Chapter 31: External Recruitment

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Under the influence of Uchiha Madara's ninjutsu, the widespread destruction within Amegakure was almost instantly restored.

Afterward, the shinobi under Madara's command immediately got to work. They first cleaned and decorated the central administrative building in Amegakure, and once Madara entered the newly restored building to begin working, they started relocating the civilians who had been evacuated back into the village.

This workload was immense, and on top of that, various other departments within Amegakure also required manpower. For a moment, it seemed as though Madara's forces were slightly understaffed.

After a flurry of activity, by evening, Amegakure finally stabilized once again.

A group of jonin arrived at Madara’s office to report on the completion of their tasks.

Madara’s expression remained completely calm.

Having once overseen a large clan, coordinating the efforts of one thousand shinobi under him now was, in his mind, a trivial matter.

"Hmm, I understand. These tasks have been completed satisfactorily. Aside from this, are there any other issues?"

The jonin exchanged glances before addressing Madara:

"Lord Madara, at present, Amegakure faces two major problems. The first is still the issue of losses. While you used your ninjutsu to restore the damaged areas of the village, the losses suffered by the villagers remain significant and difficult to compensate for.

The second major problem is that we currently lack sufficient manpower. A thousand shinobi is not enough to fully operate the mechanisms of Amegakure."

Seated behind his desk, Uchiha Madara nodded in understanding:

"I see. Regarding these two issues, there’s no need for concern; I already have plans.

Just a few days ago, when I annihilated Iwa’s forces and defeated Onoki, I forced him to sign a surrender agreement between Iwagakure and Amegakure. This agreement includes substantial reparations. Within a few days, once Iwagakure’s compensation arrives, it will not only cover the economic losses of the village but also greatly strengthen our resources.

As for the manpower shortage, once news of my decisive victory over Iwagakure spreads throughout the shinobi world, we will recruit rogue shinobi and wandering ninja in my name, Uchiha Madara, to alleviate the manpower shortage as much as possible."

Madara’s words were incredibly encouraging.

Forcing Onoki to sign a surrender agreement and extorting vast amounts of resources from them was immensely satisfying! After all, they were shinobi of Amegakure, while the opponent was one of the Five Great Nations—Earth Country. This sense of triumph was exhilarating.

However, concerns remained.

"Uh… Lord Madara, extracting resources from Iwagakure and Earth Country is certainly excellent, but… uh… recruiting rogue shinobi and wandering ninja from across the entire shinobi world? Well… the wandering shinobi are fine, but those rogue shinobi—are they really…"

Glancing at the shinobi who raised this question, Madara understood what he meant:

"You’re saying 'once disloyal, never trusted'?"

"Yes, yes, exactly!"

"Heh… You’re overthinking things. Do you think I, Uchiha Madara, would recklessly accept outsiders without precautions? To become one of my subordinates, ability alone isn’t enough—loyalty is far more important. There will undoubtedly be rigorous screening processes.

Anyone attempting to infiltrate my ranks will find out soon enough just how lucky—or unlucky—they are! Besides, once the newly recruited shinobi enter the village, we’ll place binding seals on them immediately!"

At these words, the jonin present trembled involuntarily, instinctively touching their chests.

Yes, each of them had binding seals placed directly over their hearts by Madara. The feeling of having one’s life entirely in someone else’s hands was far from pleasant.

Seeing their uneasy expressions, Madara revealed a devilish smile:

"There’s no need to worry. Placing binding seals on you is merely a precaution. Once the probationary period is over, and I deem you trustworthy, I will naturally remove the seals."

The jonin nodded frantically, like chickens pecking at grains.

Madara was satisfied with their pragmatic response. He waved dismissively:

"Alright, you may leave. I still have work to do."

"At your command, Lord Madara…" ×n

Once they had left and Madara was alone in the office, White Zetsu, who had been waiting inside the walls, finally emerged.

Using his Amoeba Technique, White Zetsu emerged from the wall and complained bitterly about the earlier shinobi:

"I still needed to report to Lord Madara, but those pests just wouldn’t stop jabbering—it was so annoying!"

Madara, organizing files on his desk, chuckled nonchalantly:

"They’re just expendable pawns handling miscellaneous tasks. Without such pawns, managing a sizable hidden village would be impossible. But rest assured, I’ve never considered them true subordinates."

"That’s right! That’s right! The only one worthy of being Lord Madara’s subordinate is me!"

White Zetsu’s eccentric personality often left even Madara exasperated at times.

"Enough, White Zetsu. Let’s get to the point. By now, the five great hidden villages must know of my return. What has their reaction been?"

"Lord Madara, among the five great nations, four remain skeptical of your reappearance. In particular, the Raikage of Kumogakure shows absolutely no belief in the reports. However, Konoha takes the news very seriously due to the detailed information brought back by the three shinobi you spared during your previous encounter."

"I see… The other four nations can be ignored—they’re nothing but insignificant nuisances. But Konoha… I imagine Konoha is in quite a panic right now!"

White Zetsu grinned maliciously:

"That’s right! When the people of Konoha learned of your reappearance, they were utterly frantic—like chickens running around with their heads cut off!"

As he spoke, White Zetsu split into multiple clones and began vividly reenacting the chaos that unfolded in Konoha’s meeting room, particularly emphasizing the scheming and power struggles among Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, and Uchiha Matsuchika.

Chapter end