Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

However, this Fifth Hokage doesn't seem particularly strong, but the three divine weapons he carries are quite dazzling, fully demonstrating the extravagance of a super-rich family. These seven swords from Kirigakure combined are barely considered divine weapons; other villages would struggle to even acquire one. Yet, the Fifth Hokage possesses three of them. No wonder the Senju clan was able to suppress the Uchiha clan back then; this kind of wealth alone is beyond the reach of ordinary families...

"Haha, this young man doesn't know, does he? Nawaki is indeed Hashirama Senju's grandson, but because half of his bloodline was diluted by the Fire Country Daimyo's family in the previous generation, and also because his father passed on his last bit of talent to Tsunade, Nawaki seems just average. But he has a good foundation; after all, he's Hashirama Senju's bloodline, and his future offspring will have a chance to revert to their ancestral lineage... The Uchiha boy from back then is here too! I knew I wasn't wrong about him. I said back then that you'd be incredibly powerful in the future, but I didn't expect you to grow so fast, it's truly astonishing! But why did you go to a small place like the Land of Rain? How about coming to develop in our Sand Village? It's one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, after all, that's more suitable for someone with your status as a super rogue ninja..."

Shinto suddenly rushed over, laughing heartily at this Ganshi... Pshaw! After Kisame Hoshigaki finished speaking, he looked at Itachi Uchiha next to Kisame with a look of surprise at why he was here, trying to poach Nagato's man.

"You flatter me, Your Excellency Golden Lion. It's been many years, and you're still as witty as ever."

Uchiha Itachi stepped back two paces slightly, standing in front of Kisame, being polite while secretly on guard.

The other party is a legendary figure in the ninja world. He personally witnessed the scene of the other party beating up the Nine-Tails. Now, more than ten years have passed, and everyone is guessing that Shiki is old. But he could beat up the Nine-Tails more than ten years ago. Even if he is old, he doesn't have much confidence. Although he has awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan, when he recalls the scene from more than ten years ago, he doesn't dare to summon his ancestral red giant to be able to defeat the Nine-Tails. People who have never seen the Nine-Tails will never know how powerful it is.

However, he didn't know much about this Golden Lion. He only knew that the other party was rather crazy. It wasn't a big deal before, but now that he was a rogue ninja, who knew if the Golden Lion would be righteous and hate evil.

So the kaleidoscopes are all turned on at the same time, ready at any moment....

"The Golden Lion of Sunagakure, I never expected to run into him here."

Kisame was a good teammate. Although he had a history of backstabbing his leader, given the environment of Kirigakure at the time, it wasn't really a character issue. At least during his time teaming up with Itachi Uchiha, they developed a great chemistry. In particular, Itachi would always step in front of Kisame whenever a battle was about to break out. Although it was just a small detail, it moved Kisame deeply. If he had had a teammate like that back in Kirigakure... he wouldn't have defected.

Therefore, the two have worked together for many years and have a very good understanding. When he saw his teammate's position, he also reached out and grabbed Samehada on his back. This was the first time in all these years that he had seen his teammate so vigilant.

"Don't be so tense. These young people nowadays are really something, always resorting to violence. They don't understand the principles of the martial world, which are all about human relationships and social interactions. Can fighting really solve anything? It's just that they rarely see my nephew's colleagues and came over to say hello. We're all guests of Konoha. It wouldn't be appropriate to operate on their turf, would it? What kind of training did your boss give you? Always resorting to violence..."

Seeing their wary expressions, even Uchiha's short-lived demon had his Mangekyou Sharingan flashing, as if he were about to summon a fiery giant. Masato said irritably.

How did you know we were in the Land of Rain?

Kisame became curious. Judging from Shiki's appearance, he didn't seem like he was about to start a fight, but he still held Samehada on his back without letting go.

"Nonsense, handsome Sasori is my nephew, and Kakuzu is my sworn brother. I just saw my nephew and that blond disciple of Onoki a while ago. Plus, with your flashy and uniform outfits, it's hard not to tell..."

