Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

Kirigakure is too far away, and it's peacetime now, so it's impossible to send a large force to the shore quietly. Therefore, he gave up on Kirigakure without even thinking about it.

The only one left is Sunagakure. Judging from Sunagakure's current roster on paper, Sunagakure is a pretty good target for deception. Kazekage Rasa isn't exactly a smart person, so it would be too easy to fool him.

However, considering that there was also a Golden Lion in Sunagakure whom he could not see through at all, he decided to give up.

He has known the Golden Lion for decades and has studied its cells. Although they have never met, he knows the Golden Lion quite well.

Putting aside the fact that I learned from my friend Tsunade's slug friend that Shiki had mastered the Sage Mode of Shikkotsu Forest just like Hashirama Senju, and was far superior to Jiraiya's half-baked abilities, even Shiki in his Sage Mode without activating it could already fight Kurama one-on-one. If that guy were to activate Sage Mode, it would be an absolute game-changer.

Moreover, he spent two years studying Shiki's cells, but he still couldn't figure out how Shiki got those special abilities. With his knowledge, he was able to study the Yang Release chakra in Hashirama Senju's cells, but he was still at a loss about Shiki's cells. In addition, Shiki's cells gave him a feeling that they were even more dangerous than Hashirama Senju's cells.

So, whether it was to maintain his friendship with Shiki or to avoid making an enemy more troublesome than the Akatsuki, he gave up on the idea of ​​fooling Rasa. He didn't care about those small ninja villages at all; no matter how many ants there were, they were still just ants and were of no use whatsoever.

However, he didn't want to give up the opportunity to prove himself in front of his Hokage teacher, and at the same time, he couldn't bear to see his teacher, who treated him like a son, continue to live a miserable life. Rather than that, he thought it would be better to give him a heroic death, just like the Third Raikage did. Although he had been dead for many years, he still lived in the hearts of many people.

Without a suitable person to fool, he can only rely on himself. Because of Sakumo's existence, although it is very difficult to solo Konoha, it is not without a chance. He was trained by Sakumo and has a good understanding of Sakumo's Hatake swordsmanship. It has strong explosive power and fast speed, but its weakness is also obvious. The common problem of the Hatake clan is that it is not durable. As long as there is a chance to set up a barrier, there will be no problem.

As for his underlings, aside from his "godson" Lü Majun, Snake Uncle is just that kind of heartless person...

.......

While Orochimaru was stubbornly preparing to solo Konoha, the Sand Village was making such a fuss about the joint Chunin Exams with Konoha. Almost all the genin were eager to participate. This time, Konoha didn't have the same age restrictions as Iwagakure back then. As long as you were a genin, even if you were over sixty, you could participate.

However, if someone is still a genin over sixty, their chances of winning in the future are slim. Rasa didn't dare let these old guys take the field. Respecting the elderly and caring for the young is a traditional virtue, and even he, as the Kazekage, is no exception. Every day on the street, he is called "Rasa brat" by elderly men and women, and he still has to greet them with a smile.

The last joint Chunin Exams in Iwagakure were so lacking in talent that they had no choice but to send Shinto and his men to participate. But this time it's different. His son's generation has finally grown up, and it's finally his turn to show off his skills. In recent years, there haven't been any geniuses from Konoha or other villages. Even that idiot disciple of Onoki has disappeared for some unknown reason. I heard that Onoki was so angry about this that he ended up in the ICU in the middle of the night, just like Hiruzen Sarutobi did back then.

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, and now it's our Sand Village's turn to show off our muscles!

Of course, now that the village has entered an era of enlightened rule, participation in this exam is entirely voluntary. Apart from his three children, whose names he personally signed on their application forms, he can no longer help his other children. So, these past few days, he has had his ANBU underlings spread the word about the Konoha Joint Chunin Exam throughout the village, hoping to inspire the children's ambition.

