Pain: I Know, On the Way

Temari was not happy.

Because she felt like she was going to be green again and again - and the reason I say again and again is because Minatsuki-san and Nono-san had already done that.

But Minatsuki-san's cooking was delicious.

Nono-san was gentle, and when she hugged her, it felt like being hugged by her mother.

Temari's mother, the madam of the Mizukage before her, had died after giving birth to Gaara. As the years passed, Temari's impression of her mother faded, only the gentle eyes and gentle touch were deeply etched into her soul, a treasure for her entire life.

Pakura had told her that the presence of these two was affecting her position, and that one bad move could even cause a rift between the amicable Suna and Konoha.

But Temari didn't want to fight with them... just as they didn't want to fight with her.

But now... again and again and again!

Wu wu, you scumbag, a playboy, a bastard who runs away as soon as he flirts with you, and doesn't even dare to go on a serious date!

Temari kept cursing her nominal husband with the phrases she learned from Pakura.

Because of her age, Temari wasn't very clear on what the so-called husband and wife were supposed to do. But that didn't stop her from experiencing the indignation and uneasiness of having something that originally belonged only to her taken away from her by someone else ...

So Temari wailed and ran to the Five Kage building to find Pakura.

Temari knew that it was time for Pakura to go to work, and she was definitely here.

And Pakura was indeed there.

There were just too many things that happened between the five powers this while, and even if we don't talk about the faraway ones, there were countless things to be dealt with just for the Imperial Trial Combination that was still being held at Konoha's doorstep.

To this day, the imperial trial has long ceased to be a simple competition, but a super event close to the Olympic Games, involving politics and economy.

The audience is just watching a lively event is just, only the top management who is really involved in it knows, how many rotten things are hidden behind that ... Pakura simmered white hairs have come out.

But she can not escape these are.

Because Suna can also profit from it.

"Wah... Pakura-neesama..."

Temari jumped up and wrapped her arms around Pakura's slim, strong waist, then skillfully buried her head in her arms.

At this moment, Pakura was walking towards the conference room with a few people, and now that she was hugged by the little princess like that, she had to stop.

"What's the matter, Temari-chan? Are you being bullied by Haku again?"

The ethical and moral relations of the Godaime Hokage's family were nothing short of a mystery. The only thing that was certain was that Temari was definitely at the bottom of the family's food chain.

The little fool was simply too good to be fooled.

At this time, Pakura was walking towards the conference room with several people. Now that he was hugged by the little princess, he had to stop.

"Wu wu, it's not that idiot Haku..." the little guy flared his teeth and puckered his face into a pufferfish, "it's me getting green again and again and again!"

"Oh, that's right."

Pakura expressed emotional stability.

After all, that condition of her fiancé, if it wasn't for the fact that Chiyo-baasama had chosen Temari in the first place, the girl in the world was simply randomly chosen by him... Truly speaking, in fact, it was Temari who had picked up the big bargain.

A certain limitless Hokage is notorious for valuing the contract, if the hand bow lady is an adult girl, then the two must respect each other like a guest, in favor of the two age gap is too big....

No matter what, you can't let a Hokage hold back fifteen years, right?

There was never such a reasoning.

That's why the Yondaime Kazekage clearly knew about someone's harem behavior, but also did not listen to it.

As a man and also a Kage, the Yondaime Kazekage understood Makoto's state. As long as he didn't stray from the edge with Temari, the Kazekage as an old father-in-law was completely indifferent.

But adults can understand, these words can not be said to the little hand bow...

In desperation, Pakura can only temporarily hand things over to the deputy, and himself first accompany the little hand bow out to play for a while.

In Konoha, little Temari made many orphan friends. But at the end of the day, they were all people of Konoha.

Only Pakura's group of people were Little Hand Ju's true mother's family.

"Sorry, Sandaime-sama, please allow me to ..."

"Pakura-san, please do not be concerned, this is not a formal meeting."

Sandaime and Jiraiya smiled understandingly at Pakura, who gave another apology before taking her own little princess, who wouldn't stop wooing, with her.

She had to get milk tea for the little princess.

After seeing Pakura and Temari leave, Sandaime and Jiraiya looked at each other, collected their smiles, and slowly walked towards the conference hall.

"Not being able to touch for fifteen years is just a little too cruel for a man..."

"Who says it isn't? But Makoto this guy... even if the Yondaime Kazekage doesn't say anything, he should still restrain himself a bit."

