Finding a Sponsor

Natsuru left her family's manor shortly after noon, her arms embracing several long rolled up blueprints of various building layouts and plans on top of her business plans for each respective building. Natsuru had decided it was time to start building up her fame and fortune while of course benefiting Kumogakure's development and economy in the long run. She was a natural business wiz, such a background coming from her family's history. She rarely entered the Heaven Construct. This would in fact be her first time aside from registration. She would head straight towards the familiar construct which served as the Raikage Building.

Natsuru wears black sandals which cover both feet securely and tightly providing comfort and protection. This is matched with a pair of dark gray steel shin guards. The shin guards covered the tops of her feet all the way up to her lower knees. This was matched with a pair of black stockings which covered her feet and extended above her knees. Although made from cloth they were somewhat thick and provided minor protection. Natsuru wears black undergarments which are concealed by a long, black loincloth which extends just to the sides of her knees on the front and back still providing suitable coverage. Around her right thigh she wears a simple, small black leather belt. Attached on the belt is a dark gray lacquered scabbard sized for a tanto. Another black belt is worn around her waist which serves to hold her quiver located around her back side.

A mesh, sleeveless undershirt covered her body as a set of riveted mail is worn over the undershirt. As her primary top she wears a simple black leotard fitted to her body type. Naturally, her mail shirt beneath her top extends slightly down her upper arm adding some additional protection. On both hands Natsuru wears a pair of long fingerless gloves which extends just below her elbows made with the same material of cloth and quality as her stockings. These are backed by a pair of soft leather arm guards protecting her forearm and back hand leaving a small soft part on her wrist still allowing flexibility. Her bow is worn across her chest with the front of the bow between her bosom and the string running across her back, the natural properties of the bow clinging itself to her body. Over her torso is a black cloak that extended down to the backs of her knees with a down hood, the mantel thick and well-insulated.

Natsuru has very fair skin with an almost ink-like navy blue hair, which matches her eyes in the same regards. Her hair runs down her back inside of the cloak's cover down to her rear end with a few bunches of hair touching down her breasts. Standing at 5'10 she has a very slender frame which maximizes her role as an archer giving her a statuesque vibe. Alas, a highly decorated Indian-style necklace made of silver and ruby was worn around her neck resting atop her chest serving as a relish for the stunning Kunoichi.

Upon entering the facility she would ascend the stairs and make her way to the Raikage office where she presumed Nariko, the temporary Raikage and her current sensei, would be awaiting working diligently on her paperwork or whatever Kage did in their spare time. With her papers embraced in her arms she would give a few hard knocks on the door to make her presence clear to whoever waited in the room. Natsuru would wait patiently for the Raikage to answer.

Standing on the balcony, Nariko looked out over the village, enjoying the peaceful sounds of life. She was about halfway through her cigarette, when she spotted Natsuru from a distance, walking towards the administration building, clutching some papers with her. "Great, more paperwork." she muttered, taking a drag from the cigarette and ashing it over the balcony, watching the ash fly away in the breeze. It was a nice day, and she was stuck here for Raikage duties and such. She really couldn't wait until someone else was capable of doing this job so she could go out and enjoy herself more than once every blue moon.

Dusting off her flak jacket as a piece of ash blew back towards it, she sighed. "Maybe I'll take my squad out on a mission soon or something. I'm a sensei, so I have a good excuse." chuckling to herself, she knew she didn't have to makes excuses if she didn't want to, she was in charge, but people would frown on it less than her just taking a few days off for no reason, and public opinion was very important to her. It affected what she could and couldn't do if she wanted to be an effective Kage.

Wearing a classic Kumogakure Jounin outfit, as was her usual attired, she had left the Raikage hat on her desk in the office, as she didn't feel like wearing it onto the balcony. Taking another drag of her cigarette, she ashed it out on the edge of the balcony and threw the filter away in a bin she kept there, and pulled out her pack from a pouch on the flak jacket. Lighting it up, Nariko walked into the office, towards the door where she knew Natsuru would be approaching soon.

As she walked towards the door, she heard some hard knocks and grinned to herself. That girl was faster than she'd thought. It must be important then. Opening the door, Nariko beckoned her in. "Come on in Natsuru. Hope you don't mind the smoke, it helps me think." she said, taking another puff from her cigarette. Taking a seat, she motioned to the paperwork. "That for me?"

