After finally managing to send away those ninjas, Kagura continued to pester Uchiha Kagami like a starving puppy circling its owner. She had this determined look, as if she wouldn't stop bothering him unless he let her see what she wanted.
In the end, Kagami couldn't take it anymore and raised his hands in surrender.
"Fine, considering your relationship with the teacher, I'll let you take a look. Just one look."
"Deal!" Kagura high-fived the surrendering Kagami, her eyes gleaming as if she could already see piles of money flying toward her.
The first step toward becoming a wealthy woman had been taken, and everything was proceeding smoothly.
Konoha had its own ninja tool factory exclusively for the village's use. Calling it a factory was a bit of an overstatement—it was just a few buildings where workers crafted tools.
Once the tools were made, they were collected by designated personnel, and the village paid for them on a regular schedule.
Standing outside the "factory," Kagura hesitated. Kagami, who had walked ahead, turned back with a puzzled look and asked,
"Why aren't you coming in?"
The factory was rather shabby, looking more like someone's storage shed than a proper facility.
"Are you sure this is the ninja tool factory?"
Kagami nodded solemnly.
Kagura sighed deeply.
Alright, she was here to learn the craft, so she could overlook the appearance. But when she opened her own factory, it would definitely be a grand one, worthy of the prestige of the top ninja village among the Five Great Nations.
Of course, that was a matter for the future.
The factory entrance was guarded by ninjas to prevent theft or raids by ninjas from other villages. This was a time shortly after the end of the Warring States period. Other villages had adopted Konoha one-nation-one-village system, clinging to their own powerful backers.
Some of the more reckless nations would send their ninjas to engage in petty theft. As long as they weren't caught alive, they could deny everything, preventing the incidents from escalating into diplomatic issues.
Previously, there had been several cases of ninja tools being stolen from the factory.
Tobirama wanted to pursue the matter, but Hashirama always stopped him. Hashirama greatest trait was his strong sense of empathy.
He had already imagined countless reasons why those ninjas might have been forced to steal, and after a moment of mental turmoil, he was nearly moved to tears, feeling nothing but pity for them.
"Who would risk their life to steal ninja tools unless they were truly desperate, right?"
Looking at his older brother, who was always on the verge of tears, Tobirama felt a throbbing pain in his temples. This was his own brother—what could he do? He had to indulge him. So, he and the village silently swallowed the losses.
On the other hand, to prevent such thefts from continuing, Tobirama stationed ninjas at the factory, working in two shifts. Essentially, he hired security guards, which put an end to the thefts.
Kagami was a member of Tobirama and Hashirama guard team and often accompanied the two leaders. Everyone in the village recognized him, so when they saw him arrive, they assumed Tobirama had sent him to inspect the ninja tools and automatically let him through.
The factory wasn't very large. Kagura had no interest in kunai or shuriken, so Kagami took her to the explosive tag production room. There weren't many people there—just a dozen or so, all middle-aged women.
A line of people stood in front of iron workbenches, each with sheets of talisman paper laid out before them. They worked in pairs—one person performed a fire-style ninjutsu, while the other used a space-time sealing technique to seal the fire-style ninjutsu into the talisman paper.
The partners worked in perfect harmony, their movements fluid and seamless, completing the process in one smooth motion.
"Now you know how they're made, right? Hey, miss, Kagura-san? Kagura-san?"
Over there, Kagura was utterly stunned, her jaw practically on the floor. What was going on? Is this really how explosive tags are made? It's absolutely ridiculous!
"Explosive tags require fire-style ninjutsu and sealing technique to create. As you know, a person chakra is limited, so the production is low, and they're quite expensive. Most genin can't afford them, and even chunin and jonin use them sparingly. Unless it's a large-scale war, only those with enough money can buy and use them. It all depends on personal wealth."
Of course, only members of wealthy clans like Shikamaru could afford to use so many explosive tags to set traps and outsmart Hidan. Only a village leader like Hanzo could bury countless explosive tags to blow up Nagato and cripple him.
This brings us back to the beginning. It has to be said, Lady Konan is really rich, the Akatsuki is really rich, and Kakuzu is truly a master at making money!
If this were the real world, Kakuzu would undoubtedly dominate the list of most desirable men to marry. His age of over ninety wouldn't be an issue—after all, some people are even older than their mothers-in-law. You know who I'm talking about.
