Naruto: The Age of Ninja Swords Begins in Kumogakure

Chapter 333 Pig, Deer, and Butterfly!

Tamura Hiroshi and Orochimaru chatted happily, with Namikaze Minato occasionally chiming in. They continued talking until the sun set in the west.

Orochimaru left gracefully, while Tamura Hiroshi, along with Namikaze Minato and an exhausted Uchiha Sasuke, returned to Uchiha Fugaku's mansion for dinner.

Because he had drunk quite a bit during the day, even though Fugaku Uchiha was in good health, he had a terrible headache, so they didn't chat much and went back to their rooms to sleep.

It's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. Tamura Hao, who was used to sleeping with his wife, couldn't sleep alone. After thinking for a while, he created a shadow clone here, while his main body used Madara Uchiha's Limbo eye technique to turn his body into light and merge into the shadow, leaving the room silently and bypassing Minato Namikaze's perception to sneak into the Yamanaka clan next to the Uchiha clan.

After obtaining Madara Uchiha's Limbo eye technique, he has been researching it. It is a high-level Yin Release eye technique, which can be seen as an enhanced version of the Nara clan's secret technique, with the key being its stealth.

Unless one reaches the Six Paths level, it is impossible to perceive it.

Although Minato Namikaze possessed powerful senses, and even cultivated a sense of good and evil with the help of the Nine-Tails' chakra, he still found it difficult to perceive this being.

Sensing Yamanaka Inoichi's chakra, Tamura Hiro finally arrived outside a house and pulled a rope bell.

"So handsome!"

A young girl walked out of the house and looked at the white-haired young man outside the courtyard gate. Her first thought was that he was handsome.

His face shape, height, and figure are all flawless, and even his silver hair exudes handsomeness.

"You must be Ino, Inoichi's daughter. I'm a friend of your father's, and I've come to visit him."

Looking at the girl walking out through the courtyard gate, which was only 1.5 meters high, Tamura Hiroshi revealed his signature gentle smile.

"Dad's friend?"

Yamanaka Ino was puzzled. How come she didn't know her father had such a handsome friend?

And she's so young.

"I've known your father, Lu Jiu, and Ding Za for a long time, and it's been more than ten years since I last saw them."

Tamura Hiroshi said that they had known each other for a long time, back when they were both young boys.

"Uncle Dingza!"

Upon hearing this name, Yamanaka Ino knew that this person must have known her father and the others for a long time, because Uncle Choza had passed away more than ten years ago, before she was even born.

Even though she had only heard her father and Uncle Shikaku mention it a few times when they were chatting.

"Please come in!"

After confirming that the person was her father's friend, Yamanaka Ino opened the gate and invited him in, leading him all the way into her home.

"Dad, you have a friend here. He's a big brother with silver hair."

Tamura Hiroshi followed him into the small building, where he saw Yamanaka Inoichi sitting at the dining table eating.

"you……"

Yamanaka Inoichi, who was eating absentmindedly, turned his head upon hearing this. When he saw the person, his mind almost went blank. His first reaction was to be wary. After regaining his senses, he put down his chopsticks with a wry smile.

"Inoichi-kun, did I disturb you?"

Tamura Hiroshi maintained his gentle smile. They were having dinner quite late, while Fugaku-kun had already finished eating.

Of course, differences are normal and may be due to work and habits.

"What brings you here?"

Yamanaka Inoichi really didn't want to see this person. Every time he saw this person, nothing good ever came of it. The last time they met, Choza went to see him.

This personal visit may not necessarily be a bad thing, but it will certainly cause a lot of trouble.

"If I hadn't come, you wouldn't have lived for many more years."

Tamura Hiroshi's words carried weight, causing both Yamanaka Ino and Yamanaka Saki to pause in surprise.

"Call Shikaku over; he's better at things that require thinking."

He then walked over to the living room sofa and sat down.

"Ugh!"

Seeing that person's posture, Yamanaka Inoichi sighed, knowing that he couldn't refuse, and immediately used a mental technique to notify his friend.

Their mountain clan's territory was connected to the Nara clan's territory, and their own home was not far from the Shikaku clan's, so they could contact them directly.

Moreover, they had already arranged to discuss matters that evening with Shikaku because of the arrival of the Hidden Cloud Village.

"Sao Hui, you and Ino go upstairs first."

After using the spell to contact Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi gestured for his wife and daughter to go upstairs, as what happened next was not for them to know.