"Perhaps... Makoto what he wants is not a woman, but someone who can understand him and is willing to embrace him..."

"If that's the case, then things have become even more troublesome."

The Godaime Hokage was a Heaven Sent Mighty Man-class figure even for Konoha. This guy was good at everything, but his concept of love was very different from others.

He only liked people who genuinely loved him and didn't care about the other person's origin or ability.

It would be fine if he was anything else, but he's Hokage...

The Sandaime Hokage and Jiraiya wanted to say something, but in the end, they couldn't say something harsh.

The two of them knew how much the Godaime had suffered as a child. Even though it wasn't easy for everyone in that era...

After sighing, the two of them walked into the meeting room.

This time, it was a small meeting with not a large number of participants. But each and every one of them, were the best in this world.

When the two entered, Makoto, who had transformed from Kakashi, was talking to a representative of the financial circle.

The ninja circle didn't have much to do with the financial circle to begin with, but the financial circle loved nothing more than friends with power and resources. After Makoto tossed around for a year, he had completely gained the friendship of the financial circle.

After the introduction of the three trampoline program, the financial circle and Konoha is as good as a mother's general - with the continuous production and development of the three trampoline, the traditional internal combustion locomotive industry, is considered to be completely abolished.

It sounds unbelievable, after all, it is an industry that has developed for many years, but it is so finished.

But this is the fact.

Nokia has been the dominant cell phone industry for fifteen years, however, after the smart phone came out, the first year its market share fell to 18%, to the second year, its market value has been reduced by 90%.

Money and technology, always so cruel. Those who can't keep up with the times are bound to be mercilessly abandoned by the times.

Even if you were the world's favorite before, the true pride of heaven.

And when Makoto proposed the currency tidal plan with a certain top big shot in the financial circle... What this group of guys in the financial circle hated the most was why they couldn't discover Makoto, a guy with a belly full of bad water, earlier, and dug him out of the ninja world and into the financial circle.

T/N: 'belly full of bad water', a metaphor for a immoral person

What kind of Hokage are you, the financial circle is your eternal home.

Hate to hate, the relationship between the two families has become closer because of this.

And today, the two sides met to discuss two things that are actually related.

"Hokage-sama, regarding what you said last time about bringing more small countries into the trade system centered around the Land of Fire, we think it's feasible. We have hot money running rampant in our country anyway, and it's not..."

"But the other thing, we think there are still some issues that are debatable."

"Namely, how to get those small countries, to fully join in our settlement system? Paper money is, after all, different from precious metals, and being a foreign country, they will always have their doubts. What happened in the Kusagakure can only be taken as an example... We believe that we should add a strong anchor for the Land of Fire's currency..."

... ...

"Is this the residence of the Lord of the Land? ...It's not as magnificent as expected."

In the evaluation room of the Land of Birds Imperial Hall, the great men were talking loudly about whether or not they should absorb stray ninja and add them to the Land of Birds' military system.

The few stray ninja sitting in the back on their knees were rambling, they weren't even listening to what those noble people were actually saying, instead they were slightly interested in the decorations in the evaluation room.

After all, ninjas had a low political status in the Naruto world, and as wandering ninjas, their status went without saying.

They had been mixing for so many years, but it was the first time they had come to where the nobles were.

Honestly... a little disappointed.

It was not much better than the mansions of those dignitaries in the Land of Fire.

Compared to the royal palaces of the daimyo, it was even worse.

Especially the king's palace of the daimyo of the Land of Fire.

Of course, the rouge ninja chiefs also understand in their hearts, even if theoretically the same as the head of the country, a small country is certainly no way to compare with the big country.

It's just about the same.

How rich could a small country be?

It's not like it's the Land of Grass or the Land of the Rice.

One of these two countries recognizes a thief as its father, and the other is as deep as the sea. But there is one thing, both are the same - after enduring Konoha's modernization, the affluence of these two small countries has stood at the forefront of small countries.

...Who let them neither worry about the market nor have to create force.

The conditions of the Land of Birds' were not as good as these two small countries, but these rouge ninjas of theirs had shallow roots, and they were relieved to have a country as a place to stay.

"You guys, cut the crap... everyone will be coworkers from now on, don't make everyone's faces look bad and come down!"

"Yes, big brother."

After muttering a few sentences to each other, the crowd also quieted down and waited for the decision of the nobles - on the surface, they argued fiercely, seemingly unable to reach a consensus, but this group of rouge ninjas actually knew very well that they would definitely agree.

