Naruto: The Hidden Protector

Chapter 28

"Hmm, according to the contract, it is stated that this debt will be paid by the two founding clans of Konoha, the Senju and the Uchiha. Is that correct?" Hiruzen inquired, resting his chin in his hands.

Izanami nodded in acknowledgment and replied, "Yes, at that time, those two clans under the name of Konoha borrowed that sum of money. Initially, they diligently paid their debts for a few years before it abruptly ceased. We patiently waited for your economy to stabilize, given Konoha's esteemed reputation among hidden villages, fully expecting the debts to be honored. However, it seems we were mistaken," she finished, her tone dripping with disdain.

Hiruzen, for his part, didn't even twitch upon hearing those words. As someone who had been Hokage for more than 15 years, he could be as shameless as Danzo when it mattered. He completely ignored Izanami's words and stated, "Since this agreement was made by the two clans, it has nothing to do with the village. You can go to the Uchiha compound to ask for the debt, since the Senju only has one member."

Izanami didn't act surprised hearing those words. She simply asked, "So you are saying this debt will be paid by the Uchiha and Senju only, and the village refuses to meddle with this matter?"

Hiruzen nodded as he continued, "Yes, since the agreement was made this way, I fail to see any reason for Konoha to meddle in the matters of these two clans."

"Very well, then this young miss will go visit the Uchiha clan to settle the debt, but I warn you now, don't meddle with this after saying those words," Izanami threatened.

"Worry not, the village will not meddle with clan matters unless it concerns the village as a whole," Hiruzen said flatly.

One might ask how he said those words in front of his student Tsunade Senju. Well, the answer is quite simple. A simple genjutsu made everyone forget about the presence of Tsunade and Shizune. If not for this Hiruzen wouldn't dare say these things out loud. After all, he still fears Tsunade's retaliation. Who knows what she will do if she gets mad.

"Well, that's good to know," Hiruzen replied, feeling a secret sigh of relief escape him. However, the next words from Izanami almost made him have a heart attack. "Well, with that, over half of what I wanted to discuss is over," she said with a smile.

"Oh, um, what else do you want to discuss with us?" Hiruzen said, internally freaking out. All his instincts as a great warrior and politician were screaming at him to run because what was coming next wasn't something he would like very much.

Izanami said nothing as she took the last remaining scroll and placed it on the table. Upon closer inspection, it was a sealing scroll. With a bang, five mountains of piled-up documents came into view.

"These here are the details of the dead ninjas and civilians who all have debts to the World Bank. Usually, when someone who took a loan dies, we take all of their money in their bank account to cut off their debts. In case there is someone who inherited his wealth, we will leave 50% to the inheritor and give him more time to grow up to be an adult and pay up the rest of the debts. Of course, if the inheritor has no money, we will offer jobs that they will have to work until the debts are paid.

"But you see, the thing here is, in ninja villages, there is a rule that says all of the possessions of the deceased will be taken by the village unless there is someone to inherit the wealth. So, do you get what I'm getting at?" Izanami said with an evil smirk.

Although the elders and Hokage knew what she was talking about, their minds refused to believe it. If such a thing were true, then the village would crumble under debts. So, they desperately hoped for this to be just a bad dream. But unfortunately, reality is often cruel.

"Since the village claims all the possessions of every deceased ninja, they also claim the debt owed by that ninja," Izanami said, fully revealing her evil smile. Oh, how much she enjoyed this feeling—the look of utter despair on the faces of those who thought themselves important.

"So, how will Konoha pay off this debt?" Izanami said, delivering the finishing blow.

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"Hah, that's exactly what I needed," Izanami remarked, taking a satisfying sip from her cup of sake.

"I can't believe you were able to do that," Tsunade said absentmindedly. She couldn't fathom how the earlier incident happened. She witnessed the scene of the higher-ups, who were always so arrogant, bow down under Izanami's every instruction. Even Danzo said nothing.

"Heh, if you think that's impressive, then you surely haven't seen the world yet," Izanami said with a chuckle. Truthfully speaking, the World Bank didn't care about the money they lent to Konoha. As the only bank in the shinobi world, there was no way they would have a loss if they played their cards right. And the money the bank lent to the daimyo was way more than the money they had lent to Konoha. Izanami only did it to achieve one of her goals. And that was to take custody of one little boy.

"Izanami-sama, we have arrived at our destination," the voice of the carriage driver rang out as he stopped the carriage at a luxurious villa.

Tengen opened the door for Izanami and the rest to disembark. If someone didn't know any better, they would think that he is a butler. Well, that couldn't be further from the truth. The truth is, the only reason Tengen is here is to indicate that the Land of Iron is on Izanami's side. Well, that is the official reason anyway. The true reason he is here is that he wants to have a vacation and travel around the world. As a teenager, it's in his blood to explore the unknown.

Luna, knowing this, allowed him to accompany Izanami. He was told to guard her for three months and come back to do his duties.

When Izanami saw the place they were living in, a nostalgic look appeared in her eyes. Although the house had some old architecture, it was quite luxurious compared to what an average civilian has. What made Izanami quite nostalgic is that this house had the same design as the one she lived in when she was younger. She remembered one time showing a picture to Hashirama and Madara about her old home.

"So this is your house in Konoha, huh? I wonder why I never remember this being here," Tsunade said, mumbling in confusion. For her, who lived in this village for most of her life, this is the first time she saw or heard about this house being here.

'Did they build it after the Nine-Tails incident? No, that's impossible. I can feel faint traces of my grandfather's Wood Style chakra from this building. So, this means this building was here when the village was founded. But how come I didn't know this?' she wondered as she gazed at the building.

"The answer is quite simple, actually. I placed some seals here to make everyone here forget about this building. So even if you saw this building before, you wouldn't pay any attention to it, like you wouldn't pay any attention to every pebble you come across," Izanami said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Seals are too overpowered," that's all Tsunade could say after comprehending what Izanami said.

"Of course they are. Why the hell do you think other ninja villages all united to destroy the Uzumaki clan?" Izanami said as a matter of fact tone as she walked towards the house.

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