Naruto: From Novice to Grave

Chapter 91 - 091 - Gale had a terrible idea.

On the edge of the battlefield, everyone gathered together to eat lunch.

With a master of perception like Higashino Makoto around, there's no fear of being ambushed by the enemy.

The best way to replenish chakra is to rest and allow your spirit to recover, and then eat a good meal to replenish your body's energy. No one uses soldier pills unless it's a desperate situation, and the taste is truly indescribable.

Moreover, the chakra replenished by the soldier pills is not much; their main function is to stimulate a person's spirit and body cells, squeezing out the chakra of the ninja himself.

To put it simply, if you run out of working capital, you can mortgage your property, land, and various fixed assets.

Only a fool would believe that it doesn't harm anyone.

When conditions permit, everyone should make a fire, hunt, and cook a good meal. As for the smoke produced by open flames, ninjas have their own ways of eliminating it.

When eating rice, Uzuki Yugao didn't seem to enjoy it very much, but everyone knew it wasn't because there was a pile of Cloud Ninja corpses next to her.

Eating with corpses was a basic practice on the battlefield, whether for ninjas or ordinary soldiers.

If you can't do that, then congratulations, you've found a great way to lose weight.

Higashino asked with concern, "Yugao, are you feeling unwell? Are you hiding your injury?"

Although ninja battles are not divided by gender, girls are always embarrassed to talk about certain injuries.

"No, really, they're just superficial wounds, they've all been treated. I just don't understand some things."

"What is it?"

"Does the Hidden Cloud Village have a deep-seated grudge against Konoha? Why do they look at me as if I'm the one they hate the most?"

Gekko Hayate thought for a moment and said, "I've also noticed that their goal seems to be to kill us all. Could this be the reason why Kumogakure participated in the war?"

But if that's the case, then they should focus their efforts on dealing with Iwagakure, since the Third Raikage died at the hands of Iwagakure ninjas.

The Yaga Squad, having been stationed in the north, had seen more of this. He recalled, "Actually, there weren't that many people who were enemies at the beginning. Many of the enemies I encountered in the early stages only belittled us verbally. To put it bluntly, they were just dissatisfied with Konoha's title as the strongest ninja village."

But as the fighting went on, more and more of our Konoha ninjas died at our hands, and naturally, the hatred grew as well. But weren't we the same? I also have friends and teammates who died at the hands of the Kumogakure ninjas. My current two comrades are already the third time we've teamed up again.

His teammates chimed in, "It's the same for everyone. This is my second time teaming up with someone. My former teammates' names are now engraved on the memorial stone."

Another teammate glared hatefully at the corpse beside him: "These bastards, I wish they were all dead."

It seems he may have had relatives killed by the Cloud Ninja, so the hatred in his heart is no less than anyone else's.

Looking at the fellow village ninjas she had fought alongside, Uzuki Yugao suddenly realized that they all shared the same hatred.

She realized why she didn't understand: it was because the people around her were still alive. If they had died, she might have wished the entire enemy village would be wiped out, and she would have sprayed insecticide on the village mosquitoes for a month straight.

After swallowing the meat in his mouth, Moonlight Cloud sighed, "Well, this is the hatred between ninjas. I heard that during the Warring States period, ninjas did not show their family characteristics when they were out in the world, and they would not tell each other their surnames when they were dealing with people."

The situation is similar now. In peacetime, when we're on missions abroad, we're always careful when we encounter ninjas from other countries, because you never know if someone might be plotting to kill you from behind.

Uzuki Yugao asked curiously, "So, teacher, is this the reason for the outbreak of war?"

"Perhaps!" Tsukikage Kumo, a traditional ninja, only had a vague understanding, neither entirely correct nor incorrect. He suddenly turned to Shin, "Shin, what's your opinion?"

Who's the teacher between us, you bastard!

Higashino was somewhat speechless, but still replied, "Yugao, you've got it backwards. Hatred is not the cause of war; on the contrary, it's merely a side effect that war inevitably catalyzes."

