Fourth-First Chapter: Raikage A's Mouth Cannon Backfires, The Invincible A Falls Again

The Ninja World is not at peace.

"Ahahaha~ How interesting, these people..." Qingwu's greatest joy every day now is watching the show. These people are so amusing; this is what a real world of flesh and blood should be like.

He decided to conduct an experiment on the application of the power of emotion.

I'll use you for the experiment.

Raikage.

Trouble was brewing again in Kumogakure of the Land of Lightning. The Fourth Raikage A, having just been discharged from the hospital, asked, "Is there any news in the Ninja World worth noting lately? Just the four great ninja villages will do; as for the other small places, you lot discuss and handle them as you see fit~"

That is just how overbearing he is. Aside from the other four great nations, he doesn't even put the small ninja villages in his eyes.

No, he doesn't even put the four great nations in his eyes. His mindset is simply: "Except for the old man, I am the greatest under the heavens."

That is just his temperament.

Because his old man, the Third Raikage A, was a man who could fight Tailed Beasts with his bare flesh and even snapped off one of the Eight-Tails' horns. He stood his ground against ten thousand Iwa ninja without retreating, fighting until he died of exhaustion. In his eyes, his old man, the Third Raikage A, was the most badass.

He hadn't witnessed the God of Shinobi Senju Hashirama or the Ninja World Asura Madara Uchiha because they died too early, otherwise, he would have challenged these peaks of the Ninja World just to see; that is how arrogant he is~

"Hahaha~ That old thing Ōnoki, even after recovering his youth, he's still a shrimp... I'm dying of laughter..." Raikage A felt a sense of immense satisfaction upon seeing this information.

Then, thinking of something else, he said bitterly: "That old thing, sooner or later I will twist off his head to pay tribute to my old man; it was he who plotted the gang-up that led to my old man's death~"

"What is this situation? My god! The Konoha higher-ups Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu have actually gotten together, appearing in all sorts of places as a pair."

"I clearly remember they were already married and had children and grandchildren, what the hell!" Raikage A continued reading. Is it really this explosive? Are they playing this big?

"And that Sarutobi Hiruzen, hiding at home all day accompanying his wife, not even stepping out the door, yet his body is becoming increasingly frail... Pfft~ This old guy who indulges in female beauty..."

"Pfft~ Hahahaha..."

"Let's look at Shimura Danzō; he's wandering around the village all day now, and he's even attracted a huge group of female fans. He smiles like a fool every day~" Raikage A initially thought it was fake and only dared to believe it after confirming with his secretary repeatedly.

He was truly stunned.

Waking up in the hospital.

A felt as if the whole world had changed.

But that didn't stop him from being happy.

"Oh my~ My god~ I can't even imagine such a scene. What on earth is that old guy Shimura Danzō thinking... Could it be that he was this flirtatious when he was young..."

"Hahaha~ They really are teammates; now none of them can hide it anymore... They've become young and their guts have grown too..."

"It's finally erupted now... Hahahaha..." Raikage A couldn't stop laughing at the thought of that one-eyed, bandaged Shimura Danzō posing to hook female fans every day, laughing until tears streamed down his face.

"The heads of the various clans have also developed dark circles under their eyes, tsk tsk tsk~ The nightlife in Konoha is truly rich and colorful! Hahahaha~"

"Very good, just let them continue like this. It would be best if they ruin Konoha, that way I can take the opportunity to snatch the Land of Fire..." Although A said he wanted to snatch the Land of Fire, there seemed to be a hint of sourness in his tone.

He continued reading and suddenly saw something surprising.

"Hmm?! What the hell?! Sunagakure is holding a public beauty pageant, then taking them home to carry on the family line..."

"Who?! Ebizo?!" He continued reading, and Raikage A shouted, "I remember this old guy is eighty, right!!"

"His sister Chiyo arranged it; this old guy picked dozens of wives and plays the groom every night. Pfft, how lewd..." His tone was filled with envy. A, who was criticizing with anger, thought of himself. He felt particularly bitter inside.

He was in no mood to continue reading the intelligence reports. He slammed his hands onto the table, propped his head up with his arms, put his legs on the table, and sighed. Mabui asked curiously, "Lord Raikage, what happened? Why are you so angry? Are you not going to read the reports anymore?"

"Read my ass."

"I've been stuffed with dog food."

"I'm full of anger."

Raikage A was particularly unhappy. "Damn it, a man as masculine as me, why on earth would anyone suspect I'm a gay?"

"That old guy Ebizo can have beauties in his arms, why, why?! Is there no justice? Is there no law? I am not a gay, not a gay, not a—"

In short, A.

He was grinding his teeth to dust.

This was envy, jealousy, and hatred.

"Someone come!" The Fourth Raikage A let out a roar that echoed through the entire room. He swung his thick arm violently, pointing at the secretaries on the side, "Issue a declaration condemning that bastard for me! You tell me, why?! Why?"

"No... don't, Lord Raikage~ Isn't that a bit inappropriate?" one of the secretaries said tremblingly, cold sweat already breaking out on their forehead.

"Less nonsense! Send it immediately! Otherwise, you'll all taste my fist!" The Raikage widened his eyes, a look of fury on his face, as if he could explode at any moment.

