Although his shinobi village was still quite weak, they absolutely had to set themselves a grand goal.
When it came to the five areas of military strength, politics, economics, culture, and influence, none of them could be neglected.
In short…
The first step was to sell them a grand vision!
“First, the military.
What a shinobi village competes on is the quality of its shinobi.
We need to recruit as many shinobi clans as possible.
The major clans come first.
If they won’t join us, then we’ll move on to the smaller clans…”
“Next is the economy…”
Below the stage.
Kazuma was very seriously writing and drawing in his notebook.
But Uchiha Makoto was an Uchiha, and his eyesight was excellent.
This fellow Kazuma was apparently immune to Makoto’s grand promises.
On the surface, he looked as though he were taking notes, but in reality, he was doodling in his notebook.
Megumin was listening with burning enthusiasm.
Aqua was nodding off.
Darkness, meanwhile, was doing quite well.
She was taking notes seriously.
“Everyone, regarding the construction of our shinobi village, do you have any good suggestions?”
Uchiha Makoto finished his speech, and it was now time for discussion.
Kazuma stood up and raised a very adult topic.
“Lord Makoto, we’re currently short on funds…
If we want to attract shinobi clans to join the village…
we’ll need…”
“And then there’s economic development.
If we’re talking about attracting outside investment…”
Uchiha Makoto covered his face in frustration.
The lack of funding was an unavoidable problem.
Construction on various projects throughout the village had already begun, and money was flowing out like water.
Nearly half of the one billion ryō had already been burned through.
What they needed most now was another large sum of money to fill the shortfall.
The Fire Daimyō probably wouldn’t be providing any more funding in the near future.
They would have to find a way to solve the financial problem themselves.
“Lord Makoto, regarding the village’s development, I may actually be able to help…”
“My father has a number of merchant friends.
As long as the village provides sufficiently favorable business conditions, I’m confident they’ll be willing to invest in the shinobi village.”
Darkness, who had been diligently taking notes, raised her hand.
She intended to make use of her father’s connections to inject some investment into the village.
Once money began flowing in, the village economy would become more active.
That would attract more people.
Once people began gathering, they would stimulate even more economic activity and attract even more investment…
A positive economic cycle would be established.
“Oh!
That’s wonderful, Darkness!”
Uchiha Makoto was extremely excited.
After all, the primary purpose of today’s meeting had been to sell everyone a grand vision.
It wasn’t actually expected to solve any substantive problems.
He hadn’t expected such a pleasant surprise.
Darkness actually had a noble background in this shinobi world as well.
“In that case, I’ll write to my father and inform him.
Also, Lord Makoto…
after some time, you may need to attend a social gathering in person.”
“As for a gift to bring, we could use tulips.
They’ve become rather fashionable recently.”
Darkness said this before Uchiha Makoto suddenly interrupted her.
“Wait a moment…”
“You said tulips?”
Uchiha Makoto had just heard the name of a familiar flower.
Tulips?
A strange expression appeared on Uchiha Makoto’s face, as though he had just discovered a new continent.
He hadn’t expected to hear such a familiar name in the shinobi world!
The tulip bubble from his previous life on Earth had been practically legendary.
“Darkness, tell me everything you know about these tulips!”
“Yes, Lord Leader…”
Darkness didn’t understand why Uchiha Makoto was suddenly so interested in tulips, but she still told him everything she knew, without holding anything back.
After all, it wasn’t some state secret.
A little asking around among the noble circles was enough to learn the whole story.
….
Although there were still plenty of commoners in the Land of Fire who could barely afford to eat every day, the nobles of the Land of Fire had long since grown accustomed to a life of luxury.
Once people had enough to eat and drink, they naturally began seeking more unusual pleasures.
According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, these old-money nobles of the Land of Fire had already moved beyond basic material pursuits and begun seeking fulfillment on a spiritual level.
But ordinary antiques, collectibles, and courtesans…
They had already grown tired of all of them.
They wanted something different.
Something that other people didn’t have.
Something that could subtly demonstrate that they were both cultured and wealthy.
Tulips!
A flower from a distant island overseas.
Even its bulb supposedly resembled a golden ingot.
More importantly, the flower was extremely difficult to cultivate.
After being planted, it took seven years for the bulb to mature.
