Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 206 Let's Do the Account

Ultimately, it was Naruto's plan that was approved. The veterans, who had fought for most of their lives, were initially blinded by the weapon's uniqueness, but after calming down and thinking carefully, every detail that Naruto pointed out became incredibly important.

Weapons will always be invented; the weapons themselves are important, but the people who use them are even more important. Building an army is no small matter. With Hui's current resources, he only has sizable patrols in the vicinity of Hokushin and the Land of Owls. Ninjas follow an elite path, mostly operating in small teams, rarely engaging in large-scale operations. Even Fugaku, who participated in the Third Shinobi World War, never saw a force of more than five thousand men, let alone the two Kage of Konoha in its early days.

Hashirama never fought a real major battle during his time. Tobirama did command the First Shinobi World War, but Konoha was only just starting out then, so where would they get so many usable combat forces? It can be said that the Impure World Reincarnation made a great contribution at that time; even if it was just a rudimentary version, it was still a terrifying suicide squad.

"Over the years, we have roughly figured out the size of the standing armies of various countries. Taking into account our equipment advantage, the number of troops on our side should not be less than two-thirds of theirs."

To discuss this topic, Hokushin's most detailed world map was briefly requisitioned. This map is usually kept in the intelligence department for data aggregation. To make it easier to view this super map, Naruto transformed into the form of Golden Wheel, looking more serious than usual.

The observant Tobirama could guess Naruto's plan just by hearing the number, and asked, "Are you really not planning to let the ninjas play a role in the war?"

Naruto's face was full of struggle, but his tone was firm: "The world will see the world-destroying power of ninjas in the next Shinobi World War. Keeping us out of the war is also to stabilize its intensity."

"Is there really going to be a Fourth Shinobi World War?" Hashirama tried to struggle with the question.

Izuna sneered, "You saw Akatsuki's actions too. Can you say they aren't preparing for war? Don't be naive. An arms race is inevitable when it comes to a single country or village. Once the investment reaches its peak, no matter how high the risk, there will always be someone who wants to take a gamble."

"But...isn't researching those things just starting a new competition? It's just in a different form." Fugaku was still worried about guns. He was a true neutral party; when he was being conservative, he was genuinely conservative.

"That's why we need an army with faith, a group of soldiers willing to charge for their ideals." Naruto paused thoughtfully at this point. "Currently, all armies, mercenaries, and even ninjas are the type that do things for money, and they're even willing to sell their souls for money. But... in the early stages of Hui's launch, they were so poor that they couldn't even pay anyone, but everyone actually became more united, didn't they?"

A group of veterans who hadn't considered paying themselves a salary since the Edo Tensei system fell silent. Their gazes focused on Naruto, only now remembering that their leader, this living, breathing person, was just like them. The Edo Tensei bodies had no need for food, clothing, or other necessities; they had money but nowhere to spend it. At most, they'd spend a little on lodging during missions and excursions to make themselves appear alive—a simple reimbursement process. Naruto, on the other hand, was raised on Konoha's aid funds from a young age, sending countless clones to explore the world, and even traversing the perilous Desert Silk Road himself. To date, the finance department had never received a reimbursement from "Golden Wheel" (Naruto's nickname); instead, many bases had received expenses from "Lord Golden Wheel."

In other words, he's doing the leader's job, but he's basically losing money!

The four adults quickly exchanged glances and noticed the same shock in each other's eyes. Those with better composure had their expressions twisted, while those with less composure jumped up and grabbed Naruto's shoulders, screaming.

"Faith can't put food on the table!!" The First Hokage of Konoha, a lifelong staunch idealist, uttered a deafening voice.

Wake up! You need to eat too!

"Why are you so agitated? This reminds me that the military needs to provide food, right? Training and a scientific diet are essential for optimal results. There are far too many places where people don't have enough to eat; this should attract a lot of people." Naruto did sense the unusual emotions around him, but he assumed he had exaggerated and quickly explained, "I didn't say we wouldn't pay military salaries, just that we need to find a different way to distribute them. How much do we have now? Can we really support an army with a pay-as-you-go system? We'll have to think of other solutions first."

Tobirama took a deep breath, suppressing the intense guilt, grabbed his brother's hair and threw him backward, saying, "I think I understand what you're thinking. It's definitely worth a try, but we might need to offer a larger stake to be on the safe side. We'll discuss a feasible solution based on existing examples; there's no rush."

"Now, calculate the expenses you've incurred over the past few years of touring, immediately."

Having said all that, even the most oblivious Naruto finally understood the source of the turbulent emotions these seniors were experiencing. He tried to struggle, but they clearly weren't going to let him off the hook.

Hashirama Senju, a chakra powerhouse, didn't need to disperse his energy, and being an Edo Tensei user, he had an advantage in chakra reserves over Naruto. Initially, Hashirama's tree-planting wasn't particularly fast, but after being disqualified from being the foundation stone for Naruto's Shingen body, he worked tirelessly, determined to find another way to lighten Naruto's burden. However, tree planting is ultimately limited by environment and terrain. For example, planting trees across the sea is indeed very difficult, and extreme temperatures also affect their growth. Despite his long and arduous efforts, he only barely managed to cover the habitable areas of the entire continent.

Hashirama couldn't use the Flying Thunder God Technique, and with such a large operation, it was difficult to completely monitor everything. However, these tree species at least retained their sensory abilities; he could sense familiar chakra passing by. Therefore, Hashirama frequently discovered Naruto's clones, who appeared in various corners of the world, each with a different disguise.

Sometimes the passersby were vendors pushing carts, sometimes old men carrying heavy loads and trudging along, sometimes glamorous wealthy businessmen, and sometimes tall and strong martial artists... Naruto was truly experiencing the myriad aspects of human life firsthand, feeling the world of ordinary people. That's why he understood the needs of ordinary people so well and put forward so many seemingly absurd but actually far-sighted opinions.

Hashirama, of course, recounted all the "glorious deeds" he knew about Naruto, making even the thick-skinned boy blush with embarrassment. However, the more they reviewed the events, the more they realized this was a priceless treasure, far surpassing the gold mine next door. They became even more convinced of one thing:

Hui will surely succeed under the guidance of the sun.