"It's everyone's responsibility to bring glory to the village! If you don't play, and I don't play, who will defend our country and our home? If we don't play, the next generation will!" and so on. These slogans, which got the teenagers excited, made them shout and yell. If they hadn't been stopped by some teachers, several of them would have wanted to run off to Iwagakure to fight the Tsuchikage.

"puff!"

"What?! You're going to Konoha to take the Chunin Exams too?!"

How many chuunibyou (delusional) teenagers are there in the Naruto world?

It was simply incalculable. Add to that those ANBU underlings copying those blood-pumping propaganda slogans from who-knows-where, let alone others, even Karin from Shinto's family, who had forgotten she was still a ninja and hadn't been joining her ninja team, spending all her time at home building a bond with the little monster Mizuki Haku, was also fired up by those propaganda slogans. Early in the morning at breakfast time, she solemnly announced that she was going to Konoha to participate in the Joint Chunin Exams.

The others were fine, since they all knew this girl was a show-off, but Handsome Scorpion's parents were not happy about it.

The saying "grandparents love their grandchildren more" is absolutely true. Just like when Sasori and Shinto went to Konoha for negotiations, his parents were never worried. On the contrary, Chiyo, his grandmother, was always worried about whether her precious grandson had gone hungry or slept well while traveling with his unreliable nephew. Now that it's Karin's turn, Sasori's parents are doing the same thing. The key point is that this time, the person leading the team is Maki.

He's their family's sole heir; Maki has no way of protecting him!

955. Isn't there still someone idle at home?

"That's right! I'm going to participate in the Chunin Exams with Temari and the others too!"

Karin nodded quite seriously, indicating that she was not joking, clearly like a delusional teenager who had been fooled by the promotional slogans of those ANBU underlings.

"hiss...!".

Sasori's father rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. It was certainly a good thing that his beloved granddaughter wanted to bring glory to the village, but Konoha's influence was not what it used to be. For the past few years, it had relied entirely on White Fang for protection. As the center of the ninja world, Konoha had always been a target of attack. Now that Konoha was doing this, although it was to show off its strength, it was also an opportunity for other villages to test Konoha. It was hard to say whether something unexpected would happen. In the end, Maki alone wouldn't be able to protect them. In the past few days, Rasa had even considered personally leading a group there.

Even if Luo Sha personally leads the team, it's still not safe!

Besides, when will their family's heir be promoted to Chunin? Konoha will be holding its assessment, especially since she's their village's little princess. That would definitely be a huge turn-off.

Even if Gaara were to go, they would be a little worried and afraid that the One-Tailed Beast inside him would be exposed, which would be dangerous. Others might not make a move, but if Onoki found out, given the grudge between Onoki and his brother, it would be strange if he didn't take action after knowing that Gaara was the One-Tailed Beast Jinchuriki. If Karin also went to join in the fun, wouldn't that kill two birds with one stone?

Although Karin wasn't as famous at a young age as Sasori, as the heir of their family, she was on file with the higher-ups in the villages. Everyone knew that Karin was Sasori's daughter and the heir of their family.

Ohnoki will be so happy then...

"Let the child go if she wants to. An eagle will eventually spread its wings and fly high. It's not a good idea for her to always live under our wings."

At this point, Chiyo had something to say. Looking at Karin's expression, she knew that the girl had been influenced by those messy propaganda slogans, but it was a good thing. There was no reason to stop a child from bringing glory to the village, was there?

To be honest, Karin's growth was indeed slower than she had expected. Although part of the reason was that she didn't want her beloved great-grandson to work so hard, so she had always let things take their natural course and hadn't let her be exposed to ninja training at the age of three like her beloved grandson. But even if Karin only started learning sealing techniques at the age of five, with her talent, she shouldn't have been limited to that.

When her beloved grandson was nine years old, he dared to fight the Seven-Tails one-on-one. At Karin's age, cutting down Jonin was as easy as cutting melons and vegetables. Now, Karin probably only has the ability to fight Special Jonin to a standstill thanks to the Uzumaki clan's strange sealing techniques. This is partly due to their excessive protection.

