Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 300 Konoha Village's Ideal is the Stars and the Sea

Orochimaru quickly completed all the preparations.

Then everyone began a long wait. There was nothing they could do; no one in Konoha knew how to activate the Dragon Vein's time mechanism.

While waiting, Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze told Xia Zuo about the Konoha Village in another world that they had learned from the Konoha ninja who had traveled through time.

The two grew angrier and angrier as they talked, and felt increasingly humiliated.

In the end, they all said in unison, "Thank goodness for you, Fifth Hokage, otherwise the current Konoha Village and the peaceful ninja world would not exist."

Since Konoha Village held its first joint Chunin Exams, Xia Zuo has acted as if nothing had happened and continued to hold two more joint Chunin Exams.

No one dared to disrespect the Fifth Hokage, Natsume, and Konoha Village, so they all gritted their teeth and came to participate.

Fortunately, Xia Zuo was no longer in the mood to cause trouble, and the Chunin Exams were completed smoothly, producing a group of elite Chunin.

This year, Konoha generously allowed Sunagakure to host the event, giving a boost to its loyal ally, the Fifth Kazekage Gaara.

The exam was successfully completed, and the selected Chunin were indeed very elite.

Thanks to his success in the Chunin Exams, the Fifth Kazekage of Sunagakure secured his position as Kazekage.

No one in Sunagakure openly opposed Gaara anymore, and the village's order stabilized. In addition, Konoha Village, having satisfied its needs, ceded some of its resources, and Sunagakure began to recover in all aspects, presenting a thriving scene.

Mei Terumi, the Fifth Mizukage of Kirigakure, saw this and naturally had her own ideas. She frequently tried to curry favor with Konoha, hoping to hold the Fifth Joint Chunin Exams.

The Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure and the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure couldn't sit still any longer and submitted their applications to the Fifth Hokage to host the event.

The two of them even seemed to be working together to suppress Kirigakure, showing a determination to win the Fifth Joint Chunin Exams.

In truth, the Raikage and Tsuchikage didn't want to fawn over the Fifth Hokage, but they dared not let Kirigakure get ahead, otherwise Konoha would...

The Sand Village and the Hidden Mist Village stand out from the other two villages because they hosted the Chunin Exams.

Once this label is posted, who knows if they will use it as an excuse to form a military alliance of southern ninja villages and then launch an attack on the two northern ninja villages, Iwagakure and Kumogakure.

This sparked the Fourth Shinobi World War.

It's not fair to blame the Tsuchikage and Raikage for overthinking; they're currently at a significant disadvantage, so they really have no choice but to overthink things.

Moreover, the influence of the Chunin Exams is not limited to the major ninja villages.

Because the Chunin selected in four consecutive sessions were all outstanding, the Joint Chunin Exams became a golden brand for ninjas, giving them a huge advantage when competing for missions.

As a result, the Chunin Exams, which were once considered a dangerous path, became highly sought after and were coveted by everyone in the ninja world.

Whether it's the five major ninja villages or the 21 smaller ninja villages, they all need to go through fierce internal competition to obtain a spot to participate.

The Fifth Hokage, Natsuza, managed to seize control of the entire ninja world with just a small joint exam, commanding all the ninja villages to act according to his own ideas.

Such a miraculous feat truly shocked Orochimaru, Tsunade, Minato Namikaze, and Tobirama Senju. Even the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, stopped saying that the Fifth Hokage was incompetent.

As for Jiraiya, Hashirama Senju, and Danzo Shimura, they didn't even understand what was happening, and they didn't know how to praise anyone, let alone criticize them.

The Fifth Hokage's success was not only in the ninja world, but also in Konoha Village.

Thanks to the emerging electrical and electronic industries, Konoha Village has doubled its income for five consecutive years, completely freeing itself from its dependence on the Fire Lord.

With ample funds to share the profits and the strong impetus from the Fifth Hokage, the reforms of Konoha Village were naturally implemented smoothly.

With the distribution of benefits optimized and the balance of power deeply rooted in people's hearts, the training of ninjas has yielded fruitful results, and outstanding geniuses have sprung up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.

These young ninjas were undoubtedly admirers of the Fifth Hokage and the biggest supporters of all his policies.

Konoha Village, with its political stability and economic prosperity, changes dramatically every year; if you leave for six months, it feels like a stranger.

