In the Sand Village, the clones are everywhere, and the Arkham game begins

Chapter 347 Elected

Before the new daimyo takes over, there is something more important for all the ninjas in the Sand Village.

That is, the nomination and selection of the Kazekage candidate.

Another day later.

In the early morning, a big sun rises slowly at the end of the desert.

On both sides of the wide canal, willow trees are swaying and oases are forming.

At the busy dock, management has been tightened at this moment, and work is being carried out under the supervision of teams of Sunagakure ninjas.

Today is a big day for everyone in the Sand Village.

"Is everyone here?"

The Third Kazekage, wearing a white shadow robe, stood in the Kazekage's office and asked the Anbu beside him.

"Elder Ebizo is still in the capital, presiding over the situation. Jialulu is escorting the ninth son of the former daimyo. In addition to them, there are fourteen jonin who are carrying out missions outside and cannot return to the village for the time being. These sixteen votes have all been transferred to others to vote on their behalf."

"The remaining 131 people have been summoned to the conference room by Elder Qiandai."

The Anbu ninja knelt on one knee and spoke to the Third Kazekage.

"Then let's get started."

The Third Kazekage's eyes moved slightly, he turned and left the Kazekage's office, and soon arrived at the meeting room.

More than a hundred jonin were now kneeling in an orderly manner on sitting mats that looked like futons.

Some people looked solemn, while others were whispering to each other.

These people are part of the most important combat force of the Sand Village. They are the core force that enables the Sand Village to maintain its position as one of the five major ninja villages in the ninja world. They are also an important bridge between the management of the Sand Village and the grassroots ninjas.

Qingshui had a calm expression and sat in the front row.

Those sitting around him were either some senior ninjas with very old information, or they held important positions in various departments of the Sand Village and their status was relatively high among the senior ninjas.

Of course, there is no obvious gap between the identities of these people and those of other senior ninjas.

This is an extraordinary world where strength is above all else. As long as you are strong enough, your status will naturally be higher.

Not to mention that Shimizu is the protagonist of this incident.

Therefore, his position is at the forefront among all the jonin.

Opposite him was Luo Sha with a complicated expression, and slightly behind him was Ye Cang.

Everyone has already tacitly acknowledged that the three of them are stronger than other jonin.

In fact, there should also be Ebizo, Karura and Chiyo. If necessary, even the one-tailed Jinchūriki Fonfuku who has been hiding in the temple can be counted in this group.

It's just that Ebizo and Karuura are busy, and Chiyo is the elder + consultant. She is now sitting on the stage, ready to assist the Kazekage in presiding over the Jonin Conference.

The One-Tail Jinchuriki Bonfuku has not appeared in public for several years.

As he grew older, and due to the defects in the sealing techniques of the Sand Village, and the fact that he himself did not have a strong bloodline, Fubuki Shigetsu's body had been eroded by the chakra of the tailed beasts several years ago to a very weak state, and he could go berserk at any time.

When Shimizu just graduated from the Ninja School, in order to avoid too much damage caused by the tailed beast going out of control, Bunfuku was transferred to a temple on the outskirts of the Sand Village and guarded by the Anbu.

Apart from a disciple named Hoichi who serves him on a daily basis, the only people that Fenfuku can come into contact with besides the Anbu are the high-ranking officials of the Sand Village.

Although Chiyo invented the Great Funeral Seal this year, a powerful sealing technique that has the ability to seal the tailed beasts, which greatly reduces the chances of the tailed beasts revolting, Fonfuku's body has been eroded by the chakra of the tailed beasts for many years.

And he is not like the Uzumaki clan who are born with strong bodies, abundant vitality, and huge amounts of chakra. The loss of vitality is already very serious.

According to Chiyo's diagnosis, as long as no action is taken, Bonfuku can still live for another six or seven years.

If there is any accident in the middle, or if the Sand Village decides to send the One-Tail Jinchuriki to the battlefield, then this time will be shortened further.

Before, the Sand Village had been selecting ninjas with better physiques and larger amounts of chakra to serve as containers for the tailed beasts until a suitable jinchūriki was chosen.

However, now that they have Ayane Uzumaki, a member of the Uzumaki clan with pure blood, the Sand Village is not too worried about this aspect at the moment. They just need to transfer Shukaku into Ayane Uzumaki's body before Bunfuku can't hold on.

