Traveling through Naruto with Heroes of Might and Magic.

When the last root was back in place, the ground tremors stopped.

【Ding! 】

The driftwood archway is complete!

Tianzang stared in disbelief at the enormous, withered wooden archway.

He could feel the natural energy in the surrounding environment becoming more active, and even his chakra seemed to be nourished, making him feel completely comfortable.

Qingwu stood in front of the withered wooden archway and reached out to touch the flowing light membrane.

Cool and moist, as if touching the morning dew.

"The design of the intermediate-level barracks is becoming more and more conspicuous," he thought to himself.

Compared to the basic barracks [Centaur Stable], [Dwarf Village], and [Wooden House], the intermediate [Magic Spring] and [Deadwood Arch] look much more "advanced" from the outside.

[Recruitable Units: Treant (Tier 5 unit), Treant Guardian (requires building upgrade)]

[Number of recruits available: 3]

[Recruitment Price: 500 Natural Energy, 500 Gold Coins, 500 Wood]

"Fortunately."

"Within the acceptable range."

Qingwu breathed a sigh of relief.

The consumption of natural energy is negligible for him now, and he still has more than 4 gold coins left, which is sufficient for the time being.

"Qingwu, this...this scale of Wood Release..."

Tianzang's tone betrayed barely suppressed shock. Not long ago, Qingwu had helped the Tree of Life evolve in the territory, and how long had it been...?

At only 14 years old, Qingwu is already a Jonin, but his progress seems to have not slowed down at all.

Qingwu turned around and smiled, "I'll show you something fun."

After saying that, he summoned the three tree spirits he had just recruited.

"Boom boom boom—"

Three enormous figures appeared in front of the Deadwood Arch.

"Three...Mumu?"

Tianzang exclaimed in disbelief, "Is it a shadow clone? Qingwu, your summoning beast has mastered ninjutsu? No, that can't be!"

Tianzang discovered that these three spirit creatures, which resembled withered tree guardians, were shorter and more "slender," and their constantly wriggling dark brown roots were also lighter in color.

Even so, the oppressive feeling of six emerald green pupils staring at him almost made him lose his balance.

Qingwu was satisfied with Tianzang's reaction, and waved his hand to put away the tree demon. "You can rest now, I have some things to attend to."

Having said that, he leaped towards the tower.

Once you reach the tower, add the Treant to the "Tree Upgrade" option.

There is currently no way to upgrade barracks, but fortunately, magic towers can perform the "upgrades".

Upon returning from the tower, Qingwu summoned Mumu, who had been stationed in the territory, to his side.

Mumu has grown a bit more.

This is the bonus effect of +20% health for defensive units after the [Deadwood Arch] is built.

So, if things go as expected, the upgraded Deadwood Guardian inside the tower should be even stronger than the Deadwood Guardian he summoned when he first awakened the system.

In addition, the Tier 2 unit [Dwarf Warrior] is also classified as a defensive unit.

After receiving the boost, although you still can't break through the tier, you'll definitely be more "tanky"!

Qingwu couldn't help but wonder if he should let the upgraded Drywood Guardian replace Mumu to guard the territory, since Mumu's combat power was extremely strong and it would be a waste to always leave him in the territory.

But then he realized that the territory was being watched by the Roots, and he couldn't feel at ease without Mumu guarding it.

"never mind."

Qingwu shook his head, temporarily abandoning the idea.

No matter how powerful other psychic beings are, they don't possess Mumu's wisdom.

He planned to use the money he received from the daimyo to replenish all his troops, and then leave some mixed troops for Mumu to command.

In this way, even if Danzo leads the Roots to the territory, the territory will have sufficient defensive capabilities.

Danzo's personal appearance tonight to warn him caused a subtle change in his heart.

Have to prevent!

What if one day he "accidentally" ruins Danzo's plan again, and then the old thief comes looking for trouble in his territory, and he happens to be away? Wouldn't that be the end of him?

He reached out and touched the bark of the wooden tree.

Mumu took a step back, its massive form rooted itself beside the ancient tree of life, as if becoming one with it.

Qingwu jumped onto the wooden house, said "Goodnight" to Tianzang below, and slowly closed his eyes.

……

The next few months passed peacefully.

With the third generation leader rarely leaving the village, the Shadow Guards didn't have many missions to go on, aside from their daily training.

July marks the time for the Chunin Exams.

Qingwu, who was a candidate last year, has transformed into an examiner for the final round this year.

Logically speaking, Jonin should not be needed to serve as examiners for the Chunin Exams.

However, the third generation placed him in this position on the grounds of training him and broadening his horizons at a young age.

On this day, the Chunin Exams reached their final stage.

Wearing a Jonin vest, Qingwu read out the exam rules in a serious and methodical manner.

The dozen or so genin who made it to the end looked at him with curiosity and admiration.

His reputation is now so widespread in the ninja world that almost everyone knows him. What amazes the genin is that the jonin Qingwu in front of them is about the same age as them.

"above!"

After Qingwu finished reading the rules, he pointed to the big screen.

The draw begins.

Qingwu's gaze, however, was fixed on a girl in the crowd.

Mitarashi Anko glared at him.

He was clearly dissatisfied with the difference in their social status.

Last year he was my exam partner, how come this guy is my examiner this year?

Qingwu pretended not to see Hongdou's expression. After the lottery results were announced, the other genin left the venue.

"Spiritual communication!"

Qingwu summoned a withered tree guardian and lazily sat on its head.

"start!"

Chapter 116 An Unintentional Success

"Click—"

Roots emerging from the ground bound the bloodthirsty ninja.

Meanwhile, the defeated genin shakily got up.

Hongdou in the stands began to understand why Qingwu was chosen as the examiner for this segment.

That's so easy!

Qingwu didn't even need to take action himself; with just a command, the withered wood guards beneath him could quickly stop the battle.

Moreover, the Deadwood Guardian is good at controlling but lacks attack power, so there's no need to worry about accidentally killing someone.

"Next game."

Qingwu calmly announced, already thinking about what reason to use to leave the village again.

The last time he wanted to leave the village, the third generation leader used a "trip to the capital" as an excuse to get rid of him.

Later, due to Danzo's warnings and threats, he spent his time building up his territory and accumulating troops.

Now that Mumu is leading a large number of mixed troops to guard the territory, his restless heart has begun to beat again.

The key issue is that there's been no news from Jiraiya, so the [Natural Essence] remains undetermined.

While the 5 gold coins obtained from the capital may sound like a lot, they are actually used to replenish troops and are consumed very quickly.

The next step is to accumulate timber and stone resources while focusing on money and natural resources.

The withered tree guard was already an elite Jonin-level ninja, and he was eagerly anticipating the unicorn's combat power!

"So what if they're the Shadow Guards?"

"That guy doesn't take his job seriously at all."

In the stands, Mitarashi Anko puffed out her cheeks and glared at Seigo.

Unbeknownst to Qingwu, who was "slacking off," a heated debate about him was brewing in the Hokage's office...

……

Inside the Hokage's office.

The Third Hokage's gaze darkened slightly: "You want to send the Shadow Guard to the battlefield? I thought you came here today just to give a routine report on the Root's situation."

Danzo lowered his head slightly and said in an ambiguous tone:

"Urgent reports keep coming from the front lines. Since the border conflict began, Iwagakure in the Land of Earth has reinforced its troops on the border three times, and local skirmishes are escalating almost every day."

The third generation remained silent.