The few knocks followed the door being opened. Natsuru immediately invited herself in, her arms struggling to embrace the dozens of blueprints and papers she held. She immediately paced over to the Raikage's desk and jumped the motherload on the surface burying whatever was being worked on, if anything. Pens and pencils dropped and rolled off as the sighed to herself in relief. "Go ahead and make yourself comfortable." She said, halfway processing what she said. The faint smell of tobacco was also somewhat soothing to her as well. Her father frequently smoked from his pipe in the evenings after dinner. Although his tobacco was richer and not cheaply processed cigarettes, the vibe was somewhat the same. Pulling her hood back she revealed her natural hair being indoors. Turning to face the Raikage she clasped her hand together. "So! I am here to present to you the future of the Land of Lightning with direction to take our economy and military. I have been immensely busy the past several months creating schematics and planning."

Turning her attention towards the mass of papers she sifted through the pile for a stapled packet. This contained the plan. Bringing it up to her face she turned back towards Nariko to read. "As it currently stands, Kumogakure is built nearly the same as any other Shinobi Village. What varies is our particular specialty fields and the clans which coexist in our dwellings. My goal is to help drive Kumogakure into a village that excels with skilled craftsmen, and industrializes into a metropolitan." Finishing with her prompt she flipped the page and set it down returning her gaze to Nariko. "So, let's start with phase one. We need to secure a superior Navy." Reaching into the pile on the desk she grabbed a medium-sized roll of parchment. Revealing the parchment would be a map of the important nations in the northern region.

The world map would be displayed for Nariko to see before continuing. "As you see, the Five Major nations are surrounding by some body of water. This also includes some of the minor nations, with few of them being actually landlocked. Water makes me think of ships. All of the nations you see touching the water are capable of having a Navy. And as we know, most trade occurs at sea, as well as fishing and all of that good stuff. To put it short, we are susceptible to attacks from the water like anybody else. Having a superior navy will ensure we are protected from the water and have authority over trade routes and fish." She would set the unrolled map on the Raikage's chair as it lifelessly flopped over the arms of the chair. From the desk she would grab four rolls of blueprints before handing them to Nariko. Taking the packet from the desk again she would continue reading.

"I have prepared various ship models to enhance our sea strength to dominate the waters. I have prepared various ships for construction. They are functional and affordable, while serving their own unique functions. The Brig is suited for traveling fast, hitting fast, and traveling. The galleons work as basic warships, and the frigate being our heavy-duty ship. Also, I have begun planning your own executive ship. This one will be sturdier than the rest and plated with reinforced iron, as well as anything specific you wish to include. We can get into more detail with that later." She said, raising her eyes from the packet of papers digressing from the topic. Flipping to the next page she read on. "In order to build this navy we need skilled workers. This is where I step up, and where funding becomes essential. In order to train our citizens into skilled craftsmen we need to open up a vocational college. This establishment will be managed by me. It will allow our people to learn complex crafts and become certified craftsmen on their own, under my guidance of course."

"By training our current and willing craftsmen into a more elite craftsmen we will be able to allow them to work to a higher degree. We will also be able to utilize these manufacturing facilities I have planned to help speed up the process and give them a place to work. With a dedicated team we can produce these ships in two days, tops. Now imagine this: we have several of these manufacturers working at once. We will be able to produce several ships in such a short period of time. But now let's take a step back and look at this from a realistic perspective. The ships alone are rather pricey. A fully armed and loaded Galleon would cost you approximately two-hundred and thirty thousand. This is not to mention the need for the manufacturers, commission, payroll, and all that jazz. Fortunately for us, I have plotted a solution for our money troubles. I have conducted schematics for factories. These will improve the production of general goods, which will help the Land of Lightning general a sustainable income. These factories are somewhat expensive, so production for them might take some time. At base value a factory will cost us five-hundred thousand ryo."

