Konoha: Uchiha Shisui's Strategist Alliance

Chapter 197 Deposing the Historian and Establishing a Shepherd

"I'm sure you've heard about what happened in Kyoto, Izayoi-kun. It's truly shameful that the daimyo is so worried, and we are powerless to help. Ah~"

In a quaint and elegant pavilion at the Matsuno residence, Matsuno Yoshiyuki watched the falling snowflakes and tightened his hand warmer, his sigh causing Izayoi to turn her head.

Several days after the noble families in the city were wiped out, Matsuno Yoshiyuki once again invited Izayoi to be his guest.

Seeing his grief-stricken expression, which was almost a genuine outpouring of emotion and without any flaws, Izayoi noticed that any detail would be captured by the Sharingan, let alone Matsuno Yoshiyuki, a mere ordinary person.

Of course, the main reason was that Yan Shifan had investigated Matsuno Yoshiyuki beforehand and knew that he was not a loyal and honest person.

"I have heard that the daimyo has repeatedly ordered the nobles in the city to help suppress the bandits. Why doesn't Lord Matsuno take the lead in responding and suppressing the mountain bandits? If this is successful, the daimyo will surely value you."

Izayoi drank her sake, showing no intention of cooperating with Matsuno Yoshiyuki.

"."

Matsuno Yoshiyuki's lips twitched. He was already the Minister of Finance and the uncle of two young masters. What did he need to be so concerned about?

And can he really just wipe out these bandits like that?

"What Izayoi-kun says makes sense. It's just a pity that I'm not strong enough. If I had a strong person like Izayoi-kun to help me, perhaps I could give it a try."

Matsuno Yoshiyuki wanted Jiro to make a name for himself and try to seize the throne, but the daimyo valued Jiro highly and did not give his other sons a chance.

He was testing Izayoi, not because he really wanted Izayoi's help, but because he wanted to find out if this group of bandits was sent by Konoha.

Not only him, but many nobles and daimyo in the capital were suspicious of Konoha.

After all, with so many powerful ninjas, and in the Land of Fire, Konoha is highly suspected.

However, since the Hokage had already mentioned that ninjas had infiltrated the country through trade routes at the border, it is currently impossible to confirm this.

"Hehe, what's so difficult about me taking action? Just go to Konoha and request a mission. As long as the Hokage gives the order, I will lead my team to clear out the surrounding bandits."

"Assign a task."

If the daimyo were willing to entrust a mission, he wouldn't be sighing and complaining inside. Moreover, the attitudes of those around the daimyo towards Konoha are also in opposition, especially after the deaths of Higashimaru and Kitako, the radicals have already subtly gained the upper hand.

"Heh, that's true, but unfortunately the national treasury is struggling to keep up and we no longer have the resources to entrust Konoha with this task."

Matsuno Yoshiyuki nodded repeatedly in approval, but a hint of difficulty lingered in his eyes. "Besides Konoha, are there any other options?"

"Oh?"

Izayoi raised an eyebrow, stood up, and said, "No money?"

Izayoi looked Matsuno Yoshiyuki up and down. If it were anyone else, even a ninja, this would be an offense. However, Matsuno Yoshiyuki just smiled helplessly and even nodded.

"As the Minister of Finance, I am well aware of the state of the national treasury, which is far from optimistic. If Lord Izayoi has any other way to resolve the bandit problem, the Daimyo will be eternally grateful."

Izayoi didn't believe a word Matsuno Yoshiyuki said. Although he had only known Matsuno Yoshiyuki for a short time, the latter's extravagance even surpassed that of the entire police department.

In terms of wealth, he wasn't even worthy of carrying the other party's shoes.

"Hehe, Lord Matsuno, I am indeed grateful to the Daimyo, but unfortunately I am short of money, and Konoha is short of money too. Let's leave the Daimyo's gratitude to those who are capable. Of course, if the Daimyo is in a hurry, he might as well summon the nobles of all the provinces to help!"

