They're promoting the "Konoha threat" theory, and spouting nonsense about the Hidden

Chapter 58 A single word can throw the world into chaos!

"Such white font... no, such a long cover... no, such great strength."

After being overwhelmed by the cover of Mito Uzumaki's book, the passerby glanced at it reluctantly for a few more seconds before flipping over the cover of the Heavenly Ranking and finding that the first page was marked in bold, eye-catching text: This volume only includes the one hundred strongest Jonin in the ninja world.

The second page then provides a detailed introduction, and the person ranked first among the many powerful figures in the ninja world is not the leader of the five great ninja villages, nor the "demigod" Hanzo of the Salamander, but a woman who looks extremely beautiful, Mito Uzumaki!

"Wife of Hashirama Senju, the 'God of Shinobi,' and the first Nine-Tails Jinchuriki in the shinobi world. Even the Nine-Tails had to bow down and submit to her under her exquisite sealing techniques!"

"The proud rose of the battlefield, the flower of Konoha that never fades!"

On this page, the editor lavishes praise on Mito Uzumaki, calling him the pillar of Konoha, a top-tier ninja who dominated the ninja world for twenty years, and the core competitive advantage of Konoha's hegemony.

Then there's Mito Uzumaki's detailed battle record, so detailed that it's accurate to the date, proving that the editor wasn't just making things up because they were captivated by Mito's beauty, but based on her actual battle record—after all, with the Mizukage's life guaranteeing credibility, Shingetsu Hozuki would naturally make slight modifications while maintaining the overall plausibility.

Following closely behind are "The Hero of the Ninja" Hiruzen Sarutobi, "The Darkness of the Ninja" Danzo Shimura, and only in fourth place are "The Two Scales" Onoki, the Third Raikage, the Second Kazekage, the Third Mizukage, Hanzo of the Salamander, and other powerful figures.

Then came the heads of the major ninja villages, the leaders of some smaller ninja villages, and other figures, totaling about a hundred people.

For each of the top-ranked ninjas, Hozuki Shingetsu thoughtfully designed a nickname. Of course, if a ninja already had a nickname, then that nickname would be used. The key point was to give names to some Jonin who did not have nicknames.

For example, he replaced Hanzo of the Salamander, named the trio of Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru "The Three Legendary Sannin of Konoha," and named Sakumo Hatake "The White Fang of Konoha," among other things.

Based on Hozuki Shingetsu's perverse sense of humor, he even followed the ancient Konoha fan fiction and created a "Konoha Eight Colors".

Finally, at the end of this book, a helpful statistic is provided: nearly 40% of the Jonin are from Konoha, nearly 60% are from the four major ninja villages, and the remainder is divided among the smaller ninja villages.

The other rankings, such as the Earth Ranking and the Human Ranking, are similar, except that the Earth Ranking includes the 100 strongest Chunin in the ninja world, while the Human Ranking includes the 100 strongest Genin in the ninja world.

In any case, thanks to Hozuki Shingetsu's design, regardless of the ranking, the number of Konoha ninjas is always cleverly higher than the total number of any two countries, but less than the total number of three countries.

In short, Konoha, across its three generations of ninja, achieved a complete crushing victory over the other ninja villages.

This undisguised malice towards Konoha was immediately noticed by Konoha.

"His intentions are despicable!"

Looking at the three simple booklets, Hiruzen Sarutobi was not pleased that the booklets had the most Konoha ninjas. Instead, he sensed a deep malice from Kirigakure from this simple ranking.

"This is a case of flattery to kill!" Shimura Danzo immediately saw through Hozuki Shingetsu's meaning.

"It is foreseeable that since this list was released, ninjas from other villages, as well as some wandering ninjas, will spare no effort to challenge us Konoha ninjas. The various missions that follow will likely be much more complicated."

As the saying goes, "In literature, there is no first place; in martial arts, there is no second place." Apart from powerful figures like Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha who genuinely intimidate other ninjas, ninjas generally do not admit that anyone is stronger than themselves, let alone a ninja from another village.

Top-tier ninjas, such as the Kage of each village, can maintain their composure and disregard this ranking. However, the lower-ranking ninjas are not so calm, especially those who have not attended school for long and have been learning ninjutsu since childhood, eager to make a name for themselves. They will absolutely not give up this great opportunity.

It's foreseeable that when Konoha ninjas go out in the future, they will inevitably face provocations from other ninjas.

No, it's not just Konoha ninjas; all the ninjas on the list will face this situation. Whether for fame or fortune, the release of this list will undoubtedly cause further turmoil in the ninja world.

"This Hozuki Shingetsu is truly the source of chaos in the ninja world today!" Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered for a moment and said to Danzo Shimura beside him.

"Could we also release a ranking list to punish Kirigakure? We don't need to completely eliminate the impact of this ranking list, but at least we should minimize the negative effects."

With the ninja world in turmoil and Mito Uzumaki's life hanging in the balance, Hiruzen Sarutobi only wanted to weather this storm peacefully and didn't want any further complications.

"It's not very meaningful. It's clear that Kirigakure has put a lot of effort into pushing this behind the scenes, and people seem to believe Kirigakure more in this kind of news."

Indeed, thanks to Hozuki Shingetsu's continuous efforts to make his presence felt in the public sphere, Kirigakure can now be said to have essentially mastered the high ground of public opinion.

Whether it's the methods or the content of the propaganda, Kirigakure is much more interesting, so why would they support Konoha's stuff?

"However... for us, I think it's more likely an opportunity than a risk."

In fact, after this list was released, nobles and wealthy merchants tended to choose ninjas from the list when issuing missions and selecting ninjas. Without knowing the ninjas' actual strength, the list released by Kirigakure undoubtedly provided them with guidance.

In this situation, the Konoha ninjas with the most names on the list are undoubtedly the biggest winners.

Hozuki Shingetsu was certainly aware of this, but compared to this benefit, he valued the influence behind the list more—the power to control public opinion in the ninja world by simply increasing the number of ninjas on the list.

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded; he was well aware of this. However, more than such benefits, he hoped that the ninja world could remain peaceful for the time being, and that the ninja world would only descend into chaos after the next generation of Nine-Tails Jinchuriki had grown up.

"Don't you understand the principle that the bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish, Hiruzen?" Shimura Danzo looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen with a disappointed expression. Why don't you dare to take a gamble?

"Fight? Fight with what?" Hiruzen Sarutobi raised an eyebrow and looked at Danzo Shimura.

"I am the Hokage of Konoha, not you!"

"The survival and development of Konoha's 600,000 inhabitants rests entirely on my shoulders! Danzo, not you!"

"I'm not prudent, I don't seek stability. Am I really going to gamble the lives of 600,000 people on a single possibility?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's words were like knives, deeply imprinted on Danzo Shimura's heart. How could this be any different from pointing a finger at him and saying that he was not qualified to discuss the direction of Konoha's development?

Danzo Shimura was speechless. He once again felt the deep estrangement between himself and his old teammate, and at the same time, his ambition quietly sprouted again in his heart.

"If I were the Hokage..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at his old teammate with disappointment and turned away.

"Go down, Danzo. Think of a way to restrain Hozuki Shingetsu. We can't let him continue to act so recklessly."

The setting sun streamed through the windows, perfectly dividing the office into two spaces, one bright and one dark. Hiruzen Sarutobi, standing in the afterglow of the sunset, contrasted sharply with Danzo Shimura, who stood in the shadows.

As the sun sets and its afterglow fades, darkness quietly takes over the room.

Standing in the darkness, Shimura Danzo gazed at Hiruzen Sarutobi under the setting sun and made a decision.

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

(End of this chapter)