XX-level Hokage

He understood deeply that the Cloud Village hadn't been completely destroyed entirely because of the person in front of him. Mashiro remained silent, accepting Ai's gratitude.

A moment later, he helped Ai up and said, "It was just a coincidence. There's no need to publicize it. As a member of Konoha, I don't want to interfere in the affairs of Kumogakure." Ai looked at Mashiro, shocked by her selflessness. If he had known Mashiro's deeds would be publicized, even if she wanted to become the next Raikage, she definitely wouldn't have...

Some people will object.

Selfless? If Shiro knew what the Raikage was thinking, he would definitely laugh silently. Some things are better left unsaid than announced. As long as the Raikage and some core ninjas of Kumogakure know, Shiro can do many things. As for when to let the rest of Kumogakure know, that requires a better opportunity.

"I wonder what the Raikage thinks about the Five Kage Summit?" Mashiro asked softly.

Ai paused for a moment, then said, "Once the Daimyo's aid arrives and the village begins reconstruction, I will immediately send someone to inform the other four Kage. After they learn of the tragedy in Kumogakure, I think they will definitely not refuse to help anymore."

"Regarding aid, Konoha will also provide some, not only material support, but also a Jonin skilled in woodworking. With him, I think Kumogakure..."

"The reconstruction speed will be greatly improved." Mashiro said softly, quite pleased with the Raikage's words.

"Thank you again!" Ai knelt down again.

"In my opinion, there are no fundamental conflicts between the various ninja villages, but now that someone is acting recklessly in order to unify the ninja world, we should unite against this common enemy," Mashiro said softly, then turned and left the Raikage's temporary office.

On the way back to the guesthouse, Mashiro passed by the ruins of Yukiori's house, where several people were searching the ground, hoping to find something that hadn't been damaged inside.

Upon seeing Mashiro, one person hurriedly bowed. "Lord Mashiro!"

Looking at him, Mashiro felt a sense of familiarity and said, "Are you one of Gato's men?"

"Yes, Lord Mashiro, my name is Isshin, and I am the branch president of the Chamber of Commerce in the Land of Lightning, responsible for managing all the Chamber's businesses within the Land of Lightning," Hashimoto Isshin said respectfully.

"What are you doing?" Mashiro asked, somewhat puzzled.

Upon hearing this, Hashimoto Isshin smiled bitterly and said, "My lord, you may not know this, but as a branch president of the Chamber of Commerce, we are required to report on our profits every six months. Originally, the profits of the Land of Lightning, which I was in charge of, were among the lowest of the branch presidents. Now, we have suffered another blow. All of our assets in the Cloud Village have been destroyed. I knew that in the vast Land of Lightning, the only places that could truly generate significant profits were the Royal City and the Cloud Village. Now, half of them are gone, not to mention that a large amount of inventory was also destroyed."

In this way, all the losses will fall on me.

There was no other way but to lead a few people to search through the ruins for anything intact, hoping to minimize the losses. "Hashimoto said these words partly to explain the situation to Mashiro, and partly to feign distress.

If he had known, half of the business would be destroyed. When Kado found out, he not only lost his position as the branch chairman, but also had to shoulder a huge debt. As for the reason, Kado didn't care what the reason was.

Hashimoto Isshin knew that Shinji was the one behind Kado, so he quickly told him with a smile, hoping that Shinji would take pity on him and spare him punishment. "Do you still have any funds on hand?" Mashiro suddenly asked.

Although he didn't know why Mashiro suddenly asked that question, Hashimoto Isshin hurriedly replied, "Yes, sir. Profits are reported to headquarters every six months, and income is transferred to headquarters annually. There are still three months until the income is transferred to headquarters, so all previous income is still in my hands."

"You want me to cancel your punishment?" Mashiro asked with a smile.

"I beg you, my lord!" Hashimoto Isshin hurriedly knelt on the ground, ignoring the pebbles, and kowtowed.

"Then let's use this money to help the villagers of Kumogakure," Mashiro said softly. Hashimoto Isshin looked up, somewhat confused by Mashiro's meaning.

"So that's why Gato is the guild master. I'll talk to Gato and have him keep his position as branch master. He won't take back his income from the Land of Lightning this year either. But there's a condition: next year, you must surpass the Konoha branch and become the branch with the highest income. If you can't do that, then commit seppuku." Mashiro said slowly.

Hashimoto Isshin hesitated, torn between living with debt and risking everything to get a job. "I'll give you five seconds to think it over," Mashiro said softly.

Just then, Hashimoto Isshin suddenly had a flash of inspiration and understood Mashiro's meaning.

"I agree, sir," Hashimoto said hastily. He had originally wanted to think about it for a moment, but Mashiro didn't give him any chance. After "five," it went straight to "—".

"I understand now. I'll personally review the accounts next year. If you can't win, I'll personally watch you commit seppuku." With that, Mashiro turned and left. After Mashiro left, the vice-president behind Hashimoto Isshin hesitated and said, "President, can we really do it? Surpass the Konoha branch next year and become..."

