XX-level Hokage

"He's a Jinchūriki who can completely control a Tailed Beast, except for ferocious beasts," Motoi said proudly. "He's truly remarkable." Kushina couldn't help but echo his praise.

As a former Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, she was well aware of the dangers of the Tailed Beasts. Even with her Whirlpool Body, she couldn't completely control them. It's truly remarkable that Killer Bee, as an ordinary person, could achieve this.

"Complete control over the beast?" Naruto reached out and stroked his lower abdomen, muttering to himself.

"This island is where Killer Bee trained to control the Eight-Tails," Motoi explained the island's purpose. Soon after, the group arrived at a building shaped like an octopus.

"Everyone from Konoha, please stay on this floor. There are plenty of rooms, and meals are served in the large dining hall on the first floor. Feel free to eat as much as you like," Motoi said as he led Naruto and the others to the second floor of the building.

“Then choose your own room. Also, remember to get up at seven tomorrow morning; we have a meeting to discuss some things,” Kushina said. “I need to rest for a while,” Kai said, and as soon as he finished speaking, he leaned against the wall and walked into the nearest room, then lay down on the bed.

“Gai needs someone to look after him, so I'll stay in the room next to his,” said Aoba Yamashiro, glancing at the still listless Gai. “Naruto, let’s stay next door,” Kushina said to Naruto.

“Of course, Izumi-neechan.” Naruto wholeheartedly agreed with Kushina’s suggestion. Soon, the Konoha members had chosen their rooms.

Seeing this, Motoi felt relieved and went downstairs. Downstairs, Killer Bee was eating.

“It’s great to see you again, Killer Bee. When we heard that you were rescued, Karui, Omoi, and I were all excited to see you, but they had other missions, so only I came,” Motoi said with a light laugh.

"How is the Hidden Cloud Village?" Killer Bee asked.

Upon hearing this, Motoi sighed softly and said: "Reconstruction is in full swing. Thanks to that Hokage, there weren't too many casualties among the civilians and ninjas in the village. However, it will probably take several more years for the village's economy to return to what it was before. It's a stroke of luck amidst misfortune."

"That's good. It seems that to repay this kindness, I must use Killer Bee's ultimate technique to help that brat achieve enlightenment as soon as possible," Killer Bee said after finishing a bottle of beer.

Seeing Killer Bee's expression, Motoi breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried that Killer Bee would become silent after losing the Eight-Tails, but now it seemed that Killer Bee's inner strength was far greater than he had thought.

On the other side, in the Hidden Cloud Village.

With Yamato's full assistance, the reconstruction of Kumogakure accelerated, and the project soon approached completion.

This afternoon, Yamato had just finished his work and was preparing to return to the guesthouse when a vortex suddenly appeared in the alley, and then Yamato lost consciousness.

In Orochimaru's laboratory in the Land of Rice Fields, Obito suddenly appears out of nowhere.

"Is it all done?" Orochimaru asked softly, looking at Obito who had suddenly appeared. A vortex suddenly appeared, and Yamato fell to the ground unconscious.

"Is the resurrection process ready?" Obito asked softly. Orochimaru smiled and placed his hand on the ground.

Instantly, smoke filled the air, and then five coffins appeared out of thin air. One by one, the coffins opened.

"The Second Hokage, Senju Mugen; the Second Tsuchikage, Mu; the Second Raikage, A; the Second Kazekage, Shamon; the Second Mizukage, Hozuki Gengetsu," Obito murmured, looking at the figures in the coffin.

"The shadows that have died in each village throughout history can basically all be ours, except for those who lost their souls for some special reasons," Orochimaru said in a slightly hoarse voice.

Obito nodded slightly upon hearing this. Regardless of the other reanimated beings, these Kage alone would significantly increase their chances of victory. "However, during the process of gathering materials for Sasuke's Reanimation Jutsu, I discovered something quite interesting," Orochimaru said softly.

Obito looked at Orochimaru, signaling him to continue. Orochimaru smiled.

Two coffins appeared before Obito. The coffins slowly opened.

Two figures appeared before Obito. Obito's pupils contracted instantly.

"The first one is Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage of Konoha, hailed as the God of Shinobi. As for the second one, well, heh heh," Orochimaru said softly, leaning against the coffin.