"Under my leadership I can give you two factories for that amount. These are estimated to produce one-hundred and fifty thousand ryo a month. I intend to withhold fifty thousand for myself. As manager I must still pay the workers in these facilities, and have a sense of commission for myself. This will be one-hundred thousand ryo for Kumogakure per factory. You can build however many you wish, as they are not resource dependent. Of course, the more will be the merrier for the both of us. This will allow us to cover these costs, and well as greatly expand our village and our military."

Setting the packet down after a winded spiel she quietly clapped her hands together. "SO! For the first phase of my plan: we need revenue. Building factories should be our first priority to pay the bill. For starters we can begin with two factories. This will be an additional two-hundred thousand ryo for Kumogakure. After two months, with help of my own spending, we can build two more. This will be an additional two-hundred thousand ryo. From there we can talk about opening up colleges and start with that plan. We must spend money to make money. But I assure you this will greatly benefit us in the future." After she wrapped up her speech she finally allowed the Raikage to speak and give her thoughts on her presentation.

Nariko wasn't too upset about Natsuru's more casual approach to things, or the fact that she sort of stormed in like she owned the place. Primarily because she noticed the burden of the papers and blueprints she'd been carrying, and partially because she didn't like to necessarily be all that professional if she didn't need to be. Still, dumping them on the table was sure to misplace some of her things, and that was going to be annoying in a bit. Closing the door behind her, she moved back to the desk and took her seat, sifting under the blueprints for the ash tray.

Pulling it out a bit so it wasn't covered up, Nariko ashed the cigarette and took a puff as she listened to Natsuru begin her speech. She watched the girl sift through the paperwork for a specific piece, giving her her complete and undivided attention. After all, this had to be something she thought important, or she wouldn't have come all this way with so much. The Raikage had to admit, she found it all intriguing. There was a benefit to having a squad, they tended to provide some level of interest.

She listened to her speech, following the points that Natsuru outlined with interest. She had already had the thought that they should put their craftsmen to good use, hence her support for Shimiko's skills and talents once she awoke from her coma. Ryuko was a fantastic armor crafter as well, and Natsuru was also a talented crafter in her own right. She assumed the blueprints were part of that designing process of a crafter, but seeing as she wasn't a crafter herself, she wasn't quite sure what all went into it.

From the very start of her proposal, Nariko could see nothing wrong with it as far as surface value went. She'd already been planning on doing a little bit of expansion on Kumo's territory as it stood, so this seemed to help her cause a little bit. Having a fleet would allow her to take some of the islands around Kumo for them to use as well. The land of Whirpools was a fantastic candidate for a prison complex that was inescapable, and she'd need the highest levels of fleets in order to get there and back safely. At least, better than the average ship they already had. No offense to Kumo's current navy.

The crux of the problem was that it was going to take some start up money, and that's where Nariko had to come in. Of course as Kumogakure's Raikage, she was in charge of the financial dealings that went on, and use of their funds for other things. She currently had a massive military spending on manpower and defense, so the growth of their reserves was a little slower than it should be. The extra income would be nice for sure, plus the ability to make these ships as well. There really wasn't much downside other than the initial cost.

After she was done speaking, Nariko was silent for a moment before she responded. "So, if I'm to understand you, each factory would produce 150,000 ryo per month on their own, 300k from your proposal, with you managing them. That would leave you with the task of managing them, and your commission would be 50k each, netting Kumo with 200k a month, and you with a profit of 100k a month? On top of that, the cost of the employees and general maintenance would already be factored in, so that's just pure profit?" If Natsuru would respond in the affirmative, Nariko would nod. "I can supply you with the money for that for sure, Kumo's in need of some extra income. I'd like to supply some out of pocket money as well, for a factory that wouldn't be tied in to Kumo's funding, and we'd split the profit from that between the two of us, although as you're already profiting from the management of two, I'd ask you take the 50k from each, which is a substantial payment per month, and mine would provide me with 100k to myself. I don't really pay myself for this job as Raikage, so some income is necessary after all."

If she would agree to that even further, Nariko would lean back, taking another drag on her cigarette. Exhaling, she'd nod. "I think this works out. Would you like to only do the 3? Or do you think we should have another? Regardless, I think we should have a contract drawn up to outline the payments to who gets what so nobody ends up getting stiffed. Do you have one already, or do you want one of my assistants to draw one up?"

