I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 685 If you happen to run into an acquaintance who has something good to share, you should at least express your gratitude.

"Itachi! Why didn't you go to the training grounds today?"

Outside a convenience store on the streets of Konoha, Shisui, his hair and clothes soaking wet, was carrying the largest bottle of beverage as he walked out, just as Itachi stepped into the store.

"Brother Zhishui?"

Itachi looked up and saw Shisui. He greeted him politely first, then said, "I'm sorry, Shisui-nii, my mother's due date is today, and I need to be with her."

"It's okay, we didn't make any agreement anyway, so what are you now?"

Shisui waved his hand, then asked with some curiosity. Looking at Itachi's furrowed brows, he even began to wonder if Itachi's mother had encountered problems during childbirth, otherwise why would she be so troubled?

If so, should he help find Lady Nonou or Lady Tsunade? Although neither of them are obstetricians and gynecologists, they should be able to access more medical resources, right?

"My little brother is too naughty and refuses to be born. My father asked me to come down and buy some candy and ice to replenish my strength and induce labor so that my mother can end her contractions sooner."

After Itachi finished speaking, he looked at the convenience store owner. Without needing to say anything more, the owner went to get a cup and make ice. Shisui also helped pick out some chocolates, saying:

"Buy this. I often eat this after training; it's very helpful for replenishing energy."

"Thanks."

Itachi clutched the money his father gave him in one hand and accepted the chocolate from Shisui in the other. He also checked the labels on the shelf to make sure he had enough money.

Actually, it wouldn't be enough to buy just a few pieces of chocolate, or even the entire shelf of chocolates and candies. Itachi, however, always carried loose change and was used to checking the prices.

According to his father, boys should develop the habit of moderate spending from a young age, and should not spend recklessly unless they meet a girl they like.

After buying his things, Itachi said goodbye to Shisui and headed towards the nearby Konoha Hospital. Shisui, carrying a half-empty bottle of drink, went to a store further away.

If you don't know beforehand, then it's fine, but the teacher said that if you happen to run into an acquaintance who has something good to share, you should at least express your gratitude.

Although I don't fully understand the reasoning behind this, the advantage of Zhishui is that he first answers based on the "correct answer" and then thinks about the reasons behind it.

Since Itachi was referring to his younger brother, Shisui picked out a set of toy-like ninja tools. Then, thinking of Itachi's mother who had given birth, he also picked out a bottle of beautifully packaged nectar.

After his shopping trip, Shisui had spent all the money he had with him, and he also finished a bottle of beverage. He returned to Tatsuma's house, took a shower, and changed his clothes. Seeing that Tatsuma had not gone home, he went directly to the Hokage's office.

"Teacher, Itachi's mother is supposed to give birth today. Is it appropriate for me to bring these?"

Shisui asked, and Chenma looked at the gift he had chosen and said, "It's just barely satisfactory. The intention is right, but it's not appropriate to give a weapon, or even a toy, as a gift for a happy occasion."

But given your age and your kind intentions, I believe the Fugaku family won't overinterpret it; they'll simply be happy and grateful. Go ahead and send it over.

"Yes, teacher, I will pay attention next time."

Zhi Shui nodded, thinking that his teacher's friends would probably have happy events in the next year or two, such as the arrival of their descendants, so he should remember this point.

Tatsuma had no intention of giving a gift, since he hadn't "met" with Fugaku, and he didn't need to give a gift now. Even if Fugaku hosted a banquet, his presence with nothing would be a sign of respect for Fugaku.

Fugaku could only be considered a friend of Tatsuma, and Tatsuma wouldn't be happy for Fugaku's happiness. He didn't even plan to give gifts to the descendants of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, let alone Fugaku.

On the contrary, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio will probably have to invite him over to witness the friendship of the fifteenth generation of Ino-Shika-Cho. Of course, it's not just him who will be invited; Hiruzen Sarutobi will be the main witness, since that's the tradition of the Sarutobi and Ino-Shika-Cho trio.

Tatsuma was only invited because he is the current Hokage, an indispensable member of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, who are closely tied to the village.

The only new generation worth giving gifts to, and the only ones Tatsuma would actually give gifts to, are probably the descendants of Minato, Tenka, and Sento. Minato's children are already on the agenda.

As for the other two, we'll probably have to wait a little longer.

After glancing at the calendar and estimating the time, Tatsuma realized there were still a few months left, so he put the matter out of his mind and continued working.

The Land of Fire is currently peaceful, and most of the documents Tatsuma is handling are related to the development of the village. As for the north, it's a complete mess, but Tatsuma doesn't plan to get involved yet.

Konoha also obtained the information stolen from Kumogakure by Iwagakure, but Tatsuma was too lazy to get involved. He already had a plan for Konoha's commercial development and did not intend to enter the end-user market that other villages wanted to compete for.

Due to factors such as manpower, energy, funding, and risks, Tatsuma chose another path: becoming a technology supplier. Rather than having the Konoha ninjas do things they weren't good at, it was better to entrust the professional tasks to professionals.

Orochimaru's team was responsible for producing the technology, while Tatsuma was responsible for selling it to established commercial organizations in the Land of Fire and other countries, allowing them to produce and sell it, giving up a portion of the profits in exchange for the purity of the Konoha ninja.