Shinto looked up at the sky speechlessly. Sure enough, after Orochimaru left, Nagato and the rich kid Minami, who were semi-literate students taught by Jiraiya, had no idea what being low-key meant. They kept saying that they were developing in a low-key manner, but the members of the Akatsuki were always wearing these flashy uniforms wherever they went. Is this what being low-key means?

Besides, Kisame doesn't seem to be very bright. You're dressed so flamboyantly and stylishly, how could I not recognize you?

"That's true... Itachi."

Kisame looked at the uniforms he and his teammates were wearing, nodded knowingly, and then looked at his teammate blocking his way. They exchanged glances. Now that they've been recognized, should they still try to sabotage them?

They came to Konoha on a mission, and if they don't know the situation of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, they won't be able to go back and report. Otherwise, they'll just get mocked by Hidan and Deidara again...

"...Is there anything else, Your Excellency Golden Lion? If not, we'll be taking our leave now."

Itachi Uchiha scanned his surroundings with his ring eyes, but found neither his younger brother nor a Jinchuriki. He shook his head slightly and then spoke.

It's clearly unrealistic to start a fight here. He tried using illusion magic on Shiki earlier, but it seemed to be blocked and had no effect at all. He can't really fight Shiki here, lest innocent people get hurt.

"What could possibly happen to me? We're all guests of Konoha. If you want to leave, do you think I can stop you? Go on, go on. I should go celebrate my brother-in-law's ascension to the throne. We'll meet again in the future..."

Shinto waved his hand dismissively. "What could possibly be wrong with me?" If he hadn't remembered that Kakashi had been tortured by Tsukuyomi in the original story, he wouldn't have bothered to come and chat with these two.

Kakashi was someone he had watched grow up, and given his relationship with White Fang, he couldn't just stand by and watch Kakashi get abused!

Kakashi got thrashed, so his reputation will drop to some extent. If his reputation as White Fang drops, won't his reputation also drop a lot as someone on par with White Fang?

Although Kakashi has the ability to go toe-to-toe with equal skill, it hasn't been fully activated yet.

However, this kaleidoscope illusion was indeed a bit cheating. If he hadn't activated his Conqueror's Haki slightly to block the illusion, he wouldn't have realized that this short-lived ghost had already used an illusion attack on him.

I have to say, those eyes are just so damn good at showing off...

1034. Onoki has been watching for a long time.

"Who are those two people?"

No sooner had Itachi and Kisame left than Kakashi arrived. He looked at one of the familiar figures from behind, feeling as if he had seen him somewhere before, but couldn't quite place him.

Kakashi had noticed the old man chatting with the two earlier, but since there were villagers all around and the three didn't seem to want to cause trouble, he didn't come over. However, the uniforms the two wore were too flashy; Kakashi thought of every clan in the ninja world but still couldn't figure out which clan's uniform they were from.

Logically speaking, unless you're from a super-powerful clan, most families don't have uniforms; at most, they'll just casually display their clan crest. Only powerful clans like the Hyuga and Uchiha have their own official uniforms. However, now that the Uchiha, Uzumaki, and Senju clans have all faded into history, only the Hyuga clan remains. Suddenly, two people appear without clan crests but wearing identical uniforms, and in such a flashy way, they don't look like good people at all, and they're even hanging out with this old guy...

"Oh, them? Itachi Uchiha and Kisame, the S-rank rogue ninja from Kirigakure. What, you used to be their leader, how come you didn't recognize him?"

Shinto didn't hide anything and said it nonchalantly.

If he wasn't mistaken, Nagato probably sent them to investigate the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Although the news of Hiruzen Sarutobi's death dominated the top trending topics, the battle between the Nine-Tails and the One-Tail was also trending, though it was second in popularity because it wasn't as influential as Hiruzen Sarutobi's. The Tailed Beasts were the most important part of Nagato's plan, so it would be strange if he didn't send someone to investigate after learning about the battle between the Nine-Tails and the One-Tail. After all, the identities of the Jinchuriki in most villages in the ninja world were known, but the identity of Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki remained a mystery, so it wasn't surprising that Nagato sent someone to confirm it.

