Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

Although Onoki's large-scale cultural and sports event had the air of showing off his disciple, as fellow ninja villages, even in their current predicament, he still felt it necessary to make an appearance. While Kirigakure might be low-key, they couldn't let the ninja world truly forget them...

873. Onoki was full of vigor and high spirits.

"Smack!"

"Go to hell! Go? How? Who are we supposed to film? That bastard Onoki is clearly just putting on a show for his blond disciple. Who else can Kirigakure send now? (▼he▼メ)"

Before the Water Shadow Girl could speak, an old man directly opposite the Byakugan Guy was already slamming his fist on the table in excitement. He was getting more and more agitated, making one worry that the old man might suddenly catch his breath and kick the bucket.

"Why...!"

After the old man finished speaking, the eyes of everyone present fell silent. They sighed helplessly and nodded.

It's not that they don't want to go. This is a large-scale cultural and sports event that only happens once every few decades. How could Kirigakure not want to participate? The feud between Kirigakure and Iwagakure could be made into a TV series with three seasons. Iwagakure got lucky and produced the genius Onoki, so they showed off. Of course, they wanted to go and slap them in the face.

But with the village's current lineup, we really can't win!

Back then, their village was incredibly glorious. Putting everything else aside, just in terms of the number of bloodline limits, they were on par with Konoha, the overlord of the ninja world. Although bloodline limits weren't necessarily very strong, their starting point was definitely the highest. No matter how outstanding someone was, they wouldn't dare call themselves a genius if they didn't awaken their clan's bloodline limit.

Needless to say, the elite and high-level executives were even less likely to rise to the top. In those glorious days, how could someone like the guy with the white eyes possibly rise to the top? Even at large meetings, he would be a marginal figure squatting in a corner.

But now?

That damn masked man wiped out all those clans with bloodline limits, including the Hozuki clan, the Minazuki clan, and the Kaguya clan. He didn't leave a single one alive, and then he took down an ordinary child to slap Onoki in the face.

They genuinely lacked that confidence. Onoki had been in the ninja world for so many years; what kind of geniuses hadn't he seen? Anyone he called a genius had to have some talent to begin with. And frankly, they hadn't discovered a single genius among their village's next generation...

Going there would only result in getting beaten up instead of being humiliated, and the team leader might even get humiliated as well. In that case, it would be better not to go at all. Anyway, their Hidden Mist Village is far from the mainland and has never gotten along with those other villages over the years. It would be better to stay out of sight of them, develop quietly for ten years or so, and then rise up one day to amaze everyone!

"...Alright, let's leave it at that for now. Neither Konoha nor Kumogakure will let Onoki succeed. We'll just have to watch."

Seeing the old folks reminiscing about the past and about to burst into tears again, Shuiying Meizi finally decided that they wouldn't participate in this large-scale cultural and sports event. Although it was harsh, she had to admit that the quality of the children in the village now was not even half of what it used to be. If they went, they would only be supporting characters for the other villages, so it was better not to go. Anyway, they were far away and rarely participated in activities on the mainland, so it was normal for them not to go this time.

Of course, she wanted the village to return to its former glory under her leadership after she became the Mizukage, but the village didn't have the conditions to do so!

......

"Tumu, are everything prepared for the Chunin Exams?"

In Iwagakure, Onoki looked incredibly dashing, and even his red-nosed dog, who had been with him for decades, had turned noticeably whiter.

The reason is simple: the genius disciple he took in a few years ago did not disappoint him. He was tricked by some old guy into coming into contact with forbidden techniques, which caused him to fall into a coma and have his body modified by the forbidden techniques. But a genius is a genius. He survived and even actually activated the Explosion Release technique that had been lost in their Iwagakure for many years.

What surprised him most was that although this disciple was usually mischievous and wasted too much time on those pretty but useless arts, his Explosion Release was a perfect match for him. In just two short years since he woke up, his strength had improved by leaps and bounds. Although he was only eight years old, he was already able to defeat Chunin with his explosive Explosion Release. Even Jonin would be in a sorry state when faced with such a powerful Explosion Release.

At that moment, Onoki saw a rising star in this disciple, the hope of the entire village, and also his own hope.

He has been holding this village together for far too long!

Finally, I see hope of being able to unload the heavy burden on my shoulders.

