CHAPTER 344: CHAPTER 344: THE TAILED BEASTS’ CHAKRA, COLLECTED!

"Don’t think you can trick me this time. I want the full package."

"I run an honest business," Kyoichi replied, looking genuinely offended. "Never once have I deceived anyone. My prices were clearly listed — you people just chose not to pay for the premium plan. Isn’t that right?"

"Premium plan"? "Full package"?

A’s brows twitched.

But Kyoichi wasn’t backing down. "How unpleasant to call it a trick," he said, waving a hand lazily. "All I did was divide the deal into different bundles. You wanted the full experience? Sure... but that costs extra."

If you don’t pay, don’t complain. Who said you could freeload?

Now that A was offering tailed beast chakra in exchange, Kyoichi figured that was fair trade. He thought for a moment, then added, "You see, what you’ve completed in Kumogakure is only the first stage of educational reform. The next step is to restructure your ninja system."

"Oh?"

That immediately got A’s attention.

Now this was real substance.

He had considered restructuring before, but never knew where to start. And even if he did, the same problem always came up — there were only so many missions to go around. With more graduates, he didn’t know how to handle distribution.

Kyoichi smiled slightly.

"The ’one jōnin leading three genin’ model is really just a form of elite training," he explained. "But think about it — not every jōnin can develop every student’s potential. For example, if I asked you to train someone specializing in genjutsu, could you do it?"

A grimaced. "...Not really."

He hated to admit it, but genjutsu had always been his weak point. Asking him to teach illusion arts would be a complete waste.

Of course, when he thought about it, Kumogakure didn’t have many genjutsu users to begin with — most of their shinobi just wrapped themselves in Lightning Release armor and charged straight in. There weren’t many who fought with subtlety or mental warfare.

Still, Kyoichi’s point hit home.

The inability to properly utilize one’s talent pool — that was a real issue.

"So how do you solve it?" A asked.

"Our current rule," said Kyoichi, "is that newly graduated genin can only take D-rank missions. Having a jōnin supervise D-rank missions is a complete waste of resources. So instead, we group them into four-man teams and let them handle the jobs themselves, with classroom instruction handled collectively."

In truth, Konoha’s system was a bit more complex than that.

Each class now consisted of three or so teams, and several jōnin or elite chūnin shared teaching duties. The group lessons weren’t just about saving manpower — they ensured every student received broader, more balanced guidance.

But of course, Kyoichi wasn’t about to tell the Raikage that.

To A, it sounded perfectly reasonable.

"Collective instruction first, then assignment based on ability," A muttered thoughtfully. "Makes sense... and those with exceptional performance can be moved into higher-level teams, right?"

"Exactly. In Konoha, the best students are sometimes sent directly to chūnin squads to gain real mission experience."

The difference in training and exposure was enormous — genin placed into chūnin squads improved rapidly.

Kyoichi, of course, never gave away the whole formula. Half-truths, half-answers — that was his style.

A wasn’t naive either. He knew the man in front of him never revealed everything. Still, he couldn’t deny it: this system was impressive.

Compared to the rigid one jōnin, three genin rule, it was flexible — far more adaptable to the rising number of graduates.

Kyoichi went on to discuss several complementary reforms — upgrading the ninja industry itself.

Ninjas weren’t just mission-takers, he explained. They could fill many civic roles: patrols, security, law enforcement, disaster response... The possibilities were endless.

The problem was, the system had been too rigid. With limited manpower, the shinobi world had never expanded its job framework beyond the traditional mission model.

A listened quietly. Normally, once he got what he came for, he would have left immediately. But this time, he decided to stay.

He wanted to see for himself — to observe whether Konoha truly worked as Kyoichi described.

And maybe even take a look around the Land of Fire.

Not that he planned to tell Kyoichi that, of course.

As for the chakra of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails, A agreed that Kyoichi could send people to Kumogakure to collect it. Kumogakure would cooperate fully.

Both sides got what they wanted.

With the chakra of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails secured, only the Seven-Tails remained.

Takigakure was a special case — not one of the Five Great Villages, but still powerful in its own right. Without Hanzō, Takigakure might have been the strongest of the smaller villages. Its isolation and natural defenses made it peaceful... perhaps too peaceful.

Complacency had set in over generations.

Back in the First Hokage’s era, Takigakure had geniuses like Kakuzu. Now, their talents had dwindled. Even the Earth Grudge Fear technique had been lost.

At this rate, the Amegakure would soon surpass them completely.

That was why Kyoichi wasn’t worried.

A bit of pressure would be enough. After all, he wasn’t demanding the whole tailed beast — just a small portion of its chakra.

One sample. That was all.

A tailed beast’s chakra might seem enormous, but it was a finite resource — not something that could be replenished easily. So while the subject was sensitive, most villages were willing to part with a fraction when they weighed the benefits.

Taking an actual tailed beast, however, was another matter entirely.

Within days, Shirakumo Hayama returned — with the chakra of the Seven-Tails in hand. Kyoichi’s clone had also concluded talks with Sunagakure, successfully obtaining chakra from the Shukaku.

As for the Six-Tails — that was even simpler.

After the Raikage’s visit to Konoha, the news spread quickly. Kirigakure immediately sent envoys to negotiate, and Kyoichi struck a deal with them on the spot.

Now...

Before the Five Kage Summit even began, Kyoichi had already completed his own quiet operation.

Teams of shinobi skilled in Earth Release — from Konoha, Iwagakure, and elsewhere — were already working across the continent, searching for traces of underground chambers and tunnels.

Members of the Hyūga clan joined the effort, using their Byakugan to assist in the search.

It was a slow method — but an effective one. Based on current intelligence, Madara’s likely location wasn’t near Kirigakure or Kumogakure, but somewhere in the regions surrounding the Land of Grass.

That made things much simpler.

Mobilize every ninja proficient in Earth Release and sensory jutsu across the Five Great Nations, turn the land inside out, and it would only be a matter of time before Madara was found.

As for Kyoichi himself —

With all the tailed beasts’ chakra now collected, he and Orochimaru were working day and night, trying to figure out how to synthesize it.

The chakra was limited... which meant so were their chances to experiment.