Konoha: Tsunade, I am the Hokage

Rain-Hidden Village.

Splash!

Amidst the clouds and raindrops, a figure rapidly coalesced from pieces of paper that transformed into the color of the sky, finally appearing outside Hanzo's door.

Not long after.

"Lord Hanzo!"

"Xiao Nan, why are you the only one back? What happened?"

"Sir, the situation is like this..."

Konan described Konoha's proposal.

Hanzo listened carefully, then smiled and said, "Since I sent you, it's because I trust you completely. You can decide for yourselves."

"These matters concern the village and the country; we have neither the experience nor the authority to handle them."

Xiao Nan answered respectfully.

Hanzo pondered for a moment and said, "If opening the mountain is indeed as you say, then it can be basically concluded that it is beneficial to both us and Sunagakure, and we can proceed with it."

"The cost..."

"Sunagakure will definitely have to shoulder more of the burden, because it is still unknown how much of an effect opening up will have on our Land of Rain."

Hanzo replied calmly, "We can't gamble money on unknown profits."

In addition, Amegakure has become accustomed to rain.

The Sand Village is different.

For Sunagakure Village, a wisp of moisture could mean a river, an oasis, or a trade route...

Hanzo didn't understand many of these things, but his intuition told him that Sunagakure would definitely reap greater benefits from this plan!

and so.

Luo Sha will definitely give in.

"Then, the cooperation in the northern part of the Land of Rivers?"

"This needs to be discussed with the daimyo and nobles of the land of rivers. The interests of all parties need to be balanced, and it can't be resolved in a short time. Let's postpone it for now."

Hanzo said with a slight smile.

"You've done a great job, securing considerable benefits for Amegakure and the Land of Rain, but what about your village? What are your plans?"

"They originally only went there to escape war and conflict, and had no intention of expanding. If the village needs us, we are ready to provide manpower and resources at any time!"

Xiao Nan lowered her head and answered quickly.

Hanzo waved his hand.

"Don't be nervous. You come from the Land of Rain and Amegakure. We are natural allies and can increase our cooperation in the future."

"Yes, we will obey your orders completely!"

Xiao Nan answered decisively.

Hanzo said, "Go and tell Yahiko that he can decide everything in the negotiations in Konoha without consulting me."

As he spoke, he wrote down everything he had just said on a scroll and stamped it with the leader's seal.

"Go for it!"

"Thank you for your trust, Lord Hanzo!"

Xiao Nan bowed her head to take it, then stepped back to the windowsill, quickly wrapped the scroll, and disappeared from the spot.

Hanzo walked to the window and watched Konan leave.

Yahiko, Konan, Tori no Kuni.

If the smaller ninja villages want to fight against the larger ninja villages and their alliance, they must unite and rely on the larger ninja villages.

Yahiko and his group from Amegakure are indeed the most suitable partners.

When a village cannot expand, differentiation and closer alliances are far better than simple expansion in numbers.

Because the resources of the Land of Rain cannot support the consumption of a large ninja village.

This is also why he genuinely collaborated with Yahiko and Minami, and gave them opportunities and a platform to hone their skills.

In the future, Yahiko and Konan will become the backbone of Amegakure, and even—

The next leader!

……

Luo Sha left.

The main things Sunagakure needs to discuss with Konoha are those issues, and now there's also cooperation on the southern seas, so he needs to go back to take charge.

Amegakure is different.

The main person in charge of the situation in the village was Hanzo, Yahiko, and Konan, who were just Jonin with special status.

He can linger in Konoha for much longer.

The difference is—

Yahiko's purpose was different.

He was observing Konoha's operating model, pondering whether Amegakure and the villages of the Land of Birds could learn from and adopt it.

Even learning just a small part is definitely much better than them trying to figure it out on their own.

but.

After looking around, Yahiko felt somewhat desperate.

Konoha's model is based entirely on the premise of "wealth".

Sufficient capital and trade routes are needed to attract more merchants and create a virtuous cycle.

Furthermore, the peace of the Land of Fire is something that their small country cannot replicate.

Over the course of several days, he increasingly felt that Konoha was like a snowball, which, after its initial accumulation, would only grow bigger and bigger.

If Konoha is able to absorb the benefits of the snowball effect and promptly convert them into power, creating a virtuous cycle...

Then Konoha will truly become the number one village in the ninja world.

Even the other four great ninja villages probably can't compare to Konoha.

