"Foolish disciple, what on earth were you thinking?!"
In the Hokage's office within Konoha's Hokage Building, the Fifth Hokage, having received the intelligence report, clutched her head in pain.
'How could someone create such a huge mess? Even if Uchiha Madara were resurrected and saw this, he'd probably shake his head and flee back to the Land of Lightning with the Uchiha Clan on his back overnight.'
'It was supposed to be a simple support mission. How did it escalate into a person fighting a Tailed Beast, ultimately sending the Land of Fire's major nobility and politicians to the Pure Land?'
'Thankfully, Asuma reported the situation involving Kazuma, letting a dead man shoulder all the blame. Otherwise, this unruly disciple would have had to become a Missing-Nin on the spot.'
"Now, now, Tsunade-sama, calm down."
Shizune, holding a tray, approached with a cup of hot tea, winking at Sakura who stood before the desk being scolded.
Hinting for her to say something nice, to placate the angry Tsunade first.
"Tsunade-nee, I want to change the current situation! The village, the nation, even the entire Ninja World!"
The girl placed her hands on the desk, her emerald-green eyes revealing a certain... longing.
"Ahahaha, Sakura must be tired, she's starting to talk nonsense. You should go home and rest!" Sensing the sudden change in the office atmosphere, Shizune tried to mediate.
She stepped forward, covered Sakura's mouth, turned her around, and started pushing her towards the office door.
"Shizune!"
Tsunade looked up from behind the documents, glancing over, letting out a mocking sigh. "Let her speak. I want to see what kind of reasoning she can come up with today!"
Feeling the seriousness in Tsunade's tone, Shizune sighed helplessly, releasing Sakura.
Then she turned away, raising a finger and flicked it against Sakura's forehead in retaliation.
'Brat! Wasting your senior sister's efforts like this. Next time you mess up, face the scolding yourself!'
Sakura rubbed the spot Shizune had flicked with amusement, following her back to Tsunade's desk.
"Speak!"
Tsunade looked at her disciple before her. Her presence gradually intensified, chakra slowly leaking out with her emotions.
The one-village-one-country system was the culmination of Hashirama's efforts, the most glorious political legacy of the Senju Clan. If Sakura didn't get a satisfactory answer today, she really wouldn't be able to blame Tsunade for... cleansing the house!
"Tsunade-nee, for thousands of years, Ninjas have been produced and consumed like commodities, while those nobles use us as tools based on so-called bloodline and legitimacy. Such a world is wrong!!!"
Sakura gazed intently at Tsunade, her rising presence not losing to Tsunade's at all, even... surpassing it.
Somewhat irritably avoiding Sakura's gaze, Tsunade sighed lightly, "But they bear the responsibility of production, developing a nation's economy. All the food, clothing, and necessities for Ninjas are created by them!"
"Tsunade-nee, does 'they' refer to the Land of Fire's nobility and politicians, or the countless people like the villagers of Konoha?"
Sakura tilted her head, squinting her jade-green eyes in pleasure. "Things that a bunch of creatures immersed in power struggles can do... can't we Ninjas do better?"
"Do better?" Tsunade frowned.
She vaguely sensed something grand and magnificent was revealing itself to the world through the girl before her.
"Ninjas skilled in Fire Release can forge better steel. Those skilled in Water Release can manage floods and control water. Those skilled in Earth Release can easily nurture farmland... And if you need, I can make thousands of hectares of fertile land harvest in just a few weeks!"
Sakura smiled, spreading her arms as if embracing the whole world. "Look! For thousands of years, Ninjas have always focused on using Ninjutsu and Chakra for efficient killing. No one has ever thought about using Ninjutsu to make our lives better!"
"That won't do. How can Ninjas..."
Shizune, who had been listening to the conversation, instinctively spoke up to refute.
Bound by years of ideological conditioning regarding the Land of Fire's nobility, she instinctively believed Ninjas were tools for killing, unable to imagine what a life without killing should be like.
"Shizune-nee, Ninjas are also human. No one is born to become a tool."
Sakura's voice was gentle, considerately massaging Shizune's furrowed brow.
"Yeah, a life without killing..."
After hearing Sakura's words, Tsunade fell into thought. If the future Sakura described could be realized, then a mere one-village-one-country system was indeed a useless thing that could be discarded during the process of reform.
