deteriorating. Although the number of ninjas may not have decreased, their performance on the battlefield is getting worse and worse, which is common knowledge.

"Does Jonin Kishimoto have any solutions?"

Zhi Shui was moved and quickly asked.

"We implore the Hokage to lift the restrictions and allow villagers from outside the area to participate in the Ninja Academy selection, thereby expanding enrollment and increasing the number of ninjas!"

"No!"

Before Shisui could even voice his opinion, someone jumped out to object, saying, "Hokage-sama, this is absolutely unacceptable!"

After saying that, the man realized his reaction had been a bit too strong and quickly knelt down to apologize.

There was some unrest among the various ninja groups, who clearly did not approve of this approach.

Not only these ninjas, but even Mitomon Homura frowned, and Nara Suzaku secretly turned around and gave him a look that signaled him to refuse.

Shisui secretly noted all of this down and said with a smile, "We're all doing this for Konoha. Feel free to voice any opinions you may have. There's no need for this. Please get up."

"Thank you, Hokage."

After the man stood up, Shisui slowly said, "I have only been Hokage for a short time, and there are still many things I don't understand. Please feel free to share your opinions, and I will listen carefully."

Having received Shisui's permission, the man quickly explained, "Lord Hokage, it's not that we don't want Konoha to become stronger, it's just that this method has too many negative consequences. There are at least three points I can point out."

Upon hearing this, Shisui immediately became interested. "Tell me about it."

"Yes, firstly, many of the people on the periphery are related to merchants. They frequently enter and leave Konoha, their whereabouts are uncertain, and their origins are unknown. It is easy for foreign spies to infiltrate them. If these people are allowed to enter the Ninja Academy, they may infiltrate the village in the future, or even enter the upper echelons and access classified information, which is very dangerous for Konoha."

Secondly, the distinction between insiders and outsiders is a policy that has been in place since the Second Hokage. It is a consensus that only the villagers inside the village are the true villagers of Konoha. Everyone has made great sacrifices for Konoha in the various ninja wars. If the policy is changed arbitrarily to make the treatment insiders and outsiders the same, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among the villagers.

As for the third point, although the number of ninjas decreased after the war, this is only in comparison to the number of ninjas. In comparison to the number of missions, the difference is not significant; there are more ninjas than missions.

However, since everyone is a villager of Konoha, they can tolerate each other. But if outside ninjas are allowed to join in and compete with the internal ninjas for mission slots, it could cause serious internal strife, or even lead to bloodshed.

After analyzing the three points, everyone nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, Hokage, the problem of the number of ninjas is only temporary, but changing the policy will have endless consequences. We absolutely cannot agree to it!"

Even Suzaku Nara wanted to offer some advice.

After all, only a small number of people opposed the previous revision of the law, but expanding the number of ninjas would go against the interests of all ninjas, and no one would support Shisui.

Upon seeing this, Shisui's eyes flickered slightly, but he did not stubbornly insist on carrying it out. He simply nodded slowly and agreed.

"Since everyone feels this is inappropriate, let's discuss it later. Of course, Shisui admires Kishimoto for his concern for Konoha and his efforts in identifying the village's current problems. We should keep this matter in mind. If someone can find a solution, they will be a role model for the entire village."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and no one was so tactless as to object to Zhishui.

As for what Kishimoto Fumio said, it was just a minor incident, and they didn't care.

Compared to all this, they suddenly realized that since Shisui became Hokage, their importance seemed to have increased considerably, and Shisui seemed to frequently consult with them in meetings to discuss Konoha's policies.

This was rare during the third generation; major decisions were usually discussed in small meetings between the third generation and a few advisors, who were essentially just errand runners.

This made them feel valued and had a voice.

Shisui was naturally unaware of their feelings. Inside the office, Nara Suzaku, still there, asked with a troubled expression, "Hokage-sama, could you please tell me the truth? Are you planning to expand the student recruitment?"

He didn't believe that Kishimoto Fumio had the vision and courage to bring up such a thing; it could only be Shisui who caused it.

Shisui nodded naturally, "That's right."

Seeing Shisui's straightforward admission, Nara Suzaku was at a loss for how to react, and his feelings were mixed.

Shisui smiled and said, "I told you, Senior Suzaku, you can just ask me any questions you have. I won't lie to you."

"Thank you for your trust, Hokage, but there's nothing I can do about this. If there's even the slightest hint of trouble, it will cause all the ninjas in the village to turn against us. If Danzo finds out, he might even take the opportunity to do something."

"Don't worry, I'm not that reckless and won't do anything rash. As for Danzo, the Iwagakure ninjas in the Land of Grass should have been dealt with by now. It's time for him to come back. Send someone to mention it."

".yes."

Shisui's unconventional thinking left Nara Suzaku somewhat bewildered, but having already given his instructions, he didn't want to ask any more questions and left on his own after receiving the order.

That night, Shisui told Yan Shifan about the reactions of the various ninja units. Yan Shifan didn't react much, only saying, "Everything has to have a beginning, an opening. Since we can't let them all in, let's pick a batch."

