After reading the intelligence report from Obito, Haruki had no intention of interfering.
With Madara Uchiha dead, Obito nominally became the leader of the Akatsuki elite faction. However, ultimate authority still rested with Zetsu.
Zetsu was someone both Haruki and Obito needed to eliminate.
But the timing had not yet matured.
Once Nagato summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and gained control over the Rinnegan, they could attempt to hunt down Black Zetsu.
Given Black Zetsu's abilities, there would only be one chance.
If they failed, finding him again would become extremely difficult.
They needed to lay a foolproof trap and gather their strongest forces to take Black Zetsu down directly.
With Zetsu gone, Kaguya Otsutsuki would remain sealed by default.
The remaining threats would mostly come from occasional appearances by members of the Otsutsuki Clan.
However, with Nagato wielding the Rinnegan alongside Sasuke Uchiha—the reincarnation of Indra's chakra—and Naruto Uzumaki—the reincarnation of Asura's chakra—they should be able to handle it.
Haruki shook off his thoughts.
He decided to visit the newly constructed metropolis in the Summer Country.
Hiashi Hyuga and Kaoru Hyuga had already located an appropriate site for constructing the metropolis last month and completed its foundation.
It was on the Nagahama Plain in the northeastern part of the Land of Fire.
Haruki arrived at the location.
Looking toward the enclosed foundation of the metropolis, he saw a vast stretch of grayish-black earth.
Desolate and devoid of any structures.
Haruki shifted his gaze and quickly located Hiashi Hyuga and the others nearby—in several newly erected wooden structures.
"Hiashi."
Haruki knocked and entered.
Inside were Hiashi Hyuga, Kaoru Hyuga, Hizashi Hyuga, and a one-year-old boy.
"Lord Haruki."
They greeted in unison.
"No need to be so formal," Haruki waved his hand dismissively before turning his gaze toward the child in Hizashi's arms and smiling. "So this must be Neji? This is actually my first time meeting him."
"Yes."
Hizashi gently patted Neji's head, unable to hide the smile on his face.
Ever since the distinction between the main house and branch families was abolished, and Konoha grew increasingly strong, newborns no longer required the [Cage Bird Seal].
And since reconciling with Hiashi, the future looked promising—he no longer faced the risk of dying just to protect the main family.
"I came here about something specific," Haruki changed the subject.
Neji was still too young.
There'd be plenty of time to talk once he grew older.
"I discovered a dragon vein in the ruins of Loulan. You can think of it as a mindless Tailed Beast, filled with immense chakra. I plan to bury it beneath the metropolis as a power source."
"A being that powerful actually exists?"
This was the first time Hiashi had heard of a dragon vein.
He spread out the blueprints for the metropolis.
In just a month, he had become a competent site supervisor.
Studying the design plans for a moment, Hiashi soon formed an idea.
"We originally chose Nagahama Plain because of water supply concerns. Its underground contains complex and diverse aquifers connected to Nagahama River on the surface. We plan to divert the river into a network of moats running through the city. Ideally, we could integrate the dragon vein into the water system."
Frankly, Haruki didn't know much about civil engineering.
He was, after all, a humanities student.
Being a mass of chakra, the dragon vein contains no toxins.
Keeping it in water might be a better idea.
In the future, perhaps all groundwater could become chakra-infused holy water.
Haruki nodded at the idea, essentially agreeing to Hiashi Hyuga's plan.
But under these circumstances, they couldn't simply seal the dragon vein.
He summoned Konoha's Sealing Division.
The intention wasn't to seal the dragon vein itself, but rather the aquifer system.
They needed to restrict the dragon vein's activity to a specific area.
After several days of effort, Haruki released the dragon vein into the aquifer.
Once free, it created towering waves.
But soon, it encountered an invisible barrier.
No matter where it thrashed around, the dragon vein couldn't break through.
Eventually, it stopped resisting and quietly lay inside the sealing pipeline.
Seeing this, Haruki added a wooden shell on the outside.
Even if the dragon vein managed to break out, he would sense it immediately and use the [Flying Thunder God Technique] to arrive at the scene right away.
Once the energy issue was settled, Hiashi Hyuga and others continued constructing the metropolis.
Haruki used the [Wood Release] to build many houses.
Although simple, it saved time.
The remaining decoration work was left to Hiashi and others.
The intensive construction work lasted about three months.
Before the start of Konoha Year 51, the Metropolis was completed.
It progressed so quickly because the productivity of ninja far exceeded that of ordinary civilians.
Combined with the [Shadow Clone Technique], this made them ideal for large-scale infrastructure projects.
When the metropolis was finished, mass migrations began from the Land of Fire, Land of Lightning, Kumogakure, and Konoha Village.
Originally spread across four different locations, each department had four separate branches.
Although Konoha served as headquarters, power was clearly dispersed.
Now that everything had been centralized, it would benefit the governance of the Summer Country.
...
At the center of the metropolis stood a massive white building.
Three hundred meters in length, thirty meters in height.
This was the new Hokage Building, or more accurately, the administrative hall of the Summer Country.
To the east side of the grand hall,
an empty room glowed with blue light.
The glow originated from intricate patterns etched into the floor.
Complex yet beautiful.
A formation technique.
Konoha's two sentinels stood on either side of the formation.
Izumo Kamizuki tapped his earpiece and inquired, "Lord Haruki, can you hear me?"
Haruki's voice came back quickly. "Yes, I can hear you clearly. The communication is good. Now prepare for transportation."
"Understood."
Izumo's tone turned serious. He glanced at Tsubaki Tetsu standing across from him.
Tetsu nodded immediately, activated his earpiece, and contacted Anbu Shinji Hira.
"Lord Shinji Hira, a Konoha ninja named Haruki wishes to request usage of the Flying Thunder God teleportation array. Shall we approve?"
"Who's coming?"
"Haruki, Hokage assistant. Identity confirmed. No discrepancies found."
"Approved," said Shinji.
"Understood."
Tetsu ended the communication. Following Haruki's instructions, both Izumo and Tetsu activated the Flying Thunder God teleportation array.
Emerging from the blue glow was Haruki's figure.
"Lord Haruki."
Both Izumo and Tetsu immediately bowed deeply.
"[Satisfied.] Good."
Haruki slowly opened his eyes.
He had landed safely without expending even a drop of chakra.
This proved that his upgraded Flying Thunder God teleportation array had succeeded.
Although it consumed a massive amount of energy from the dragon vein, it was undeniably convenient.
Its value during emergencies alone was beyond imagination.
A bit of chakra was a small price to pay.
"You two keep transporting the rest over."
After saying that, Haruki left the room.
The administrative structure of Konoha Village would be moved to the new hall.
Of course, this didn't mean it would become an empty village.
Rather, it would become a military zone—or more accurately, a base for the Ninja Army.
Likewise, Kumogakure would be handled the same way.
Haruki made his way to the Hokage's office.
This office had nearly tripled in size compared to the old one.
It could easily accommodate over a hundred people.
The Hokage could hold private meetings here.
"How does it feel?"
Haruki fixed his gaze on Tsunade and asked.
"What do you mean 'how does it feel'?"
Tsunade paused her work, looked up, and smiled. "If you're talking about the new office, it's not bad. It's pretty spacious."
Haruki raised an eyebrow.
That's all?
If it were Tanzo, he'd probably be drooling with excitement.
"With no one around, want to test just how soundproof this office really is?"
Haruki stepped toward her and extended a party invite.