Obito didn't say anything.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything I shouldn't. As long as you give me what I want, everything will be as you wish," Orochimaru said with a smile.

Chapter 170: Deep Within My Heart

"Orochimaru, you're very clever, really clever." Obito stared at Orochimaru with his crimson Sharingan for a moment, then said softly. "Thank you for the compliment," Orochimaru replied.

"He's in your hands now," Obito said, glancing at Yamato lying on the ground. Then he vanished from the spot.

Looking in the direction where Obito disappeared, Orochimaru smiled coldly.

Just as he said, he would naturally let "Ban"'s plan succeed as long as he could get what he wanted, but unfortunately, the so-called "Ban" he wanted could no longer provide it.

Obito appeared out of nowhere at Akatsuki's headquarters.

"Do you really want to trust that guy?" The True Self suddenly appeared and asked softly. He seemed to already know what had just happened between the two of them.

“Just someone driven mad by unrealistic desires, don’t bother with him,” Obito said coldly. “How arrogant,” Shingo said with a laugh.

"We won't fail, no matter who comes," Obito said coldly, clenching his fist. Konoha.

Mashiro was strolling leisurely down the street.

At this time, Konoha had fully entered a state of combat readiness. All the ninjas selected to participate in the war had already taken action, found their assigned units, familiarized themselves with their teammates, practiced teamwork, and worked hard to hone their best abilities.

After arranging everything, Mashiro divided the follow-up matters into two parts: the part concerning Konoha was handed over to Samui and Konan, while the part concerning the Allied Shinobi Forces was handed over to Shikaku.

As for Mashiro herself, she became relaxed again.

Following the street, Mashiro left the inner village and entered the outer village.

Unlike the busy and tense ninjas, the common people of Konoha continued to work in an orderly manner.

All they could do was keep Konoha running and, incidentally, provide some material assistance to the ninja army that was about to set off.

After days of continuous construction, the outer village is now no less large than the inner village, and its architectural styles are more diverse. However, it is obvious to the naked eye that the villagers of the inner and outer villages seem to have formed two different groups. The businesses of the inner village are consumed by the villagers of the inner village, and the businesses of the outer village are consumed by the villagers of the outer village.

Unlike ninjas who frequently travel on missions, ordinary people generally harbor some xenophobic sentiments, whether intentional or unintentional. This is not a good sign.

But Mashiro wasn't worried. Commercial circulation could break down all barriers, even between two races that spoke different languages, let alone the common people of the ninja world who spoke the same language.

Once the economy of the outer village develops further, the Chamber of Commerce will naturally help Mashiro solve this problem.

As she pondered this, Mashiro gradually walked to the edge of the outer village, to a newly built orphanage.

Due to Konoha's open policy, orphans from many small countries came to Konoha. It is unknown exactly how many came to Konoha, but in the end, only a few dozen orphans arrived.

Xiao Nan was in charge of handling this matter. Perhaps because of her own childhood experiences, Xiao Nan chose to accept these orphans from various places, even though some of the more conservative higher-ups did not approve.

However, considering the feelings of the other villagers in Konoha, Konan did not place these orphans from outside Konoha directly in the Konoha Orphanage, but instead built one in an outer village.

For this reason, Konan even went so far as to "bribe" Mashiro.

After all, the funds required to care for these orphans are not a small amount, especially during the construction period of Konoha.

The director of this newly built orphanage is named Yulan, a Chunin who migrated from Amegakure. She should be considered a direct descendant of Konan, but unfortunately...

His hands were injured, making hand seals very slow, which greatly reduced his strength.

As Yulan saw Zhenbai approaching, she rubbed her eyes, somewhat incredulous.

Only when Mashiro walked up to her did she hurriedly bow and say, "Greetings, Hokage-sama!"

"Don't be so nervous, I'll go in." Mashiro said softly, then turned and walked into the orphanage. The orphanage wasn't very big, and as soon as she entered, she could hear many sounds of playing.

It seemed as if someone was telling a story, and the voice sounded incredibly familiar to Mashiro.

"...In the end, the First Hokage pacified the chaotic world and established Konoha, which allowed us to live peacefully in Konoha." After finishing her narration, Kurenai gently closed the Konoha Chronicle in her hands.

