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Chapter 658: Intense Negotiations!

Fujin frowned and asked, "The Uzumaki clan… What was she doing in Kusagakure then? Considering our history, shouldn\'t we have taken in all Uzumaki survivors?"

Hiruzen sighed and answered, "Apparently her mother took refuge there. Unfortunately, by the time I knew about their existence, they realized how useful her ability was and exploited her to their full limit while keeping her protected all the time. The only way to rescue her was to massacre too many Kusa ninjas, which wasn\'t wise at that time. She died a few years ago and her daughter took over that role. They\'ve been exploiting her since then."

Fujin displayed a thoughtful expression and said, "That\'s a shame. You should\'ve told me about it sooner. Perhaps we could have made some arrangements for her and inducted her into the Anbu like the rest of the kids."

Hiruzen became serious and said, "Fujin, you shouldn\'t look at every situation through the same lens. Kidnapping any participating Genin in the Chunin exam is something that should never be done, irrespective of who it is. Even if we hide that Genin in the Anbu, the secret will be out sooner or later.

Once it is out, every enemy village will use it as an opportunity to drag our reputation through the mud. Our allies will become fearful of our intentions and will stop sending their talented Genins to the Chunin exams. And, when our Genins go to other villages to participate, they will make a move on our talented Genins.

As a result, the Chunin Exam will lose its meaning while our alliances will become extremely fickle and untrustworthy. It would be a huge blow for the village when the next Great War breaks out.

If you want to kidnap and induct anyone from outside Konoha, then you need to do it when they are outside Konoha, no, outside the Land of Fire. That way, even if anyone points their fingers at us, we can make up any story to make it seem like we are the good guys.

For instance, had I known about these two Uzumakis before Kusa recognized their importance, I would have sent Anbu to kidnap both of them. We would have brought them to Konoha and kept them hidden. In the future, when Kusa realizes that we have them, I would have made up a story about how some of our ninjas rescued them from their \'kidnappers\', who ran away on seeing Konoha ninjas and said that the mother-daughter pair asked for Konoha\'s protection.

That way, even though they know that the story is made up, they can\'t do anything about it and could only take that loss."

Fujin listened carefully and analyzed, \'Hmm, that\'s true. I hadn\'t considered the geopolitical impacts of such a move. Though to be fair, I didn\'t analyze it much and was just saying it just because it was a natural move and because there is nothing Hiruzen can do about Karin now.\'

Fujin nodded and said, "I hadn\'t considered those factors. Thank you for letting me know."

Hiruzen smiled and said, "You should, in the future. Be it as the leader of a hidden village or as a simple negotiator, you should always consider all aspects so that you don\'t end up hurting the village in the long term.

Anyway, leave this matter. It\'s too late to discuss in any case. I had another reason for calling you here…"

Hiruzen got off his chair and said, "Follow me."

Hiruzen flickered from the office and Fujin quickly followed him. The Anbu Guards chased after them as well but struggled to keep up. In a minute, Fujin and Hiruzen were standing in front of the same house they stood nearly six years ago! Fujin said, "He is early here this time."

Loud sounds of metals clashing could be heard as Hiruzen nodded and said, "Yeah, I requested him to come as soon as he could. It\'s not very often that I do that, so he won\'t decline my request."

Fujin nodded. The two walked towards the house. Hiruzen\'s heart bled knowing how much the visit to that house would cost him, but he steeled himself thinking, \'Even though it\'ll cost the village a lot, Fujin did defeat Orochimaru. He forced him to retreat twice. Giving him this reward isn\'t unjustified. Not to mention, it wouldn\'t look good for Konoha if our most talented youngster doesn\'t have a good weapon…\'

Fortunately for Fujin, Hiruzen was unaware of the fact that Fujin had the Blade of the Thunder Spirit as well as the Kiba Blades with him. Otherwise, he wouldn\'t have been willing to spend so much despite Fujin\'s amazing feat.

As he knocked on the door, Hiruzen thought, \'Oh well, this is just temporary. The village should earn more just by selling a portion of the plots around the Guidance Hall within the next 6 months.\'

Ota Momo opened the door and welcomed Hiruzen and Fujin in. Hiruzen\'s Anbu Guards stayed outside the house. Hiruzen and Fujin walked into the room where an old man, dressed in white robes, was sitting. Sitting behind him were 4 middle-aged men, all of whom were his apprentices. Hiruzen smiled and said, "It\'s good to see you still hale and hearty, Fuji-dono. Was your journey peaceful?"

[A/N: Both appeared in chapter 111.]

Furutani Fuji greeted back, "It\'s good to see you still on top of things as usual, Lord Hokage. The journey was peaceful thanks to the squad you sent to escort us, but my old bones are finding it hard to continue travelling so much."

He looked at Fujin and asked, "Anyway, you called me here on such short notice to make another sword for him, right?"

Hiruzen just nodded. Fuji looked at Fujin and asked with a smile on his face, "How do you want your sword to be made this time?"

Just like Jiraiya, Furutani Fuji had also heard people speaking about Fujin defeating Orochimaru. So, he was far more respectful. Fujin replied casually, "A sword that conducts Wind chakra flow seamlessly while being as tough and sturdy as it can be. Use the best materials you can to ensure that these two aspects aren\'t compromised in any way."

Furutani Fuji\'s eyes widened momentarily and he looked at Hiruzen. Seeing that Hiruzen didn\'t contradict Fujin, he thought, \'So, Konoha is going all out in creating a sword… The rumors must be true. This kid must have really defeated Orochimaru!\'

He smiled and said, "To create such a sword… Making this journey was worth it after all! Let\'s discuss it in more detail."

Fuji immediately informed Hiruzen and Fujin about what materials he could use, what the process would be, the blacksmiths that would be helping him and other details. They discussed the length, width and weight of the sword along with other specifications. After everything had been discussed, they finally began talking about the most important aspect, at least from Hiruzen\'s perspective.

Furutani Fuji analyzed everything and said, "Lord Hokage, considering everything, the cost of the sword will be approximately 370 Million Ryo."

Hiruzen had already expected it considering the materials that were being used for creating the sword and the number of reputed blacksmiths who\'d be working on it. However, that was no reason to agree with the price.

A look of disbelief appeared on Hiruzen\'s face as soon as he heard the price. He said, "That\'s too expensive, Fuji-dono. Reduce it."

Fujin glanced at Hiruzen and thought, \'His acting is really good. Knowing him, he must have been aware of what the price would be even before we stepped into this house.\'

While others would feel pressured to face Hiruzen, Furutani Fuji was no slouch. He had decades of experience in negotiating as well and easily saw through Hiruzen\'s act. However, considering Hiruzen\'s position, he didn\'t dare to point it out.

Instead, he showed a difficult expression and replied, "Lord Hokage, as you can see, the cost of the materials itself will be very high. Considering the high requirements of the sword and the fact that you require it in less than three weeks, I won\'t be able to do it without the help of other top-tier blacksmiths. Even if I agree to not include any crafting charges for myself, I\'ll need to pay them a considerable amount to get their help on such short notice."

Hiruzen immediately shook his head and said, "On the contrary, considering the high level of sword you\'ll be crafting, others will be interested to work willingly. After all, it\'s not every day that you get to create a sword of this level. If they miss this opportunity, who knows when they\'ll get another one."

Fuji immediately replied, "Even in that case, I won\'t be able to reduce the price much. At most, I might be able to reduce it to 350 million Ryo."

[A/N: Next chapter - A visit to the Land of Iron?

Latest chapter on Pat reon - A Lone Battle...]

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