Naruto: From Novice to Grave

How big is Konoha Village? That depends on how you define it.

In a narrow sense, Konoha Village only includes the main city area, which is quite large and partially enclosed by high walls, plus some large training grounds in the forest near the Hokage Rock, including the legendary Forest of Death, number 44.

This area is under Konoha's key protection. From the refuge under the Hokage Rock to the surrounding walls, there are sensory barriers set up. Outside the various large training grounds surrounding the area, there are even more traps. Ninjas patrol the area regularly and maintain it periodically.

The broader Konoha is many times larger, with numerous villages surrounding the main city, interspersed with farmland and pastures, providing the people of Konoha with the necessary food, meat, eggs, milk, medicine, and other necessities.

The Nara family's deer farm is located in an area outside.

There are also some distinctive and bustling towns around, some of which are industrial in nature and produce daily necessities for Konoha, such as various snacks, semi-processed foods, and daily necessities. Well-known brand products sell well in the Land of Fire and even the entire ninja world.

Otherwise, where did Choji and Naruto get their potato chips and cup noodles?

Some are for entertainment and tourism, such as casinos, hot springs, and izakayas. These places also exist in Konoha Village, but they are all legitimate and unlike those outside, which have some unique characteristics.

Konoha Village holds a unique position in the Land of Fire. This vast area is essentially a designated autonomous region, under the jurisdiction of the Hokage, and has complex ties of interest with the various clans within the village.

The primary function of Konoha is to train ninjas and protect the safety of the Land of Fire.

The surrounding functional areas provide the necessary resources for this densely populated war fortress.

In short, besides the military funds allocated by the Daimyo, Konoha also has its own stable internal circulation system.

This wasn't something Konoha specifically built; rather, it was a spontaneous gathering of ordinary people from the surrounding area who sought the protection of ninjas after Konoha's founding.

As the population increased, Konoha also intentionally guided the process, which gradually led to the complementary model we see today.

The advantage of this model is that it makes life more convenient for the people of Konoha, forming a prosperous area centered on Konoha, second only to the capital of the Land of Fire.

The disadvantages are also obvious. Konoha Village has the worst secrecy among the five great ninja villages. The other four great ninja villages all want to hide themselves as deeply as possible.

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A new day begins in the morning, inside the mission hall.

Higashino Makoto reunited with his teammates and, led by Tsukikage Kumomi, arrived here.

Choosing a task and completing the procedures for leaving the village is a very simple process. The three students in Yunjian Class have been following their teacher for the past few days and he has already taught them everything.

The mission hall only has D-rank, C-rank, and a small number of B-rank missions with low difficulty. Missions of high difficulty B-rank and above are not here; the Hokage's office will directly assign them to a suitable team based on intelligence.

Therefore, the Hokage himself rarely appears in the mission hall. He only comes to oversee things under special circumstances, and even then, it might just be a shadow clone.

The third-generation elder is very busy; he can't possibly sit here all day slacking off like an ordinary employee. Isn't the crystal ball in his office more appealing?

Using numerous shadow clones to handle work, acting like a workaholic, is something probably only the Seventh Hokage could do; the average person's body couldn't handle it.

Higashino looked around the mission hall. There were quite a few people here, just like them, who had come to accept missions. A few teams had ninjas leading them, probably the new graduating class this year.

Some teams have only three members, and the members are relatively old.

Arriving at the iconic Konoha gate and verifying her exit permit, Yugao Uzuki suddenly seemed much happier after stepping outside. She jumped to the top of a tree and looked at the unfamiliar scenery in the distance, as if she had seen a new world.

The ninja village has a very strict management system for ninjas. Leaving the village without a mission or proper procedures is equivalent to becoming a rogue ninja.

Even before graduation and as ninja trainees, they cannot leave the village without permission or an adult's guidance.

She opened her arms wide and said happily, "So this is what the outside world is like. It doesn't seem much different from the village."

Hayate Gekko was somewhat speechless: "Of course there's no difference. The area you're seeing now is still under Konoha's jurisdiction."