In today's situation, small countries were devoid of human rights. Especially those small countries that didn't even have armed forces were persimmons to be rubbed at will.

But constructing one's own hidden village was no easy task.

To create a hidden village, even if the finances were generous, it would take quite a long time to accumulate, and it wasn't something that could just be built.

Kekkei genkai ninjas need to be pulled together, secret passages need to be collected or self-created... all sorts of things, a thousand and one things, to name a few.

Now that they had come over to rely on them and asked for a low price, they were not worried that the Land of Birds would not agree.

If the Land of Birds was a little more powerful, it would definitely be more inclined to spend a lot of money to construct its own hidden village.

A country with plenty of money always preferred something reliable.

If the Land of Birds was a bit weaker, naturally, they wouldn't have to worry about such things - as long as the proceeds from attacking me are less than your gas bill, then I'm invincible.

Choosing wandering ninjas like them who discounted themselves 50% was naturally the best choice for Land of Birds.

Admittedly, this was a very disadvantageous thing for the rouge ninjas.

No matter how cheap the ninja's lives were, they were not sold like this.

The reason why the brothers followed their big brother was naturally because they wanted to live a better life. But if big brother doesn't take the lives of his little brothers seriously at all, I'm afraid that he won't be able to convince the public.

But... they already have no choice.

The leader of the rouge ninjas was used to hanging out in the martial arts world. Although his own strength was not strong, only at the level of a Zetsu, he was still aware of the changes in the surrounding environment.

Now that the war had ended, and the five great hidden villages had constructed the Five Kage Summit. After the initial painful bonding period, everyone had begun to get used to its existence and relied on it for their own benefit.

-To put it more practically, the five ninja villages don't chop each other up, but try to solve problems with their mouths.

For the ninjas of the five great hidden villages, this is naturally a good thing, after all, no one wants to be cannon fodder.

And for rouge ninjas, this was utter doom.

Regardless of the size of the ninja, there was always a position. Although it is common for people to compete externally and internally, there are really no hidden villages that directly betray their own country - even their own country has been betrayed. What kind of sponsor would entrust the task to you?

As for the rouge ninja, there is no such concern.

They are real profiteers.

Because of the special circumstances of the chaotic world, the rouge ninjas had a hard time, but their income had been quite good - if they didn't have this income to support them, who would be willing to do the work of licking blood from the head of a sword.

But with the end of the chaotic world, their good days came to an end.

The tasks provided by the sponsors were becoming less and less frequent.

After all, there was no need to fight anymore.

Although they were able to sustain themselves for the time being, this group of rouge ninjas realized that they had to find themselves a nest.

Thus, the current situation.

It could simply be described as a classic case of running in both directions.

Land of Birds wanted a ninja army, but no money.

They wanted a nest to settle down in, not too concerned about income for the time being... Both sides got what they wanted, it was perfect.

Of course, this was only on the surface.

The leaders of the rouge ninja knew very well what kind of thing the nobles were.

The five great hidden villages had all had their livers raised by this group of guys, let alone this group of rouge ninjas of theirs.

After they completely join, all kinds of reproaches and bamboo bars will definitely come as promised... This has nothing to do with their ability, it is completely determined by the greedy to the extreme nature of the nobles, a special human species.

They will not give up on not blackmailing you just because you are strong.

Knocking bones and sucking marrow is always their nature.

The rouge ninjas had traveled around for many years, and had never seen any lousy people; they didn't think these guys from Land of Birds were all that special.

But... this is just temporary patience...

The Land of Birds wanted to let them be free fighters, and they also wanted to seize the supreme power of Land of Birds.

Ninjas ruling a country sounded a bit shocking, but it was indeed what they wanted to do next.

If it was put in the past, they definitely wouldn't dare to do it directly. But now...

The man named Pain was their greatest support.

Not long ago, the Akatsuki organization, led by Lord Pain, declared itself responsible for the death of Mizukage candidate Takagi. Kiri was furious, but there was nothing they could do.

What an overbearing attitude this was!

Since then, a message began to circulate everywhere among the grass - Lord Pain, it seems, intends to build a nation!

Lord Pain's strength, naturally, needless to say, is a true super kage level expert.

The power of the state is nothing to him. If he really...

The rouge ninjas realized that this could be their best chance to get rid of their dishonor and stand under the sun again.

There was naturally an element of gambling involved.

At the very least, the five great hidden villages would not let Pain go, especially Kiri, who had been severely humiliated.