Itachi Uchiha probably came to inform Konoha that the Akatsuki's target was the Tailed Beasts, but now that he's interrupted us, it's unlikely he'll be able to get the message to Konoha.

In the original story, Itachi Uchiha used the "Fourth Hokage's legacy" to convey Akatsuki's purpose to Kakashi, making the people of Konoha guess that the target was the Tailed Beasts. The two haven't even met yet.

"What?! What are they doing here?"

Kakashi was also startled. No wonder he said it sounded so familiar. That kind of aura that couldn't be hidden even when he was wearing a straw hat and completely covered up was none other than Uchiha Itachi.

However, Itachi Uchiha has been gone for several years. When he defected, he was just a boy who barely reached Itachi's shoulder. Now he's almost as tall as Itachi. No wonder Itachi can't remember him.

"What else could they be doing? They came looking for their younger brother. The entire clan was slaughtered, but the younger brother was spared. Do you really think they didn't have time to kill him? How many seconds does it take to kill a brat who can only blow small fireballs? Nephew, you can't judge people and things by appearances. Fathers and sons killing each other is possible, but brothers killing each other has only happened once in the hundreds of years of ninja history."

"Although Hiruzen Sarutobi's youngest son is useless, have you ever seen him have any conflicts with his older brother?"

Shinto's earnest and heartfelt words of advice.

In the mysterious space suspended in mid-air, a strange old man with oddly shaped features and round eyes, holding a scepter, stroked his chin and looked down. For some reason, he felt that this brat, suspected to be his drunken reincarnation, was subtly targeting him, but he had no proof...

"...How did Uchiha Itachi end up with Ganshi... and Kisame Hoshigaki, even wearing the same uniform?"

Kakashi ignored the old man's words and muttered to himself seriously.

Itachi Uchiha is a super rogue ninja of Konoha, and Kisame Hoshigaki is also a super rogue ninja of Kirigakure. These two are mixed up together, wearing the same uniform, and appearing in Konoha. It would be a lie to say that they are not worried. Although they don't know what heinous things Kisame Hoshigaki did to be designated as a rogue ninja by Kirigakure.

However, Itachi Uchiha was a formidable figure who single-handedly wiped out his entire clan. If we use our brains, it's definitely not a good thing that the two of them are together now. It's certainly not just a simple matter of them coming back to see their younger brother.

"I guess this is fate. I've been fighting with you for decades and we've always hung out together. Your best buddy back then was so stupid, but you still hung out with him. But... what are you doing? Even the bearded Sarutobi can get a pretty girl with colored contact lenses. What have you been doing all these years, besides reading Jiraiya's little notebook? Have you regressed?"

As Masato was speaking, he suddenly saw a group of lovebirds showing off their affection in the crowd at a 35-degree angle. It was none other than Hiruzen Sarutobi's good-for-nothing youngest son and Kurenai Yuhi's daughter with her beautiful contact lenses. Kakashi's popularity with girls as a child was legendary; Masato had witnessed it firsthand. While he might not have reached the level of the handsome Sasori or the short-lived Uchiha, he was still a very handsome and talented young man. Now, even Hiruzen Sarutobi's youngest son could charm girls, while this little bastard was still keeping Jiraiya's notebook company...

"You said it was fate."

Kakashi said nonchalantly, "His dad was over thirty when he met his mom, and I'm only in my twenties. What's the rush?"

"Fine, I'm too lazy to talk to you. Your Hatake clan's swordsmanship is probably going to be lost."

Seeing that he was about to pull out his notebook to admire Jiraiya's masterpiece with an air of utter indifference, Masato really wanted to give him a kidney.

If you have time, go ask Orochimaru if there's any effective medicine. And if you're going to go all the way, just dump that little bastard on some random girl...

While Shinto was pondering Kakashi's growth plan, Nawaki on the Hokage Tower finally finished reading Mitokado Homura's speech, which had been written over 100,000 words. After a round of promoting the spirit of Konoha and getting the hot-blooded teenagers below excited, Nawaki's inaugural speech as Hokage took office came to an end.

