Chapter 192: Underground Fighting Arena, the Death of Zhuan Qin Xiaochun

"Overall there's no problem; you are indeed clever, and I only mentioned it briefly, yet you can apply it."

That evening, Shisui told Yan Shifan the events of the day in detail, and Yan Shifan nodded approvingly from time to time.

Although the two had already discussed it in detail before today, the control of the situation still relied on Shisui's own ability.

Shisui chuckled, then said with a hint of regret, "It's a pity we can't be perfect; we could have followed the old example, burned the evidence, used the chance to show mercy and win hearts. Now we can only raise prestige to inspire fear—might that cause people to become divided?"

Yan Shifan smiled and replied, "There's no such thing as a perfect solution. This time when we drew swords we only cut down Zhuan Qin Xiaochun, but the Village still lacks money; if we don't recover the stolen funds we'll have to find another target as an emergency. Such high pressure will cause people to be divided. We only cut one, gave them a chance to make amends, which isn't bad."

Money—one cent can stump a hero!

When Shisui was alone before, he never lacked money, but the more subordinates he had, the poorer he became, which left him very helpless.

"Teacher, are there any other ways to make money?" Shisui thought for a moment and asked shyly.

Yan Shifan's mouth twitched upward, but he didn't answer Shisui immediately; after a moment he nodded and said, "There is indeed a method, but…"

"But what?" Shisui, delighted, asked eagerly.

"No rush; first listen as I analyze it in detail."

Yan Shifan sighed inwardly, thinking that as a distinguished elder of the Great Ming Hall who single‑handedly supports the two capitals of Great Ming and thirteen provinces, holding the highest rank among ministers with overwhelming power, yet in both his past and present lives he is always busy extracting money for others, working as a merchant.

Of course, this time differs from the last; last time he was literally working for others, and he could rake in money without worrying about repercussions, since the state wasn't his Yan family's. But now Leaf belongs to the Uchiha, so he must consider the subsequent impact.

"I have found that although ninja is a high‑income profession, compared with nobles it is very plain and simple. In terms of spending, ninja expenses are focused on practical matters; they never spend more than the price of an item itself."

Yan Shifan said this, then suddenly noticed Shisui tilting his head with a bewildered expression.

"Simply put, a ninja's money goes either to cultivation or to eating, drinking, prostitution, and gambling. The former is to boost strength; the latter is to vent pressure. This relates to their work, emphasizing practicality and directness."

"Oh, I see. What the teacher said makes sense."

Shisui was enlightened, but the phrase "eating, drinking, prostitution, gambling" made him blush, though it was very vivid.

Eating follows a rhythm, but at least it's for cultivation; drinking is even more widespread—almost every ninja enjoys alcohol; prostitution need not be mentioned, and gambling even has a Tsunade.

Regardless of the type, it's all to vent the pressure they accumulate from missions and battlefields, so although not encouraged, Leaf never prohibits it, because excessive pressure only brings more trouble, especially since ninja possess great martial power.

The more Shisui thought about it, the more he felt the term was practically coined to describe ninja.

"But the business of enhancing strength can't be done for now, and as Hokage you should not partake in eating, drinking, prostitution, gambling; moreover, in Leaf's fifty years these things are already saturated, and through normal means we can't earn much."

Therefore, the way to make money still lies with nobles and wealthy merchants.

For these people, eating, drinking, prostitution, gambling are merely bad habits; food, clothing, shelter, and travel are basic—they need more upscale, more thrilling pleasures.

The nobles have countless varieties; Yan Shifan, having experienced many, is naturally well aware.

He sent people to investigate, and found many things that don't exist in this world; of course, this world also has many things he never saw in his past life, such as various bizarre yet practical "technology" creations like televisions, wireless radios, camcorders, etc.

"Nobles' business"

Shisui pondered for a moment, recalling the ninja academy of the West River Path.

"If the ninja academy were expanded, it could earn a lot of funds each year, but most of it would have to go to training the ninja army, and the results are too slow, the cycle too long."

"This time it's unrelated to the ninja academy, and has fewer drawbacks; money comes quickly, the cycle is short, and it can attract wandering ninja to gather. Moreover, we can use it to gauge the strength of those nobles."