Look at Rasa's youngest son, who has been trained since he was a young age and is now able to solo Jonin.

Although her family didn't need Karin to risk her life, Chiyo, having been in the ninja world for so many years, understood the importance of strength better than anyone else. If it weren't for her nephew's rapid rise to power after the war, the village wouldn't have had such an easy time getting through that period.

So although she cherishes this great-grandson, she also hopes that he can grow up quickly. After all, her nephew is not young anymore. In the ninja world, sixty years old is considered a happy death. Although her nephew has Sage Mode chakra to resist aging, everyone has their limits. Who knows how long her nephew can keep up?

It would be good to let Karin go out and see the world.

"Yay! I knew Grandma would agree. I'm going to tell Temari right now..."

Upon hearing Chiyo's words, the little girl jumped up excitedly, made a victory sign, and then, without even eating breakfast, ran out in a hurry.

"Sister, is it dangerous for Karin to go with Maki? Rasa hasn't decided whether she wants to go or not yet."

Since his mother had spoken, Scorpion's parents couldn't refute him, but Ebizo still asked worriedly.

They only have one son in their family, and they don't know if Handsome Scorpion will be able to have more children after he returns from his mission. But even if he can, he's still their little darling, and it would be terrible if something happened to him.

"...I didn't expect Maki to be able to protect Karin. It would be a blessing if he could protect Gaara and his siblings. Don't we have another person in our family who can do whatever he wants?"

Chiyo spoke calmly, glancing out of the corner of her eye at her nephew, who was slowly drinking his breakfast milk.

Everyone's eyes turned to look at them.

Right!

Isn't there still this lazy bum who's been eating and drinking for free? He's not even sixty yet, and he's already retired like a veteran cadre. He's been freeloading at home for so long, he should be contributing something to the family by now.

"...I knew it would be like this."

As Masato drank his breakfast milk, he felt the stares of everyone and looked up at the sky speechlessly. He was practically becoming the bodyguard for three generations of this family.

He mentored both of Sasori's parents back in the day, and he mentored Sasori himself. Now it's Sasori's daughter's turn. Will Karin's son and daughter also have to debut under his guidance?

"The capable should do more work, right? Konoha is so lively, I believe you won't go."

Chiyo rolled her eyes at him, annoyed.

"Ha! You understand me so well, beautiful lady. It just so happens that I'm going to check out the younger generation of ninjas these days. It's lonely at the top, isn't it? Ever since White Fang turned fifty, I haven't had any rivals. Life is indeed a bit as lonely as snow..."

Masato shamelessly put on a show.

It's pointless to go and see any outstanding characters. Decades have passed, and although he can hardly remember the plot anymore, he knows the main characters of this era by heart. He can recite them with his eyes closed without even looking.

Watching a bunch of lowly genin fight amongst themselves isn't very interesting. My main goal is to see the One-Tailed Fox and the Nine-Tailed Fox rekindle their romance. I'll also wait until Orochimaru summons Senju and see if I can trick him into signing Tsunade's marriage certificate. That way, it will be legitimate, and the Konoha leaders won't have anything to say.

When Orochimaru summoned Senju Niji to help Nawaki develop the Three-Sword Style, he had already considered it. However, Senju Niji was the first generation of cunning and scheming, and it was too difficult to fool him. In addition, Tsunade was also present at the time, so it was inconvenient to speak.

But the Thousand-Handed Grandpa is different. Although he was very powerful in his lifetime and liked to play dumb to fool others, and he tricked Banji for decades, he was not an intelligent hero after all. It was much easier to fool him than to fool the Second Thousand-Handed Grandpa.

Furthermore, there's the heartwarming father-son relationship between Orochimaru and Hiruzen Sarutobi, with one exciting episode after another. You'd really regret missing it!

956. Onoki Makoto didn't want to give him face.

The biggest topic in the ninja world right now is Konoha's joint Chunin Exams.