Konoha officially entered the era of the Fifth Hokage, Senju Nawaki.

The following period was a time when the leaders of each village sent people to deliver gifts and offer congratulations.

Although the villages have been fighting each other for many years, openly during wartime and secretly during peacetime, they still have to maintain appearances. Especially for someone like Onoki who cares a lot about his image, he gained a lot of good reputation from the wedding of Hiruzen Sarutobi's eldest son, which he has been thinking about ever since. If it weren't for the bad luck that his son and Touma stopped him, he would have liked to come to Hiruzen Sarutobi's funeral to see off his old rival.

Now, it goes without saying that Onoki had been eyeing the position for a long time. The day after Nawaki officially became Hokage, Iwagakure's chief commander, Tsuchiki, and his son, Kouta, arrived early in the morning with a convoy to congratulate him. Every item in the convoy was labeled "A Gift from Onoki," as if they wanted everyone to know how generous he was...

1035. Sunagakure is a village that developed during the war.

"Wow! Nephew, your old man is really generous. He must have made a fortune over the years, right? No wonder he's been sitting on his lap all this time. Konoha and Kirigakure already have their fifth Hokage, and Sunagakure and Kumogakure have their fourth. But Iwagakure is still only the third Hokage. You've been the crown prince for decades. You're just lucky you have a good temper. Anyone else would have kicked him out long ago. Brother Tsuchimaki, don't you think?"

Inside a tavern in Konoha, Masato, along with his disciple "Conan's dad," who had also brought a set of golden sand dishes to congratulate him, chatted and joked with Tsuchiki and Kitsuchi. People from Kirigakure had also arrived, but the Mizukage hadn't sent the Byakugan-wielding man, and Masato wasn't familiar with them. The Kirigakure high-ranking official was too inexperienced to sit with him. The Kumogakure people hadn't arrived yet, so Masato could only bring Tsuchiki and Kitsuchi along for a chat. After all, he'd fought Onoki for decades, and they were all acquaintances...

"....."

The "Conan's dad" next to Masato was eating and drinking by himself, as if he hadn't heard what his teacher had said.

He was already used to the teacher's mouth; tricking the teacher's son into changing seats was just normal practice for him.

"Hehe, you still like to joke as much as ever. These are just local specialties of our Iwagakure. It is your Kazekage who is truly generous, giving away gold dust in one go."

Having known each other for decades, the civil engineer was used to this bastard's way of speaking and didn't mind, laughing as he spoke.

"My father is still in good health, and I am not yet capable of becoming the Tsuchikage."

That's why it's said that although Onoki is cunning, he is far superior to Hiruzen Sarutobi in educating his son. His calm and composed demeanor makes it seem as if the other person is not his own father. Hiruzen Sarutobi's good-for-nothing son could never learn that in his entire life.

After Huang Tu finished speaking, he continued eating without changing his expression, mimicking "Conan's father." He secretly calculated the difference in their levels, taking the Kazekage as the benchmark. Back then, that ugly mortal from Konoha was greater than the Kazekage, while he was less than the Kazekage. And this old guy was greater than that ugly criminal from Konoha.

This comparison makes the result clear: even teaming up with Civil Engineering, he still couldn't beat that old bastard, not to mention having Sunagakure Green Light by his side—a player who once went toe-to-toe with Minato Namikaze...

"Hey, all we Sunagakure has left is gold dust. If I had to say what I admire most about Onoki in his life, it's that he was able to raise such an outstanding son as you, my nephew."

Shinto looked at the unfazed Huang Tu and sighed inwardly. He had been trying to fool Onoki's son for a long time. His deception skills had been perfected over the years, but he still couldn't fool Onoki's son. He even used his Observation Haki several times, but the son still didn't react.

Onoki is indeed amazing at teaching his son. If it were Gaara or Asuma, after listening to his nonsense for so many years, he would bet he would have taken matters into his own hands and taken action himself.

"Lord Golden Lion, you are probably the most familiar with this Hokage of Konoha."