Then, after the bulb had matured, it required another eight months before flowering.
It was practically tailor-made for the nobles of the Land of Fire!
Although tulips were currently fashionable among only a small portion of the nobles, it was merely a matter of time before they spread throughout the entire nobility of the Land of Fire.
And eventually…
The nobility of the entire shinobi world.
“I see…”
Uchiha Makoto crossed his hands beneath his chin, the corners of his mouth curling upward into a confident smile.
Sure enough…
The wealthy elites of every world were basically the same.
Even the shinobi world was no exception.
Once they had eaten their fill and enjoyed enough comfort, they wanted to play with something unusual.
This was perfect!
You have money.
And I desperately need money!
Make money, make money!!
…..
“I am now certain that I’ve thought of an extremely safe and extremely profitable way to make money.”
“Unfortunately, the plan is rather complicated, and there’s not enough space here to write it all down.”
Uchiha Makoto had originally intended to make money through a more cautious and gradual approach.
But…
If he could make a quick fortune, he wasn’t going to pass up such a perfect opportunity.
Let the tulip bubble inflate in this shinobi world!
“Lord Makoto, don’t tell me you’re thinking about…
getting into the tulip business?”
Kazuma immediately guessed Uchiha Makoto’s intentions.
But in truth, Kazuma was still a native of the shinobi world, rather than the transmigrator from another world that Makoto remembered.
There was no way he could figure out how to profit from tulips in such a short time.
“That’s right.”
“But the timing isn’t ripe yet.
We need to accelerate the process!”
“Accelerate?”
“That’s right.
I need to make tulips famous throughout the entire noble circle in the shortest possible time!”
Uchiha Makoto said this while thinking.
Tulips were currently circulating among only a small portion of the noble class.
How could that possibly be enough?
He wasn’t worried that the tulip bubble wouldn’t take off in the shinobi world.
Human greed wouldn’t change just because the world was different.
Makoto simply believed that if he had decided to make quick money, then he had to make as much as possible.
What was the point of being timid?
If you’re afraid, don’t play.
If you’re going to play, don’t be afraid!
The more players there were in the money game, the better.
“But…
that’s going to be difficult as well.”
Kazuma frowned.
As someone who had grown up as a shinobi, he had little interest in a luxury good like tulips that circulated among nobles.
But his experience as a shinobi told him that getting the name of tulips to resound throughout the entire shinobi world would not be easy.
“Kazuma, use your brain.
I’ve always had high hopes for you.”
“Let me show you how it’s done first.
Do you like listening to stories?”
Uchiha Makoto looked at Kazuma.
Kazuma’s personality and mannerisms were virtually identical to the Kazuma in Makoto’s memories.
It was only his status as a native of the shinobi world that had limited his perspective.
With just a little guidance, Makoto was certain he could unlock Kazuma’s potential.
“I don’t mind listening to a story every now and then.”
“Then I have a story for you.”
“Its title is—The Daimyō’s Daughter Buys Tulips!”
“Once upon a time, our Fire Daimyō was extremely fond of tulips.
However, he had long since grown tired of ordinary yellow and white tulips.
He wanted to see tulips of different colors, so the Fire Daimyō was even willing to spend a fortune searching throughout the Land of Fire for such rare specimens.”
“Unfortunately, an entire year passed without him finding anything.”
“At that point, a minor official serving under the daimyō boldly stepped forward and swore on his life that he could accomplish the daimyō’s task.”
“The daimyō agreed and entrusted the task to him.”
“Less than a month later, the minor official discovered a rare red-and-white variegated tulip in the Land of Fire.”
“Unfortunately, the tulip was already close to withering.”
“Even so, the minor official paid three million ryō for it.”
“He brought the nearly withered tulip back to the capital of the Land of Fire and presented it to the daimyō.”
“The moment the daimyō saw the nearly dead flower, he flew into a rage.”
“‘I wanted a tulip in full bloom!
You spent three million ryō buying this nearly withered flower.
Are you trying to fool me?'”
“The minor official, however, confidently replied:”
“‘Your Highness, the one million ryō I spent on this tulip will not be wasted.
“‘And even when presented with a rare tulip that is already close to withering, you were still willing to spend a fortune to purchase it.'”
“‘Before long, countless people will be bringing tulips to Your Highness as gifts!'”