The last Chunin Exams were seven or eight years ago. The first Chunin Exams, which Onoki held for his blond-haired disciple, are still vivid in the minds of those who attended. Darui, the boy from Kumogakure who inherited the Black Lightning Release of the Third Raikage and also possessed Storm Release, and Deidara, the young head of the Uchiha clan in Konoha who already had three tomoe at the age of eleven, are now Konoha's super rogue ninja and the popular little king of the ninja world.

It feels like those scenes happened just yesterday, but time has passed and several years have gone by. The young Storm Release user from Kumogakure has become the right-hand man of the Fourth Raikage, the Uchiha Supernova has become a super rogue ninja of Konoha, and the popular young ninja king of the ninja world, Onoki's genius disciple, has disappeared without a trace. He probably squandered his life. It's really quite a sad story.

However, although the last joint Chunin Exams ended well because the previous Land of Earth Daimyo was tricked by Shiki, it was still a successful one. At least three young geniuses emerged from that Chunin Exams.

The most talked-about topic about this year's Joint Chunin Exams in Konoha is whether any young geniuses will emerge. The ninja world has been peaceful for over a decade, and each village has kept a relatively low profile. In recent years, no village has been known to produce any geniuses. It is precisely because of these unknowns that many people are eagerly anticipating this year's Joint Chunin Exams in Konoha.

After receiving invitations from Konoha, most villages in the ninja world still gave it face. In recent years, Konoha's influence has continued to decline due to Hiruzen Sarutobi's old age and the departure of his two most powerful ninjas. However, it is still the number one ninja village in the ninja world and cannot be offended by those small villages.

Among them, small villages like Kusagakure and Takigakure repeated their old tactics, gathering their genin (low-ranking ninja) regardless of strength, prioritizing those with the loudest voices. The point was participation, not winning or losing; the main objective was to cheer on the powerful ninja and show them how much respect they deserved...

However, while some were happy, others were worried. Onoki held Konoha's invitation in his hand, gritting his teeth and remaining silent for a long time. He really didn't want to give Konoha any face. Konoha was now almost the same as Iwagakure, so why should he give them any face?

He wanted to give Hiruzen Sarutobi face, but damn it, their village really had no talent left!

The village finally produced a genius, but Deidara went off to have fun a few years ago and we haven't heard from him since. Onoki guesses that brat probably squandered his life.

The thought of Deidara made Onoki's heart bleed. Deidara was the only genius in Iwagakure since him. Although he was not sure if Deidara could learn Dust Release, even if he could not learn Dust Release, his powerful Explosion Release alone was enough to take over the mantle from him.

But such a great genius is gone just like that. Onoki felt a pang of sadness. Although his beloved granddaughter was intelligent from a young age and capable of great things, her talent was ultimately still a bit inferior to Deidara's.

So when he received Konoha's invitation and learned that Hiruzen Sarutobi intended to flex his muscles, he genuinely wanted to throw the invitation in the trash, out of sight, out of mind. However, if he didn't send someone, people would say that Onoki was petty. Back when Iwagakure held the joint Chunin Exams, Konoha gave him face by sending someone, and now that it was Konoha's turn, he wasn't giving them face, which would ultimately damage the village's reputation.

He had experienced the benefits of a good reputation. When Hiruzen Sarutobi's eldest son got married, that lecherous old man actually sent him an invitation. To save face, he gritted his teeth and sent a generous gift. As a result, the ninja world spread the word that this was the magnanimity a village kage should have. During wartime, they fought to the death, but in peacetime, he could send blessings to the son of his old rival. This gave him a real sense of satisfaction. If he didn't send someone this time, wouldn't the reputation he had built up back then be ruined?

