"I can play one last round with you, but as for the necklace—that won't be necessary," Aoshi declined politely.
Whoever wanted that thing could take it, but he certainly didn't. Tsunade, however, paid no mind. The moment she heard Aoshi agree to one more game, her fighting spirit flared up once again.
"This last round, I will definitely win!"
Good, very spirited. But unfortunately, the result was still Aoshi's victory.
There was simply no helping it—Tsunade's gambling luck was something of a conceptual curse. Even if Aoshi wanted to let her win, it was impossible.
"No way, I lost again? You must be cheating!" Hearing Tsunade's unreasonable accusation, Aoshi rolled his eyes in exasperation.
Cheat? Against you? Seriously?
"Fine, a bet's a bet. This necklace belongs to you now." With that, Tsunade tossed the necklace over to Aoshi.
"Lady Tsunade, that really isn't necessary. If I remember correctly, this necklace was left behind by the First Hokage himself. You should keep it for yourself."
"If you truly feel you owe me something, then I'd rather receive another kind of gift." Saying this, Aoshi stepped forward and gently hung the necklace back around Tsunade's neck.
Then, without another word, he turned and left, heading straight back to his room.
---
A few days passed in the blink of an eye.
Aoshi and Tsunade finally returned to Konoha. As per custom, the two went straight to the Hokage's office to submit their mission report to Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Once Tsunade had left, however, Aoshi deliberately remained behind.
"Aoshi, is there something else?" Hiruzen asked while leisurely puffing on his pipe.
Aoshi spoke directly about his intentions. "Lord Third, I'd like to establish a film company."
The shinobi world already had novels and even films, but compared to his previous life, the entertainment industry here was woefully underdeveloped.
Back in his former life, Aoshi had been a film enthusiast. He was confident that if he started a company, provided scripts, and produced movies himself, they would definitely become hits.
And with the fortune he had acquired from Kakuzu's decades of savings, funding such a venture was hardly an issue.
The only real question was whether Hiruzen would allow it.
But shinobi were, after all, just another profession. Nothing forbade them from having side businesses. In fact, even in the original timeline, after the Fourth Great Ninja War, Tenten had gone on to open a ninja tools shop in Konoha.
The true reason Aoshi wanted to formally bring this up to Hiruzen was different: he hoped to be granted a plot of land in Konoha's main district.
It would serve both as the company headquarters and as the site for building a cinema.
After all, a movie theater needed to be located in the bustling heart of the village, where foot traffic was guaranteed.
"So, why the sudden desire to start a company?" Hiruzen asked with mild surprise.
"Lord Third, as you know, I grew up in an orphanage," Aoshi replied earnestly. "Back then, I had no means to help. But now, I want to do more for them."
"Once the film company is established and starts making profit, I'll donate one-tenth of the earnings every month to the orphanage."
This was Aoshi's true thought.
In fact, he had wanted to do this long ago. But at that time, he neither had the funds to start nor the strength to protect himself.
The Konoha Orphanage had always survived on village subsidies. Yet Danzo had seized the opportunity to take control, turning it into nothing more than a recruitment pool for Root.
To continue receiving financial aid, the orphanage was required to regularly send a group of children to Root. Back then, if not for sheer luck, Aoshi himself might have been taken away.
That was why, until he gained the strength to protect himself, he had no choice but to bury this idea deep in his heart.
After listening to Aoshi's explanation, Hiruzen nodded with satisfaction and relief.
If Aoshi could remember the orphanage now, then he would surely remember Konoha in the future. That, in itself, was the embodiment of the Will of Fire.
"Your request is approved. Coincidentally, there is an unused area of land. I'll entrust it to you."
"Thank you very much."
With Hiruzen's approval, everything became much easier to arrange.
Every day, Aoshi still went to work at the Konoha Hospital in person. One shadow clone stayed at the Senju compound to study sealing techniques, while another handled matters related to his film company.
Thus, after another month passed, the Hirakawa Film Company officially opened for business.
During this time, Aoshi had already recruited a professional team and completed production of his first movie.
The reason for such swift progress was simple—many of the special effects and battle sequences had been directly handled by Aoshi's shadow clones.
Compared to the world of his previous life, filmmaking here was far more convenient.
On the opening day, Aoshi invited Mikoto, Tsunade, and Kushina to watch together. Many others from Konoha also came to show support.
The theater was packed to capacity.
"Wow! This movie is amazing! When will the second one be out?" After the show, Kushina immediately asked excitedly.
Even Tsunade and Mikoto both looked at Aoshi with eager anticipation.
Aoshi had already expected this.
After all, blockbuster films from his past life, placed into the entertainment-starved shinobi world, were nothing short of a dimensional strike.
"The second one is already in production. Please look forward to it."
"Then when it's done, I'll be the first to watch it!"
The next day, the theater was packed again.
On the third day, the crowds still didn't die down.
The hype even spread beyond Konoha, reaching other towns, drawing in nobles and wealthy merchants by the dozens.
So Aoshi immediately spent a fortune to purchase every major theater in the Land of Fire.
The reason he chose to buy rather than cooperate was simple—he intended to use theaters as anchor points for transmitting chakra, thereby expanding the range of Six Path Puppet control.
For that purpose, he needed full ownership and absolute control. Of course, this also meant that most of Kakuzu's decades of savings had now been exhausted.
Still, although the investment was massive, the returns were equally impressive.
---
Inside the Root base.
"As expected, Hiruzen has grown old. He can no longer judge people properly. How could someone like Hirakawa Aoshi ever be worthy of becoming Hokage?"
Danzo's disdainful voice echoed through the base.
If even Tsunade could see that Hiruzen intended to groom Aoshi as Hokage, then Danzo naturally saw it as well.
At first, he was furious. That mere Hirakawa Aoshi—how could he possibly have the qualifications to become Hokage?
Thus, Danzo immediately labeled Aoshi an enemy, scheming about how to strip him of that qualification. Yet, just as he was pondering deeply, news reached him about the founding of the Hirakawa Film Company.
After learning the details, Danzo sneered coldly, dismissing Aoshi's actions as frivolous and improper.
In his eyes, anyone who would waste time establishing a film company for profit had already disqualified himself from succeeding as Hokage.
That thought instantly pleased Danzo. He even allowed himself to dream that once he obtained Wood Release, who else but he could possibly claim the Hokage's seat?
But his satisfaction did not last long. Because soon, a troubling report reached his ears.
"What? The orphanage is refusing to provide new recruits for Root? Are they insane? Do they not want the village's subsidies anymore?"