Tu Mu forcefully changed the subject, not wanting this guy to continue, lest news spread one day that he and Huang Tu were plotting a rebellion. Huang Tu was his own son, at most he'd be put in solitary confinement, but he was truly afraid that one day a masked dwarf would burst into his sleep...

"Sitting and watching... I reckon some of you in Iwagakure are getting restless, and so are we in Sunagakure. I've been observing the stars lately, and Sirius, which has been dormant for hundreds of years, is starting to rise. I predict that within a few years, something earth-shattering will happen! Don't disbelieve me, Golden Lion. Although I may be a bit of a blabbermouth, I always keep my word and never lie. Besides, I learned my astronomy from the meteorologists of our Land of Wind."

When Tsuchiki asked that question, Shinto roughly understood what it meant. In fact, it wasn't just Iwagakure, but Sunagakure as well. When Conan's father came, he told him that ever since they learned that the Hokage was not Tsunade as they had guessed, but Nawaki, many clans in the village had started stirring up trouble and wanting to have another go at Konoha.

After all, for a village like Sunagakure, which can only develop through war, peacetime is certainly good, as there are fewer families destroyed and lives lost. However, peace has lasted too long. In a country without the resources of the ninja world, it is impossible to develop. More than ten years have passed since the last great war. Because the village has always implemented an elite policy, it has reached its saturation point in terms of strength. No matter how many more ninjas there are, the village cannot support them. The same is true for the clans. Every year, the village can only buy so many resources at a high price, and the distribution to each clan is predetermined. Therefore, it is necessary to start a great war to gain benefits from it.

If the Hokage were Tsunade, the higher-ups would still be wary, since their village's top leader, Shiki, has a very powerful fist. But the current Hokage isn't Tsunade, but her younger brother, so the situation is different!

Although Tsunade's return strengthened Konoha's roster to some extent, the Hokage's strength was at most that of a Red Pole. No matter how strong Konoha's overall strength was, could it still take on several major villages at the same time as before?

However, for now, Luo Sha has managed to suppress the issue of people's hearts, but it's uncertain how long Luo Sha can keep it under control.

If Sunagakure is in such a state, then Kumogakure still has a militant faction, and Iwagakure also has some ambitious individuals vying for power. The situation is predictable. Right now, Kirigakure is probably the most peaceful. After what happened with Obito, Kirigakure probably hasn't even recovered yet. Almost all the clans with bloodline limits in the village have been wiped out, leaving only some insignificant kakuri (small, insignificant clans) who weren't even considered important during their heyday. Even if they had ambitions, they probably wouldn't dare to voice them...

Kaguya will be out in two or three years. Starting a world war now would weaken our side. If we could hold a friendly match to celebrate after we've won over Kaguya, he would definitely support it. But before we win over Kaguya, it's definitely not an option. So we have to keep these people in check.

However, on the other hand, after winning over Kaguya, the savior and the second male lead, both of whom are known for their smooth talk and pretentious manners, will have mastered these skills to perfection. Kakashi's unparalleled physique will also be fully activated. It's likely that afterward, even if he wanted to organize a friendly match, no one would dare challenge him...

After all, the savior who possesses the power of the Six Paths and the ability to talk his way out of things, along with the second male lead who is all about pants, is practically a game-changer for the villages in the ninja world. They were even more formidable during the era ruled by the Senju and Madara.

1036. Is my nephew going to turn over a new leaf?

"Huh?! Is that really true?"

Seeing the Golden Lion speaking so earnestly, Civil Engineering certainly didn't believe his nonsense. What the hell is meteorology about? Isn't it about looking at the weather? When did it become about looking at the stars? Besides, the Land of Wind is always full of yellow sand or occasionally blows a sandstorm, so what's the point of looking at it?

He had never even heard of meteorologists in the Land of Wind...

However, he still had to play along in this charade.

Firstly, too many people from Iwagakure have volunteered to fight, and even the Tsuchikage has shown signs of wavering. Previously, it was just Kurajiro who was trying to persuade the Tsuchikage, and he could use the excuse from Kumogakure to convince him. But now that there are too many people volunteering, he can't fool him with that excuse for long.