The key issue is that their village really doesn't have any outstanding young geniuses this time. Their beloved granddaughter and another disciple, Akatsuchi, are not bad, but in the eyes of this old hand who has been in the ninja world for many years and has seen all kinds of young geniuses, they are still a bit lacking. Sending their beloved granddaughter and Akatsuchi might just turn them into stepping stones for Konoha's young talents. After all, Konoha is known as the cradle of geniuses, especially since that damned Uchiha brat has a younger brother in Konoha.

This made Onoki very upset. Although he was testing that Uchiha brat who was still making his precious granddaughter swoon, he had to admit that the brat's talent was really strong. He was able to wipe out the entire Uchiha clan at the age of twelve. Such a feat was astonishing. As the brat's younger brother from the same parents, it would be unreasonable to say that he didn't have some talent.

So he really didn't want to send his beloved granddaughter and disciple over, and he wouldn't send anyone else either, because that would be crushing those kids' ninja dreams.

However, considering the village's reputation, Onoki gritted his teeth and decided to check the box next to his precious granddaughter's name, Akatsuchi. He figured it would be good for the girl to see the world and not get stuck with Itachi Uchiha...

.......

"Mabui, should we send someone to the Konoha Joint Chunin Exams this time...?"

Compared to Onoki's gritted teeth for fame and Rasa's eagerness to fight, the Fourth Raikage was somewhat hesitant. Unlike Onoki, they didn't have much grudge against Konoha, and the Fourth Raikage, A, had always earned his reputation through his fists, unlike Onoki's underhanded methods.

They were a martial arts enthusiast in Kumogakure, so of course he wanted to participate in this kind of muscle-flexing activity. Just like back then, although Darui lost to Uchiha Itachi, as Itachi's reputation grew, Darui's reputation also rose. After all, he was the second-place finisher that year, far superior to Onoki's blond-haired disciple...

But now he knows his own family's situation. Among this generation of children, there isn't a single one who can fight. He doesn't know if it's because his father's burial was bad. After he took power, the next generation of children is getting worse and worse. Even now, among the children graduating this year, there isn't a single one with the strength of a Chunin. Although Konoha doesn't have age restrictions like Iwagakure, he really doesn't have the face to tamper with the files like Darui did back then.

Back then, it was to slap the face of their enemy, Onoki. But times have changed. Information spreads quickly now, and because of Darui's incident, Kumogakure is receiving more attention. It would be disgraceful for them to try to hide the fact that so many people had tampered with the files and had a Jonin impersonate a Genin. Kumogakure couldn't afford to lose face like that.

957. Hiruzen Sarutobi: That bastard got lucky.

"Lord Raikage, I don't think it's necessary. The purpose of Konoha holding this joint Chunin Exams is simply to intimidate the smaller ninja villages around Konoha. In recent years, because Hiruzen Sarutobi is old, Konoha has relied on White Fang's reputation to intimidate those smaller villages. However, the effect has been diminishing in recent years. It's different from the purpose of Kumogakure last time. Kumogakure is located on the border, and Lord Raikage, you are at your peak. No small ninja village around us would dare to target us. Konoha has always been the center of attention, and in addition, Konoha has declined a lot in recent years. White Fang's reputation can no longer protect us. I think we should not join in the fun."

After analyzing the situation, Mabuyi shook his head and offered his advice.

In recent years, their development has been more stable than that of Sunagakure. They also don't have any foolish daimyo who is in debt. Although, according to her analysis, Sunagakure made a fortune from several major wars, Sunagakure itself is ultimately lacking in resources. Even if there is a lot of gold sand, it is not easy to develop.

The Cloud Village is different. Although its resources are not as abundant as those of the Leaf Village, they are not exactly lacking either. In recent years, its development has been much better than that of the Iwagakure Village. Since the village does not have any decent geniuses, it is better not to get involved. After all, the ninja world has been at peace for more than ten years, and no one knows when the next war will begin. It is more practical to continue to develop in a low-key manner.

The Fourth Raikage nodded without speaking, but agreed with the other party's statement that they would not participate in this joint Chunin Exams.

After all, there was simply no one else available, and Raikage A didn't like losing face...

.......