Konoha Academy

In Konoha, it was high noon. The entire village was bathed in peace and tranquility, a time of quiet beauty. Everywhere, there were scenes of bustling construction; at the heart of the village, the Hokage Rock was half-finished. The villagers, generated naturally within the streets, followed specific paths, held specific jobs, and lived specific lives. On every face, there was a simple, rustic smile.

Or rather, pride.

As the greatest village in the ninja world, how could they not be proud? Peace, tranquility, strength, happiness—this was Konoha, a place of longing. Aside from the total lack of freedom and democracy, there was nothing particularly worth noting.

Perhaps there was one thing: the place where all stories began.

The Ninja Academy, currently known as the Konoha School.

The start of the school year had long since passed, and the first semester's curriculum had concluded. After a slightly long summer vacation, the fragrant autumn of rice harvests had arrived.

The original intention behind the founding of the Konoha School was not to cultivate killing machines, but to protect the children of ninjas from the battlefield, allowing them to experience the joys of learning and play, and to grow up safely until they reached the age to savor fine wine.

Therefore, the noisy school playground was filled with rowdy seven- and eight-year-old brats.

As the first generation, these brats were undoubtedly lucky. They stood on the crest of a new era, having never witnessed the cruelty of the Warring States period; they were the fortunate first generation of Konoha.

Among them were the second-generation heirs of ninja clans, strictly protected, and the lucky commoner kids who had hitched a ride on the ship of the new era.

Regardless, this generation walking out of the Konoha School would leave a deep mark on the history of Konoha.

For some unknown reason, two ninja clan brats began to fight on the playground.

At this age, the reasons for conflict were varied, but they mostly boiled down to simply not liking the look of one another. Surrounding the two protagonists, the half-grown children formed three layers of onlookers, enjoying the spectacle without fear of being caught in the crossfire.

After one semester, under the guidance of their families, everyone had learned enough to understand each other's levels and find their own place.

Who was the protagonist, who was the supporting role, and who was the common crowd watching the show.

"Hiruzen, speaking of the Warring States period, one must mention the Ten Heroes of the Warring States." A handsome, dark-haired boy said, his face gloomy and arrogant.

During the Warring States period, the Land of Fire, the most fertile region, was a grand stage for dreams before unification—if you had the guts, you came.

It was the region with the highest intensity of ninja combat. From time to time, powerful outsiders would strike out of nowhere, such as the Uchiha Clan, who returned to their ancestral lands from the borders of the Land of Lightning and clashed with the Senju Clan like thunder meeting earth.

There were many ninja clans there. Every so often, a clan would exit the stage of ninja history due to the exhaustion of their military strength—for example, the Hagoromo Clan, which seemed to have been completely wiped out during high-intensity confrontations with the Senju Clan before the Uchiha arrived.

Ninja clans were hired by various powerful families entrenched on the land, executing missions involving disputes over territory, business, and population, unfolding bloody and cruel slaughters around their respective manor lords.

On the outer fringes, numerous ninja clans also watched this fertile land like hungry wolves, such as the Qian-Gui, Uji, and Kusanagi clans.

In her life, Yura had often conducted deep-penetration missions into the heart of the Land of Fire to gather intelligence on ninja clans. Who had won a battle, who was failing, who had produced an incredible talent—these were the topics of conversation in the streets and commoner taverns.

"Danzo..." Hiruzen said with a serious face, forming the Seal of Confrontation with his hands, his voice low: "Form your seals properly."

"You Monkey are quite polite." The brat Danzo sneered with disdain: "I won't. So what?"

The surrounding crowd jeered, not fearing the chaos. The young, pretty, and vibrant girls covered their mouths and giggled, mocking them. These ninja clan girls, led by a certain bossy girl, formed a circle and equally mocked all the childish boys.

Except for Danzo; among these brats, he was the best-looking one.

Therefore, they would unconsciously go along with Danzo's face-to-face taunts.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's appearance was, frankly, hard to describe; he did not fit the girls' aesthetic.

"The times have changed, Danzo. The Shimura and Sarutobi are no longer enemies; we can be friends." Hiruzen said sincerely. He excelled in the school's cultural courses; he was a reader by nature and possessed the demeanor of a cultured man, unlike ninjas who only knew how to kill.

"Who wants to be friends with you!" Drawing a sharpened kunai, Danzo crouched into a stance and said: "Speaking of the Ten Heroes of the Warring States, one naturally thinks of the Mochizuki, Umino, and Nezu clans. As the middle three clans, the battle between the Sarutobi and the Shimura will never end."