Now the Third Kazekage is planning to arrange a marriage between Uzumaki Ayane and Sado in the hope of giving birth to offspring with Uzumaki bloodline as soon as possible.

The latter was quite resistant. Sanda didn't want to give up an entire forest because of a tree. With his face and his position as a senior ninja in the Sand Village, he could dig up most of the trees in the forest.

It’s not Qingshui’s turn to worry about these things.

When the Third Kazekage slowly walked into the conference room and sat down at the top seat, the room fell silent.

"My fellow jonin, the reason why you are gathered here today is to hold a meeting to nominate the village's jonin, Shimizu, as the candidate for Kazekage.

The nomination process for the Kazekage candidate this time is exactly the same as the process after the candidates are elected in the Kazekage election. It will be decided by voting by the Kazekage and many jonin of the village. If the nominee obtains more than two-thirds of the total votes, he or she will go to Kyoto and obtain the approval of the daimyo to become the Kazekage candidate.

If you have any objections, please raise them within three minutes."

The Third Kazekage looked at the group of Sand Village jonin below and spoke.

There was no need for anyone to introduce Shimizu and what he had done to these senior ninjas who occupied a certain position in the Sand Village.

Even the villagers of Sand Village who pay a little attention to current affairs know the name Shimizu.

Since the successful construction of the canal two years ago, Qingshui's name has been mentioned frequently during that period.

As the youngest talented jonin, and a disciple of Chiyo and Ebizo, two elders whose status was second only to the Kazekage, Shimizu truly entered the eyes of the Sand Village ninjas from that time on. He accumulated his first reputation by building the canal, and relied on his companions in the puppet army to form the first team.

At that time, he was just a very promising new generation star in the village. Even Chiyo did not expect that just two years later, Shimizu would be qualified to be elected as a candidate for Kazekage and lock in the position of the Fourth Kazekage.

Last year, when Shimizu successfully awakened and escaped, and had a battle with the Third Kazekage in the training ground, people realized that the genius had grown so quickly to be qualified to compete for the position of Kazekage, and possessed combat power that was at the top of the ninja world.

But at that time, most of the Sand Village ninjas generally believed that Rasa, who was the disciple of the Third Kazekage and was older, was more competitive. No matter how talented Shimizu was, it would take a few more years before he could compete with Rasa.

So from then on, some people began to invest in Qingshui.

Some of these people don't like Rasa, some think that the Third Kazekage is not ready to retire yet and that Shimizu will be able to defeat Rasa in the future, and some are betting on both sides.

But no one expected Qingshui to rise so quickly.

Even if your strength improves quickly, you still have to spend time building your own faction, winning over senior ninjas, obtaining votes, and accumulating enough merit and reputation, right?
Even if your teacher is a disciple of Chiyo and Ebizo, two powerful elders who hold multiple positions in the Sand Village, and can help you avoid many detours, it will still take several years in non-war times, right?

As a result, Qingshui once again refreshed these people's views
The emergence and popularization of new puppetry and breathing techniques won Qingshui a lot of reputation and support.

In the field of puppetry, he has become a figure that no puppeteer can avoid, just like studying physics cannot avoid Newton, Einstein, and Maxwell. His reputation in the puppeteer community has reached its peak.

The emergence of breathing techniques and swordsmanship improvement classes has made almost all the senior ninjas in the Sand Village owe a debt of gratitude to Shimizu.

Because the breathing method really improved their strength.

In addition, the birth of chakra energy vehicles and various production lines brought about by the new puppetry has also greatly increased the Sand Village's share of tasks and increased the income of the ninjas.

Although the number of tasks these ninjas need to undertake is also increasing.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that Luo Sha’s abilities were no match for Qingshui.

If the Third Kazekage, the leader of the Sand Village, takes sides, and if Rasa tries to fight back and stand up, he might still have a chance.

But now it seems that the Third Kazekage has made a decision and chosen Shimizu, who can bring more value to the Sand Village.

Otherwise, without the approval of the Wind Shadow, the meeting to nominate the Wind Shadow candidate cannot be held.

Luo Sha no longer has any chance, and there is no suspense as to whether Shimizu can take the position of Kazekage candidate.