"There's no need to avoid them. I've also come here to invite Ino to our Hidden Cloud Village for an exchange and learning experience."

Sitting in the living room, Tamura Hao said that he, Mr. Tamura, has always acted openly and honestly, and has never done anything that is shameful.

"Is big brother from Kumogakure?"

Yamanaka Ino didn't understand her father's change, but that didn't stop her from admiring the handsome man. She excitedly ran to the sofa, sat down, and admired his stunning looks.

He's so handsome, even more handsome than Sasuke's brother, especially his tall stature, which gives people a sense of security.

"I am from Kumogakure (Hidden Cloud Village), and I am leading a team here today to participate in the Chunin Exams held by your Konoha."

Tamura Hao nodded. He had a certain optimism about the Yamanaka family, and their virtual world project needed such talent to join them.

The Yamanaka clan's secret techniques are not as simple as just secret techniques; they also show signs of bloodline limits. Their physiques are very different from those of ordinary ninjas. Even if an ordinary person obtains the Yamanaka clan's secret techniques, they will find it much more difficult to cultivate them to their full potential.

This is similar to the Hozuki family's secret techniques, which no one else can master. Even Kabuto Yakushi has to rely on Hozuki Suigetsu's cells to perform them.

"Ugh!"

Seeing his daughter's infatuation resurface, Yamanaka Inoichi sighed again, raised his hand to form a hand seal and used a secret technique to have his friend bring his son over as well. He then asked his wife to prepare tea and got up to go over there.

"Big brother, you look so young!"

Yamanaka Ino ignored her elderly father, her eyes only fixed on this handsome young man, who didn't seem like her father's friend at all.

The father is already middle-aged, but this older brother looks only about twenty years old.

He is thirty-six years old this year.

Seeing that his daughter's infatuation had relapsed, Yamanaka Inoichi couldn't help but remind her.

According to the information, this person is the same age as Minato Namikaze, and is also thirty-six years old this year, only two years younger than him.

"That can't be right!"

Yamanaka Ino was quite surprised; she didn't look thirty-six at all.

"It's a secret technique that allows me to stay young forever. My appearance and figure are fixed, and I will still look the same even a hundred years from now. It won't change."

Tamura Hao spoke casually, but the words "forever young" instantly piqued Yamanaka Ino's interest, and even Yamanaka Sawai, who was bringing over tea, turned her gaze towards him.

These four words have an extraordinary allure for women, irresistible to women of all ages.

"Big brother, you just said you wanted to invite me to Kumogakure for an exchange and learning experience. If I go there, will I be able to learn this secret technique?"

Yamanaka Ino directly inquired, insisting that this secret technique must be obtained.

Although she is still young, she will grow up in the future, and she doesn't want to get old.

For example, my mother was very beautiful when I was a child, but now her looks have faded a lot, and the same goes for my father.

She, Yamanaka Ino, wanted to stay eighteen forever, to be an eternally beautiful girl, her beauty overshadowing her broad forehead.

"Of course you can. You happen to have Yin and Yang attributes, which makes you well-suited to cultivate this secret technique."

Tamura Hiroshi agreed, saying that having innate Yin-Yang attributes would make cultivation much easier.

However, Yamanaka Inoichi's expression became even more somber. Few people knew that his daughter possessed Yin and Yang attributes. The Yin attribute was a family heirloom of their Yamanaka family, and most people had it, but the Yang attribute depended on fate. Few people knew that his daughter possessed the Yang attribute.

However, what Yamanaka Inoichi didn't know was that Konoha had been under the surveillance of Black Zetsu and White Zetsu all these years. Especially after Minato Namikaze and Uzumaki Kyuuhou abandoned the Nine-Tails, their ability to sense good and evil was greatly weakened, making it difficult to sense over a large area. Black Zetsu's observation capabilities became much stronger.

Before arriving, Tamura Hao had obtained a compiled intelligence report from Black Zetsu, with a particular focus on the information about the twelve Konoha 12.

"Yay! That's great!"

"Dad, I want to go to Kumogakure for an exchange program."

Yamanaka Ino jumped up excitedly and quickly told her father that she wanted to go to Kumogakure.

She was already tired of staying in Konoha, so she decided to go out for a stroll.

Yamanaka Inoichi remained silent, but his face was long and he stared at someone with even greater vigilance.

Just then, the rope bell at the door rang.

