At this moment, the "Konoha Food Contest" had already come to an end.
Ultimately, the title of the first [God of Cookery in the Ninja World] fell into the hands of the Feudal Lord of the Land of Fire's royal chef.
This secret dish of the Land of Fire, "Braised Mountain Delicacies," became a hot topic of discussion in Konoha Village recently.
The massive prize money of 5 million ryo led to the emergence of a great many gourmets and high-end chefs in Konoha.
Some young people harboring a "Konoha Dream" began their own culinary entrepreneurial journeys in Konoha.
Taking advantage of the continued public interest in food, several food-related businesses took advantage of this trend and opened their doors amidst much fanfare.
The entire Konoha Village entered the 2.0 era of "food and beverage culture."
"Ichiraku Ramen," managed by Otsutsuki Ichiraku, was also among these newly opened shops.
Uchiha Fucheng, having returned to Konoha, even specially brought Mikoto to personally attend the grand opening ceremony of "Ichiraku Ramen."
Fucheng once again cleverly cultivated a specific public memory of "the Uchiha Clan Head appearing frequently" in front of the public.
It must be said that getting rid of Danzo removed a major "thorn in the side" for Uchiha Fucheng, filling him with a sense of accomplishment.
When good things happen, one feels refreshed; no matter what he looked at, he was all smiles.
Even Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu, whom he usually found the most unpleasant, looked quite amiable to him.
"Yo! It is an honor to have both Elders grace us with their presence."
Homura Mitokado spoke first, "Clan Head Fucheng, the Feudal Lord of the Land of Fire has dispatched a new Finance Minister to Konoha to discuss the mission funding for the next fiscal year. There are some matters we would like Clan Head Fucheng to attend the meeting for."
Fucheng was a bit puzzled, "Oh? The Finance Minister of the Feudal Lord of the Land of Fire—what does he want with my Uchiha Clan?"
Homura Mitokado, appearing steady and experienced, explained with feigned neutrality, "This Lord Misaka Shenting may have had some economic disputes with the Uchiha Clan in the past. I heard he is a relative of Lady Uchiha Misuzu. His visit to Konoha this time is also to ask the Village to help mediate."
When he said this, Uchiha Fucheng raised an eyebrow slightly, "Who? Misaka Shenting?"
Mumbling this name, Fucheng glanced at Mikoto beside him.
"Fine, then many thanks to the two Advisors. I happen to want to meet this new Minister of the Land of Fire as well."
Mikoto, who was on the side, felt a distinct thud in her heart upon hearing this.
"Second Uncle? How did he become the Finance Minister of the Land of Fire?"
At the Hokage office building, all four other KonohaAdvisors participated in the meeting, except for Danzo, who was not present.
The new Finance Minister of the Land of Fire, Misaka Shenting, led the Land of Fire delegation and sat on the opposite side of the long table from the Konoha leadership. In terms of appearance, one had to compliment him: Misaka Shenting was quite dashing.
His manner of speaking was also very crisp and decisive, possessing the air of a capable official.
Even with Konoha "wielding the prestige of a great victory over the Land of Rain," he still argued his case with Hiruzen Sarutobi, eventually negotiating a mission funding plan for the next year with an increase of only 8%.
One must know that at the initial KonohaAdvisor meeting, Utatane Koharu had predicted an increase in funding of nearly 20%.
Fucheng remained calm, carefully observing the other party's behavioral patterns.
In his view, the political structure of the entire Ninja World was somewhat bizarre.
The "One Country, One Village" political system caused a massive imbalance of power in this Hokage world where "all combat power belongs to the Ninja."
Just like the powerful rogue NinjaZabuza, instead of robbing nobles or rich merchants, he became a lowly henchman for those very same rich merchants and nobles.
It must be said that this behavioral logic is very "Japanese."
In the eyes of a Chinese person, one's power should be commensurate with one's ability.
If the power classes like the country, the Feudal Lord, and the nobles did not have a violent state apparatus to protect their rule, who would care about a so-called noble who relies on "bloodline inheritance"?