He couldn't wait to let everyone know that his Hidden Stone Village had finally produced a talent!

Especially after Uchiha Shisui of Konoha became famous, he was extremely motivated. However, two years ago, Deidara was still young, and he could only watch Hiruzen Sarutobi and Konoha's glory. Now that Deidara has grown up quite well, it's time for him to go out and have some fun.

As someone who also debuted as a child star, Onoki knew the advantages of debuting early. If he hadn't been brought into the industry by his teacher at a young age and accumulated considerable fame, it might not have been so easy for him to become the Tsuchikage when his teacher suddenly died in battle.

So he was also paving the way for Deidara. In the ninja world, who can guarantee their own survival? By paving the way for Deidara first, even if he were to die unexpectedly one day, it would be easier for Deidara to grow up and take over in the future.

Although Kakuzu is a scoundrel, his credibility and ability are undeniable. In the two years since we started cooperating, Kakuzu's efficiency has been outstanding. Almost all of those old guys have "died unexpectedly" in the past two years, and now the village is thriving, which is exactly what he wanted.

Sometimes Onoki really regretted it. If he had known that Kakuzu was so efficient, he should have put aside his past grievances and cooperated with him long ago. If it had been ten years earlier, he was confident that the village could have reached another peak!

"Everything is ready, but Tsuchikage, although Deidara is a genius, he is still too young. I'm worried that other villages might try to target Deidara."

Onoki was in high spirits, but Tsuchiki was not in the same mood. Instead, he frowned and said worriedly.

He knew what the boss's purpose was in organizing this joint Chunin Exams. Their Tsuchikage position wasn't hereditary; whoever had the ability would take the position. Back then, didn't the First Hokage choose the Second Hokage, who was good at attacking people from all sides, instead of letting his son take the position?

There's no war now, and Deidara is still young, so it's reasonable for the boss to pave the way for Deidara in this way. He also acknowledges Deidara's talent. However, he still feels that Deidara is too young right now. Perhaps it would be more prudent to wait a couple of years. After all, their village doesn't have good relations with Konoha, Kumogakure, Sunagakure, and Kirigakure. It's hard to say whether other villages will take this opportunity to cause trouble.

Although it is a time of peace now, open and covert struggles are inevitable. Deidara's strength is not yet stable. It would be bad if other villages sent a few younger-looking veteran Jonin to infiltrate them under assumed names to target Deidara.

In his opinion, the boss was definitely provoked by Konoha again.

874. Let's wait another year.

"One should become famous as early as possible. Moreover, I have already stated in the invitation letter that they are all genin under the age of eighteen. Currently, apart from Uchiha Shisui of Konoha, I have not heard of any genius under the age of eighteen in the various villages of the ninja world who can compare with Deidara. Now is the perfect opportunity."

Onoki spoke with a confident gleam in his eyes.

He wasn't bragging; he knew his disciple's strength himself. Although he couldn't compare to the prodigies like Shiki or Sakumo, who could fight Jonin at the age of nine, he was still an incredible genius. At that time, the ninja world was in a talent vacuum, which meant that Deidara had no rivals. This was a perfect opportunity for Deidara to shine and let the ninja world know the brilliance of Iwagakure!

"..."

Since their leader was so confident, Tsuchimaki couldn't say anything. The invitations had already been sent out, and they were ready for the Chunin Exams. It wouldn't be good to contradict their leader at this point. In the past two years, there had been a series of high-ranking officials dying unexpectedly. One or two such incidents could be a coincidence, but more than ten in a row was not normal. As intelligent as he was, he suspected that the disappearances of these high-ranking officials were related to their leader.

As the old saying goes, serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. Naturally, he wouldn't offend his boss at such a time, lest he be killed by a masked, powerful dwarf while sleeping with his wife one night, which would be a tragic and unjust end for him.

He no longer has the youthful drive and ambition he once had. Having held a high position for so many years, he is no longer the spirited young man he once was. The family still depends on him to support them. If anything happens to him, the family will be back to square one.

........

Onoki's invitation to the joint Chunin Exams nearly alarmed all the ninja villages in the center of the map. Of course, only Konoha, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure, all of the Five Great Ninja Villages, had the means to refuse Onoki's request. The smaller ninja villages, however, did not have such means. Even though they knew that Onoki wanted to flex his muscles in front of them, and even if they despised Onoki's ostentatious display in their hearts, they still had to obediently send their own genin under the age of eighteen. There was no way they could refuse the face of the Tsuchikage.

