It didn't really matter whether the aristocratic system led by the Daimyo was just a symbol of backwardness.
After all, when delicious dishes were already served on the table, refusing to indulge would be an insult to everyone involved.
Ever since the Minister of State stepped onto the podium, his passionate and stirring speech spoke volumes for his deep-rooted noble heritage. Each sentence was like refined poetry, flowing with genuine emotion, touching the hearts of every listener present.
And that was that.
No matter how sincere or touching those words might have been, in front of blatant self-interest, such verbal embellishments weren't even decorative flourishes—they were simply meaningless formalities no one cared about, done solely for legitimacy's sake.
Therefore, immediately after the Minister of State finished his trembling speech and staggered down from the podium, the land division erupted with fierce intensity.
To date, the Fire Daimyo and a few remaining nobles still controlled territories including the Daimyo's court, the Kinki region, and ten cities—all fertile lands brimming with resources. The Ninja Clan Capital Corporation had long coveted these riches, held back only by various internal and external constraints.
Now that Hyuga Soushu had broken the deadlock, all the clan leaders who had long desired this prize prepared eagerly to descend like hungry wolves ready to tear into the luscious lands.
"The existence of nobility is the root of all wars!"
Nara Clan Head pointed out bluntly, "The outbreak of both Great Ninja World Wars was deliberately incited by the nobility seeking to weaken the Hidden Leaf Villages' power. In essence, this is the fundamental reason why lasting peace has never been achieved in the Ninja World!"
Of course, everyone knew things weren't quite that simple—ninja village conflicts weren't entirely instigated by noble courtiers behind the scenes. Yet during those wars, the nobles indeed did interfere whenever Konoha advanced too smoothly, prolonging the conflicts for their own benefit.
The Minister of State and the Inner Minister could not refute this, nor dared to.
After all, their status, bloodline—everything tied to aristocratic prestige—was nothing more than illusory concepts easily eliminated with just a kunai when faced against ninja whose true power came from within.
Especially in this era of collapsing rituals and morality, the nobility in the Land of Fire could barely maintain their basic standing only because the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi had restrained the expansion of ninja clan corporations to some extent. Otherwise, the old aristocracy's lands would have already been completely swallowed up.
However, now that Hyuga Soushu led the division of the Land of Water, his sudden surge of fame eclipsed even the legitimate authority of the Third Hokage. Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to preserve the status quo, he was powerless to do so.
"Nobility should relinquish all authority and meekly vanish into the trash heap of history!"
Fugaku Uchiha spoke even more bluntly, showing no attempt whatsoever to conceal his intentions.
"Victory!"
Such open ambition made the clan leaders roar in approval.
What they called the Ninja Way and the Will of Fire were utterly meaningless in the eyes of these Clan Leaders, who had long been molded by capitalist values.
"Pengpengpeng!"
After numerous Clan Leaders expressed their opinions, Hyuga Soushu finally stood up and struck his gavel several times, calling for silence.
Immediately, the hall fell into complete quiet.
All eyes turned to Hyuga Soushu, who slowly rose from his seat.
"By solemn decree and public will, deposing the Daimyo has now become an undeniable consensus!" Soushu's voice, amplified by chakra, echoed through every corner of the assembly hall, stirring excitement among the listeners. "All territories and authority must be transferred to the great and rightful Ninja Clan Capital Corporation!"
"Lord Soushu, you're brilliant!"
The Clan Leaders cheered loudly.
After all, what awaited division was the gleaming and unparalleled fertile land of the Fire Nation—an expanse so rich that even an unremarkable minor city within it might contain several times more wealth and resources than many distant minor countries' cities combined.
Meanwhile, both the Minister of State and Inner Minister had turned pale, trembling with fear.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi remained expressionless, seemingly paying no attention at all to anything happening inside the conference hall.
"The Kina Region shall be equally shared among the Hyuga, Uchiha, and Hidden Leaf! The central palace district will remain neutral territory under the former Fire Daimyo's governance, though he must pay one-tenth of all income as tax to the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation."
