"Money?"
"What money?"
"I don't have any money!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen had a smile on his wrinkled face when Shihouin Naraku appeared before him, but when he heard that the visitor was there to ask for funds, his expression immediately changed, and he began insisting he had no money.
Naraku stared at Sarutobi Hiruzen suspiciously, not believing a word.
"The medical department handed over significant funds to the village last year. Has it all been spent so quickly?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen wore a helpless expression while continuing to puff on his pipe.
"You're just like Tsunade, always asking for money. How can you not trust me..."
"Think about it—there are so many departments and institutions in the village that need funding, and development is required everywhere. How could we not be short on money?"
"I know your worth. You've done excellent work in the medical response team and made great contributions to the village's development. Not only myself but everyone is grateful to you."
Naraku watched in exasperation as Sarutobi Hiruzen rambled on without getting to the point.
"Money! Money! I—"
"That's what I was saying," Sarutobi Hiruzen interrupted with a smile. "You performed admirably in the medical response team, so you can certainly find ways to secure funding in Anbu as well."
How could they be the same?
Naraku was about to protest when something occurred to him. "Wait a minute. Let's not talk about the medical department's funds. What about the supplies I recovered recently? There was so much gold dust!"
He hadn't thought of it before, or he would have mentioned it sooner. The gold dust he had seized during his mission was more than enough to fund Anbu's development.
In truth, Anbu's standard resources weren't that bad, and under normal circumstances, they weren't particularly short on funds. But for a long time, their allowances hadn't increased, and the base needed upgrades due to its age. This was why Naraku had approached Sarutobi Hiruzen for additional funding.
Naraku made his case convincingly, and the Third Hokage reluctantly approved some money for him.
...
In the past, Danzo's Foundation had been too powerful, essentially overshadowing the regular Anbu.
Except for the Anbu guards directly serving under the Hokage, other Anbu members were influenced by Danzo. Naturally, Danzo also largely controlled Anbu's funding during that time.
Besides receiving money from the Third Hokage, Danzo could also secure funds through his connections with Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura.
Consider this: Orochimaru was once a member of the Foundation, as were Hatake Kakashi, Tenzo (later known as Yamato), Yakushi Kabuto, and eventually Sai, among others...
Cultivating such talent always requires substantial resources.
Danzo had managed to develop so many exceptional shinobi through his combination of power and money!
Now that the Foundation had been forcibly disbanded and Danzo himself removed from power, he naturally couldn't fund Anbu anymore.
So Naraku's current challenge was similar to Danzo's: as a leader, he needed to control both power and money and then subordinates would naturally gather around him.
At the height of his power, Danzo had even ordered his operatives to assassinate the Third Hokage. Although they failed because of Kakashi's intervention, it still highlighted the problem.
...
Standing in his office, watching Naraku's departing figure through the window, Sarutobi Hiruzen knew that from now on, Naraku's authority within Anbu would steadily increase.
This would be true unless Hatake Kakashi objected, in which case the two would soon clash over control.
This reminded Sarutobi Hiruzen of himself and Danzo, who had once been close friends and companions. But ever since he became Hokage and Danzo became his shadow controlling the Foundation, their relationship had deteriorated.
"Well..."
Shihouin Naraku felt the gaze on his back and knew it was the Third Hokage watching him.
"Is the old man worried that I'll challenge his authority because of this?"
After reflection, he realized this wasn't the concern.
The Third Hokage had no reason to worry about such things. Though he appeared to be just an elderly man, Sarutobi Hiruzen's influence extended throughout Konohagakure without any blind spots.
After decades as Hokage, everyone in Konoha had grown accustomed to Sarutobi Hiruzen in that position, to the point where they had forgotten that the Third Hokage's life would eventually end.
This familiarity shouldn't be underestimated—it represented everyone's recognition of Sarutobi Hiruzen's authority.
Even the power of the first two Hokage hadn't reached the extraordinary level of the Third.
First, Hokage Senju Hashirama had been appointed when Konohagakure was newly established, when the major shinobi clans that joined the village hadn't yet built trust with each other, and there was also the matter of Uchiha Madara's influence.
By the time of the Second Hokage, although Konoha's development was positive and the major shinobi clans had integrated into the village, the Uchiha clan still posed a significant challenge. The establishment of the Konoha Military Police Force itself was partly intended to control the Uchiha clan.
And if initially, because of the Second Hokage's dying wish, Sarutobi Hiruzen had needed to share power with his companions to maintain his status and prestige, the current Third Hokage had now completely established his own authority.
Of course, there was still one way to challenge the Third Hokage's position—to kill him swiftly and cleanly!
...
After returning to Anbu, Naraku, now with funding in hand, began leading his reform of the organization.
He ordered maintenance and renovation of the base, upgrades to Anbu's training grounds, improvements to logistics, and increases in Anbu members' compensation.
Just as the Third Hokage had anticipated, if anyone other than Kakashi had been the captain-general of Anbu, they would have opposed Naraku's actions long ago, as this was clearly an attempt to consolidate power!
If this series of plans were completed, Anbu would essentially become independent from outside influence.
In effect, a leader more powerful than Danzo would emerge within Anbu.
"Yo, Naraku, let's walk together."
Hatake Kakashi was leaning against the wall outside the Anbu base, one hand in his pocket and the other holding the newly released "Make-Out Paradise" novel, reading with obvious enjoyment.
Naraku, who had just issued his orders and received news of the Jōnin squad meeting, exited the Anbu base only to be intercepted by Kakashi.
The two walked side by side. Naraku, still deeply thinking about his plans, remained silent while Kakashi seemed absorbed in his book and said nothing.
"You're stirring things up too much, Naraku..."
Naraku snapped back to reality and looked at Kakashi, whose eyes remained fixed on Make-Out Paradise.
"Is there a problem?"
"A serious problem!"
Hatake Kakashi closed his book reluctantly and tucked "Make-Out Paradise" into his pocket.
In truth, he was very hesitant to get involved in these matters. After his father, Hatake Sakumo's suicide, Kakashi developed an aversion to power struggles.
"Even though he's officially disbanded the Foundation, his influence in Anbu remains significant... If you continue like this, you'll inevitably come into conflict with him."
Naraku waved dismissively and gave Kakashi a serious look. "The things I'm doing are what you should have been doing, especially regarding Danzo."
The Third Hokage had appointed Hatake Kakashi to manage Anbu not only to use him as an enforcer but also in hopes that he could curb Danzo's rapidly expanding influence in Anbu and the Foundation.
If Kakashi had actually done so, then Sarutobi Hiruzen wouldn't have needed to take such strong action to remove Danzo from his position and disband the Foundation.
"Well~ you know my personality..."
Hatake Kakashi scratched his head and explained sheepishly.
"Yeah, I know." Naraku spread his hands and turned to look at Kakashi. "Why else would I have joined Anbu?"
"What a drag!"
Kakashi couldn't help but adopt the Nara clan's signature phrase with a long sigh.
Perhaps he should leave Anbu. Hatake Kakashi thought it might be better to let Naraku become the captain-general of Anbu directly, saving himself the trouble.
After all, Kakashi had never particularly enjoyed life in Anbu...
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