The idea that "kings and generals are not born with high status" was branded into Fucheng's DNA, with an even higher priority than the Sharingan.
As a "mine boss" who grew up in the wild, Fucheng's defiance toward nobles and the Feudal Lord was even more apparent.
Fucheng expressed his lack of understanding, "Letting the Feudal Lord control a country's most important tax and fiscal distribution? What virtue or ability do they have? Does the Feudal Lord's family have a few Ōtsutsuki in it?"
However, from the perspective of Japanese historical views and realistic cognition, this political structure of the Ninja World is indeed the [rational national structure] that the Japanese are most familiar with and that fits their logic best.
The Shogunate, holding real power, would still let the "Emperor" rule and let the nobles become the leaders of the whole country, and everyone was accustomed to it.
If a Chinese person were to become Hokage, the Feudal Lord of the Land of Fire's tax authority would have been reclaimed countless years ago.
With such thoughts in mind, his expression naturally revealed them.
The increasingly impatient Uchiha Fucheng watched Hiruzen Sarutobi and Misaka Shenting bicker back and forth as if he were watching children play house.
He always felt that this group of Konoha Ninjas seemed to have been branded with a mental seal by the nobles.
Not to mention a group of Ninjas fighting to the death, they even subconsciously defended this bizarre "One Country, One Village" political system.
After both sides finished discussing the agreement, Misaka Shenting naturally noticed Uchiha Fucheng's impatient expression.
Having long heard that the Uchiha Clan was overbearing, Misaka Shenting felt somewhat in the wrong and was the first to show his sincerity.
"This is a catalog of assets in the Land of Fire, please accept it, Clan Head Fucheng. Some commercial mergers within my family previously may have inadvertently damaged the Uchiha Clan's trade layout. Here, on behalf of the Misaka Clan, I offer my apologies to Clan Head Fucheng."
Uchiha Fucheng was somewhat surprised, "This Misaka Shenting is actually quite sensible."
Although one doesn't hit a smiling face, the commercial dispute involving Mikoto's family could not be treated as if it hadn't happened just because Mikoto's cheap Second Uncle was being polite.
Fucheng's eyes were cold as he lifted his chin slightly.
Uchiha Mikoto, standing behind him, stood up and took the list directly.
Mikoto now had a network composed of dozens of Misaka Sisters, and her computing power and data analysis ability far exceeded the past.
Just by opening the list and glancing at it, she calculated the approximate value.
"Only twenty percent!"
Upon hearing this, the other party's expression changed drastically.
He examined his own niece, whom he had previously considered unremarkable, up and down as if looking at a monster.
Fucheng had originally thought that Mikoto's Second Uncle knew how to conduct himself, but he hadn't expected him to be willing to give up less than twenty percent.
It must be said that in the eyes of the nobles, the Uchiha Clan's reputation was only worth this much!
Uchiha Fucheng chuckled.
He scanned the six-member Land of Fire delegation and said slowly, "Twenty percent is too little. The Misaka Clan's greed is too ugly."
Lowering his eyes, Fucheng, while standing up, tapped the list on the table with his finger.
"I won't force you. As a Minister of the Land of Fire, I must give the Feudal Lord some face. As long as all assets are returned within the time limit and the responsible parties involved are handed over, I can let bygones be bygones."
Uchiha Mikoto, behind Fucheng, pulled out his chair with great ceremony, not even glancing at her uncle opposite them.
Fucheng didn't talk nonsense either, continuing with a cold expression, "If this trivial matter isn't resolved within a month, please convey to the Feudal Lord of the Land of Fire that he should arrange for a new Minister to take office sooner rather than later."
With this sentence, he brought the atmosphere at the scene to the freezing point.
The eyes of the Konoha leadership at the scene bulged.
The delegation from the Land of Fire was completely stunned.
"You?!"
Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu looked at Uchiha Fucheng in disbelief.
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