........
When they left the factory, Kagura was completely disheartened and devastated, like a small sapling battered by a storm.
Kyo, standing nearby, was utterly confused, his face filled with bewilderment.
"What's wrong with you? You've seen it all, so why aren't you happy?"
"Ugh!" Kagura let out a long sigh, feeling like her life was so bitter.
"Not only am I broke, but I can't even make a single explosive tag. I don't know fire-style ninjutsu, I can't use space-time sealing techniques, and I don't even have chakra. Isn't it said that if a person works hard, even the heavens will help them? Why doesn't that apply to me?"
Not only did it not apply, but if her situation were a house, not only were the doors closed, but the windows were sealed shut, and even the cracks were stuffed with cloth. It was just her luck.
"If only I could transmigrate into someone in this world…"
Kagami didn't quite understand what Kagura was saying.
"Why are you so obsessed with explosive tags?"
"It's all about the money!"
In this world, Kagura could speak her mind clearly and openly without anyone calling her materialistic.
"If I told you that decades from now, someone would come to me to buy six hundred billion explosive tags, would you believe me?"
Kagami was reminded of what his companions had said. They mentioned that the woman Lord Tobirama brought back was pitiful, her mind damaged by the First Hokage, and she was probably insane. He didn't believed it before, but now…
"What's with that look?" Kagura glared at him. Kagami eyes were filled with sympathy, as if he were lamenting the waste of a promising young person. What a pity.
"Ahem," Kagami pretended to cough to cover his embarrassment.
Trying to hide her embarrassment, Kagami forced a smile and said "Six hundred billion is such an astronomical number that I can't even comprehend it. Even the Daimyo probably couldn't come up with that much money. After all, the cheaper ones cost three to four hundred ryo each, while the more expensive ones can reach tens of thousands of ryo. Can you even imagine how much six hundred Billion ryo would be?"
Hehe, it seems that calculating one explosive tag as one ryo was indeed a bargain.
This brings us back to the beginning—Sister Konan is really rich, way richer than Bill Gates by many times. The Akatsuki is loaded, and Kakuzu is a freaking money-making machine!!!
If this were a live stream, wouldn't "Kakuzu is a money-making genius" be spammed on the screen ten thousand times?
"By the way, why are all the people making explosive tags middle-aged married women? Can't men do this job?"
Is there a gender divide in making explosive tags?
"Well," Kagami scratched his head and explained
"Generally, ninjas who are married and have children don't go on missions as often. It's like an early retirement. In an era of constant war, it's essential to nurture the next generation and cultivate fresh forces. Children mostly rely on their mothers, so this responsibility falls on the mothers. Many of them were excellent ninjas before marriage. Lord Tobirama thought it would be good to give them a chance to shine, so he assigned them some safe, behind-the-scenes work. These ladies making explosive tags are all skilled in fire-style ninjutsu."
Tsk tsk, the Second Hokage really thought things through. On one hand, he has them making explosive tags, ensuring that these housewives don't waste their talents. On the other hand, he guarantees their safety so their children won't lose their mothers. Plus, they get paid. It has to be said, he's quite suited to be a manager.
Kagura then asked, "Is their salary fixed?"
Kagami thought for a moment and honestly replied, "I don't know. No one in my family works here."
An idea popped into Kagura mind. Although she had transmigrated into the world of Naruto, deep down, she was still a modern person with modern thinking.
When she was alive, she was constantly oppressed by capitalists and forced into endless competition. After becoming a vegetable and her soul transmigrating, she immediately channeled her inner capitalist, thinking about how to compete with the village for business.
If the fixed salary were changed to a piece-rate system, where you earn more for doing more, wouldn't the output double? After all, even in this world, no one turns down money. Otherwise, those ninjas wouldn't be so fiercely competing for missions.
Even someone like Orochimaru, who spends all his free time on various experiments and defected from the Leaf at a young age, has an astonishing number of missions under his belt.
Mission Experience: D: 16 times, C: 332 times, B: 521 times, A: 491 times, S: 108 times.
And that's not even counting the missions he took after defecting from the Leaf and doing whatever he wanted as his own boss.
Just how competitive is that!
It seems that at the level of the Sannin, they're all loaded.
[Tsunade : "..."]