It ranks first among the branches.

It's worth noting that among all the branches, the Konoha branch's income stands out, exceeding that of all other branches combined.

Hashimoto Isshin got up from the ground, his knees soaked in blood, and said, "This lord would never ask us to do the impossible. Since he has allowed us to try investing the entire year's income of the Land of Lightning, it means that the income of the Land of Lightning next year will definitely be twice that of this year. The Chamber of Commerce would never do a losing business."

"Think about it, what if we took out this year's profits and used them to help the villagers of Kumogakure?" The vice-president's eyes lit up at this, and he said, "A good impression."

"That's right, a good impression. The biggest obstacle to our expansion in Yunren Village is the suppression of local industries and the indifference of the higher-ups. Now, we are selflessly helping the villagers of Yunren Village, providing them with the necessities of food, clothing, and shelter. This not only reduces the pressure on the higher-ups of Yunren Village, but also leaves a good impression on the villagers."

You should know that the aid from the daimyo takes a long time to go through the process, but we don't need to. We can just transport it from other industries in the Land of Lightning or buy it directly from other places.

"In this way, once the Cloud Village is rebuilt, our expansion will be driven by popular demand, and our revenue next year will definitely increase significantly. As for whether we can become the number one branch, that will depend on our own operations," Hashimoto Isshin said, as many marketing strategies were already forming in his mind.

Chapter 142: Shall we give it a try?

When Mashiro returned to the guesthouse, only Sakura was inside. Upon seeing Mashiro, Sakura immediately rushed towards him.

Holding Sakura in her arms, Mashiro said softly, "I'm sorry to have dragged you into this, suddenly encountering such a thing."

Sakura shook her head and smiled, "No, I came of my own volition. After all, nothing bad happened to me, right? And because of your Human Jutsu, my chakra increased a bit, and my relationship with you improved. It was very rewarding."

It's likely that some of the Two-Tails' chakra remained in Sakura's body. Because of the divine intervention, the Two-Tails' chakra became pure chakra, so even if some remained in Sakura's body, it wouldn't have any impact. It's just a pity that some of the remaining chakra was one-time use; otherwise, Mashiro could have used the Tailed Beast's chakra to mass-produce ninjas.

"We should be able to return to Konoha tomorrow." Mashiro said softly, carrying Sakura to the sofa.

Sakura nodded gently. She actually quite enjoyed her time in Kumogakure with Mashiro; it was a rare opportunity for just the two of them to be alone. Just as Sakura was about to say something, Mashiro, who was holding her, suddenly shrank, turning into the eleven or twelve-year-old Mashiro he was looking like.

"This feels more comfortable," Mashiro said softly. After all, this is her true form right now.

"Mashiro, what's wrong with you?" Sakura looked at Mashiro beside her, somewhat at a loss, as Mashiro was still sitting on Mashiro's lap.

"It's nothing, just a side effect of saving the Cloud Ninja," Mashiro said calmly. Hearing this, Sakura relaxed and looked at Mashiro curiously.

He would touch Zhenbai's arm one moment and pinch Zhenbai's face the next, having a great time.

"It's somewhat similar to Lady Tsunade's Yin Seal Technique, but there are also some differences." Sakura exclaimed in surprise, sensing Mashiro's current state. Yin Seal Technique? It is indeed somewhat similar, but Tsunade's was active, while mine was passive. Mashiro pondered for a moment before speaking.

The Yin Sealing Technique achieves the effect of preserving youth and improving bodily functions by using low output and micro-adjustment of chakra within the Hundred Healings Seal. In other words, it artificially manipulates bodily functions, allowing the body to be transformed into the state of various age groups.

"Speaking of which, I've never seen Tsunade in her loli form yet. I might try it sometime." Mashiro muttered to herself, thinking of the Yin Seal.

"What are you talking about?" Xiaolou asked softly. For some reason, she felt that Zhenbai had been thinking about something strange. "Nothing, just thinking about the principle behind how I became like this," Zhenbai said softly, shaking her head as she came back to her senses.

Mashiro's situation was quite different. She should have aged due to overdrawing her Yang attribute chakra, but because of the domineering nature of the Otsutsuki bloodline, her Yin attribute chakra was suppressed, resulting in a more domineering pseudo-Yin seal state. Unfortunately, due to insufficient chakra in her body, she was unable to regulate it on her own.

“You look like this reminds me of when we were little, but I feel like you look even better now than I remember you as a child,” Sakura said, snuggling against Mashiro.

It was probably because of her Otsutsuki bloodline that she felt she was a bit paler than before.

"Speaking of the past, Sakura, do you remember the games we used to play when we were little?" Mashiro said with a light laugh. With that prompting, many strange memories flooded Sakura's mind again.

"Mashiro, why haven't you bullied me since I graduated? We haven't even seen each other for a long time." Sakura asked Mashiro with a hint of sadness.

The emotions associated with a person's memories can change; for example, the sorrows of one's youth may be seen as beautiful memories in middle age.