"Yes, each factory will produce one-hundred and fifty thousand. I planned one-hundred thousand to go towards Kumogakure's budget, and me to withhold the other fifty thousand. I must pay ten-thousand a month to keep my employees, well, employed. As well as pay any other bills necessary. So I will profit forty-thousand for each successful factory." Nariko would nod in response. She went on to discuss the terms she had planned, Natsuru nodding in agreement to each of them, as well as the mention of an off-hand factory. It all sounded very good and was relieved Nariko was more laid back with Kumogakure's spending. At first she was afraid she might have to do some convincing. Of course she could see she was smart enough to understand the long-term investment for these factories. "An off-hand factory would do acceptable. I believe we are capable of doing four factories, three for Kumogakure and one for our private uses. The more we have the faster we can recover from the spending. Once these are built you can consider me off the salary roster and have me as an unpaid government employee. With four factories I will benefit much from the revenue they produce."

Granting a smile her face also lit up after doing brief calculations. "And if you think about it, having three factories for Kumogakure would mean we no longer lose money for producing more factories. If one costs two-hundred and fifty thousand to produce, and we're already netting from three-hundred thousand with factory revenue alone we can continue to build more. And I will be more than willing to help with any future production with my own money. Our future will be bright. If we plan to expand our territory we can spread more to those areas as well." She said, almost drooling, the bluenette wiping the corner of her mouth with her sleeve. Of course such an invest came with terms. Natsuru did not create a contract, because she did not believe one was necessary. Then again, Nariko was about to pull nearly one-million ryo from Kumogakure's funding. She could understand why she needed the security on a written document in case she needed to cover her ass in the future.

"Oh, I did not create a contract. If you can, please." She said giving Nariko incentive to do so. She used the moment of brief silence to process the work she needed and what actually happened. It was all so fast with little negotiation necessary. She was excited to start building her own empire.

"Yes, that sounds reasonable." Nariko said, standing up, putting out the cigarette and moving to her door. Opening it up, she looked to the guard on station, a woman by the name of Yanai Emiri. "Oh, hey, Yanai, didn't know you were the guard on station. Okay, so can you get one of my assistants to draw up a contract with some various--" she spoke for a few minutes, detailing what she wanted the contract to include. It was a little barebones, but it included the numbers for the ledger so she had enough.

While she went off to get that drawn up, Nariko went back into the office, back to her desk. "This'll be good for Kumogakure. I wanted to start annexing some of the minor countries around us, and revenue is good for that. We can offer them protection and some money and revenue, as well as citizenship in return for access to their lands and intel. Specifically I wanted the land of Whirlpools, which needs ships to reach it, and our ships currently would be torn to shreds there. The income generated would help even on land acquisitions, so this comes at the perfect time. Besides, it's soon time to balance this month's budget."

Smiling. "Would you want to be on one of the scouting expeditions to any lands around us?" she offered. "I mean, it'll take a couple months for us to start making money on this, and by then, hopefully I have the Chuunin Exams hosted, whether the other nations want to participate is up to them, so I figure inviting them as a sign of good will could be nice, open negotiations for some stuff too."

Nariko departed momentarily to call for her assistant, or at least one of her subordinates to get the paperwork ready. As she returned she started mentioning her original intentions to annex some of the lands. It was a progressive move. As she mentioned the need for funding is very important to accomplish this. She nodded as she shared these plans, Natsuru folding her arms casually as Nariko spoke. She found it particularly interesting she wanted to pursue the Land of Whirlpools. As the name suggests it sounded like a death trap. And as far as Natsuru knew the island was quite small. This led to the question of if Natsuru wanted to partake in a scouting expedition. The thought of traveling to a remote land working with a scouting detail to discover a new village was enticing, the mere thought giving the woman butterflies. She would be far from home, far from the manor, and far from her friends in the familiar Land of Lightning. But deep within this was what she wanted. She wanted to explore the world and see other parts of the world. This was the first step.

"I would love to." She said not being able to muster up much else. She gave her words some thought before inquiring more about the lands she wished to discover. "What particular countries did you have in mind?" She wanted to know if she was going to help discover a habitable environment. This also begged the question of her training as well. She was not in her best condition to fend for herself. She needed gear, and perhaps a useful technique to defend herself with. Of course those concerns would come later down the line of questioning she had.