"Ino, it should be your Uncle Shikaku. Go open the door."

Yamanaka Sakae glanced at her husband, whose expression seemed off, and gestured for her daughter to open the door.

"oh!"

Yamanaka Ino obediently agreed, glanced at the handsome older brother, and then ran towards the door.

A moment later, four figures were ushered in: Nara Shikaku and his son, along with two fat men, one big and one small.

"Shikaku!"

Tamura Hiroshi politely stood up to greet him, but Nara Shikaku raised his hand to his forehead.

"It's really troublesome."

Just by looking at him, you can tell he's in big trouble.

"Are you Ding's brother? You look so alike."

His gaze fell on the fat man, and Tamura Hiroshi saw the shadow of Akimichi Choza from back then.

"That's my older brother, my name is Ding Wei."

Akimichi introduced himself, his eyes fixed intently on the young man before him.

He had seen this person before, but only from a distance, and had never fought him.

"I'm sorry about what happened to Ding Zai back then."

Tamura Hao showed an apologetic expression, knowing he still had to fool this guy.

He believed that the three major families of Ino-Shika-Cho could be won over, especially given Hiruzen Sarutobi's increasing loss of popular support at this stage.

"No need to apologize, that's the fate of a ninja."

Akimichi Dingwei shook his head slightly. He had naturally hated his brother for his death back then, but he had gradually come to terms with it.

Moreover, so many of our people died in World War II, World War III, and that quickly concluded World War IV; it's impossible to hate them all.

That's the fate of a ninja; there's no need to live in hatred forever.

"Was Uncle Dingza murdered by the older brother?"

Yamanaka Ino understood and was quite surprised.

"Don't talk nonsense!"

Tamura Hao tapped the girl next to him on the forehead and explained, "Back then, we went to plot against a super-powerful energy source in Loulan. Unexpectedly, your Konoha took the first step. After failing, you left a backup plan and came to stop us from detonating the entire energy body and destroying the entire Loulan. Minato even wanted to stop us by killing the Loulan Queen."

A great battle broke out, which was when Choza was severely injured by Thor. Thor was holding back, but Jiraiya and the others were too stubborn and refused to back down, fighting to the death.

Orochimaru was also held back by Nawaki and unable to provide immediate medical assistance, resulting in his death.

Thor really held back then; if the rescue had been timely, it wouldn't have been difficult to save his life.

"He's right. We were too stubborn back then. If we had retreated earlier, Lord Orochimaru could have definitely saved Choza's life."

Nara Shikaku nodded in agreement. He had hated it in the past, but as he grew older, he had come to understand and see through many things.

Even now, looking back, I still regret it.

"Shikaku, we've known each other for a long time. You can probably tell why I'm here. We, the Hidden Cloud Village, have always been very sincere in this regard."

We admired your Ino-Shika-Cho trio in the past, but back then you were too closely connected with Hiruzen Sarutobi and others, so we couldn't persuade you.

But things are different now, and the Fifth Shinobi World War is expected to begin in a few years, with Konoha, which has the most tailed beasts, inevitably becoming the main battlefield.

This time you have nowhere to run. As the current brains of the Pig-Deer-Butterfly race, I hope you'll seriously consider this.

Tamura Hao stated his purpose directly, and further pointed out the future Fifth Shinobi World War.

"Is it the Rinnegan, that clan on the moon, and Shimura Danzo?"

Nara Shikaku asked three key questions. He had been thinking about how the Fifth Shinobi World War would unfold. Based on the current situation, he believed it was unlikely to be a war between ninja villages, but rather a war between the strong.

That's right, it's a battle between the strong. When the strength reaches a certain level, it's no longer a battle, but a war. The destructive power will be more terrifying than the Ninja World War, and the terrain can be changed.

"We speculate that those two Rinnegan are most likely from Madara Uchiha. You should all know what kind of person he is."

The race on the moon is no ordinary race either; they are said to possess the power to destroy the world, and the legend of the Rinnegan also speaks of the power to create and destroy the world.

We even discovered that the moon did not exist in ancient times, and it only appeared after the Sage of Six Paths appeared. Considering the technique that Nagato Uzumaki used in Konoha, we speculate that the moon may have been created using the power of the Rinnegan.

We obtained an ancient map, which, compared to the current world map, is missing a continent.

Can you even imagine such power?