Although Iwagakure has been defeated by Konoha in every major battle over the years, suffering heavy losses, just looking at the military power that Iwagakure displayed in each Shinobi World War makes their scalps tingle. Putting aside everything else, if they were ever unhappy and "accidentally" sent a Jinchuriki to rage on their territory, their small ninja village would be wiped out.

So when Onoki's invitation arrived, the leaders of those small ninja villages grumbled and complained about leaving the group, but their actions were quite obedient as they gathered the genin under the age of eighteen from their villages. They didn't need to be particularly strong, but they had to be loud.

They weren't there to show off their muscles; no matter how big their muscles are, they can't outdo the powerful ninja villages. They were there to cheer on those villages, especially the host, Iwagakure, and show Onoki how much respect they'd given them...

The day after the Sunagakure meeting, Rasa gathered a group of over twenty graduates from this year's Ninja Academy, including Masato and writer Umekawa Nai-i, and they leisurely set off.

Mei Chuan Neiyi, who had been working in an office job for nearly ten years, also came out this time. It had been more than ten years since he last left the village. He didn't want to come, but this time he really had no choice. Although his father had not yet designated a family heir, he was getting old and was already exhausted from fighting with Yusa Kaku every day. He didn't have much energy left for other things. If he didn't step down, he would just be wasting his time with Yusa Kaku. If he didn't step down, his sons, who were quite talented, would not be able to take over, just like he had back then. If they couldn't take over, they wouldn't be considered high-ranking members of the village. Now, he could only send his youngest son, who was a disciple of the Golden Lion, to represent the Mei Chuan clan and make a name for himself.

Although Sunagakure implements an elite policy, the number of graduates each year is not only around twenty. If you include those who graduated in the previous two years and are still genin, there are at least one or two hundred people. However, their purpose this time is purely to watch the excitement. Shinto will not bring too many people; just a token appearance will suffice. Genin being promoted to chunin is not a big deal anyway. It is true that the strength of genin can reflect the overall strength of a village. After all, the future of a village depends on the children who have not yet grown up. Who knows, one day in the future, one of the children might encounter some kind of adventure or meet some old man with a ring and suddenly rise to prominence.

However, a genin is still a genin. The core strength of the village is always the chunin to jonin level. So why make things so complicated for a mere genin to be promoted to chunin? The village can handle it itself. Traveling all the way to Iwagakure for a chunin exam is too damn tiring.

"What's wrong with you all? You're so young, yet you have no spirit at all. When I was your age, I never saw anyone as impotent as you. You're here representing Sunagakure, so show us the spirit of Sunagakure! Heads up, chests out, stomachs in, buttocks up..."

As soon as they left the village, Masato looked at the twenty or so young boys, all of them listless and impotent, and said irritably.

"Yes, Lord Shinto!"

The boys, startled, answered with pitiful, mournful faces.

They wanted to be excited, after all, this was the first time they had left the village in so many years, but damn it, they just couldn't get excited at all!

They've been out of school for over half a year now; they're no longer the fresh-faced newbies who just stepped out of campus.

Just yesterday, their instructor informed them that they were unlucky enough to be chosen by the Kazekage to go to Iwagakure with Shinto-sama for the upcoming Joint Chunin Exams. At first, they were quite excited. This was considered bad luck? Shinto-sama was a legendary ninja from Sunagakure! They had barely seen him a few times a year, let alone participate in such a prestigious Chunin Exam. If they performed exceptionally well in this Joint Chunin Exams, they might just become famous throughout the ninja world and reach the pinnacle of their lives!

This is bad luck? They should be buying lottery tickets right now!

Has the teacher taken the wrong medicine?

But their teacher's next words poured cold water on their enthusiasm.

This joint Chunin Exams was organized by the Tsuchikage to flex his muscles and show off. There are countless powerful and talented young people from Iwagakure alone. It would be strange if they could perform well when they are fighting on foreign soil.

Their mission this time was purely to accompany the young master in his studies, to play a supporting role; they were just going through the motions. As for hoping to be promoted to Chunin through this kind of assessment, they shouldn't even think about it. They should just protect their lives and property and wait another year...

