At this moment, Ōnoki felt as if his chair were filled with shards of glass—he couldn't sit still.
He desperately wanted to get up and leave.
Besides Kumogakure, aren't there traitors in Konoha, Kirigakure, and Sunagakure too?
And it was clearly two rogue Konoha shinobi who triggered the battle yesterday. They even defiled the corpse and soul of a former Kage… Why the hell is all the blame falling on me?!
This is bullshit!
These damn kids… Someone needs to teach them some respect!
Of course, that's what Ōnoki thought to himself, but he wouldn't dare say it out loud—not even if he were given ten times the courage. He knew full well that if he pushed things, the Raikage might really flip the table and deck him right then and there.
He forced a bitter laugh and said:
"Back then, Deidara was playing around with his so-called 'art'—his explosive ninjutsu—and blew up half the damn village."
"I only had him locked up for a few months."
"Who could've guessed he'd develop some flying clay bomb, sneak out of the Hidden Valley, and run away from home?"
"Maybe he got sweet-talked by Akatsuki… or maybe Uchiha Obito cast a Genjutsu on him, just like what happened to the Fourth Mizukage."
"If I ever lay eyes on that brat again, I'll drag him back myself. If any of you find him, don't go easy on him."
Saying this aloud made Ōnoki feel even older. Deidara had once been his favorite disciple—truthfully, he'd cared for him more than even his own granddaughter, Kurotsuchi.
Back then, his greatest dream was to see Deidara inherit his will and succeed him as Tsuchikage within his lifetime.
But fate had other plans. That kid…
Damn it all…
Raikage A saw the old man finally lower his head and swallow his pride, and he felt some measure of justice for his father. He couldn't strike Ōnoki down here and now, but at least this humiliation would be remembered.
Rasa was even more delighted. If this weren't such a serious diplomatic setting, he would've burst out laughing.
Uchiha Hikaru, observing that even the most stubborn of them—Ōnoki—had yielded, decided it was time to move on to the next phase of his plan.
Everything so far had only been preparation. The real battle had yet to begin.
The first time they bend their pride is the hardest. After that, it gets easier every time.
He gave a slight nod to Shizune, who immediately understood his signal. She stepped forward and placed the second set of documents she'd prepared in front of each Kage.
"Everyone," she began, "these are the bounty targets we've compiled."
"This is a list of all currently known Akatsuki members. Their names, known aliases, and individual bounty amounts are listed clearly."
"At the same time, to ensure world peace and promote collaboration among powerful shinobi everywhere, Konoha proposes that all villages contribute to a joint bounty pool. The reward amounts will be increased incrementally until the mission is complete."
As Uchiha Hikaru finished speaking, Rasa's eyes were already glued to the bounty numbers.
—Rogue-nin from Sunagakure: Sasori of the Red Sand – 200 million ryo.
—Rogue-nin from Takigakure: Bounty Hunter Kakuzu – 200 million ryo.
—Rogue-nin from Kirigakure: Former Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Jūzō Biwa – 20 million ryo.
—Rogue-nin from Yugakure: Undead Cultist Hidan – 200 million ryo.
—Rogue-nin from Iwagakure: Explosive Artist Deidara – 200 million ryo (capture alive).
—Rogue-nin from Konoha: Uchiha Traitor, Uchiha Obito – 200 million ryo.
—Unknown threat: Black Zetsu (body-possessing entity, true form unknown) – 200 million ryo.
Anyone who provides a valid piece of intelligence on these targets will receive a reward ranging from 100 million to 1 billion ryo.
This… this is like turning Akatsuki into walking piggy banks!
How many years would I need to spend panning gold in the desert to make this kind of money?!
But then Rasa remembered what Uchiha Hikaru had just said—this was a shared bounty pool, funded jointly by every village.
If it were divided equally, Sunagakure would have to fork over at least 800 million ryo!
Where the hell am I going to get 800 million ryo in cash?!
The Wind Daimyō barely gives us enough funds as is. I've already been spending half my damn life gold-mining just to plug budget holes!
Even then, Sunagakure is still running a major fiscal deficit!
Rasa's lips trembled as he looked at Uchiha Hikaru, and he summoned the courage to speak from the depths of his soul.
"Lord Hikaru… about this bounty pool…"
"I'm afraid Sunagakure may not be able to…"
But he trailed off, unable to finish. The shame and frustration were overwhelming.
Not just Rasa—several other Kage looked hesitant as well.
It was a lot of money.
It wasn't impossible, but it was the kind of amount you'd expect to pay as war reparations. Painful, but not fatal.
Just then, Uchiha Hikaru raised his hand and calmly cut Rasa off.
"Of course, that's only the initial bounty."
"If these targets remain at large, the numbers will continue to rise."
"Additionally, if you wish to add your own village's rogue-nin to the bounty list, you're free to do so—but those costs will be your responsibility."
Raikage A quickly did some mental math. Based on this structure, the actual costs of the bounty system were going to skyrocket in the long run.
This definitely isn't just a simple bounty board. There's a deeper plan at work here…
Ōnoki, meanwhile, kept staring at Deidara's bounty. His name had a special annotation: "Capture Alive."
It softened Ōnoki's heart a bit.
So they haven't completely written him off. There's still hope to bring him back.
Maybe this Uchiha boy isn't as cold-blooded as I thought…
Rasa, however, had been hoping Hikaru would lower the bounty amounts—not raise them.
Now he couldn't help but fantasize about his bleak future, spending the rest of his life like a prisoner—panning gold alone in the desert.
Just as he was sinking into despair, Tsunade, who had remained quiet until now, finally spoke—and gave him a sliver of hope.
She slowly pulled out a thick document from her drawer.
Of course, it wasn't Tsunade herself who wrote the plan—Kurenai and Shizune had handled the writing and compilation. She was merely the one to sign and present it.
Still, to fully understand its contents, Tsunade had spent nights studying it since Uchiha Hikaru's return—committed to realizing the same ambitious idea he'd proposed three years ago:
The Cultural and Commercial Ninja World Integration Plan.
(End of chapter)
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