The Correct Way to Use the Simulator

[Who is your true enemy?]

This sentence was written in the evaluation of the Fourth Simulation.

Hinata Hyuga did not understand.

Why was it that in every simulation, no matter how she acted or how much she changed the middle, as long as Kumogakure used the threat of war, Konoha would retreat in the exact same way.

Compromise. Every single time, it was a compromise.

Sacrificing Uncle Hizashi—this outcome had occurred in three out of the four simulations. It stood before her like an insurmountable chasm.

Why?

Hinata Hyuga did not understand.

Konoha was clearly the strongest shinobi village, and the Third Hokage was clearly the strongest Hokage; why did they repeatedly yield to the blackmail and extortion of Kumogakure?

[Who is your true enemy?]

A vague answer had already formed in her heart. Although she did not know if it was correct, she had to say it: It is Konoha.

[What exactly killed the person you cherish?]

It is a Konoha so weak that it only knows how to compromise!

Hinata stood up unsteadily, her body swaying like that of a critically ill patient.

She walked aimlessly along the corridor, lost in her own thoughts. As she turned a corner, the whispers of several maids cleaning the floor drifted into her ears.

"Hey, have you heard? The village gate was so lively today."

"What happened? Did another noble visit?"

"Something even rarer than that! It's Lady Tsunade!"

"My god! Really? Hasn't she been gone from the village for many years? I thought she would never come back..."

"Who's to say. I caught a glimpse of her from afar; she's still as beautiful as ever, not at all like someone in her forties."

Who is Tsunade?

"Excuse me..."

Hinata's voice was very soft and carried a hint of hoarseness, but her sudden appearance startled the maids who were slacking off.

"Lady Hinata!"

"Who is this Lady Tsunade you were just talking about?"

Immediately, a maid who looked slightly older raised her head, her eyes sparkling with admiration.

"Lady Tsunade is a hero of the village and the granddaughter of the First Hokage. Along with Lord Jiraiya and Orochimaru, she was a student of the Third Hokage, and they are collectively known as the 'Sannin of Konoha'!"

"Then... why would such a powerful ninja leave the village for so many years? And the Sannin... I don't think I've ever seen any of them."

The maids looked at each other, their faces showing expressions of awkwardness. The older maid hesitated and replied, "Well... My Lady, we aren't entirely sure. We only heard that Lady Tsunade had some conflicts with the Third Hokage back then. Then Orochimaru defected, and Lord Jiraiya left Konoha to pursue him."

"After all these years, Lady Tsunade is the first of the Sannin to return to Konoha. As for more details... perhaps only Lord Hiashi knows."

Conflicts with the village leadership...

Hinata's heart skipped a beat. A flash of inspiration flickered in her mind, so fast she couldn't grasp it.

She thanked the maids and turned to walk toward her father's study.

Hyuga Hiashi was sitting at his desk handling family affairs. Hearing the knock, he responded without lifting his head, signaling for her to enter.

Hinata pushed the door open and called out, "Father."

"What is it?"

"I want to know... about Lady Tsunade."

Hyuga Hiashi put down his pen and looked at her: "Why are you asking about this?"

"I'm just curious. I just heard that Lady Tsunade has returned to the village. Why would such a powerful ninja leave the village for so many years?"

At this point, Hinata paused slightly before continuing: "Besides, aren't ninjas forbidden from leaving the village without authorization?"

Has Tsunade returned to the village?

Hyuga Hiashi temporarily suppressed this question and carefully scrutinized Hinata. He could feel that his daughter had undergone some kind of change, especially in the last few days, as if she were hiding secrets she didn't want to reveal.

After a moment of thought, he decided to speak truthfully: "Because she had a very serious disagreement with the Third Hokage."

This was similar to what the maids had said, but hearing the words "very serious" from her father's mouth, she feared the truth was not that simple.

"What... kind of disagreement?" she couldn't help but ask.

Hiashi looked at her with a more probing gaze: "That was during the Second Shinobi World War. The First Hokage's grandson, Tsunade's younger brother, died in that war. Tsunade was Konoha's most outstanding medical ninja, hailed as a Medical Sage. She believed that if every three-man squad could be equipped with a medical ninja, casualties could be greatly reduced."

"Therefore, she proposed to the Third Hokage that a medical ninja be mandatorily assigned to every three-man squad. Even if they could only perform simple bandaging and surgery, it would allow injured ninjas to hold on until more skilled medical ninjas arrived."

Hinata's eyes brightened for a moment, but then dimmed: "Did the Third Hokage not agree?"

"No." Hiashi's answer was crisp and decisive.

"Konoha was still in a state of war at the time, and there were simply not enough resources or manpower to train that many medical ninjas. To stabilize the situation in the village, the Third Hokage ultimately rejected Tsunade's proposal."

Hiashi took a deep look at her, then said earnestly, "Hinata, if you can figure out the real reason why Tsunade left the village, then you will already be a qualified heir to the main family."

"Finally... I will give you one more hint: to this day, Tsunade's proposal has never been implemented."

Hinata was stunned for a moment, then softly acknowledged his words and left the study.

After this incident, she felt that the gloom in her heart had dissipated quite a bit. She composed herself, returned to her room, sat back down at her desk, and opened the Life Simulator.

There was one more question that had been lingering in Hinata's mind for a long time: why did a third option suddenly appear during the second Life Simulator run? And why had no new options appeared in the subsequent third and Fourth Simulation?

Did something special happen before she conducted the second simulation?

She closed her eyes and tried hard to trace back the memories of that period.

That was it; the day before the second simulation, she had gone to find Kiyonari.

That night, she had confirmed the authenticity of the Life Simulator and learned about Neji's recent situation from Kiyonari, which had eased the anxiety in her heart.

After her state of mind had calmed down slightly, the simulator had provided the third option—Wait and See—based on her calm state at that time.

The Life Simulator was conducting simulations based on "the current me."

The knowledge I possess, my state of mind, my interpersonal relationships, my abilities... all of these would cause the simulator to change; they were variables.

Her line of thinking had been wrong all along. She shouldn't just be struggling within the limited options provided by the simulator, trying to find that ethereal optimal solution. What she should be doing was taking action in reality and actively increasing the variables!

Tsunade.

This name surfaced in her mind once again. If she could befriend Lady Tsunade in reality...

That was it; this was the true way to break the deadlock!