Naruto: I'm really not an evil scientist!

If both sides can continue to work together and negotiate actively, a marriage is not entirely out of the question.

However, Minato Namikaze put forward a condition: the daimyo of the Land of Fire and the daimyo of the Land of Wind must both be present to oversee the situation.

Having both daimyo intervene simultaneously doesn't seem impossible, since Konoha hasn't actually invested much in this matter.

Hiruko also attended the final signing ceremony.

After a series of arduous negotiations, both sides finally reached a consensus on their respective interests.

Granny Chiyo slowly stood up, looking at Temari with loving eyes, then gently took her hand and walked towards the direction where Hiruko was.

The little girl Temari was still full of resentment, baring her teeth at Hiruko and looking very angry.

Grandma Chiyo gently advised, "Alright, Temari, stop being so temperamental. He'll be your husband from now on, so don't do anything to make things difficult for your father and the Fourth Hokage."

Upon hearing this, the little girl's head drooped immediately, and her previous tense demeanor vanished without a trace.

Just then, Hiruko suddenly spoke up, asking with a puzzled look, "Am I going to marry Temari-san?"

The three-generation old man and Granny Chiyo responded matter-of-factly, "Yes, what's the problem?"

"Isn't the princess of Sunagakure and you, the great scientist of the ninja world, a match made in heaven?"

Hiruko's eyes widened, her face full of confusion: "Weren't you and the Third Hokage supposed to be engaged in marriage?"

Upon hearing this, the three generations of old men and Chiyo-baba immediately looked embarrassed, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

Hiruko didn't consider himself to be without any moral bottom line, but he never expected that the Third Generation and Granny Chiyo would be so absurd.

Now, if someone were to dump a three-year-old girl on him as his wife, they'd probably be kicked out on the spot if this happened on the original Earth.

Even in this ninja world, this practice is truly bizarre.

However, for ninjas, the interests of the village and their clan are paramount.

With no objections from either side's top brass, Chiyo and Minato Namikaze have signed a contract.

The process was indeed somewhat rushed, but with the war situation gradually easing, a marriage alliance is now inevitable.

Hiruko did indeed have a fondness for Temari, but he liked her as an adult, not the three-year-old girl she was now.

He wondered to himself, what could this little girl possibly do?

Keeping a three-year-old girl around is a waste of food; it's better to let her go back and spend more time with her family, and then go and marry her when she grows up.

So Hiruko simply handed the little girl over to Granny Chiyo, telling her to take her back and bring her back when she grew up.

Although the contract has been signed, it is foreseeable that how much effort the Sand Ninja will put into the cooperation will depend entirely on how much assistance Konoha will provide.

In the ninja worldview, this is absolutely a matter of course.

If you ask someone to do something, you should at least pay them.

The daimyo (feudal lords) would not starve their soldiers, so this was not a problem in itself.

The problem is that if you give them too little, they'll slack off; after all, you get what you pay for.

If they give too much, even Konoha itself can't handle it.

Ultimately, it all comes down to money.

However, Hiruko is not short of money now, because the salt business has been established and Hiruko's modern products have begun to be distributed throughout the ninja world.

Even if Konoha's cash flow is interrupted now, it can definitely survive on those commercial developments alone.

However, if another Sand Village were to join the fray, they might not be able to withstand it, since there are simply too many Sand Village ninjas, and the consumption of resources would be enormous.

Their lack of resources makes them vulnerable to an endless cycle of fighting, becoming poorer and poorer, and fighting even more.

The Land of Fire is extremely wealthy.

To say that all the important figures in the Land of Fire are useless is not entirely true.

The first decision-making error can be attributed to either blindly following opinions or being misled by false parameters without verifying the facts, demonstrating a lack of business acumen.

It would be unacceptable to make a similar mistake a second time.

At least in the liquor industry, the division of power among various parties is relatively clear.

Although this group is somewhat incompetent now, we can't easily turn against them. Let's wait until Hiruko's strength can intimidate the entire ninja world before making a move.

Hiruko is currently focusing on expanding his factory, for example, producing items that were very popular in his previous life.

Snacks like Coca-Cola, potato chips, canned fruit, and canned beef.

He even wanted to get involved in businesses like gambling.

However, I won't have the opportunity to expand my capital in the short term; war is coming soon.

Everything is proceeding smoothly.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." A gentle voice suddenly sounded behind Hiruko.

Hiruko turned around and saw Minato Namikaze landing not far from him.

"You're right on time, not long after," Hiruko replied with a smile.

"Jiraiya-sensei told me a while ago that Hiruko-senpai wanted to learn sealing techniques from me."

I was on a mission at the time, so I had to be delayed.

"If it's just sealing techniques, I believe Orochimaru-senpai can teach me. You're learning from me to systematically learn sealing techniques, right?" Minato Namikaze said gently.

"Yes."

While Orochimaru's side can provide some instruction in sealing techniques, currently only the Third Hokage, the Fourth Hokage, and Kushina are in the village who can systematically teach Hiruko sealing techniques.

"Kushina doesn't object to me teaching Hiruko-senpai the sealing techniques of the Uzumaki clan, but some secret sealing techniques require a special physique of the Uzumaki clan to use."

Besides, she's pregnant now and doesn't have time to come and teach you, so I'm the only one who can do it.

It has to be said that Minato Namikaze truly respected Hiruko, even though he is now the Hokage.

"No problem, thank you!"

"Sealing techniques are a rather complex system, and it takes a certain amount of time to fully master them."

Do you have time now, senior Hiruko?

I heard that your research department has been short-staffed.

"Of course I have time."

Hiruko nodded. He had already sent out his clones to handle other matters today, while he himself had come specifically to study.

"Alright, I'll test your sealing technique skills now." Minato Namikaze swiftly took out a stack of papers; both of them were people who valued time.

As one of the best of the new generation, Minato Namikaze has always had a heavy workload, and now, as Hokage, his responsibilities are even greater.

Moreover, Kushina is currently pregnant, and he needs to spend time with her.

Hiruko also understood that Minato Namikaze couldn't keep coming to teach him forever.

So in this short month.

(Brothers, tomorrow's chapter will be released at midnight tonight. Please read it tomorrow! The author wants to reach the top three literary categories. If successful, I'll release ten chapters on the first day of sales!!! I'm begging you all!!!)