Izayoi snorted coldly, his disdain and dissatisfaction undisguised. After speaking, he turned and left.

As he left, he muttered to himself, "Trying to fight bandits without money!"

"The nobles of various regions?"

The nobles of various regions have repeatedly asked the daimyo for help because of the bandits, so how ridiculous it is that they are now asking them for help.

But Matsuno Yoshiyuki's eyes lit up. Instead of getting up to see Izayoi off, he muttered something to himself and then immediately went to the daimyo's residence to request an audience with the daimyo.

On that day, an order was issued from the Daimyo Prefecture, instructing nobles from various regions to form ninja and samurai teams to suppress bandits in the capital region.

The news quickly reached Konoha. Yan Shifan chuckled and looked at Sima Yi, saying, "It's begun. We'll be busy for a while. Would you be interested in visiting the capital, Lord Sima?"

Sima Yi put down the scroll and said with a smile, "The Eastern Tower has been planning this for a long time. Let the Eastern Tower handle domestic affairs. I wish you a resounding victory."

Yan Shifan has embezzled a lot of money from Zhishui and has been keeping many ninjas outside. Although Sima Yi has awakened the Kaleidoscope, why should he put himself in danger?

"Hehe, then I'll take Sima Gong's auspicious words as a sign."

The enhanced Sima Yi not only awakened the Kaleidoscope, but his body also became much younger, and his overall energy and spirit were even better than Yan Shifan's, which truly made Yan Shifan envious.

He must take the initiative to solve some problems, otherwise, if Zhishui listens to the instigation of that treacherous minister Sima Yi and summons another strategist next year, that would be terrible.

Yan Shifan, accompanied by his guards, immediately left Konoha and headed for Kyoto.

When Shisui learned of this news, he was stunned. He immediately slammed his hand on the table and glared angrily at Kyohei in front of him.

"How could you let the teacher leave Konoha? Why didn't you stop him?"

this.

Kyohei looked troubled. No one had told him that the Third Elder couldn't leave Konoha. Yan Shifan held a very important position in the entire Uchiha clan. If he wanted to leave Konoha, how could Kyohei stop him?

"Alright, if the teacher wants to leave, you can't stop her. I lost my temper."

Shisui realized what was happening, sighed, and sat down again.

Sima Yi certainly knew about Yan Shifan's departure, but the two of them always liked to keep it from him and act first and report later, which he was already used to.

"Send two more teams. It's a bit dangerous outside now, so make sure to protect the teacher."

Shisui gave the order, and Kyohei responded and left immediately. Shisui had lost the will to stay in the Hokage Building and took advantage of Suzaku's absence to return directly to his clan's territory.

He quickly learned the whole story from Sima Yi. With mixed feelings, Zhi Shui could only sigh, "Teacher, why bother coming here?"

Several days later, as a heavy snow covered Konoha, Konoha finally entered the new year, but the entire Konoha leadership felt no joy at the arrival of the new year.

"What does the Daimyo mean by this? Must things be so drastic?"

"Unable to send funds due to banditry? What a joke! Are the Daimyo's guardian ninjas just sitting around doing nothing? This is utterly absurd!"

The atmosphere in the Hokage's office was somewhat oppressive. Although the Daimyo's funding was decreasing, it was still available. However, this time, the funding for Konoha in the 52nd year was postponed due to the difficulty in quelling banditry and the dangers of the journey.

"The Daimyo is no longer suitable for the current ninja world. Such a person will only hinder the development of Konoha. In my opinion, only by controlling the Daimyo and taking control of the Land of Fire can Konoha be restored to its former glory."

A cold voice rang out, and the murmurs of the crowd abruptly ceased.

Although they were dissatisfied with the daimyo, directly controlling the daimyo was somewhat rebellious. However, after seeing the identity of the person who spoke, everyone remained silent.

This person is none other than Danzo!

Shisui was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected Danzo's opinion to suit his taste so well. Unfortunately, the timing wasn't right, and he couldn't do it. He could only frown and retort, "The Daimyo is the ruler of the Land of Fire. As Danzo's advisor, please refrain from saying anything that is detrimental to unity."