"Pick a batch?"

Zhi Shui lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment, but still couldn't find a solution, so he continued to ask, "But didn't the teacher teach me that we shouldn't worry about scarcity but about inequality? If we just randomly pick a group of people, wouldn't that please no one?"

"shallow!"

Yan Shifan stood up, put his hands behind his back, and said loudly, "The way of Heaven is to take from those who have more than enough and give to those who have less than enough. The way of man is to take from those who have less than enough and give to those who have more than enough."

Konoha is short of personnel, but it's clear that replenishing ninjas isn't the priority right now. But is replenishing ninjas the only thing Konoha is lacking?

Besides lacking people, what else does Konoha lack?

Money, of course!

Shisui immediately realized what was happening and thanked him repeatedly.

Yan Shifan waved his hand, signaling him to leave. He had other matters to attend to, and this little matter in Konoha was just for Shisui to practice on.

Shisui didn't care. He had just attained enlightenment and was naturally eager to leave to think about his next move.

After he left, Yan Shifan opened the intelligence report sent from the capital.

One letter was about Matsuno Risa, the younger sister of Matsuno Yoshiyuki, the daimyo's wife, and the mother of his second and sixth sons.

The letter mentioned that she has not only two sons, but also a daughter who will turn fourteen at the end of the year.

Fourteen years old

Yan Shifan's eyes flickered slightly, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. He then burned the intelligence report and looked at the second letter.

The letter was sent by Izayoi, reporting on her contact with Yoshiyuki Matsuno and the progress of the underground gambling arena construction.

Matsuno Yoshiyuki was very wary of this powerful figure from Konoha, but he didn't kick him out. He chatted with him and hosted banquets every day, but never mentioned important matters. To him, it was just another pair of chopsticks. Such a powerful figure who had opened the kaleidoscope was someone that had been heard of even in Kyoto.

Yan Shifan knew what this guy wanted to do just from the few words in the letter, but he didn't plan to urge Izayoi. When the time was right, the other party would be even more eager than they were.

Several days later, Shisui, having come up with a solution, deliberately waited a few more days before summoning the ninjas from various departments again.

"Lord Hokage, Konoha is in imminent crisis, and opening the Ninja Academy is urgently needed. Please, Lord Hokage, lift the restrictions!"

When Kishimoto Fumio brought up the old issue again, everyone immediately objected. Although they had no good ideas, it was clear that keeping things unchanged was better than changing them.

Kishimoto Fumio, unconcerned by the opposition, held his head high and spoke alone about the many benefits of changing the policy. Fearing that Shisui would be swayed by him, the others also kept talking about the many disadvantages of the change.

After a while, both sides were a little tired, and their voices grew softer and softer. Then they noticed that Shisui hadn't said a word. Sensing that something was wrong, everyone stopped and looked at Shisui.

"Everyone's suggestions have some merit. If we rashly change the policy, the consequences will be too great. But if we don't change it, it will inevitably be seen as negligence. How about this: release some places and sell them to merchants from the outside world at a high price in the form of tuition fees?"

Firstly, the tuition fees provided by these merchants each year can offset part of the village's deficit. Secondly, it can increase the number of ninjas in the village. Of course, these people all come from wealthy families, so they don't need to risk competing with the village's ninjas for mission slots.

What do you all think?

Nara Suzaku's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he quickly said, "The Hokage is wise. In this way, we can control the number of people sent out each year and prevent it from becoming excessive."

"But what if a spy has infiltrated?"

Some people frowned and asked.

"Then add restrictions: only those whose family members have lived in Konoha for more than three years can purchase a spot, and the longer the residence time, the higher the priority."

Before Shisui could speak, someone offered a suggestion, which immediately drew praise from everyone.

Once the topic was brought up, someone quickly raised a new question.

"What would be a suitable price?"

Shisui had already considered this point, and he said with a serious expression, "Regarding the price, I plan to have Consultant Mitomon lead a team to investigate before confirming it."

Mitomon Homura, who was sitting to the side, immediately agreed upon hearing this.

Zhi Shui said in a deep voice, "I have only one requirement: it cannot be too expensive, nor can it give ordinary villagers the idea that they can just grit their teeth and scrape together the money."

The love of the parents is far-reaching.

It wasn't that Shisui was heartless and didn't give those commoners a chance, but rather that ninja training required either exceptional bloodline, exceptional wisdom, or exceptional wealth.

But their family has never produced a ninja, and how many of them are talented? As for wealth, they can only scrape together tuition fees by gritting their teeth. How can they support their children's training?

There's no replenishment, only depletion. It won't be long before they're ruined. Even if they manage to graduate by sheer luck, they'll just be cannon fodder. It's better to just be an ordinary person. At least being born near Konoha means you're safer.

Few could understand Shisui's good intentions, but since he had greatly minimized the impact on the village's ninjas, they did not refuse.

After all, who isn't doing this for Konoha?

Having resolved the matter, Shisui was in high spirits, and two days later, a letter from the north excited him even more.

Sima Yi is coming back!