In short, the Fifth Hokage's reputation and power had reached their peak.

Because the situation was so good, he became complacent and relaxed, which led him to danger after his most recent sharing.

As Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze recounted their "familiar" ninja world and Konoha Village, Xia Zuo's mind began to wander.

The Hidden Leaf Village in another world, haha, is just as rotten as I remember. Tsunade is also familiarly powerless. If she doesn't dare to take action to eliminate the Root members and elders, what else can she do?

They were unaware of the Akatsuki's existence or the unusual situation in Amegakure, and would undoubtedly passively await the arrival of the Fourth Shinobi World War.

Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze both deduced this result and shook their heads in regret.

Minato Namikaze sighed, "With Konoha like this, we will be in a completely passive position in the war. Not only will we have to deploy the largest number of troops, but we will also be unable to control the war."

Orochimaru agreed, saying, "The Fourth Hokage is right. Command will definitely fall into the hands of the Fourth Raikage. That Fourth Raikage is much more arrogant than our Raikage."

Xia Zuo spoke up, "Let's not talk about others, let's talk about ourselves."

Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze were both stunned. Orochimaru, being the living person, spoke up: "Us? Our Konoha Village is currently the strongest in the ninja world, completely dominating the direction of the ninja world, controlling the policies of the four great ninja villages, and attracting all the young ninjas. What could be a problem with that?"

Xia Zuo sighed, "Orochimaru-senpai, that's the problem."

"We have indeed reached the peak, but after the peak comes the decline, which means the decline of Konoha Village."

Xia Zuo said loudly, "These past few days, I went to the center of the desert, where I carefully considered the present and future of Konoha Village and re-examined the Konoha Village under my governance."

"The situation is very good, not just good, it's excellent!"

"After five years of hard work, we have successfully reversed the decline of Konoha Village, allowing it to stand at the pinnacle of the ninja world, completely suppressing the four great ninja villages, and even being able to command them at will."

"However, I was also horrified to discover that I had absolutely no idea what Konoha should do next, or what our future would hold in the next ten years."

What should we pursue in twenty years?

Minato Namikaze died very young, and he couldn't understand what Xia Zuo was saying, so he looked at Orochimaru with a puzzled expression.

Orochimaru, however, fully understood the meaning behind Xia Zuo's words. He frowned and muttered, "The Fifth Hokage is right, this is truly terrifying."

"Ninjas who are complacent will inevitably become lax and their strength will soon decline. Similarly, ninja villages that are complacent will also become lax and begin to breed all sorts of problems."

"The ninja village is a disciplined violent organization. Its problems will not be easily exposed, but once they are exposed, it is almost impossible to reverse them."

Orochimaru looked at Xia Zuo and said with heartfelt admiration, "Fifth Hokage, you truly deserve to be called the best Hokage of all time. You actually foresaw the hidden dangers beneath the prosperity during this time of great splendor."

"I, Orochimaru, am completely convinced by you."

After listening to Orochimaru's words, Minato Namikaze, with his exceptional talent, finally understood the meaning of their conversation and realized what problems Konoha Village was facing.

He gasped, looking at Xia Zuo with the eyes of someone looking at a monster, and exclaimed in amazement, "We're all ninjas from Konoha, Fifth Hokage, you were two years younger than me when I died, how can you be so outstanding?"

Orochimaru asked, "Now that the Fifth Hokage has discovered the problem, he should have found a solution as well, right?"

Xia Zuo nodded and said, "This problem is actually not difficult to solve. We just need to instill two ideals in the ninjas of Konoha Village."

Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze simultaneously repeated in a low voice, "Two ideals?"

Xia Zuo held up one finger and said, "The first ideal must be something that can be seen and touched, and something that can be hoped to be realized."

"The second ideal is something that needs to be very lofty, with almost no chance of being realized, but just thinking about it will make your blood boil."

Orochimaru smiled happily: "Yes, just like my dream of learning all the ninjutsu in the world."

Xia Zuo nodded in agreement, saying, "Orochimaru-senpai is right. This kind of ideal is the first ideal."

Orochimaru's pupils narrowed to slits as he asked in surprise, "Is this the first ideal?"

Xia Zuo laughed and said, "Do you really think you have no chance of learning all the ninjutsu?"