The first decision concerned none other than the most fertile Kina Region.
Unsurprisingly, the powerful Hyuga Clan, together with their relatives the Uchiha Clan, secured the richest portion, while Konoha Village—which still maintained considerable strength—also obtained its rightful share.
After all, the growth and development of common ninja in Konoha heavily relied on abundant resources.
For those common ninja who had yet to make a name for themselves in the Ninja World, securing a position within the territories managed by the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation often proved to be the most viable career path once they came of age. There, they could find stable employment, enjoy generous and long-term compensation, thus contributing to the development of the clans while achieving personal fulfillment.
This wasn't merely a wise choice for individual career planning—it also formed a crucial part of the economic and personnel systems of the ninja clans. These two aspects reinforced each other, collectively fueling the prosperity of the ninja world.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, fully understood that this resource-draining model of support from the Clan Corporation was a double-edged sword: it ensured the village's short-term survival while sowing seeds of long-term risk.
Yet facing this dilemma, he found himself caught between a rock and a hard place—if he relied solely on the Four Ruling Clans to support Konoha, their support would clearly be insufficient to sustain the massive village infrastructure. But if he invested heavily in cultivating common ninja talent, he risked losing them to the alluring opportunities offered by the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation, where these young and inexperienced ninjas might gradually drift from their original ideals and lose loyalty to Konoha altogether.
Thus, Hiruzen Sarutobi had no choice but to tread cautiously between these two difficult choices, walking as carefully as someone crossing thin ice.
On one hand, he needed to ensure that Konoha's foundation remained solid and did not collapse under internal and external pressures; on the other hand, he had to carefully balance various forces, avoiding the risk of nurturing new powers that might become future threats. This dilemma was akin to walking through a muddy swamp, where every step required careful thought to avoid sinking in too deep and being trapped forever.
Yet after considering that the village had already gained status and profit-sharing equal to two major ninja clans like Hyuga and Uchiha, Third Hokage Sarutobi hesitated briefly before deciding to remain silent.
After all, rather than defending noble families whose time had clearly passed, it would be better to swallow the meat already within reach, thereby easing Konoha's financial crisis.
"Eastern Three Districts."
"Southern Four Districts."
"And three district cities in the West."
Shortly afterward, Hyuga Soushu divided an additional ten districts still governed under the old aristocratic order. Except for the families originating from the Minister of State and Inner Minister—both closely allied with Hyuga and Uchiha—all other noble families were stripped of their land and estates without even being present.
Meanwhile, both the resigned Minister of State and Inner Minister completely gave up resistance upon hearing that their families could still retain farmland, manors, and a single city.
Since the Fire Daimyo managed to keep his current court, and the displaced nobles were promised retention of their movable wealth, the situation didn't quite amount to total annihilation. In such a world ruled by power alone, timely submission was the only option left.
"Now dawns the age when the kunai of ninja shall shine triumphant."
Watching the jubilant clan leaders gathered in the hall, the Minister of State sighed inwardly, feeling a bittersweet storm of emotions he could hardly articulate.
As the joint conference gradually concluded, what would later be known as the largest ever territorial transfer in ninja history officially began.
Like packs of fierce beasts, ninja from powerful clans stormed into noble mansions with official decrees in hand, declaring immediate deprivation of their land governance rights.
If a noble family quietly accepted this fate, they would be allowed some time to pack belongings and either relocate to the Daimyo's court or abandon their castles and spend heavily to repurchase country villas from the ninja clans, living thereafter as idle wealthy gentlemen. However, if any noble dared to resist or speak ill of the ninja takeover, kunai and shuriken would immediately rain down with no mercy.
In no time at all, chaos broke out across the entire Land of Fire.
Especially since the paper currency issued by the Fire Daimyo quickly turned into worthless scraps of paper, countless uninformed citizens lost all their savings overnight, and civilian trade instantly reverted to basic barter systems.