Danzo was taken aback, feeling that Shisui's rebuke was somewhat strange.

However, he didn't think much of it. Seeing that Shisui rejected his suggestion, he thought to himself, "Just another Hiruzen."

"Hmph, you foolish brat!"

Having said that, Danzo turned and left.

Seeing this, everyone looked troubled. In fact, if the daimyo didn't give them money, it wouldn't be impossible for them to change their daimyo.

Only Suzaku Nara, who knew the reason, remained calm. The ninjas and bandits he sent out robbed many nobles. Konoha was not short of money, but rather lacked a means of generating a continuous income.

"Send someone to Kyoto to find out what happened. As for this year's budget for each department, don't worry, there's still a lot of the embezzled funds left, enough for Konoha's expenses this year."

Call ~

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and praised the Hokage for his wisdom.

After everyone left, Nara Suzaku asked, "Hokage-sama, the Daimyo has ordered all the nobles to send men to help. Although we have already dispatched reinforcements, with the strength of those nobles, plus the Daimyo's guards, can our people hold out?"

"Don't worry, the reinforcements are very strong. Unless thousands of ninja soldiers surround us, there won't be any problems."

Suzaku Nara immediately thought of the missing Izayoi and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Furthermore, does Senior Suzaku really think the noble families of each realm will obediently help the daimyo?"

Previously, when they were harassed by mountain bandits, they had asked the magistrate for help several times, but the magistrate didn't even glance at them. Now that they are in trouble, he asks them to send people to help. Does he really think they are loyal and filial sons?

"Even if it's not their true intention, it is still the daimyo's order. They will probably only delay for a while and dare not disobey."

"They acted simply because they had no reason. What if I gave them a reason?"

"What the Hokage means is..."

Ten days later, a luxurious four-horse carriage came from the south, leaving a deep and long rut, and entered the chaotic capital region.

In an ordinary village outside the capital, Yan Shifan alighted from his carriage and casually untied the brocade robe draped over his body.

"Third Elder!"

Izayoi stepped forward. Although he possessed the Mangekyou Sharingan and held a high position in the clan, second only to Shisui, at that time, excluding the two elders, any Uchiha would have to remain humble in their presence.

Without them, there would be no Uchiha clan as we know it today.

"Hmm, have any reinforcements arrived from the various routes?"

The journey of more than ten days had left Yan Shifan looking somewhat tired, but he didn't care and immediately got off the bus to talk about business.

"The Hokage has sent word that the ninjas who were previously lurking in various regions have begun to exert their power, and nobles in various places have successively declined the daimyo's offer due to the serious banditry in their areas."

"Haha, good, it's good that there are no problems with the Hokage. Be prepared to take action at any time in the next few days. Whether it's the Fire Temple or foreign ninjas, deal with them all if they dare to step into this place."

Given Izayoi's strength, she would never reveal her Uchiha identity unless she was surrounded and annihilated by a large army.

"yes!"

As the sixteenth night approached to prepare, Yan Shifan looked at the light snow outside the manor and said with a smile, "A timely snow promises a bumper harvest!"

The village was filled with joy and vitality, while Daming Prefecture, twenty miles away, was incredibly oppressive.

The minor nobleman, pushed forward by Matsuno Yoshiyuki, knelt on the steps below, his head pounding the ground, and trembling as he explained to the daimyo opposite him.

If the person in the audience were Matsuno Yoshiyuki, the daimyo wouldn't have done anything to him out of consideration for the Matsuno family's influence. However, since this was just an unlucky fellow, the daimyo didn't need to hold back.

At his command, more than ten warriors entered the hall, dragged the man out, and executed him amidst his shouts.

"Damn Uchiha, damned scum!"

Inside the mansion, Matsuno Yoshiyuki, upon learning the outcome, lowered his voice and cursed angrily. Although it was all the Uchiha's fault, he could not mention the Uchiha, much less seek revenge against Izayoi.

