Naruto: Did i Just Get Reincarnated as Gojo?-Chapter 278: National Treasury Nears Depletion!

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Land of Lightning.

The Finance Minister, exhausted and overwhelmed, sat at his desk, accepting a cup of premium coffee imported from Konoha.

The nation teetered on the brink of bankruptcy, yet the perks afforded to high-ranking officials like himself remained untouched.

If even their needs couldn't be met, who could possibly save the Land of Lightning, swaying precariously in the storm?

The Daimyo?

The Daimyo had absconded with the last vestiges of his personal wealth, vacationing in the Land of Sound, enjoying the Fire Games.

The Land of Lightning's impending bankruptcy? What did that have to do with him?

So, ultimately, the burden fell upon them, the high-ranking officials.

The Finance Minister rubbed his tired eyes, listening to his subordinate's report. "Sir, the national treasury is nearly empty. We can no longer sustain these expenditures..."

The Finance Minister closed his eyes in anguish.

The Land of Lightning's treasury, accumulated over a century, was almost depleted. A single, insignificant tulip had plundered a hundred years of wealth.

And yet, they couldn't resort to violence, couldn't simply arrest the tulip merchants. They had to play along, maintaining the facade of a thriving tulip market.

If they used force, dispatched Shinobi to handle matters—market confidence would shatter instantly. The merchants' losses would pale in comparison to the nation's.

Why?

Because the vaults meant to hold cash were now filled with tulips.

They had wagered the entire nation's resources to maintain the price of tulips. As the largest buyers, the Land of Lightning's treasury would bear the brunt of the losses.

The commoners they usually disregarded had become their lifeline.

A deathly silence fell over the Minister's office.

An official responsible for liaising with the hidden villages spoke, his voice laced with bitterness. "Are we just going to stand by while these tulip merchants drain our treasury with worthless flowers? Can't we just order the Raikage to intervene?"

"Arresting them is simple. But how would you handle the repercussions? After arresting them, the entire Shinobi World's wealthy elite would know—the Land of Lightning doesn't honor its word, can't handle the pressure!"

"Who would dare invest in the Land of Lightning then? Who would dare spend their money here?"

"We bear the weight not just of the present Land of Lightning, but its future as well! The entire nation, its thirteen cities, rests upon our shoulders."

The Finance Minister took a deep breath, his gaze hardening. The battle to save the market had reached its critical point.

Thanks to the treasury's relentless purchasing, nearly all tulips circulating in the market had been acquired.

The massive influx of tulips that had flooded the market earlier had ceased. Furthermore, the Minister had actively engaged with the nobles holding large quantities of tulips, explaining the situation, reaching a consensus—

No more internal conflict until market confidence was restored, until the tulip bubble could be gradually shifted onto the commoners. They would work together to rebuild market order and trust.

People began to believe once more in the tulip's potential for appreciation.

They trusted tulips like they trusted—well, let's just say they trusted them, conveniently forgetting the pain past bubbles had inflicted. Gamblers, remembering only the potential profits, not the peak prices, cautiously re-entered the tulip market, waving cash.

Market confidence was returning.

The Finance Minister slammed his fist on the table. "We should be grateful! Our enemies are merely greedy merchants! Their supply has dwindled, meaning their tulip reserves are limited! They'll run out eventually! This means—we stand on the precipice of victory!"

"Intelligence from our guardian Shinobi confirms this. They've been monitoring the company that initially sold the tulips. They haven't imported any more tulips recently. What remains in their warehouses is the last of their stock..."

A cold glint entered the Finance Minister's eyes. "Through communication with the other three nations, I've discovered that the companies initially selling tulips varied—Umbrella in the Land of Earth, United Aeronautics in the Land of Water..."

"This was an organized, premeditated plot to plunder the wealth of the Five Great Nations."

Someone raised their hand. "Why five nations? The Land of Fire seems unaffected. Could—Konoha be behind this?"

"After this began, we rigorously inspected all goods imported from the Land of Fire but found no trace of tulips. Likely—not the Land of Fire. Besides, tulips initially appeared within the Land of Fire as well. They simply reacted quickly, banning tulip imports before the market became flooded."

"The only possible culprits are Ōnoki of Iwagakure, with his ability to fly, or perhaps—those Sky Shinobi bandits active during the First Shinobi World War!"

"Hmph—lucky bastards in the Land of Fire," someone muttered regretfully.

Otherwise, given the Land of Fire's economic strength, a tulip flood would have caused catastrophic losses.

"So, what do we do now? There are still many tulips circulating, but our treasury can no longer afford to buy them up as aggressively as before."

"We must borrow money. But from whom?"

"The nobles have no surplus funds—The only ones with cash are those treacherous merchants who profited from the initial tulip speculation! They drained our treasury, and now we have to borrow from them? Never! Their interest rates are even higher than Konoha's loans! Traitors are always the most ruthless when exploiting their own people."

The Finance Minister's eyes darkened. "Once this storm passes, once the market stabilizes—have the Daimyo issue a commission to the hidden village. Arrest those damned merchants!"

"But for now—we must borrow from Konoha."

"Use Konoha's money to stabilize our tulip prices. Then, one day, the tulips, having regained their value, will be forged into shuriken, repaying our debt to Konoha!"

The Finance Minister, with a decisive gesture, mortgaged the Land of Lightning's prime assets to Konoha.

Ten-year operating rights to the Sunshine Coast, ten-year tax collection rights for West Port, deeds to the Daimyo's estates—even ten-year operating rights to the nation's power grid and water infrastructure were pledged to Konoha.

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