875. The difference between Onoki and Hiruzen Sarutobi!

Which boy could stand hearing such words?

Why do they study so hard at school to become ninjas?

Isn't it all for the sake of making a name for oneself and reaching the pinnacle of life?

Which kid who just graduated from school doesn't harbor lofty ambitions to become the protagonist of the world?

But now the teacher told them that their village would also be holding its own Chunin Exams this year, and most likely 80% of the participants would be promoted to Chunin. Only those unlucky ones who were chosen to go to Iwagakure to participate in the Chunin Exams would likely have to wait another year. After all, there were too many participants in this joint Chunin Exams, and the competition was fierce. To be promoted to Chunin in a joint Chunin Exam of this caliber was even harder than being chosen by the Daimyo's wife. Moreover, they were fighting away from home, so there was bound to be all sorts of dirty tricks and behind-the-scenes manipulation.

The thought of returning from Iwagakure, only to find that their former classmates had already become Chunin while they were left with the title of Genin for another year, made it impossible for them to feel excited.

But this was decided by Lord Kazekage, and they were unlucky enough to be selected, so they could only lament the cruel twist of fate.

"Teacher, isn't it too shabby for us to go like this? The Tsuchikage is making such a big fuss, and we're one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages..."

Mei Chuan Neiyi, who was sitting in a wheelchair on the back of a puppet and traveling by the puppet, said.

In his opinion, the Tsuchikage had made such a big show of things. After all, Sunagakure was one of the five great ninja villages. This lineup of just over twenty people was really too meager. Even if they didn't need a ceremonial guard, they should at least have some bodyguards, right?

But right now, it's just him and his teacher with about twenty genin. To be honest, if it weren't for his teacher leading the team, he wouldn't dare to come out. He couldn't possibly protect these twenty-odd kids.

"Formalism is all empty and meaningless. We're just here to watch the show. Too many people will only cause trouble. That old cunning Onoki is no honest man. He brought his disciples out to show off. And that's their home turf. Unless you bring an entire army, if he really wants to cause trouble, too many ninjutsu will only make things worse. I can't take care of so many people either."

"Masato waved his hand and said."

The fact that Onoki suddenly organized such a large-scale event on his own turf means there's a high chance he won't hold back any nonsense. At most, he might try to avoid any shameless interference during the assessment.

However, Onoki is a cunning old fox, on par with Senju in some ways, so the outcome of the real fight is uncertain. Moreover, there are Obito and the rice-carrying foreman in the shadows, and who knows what they might be up to? Onoki has made this joint Chunin Exam a well-known event. Generally speaking, following the traditional villainous tactic, assassination and framing along the way are definitely their first choice. To prevent this, the fewer people involved, the better, at least so that he can protect them.

With fewer people around, he doesn't have to worry too much.

"No way? What kind of tricks could the Tsuchikage possibly have up his sleeve? He wouldn't be so shameless, would he?"

Mei Chuan asked in surprise.

This time, Onoki is trying to pull some tricks on his own turf. If he gets caught, won't that be a slap in his own face?

He's the Tsuchikage, after all; he shouldn't be this shameless, right?

"Hehe, kid, you're still too young. Back then, every single one of those people who became leaders did it through cunning and scheming."

"Just you wait and see. Not only us, but Konoha and Kumogakure definitely won't send many people either. Onoki's reputation for being a cunning schemer is well-established."

Masato looked at this disciple who had switched to a clerical job in his early years. He had never been beaten down by society, and his mind was always so pure.

Speaking of this kid, apart from a major disaster he experienced when he was young, he grew up under the wing of Mei Chuan Baidi and Mei Chuan Naito. After becoming his disciple, he directly switched to an office job and stayed at home all the time. He has experienced too little!

Handsome Scorpion has known since childhood that people are wicked, and you can't trust even your own uncle... This kid actually trusted that old schemer, Onoki.

This person has never been scammed before!

"Wow!! This world is so complicated..."

Mei Chuan Neiyi sat in her wheelchair, pondered for a long time, and slowly nodded.

"The world is not complicated by nature. It is only after people come into existence that cars become complicated. Ultimately, it is because people are too complicated. You are still young, so take your time to learn."