Orochimaru fell silent. He now truly felt that this dream could come true, and he hadn't even considered what he would do after he had mastered everything.

suicide?

For some reason, when Orochimaru thought about what he would do after his dream came true, this word popped into his head, startling him so much that he quickly stopped thinking.

Minato Namikaze asked, "Fifth Hokage, what is the ideal you set for Konoha Village?"

"Xia Zuo pointed upwards and said, 'Let's go to the moon.'"

"what?"

Minato Namikaze and Orochimaru were dumbfounded. They really hadn't expected that going to the moon could be an ideal. What's the difference between this and dreaming?

Xia Zuo sighed and said, "Actually, my initial ideal was to unify the ninja world and completely resolve the root cause of the war."

"But I soon discovered that it was impossible."

"It's now Konoha year 64. The ninja of the five great ninja villages have all undergone a complete change of four generations: Hokage, Kazekage,..."

The Mizukage is already the Fifth Hokage; the ninjas' identification with their respective villages is unbreakable.

"No matter how strong I am, I can only destroy physical ninja villages, but I cannot destroy the ninja villages in the hearts of the ninjas."

"The current ninja world no longer has the basic conditions for unification."

"The earth beneath my feet no longer has a suitable target, so I can only raise my head and look up at the sky. The closest thing to us is the moon, so I make conquering it my ideal."

Orochimaru still found it hard to understand: "This... is this an achievable ideal?"

Xia Zuo said decisively, "It can definitely be achieved, and it can be achieved in our generation."

"Then, we will stand on the moon, look up at the endless starry sky, and stride towards the sea composed of stars."

Xia Zuo knew that the difficulty of landing on the moon in the ninja world was actually very low, and that as early as a thousand years ago, there were descendants of Otsutsuki Hamura who, as early pioneers of the moon, left a very good foundation on the moon.

They even built a tunnel between the Earth and the Moon, allowing them to travel between the ninja world and the Moon at any time.

However, Xia Zuo firmly believes that Konoha Village must not take this path, because Konoha Village's ideal destination is not the moon, but the vast starry sea.

The moon is merely the first stepping stone for Konoha Village to reach the stars and the sea.

Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze were hearing the phrase "the sea of ​​stars" for the first time, and they understood its meaning and the astonishing grandeur and profundity behind it almost instantly.

Just like what the Fifth Hokage, Natsume, said, it sounds like something that's almost impossible to achieve, but it still makes you feel excited and filled with the urge to try it.

They even felt that just taking a step forward, getting slightly closer to this great ideal, would make them feel extremely proud.

Just like now, as long as I can land on the moon, stand there and look at the ninja world and the stars in the distance, I would probably feel at peace even when I die.

Orochimaru suddenly burst into laughter: "Good, that's wonderful!"

"Fifth Hokage, your ideal is truly wonderful. Just thinking about it makes me feel excited and full of energy. I want to make a big splash."

"I will absolutely support you wholeheartedly in your efforts to achieve this dream!"

Xia Zuo smiled smugly: "Well, I'm completely relieved that these two ideals can attract Orochimaru-senpai. I believe all the Konoha ninjas will be attracted and regain their enthusiasm."

Minato Namikaze nodded and said, "Haha, even I, a dead man, feel a surge of excitement. I believe most Konoha ninjas would feel the same way and be willing to put in the effort."

"However, there will definitely be some ninjas in Konoha who won't accept this. What will we do with them?"

Xia Zuo casually waved his hand and said, "It doesn't matter. As long as one-third of the Konoha ninjas are attracted, it will be enough to change the complacent situation of Konoha Village."

"With so many Konoha ninjas striving and working hard, it will be enough to propel Konoha Village forward by leaps and bounds."

"As long as Konoha Village can move forward quickly, progress itself will naturally eliminate those ninjas who cannot keep up with the pace and cannot keep up with Konoha Village's progress."

Xia Zuo's voice unconsciously carried a metallic tremor: "It's just as well, so I can avoid getting my hands stained with the blood of those bastards."

Minato Namikaze was terrified: "Good, natural elimination is the best way. Fifth Hokage, your reputation is too high now. You'd better not get your own people's blood on your hands again."

Xia Zuo clicked his tongue: "Fourth Hokage, all I can say is: I will try my best."

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