Those who can become a jonin are not stupid and naturally know what to do.

No one wants to be bullied in the future. Even if there are a small number of people who have grudges against Chiyo and Ebizo, they will not vote against it at this time.

With the outcome already decided, they did not even abstain, but instead voted in favor in the hope of achieving reconciliation in the future.

Casting this vote may not necessarily lead to reconciliation, but if you don't vote, it will be much more difficult to reconcile in the future.

Shimizu is only in his teens now, and he can ensure that this faction will not weaken for several decades to come, and may even gain dominance over the Sand Village.

No matter how powerful Chiyo and Ebizo are, they are only elders, not Kazekage, and cannot control them.

But it would be a different story if their apprentice became the Kazekage.

As long as there are no irreconcilable conflicts, they hope to resolve them even at a cost.

No one wants to spend the rest of their life as a marginalized figure or even targeted along with their disciples and descendants.

As the saying goes, when you are strong enough, everyone around you is a good person.

The first person to vote was Scorpio.

He was promoted to jonin a week ago after completing an S-rank intelligence verification mission. He was the last one to be promoted among the jonin present, so he was the first to vote.

At the same time, he is also the youngest among the more than one hundred jonin in the Sand Village.

He became a jonin at the age of thirteen and a half, just a few months less than Shimizu did. He can be ranked in the top three in the history of the Sand Village.

Scorpion took the ticket, nodded at Qingshui, and cast his vote in favor.

After him, it was Miyashiro En.

After all, the Blood Pond Clan has been out of touch with the current ninja world for a long time. Even though Miyashiro En has the strength of an elite jonin level, he was promoted by the Third Kazekage only after undergoing certain training and completing some more difficult tasks.

Naturally, he voted in favor.

One by one, the jonin cast their votes in favor.

There were several jonin who cast two or even three votes. That was because they were voting on behalf of some jonin who were unable to return to the village in time and had already obtained their opinions.

If the person cannot be contacted, then that vote will be passively counted as abstention.

Before long, the transparent box representing approval was filled to the brim, leaving only two solitary votes for abstention.

This was on behalf of the two jonin who didn't have time to reply.

As for those who oppose, there is not a single vote at the moment.

Soon, it was Ye Cang's turn to go on stage.

She blinked her beautiful eyes at Qingshui and put the ticket into the transparent box that was almost full.

In fact, at this point, there is no need to continue voting.

The total number of votes has long exceeded two-thirds.

But the necessary procedures still have to be followed.

Luo Sha's face was cold. He abstained from voting on behalf of Galura. Then a look of struggle emerged on his face. He looked up at the Third Kazekage who was sitting quietly on the podium, then turned to Shimizu who was looking at him. Finally, he stiffly stuffed the vote into the approval box, then returned to his original position without looking back and closed his eyes.

From this moment on, he truly lost, because even he himself made a move that could be considered a surrender.

Luo Sha could only convince himself that Shimizu could bring more benefits to the Sand Village than he did to him and was more valuable.

"Qingshui, it's your turn next."

Chiyo, who was standing under the stage, looked at her apprentice and said.

"Then I won't be hypocritical."

Qingshui naturally cast his vote in favor.

Anyway, the final result is already determined, so there is no need to put on a show, as that would seem too deliberate.

"I and Ebizo also voted in favor. The vote on behalf of Monk Bonfuku was an abstention. Sandaime, it's your turn."

Chiyo placed the three tickets in their respective places and turned to look at the Third Kazekage.

"I agree too."

The Third Kazekage walked down the stage and cast his vote with a solemn expression.

“Let’s start counting.”

"Do we still need to count? There are a total of 148 votes, zero against, four abstentions, and 144 in favor. The Jonin confidence vote has passed and will take effect immediately."

Chiyo glanced at everyone in the conference room, then turned her gaze to Shimizu.

"I hereby declare that once the new daimyo takes office and passes the final procedure, Shimizu Jonin will automatically obtain the position of candidate for the Kazekage of the Sand Village, have the absolute right to inherit the next Kazekage, and have decision-making power second only to the Kazekage in all matters of the village!"

　I wish brothers that both Susano and Kakashi can draw a full Kaha within 100 draws later!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)