"The construction of Uzushiogakure must be accelerated!" Uzumaki Jun rubbed his forehead as he looked at the reports submitted by his subordinates. Currently, most of the shinobi world was still in a period of poverty, especially since the wars had never truly stopped.
After all, the peace following wars was only temporary. The other major villages wanted to catch up to Konoha, and the other nations wanted to catch up to the Land of Fire. Aside from relying on Danzo, the "friend of the shinobi world," the only way was through war.
They sought to weaken Konoha's foundation through war, thereby achieving their goal of catching up.
So...
For Uzushiogakure to survive amidst the chaos and deter the other villages, there was no other way but to grow stronger!
"Where has Zetsu run off to?" Uzumaki Jun sighed. Wasn't he supposed to investigate who the spies in Uzushiogakure were? Why was there still no news?
Over the past few days, with the combined efforts of the Uzu-nin and the people, they had managed to identify a few suspicious individuals. Upon interrogation...
They were all spies!
Now, their chakra had been sealed, and they were sent to carry bricks to help build the bridge connecting Uzushiogakure to the Land of Fire.
And it had to be said, even with their chakra sealed, their physical abilities as shinobi were still quite impressive, especially for taijutsu specialists...
To suppress their physical capabilities, Uzumaki Jun had also tasked the science division with researching a sealing technique that could restrain their physical strength. The solution they came up with was a pair of iron shackles with attached iron balls, which were then locked onto the spies' limbs.
Surprisingly, the effect was quite good!
For a nation to grow strong, communication was essential. Isolating itself would only lead to falling further behind. And Uzushiogakure's geographical location...
A small island!
Aside from being relatively close to the Land of Fire, the other nations were too far away.
Thus, this bridge was indispensable for external communication. For shinobi, it might not be a big deal, but for ordinary civilians, it was troublesome. Were they supposed to rely on Uzu-nin to ferry them by boat forever?
Perhaps in the future, there would be better methods, such as space-time ninjutsu...
But for now, this bridge was absolutely necessary for Uzushiogakure. After all, without good transportation and goods, how could they attract merchants from other nations?
"The nationwide surveillance project must also be prioritized!" Uzumaki Jun muttered. It was impossible to have sensor-type shinobi monitoring everything 24/7. Moreover, if Uzushiogakure's classified information and technology were leaked to other nations, it would be disastrous. Thus, key areas had to be placed under surveillance.
"Lord Jun, today's schedule involves inspecting the farmlands," Uzumaki Hibiki reminded him after checking the memo.
"Mm, let's prepare and head out." Uzumaki Jun sighed. Building everything from scratch in Uzushiogakure was truly exhausting.
Today was an important day for spring plowing. A few days ago, he had Gato deliver the first batch of crop seeds, which had already been distributed. So today's task was to inspect the progress.
"Yes!"
...
"Old Yang, do you think Lord Jun's paddy fields are reliable?" An elderly man looked at another old man planting rice seedlings nearby, his face full of worry. "What if..."
No matter the era, food was always the most important resource.
Especially for civilians like them who had just survived the most difficult times!
"Old Qiu, just relax!" Old Yang chuckled. "Lord Jun wouldn't lie to us ordinary folk. If he says it'll work, then it'll work!"
"Think about the lives we had a few months ago and the lives we have now."
"All of this was given to us by Lord Jun!"
"Haha!" Old Qiu laughed awkwardly. "You're right. This old man is just too worried."
"If Lord Jun says it'll work, then it must be true!"
"By the way, isn't your second son getting married soon?" Old Yang ignored Old Qiu's embarrassment and continued planting seedlings. "You'll have to invite me for a drink then!"
"Out of our entire village, only our two families ended up here!"
"Yeah!" Hearing this, Old Qiu's face also showed a hint of melancholy. "Back then, this old man wanted to go to Konoha. If not for my eldest son's wife being pregnant and unable to move, maybe we would have..."
"I wonder how the others are doing now." Old Yang's face showed a trace of nostalgia before he turned to Old Qiu. "I'd say your eldest grandson is a blessed child. Otherwise, how could you have ended up here?"