Shisui was a bit puzzled; he didn't press for the exact method, but instead said, "Teacher, could you talk about the drawbacks of the ninja academy?"

"Hmm?"

Yan Shifan looked at Shisui with some surprise and said plainly, "You actually noticed these."

"You've kept mentioning the ninja academy's drawbacks, but never in detail before; I can't understand—aside from being slower, what serious problems could a place that both makes money and trains ninja have that warrant such emphasis?"

"Hahaha, I hadn't planned to tell you now, but since you asked, I'll explain."

"Please, teacher!"

"Sima Gong should have told you about the Ling Emperor period, when the Moth bandits were powerful, central troops were insufficient, and Liu Yan proposed that each prefecture raise its own troops, right?"

Yan Shifan merely mentioned it in passing, and Shisui immediately understood, his expression turning very serious.

"Although the ninja academy can earn money and train ninja troops loyal to the Uchiha, it also strengthens local nobles; once they unite, controlling population and production, they could easily raise a massive ninja army. If mishandled, these forces would become obstacles to our unification."

The West River Path is merely a trial; after a year, when local nobles see its value, they will inevitably increase investment.

Although the West River Path has a small population, it still numbers in the millions, all under their control; as long as they wish, they can train large numbers of ninja each year.

"Then if we do this, wouldn't it…"

Shisui began, then suddenly realized that the move itself has both pros and cons; we need money and people, and can only obtain them from nobles, with no other way.

"Hahaha, the people's hearts are like water, how deep they are. The people's movements are like smoke, how chaotic."

Rest assured, Sima Gong and I will not let them unite.

Shisui opened his mouth, but Yan Shifan, seeing he still wanted to ask, waved his hand and said, "When the time comes you'll know naturally; let's continue discussing how to make money."

"…Alright, thank you, Teacher."

Yan Shifan nodded and continued, "These people are born nobles; they have never endured hardship or struggle. They are inherently lofty, many have quirks, mostly manifesting as bloodlust and contempt for common lives."

Thus, I have already had someone purchase a manor near the capital, intending to convert it into an underground fighting arena to test the situation.

"Underground fighting arena?"

"Simply put, it's linking ninja battles with gambling: two ninja fight in the arena, drawing merchants and nobles to place bets."

Yan Shifan knows that some distinguished nobles will have their private troops duel, and will also recruit slaves who have sold themselves for various reasons or northern barbarians for fights, even sometimes man versus beast.

Of course, they mostly do it for face and amusement, rarely for profit. "Isn't this taking ninja lives for entertainment?"

Shisui frowned, finding it hard to accept; as a ninja he would have to lead the contempt of ninja.

"If you think that way, it truly is taking ninja lives for fun."

Yan Shifan nodded earnestly and said, "The effect for ordinary people is clearly not as good as for ninja."

"But you can rest assured, we can spread the news; as long as the profit is sufficient, we can always attract some wandering ninja to join, which will both eliminate these unstable elements and bring us revenue."

"If nobles also send people to bet, that's even better; we can also gauge their strength in advance, especially the forces beside the great lords in the capital."

"Wandering ninja are not much different from nobles; without restraints they become even more indulgent—nine out of ten should be killed, and the remaining one should be torn to pieces."

"I understand, Teacher. I'll leave the matters in the capital to you; tell me whatever you need."

Yan Shifan nodded; he has now placed his full focus on his clan's comprehensive plans in the Fire Country, the Konoha is too small—aside from military matters, everything else is trivial, and he knows nothing about warfare, so he rarely pays attention to the Konoha's political affairs.

Controlling the Fire Country and the situation of the various nations is what he wants to do.

After the two discussed for a while, night fell, and they each went to rest.

Time quickly reached the third day, and Shisui sent the ANBU to invite some ninja clan representatives and some senior civilian Jonin representatives to the Police Department prison to observe the execution.

Although Shisui does not intend to execute Zhuan Qin Xiaochun publicly in the Village, it is still necessary to let some ninjas see her fate, thereby establishing authority for the newly established Konoha law.

The crowd stood inside the monitoring room, where dozens of large screens displayed Zhuan Qin Xiaochun's pale face.

The monitoring room was very quiet; although dozens of people stood there tightly packed, not a sound was heard, and even breathing was barely audible.