If the four strongest villages were to unite, they could contend with Konoha. However, the problem is that Sunagakure was crippled by Konoha and now can only live by Konoha's attitude.

Amegakure has no other choice.

The future ninja world...

I hope Kyohiko is a peace-loving person!

Yahiko sighed secretly.

……

Inside the forest outside the Dark Side.

Kakashi was wearing special clothes and wielding a heavy blade. He was drenched in sweat, but he gritted his teeth and persevered.

Over the course of several days, his body was improving rapidly, but he himself was unaware of it.

"Ten times the gravity, combined with his own chakra, can be maintained for three hours, which is not bad, just a bit troublesome."

Orochimaru was recording the data.

The new chakra armor has been completed.

Effect……

It's just passable.

Because the current version can only be activated up to 10x, increasing it further will significantly increase the increase in chakra consumption, making it extremely inefficient.

"Once it reaches ten times the speed, it can be used. The rest is about optimization and iteration."

Jingyan looked at the pattern and pondered how to optimize it.

The principle behind this armor is to amplify the duration of ninjutsu, so its design is quite different from before.

but.

This armor only received one Hardening spell as a reward...

That thing is useful, but its effect is only strong for those below Chunin level; it's practically useless for those above Chunin level.

Especially when facing Lightning Release ninjutsu.

and so.

We need to think further and squeeze out as much value as possible from it!

Kyohiko was deep in thought.

Then, his eyes lit up.

"This design is actually better suited for combination with hardening techniques and earth spears; the effect should be even better."

"It's just so-so when it comes to cooperating with the others."

Jingyan quickly pondered the situation.

"Kakashi, how are you feeling?"

"Better than ever before!"

Kakashi was very excited.

The training I've done these past few days has surpassed the physical training I've undergone in the previous six months—

Although it was also related to the fact that he had been busy with official duties for the previous six months and had not exercised much.

but.

This is only for a few days!

If you can stick to the training, its value is self-evident.

"this……"

"no."

Orochimaru refused outright, saying, "It's too expensive, and as Kyohiko said, it's more suitable for Iwagakure. We absolutely cannot leak it out."

"So, it can only be used in the Dark Division?"

"Kyohiko already has this in mind, doesn't he?"

Orochimaru looked at Kyohiko.

Jingyan put away his pen: "Hmm, I just had some ideas, but they're not quite complete yet."

"The current plan is to produce a dozen or so items and distribute them to key personnel for training. In addition, every month or every three months, we will select personnel who have been actively involved in training, learning, and tasks to compete..."

Chakra armor is expensive to make, and it's unrealistic for everyone to have one.

and so.

As a reward for "monthly exams" or "quarterly exams," that would be perfect.

Orochimaru laughed, "Excellent! With your method, they'll become increasingly determined, and the village will grow stronger!"

"You can only improve by fighting."

Is graduation the end of it?

Graduating from the Ninja Academy is just the beginning of my ninja career!

The old system kept pushing tasks to their limits until they died; that's not how it works.

Upon hearing this, Kakashi trembled.

This is going to cause a huge uproar!

He swallowed hard.

"And what about people like me who are busier?"

"Outstanding geniuses are definitely the priority to be cultivated. Although it's not entirely fair, it's the fastest way to improve the village's high-end strength."

Kyohiko replied.

The foundation of a village depends on its chunin and genin.

With its ninja academy education system, Konoha's quality is definitely the highest among the five great ninja villages.

The Gravity Armor Training Program is primarily aimed at Jonin (high-ranking ninja).

Reaching the Jonin level requires exponentially more effort to improve one's physical abilities, even by a fraction of the effort.

In this situation, the Gravity Chakra Armor becomes extremely useful.

His thoughts gradually became clearer, and he quickly wrote them down, preparing to go back and talk to Tsunade to see if they could finalize the entire reward system.

……

The South, a land of the sea.

A young ronin, with a sword at his waist, leaped off the ship.

On the boat, everyone waved and thanked him.

He waved his hand and walked towards the shore of the sea kingdom.

Not long after, Kazuma slowly walked towards the street, and soon couldn't help but look in one direction of the dock.

Hidden Mist Ninja!

A group of Hidden Mist ninjas jumped off the ship.

He quickly went to a place to inquire.

I only found out after asking.

Recently, many wandering ninjas and thieves have appeared at sea, posing a considerable threat to the merchant caravans of the Land of the Sea.

The Land of the Sea therefore increased its recruitment of Hidden Mist ninja.

"A wandering ninja?"

