As it turned out, having Asuma—a second-generation village elite—as the primary partner meant the entire factory project encountered virtually no obstacles. After Sasuke consented to the use of a plot on the old Uchiha district grounds, the operation—formally christened Konoha Publishing Factory—broke ground with considerable fanfare.
Labor, equipment, building materials, capital, permits, time—these elements were like ingredients fed into a machine. Mixed properly, they'd produce sweet fruit, and those who put in the work would naturally get their share.
"I've had it. Why am I the one handling the accounting too?!"
Shikamaru stared at the stack of financial ledgers in front of him with an expression of existential pain. Ino, arriving with a teapot, showed him no sympathy. "Who told you to have that brain? I've been assigned as your personal secretary and you're still complaining?"
"Damn... Where's Choji?"
"He's been put in charge of site supervision. He's out there eating dust on the construction site right now. Want to switch?"
Building a factory for everyone meant everyone had to pull their weight. On one hand, it deepened the core members' sense of ownership and responsibility. On the other, it gave Hinata tighter control over every moving piece. She understood the value of putting trusted people in key roles: as long as someone's character met the minimum bar, even Choji and Naruto could serve as capable duty-holders.
"Phew~~ Better prepare extra fish and bone broth for today. Mom, let me know if anything's running low."
Sakura, sporting an apron, had been appointed head of the cafeteria. Since the workers were all recruited from within the village, Hinata hadn't bothered nickel-and-diming them—she'd simply declared that everyone working on-site ate free. The kitchen staff were local hires too, and Sakura's own mother was among them. The other women in the kitchen were quietly envious; none of their daughters had landed a supervisor role at that age.
"Alright everybody, keep it up~ Good stuff for lunch today~!"
Bare-chested and hauling a timber beam over one shoulder, Choji led by example as site supervisor. His willingness to do the heavy lifting alongside the workers had an electrifying effect on morale. In theory, he could have sat off to the side eating chips, but his innate good nature made him a natural at winning people over. The workers answered with a hearty shout and redoubled their efforts.
"Tch~ Choji really knows how to win people over, huh? I figured he'd just lie around like a lazy pig~"
Perched on a nearby rooftop, Naruto peered through binoculars and grumbled. Beside him, Sasuke let out a contemptuous snort. "Dead-last, you're in no position to talk. Keep your eyes on the perimeter—we might get some unwelcome visitors looking to cause trouble~"
As the two leads, Sasuke and Naruto weren't suited for the public-facing roles, so they'd been assigned to security detail. Between Sasuke's active Sharingan and Naruto's mastery of the Shadow Clone Jutsu, the pair could handle any routine threat.
On the hillside above, three figures stood gazing down at the Uchiha residential district below.
"Takes me back. This land actually has some life to it again. I'd assumed it would stay abandoned forever."
The speaker was Shikamaru's father, Shikaku Nara. Flanking him were the other two members of the current generation's Ino-Shika-Cho trio: Ino's father, Inoichi Yamanaka, and Choji's father, Choza Akimichi.
"No kidding. So that's why Ino's been flush with pocket money lately—it was this all along."
Arms folded, Inoichi scratched his head in mild exasperation. "Setting everything else aside, these kids are way better at making money than we ever were."
"Mm-hmm~ They really did find themselves a lucky break~"
Choza beamed down at Choji on the construction site, parental pride written all over his face.
"This generation of Konoha talent is something else. In terms of sheer resourcefulness, they're leagues beyond what we were. Well—shall we go grab a drink?"
"Hahaha, sure—but you're paying. Your son's pulling in the most cash~"
"Exactly! I want the jumbo barbecue platter~"
The previous generation's Ino-Shika-Cho trio had clearly come to check on their children. What they'd seen put them entirely at ease, and the three strolled off in high spirits.
Meanwhile, at the Hokage's office.
"I'd like to commission one hundred D-rank missions. The objective is to distribute flyers throughout the major cities of the Land of Fire, announcing that the Fox Tales series will now be sold exclusively from Konoha. Mission duration: ten days. Here is the advance payment of five hundred thousand ryō. The remaining half will be settled upon completion."