"Particularly, I was thinking of looking into the Land of Frost, for a military outpost, have it be the first line of defense and knowledge. Like a gate or something, from land as that's the only mainland entrance to our nation. With a fleet, I can do my best to surround us and make sure nobody is able to sneak into our nation with a large enough force to do any real damage, and then the patrols can deal with anything else, but from an invasion standpoint, we'd be safe enough with just Frost." she explained.

"However, I also wanted the Land of Whirlpools, as it is dangerous to get into, and even more so to try and leave without a proper vessel. If we could build a prison there, we could house some of the most dangerous prisoners there, and the only way on or off the island safely would be on one of our ships, which would of course, be very well guarded. The process would more or less be drop off and leave. I was thinking of perhaps commissioning some chakra nullifying cuffs from a fuuinjutsu user for prisoner transport."

"The Land of Snow was probably the other I was looking into. Of course, I would like to expand further, but that takes time and resources, and we can use those three as starting points to expand Kumo's territory." There was no reason not to answer her questions and explain a little into why she wanted each place. To be honest, the Land of Snow was purely because it was land that she could easily access. Mainly it was the surrounding lands she wanted to start with.

Natsuru listened to Nariko, not thinking about money for a moment and actually being intrigued with her plans for her conquering ordeal. Natsuru could not argue the need to secure Frost. It was Kumogakure's neighboring country. Unlike most countries, which are landlocked and have many methods of approach by land. Securing Frost and making it a heavy military outpost with lots of patrols and security would make the Land of Lightning's doorstep relatively safe. Not to mention the Land of Frost was unbearable to survive in on its own. It would become twice the deterrent with a heavy military presence. This would leave the Land of Lightning open to the waters, which once Kumogakure secures a heavy naval presence that method of approach would become just as impossible as the Land of Frost. Nariko went of to explain her needs for the other countries. She wished to turn the Land of Whirlpools (a small, insignificant country she didn't know existed) into a prison island. Natsuru nodded in agreement. Keeping the worst of society off the glorious mainland would be for the best.

The Land of Snow seemed more of an economical interest above all else. She did not state any particular purpose aside from being an expansion. It was relatively close to the Land of Lightning and had greater resources. Of course negotiation and all of that jazz was going to be Nariko's job, or at least her staff. From the sounds of it, she intended to have Natsuru help with scouting and then build the necessary buildings and lead production. Natsuru enjoyed playing into her strengths as it was the best moment to shine. "The Land of Snow is something I would be interested in, and it sounds like it should be our first goal. From what I understand the Land of Frost is quite unbearable with little to no resources. The Land of Whirlpools is similar in the sense that it's such a small island it would fail for an enterprise. A prison island can wait, and although tactically conquering Frost would be ideal we are not in a pinch for time, as we currently have no immediate threats..."

She said, really guessing. Aside from bandits Natsuru has not encountered any political threats, such as foreign Shinobi. "The Land of Snow is quite useful in its resources, and has plenty room for expansion. It is large enough to really serve as a secondary Land of Lightning, and under worse case scenarios be used as a 'backup' country if we ever lose the Land of Lightning. Snow and Lightning can work closely, and I can continue to build and help expand. Once we have Snow up and running we can consider taking Frost. That would be the next logical step, in my opinion." The Genin was excited she wanted to get to work now. Of course, there was one issue she needed to bring up. "How soon do you plan to make a move on Snow? Will it be before or after the factories are built? I will be sent with a scouting squad, correct?"

Nariko welcomed her subordinate's input, glad that she wasn't just saying nothing and not contributing to the conversation at all. This girl showed a lot of drive and promise, that's for sure. "Of course I'd be sending you with a scouting squad, I'm not absolutely barbaric. You'd be meeting with the other lands as my representative, being one of my personal squad members, but you're not even a Chuunin yet, let alone a Jounin. Regardless of our intentions, it is possible that your venture to another land may be taken with hostility. I'd be sending you with two envoys. 6 Jounin who's responsibility would be to ensure the group's safety as a whole, and 3 ANBU who will charged with your safety in particular."

