A few weeks later, Minato Namikaze met with envoys from Iwagakure (Stone Village) and Kirigakure (Mist Village).
Both envoys expressed a desire for peace and were willing to make certain concessions in exchange for a peace treaty with Konoha.
Minato naturally seized the opportunity, gaining numerous benefits from the negotiations. Although he couldn't secure land from the Land of Earth and Land of Water, he successfully drove out both countries' influence from the surrounding smaller nations, thereby expanding Konoha's sphere of influence.
The only hidden village that had yet to make a statement was Kumogakure (Cloud Village) from the Land of Lightening.
Kumogakure was the most troublesome for Minato. The Land of Lightning, where Kumogakure is located, is surrounded by the sea on three sides with rugged terrain. The Fourth Raikage, A, was known for his speed and could counter the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Furthermore, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki was currently the strongest among all jinchuriki, capable of fully harnessing the power of the tailed beast.
However, with the situation in the ninja world gradually stabilizing, Kumogakure, even if it didn't sign a peace treaty with other villages, would not dare to act recklessly.
Although the AB combination (A and B) was very strong, they were by no means invincible.
After signing peace agreements with Iwagakure and Kirigakure and gaining significant prestige, Minato Namikaze finally began his reforms.
Minato's reforms focused on two main areas:
First is breaking down barriers between Village Departments. He aimed to increase personnel mobility, especially in departments like the security force, which had to be restructured and not be exclusive to the Uchiha clan. Minato believed that while the Second Hokage's intention in creating the security force was good, it had backfired by isolating the Uchiha clan within that department, making them outsiders to the village. To address this, it was essential to separate the Uchiha clan from the security force.
To achieve this, Minato privately met with Uchiha Fugaku multiple times, persuading the Uchiha clan leader that only by leading the reformation of the security force could they dismantle other departments.
Secondly, educational and scientific reforms. Minato wanted to involve ninjas in various professions and grant them the freedom to choose their careers, rather than being merely mercenaries for the daimyo and nobility.
Having confirmed the direction of the reforms, Minato wasted no time. He bypassed the high-level meetings and directly announced the possible reforms at the senior ninja meeting.
Upon hearing the reform details, the Third Hokage and other advisory elders' expressions darkened. Minato had circumvented them and sought to alter the village's order.
However, considering Minato's current prestige, they neither opposed nor rejected the reforms, tacitly accepting them.
The senior ninjas of Konoha, upon hearing the reform details, fell into deep thought. While the Fourth Hokage's proposed reforms aligned with the Will of Fire, ideals often clashed with reality. How many would be willing to forgo their current benefits to support Minato's reforms?
Most of the Uchiha senior ninjas were opposed, and the high-ranking ninjas from various departments also harbored doubts. Nevertheless, they knew they could not openly oppose Minato in this setting. Instead, they expressed support for the proposed reforms, contemplating how to maximize their own benefits from the Fourth Hokage's initiative.
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The Fourth Hokage's reforms undoubtedly caused a seismic shift within Konoha.
Various factions silently began to take sides, each concerned about whether their interests would be affected. They aimed to outmaneuver their rivals in this reform and take the opportunity to strike while others were down.
However, for the majority of Chunin and Genin, the Fourth Hokage's reforms were both closely related and unrelated to them. Whether the reforms succeeded or failed did not affect their ability to carry out missions and earn commissions from their employers. Chunin and Genin were largely indifferent to the reforms.
As an orphan from the orphanage, Kabuto Yakushi had even less interest in the Fourth Hokage's reforms. Instead of wasting time on the village's internal power struggles, he preferred to focus on completing the tasks assigned by Byakuya to earn more money for his household.
Two weeks earlier, Kabuto had met the mysterious Byakuya. Under the condition of working for Byakuya in the future, Kabuto received a substantial sum of 100,000 ryo. For the orphanage, 100,000 ryo was a significant amount, enough to sustain it for several more months.
Kabuto would never forget the look of astonishment on the director's face when he received the money. The director immediately questioned where the money came from, but Kabuto did not admit that it was earned from his work. He simply said that a kind-hearted person had donated to the orphanage.
In Kabuto's eyes, Byakuya was indeed a genuinely good person. However, as he completed more tasks, Kabuto grew increasingly curious about Byakuya's identity. Who was Byakuya, and why did he make donations to the orphanage under the pretext of assigning tasks?
After all, the tasks Byakuya assigned were often trivial, such as gathering rumors from the streets, exercising, and reading books, which seemed meaningless.
Kabuto had once asked Byakuya about this, and the response was:
"Your strength is still too weak to handle more difficult tasks. Focus on growing and improving, and you will find your place when the time is right."
Kabuto did not take Byakuya's words to heart or worry about being exploited. As an orphan with no knowledge of his parents, being noticed and utilized by someone was a good thing, proving that he still had value.
Moreover, Byakuya, aside from assigning tasks, occasionally answered Kabuto's questions.
Thinking of this, Kabuto, who had run several kilometers around the streets, stopped and whispered, audible only to himself.
"Senpai, I've completed today's running task. When can I expect the payment?"
Byakuya's clone glanced at Kabuto and replied:
"The money is still in the usual place. Go retrieve it when no one else is around. Tomorrow, your task is to read at the Konoha Library. My subordinates need to have good physical conditioning, but their cultural knowledge shouldn't be too poor."
Kabuto nodded in response, "Senpai, I will make sure to complete the task."
Pausing for a moment, Kabuto then curiously asked, "But why are you interested in gathering information about the reforms? Are you interested in the Fourth Hokage's reforms?"
Byakuya nodded.
"I am indeed interested in the Hokage's reforms, but not in the way you might think. I am here specifically to watch Minato Namikaze's mistakes and to learn from his failures."