“And later, exactly as the minor official had predicted, the daimyō received several exquisite tulips a month later.”
Uchiha Makoto’s mouth was dry after telling the story.
Thus, a shinobi-world adaptation of a classic story about making a name known through extravagant purchases.
Every move made by the daimyō was watched by countless people.
There was an old saying: When the ruler shows favor to something, the people naturally follow.
When those at the top set an example, those below would inevitably follow.
Combined with the shinobi-world version of the tale of buying a rare horse for a thousand pieces of gold, the effect would be far greater than the sum of its parts.
Let the shinobi world experience the terrifying power of mass media!
And Makoto happened to be in a honeymoon period with the daimyō.
The daimyō wouldn’t mind helping him with such a small favor.
In fact…
Uchiha Makoto could even bring the daimyō into the business.
After all, they were going to make money by fleecing the wealthy nobles.
And the daimyō was already deeply dissatisfied with those nobles.
Forming factions for personal gain.
Evading taxes.
Why not fleece them until they were broke?
“Th-that was quite a story.”
Kazuma swallowed hard as he spoke.
He could only feel a mountain of strange knowledge suddenly forcing its way into his brain.
“Quite a story…”
Kazuma’s talent was truly extraordinary.
He listened to Uchiha Makoto’s little story in a trance, and it was as though an entire pile of bizarre knowledge had appeared out of nowhere inside his head.
A brand-new door had opened before him.
Kazuma had absolutely no doubt about the power of Makoto’s plan.
The daimyō had initially spent a fortune seeking tulips.
After going through numerous channels and experiencing all kinds of twists and turns, he had finally managed to purchase rare tulips.
Once such a story spread throughout the Land of Fire, it would almost immediately ignite the local tulip market.
“What do you mean, calculating the price by the individual flower?”
“If the nobles of the Land of Wind hear about that, they’ll think we nobles of the Land of Fire have fallen on hard times!”
“Bring me another roomful!”
“I want every room in my house filled with them!”
These were the very things the daimyō had been dreaming about.
Those old-money nobles who prided themselves on being at the forefront of high culture would absolutely not miss out on them.
The old-money nobles of the Land of Fire would probably line up to spend fortunes on tulips.
Can’t get any?
Then just pay more!
The market price of tulips was currently still relatively low.
If someone stocked up on a large quantity now, then waited until the price rose…
They could be virtually guaranteed to make a fortune.
A fourfold or fivefold increase wasn’t a problem.
Even tenfold or more wasn’t impossible!
“I understand, Lord Makoto!
I’ll immediately go and stock up on a huge batch of tulips!”
Kazuma’s face flushed with excitement.
He could practically see his glorious future waiting for him.
“Too small.
You’re thinking far too small.”
“Kazuma, your thinking still…
Never mind.”
“Let me enlighten you one more time!”
Uchiha Makoto shook his head.
Kazuma’s vision was still too narrow.
It was time for his leader to enlighten him again!
Buying low and selling high was far too simple.
As long as you controlled the information gap in the market, it was practically effortless.
Anyone could do it.
Hell, you could practically tie a dog to a chair and have it do the same thing.
Of course…
That wasn’t important.
The most important thing was that the profit wouldn’t satisfy Uchiha Makoto.
The selling point of tulips was that they were beautiful and scarce.
Because they took a long time to cultivate and required difficult growing conditions, there simply weren’t many tulips on the market.
Even if Uchiha Makoto used every means at his disposal to drive the price up several times, or even more than tenfold…
The total supply of tulips would still be limited.
That was an obstacle he couldn’t simply ignore.
If he wanted to fleece the market and make a fortune, he could only continue pushing the price of tulips higher.
But once tulips became too expensive, the nobles of the Land of Fire weren’t idiots.
They wouldn’t be crazy enough to spend their food money buying a bunch of flowers.
And besides…
Those greedy merchants would inevitably notice the profits to be made from tulips and try to enter the market themselves.
That would shrink his profit margin even further.
Therefore…
Simply buying low and selling high was absolutely not enough!
“Then what do you have in mind, Lord Makoto?”
“We should indeed stockpile a batch of tulips right now and sell them once the price skyrockets.”
“But tulips are scarce.”
“So even if we manipulate the tulip market, the amount of money we can make will still be quite limited.”