In response, Hyuga Soushu directly announced that the Golden Certificates issued by the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation would serve as the ultimate guarantee. All commoners holding Fire Daimyo-issued notes could exchange their old bills for Golden Certificates for continued use. Yet, the issuing mechanism of these Golden Certificates did not rely on gold reserves for backing.
The Golden Certificates couldn't be directly exchanged at Ninja Clan Capital Corporation branches for foreign currencies. The idea was to create a self-contained currency system that protected the country's economy from outside financial turmoil.
Despite the inconvenience, Fire Country's commoners still rushed to exchange all their paper money for the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation's Golden Certificates—because these certificates could actually buy all the goods they needed.
So after a month of chaos, the Land of Fire slowly settled into peace again.
But the fallout from ousting the Daimyo wasn't confined to Fire Country alone.
Besides the nobles of the Water Country who had been completely wiped out, there were still three great nations in the Ninja World where Daimyos and noble families held power.
The Land of Wind, where tensions between the Daimyo and Sunagakure were especially intense, had already fallen into suspicion and unrest.
Sunagakure, which hadn't taken part in the distant expedition to the Water Country, naturally had no chance to share in the vast wealth gained from its conquest. Meanwhile, its rival, Iwagakure Village, having directly acquired land from the Water Country, quickly grew stronger—sharpening Sunagakure's difficulties even more.
Facing mounting threats from neighboring countries, Sunagakure stood like a ship in the eye of a growing storm, waves crashing all around and pressure piling on every day.
A fierce wave of change swept through Sunagakure, and even the Third Kazekage, long regarded as the protector of tradition, could no longer hold it back.
He tried to resist this tide of change by clinging to tradition and stability, yet reality cruelly revealed an undeniable truth: In a world changing rapidly, stubbornly holding onto outdated ways was no different than waiting passively for destruction.
Especially after Jonin from Sunagakure began signing collective petitions, the Third Kazekage could no longer remain passive. He tried to negotiate—half-heartedly—with the Land of Wind Daimyo over power-sharing in the village... only to be flatly turned down by that narrow-minded ruler.
In the Daimyo's eyes, Sunagakure was nothing more than his servant household. As for why Fire Country's nobility had ended up in ruin, he believed the main reason was their excessive concessions—allowing the Ninja Clan to seize more and more authority until ultimately stripping the nobles of all power.
Though such thinking might seem absurd to outsiders, among Wind Country's extravagant nobility, it made perfect sense. On one hand, they expanded their private Guardian Ninja forces to strengthen their military might; on the other, they accepted fleeing former samurai guards from Fire Country's Imperial Guard Headquarters, hoping to use this seemingly powerful force to build an unbreakable defense.
At the same time, these noble families took a firm, uncompromising stance toward Sunagakure, dreaming once again of restoring the glorious days when the Hidden Sand Village bowed to their rule, longing for the heady era when they held absolute power.
Yet—
"Kazekage-sama, times have changed!"
After the Daimyo rejected the Third Kazekage's first motion to expand his authority, the angered Jonin of Sunagakure gathered again, petitioning the Kage with an unprecedented firm stance: "If you're unwilling to push forward reforms, we wouldn't mind having a different Kazekage!"
"Or perhaps the village doesn't necessarily need a Kazekage at all!"
The Suna Jonin made their stance clear—no room for negotiation, and no chance for the Third Kazekage to get a word in.
Amidst the chaos, one Jonin suddenly pulled out an extravagant haori and, without hesitation, draped it over the Third Kazekage.
At the same time, he shouted loudly: "Either become the ruler of the Land of Wind, or be considered a criminal of Sunagakure Village!"
Instinctively, the Third Kazekage tried to resist but was immediately stopped by a few quick-thinking Jonin, who simultaneously said: "Honorable Kazekage-sama, it's getting chilly; wear more clothes!"
A heavy sigh escaped his lips...
Helplessly, the Third Kazekage could only reluctantly accept the luxurious haori: "Since that's the case, then summon the Ninja Force!"
"March upon the capital!"
The Jonin of Sunagakure immediately burst into cheers upon successfully forcing the Third Kazekage into an irreversible position.
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