After Sakura fell in love with Mashiro, many things that were once considered shameful and sad now seemed almost romantic. Mashiro didn't answer this; she couldn't very well say it was because she had found someone else.

Mashiro never liked seeing the people around her sad, which meant that in her past life, she had broken everyone's hearts. Gently taking off her shoes, Mashiro said softly, "Want to reminisce about the past? It's rare to see me like this now." Then Mashiro wiggled her small feet.

Upon hearing this, Sakura blushed inexplicably and then knelt down on the ground.

Looking at the pair of delicate, white feet before him, he used his teeth to bite off the socks; their skin was as white and tender as jade, perfectly natural. "Lick."

Mashiro put her foot on Sakura's face.

Sakura tossed her hair, grasped Shiro's jade-like foot, and stuck out her tongue.

Sakura went outside to treat the wounded; as a medical ninja, it was her responsibility.

Only Mashiro remained, lying on the sofa, activating her Byakugan, peering through the ceiling light at Kankuro.

She had once again used ninjutsu to transform into her adult form. Because there was no color, the sky appeared exceptionally vast.

"Shouldn't you be assisting the village with peacekeeping operations right now? How did you suddenly end up here, Samui?" Mashiro suddenly said.

Samui remained silent, then sat down next to Mashiro. After a moment, she said, "I came to thank you. Thank you for saving me; I thought I was going to die."

Mashiro got up, sat back a little, and then lay down again, resting her head on Samui's legs, which were soft and bouncy, more comfortable than Sakura's.

"What's going on?" Although he felt a little strange, Samui remained calm and asked softly.

"Because you're so beautiful, I saved you on a whim, so you should thank yourself." Mashiro looked up, realized she couldn't see anything, closed her eyes, and said.

Hearing Mashiro's words, Samui felt even more confused. She didn't know what to say, and could only finally say, "Thank you for the compliment."

"Interested in coming to Konoha?" Mashiro suddenly asked. "?" Samui was a little confused.

"If nothing unexpected happens, I will become Hokage soon after I return. I would like you to be my assistant. Although I could directly tell the Raikage to assign you to me, I would still like to hear your opinion," Mashiro said softly.

Samui fell silent. Logically, she should have refused outright, but as Mashiro said, Mashiro could have simply asked the Raikage to send her over.

Furthermore, Samui herself didn't resist Mashiro's request; the thought of that pale blue light made her soul tremble. [Samui's Affection +10]

Mashiro was not surprised by Samui's reaction. Samui was saved by Mashiro using Ranya Tenchen to reverse the ending, and her soul would inevitably feel close to Mashiro, just like an alternative blood relationship on a spiritual level.

"I need to think about it." After a moment's hesitation, Samui said.

“Okay, I should be going back tomorrow. You can give me an answer before I get back,” Mashiro said softly. Then she stood up, allowing Samui to leave.

"Then I'll head back now." Samui looked at Mashiro and said softly.

Mashiro nodded, and Samui turned and left. A little while later, Yugito came in.

Seeing Mashiro sitting on the sofa, Yugito sat down next to her, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Is there something you need from Samui?"

When she came to find Mashiro, she saw Samui enter Mashiro's room. "It's nothing, I just came to express my gratitude," Mashiro said softly.

"I see. Actually, I've come to express my gratitude to you. If it weren't for you, the Cloud Village would have been wiped out. Thank you so much," Yugito said earnestly, looking at Mashiro.

"Thank you for accepting it, but would you like to give it a try?" Mashiro said with a light laugh.

"What?" Yugito asked, somewhat puzzled.

Mashiro began to shrink, instantly becoming a mini-Mashiro.

Before Yugito could even react in shock or ask a question, Mashiro reached out and touched Yugito's face. A wave of emotion washed over the room.

Chapter 143: Building Momentum

In the second stage, Mashiro takes Sakura to say goodbye to Ai.

A didn't try to persuade him to stay; he was too busy, even his time to meet with Mashiro was something he had to squeeze out. "Kumonogami will always welcome you," A said sincerely to Mashiro.

Mashiro nodded slightly, then looked around and saw Samui's figure not far away, looking at them.

Mashiro gently beckoned, and Samui hesitated for a moment before finally walking towards Mashiro. "Raikage-sama, Mashiro-sama."

Upon approaching, Samui bowed respectfully.

"Is there something you need, Samui?" Ai asked.

“I feel a connection with her and want to bring her back to Konoha to be my assistant, so I had her come along to ask for your opinion,” Mashiro said with a light laugh. Ai glanced at Samui, then at Mashiro, nodded, and said, “Of course I agree. Being able to stay by your side would be a great thing for her too.”

That's a good thing.

"That's settled then. Let Samui help out in Kumogakure for the next few days and make some preparations. I'll send someone to deliver Konoha's aid to Kumogakure in a few days, and she can go to Konoha with them then," Mashiro said softly.

Ai nodded, agreeing with Mashiro's idea.

After saying that, Mashiro turned and left with Sakura. Samui bowed slightly to Ai and followed.