She didn't really anticipate there to be any real danger, but it never hurt to be sure. They could afford the numbers, this was an important task after all. "It'll be basically a typical escort mission for them, but it'll be a political mission for you. The proper details can be discussed about that later, but you'll have every utmost protection assigned to you, short of me going myself." she laughed.

"Um, as for timing, I'd like us to have our factories established beforehand. We'll have something to bring to the table in our negotiations. Just having a village might seem like bullying the minor countries after all, but if we go into this as a partnership and offer some funding, then it'll be better I think. I'll be sending out some invitations to Frost and Snow for the upcoming exams, as well as the other major and minor villages, but exam time isn't exactly optimal to discuss business, especially with other nations and their shinobi around to try and spy on our dealings, or I'd have you just do it then."

There was a wave of relief settling her nerves when Nariko jested at her question. She went on to state she would be well-guarded with Jounin and even ANBU alike. Such protection made her feel more important than she actually was. Or perhaps she was important? To be traveling with six Jounin, and having three personal ANBU guards to protect her personally made her feel like a famous ambassador. In reality she was merely a Genin, with poor people skills and a knack for making revenue. Perhaps it was that drive Nariko saw in her that made her the best candidate. Regardless, Nariko stated she wanted the factories built before she would depart. Natsuru would estimate this would take at least a month to a month and a half to get everything set. It was plenty of time for her to prepare mentally for both the journey and her role in the mission.

"Very good. That makes perfect sense. Become a respectable force and have something to offer to our future allies rather than having empty words. Though...I don't know what Snow's economy is at the moment. In any case we may be able to offer a trade deal with them. What's good is once we secure Snow tagging along Whirlpool and Frost would be easy. With a larger, more intimidating force and more resources to play with we can offer assistance with more resources at hand and make for a tasteful bargain." The thought of negotiation seemed to have come natural to Natsuru once she began thinking about it in a practical context. Of course the most challenging task would be securing one alliance with little to nothing to offer but revenue and protection. It was very...generic. But as Lightning's allies grew they would appear most trustworthy and their intentions honest.

Natsuru was in favor of Nariko's passive approach to the whole matter. Instead of sieging or conquering the neighboring Minor nations she was willing to make offers and have negotiations. She had a kind heart, of sorts. Just like Natsuru. Of course Nariko would also make it a point to announce the importance of the Chuunin Exams, something that would be here sooner than she would think. Natsuru was unsure if she was fit to become a full-fledged Chuunin. She was relatively fresh when it came to combat. She relied on her teammates to cover her weakness most of the time. Though, reminiscing how well she handled Shimiko in their recent scuffle, she figured she would do somewhat decent.

"It may not be the best to discuss business during the exams, but it should be in our best efforts to welcome our future allies and make them comfortable. Which reminds me...during the exams we must appear powerful to our allies. I don't want to seem too demanding right now, consider all that you've done, but do you think we could schedule a training session sometime soon? It's been a while, and I only every trained once with Akashi." Without much in her arsenal she needed to be at peak physical performance. It was her only strong point when it came to combat. Although she lacked technique and finesse she was capable of overpowering her foe with brute force. Of course, that would not be for long. She needed to stay on top of her training and constantly pursue improvement. That much was true.

"We can schedule a training session soon, sure. I've been meaning to get a team meeting up at least once in the near future anyhow. After all, my squad should at least do somewhat well in the exams, if not outright win. You guys are pretty much close to promotion from various things anyhow. Whether it be level of tactics, forward thinking, initiative, or outright skill. Might as well help out with the skill level of combat."

Nariko smiled. She thought the members of the team were all quite something special. She was glad they weren't like her squad mates had been.

"Well, I'm sure you've got some things to do. Be prepared for a team meeting tomorrow, you'll get your training in. I've gotta prepare a lesson for you all."

If Natsuru wanted to stick around and chat some more, then she'd be more than welcome to do so, which Nariko relayed, and the day would progress through.

[attempt to exit]

Nariko added her statement in. Natsuru was surprised she thought so highly of the Genin. Perhaps she had an issue with doubting herself. With the deal done and sealed, Natsuru achieved her goal for today. Natsuru would nod in agreement before leaving the office area. She had some celebrating to do, followed by intense preparations. It was her chance to do things right.

[Exit]