In the Warring States region, before Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara emerged, the top-tier ninja clans were all evenly matched. Each followed one of the top three clans, forming alliances to oppose one another. Today you slaughtered my clan's pup, tomorrow I would slaughter yours, hence the distinction of the Ten Heroic Clans.

On this land, before the definition of a Kage existed, the highest praise for a ninja was "Ninja Hero," and every leader of these ninja clans was a Ninja Hero recognized by the world.

As for the Senju and Uchiha, they were always busy fighting each other; neither had the chance to break away, nor the time to participate in these local disputes.

So when Uchiha Madara heard that the Sarutobi and Shimura had also joined Konoha, he was shocked. Aside from their fame, he hadn't expected them to so easily abandon their generational blood feud.

As for those ninja clans that did not join Konoha, either you ran away, or you waited to be crushed by the combined forces of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara.

The vast land of the Land of Fire was not a free gift.

"Today, let me properly experience your Sarutobi Clan's Sarutobi Technique." Danzo said coldly. There was a sentence he couldn't help but want to blurt out, but looking at Hiruzen's expectant face, he turned his head slightly and swallowed the most hurtful words.

"Enough talk! Hurry up! You insidious Monkey!" But not saying it was impossible; this was his limit. The adults at home said it, so naturally, he would say it too.

A person's character is not formed in isolation, but based on environmental feedback. What kind of ninja clan you have determines what kind of ninja you raise.

Hiruzen sighed and said unhurriedly: "You're the one always talking to yourself, Danzo. I haven't been talking nonsense." He slowly lowered his body and drew a sharpened kunai.

Since they were going to fight, he would not be cowardly.

After all, he was a ninja.

"I just can't stand that look on your face." Danzo said coldly: "You don't understand the darkness of a ninja at all."

For ninja children to fight and draw blood was perfectly normal.

However, there were good kids among the brats. The commoner children, educated by the village and feeling the mental pressure of potentially being targeted by the two protagonists later, snuck away to report to the teacher.

If one were to ask who the most authoritative teacher at the Konoha School was, it would be Senju Tobirama.

The boy ran until he was out of breath, still wondering why it was so strange today. Why hadn't Teacher Tobirama come out to stop them? Previously, whenever there was a hint of conflict, he would appear silently to stop it, his face terrifyingly gloomy.

He slammed the door open and shouted: "It's bad! Teacher! The Monkey and the annoying brat are about to fight again!"

In the school faculty office, the space was small and there weren't many ninja teachers. Tobirama was responsible for almost all subjects, the compilation of textbooks, and usually had to help handle the Hokage's work; he was a very capable and busy man.

But at this moment, he was having a rare moment of leisure.

Standing by the window, gazing at the sky outside, he seemed lost in deep thought.

The young man was stunned; he had been caught off guard, not seeing his teacher buried in work as expected.

"Ryuta, send the word out: school is dismissed."

Tobirama spoke these words, but a second later, his brow furrowed as he added, "Never mind."

His eyes were fixed on the sky, peering into the clouds; though his eyes could not see clearly, his senses perceived it.

Eighteen thousand meters high—this was the limit of Little Monster's flight. Yura sat with her legs crossed amidst the howling winds, her hair dancing in the gale as she looked down at the blurry sight of Konoha beneath the layers of clouds.

Eighteen thousand meters, and yet it still felt like it wasn't far enough.

If she could still be swatted down by a piece of wood from Senju Hashirama at this height, Yura would accept her defeat. Beneath her, the feathers carried the gift she had prepared for Senju Tobirama.

"It's too high, Great Monster, I feel like I'm having trouble breathing..." Lucy said with a mournful face; this altitude made her uncomfortable.

"Keep it up, you can do it." Yura curled her finger, and the connected strands of hair moved slowly in the wind.

With a pop, several shadow clones in the village dispersed. At the same time, Tobirama rose from his seat in the Hokage's office, shaking his weary head. After temporarily steadying himself with the formidable physique of the Senju clan, he adjusted his state and headed toward the family compound.

In a situation like this, he couldn't do without his elder brother there to hold the line.

The enemy's altitude was too great, and their chakra reserves were immense—they dared to come knocking directly at his door.

Even Tobirama had to offer a word of praise.

"How bold!"

Tobirama sneered, his face darkening.