"How could a wandering ninja dare to attack a caravan passing through the Land of the Sea?"

"There's definitely something wrong!"

Having spent the last few days in the Land of Rivers, Kazuma has come to understand the thoughts and ideas of those wandering ninjas there.

He thought about the purpose of his trip and suddenly understood.

Leaf Village?

It should be.

War is about to break out.

He thought to himself.

……

Hidden Mist Village.

"Elder."

"Why!"

Master Yuan frowned and reluctantly put down the scroll.

He sat back.

"We've already sent more ninjas to deal with the caravan, but we're afraid this might be a counterattack from Konoha."

"I'm going over there!"

Hozuki Mangetsu volunteered.

Master Yuan shook his head.

Hozuki Full Moon...

Although he is no longer forced to watch over the Three-Tails as before, he doesn't have much power now, and he has very few tasks assigned to him.

He is currently leading the team, and his teammates are Mei Terumi, Zabuza, and Ringo Ameyuri.

of course.

The main reason Yuan Shi didn't let him go was the village's order.

He took out a scroll and said, "Take some men and intercept this fleet. Don't kill anyone, just rob the cargo and do it cleanly."

"grown ups……"

Hozuki Mangetsu got anxious.

What kind of logic is it to vandalize someone's own home?

"Child, go do something. I understand what you're saying, but who can afford the cost of failure right now?"

The master's tone grew increasingly sorrowful.

He had already realized that there was something wrong with the Mizukage, but Yagura Karatachi was already incredibly powerful before.

Yagura has now sealed the Three-Tails and has voluntarily become its jinchūriki, making him even more terrifying than before.

Besides Yagura himself, who else in Kirigakure can defeat him?

Currently, Kirigakure is still functioning and maintaining itself. However, if they do what Hozuki Mangetsu suggested and fail to defeat their opponent, then...

What should Kirigakure do after the defeat?

The master must consider the consequences of failure.

"Go."

"This is!"

Hozuki Mangetsu left helplessly.

Once outside, he looked up at the sky and felt that the air in Kirigakure was oppressive.

The current state of Kirigakure makes him see no future.

……

Inside the Hokage's office.

Tsunade looked at the scroll in her hand, her expression gradually becoming serious.

This is yet another decision that will impact the ninja system!

She rubbed her temples.

Jingyan's proposal has obvious advantages, but its flaws...

The ninjas are working harder and harder, so how to ensure their safe training is a question that needs careful consideration.

otherwise.

One wrong move and you could ruin your life.

"Kyohiko, my suggestion is to test the Gravity Chakra Armor multiple times first, and not just give it to someone like Kakashi to use..."

"I understand. Once the numbers increase, I will test it at various levels first."

Kyohiko replied.

but.

He paused for a moment, then said, "However, you should know that this is a reward upgrade for geniuses and elites, so the selections are definitely among the most outstanding."

"Yes, also, we need to consider whether it will have a long-term impact on the child's development..."

Tsunade, from the perspective of a medical ninja, continuously offered her own ideas.

Then she put down the reel.

"Instead of this, I think we should establish a ninja health review mechanism as soon as possible and develop a training plan suitable for normal ninjas."

Tsunade couldn't help but complain about what had happened over the past period of time—

Since the Eight Gates technique proved its power and controllable safety, there has been a noticeable increase in taijutsu ninjas undergoing intensive training.

The number of injured people in hospitals has also increased significantly.

"This should be something the Konoha Hospital needs to do, right?"

Jingyan carefully looked up.

Tsunade said irritably, "Where is anyone? Konoha Hospital, the medical ninjas are all very busy right now, researching, treating..."

"Fortunately, it's not a state of war, otherwise the shortage would be even more urgent."

but.

What troubled Tsunade the most was—

War is imminent!

Currently, they can already foresee that a war is bound to break out.

This will be a war that engulfs the entire ninja world, and there is little possibility of compromise unless they can ultimately kill Uchiha Madara.

"There's still not enough time!"

If we could have another ten years.

Kyohiko believed that with Konoha's current rate of development, it could absolutely suppress the entire ninja world!

but.

Within a limited timeframe, all they can do is continuously improve the quality of the current ninjas and train and develop those with potential as quickly as possible.

Tsunade put the plan aside and sighed, "I'll arrange your plan along with the health check and training. Do you have any intelligence on Kakuzu's side?"

"I've already had people stake out several black markets; we should be able to find his approximate location soon."

"Arrest them as soon as possible."

"Understood!" (End of Chapter)