However, since ancient times, gain and risk are related, the bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish.

In a world that is constantly moving forward, where it's death if you can't keep up, the rouge ninjas decided to pike.

In fact, things did go according to their plan.

After much bickering, it was clear that the bigwigs were inclined to accept their group of wandering ninjas.

Even the most die-hard supporter of this plan, roju, was accidentally caught by a big fish while fishing and ended up in the hospital. Even if Kirigakure seems to have sent an envoy to terminate this fusion... Kirigakure, you will never achieve your goal.

The Land of Water Daimyo is using almost a yang strategy, and anyone with a little bit of calculation can find it.

Kiri is strong, but it is caught in such a situation... You have the guts to do it.

Unless they dared to unveil their coffins against the Land of Water Daimyo - yet that was impossible.

Many things had already known the outcome before they had even begun.

The rouge ninja was confident in this.

The discussion among the great figures gradually subsided.

It was at this exact moment that the sound of reports from the attendants came from the Highness.

"The Kirigakure ninja has come to visit!"

... ...

"Woah... impossible... absolutely impossible... you are so young, how can you have such chess power..."

After spewing out a big mouthful of blood, this Minister of Finance who had come to block the way finally spat out blood from his mouth and fell headfirst to the ground.

He had been immersed in chess for decades, although with his status, his strength was definitely watered down. But no matter what, it wasn't so bad that he couldn't beat a beginner.

But my lord, times have changed.

This was the power of technology!

Back then, Makoto, with a similar AI, turned dozens of games in the neighborhood, defeating countless grandfathers, never losing before being hung up by his mother, and even earning a large amount of pocket money on his own.

Nowadays, many things have changed, many things have only been able to think about in the brain, but to give the guy in front of you a little bit of a small technical shock, or no problem.

Even Terumi Mei couldn't help but bring a little pity into her eyes as she looked at the blood spitting and collapsing in front of her.

This was already the second feudal lord to be taken out by Makoto in a short period of time.

He hadn't used any jutsu, yet he had caused both of them pain.

"Alright, it's almost time for us to pay a visit to the Lord of Land of Birds."

"...Hmm."

Terumi Mei was emotional, but she ultimately knew what the most important thing at the moment was.

A few people gathered their moods and headed towards the large rating room.

With the Minister of Finance pouncing on the street in front of them, the remaining retainers did not dare to stop them.

Very quickly, the three of them arrived in the evaluation room.

As soon as the three of them entered, dozens of gazes greeted them.

Among them, there were probing, questioning, and angry... only not much goodwill - there was no way, who let this time Kiri nominally came to be a sword for the Daimyo of Land of Water, it would be strange for them to have a good face.

There are quite a few noble things in the Land of Birds, but at the very least, at this time, their interests and the Land of Birds interests are completely aligned.

It was only when there was prestige first that there would be blessings.

Wanting to make them loosen their lips was by no means simple.

"Wait, you don't open your mouth first, I'll handle everything. If you open your mouth, it's considered a qualification."

"...I know."

Makoto and Terumi Mei both whispered a sentence, and then looked at the main seat together.

Unfortunately, the two saw nothing.

The obstructive bamboo curtain blocked the two's line of sight, making it impossible for the two to see what was behind them, and they could only roughly confirm that it was a man in court dress sitting there.

...Noble broken rules are just more.

The three people saluted towards the bamboo curtain as usual.

"The three guests have traveled a long way..."

The man in court dress said coldly, in the end, still made enough face.

"But what is the important matter?"

With the State Lord's words, everyone in the hall began to stir.

Waiting down was sure to be some hard work.

Kong Ming had to have a tongue-lashing even when he came.

T/N: Kong Ming, also known as Zhuge Liang, was Chinese statesman, strategist, and engineer who lived through the end of the Eastern Han dynasty (thanks wikipedia)

Those rouge ninjas were even subconsciously forming seals with their hands, ready to fight.

Luckily, a refined and easy-going person like Makoto had already thought of a way to convince them.

Ninjutsu, the briefcase no jutsu!

"Excuse me."

Makoto said so, took out a large number of documents that had been written long ago from the sealing scroll, and poured them out in front of the crowd.

"Actually, it's like this, when we were passing through Land of Birds before, we realized that Land of Birds has a lot of places where we can make money, so we are here to talk about cooperation with your country."

"...Oh?"

The country lord seemed to have come to be a bit interested.