"Isn't it because of hatred? Then what is it?"

Even the three members of the Fang Squad perked up their ears, marveling at how this young man, a true genius of the village, was already pondering such profound questions and had his own insights.

"Of course it's about interests." Higashino didn't want to make it too complicated, so he succinctly said, "Wars start because of interests, but those who pursue interests are not gods. They cannot control wars, so wars will get out of control in hatred."

The war will not end until a country falls and everyone is fed, or until everyone is too weak to fight anymore. However, the hatred accumulated in this war will be used as a pretext to start the next war.

This is a vicious cycle; as long as humanity exists, it's hard to escape. So, you understand now? From now on, just focus on living a happy life and don't think about these problems all the time like Zhishui.

"I know!"

Xi Yan pouted, but she still felt that her real brother was indeed the most talented, and that he had made her understand the essence of war in just a few words.

The adults fell into thought. Higashino Makoto's words seemed to have completely deviated from the ninja's perspective, opening up an alternative way of thinking for those of them who had always considered things from a ninja's point of view.

Moonlight Gale pressed on, "Really? Is it really as you say, that war is inescapable?"

Brother Gale, what happened to you? Did you also turn into Still Water?

"Yes, brother, yes," Higashino Makoto grinned mischievously at him. "Wouldn't it be simpler to just wipe out all of humanity?"

"Are you crazy?!" Moonlight Gale exclaimed in horror, then suddenly remembered something and retorted, "No, you said wars are started by people who pursue profit, so why not just eliminate those people?"

Now it was Higashino's turn to be stunned: "Hayate, you really are a genius, but have you ever thought about who those who pursue profit represent? You—are you planning a rebellion?"

"Oh, this—"

"Alright! Let's stop discussing, Hayate. Forget what Shin said, get some rest, and get back to work."

Moonlight Clouds saw in time that the dangerous idea had been stopped from spreading.

Damn it, if he keeps talking, his son and disciples will drag him down with them.

The three members of the Fang Squad exchanged glances, the kind of look that said: "Thanks for the invitation. We're in Konoha, those who know, know. If you don't, don't ask. Saying too much might get you kicked out of the household register."

There was still one survivor among the Cloud Ninja, the dark-skinned, strong leader of the group. He was hit in the back of the neck by Higashino's [Wind Release: Wind Finger Pistol], resulting in high-level paraplegia below the neck.

He is currently lying on the ground praying that God will return his body to him.

Therefore, Higashino Makoto's move was truly insidious. The best outcome for the person who was hit was immediate death; otherwise, they would be unable to live or die.

It is believed that in the future, the supply of hospital beds in various villages will fall short of demand, which will greatly promote the development of their medical and nursing care. This is truly a cause for celebration.

While everyone was busy collecting the enemy's remains and belongings, looking for any unexpected gains, Gekko Kumomi was also interrogating the survivor, hoping to obtain some information about Kumogakure's operation.

Unfortunately, by the time everyone else had finished their work, he had gained nothing.

Yi Ya asked, "Senior Yun Jian, is that guy refusing to confess?"

"Hmph, he's very stubborn. There's nothing I can do about it. The main problem is his ninjutsu. He's completely numb right now, so many torture methods won't work."

I couldn't very well kill him; it would be a waste if I did. So, I've fulfilled his wish.

The three of them glanced at Higashino Makoto and silently warned themselves that they must never offend this living devil in the future.

He said helplessly, "Then we can only send it back to the command post and let the mountain tribe in the intelligence department figure out a solution."

Gekko Unkan shook his head: "If he is an important person in Kumogakure, then he must have a sealing technique in his mind to prevent leaks. If not, it means that he does not have any important information. Konoha can only extract the secrets of ninjutsu from him at most."

7

Higashino thought for a moment and said, "Then how about I give it a try?"

Yiya and Yueguangyun were taken aback. "No, you don't even know the secret techniques of the Yamanaka family, do you? This is no joke."