In the execution chamber, Shiyu personally oversaw the beheading, with Zhuan Qin Xiaochun kneeling before him.

Yan Shifan suggested a direct beheading and to have Shiyu announce it publicly to intimidate the crowd, but Shisui felt intimidation was sufficient and planned to leave a whole corpse, which eased many ninjas' minds, making them think Shisui was still kind.

At three quarters past noon, i. e., 11:45, Shiyu glanced at his digital watch; though unsure why they had to act at this exact moment, he said in a deep voice, "Time's up, Zhuan Qin Xiaochun, any last words?"

Zhuan Qin Xiaochun slowly opened her tightly shut eyes. Three days had passed; she had considered suicide to preserve dignity, and she had been hoping for Sarutobi Rizhan's arrival, but after three days the Third never came, and no one sent a guard to escort her for a final journey.

At this moment her heart was ashen, with a faint tremor of fear toward death.

Then she recalled Yan Ye; she knew that fellow he was not trying to evade the Police Department's pursuit, but to avoid her.

Afterward, she thought of Tsunade.

After her death, Tsunade might return to the Village, since one adversary of hers would be gone, which would be good for the Konoha; but she wondered whether Tsunade and the Uchiha would clash.

Perhaps not; Shisui may be ruthless, but his methods and character are fine, and his ambitions are great, though unfortunately he is an Uchiha.

So, is my death beneficial to the Konoha? The criterion for judging matters is whether they aid the Village; everything should prioritize the Village's stability and development.

Rizhan left the high ranks, Yan Ye also defected to the Uchiha, and after my death, aside from Danzo, Shisui has already consolidated the Konoha's high officials; with that elder's help he should soon be able to deal with Danzo and stabilize the Konoha, so my death is beneficial, right?

In that instant, Zhuan Qin Xiaochun thought of many things and began to wonder why she was so targeting the Uchiha.

Because the Uchiha clan's power is excessively strong and hard to control, decisive measures are required for the Village's future; even if the process is filled with pain and sacrifice, it is a forced necessity.

Yes, she's not wrong; it's just that she failed.

Throughout her life she fought for the Konoha, for ideals, and also schemed for herself and her clan.

But she considered that she contributed more to the Konoha than to her clan.

People may only know what kind of person they truly are at death.

Countless tangled thoughts finally condensed into a slightly hoarse question.

"Teacher, will you forgive me?"

Shiyu was standing close; hearing that, he was momentarily startled, but he said nothing, only slowly stepped forward.

After all, Zhuan Qin Xiaochun was the Konoha's advisor; Shisui had deliberately instructed that she not be bound by restraints, but only sealed her chakra.

Unable to use chakra, a ninja's body is only slightly stronger than an ordinary person's, making it easier to kill them.

The Kaleidoscope manifested, and the powerful eye technique instantly stripped Zhuan Qin Xiaochun of consciousness; within a moment she lost her breath in her sleep.

Inside the execution chamber, the other three ninjas—a member of the ANBU, one from the Police Department, and one from the Medical Department—waited a moment, then each stepped forward to inspect, confirmed everything was correct, and nodded toward the monitor.

In the monitoring room, everyone's emotions were extremely complex; the strong one once equal to the Third silently died here.

But what could they say?

This was orchestrated by them, yet the events seemed to gradually exceed their expectations; Shisui was not quite as they had imagined.

After the execution ended, the crowd silently left.

As for the corpse, being a high official of the Konoha, she knew too much; her body could not be handed over to the Zhuan Qin clan, so it was taken by the ANBU for disposal and burial, and her name was inscribed on a memorial stone—an extra mercy from the Hokage.

Zhuan Qin Xiaochun's death did not cause a stir in the Konoha; the ninjas who knew the details kept their mouths shut and dared not speak, but Danzo, far away in the Grass Country, learned of the news a few days later.

"That fool is dead? I see, the next one should be me, then."

Danzo squinted, his expression calm, as if he had long anticipated it.

"Your Fifth is not as simple as he appears; the one who wields the Uchiha's ultimate power is far beyond what you can handle.

So, what do you think, how have you considered it?"

A deep voice sounded behind him, but Danzo did not turn; he remained silent, peering through a slit in the curtain at the thin moonlight outside the tent.

(End of Chapter)