Shino placed a cash box on the Mission Assignment Desk, his tone perfectly businesslike. This was his assigned task: file a mission request at the village's official desk, commissioning shinobi to spread the word that Fox Tales had switched to in-house Konoha distribution.
In plain terms: hire people to hand out flyers.
"Right... Mission parameters noted. Ahem—do you... have any additional requirements?"
Izumo Kamizuki behind the desk was thoroughly dumbfounded. Honestly, he'd never seen a client this young—or this free-spending. One hundred top-tier D-rank missions was a non-trivial boost to Konoha's weekly mission throughput.
"No. Daily flyer shipments will be delivered here. Please assign appropriate personnel at your discretion."
Shino nodded and left. Izumo and Kotetsu Hagane exchanged a long, blank look, eventually settling for a mutual shrug: Unbelievable.
With the factory construction and promotional work delegated, the remaining tasks naturally fell into the category of things best kept out of sight.
Deidara and Sasori had delivered exactly as promised. One day—that was all it took for the S-rank pair to retrieve Hinata's original contract with the Land of Fire publisher. As for whether the publisher had been blown up or otherwise dealt with, Hinata indicated that such details were beneath her concern.
"This is the one, right? Told you—nothing to it. Hmm~"
Deidara slid the envelope containing the contract across to Hinata, spreading his hands with satisfaction. "Please let the author know—next time there's something like this, she doesn't even need to file a formal commission. Just say the word."
"Of course~ I'll be sure to pass along your kindness."
Hinata examined the contract with satisfaction. From this moment forward, the rights to the Fox Tales series were back in her hands. Konoha was now the sole authorized source.
"Now then—on to real business. Here is a Merchandise Rights Transfer Agreement, personally signed by the author. From now on, we are the only ones authorized to produce and distribute Fox Tales figures and merchandise. Would you like to take a look?"
Hinata snapped her fingers, and Sai—playing attendant—produced a document and slid it across to Deidara and Sasori. Deidara, predictably uninterested in paperwork, didn't touch it. Sasori picked it up and read it with meticulous care.
The difference in temperament was on full display.
"The agreement checks out... But how do you plan to proceed?"
Sasori set the document down and looked up. He was clearly intent on taking this rare opportunity to showcase his art seriously.
"Simple. The author says she'll hold a product launch event alongside the next Fox Tales release. The venue will be a town outside Konoha, within the Land of Fire. The two of you can bring your figures to the event, where our crew will handle sales. Based on the results, we'll know whether this art has commercial viability."
Hinata laced her fingers together, her voice brimming with confidence: "If it does, we formally invite investors, establish a proper factory, and scale up."
The business-heavy pitch made both Sasori and Deidara tilt their heads. Commerce clearly didn't interest them—they just wanted their art disseminated through the channels Hinata described.
"Well~ How about this: the launch event is in three days. Bring your pieces to the venue then. You may bring along a partner who's good with numbers to handle the accounting. But please—wear some kind of disguise. At the very least, you can't show up in those missing-nin robes. Can you manage that?"
Seeing their reaction, Hinata shrugged. Commercially speaking, artists who didn't care about money were ideal marks—the kind you could fleece without limit.
But given that these particular artists belonged to the shinobi world's largest criminal syndicate, she reluctantly shelved her predatory instincts and decided, for once, to play it straight.
"Oh, and~ if it's inconvenient, I can file this as an official commission instead. On-site figure-making technical guidance—that way it won't eat into your mission schedule."
Flush with the freshly pooled investment capital, Hinata was in a generous mood. She gestured for Sai to produce another 1.5 million ryō. In the grand scheme of things, the amount was trivial. If it got these two master artisans on board, every ryō would be worth it.
"Oh my~ How generous. Hmm~"
Even Deidara felt a twinge of sheepishness at Hinata's consideration. But he and Sasori were, at the end of the day, contractors working for Akatsuki—they didn't have much choice in how they spent their time.
"Don't mention it. After all—art is priceless, isn't it?"
Hinata rose with a smile, her voice light and pleased.
"Then I look forward to seeing you both at the launch event in three days~"