"Teacher Kurenai, the First Lord knew Wood Release, but what kind of ninjutsu is Wood Release?"

"Red Teacher, the First Hokage was so powerful, why didn't he just unify the entire ninja world? Wouldn't the whole ninja world be at peace then?" "Red Teacher..."

As Hong finished speaking, all sorts of questions were raised.

Hong chuckled lightly, about to say something, when she suddenly caught a glimpse of Mashiro's figure through the window.

Her expression instantly became complicated. Hong gently stood up and said to the orphans in front of her, "Let's end today's story time here. Go find the headmistress."

Although they were very reluctant, they quickly went outside.

After all the orphans had left, Mashiro walked in quietly. "I didn't expect to see you here," Mashiro said softly.

"I just finished. Want to go for a walk together?" Hong put the book in her bag, turned to look at Mashiro, and said. "Of course."

The roads between the outer and inner villages are the same, and a river reflects the waning sunlight, bursting forth with a desolate orange hue. Mashiro and Akane stroll along the riverbank.

The shadows on the ground and the reflections in the river create a harmonious interplay of light and shadow.

"Why did you suddenly decide to help out at the orphanage?" Mashiro asked softly.

"Initially, it was at Konan's request. Konoha was short-staffed, and even she had a hard time mobilizing any ninja to help at the orphanage. So, Haku and I would come over to check on things whenever we had free time," Kurenai said with a light laugh.

Konan and Kushina have a good relationship, which is unexpected by Mashiro. She originally wanted Konan, Samui, and Kushina to become friends, but now it seems that Samui and Kushina are closer, and Konan is also closer to Kushina.

As for Hyaku, she maintains friendly relationships with almost all the women around Mashiro.

“Oh, that’s good.” Mashiro said with a smile. “I’ve come to understand some things recently,” Kurenai suddenly said. “?” Mashiro turned to look at Kurenai’s beautiful face.

"After breaking up with Asuma, I thought about many things and considered many things I had never thought about before. I took on many missions from small ninja villages and thus saw many sights I had never seen before."

I think I understand you a little now. "Red looked at the distant sunset, her eyes like rubies, bright and radiant under the orange light."

"This isn't a good thing?" Mashiro said softly. She didn't consider herself a good person, nor did she think that understanding her was a good thing.

Mashiro and Kurenai hadn't talked for a long time; their last conversation was at a recent gathering. After breaking up with Asuma, Kurenai began to distance herself from everyone, including Mashiro.

"What I mean is, I kind of understand why that version of myself fell in love with you. In that dream, I felt three emotions."

Fear, love, and the ridge. "Red turned to look at Shiro and whispered.

"The 'pity'? This is only the second time someone has used that word with me," Mashiro said expressionlessly.

A cool breeze blew by, ruffling the red hair.

Hong pointed at Zhenbai's chest with her finger and said softly, "Your chest is very empty, isn't it? The cool breeze continues to blow."

The wind stirred her truly white hair, along with her thoughts.

Mashiro's thoughts were in turmoil. (Author's note)

Is Quan going to be snatched away by someone else...?

Uchiha Izumi: Let me out! I'm going to go on a killing spree!

Chapter 171: The Spring and the Kaleidoscope

"Is this what you wanted to say?" Mashiro suddenly laughed and said softly. Kurenai didn't say anything more.

"There must be something you need my help with, otherwise you would speak to me in this tone." Mashiro gently brushed aside the wind-blown red hair and spoke.

Mashiro could never refuse Kurenai's tone. Having experienced almost three lifetimes, only Izumi and Kurenai could truly understand what she was thinking.

However, unlike Izumi, Kurenai always remained silent about Mashiro's feelings. Only when she needed something from Mashiro would she reveal her understanding of Mashiro and show the side of herself that captivated Mashiro.

“Let’s move these children to the Konoha Orphanage. They need better care, and many of them are of school age,” Kurenai said softly, looking at Mashiro.

These suddenly appearing orphans cannot be easily accepted, whether for financial or safety reasons, especially during this period.

But Mashiro couldn't refuse the current red, so she sighed softly and said, "As you wish."

Hongwei was slightly surprised, then smiled gently. She hadn't expected Mashiro to actually agree.