Tamura Hiroshi spoke very frankly, even revealing a hint of helplessness and apprehension in his expression.

"moon?"

Yamanaka Ino was a little confused. Was the moon man-made?

How is that possible?

"That truly possesses the power to create and destroy the world!"

Nara Shikaku felt even more troubled, as this power had far exceeded the limits of his own comprehension.

However, he did not doubt that the man was lying, because there was no need to.

Neither Akimichi Choi nor Yamanaka Inoichi spoke, quietly awaiting Nara Shikaku's decision.

When it comes to using their brains, Lu Jiu is better at it. All they need is unwavering support, which is the key to the fact that the three clans of pig, deer, and butterfly have been able to survive for hundreds of years.

"We can only take about half of our tribe with us."

After thinking for a while, Nara Shikaku finally spoke up.

Agreeing was inevitable, because besides being a Konoha ninja, he was also the head of his clan and the brains of the three clans, and had to be responsible for his clan.

This is also the way their ninja clan survives.

Moreover, Hiruzen Sarutobi's performance over the years has increasingly disappointed and even worried them, so taking this opportunity to leave is a good option.

"Welcome to the team. You will never regret this choice in the future."

Tamura Hao extended his palm in welcome, knowing that Nara Shikaku would definitely agree.

"Let's hope so!"

With a wry smile, Nara Shikaku reached out and shook hands with him, and could only pray that his choice today was the right one.

"I need to visit other places, so I won't bother you any longer."

Tamura Hiroshi did not linger and got up to leave.

Everyone quickly got up to see him off, and looked around to make sure no one was around before they felt relieved.

"Are you sure you want to go?"

Returning to the living room and sitting down, Yamanaka Inoichi was somewhat unwilling, especially after seeing his daughter's expression.

"He's right. The main battlefield of the Fifth Shinobi World War will most likely be in our Konoha. If we can't withstand it, neither can Konoha."

Nara Shikaku pinched the bridge of his nose, then looked at Akimichi Choji, who had been silent all along.

"Ding Wei, I'd like to visit the old man tomorrow."

The three of them couldn't make such a big decision on their own; they needed the old man's support.

"I will talk to my uncle."

Akimichi Choji nodded. His uncle was the most senior member of their three clans and a disciple of the Second Hokage, so he knew a lot.

"Shikamaru, what are you thinking about?"

Nara Shikaku suddenly looked at his son, who was deep in thought.

Why did the village become like this?

Nara Shikamaru couldn't understand why Konoha, once the strongest ninja in the world, had fallen into such a state, and was even struggling to continue.

Choji Akimichi and Ino Yamanaka, who had come to their senses, also looked over, equally puzzled.

I learned at school that Konoha was the strongest of the five great ninja villages, but now it seems that this title of strongest has become somewhat undeserved.

Why did the village fall from its strongest position to this state?

Nara Shikaku looked at the three children and felt it was time to let them get involved in this kind of thing.

"This is a very complex issue, involving too many factors, but it can be broadly divided into two categories: individual and group factors."

Individuals represent ambition and ideals, while groups represent the ninja world. The Warring States period was characterized by the ninja clan system. Later, the First Hokage established the ninja village era, and Shimura Danzo further established the ninja country era through the Fourth Shinobi World War. The next and final step was to unify the ninja world.

This is an inevitable law of development. It's just that due to some internal personal reasons, Konoha lost the opportunity to enter the era of the Ninja Kingdom and was abandoned by the new era.

These past few years, they've just been listlessly recovering, and they can't compare to the three great ninja villages that have already established their own ninja nations. They've completely fallen behind.

He first gave a general overview, and then Nara Shikaku gave a detailed explanation, starting from the establishment of the ninja village and clearly explaining the evolution of power in the village over the decades, all in a relatively objective tone.

At this point, he no longer needed to hide anything. If he wanted the next generation to better understand the village, he had to explain things clearly.

Hearing these hidden details made the three little ones turn pale, and they even felt a sense of fear.

They had never thought of these things before, never imagining that such terrifying darkness and danger lurked beneath the bustling village.

Even the village could be destroyed at any time, not only by external enemies, but also by internal threats.

The seemingly kind and approachable Third Hokage actually secured his position by relying on countless explosive tags and a willingness to perish together with his opponent.

If something were to happen to him, the entire Hidden Leaf Village would be dragged down with him. Just thinking about it sends chills down my spine.

so horrible!

(End of this chapter)