"One last question: How do we get through the current chaos in the Land of Fire? The other great nations won't just watch as we reform!"
"That's simple. Just stir up trouble in their countries too, right?"
Sakura flipped over the Hokage's desk, leaning close to Tsunade's ear to whisper, "I'll tell you, we can do it like this..."
"Are you sure that will work?"
"Leave it to me. You'll see!"
…
After the capital's destruction, the Land of Fire undoubtedly fell into chaos.
But just as several other great nations were eagerly waiting to take a bite out of the Land of Fire, they suddenly found their own backyards seemed to be on fire too?
Iwagakure.
Standing in front of a grain shop, Kurotsuchi's mouth hung open. "Seven thousand ryo for a pound of rice? And the quality is this bad? Are you rebelling?"
"Don't even mention it. In previous years, the cheap grain was imported from the Land of Fire. Now their capital is destroyed, all trade routes cut off. Selling at this price for rice from our Land of Stone is practically giving it away at a loss."
The shopkeeper, who initially wanted to get angry, swallowed his words upon seeing Kurotsuchi's face, offering her a bitter smile.
Kumogakure.
"It's so hot! So, so hot!!!"
Inside a house embedded in the mountain wall, Karui, a disciple of Killer B, rolled on the ground, throwing a tantrum. "Omoi, turn on the fan!"
"No can do. Power hasn't been restored yet!"
Omoi, sucking on a lollipop, switched the stick from the left side of his mouth to the right, trying to calm himself and cool down.
"Damn power company! The price has gone up three times, but the power supply is still this unstable!"
Karui, already lying flat on the ground to cool off, pounded the floor with her hands and feet, only to find the action made her even hotter.
"Heard there's a problem with coal imports from the Land of Fire. And could you stop making a fuss? The room temperature is rising, you know!"
Omoi finally lost his composure, immediately feeling a suffocating heat, fine beads of sweat breaking out on his forehead.
Kirigakure.
"Here, your fishing net is repaired. That'll be one hundred thousand ryo, please."
In front of a fishing net repair shop, the shopkeeper extended his hand to the woman before him.
Mei, who had just successfully staged a coup with the support of the village Elder Genji and ascended to the position of Mizukage: "..."
She's originally planning to travel incognito to observe the people's conditions, but she never expected to run into a scam shop the moment she stepped out.
"Is this extortion?"
Mei frowned, the Kage's presence emanating from her, intimidating the shopkeeper.
"N-no, I wouldn't dare!"
The flustered shopkeeper immediately knelt on the ground, trembling as he explained, "Even if you bought the materials and repaired it yourself, it would cost this much!"
"Right now, nylon fiber materials are in short supply across the entire Land of Water. I'm doing your job at the lowest possible cost, not even covering expenses!"
"Why is there a shortage?"
Sensing something abnormal, Mei pressed further, gesturing for the shopkeeper to stand up and speak.
"Ah, you don't know? The processing technology for this stuff is only mature in the Land of Fire. In previous years, our country imported large quantities from them. This year, some plague-bringer actually blew up their capital."
The more he talked, the angrier the shopkeeper got.
He even forgot the difference in status between himself and Mei, pulling her into a lengthy tirade.
Sunagakure.
"Hey, Tanna, I'll have the usual three sets!"
Kankuro, carrying his puppet, came to the ninja tool shop as usual to buy various iron joints for puppet-making.
"The price has gone up. Those three sets now cost ten million ryo."
The indifferent shopkeeper looked up at him, calmly reminding.
"Huh?" Kankuro was dumbfounded. "Why?"
"Trade for iron ore with the Land of Fire is cut off. Ore imported from the Land of Stone has tripled in price, and that doesn't include smelting!"
The shopkeeper shook his head, and he and Kankuro stared at each other in silence. Soon after, curses against the Land of Fire and the Land of Stone took turns echoing in the shop.
Across the entire Ninja World, similar incidents kept playing out in various nations.
Whether great or small nations, with the Land of Fire, a major transportation artery, blocked, prices of various bulk commodities soared. Their inflation skyrocketed within weeks, dealing a heavy blow to their production and lives.
Countless people knew the Land of Fire had done something nasty, but they didn't know exactly what.
In impotent rage, thousands of words eventually condensed into one sentence.
'-This damn Land of Fire, why the hell is it so nasty?!'