Naruto: The Hidden Protector

186: The Poor Shimura And Orochimaru

Time went by, and gradually Konoha began to get incredibly lively again. The upcoming Chunin Exams had turned the village into a bustling international hotspot. Just like in the original story, Konoha launched the joint exams, but this time the entire event was proposed by Hiruzen Sarutobi. The third Hokage had to bribe the other council elders with a large portion of his personal wealth just to get them to agree to the plan. Since the majority of the council approved, Tsunade also gave her nod, allowing Hiruzen to take charge of the responsibilities in a desperate bid to save his crumbling reputation.

Thanks to Hiruzen's massive advertisement campaigns, waves of new people began flooding into Konoha with excitement and curiosity in their eyes. Foreign genin teams, wealthy merchants, noble lords, and eager tourists crowded the streets, completely filling the local inns and taverns to maximum capacity.

This sudden influx of foreign money allowed the economy in Konoha to flourish even more. But this time, it wasn't the regular merchants or Naruto's booming auction house that managed to scoop up the biggest immediate profit—it was the Uchiha clan.

The streets outside the Uchiha district were lined with vibrant stalls selling beautifully crafted traditional souvenirs, from custom-designed folding fans bearing the iconic red-and-white crest to high-quality replica kunai and localized charms.

Of course, this brilliant mercantile strategy didn't come from the stubborn elders; it was entirely proposed by Kiyomi. She knew her clan was deeply buried under a mountain of financial obligations, and she was fiercely determined to save them from being indebted for their whole lives. By capitalizing on the tourists' obsession with the "legendary, tragic Uchiha clan," Kiyomi successfully turned their dark reputation into a literal goldmine.

The pure marketing power of an aloof drop-dead gorgeous Uchiha standing behind a souvenir stall was an absolute cheat code. It was an effortless trap, especially for the love-brained tourists and wealthy noble daughters who only cared about good looks and aesthetic charm.

And similar to the Uchiha clan, other ninja clans also began to offer special offers targeting this crowd of tourists, earning a huge profit. Among these clans, there was also the Sarutobi clan. Even though their clan reputation wasn't that great due to the large number of businesses they managed to own, their profit margin was also quite substantial.

The only one who didn't manage to make a fortune was the Shimura clan. This was because, unlike the Sarutobi clan, who became very docile after being beaten by Izanami, the Shimura clan just couldn't accept reality. Having always lived in luxury and filled with arrogance, they failed to realize that times had changed when Tsunade came to power. Like usual, they tried to throw around their weight in order to take back their privileges.

Well, that went really well. Tsunade, who was already in a terrible mood due to the past actions of the Konoha F4, had her anger completely flared up. As a result, she ordered most of the Shimura clan's properties to be liquidated on the spot.

And this action allowed Tsunade to fill up most of the gap that was made during the Third Hokage's rule, allowing Konoha to operate normally.

So it could be said that the Shimura clan had once again dropped from being a large clan to a medium-sized clan. One could say that even amongst the other medium-sized clans, the Shimura clan is the poorest.

.....

While the whole of Konoha was getting ready for the upcoming Chunin Exams, far away in the Land of Sound—which bordered the Land of Fire—a man with long black hair and serpent-like eyes was tucked away inside a secret laboratory. Orochimaru worked excitedly on various experiments, a cold expression fixed on his pale face.

Right next to him, pinned firmly to a heavy steel operating table, was a ninja who had a unique bloodline ability to manipulate metal. And Orochimaru, who was exploring the wonders of the ninja world, couldn't resist the temptation of understanding how such an interesting bloodline ability operated, so he kidnapped this man and locked him in this laboratory.

Just as Orochimaru was busy in his revelry, the door to his secret lab was knocked in a peculiar manner, making him stop his actions.

Then, without even wiping away the bloodstains on his hands, he turned back and walked towards the door. He began making a few hand signs to unseal the isolating mechanism in the room. This was something he had started doing in recent years after an experimental subject almost escaped from his grasp. From that day onwards, he would always activate the isolating seals in this room before he began his experiments.

Opening the door, Orochimaru found his capable assistant Kabuto waiting in front of him.

"Kabuto, what kind of news do you have that you couldn't wait until I finished my experiments?" Orochimaru asked with a little bit of displeasure. For him, his experiments were the path to immortality, so even if it was his most capable assistant, if he dared to interrupt him without a very valid reason, he would be punished too.

Kabuto didn't flinch at the cold displeasure dripping from his master's voice. Instead, he smoothly pushed up his glasses and bowed with perfect composure, fully aware of the stakes.

"I apologize for the intrusion, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto spoke in his usual calm, calculated tone. "However, the latest intelligence report from Konoha just arrived. Konoha had already started hosting the Chunin exams, and what's more they had sent invites to all hidden villages apart from the Four Great Ninja Villages. Additionally, from my sources, I have found that the person who proposed this idea was the Third Hokage, as Lady Tsunade seems to have given all the responsibilities to him. "

"Hmm, Tsunade actually gave that old man some power back. That doesn't sound like her at all," Orochimaru murmured, his serpent-like eyes narrowing as a cold, mocking smile appeared on his face. He crossed his arms, completely ignoring the dark blood dripping from his pale fingers onto the floor. "The Tsunade I know would rather punch him through a wall than hand him any responsibility. After all, she is still patching up the mess the old man had created. Tell me, what else did you find out, Kabuto?"

Kabuto pushed up his glasses, his expression completely calm as he continued, "According to our spies and some of my deductions, Third Hokage had to use a very large portion of his personal wealth just to bribe the council elders to agree to this plan. It seems he is desperate to save his crumbling reputation after the recent incidents. Lady Tsunade only approved it because the majority of the elders approved of it."

Hearing this, Orochimaru couldn't help but let out a soft, hissing laugh. "Heh... how pathetic. To think the once-mighty 'God of Shinobi' has resorted to buying his way back into a position just to feel important. The old man is truly getting old and foolish."flaring

Although Orochimaru kept mocking Hiruzen, Kabuto could still see the complex look of loneliness and helplessness hidden deep within his master's eyes. Even though Kabuto could guess exactly why Orochimaru had that look, he wisely kept his mouth shut. After all, he knew his master would never admit that he still cared about his teacher, especially when it was Hiruzen who had driven him out of Konoha in the first place.

*****

Author's Note: I'm currently balancing my university studies with writing, and things can get pretty tight. If you enjoy my work, even a $1 donation on Patreon makes a massive difference in helping me cover my education expenses.

If you're able to help out, you can find the link at the bottom of this chapter. Thank you for making it possible for me to keep writing!

patreon.com/Nauty_Manu