"Hey, big brother, aren't you ever curious about the outside world?"

Higashino Makoto shook his head in denial: "No, I'm curious, but we'll have plenty of time to explore later. Come on down, we're about to set off."

Moonlight Cloud smiled but said nothing, leading the way off the main road, leaping and bounding through the forest, heading straight east.

That's how ninjas are. Roads? What are roads? For them, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. They would never walk on the main roads that ordinary people and horse-drawn carts use.

With chakra, anywhere is a path; efficiency is what they care about most.

The villages and towns surrounding Konoha are scattered around like stars around the moon, and they are not far from the central Konoha Village. At the speed of a ninja, it doesn't take long to reach them.

However, they encountered another team on the way. This team consisted of only three men, dressed in ordinary clothes, with Konoha headbands on their heads indicating their identities. There was no ninja leading the team, and the youngest looked to be fifteen or sixteen years old, while the oldest appeared to be over twenty.

Higashino recognized these three people, not because they were famous, but because he had seen them before in the mission hall. They had just finished their procedures and were leaving when Higashino arrived.

They were quite enthusiastic. The oldest one, who seemed to be the team leader, greeted them warmly: "Hey, seniors, and cute juniors, are you also going to do a mission nearby?"

Moonlight Cloud glanced at the three of them, said nothing, but smiled and nodded in response before disappearing in a flash.

Hayate Gekko is usually a man of few words, while Yugao Uzuki is only lively in front of people she is familiar with, nodding in response just like Gekko Kumomi.

From the very beginning, the trio tacitly agreed that Higashino Makoto was the leader, and they had no objections even though Hayate graduated a year earlier than the other two. This was a habit they had developed since childhood.

Higashino Makoto simply replied, "Yeah, seniors, you guys too, right? Well then, let's all do our best! Goodbye!"

"Okay, let's do our best together, goodbye!"

Higashino and his group of four moved even faster, showing no intention of staying for a longer chat, and the two sides parted ways immediately upon contact.

After creating some distance, Uzuki Yugao asked curiously, "Sensei, these seniors look quite old, are they still genin? They don't seem to have a teacher leading them!"

Tsukikage explained to his disciples, "They are genin, so it's normal that they don't have a teacher. A jonin leader isn't a babysitter. Usually, they only lead graduating freshmen for one year, or at most two years. The subordinate relationship ends when the subordinate is promoted to chunin."

"What if you don't get promoted to Chunin?"

Higashino Shin quietly added, "If you can't be promoted to Chunin in two years, then you're even less likely to waste your time leading a Jonin team."

Moonlight Cloud saw that he didn't say anything, which clearly meant he tacitly agreed with this statement.

The ninja world is realistic and cruel.

The relationship between a Jonin leading a team and a newly graduated ninja is essentially that of a superior and subordinate, a mentorship relationship where the older ninja guides the newer. The superior has a responsibility to provide further education to the newly graduated subordinate, including imparting experience and ninjutsu.

However, if subordinates lack talent or fail to establish a strong bond with their direct Jonin, the Jonin leading the team will not continue to act as their caretaker, let alone take them on as disciples and establish a relationship between master and disciple that is almost a bond of mutual benefit.

The twelve young heroes who came after them are special, and we cannot use them as a standard to assume that all teams are like that.

Hayate Gekko then revealed a more realistic side of some ninjas to Yugao Uzuki: "These three must have been a team that was reassembled later."

As I once told a Jonin who led a team, some ninjas not only have limited strength, but also lack mental fortitude. After witnessing the cruel side of the ninja world and seeing the death of their teammates, they are easily traumatized and only dare to take on low-level missions in the village to get by.

I think those three were in that situation.

After a moment of silence, Uzuki Yugao suddenly smiled happily again: "Hey, Shin-nii, Hayate-nii, we must never become like that, we must!"

Tsukikage saw that she did not encourage her, but silently hoped that she and Higashino Makoto would still be able to hold firm to their beliefs and forge ahead after witnessing the true cruelty of ninjas.