The Core of the Conflict

"Shingetsu, although I don't support the Mizukage's 'Elite Kirigakure' plan either, there is absolutely no need to express your opposition in this manner, is there?"

After moving away from the civilian district, Ao finally couldn't help but voice the question weighing on his mind.

In Ao's view, as enemies, opposing for the sake of opposition was a matter of course, but there was no need to put effort into these commoners. Even if one were to recruit allies, shouldn't they be recruiting ninja born from civilian backgrounds?

Ever since the Second Mizukage followed the Second Hokage's example and established the Ninja Academy, the academy in Kirigakure had provided the village with a massive amount of cannon fodder.

It was precisely because of the emergence of these masses of cannon fodder that the sacrifices of the various Kekkei Genkai clans had gradually decreased in recent years. This had indirectly led the Kekkei Genkai clans of all five great ninja villages to begin supporting the construction of the Ninja Academy, which could be considered a three-way win for the ninja village, the ninja clans, and the commoners to a certain extent.

However, even if they were cannon fodder, they were still ninja, and there existed a world of difference in strength between them and the commoners. This gap objectively determined that these commoners had no decisive influence on the grand situation.

"Ao, I recall that you were also a student at the Ninja Academy when you first started, right?"

Hozuki Shingetsu maintained his smile, continuously exchanging pleasantries with the villagers, while speaking softly to Ao.

"Yes. If I hadn't met you back then, Shingetsu, how could I possibly have the strength of a Chunin today? I might be just like those civilian ninja now, constantly taking on missions just to make a living!"

Recalling the scene of his first meeting with Hozuki Shingetsu at the Ninja Academy, Ao couldn't help but sigh that it was indeed the most critical choice he had made in his twelve years of life.

Hozuki Shingetsu nodded, shifting the topic to explain the reason for his actions.

"Perhaps these commoners are far inferior to ninja in terms of strength, but sometimes, you don't necessarily need a blade to kill! Moreover, in our current situation where we are at odds with the Mizukage but haven't broken ties, every bit of support we can win is worth it."

"Of course, the most important thing is that all I'm paying is twenty minutes of smiles on the way home and some trivial money and help. Why wouldn't I do it?"

After all, for Hozuki Shingetsu, why wouldn't he cultivate a persona that could be gained with just a little bit of concern and a smile, costing him nothing?

Furthermore, this had a slight connection to his subsequent plans.

Selectively resolving some troubles among the commoners, hiring people with good eloquence to repeatedly praise Hozuki Shingetsu's benevolence, subtly implying that the Mizukage was unkind and lax in his governance, and cleverly turning the stance of the Mizukage's faction against the broad masses of the people—all of this was for that one plan.

A plan to change the regime.

After receiving Hozuki Shingetsu's answer, although Ao still couldn't resolve some of his doubts, he thought about how Hozuki Shingetsu had always been a man with his own ideas. Moreover, the Hozuki Clan was wealthy and powerful, and wouldn't care about this bit of consumption, so he stopped bringing it up.

Thus, the two returned to the Hozuki Clan's territory in silence.

That night, to celebrate Hozuki Shingetsu's promotion to Jonin and his glorious battle record in the Land of the Moon, even the head of the Yuki Clan, an ally of the Hozuki, came to participate in the banquet.

The entire Hozuki Town was brightly lit, and the clansmen shared in the honor, feeling proud that the Hozuki Clan had produced such an excellent successor.

The hosts and guests enjoyed themselves thoroughly. After the banquet ended, the current head of the Hozuki Clan, Hozuki Zangetsu, held a secret meeting with his son in his private study.

Hozuki Zangetsu was about forty years old, right at the peak of a ninja's career. During the First Shinobi World War, he had followed the previous Mizukage, Hozuki Gengetsu, to invade the Land of Earth, and eventually succeeded in leading the remaining Kirigakure ninja back to the Land of Water after the Second Mizukage entangled the Second Tsuchikage.

However, it was a pity that just as he returned to Kirigakure, news arrived that the Second Mizukage and the Second Tsuchikage had perished together. At that time, he was still young and his strength was no match for Byakuren, the guard of the First Mizukage. Coupled with the betrayal of the Kaguya Clan, the position of Third Mizukage eventually fell into Byakuren's hands.

Well, objectively speaking, this position of Mizukage could be considered as having returned to its rightful owner in a sense.

If Hozuki Gengetsu hadn't taken advantage of the death of the First Mizukage, Byakuren, to unite with the Kaguya, Yuki, and other clans to launch a coup, it would be hard to say who the Second Mizukage would have been.

After all, the guards of the various First Kage at the first Five Kage Summit were basically the designated successors of the First Kage, and except for that guy Byakuren, the others had all become the Second Kage of their respective villages.

And this was precisely the source of the conflict between the current Mizukage, Byakuren, and the Hozuki Clan. After all, who could say there would be no successors to those who started it?

However, one's position determines one's perspective. As the young clan head of the Hozuki Clan, Hozuki Shingetsu naturally had to firmly label Byakuren as evil.

"In other words, that guy Byakuren didn't see you at all? It seems that fellow already knows our goal."

Hozuki Zangetsu sipped the tea in his hand and said with a tone of certainty.

"However, is the position of Ninja Academy principal that important? To the point that you have to go to such great lengths to fight for it? Besides, even so, you should know that the probability of this succeeding is almost zero."

Hozuki Zangetsu looked at his son with some confusion. Although he knew his son had his own ideas, he still couldn't fully agree with his concepts.

According to the rules of Kirigakure, most newly promoted Jonin actually had no official duties. On a daily basis, apart from performing missions and practicing, there was nothing else to do. Only a small number of Jonin with sufficient strength and seniority would be granted certain responsibilities.

Hozuki Zangetsu didn't understand why his son wanted to seek a position immediately after being promoted to Jonin, and even had to use his battle merits to increase his leverage.

But as a father, and as the head of the Hozuki Clan, the number one clan in Kirigakure, he had the ability to provide a safety net for whatever his son did.

"According to Byakuren's intentions, he is likely going to announce your appointment order at the Jonin Meeting three days from now. Once announced, no matter what kind of position he assigns you to, you will be unable to move for a short period of time. And he is probably holding onto this very thought, which is why he announced the convening of this Jonin Meeting to make this a foregone conclusion."

"It's not too late for you to change your mind now. With your achievements this time, you can definitely seek a good position in the Intelligence Department."

As the Hozuki Clan, which possessed the Hydrification Secret Technique, they were naturally experts at gathering intelligence. And precisely because of this, the Intelligence Department of Kirigakure had always been controlled by the Hozuki Clan.

Of course, since Byakuren took office, he would certainly develop his own intelligence forces. But the head of the Intelligence Department of Kirigakure was still held by a member of the Hozuki Clan, ostensibly responsible for the entire intelligence force of Kirigakure.

And this was the source of Hozuki Zangetsu's confidence in saying this.

"Besides, you are currently in a period of vigorous advancement. Doing these miscellaneous tasks at this time is not a good thing for the improvement of your strength!"

Hozuki Shingetsu looked at his father's look of disappointment and felt helpless.

After all, their horizons were different, and their thoughts when looking at things were truly different. Limited by their different ideologies and goals, he couldn't reveal his entire plan to his father and could only bury his head in developing his own power.

And this was what the transmigrator Hozuki Shingetsu found most distressing.