By the end of August...
The war supplies that the Third Mizukage had secretly stockpiled were now completely cleared out, with the final shipment leaving the western port of the Land of Water and making its way to Konohagakure.
Yes, sold to Konoha.
The Fourth Kazekage needed to control the amount of gold dust he produced—it couldn't just be freely created.
They had already purchased several shipments at high prices, and now Sunagakure had run out of money to continue buying. Unless they took on debt.
There was no way Yagura would agree to that. At least, not now.
He needed cash. He needed resources.
Not IOUs!
"NONONO~" (Little Yagura wagged his finger.)
This shipment had earned Kirigakure its first pot of gold on the path to wealth.
The timber purchased cheaply from Konoha was now being heavily invested into land-based waterways and other infrastructure projects. It was far cheaper than cutting down trees from within the Land of Water.
After all, aside from Konoha, the other Five Great Nations had very little forest coverage.
Konoha's forested area was likely larger than all the other nations combined.
Alongside that, large numbers of livestock and farmland usage rights purchased from Konoha were sold to keen-eyed merchants who had noticed Kirigakure's shifting financial and tax policies.
These merchants used their own funds—or, for the bolder ones, borrowed money—to lease land directly from the Mizukage's office and invest in livestock, choosing one or two types to raise.
Then, they hired workers and started doing what they did best—business.
Products with short production cycles, like eggs, poultry, dairy, silk, and horses, had already hit the market, triggering a chain reaction.
Now, Kirigakure's citizens had more variety on their dinner tables.
Transporting goods over land was no longer a headache, where people had to struggle to find horses, mules, donkeys, or oxen.
The textile industry, too, was heating up due to lower raw material prices and the favorable policies from the Mizukage's office.
Textile factories, along with supporting industries for fabrics, accessories, hardware, and chemical dyeing, were all gradually beginning to flourish.
As for products with longer production cycles, their effects hadn't surfaced yet.
Sheep farming, for example, wouldn't yield wool until autumn. Pig farming had to wait until the pigs were fat enough for slaughter.
Meanwhile, trade ports and other key infrastructure were still under construction or expansion.
If there was one major obstacle to Kirigakure's development, it was the lack of skilled workers across industries.
Everything was still in its infancy.
It wasn't uncommon for entire batches of livestock to die due to inexperience or technical mistakes.
Raw materials could be imported in bulk, and Kirigakure had plenty of manpower.
But skilled professionals? That required time, patience, and experience.
No matter how capable Yagura was, he wasn't some all-powerful system that could instantly summon specialists out of thin air.
After the first wave of incidents, Elder Genshi had urgently ordered the Agricultural and Infrastructure Departments to form an advisory group.
Now, this team was the busiest group in the entire Mizukage's office, constantly traveling to the newborn ranches scattered across the land.
Fortunately, these people had all gone through Kirigakure's six-year compulsory ninja school education in their youth. Though they never joined the military, they had at least studied enough to handle these technical roles. Otherwise, most of them wouldn't have lasted under such intense workloads.
At the same time, the military warehouses, which had been running low on supplies, finally saw relief in early August when the weapons production workshops in the Village of Blades resumed operations.
The moment they got the green light to begin work, the entire Village of Blades erupted in excitement!
A whole month of doing nothing had nearly driven them insane.
Sure, they had food, shelter, and necessities covered by Kirigakure.
But sitting around all day, eating for free? Forget guilt—these people were just bored out of their minds!
Their homes were built, their workshops were right there, and shipments of iron ore and timber were arriving daily, piling up like small mountains.
Yet, they weren't allowed to start working.
Whenever they asked Kirigakure officials, the answer was always: "Just wait a few more days."
Every. Single. Time.
After an entire month, they finally got the go-ahead.
No more waiting! Time to get to work!
If they didn't start forging soon, their arms would rust!
…
On the 20th, Yagura received a report from the military department confirming that the inventory had been depleted.
He immediately set aside his current tasks and left Kirigakure's main district to inspect the Village of Blades.
It wasn't that he was worried about them failing to meet production deadlines.
That wasn't his concern. That was for the people below him to worry about if they didn't want to face their superiors' wrath.
No, he had personally overseen this project from the beginning.
And more importantly, the military industry here—its weapons manufacturing and future trade—was one of his most important means of generating immense wealth for Kirigakure.
Elder Genshi had already suggested relocating Kirigakure's existing weapons craftsmen to this region.
The village's other expenses were all screaming for funds, so they were relying on this industry to generate revenue.
As Yagura walked, he asked the trade department official behind him, "Who placed the latest order? And what's the quantity?"
The official, well-prepared for this question, answered without hesitation:
"The latest order comes from Konoha. They requested:
100,000 shuriken,
100,000 kunai,
10,000 standard ninja swords,
400 sets of iron caltrops,
500 claw hooks,
1,000 explosive tags,
500 ballista bolts…
Additionally, they ordered 1,000 sets of ninja light armor. This is the first time Konoha has placed an armor order with us—most likely as a test. We've assigned it to a vetted textile factory, and production is progressing smoothly."
Yagura clicked his tongue.
Konoha really was wealthy.
He had reviewed every order personally, and Konoha's purchasing volume far exceeded that of Sunagakure.
Upon arriving at the Village of Blades, he noted its impressive scale—designed by Elder Genshi to accommodate over 10,000 people.
Currently, only about a thousand residents had moved in. But more people from the Land of Artisans would be recruited, so planning ahead was always a good idea.
He had visited twice before and remembered the workshop district's location.
The village was peaceful.
He could hear babies crying, see housewives busying themselves with household chores.
The village manager approached, reporting, "The swordsmiths should all be at work in the forges."
"They want to work?"
Yagura still remembered the hostility between him and the Craftsmen-nin.
Though the ones who had come to Kirigakure had no direct ties to the warriors he had killed, the grudge wasn't easily forgotten.
"Well…"
The manager hesitated before awkwardly admitting, "The situation might be better than you think, Mizukage-sama."
Not long after, a gray-haired master blacksmith rushed out, waving his soot-stained hands.
"Mizukage-sama! Long time no see! Do you know how we've been living this past month?!"
Yagura remembered this old blacksmith—the leader of the first group that came from the Land of Artisans.
At first, he assumed there had been some mismanagement that had caused hardships.
But before he could scowl at the manager, the old blacksmith suddenly switched tones.
"These hands haven't touched a hammer in too long! These ears haven't heard the sound of the forge!"
Yagura stifled a laugh.
The manager sighed in relief.
(For the love of—don't scare me like that, old man!)
…
As they walked into the forge, Yagura took in the scene—the rhythmic clang of hammers, the roar of furnaces, the hiss of metal cooling in water.
The enthusiasm, the dedication, the hope for the future—everything was just as it should be.
Finally, Kirigakure was on the right track.
Next, it was time to focus on the world beyond its borders.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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