If he can't win, dying would be pointless. The Daimyo isn't ready to break ties with Konoha yet, so he certainly won't sever ties with Konoha for his sake.

Even if they win, it will be even more painful. With the strength of the Uchiha clan, the entire Matsuno family will live in fear for the next few decades.

"Forget it, I'd better not get involved in this matter. I'll stay in the manor; those bandits can't do anything to me there."

Yoshiyuki Matsuno sighed and lay down in the arms of the maid beside him.

"Keep the music playing, keep dancing!"

However, just three days later, while Matsuno Yoshiyuki was indulging in his pleasures, a secret report from his subordinate startled him so much that he jumped three feet off the ground.

"Damn it, someone dares to overstep my bounds and act on their own!"

Matsuno Yoshiyuki's hands trembled. One of his minor nobles had actually bypassed him and suggested to the daimyo that he take money to commission a mission in Konoha!

The daimyo was not angry and promoted the minor nobleman, then sent him to Konoha for negotiations. However, it is said that he was killed by bandits as soon as he left Kyoto.

"Someone is trying to harm me!"

Upon hearing this, Yoshiyuki Matsuno turned green and broke out in a cold sweat.

Although he didn't personally come forward with the previous method, the daimyo must have known it was his idea. This time, his men have once again stepped on the daimyo's tiger's whiskers. No matter how great the influence, it can't withstand such attrition!

Matsuno Yoshiyuki immediately summoned his advisors to seek a brilliant plan and informed the daimyo.

The daimyo immediately dispatched a large army to escort the letter to the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth, intending to entrust the mission to them. How could a dignified daimyo be threatened by Konoha?

Especially now that the entire capital believes Konoha is behind this, the daimyo is naturally unwilling to compromise.

However, after the bandits' origins were confirmed, the radical guardian ninjas who had been clamoring to eliminate the Hokage became much quieter.

However, the daimyo did not have a moment's peace. Soon, news came that the people they had sent abroad had died at the hands of wandering ninjas before even leaving the country.

The message was delivered by the Konoha border garrison.

bang~

"This is outrageous!"

The daimyo was furious. Although he had always wanted to control Konoha, this was the first time he had faced Konoha's methods so directly, and he was at a loss for what to do.

"My lord, the entire capital is now under lockdown. Your decrees must pass through Konoha before you can leave. In my opinion, the only option now is to compromise."

"Hehehe~ You came to see me just to say this?"

The daimyo covered half his face with a fan, and his strange smile reached everyone's ears.

The person in the audience was just a minor nobleman, but he claimed he could solve his predicament, which is why he was brought here.

In retrospect, he was just a fool who had been bought off by Konoha.

compromise?

Doesn't he know how?

But if he compromises today, Konoha will use the same method to force him to increase funding next time. He used the same method to test the Third Hokage's bottom line little by little, which is how he gradually infiltrated Konoha and reduced funding.

How can we ask him to compromise now?

"My lord, the reason why the capital is in such a crisis today is because the power of the nobles is too weak. If they had the strength to contend with Konoha, Konoha would not dare to be so presumptuous."

"The strength to contend with Konoha?"

The daimyo's eyes lit up. If the nobles were strong enough, he could completely balance the left and right and command all sides. How could he give Konoha a chance to take advantage of him?

"In your opinion?"

"We can have the nobles in various regions secretly train ninjas! As for Konoha, they just want money. We can find an excuse to make up for the expenses, and I don't think they'll push their luck. We just need to wait three to five years until the nobles in various regions have trained enough ninjas, and then the Daimyo can take action against Konoha. How could they possibly resist?"

Daming narrowed his eyes. It wasn't that he lacked the ability to deal with these bandits; the key was that he couldn't find anyone to lead his troops. If the army were to gather together, it would be too much of a commotion, and if they were to disperse, it would be seen as sending them to their deaths. That's why he was at a loss.

"Hehehe, great idea, let's do it!"

"Your name is wise!"