"Hahaha!" Old Qiu raised his head proudly. "That's right! Now my eldest son has become a small team leader in the construction squad, and my second son is about to get married."
"All of this was brought by my eldest grandson! So I named him Misawa Eikoku (三沢衛国). In the future, I'll send him to the shinobi academy to protect our nation!"
...
Uzumaki Jun overheard the conversation between the two farmers planting seedlings in the paddy field and smiled faintly. It seemed that, little by little, these people were developing a sense of belonging to Uzushiogakure. He turned to Uzumaki Hibiki beside him. "The promotion of paddy fields has been fully implemented, right?"
Since reaching Kage-level in all attributes, his hearing had improved significantly.
"Yes, it's almost done." Uzumaki Hibiki nodded. "Water-release shinobi have been assigned to each responsible area, and the implementation is complete."
Uzumaki Jun nodded in satisfaction. Uzushiogakure didn't have many shinobi of other affinities, but wind and water shinobi were plentiful...
So...
Why hadn't the Kamizuru Clan arrived yet?!
"Also, select a group of experienced elderly farmers to teach those who don't understand," Uzumaki Jun said. "Especially the shinobi. They must not be arrogant and should humbly listen to others' advice."
"As long as the advice is reasonable, it doesn't matter whether the person is a shinobi or not!"
"Yes!" Uzumaki Hibiki nodded in acknowledgment.
Uzumaki Jun looked at the citizens busily working in the fields, a sense of pride welling up in his heart.
This...
Was his nation!
Since today was the day for spring plowing, most construction teams and factories were on break.
Thus, there were quite a few people in the fields—men and women, young and old. Some families had even come out in full force, and everyone's faces were filled with hopeful smiles.
Everything in Uzushiogakure was slowly progressing in a positive direction!
"What about the newly recruited shinobi?" Uzumaki Jun asked Uzumaki Hibiki. Among the newly recruited members, several dozen were shinobi.
Had they caused any trouble?
"There haven't been any issues." Uzumaki Hibiki glanced around and pointed in a direction. "That's one of them—Ushima Da, a chunin proficient in fire and earth release."
Uzumaki Jun looked in the indicated direction and saw a middle-aged man, around forty years old, with a displeased expression, seemingly scolding a child next to him. Curious, he walked over...
"Kid, aren't you annoying? This old man is a famous shinobi!" Ushima Da said impatiently. "I'll kill you if you keep bothering me!"
"Uncle Da, stop pretending." The child pouted dismissively. "I don't believe you're a shinobi! You can't even use ninjutsu. There's no way you're a shinobi. You're definitely lying. And me..." The child raised his head proudly. "I'm going to enroll in the shinobi academy and become a real shinobi to protect Uzushiogakure!"
"Kid, I told you my chakra is just sealed. Otherwise, I'd show you what real ninjutsu is!" Ushima Da said irritably while planting seedlings. "Your uncle here is a well-known shinobi out there!"
"Hmph!" The child still didn't believe him.
...
This brat...
Ushima Da sighed helplessly. "Why aren't you helping your dad instead of messing around here?"
"Oh, right! Uncle Da, when are you telling stories again? Stories about shinobi." The child suddenly remembered something and looked at him expectantly. "Even though Uncle Da likes to brag, the stories you tell are pretty good!"
...
Who's bragging? I, Ushima Da, am a real shinobi!
"In a few days, in a few days." Ushima Da waved him off impatiently. "Can't you see how busy we are right now?"
"Alright then!" The child nodded in satisfaction, took out a package wrapped in parchment from his pocket, and said, "This is some snacks Mom made. She said to give some to Uncle Da!"
After placing the package in Ushima Da's hands, the child skipped away happily.
"Hey, hey, you little brat..." Ushima Da looked helplessly at the parchment now slightly dirty from his soiled hands. Didn't this kid know his hands were dirty?
A faint smile appeared on his face as he shook his head. "What an annoying little brat."
He raised his head and looked at the people busily working around him, feeling a surge of emotion. Perhaps...
This wasn't so bad after all!