The mature Mabui sighed and gave a look to her colleagues: "Alright, go send it, otherwise Lord Raikage will really get angry." Just be careful with the wording.

"Go quickly~ A jealous old man has no reason."

The secretaries nodded helplessly; they knew that if they didn't do as the Raikage asked, the consequences would be unimaginable. Thus, they quickly moved to prepare the draft of the declaration.

"Yes~ We'll get right on it." The secretaries said as they quickly left the room, not daring to show the slightest bit of negligence. The Raikage was truly reckless; he really would throw a punch.

Seeing this, A nodded with satisfaction: "That's more like it! I can't be the only one suffering while they are having a good time, that makes no sense."

Afterward, Kumogakure released the declaration. His staff couldn't stop him, so they could only help cover it up with the wording: "We sternly condemn certain old guys in certain ninja villages of the Ninja World. Do not be disrespectful to your age and engage in shameless, ugly deeds. We hope you wake up early and turn back before it's too late, lest I come over to scold you in person..."

This was already the version revised by the Raikage's staff team.

The Raikage's original words were even more explosive.

He even named names, hurling insults that were far harsher.

"Lord Raikage, this is their private life. If you publish this, you'll be breaking the rules and burning bridges."

"There is no need to make enemies everywhere."

Even this tactful advice came only after Mabui had spent a long time pleading with him. Raikage A finally relented: "Fine, I'm only giving you face. Otherwise, I'd definitely make him pay. Damn it~ what right does that old geezer have?"

Yet, even with that softened rhetoric.

He had unexpectedly wounded many innocent bystanders.

It would also cause Kumogakure to suffer a massive loss in the future.

Disaster truly comes from the tongue.

Upon hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt a pang in his heart, There must be a mole in the village. This is my only little hobby, and I only watch it secretly in my office. How did the Raikage find out?

Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were blushing furiously, cursing inwardly, Does our sunset romance bother you?! Can't elderly people have true love? You meddlesome bastard~

You brat, I won't lower myself to your level, but don't let me catch you. Sooner or later, I'll send you to meet your dead father~

Ōnoki assumed A was being passive-aggressive toward him. After all, the Land of Lightning and the Land of Earth had always been at odds; Ōnoki had even orchestrated a trap with ten thousand ninja to exhaust the Third Raikage to death—that was A's father's killer.

Scoundrel, what business is it of yours if I profit from black-market dealings? Don't let me run into any ninjas from the Land of Lightning, hmph~

Kakuzu, on the other hand, assumed Kumogakure had discovered his illicit business ventures. This was effectively exposing him, and cutting off his path to wealth was akin to killing his parents. Kakuzu cursed him out in his mind and noted it down in his little book.

Tch~ what's the use of just running your mouth?

Shimura Danzō didn't take it to heart at all, nor did he feel the Raikage was talking about him: "Hiruzen, Homura, Koharu, you've completely disgraced Konoha. Fortunately, I keep myself clean."

Danzō even felt a secret sense of pride regarding this.

Ebizo had no time for this.

His sister, Chiyo, had set him a quota.

He hadn't finished it yet.

No one else responded either; they all cared about their reputations. If they responded, wouldn't that be an admission of guilt?

However, they all gave it a secret push.

And so, the rumors that the Raikage was a gay man who practiced "harvesting yang to replenish yang" spread quietly once more, with details so vivid they sounded true.

Why else would he still be single?!

They claimed he was a "little blond" who loved training shirtless with men—was that training? No, that was him going out to select a concubine.

They claimed all his followers were his bedmates.

...There were just too many.

One had to realize that the people Raikage A had offended were either masters of public opinion or individuals with vast networks and connections.

Raikage A saw that no one was responding to him.

"Scoundrels~ scoundrels~"

"They're actually ignoring me, I, I, I..."

"What?!"

"They say I'm a gay man?! Slander!?! Utter slander?! Saying I'm selecting concubines among men."

"What?! The biggest piece of evidence is that I'm single."

"Damn it~ I..."

"Pfft..." He spat out a mouthful of blood.

The invincible A had collapsed once again.

Kumogakure fell into another state of chaos as they began the emergency transport to get their Raikage medical attention.

What a humiliated man.

Having received the information.

The old schemers were absolutely delighted: Hmph~ kid, you're still too green to play games with us.

"Ahahaha~ ouch, I'm dying of laughter. A bloodbath caused by jealousy... hahaha..."

"Aren't you guys just bullying an honest man?"

Qingwu was laughing his head off.

"My, my, the power of emotion is truly terrifying. I only needed to guide and amplify it through the Rinne Sharingan to make the Raikage and the others unknowingly fall under my influence and put on such a show."

"It seems I'm becoming increasingly accustomed to the role of a mastermind behind the scenes. It's a pity that's all I can do for now; I can only influence emotions, not yet cause physical harm."

"But I have plenty of time to develop, so I'll take it slow~"

"The Ninja World is my playground."

"Everyone, you'd better do your best, okay?!!"

"Heh heh~"

At the same time, everyone in the Ninja World felt a sudden, inexplicable chill in their hearts, as if they had been targeted by something filthy. It was very brief—so brief that they all assumed it was just an illusion.