The biggest wake-up call for Tatsuma over the past few years has been that Konoha's firepower is not enough. Konoha is stronger than any other ninja village, but it cannot be stronger than all the ninja villages combined.

If time were reversed, and Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure hadn't been so hasty, but instead dragged Kirigakure into the fray before making their move simultaneously, Tatsuma wouldn't have been able to turn the tide.

Therefore, Tatsuma's current idea is to transform Konoha into a ninja organization that "does not actively provoke or participate in wars, but is always ready to deal with invasions from other ninja villages."

It's not just about easily dealing with one or two ninja villages, but four ninja villages, plus countless smaller ninja villages and ninja organizations.

To move toward this goal, money is the most important thing, but manpower is also crucial. In Tatsuma's vision, all ninjas of Chunin rank and above must be able to produce three times the number of mature ninjas every year.

Then, every year, the newly promoted Chunin, Special Jonin, and Jonin must also participate in the explosive training of Konoha ninja.

Therefore, Tatsuma did not intend to have Konoha ninjas participate in too many non-ninja operations. In Tatsuma's view, giving up some benefits for this was a very worthwhile thing.

The problem is that Konoha's population is insufficient, and there are too few ninja trainees to be selected. It's not like any child can become a ninja just by being trained. No one understands the importance of talent better than Tatsuma.

Because back then, he was the kind of person who, even after six years of training, might not be able to graduate from the Ninja Academy, and his talent was actually the mainstream of the ninja world.

Therefore, it is necessary to expand the scope of enrollment, formulate talent assessment methods, and more accurately and effectively send reserve personnel with ninja talent to ninja academies, and then send qualified ninjas to villages.

Moreover, this plan must be put on the agenda as soon as possible. After all, although Madara Uchiha was killed by him and Obito was saved by him, who knows if Madara had any other tricks up his sleeve, and if so, what they were?

In fact, Tatsuma didn't think Nagato and the others he already knew were a threat. What Tatsuma was worried about was Madara Uchiha's other backup plans, new backup plans that might emerge because of Tatsuma.

If Tatsuma fails to find these backup plans, how much time does the ninja world have left? Fifteen years? Twenty years?

Tatsuma must cultivate the "Great Reckoning" for Konoha before that potential war, so that it will have the power to suppress other ninja villages.

There's also the bet with Ashura; his current strength isn't enough to defeat the returned Uchiha Madara.

Besides the Sage's Eyes, one must also obtain the true Sage's Body. I wonder what the other ninja world is like now.

According to Tatsuma's speculation, the various worlds should be running in parallel. Unless it's like Orochimaru using space-time ninjutsu to anchor space-time nodes, everyone's time should be progressing synchronously.

Nearly two years have passed in the blink of an eye. If all goes well, he should be able to win the game in three years.

Thinking about it this way, it seems that everything is still not too late.

Closing the draft plan in his hand, Tatsuma got up to get a drink of water, but a familiar chakra appeared behind him. Without turning around, Tatsuma asked directly, "Wasn't Kushina supposed to have her pregnancy check-up today?"

"Yes, Kushina and the baby are both doing well. Kushina found out that Mikoto-senpai's due date was today, so she stayed at the hospital to be with her."

Minato said, "It's not very convenient for me to stay there, so I came out to rest for a bit."

Tatsuma turned around and handed the other glass of water he had just filled to Minato, saying, "Not born yet? Something seems off."

By the time Shisui came over to discuss this matter, Mikoto Uchiha had been in labor for several hours, which was rather long for a woman who had given birth before, especially for a ninja.

"Yes, Fugaku has already called a doctor to examine him, but there was no conclusion when I left."

Minato took the cup, took a sip, and walked to the seats with Tatsuma. Tatsuma frowned, a sudden premonition making him feel that something was wrong.

He frowned, formed hand seals, and quickly expanded his sensory range. Soon, he locked onto Uchiha Mikoto, whose chakra was in disarray.

"I'll go."

Tatsuma had just sat down and then stood up again when he noticed that there was another chakra in Mikoto's body, and it was a rather familiar chakra. Seeing this, Minato knew that Tatsuma must have discovered something, so he quickly got up as well.

The two vanished in a flash of light. Outside the delivery room, Fugaku was talking to the doctor. When he saw Tatsuma and Minato arrive, he stopped talking, looked at Tatsuma, and asked, "Fourth Hokage, could you check on Mikoto's condition? She's clearly past her due date."

Tatsuma nodded and said, "Yes, that's why I came. It's just a small problem, don't worry."

Fugaku quickly opened the door for Tatsuma. Since she hadn't officially given birth yet, Tatsuma didn't need to avoid suspicion. Kushina was also inside, while Mikoto was lying pale on the hospital bed, trying to maintain a special breathing rhythm.

"Let's take a break, it's not time yet."

After Tatsuma finished speaking to Mikoto, he raised his hand and hovered it above Mikoto's stomach. Chakra surged out and landed on her stomach, and Tatsuma's vision also changed. It was a spiritual world that was almost empty, with only some vague sounds echoing.

This is a state that only unborn children have, because they haven't even developed cognition yet, which is why they are so empty and devoid of meaning.

Looking into the depths of chaos, before Chenma could speak, he heard a clear voice.

"How was my bet this time?"

(End of this chapter)