About to Step Onto the Front Lines Again

Although Li Ke was very happy that the Second Hokage was willing to teach him ninjutsu, he actually had some reservations about what the Second Hokage had told him.

That was, the Second Hokage had been avoiding one particular issue.

Why didn't Hashirama Senju use force to unify the ninja world in one go? All of his arguments were based on the premise that Hashirama Senju was correct in not unifying the ninja world.

Therefore, there were quite a few loopholes.

But I can probably guess the reason...

Sitting in the barbecue restaurant, watching Yuhi Kurenai grill meat for him, the corners of Li Ke's mouth couldn't help but lift.

Although Yuhi Kurenai's strength wasn't top-tier and her family background wasn't exceptional, she was indeed a great candidate for a wife.

Because, like him, Kurenai yearned for a stable life.

However, he still couldn't help but think about the man's affairs.

"The Second Hokage probably doesn't talk about this because he was his older brother and the First Hokage of the village. Moreover... from their perspective, what the First Hokage did was already very advanced. It was impossible for ninja clans to have the cognition or consciousness of a great unification, so it's not that strange that it turned into this twisted situation..."

Combining the Second Hokage's words with the history taught by Konoha professors and the current Will of Fire, and looking at it from a local's perspective, Hashirama Senju's choice was actually quite normal.

Because of lifespan.

Back in the era of ninja clans, the average lifespan of a ninja was less than thirty. Five or six-year-old children were already considered adults, and forty was the end of the road for a ninja.

Hashirama Senju was only forty-two when he died, but he already had a granddaughter, Tsunade, who was five or six years old—old enough to be on the battlefield in the Warring States period. And Senju Tobirama, who was younger than him, had also begun to see a serious decline in his combat power and physical state due to the prolonged use of forbidden techniques.

Although Hashirama Senju's cellular regenerative effects were heaven-defying, the problem was that Hashirama Senju didn't know how long he could live. So, for someone like him who grew up in the era of ninja clans, after establishing and stabilizing Konoha, he likely felt his lifespan was nearing its end.

Because, just like Senju Tobirama, he couldn't have avoided practicing those life-shortening forbidden techniques during the chaotic era of the ninja clan wars!

He might have even practiced more of them than Senju Tobirama!

So, upon noticing that the people around him were slowly aging and dying in their forties, he likely believed he had reached the age to pass the responsibility to the people of the future, retire, and wait for death.

At that time, although the ninja world had reached a relative consensus and had the foundation for unification, for Hashirama Senju, he likely no longer wanted to be busy killing enemies and the children of enemies. He probably wanted to peacefully tease his grandchildren and die happily surrounded by his children.

He felt he had struggled his whole life and it was time to rest.

Moreover, his power clearly had no successor. Even if he had forcibly ruled the world, it would still have split into its current state because the consensus hadn't been reached.

It was better to maintain the status quo, keep the advantage, and wait for future developments.

It sounds absurd, doesn't it? But Li Ke felt his guess was likely correct.

Because people are trapped by their own cognition, and Hashirama Senju's entire cognition came from the era of ninja clans—an era where the average lifespan was less than thirty and children had to go to the battlefield at five or six.

If you told him he could live to be seventy or eighty as long as he wanted to, he probably wouldn't believe you.

Furthermore, none of them had experienced a great unification, and the history of the ninja world had never seen such a thing.

Qin Shi Huang at least had the Zhou Dynasty before him! The ninja world had nothing!

And...

The territory of the Land of Fire only expanded rapidly after the appearance of Konoha Village.

"If these inferences hold, then Madara Uchiha, who jumped out at this time to say we were wrong and that we should have ruled the ninja world and taken the correct path, was actually the one destroying the future he created and hoped for..."

So, Madara Uchiha was not wrong at all when he said Hashirama Senju betrayed him.

"But what the parties involved thought is no longer important. It's even possible that Hashirama Senju's education level wasn't even at a university level. Now that the five nations are a cesspool of war, thinking about these things is meaningless."

For him, living in the cesspool, how the cesspool came to be was completely irrelevant.

How to get out of the cesspool was what mattered.

Thinking this, Li Ke lowered his head and ate the meat Yuhi Kurenai had placed for him. When he looked up, he saw Asuma with a constipated expression.

Eh? Asuma?

Did I meet him today?!

"Asuma? When did you get here? How did I not notice you?"

Looking at the resentful Asuma, Li Ke was stunned, because he had no memory of seeing Asuma today!

And when did they arrive at the barbecue restaurant?!

"I..."

Asuma opened his mouth. He wanted to say that he had come with Kurenai, and he wanted to curse Li Ke for being a jerk who forgot his friends for a woman. But thinking that if Kurenai had chosen him, he would likely be the same, he could only speak helplessly.

"We went to pick you up too... right, Anko?"

He looked at Anko Mitarashi, who had walked with them and was now frantically devouring dango out of frustration because Yuhi Kurenai had given all the grilled meat to Li Ke.

Li Ke looked in astonishment at Anko, who had squeezed in to sit next to Kurenai, making Asuma look like he was being shunned.

"Anko, when did you arrive?!"

Anko Mitarashi, still a cute little girl, couldn't help but roll her eyes and helplessly put down the dango in her mouth.

"I went to pick you up from the hospital too, okay... I even asked Orochimaru-sensei for leave to do it."

Anko was truly speechless. Li Ke had been lost in thought ever since he left the hospital. It was just that her best friend genuinely liked this type; the more Li Ke was lost in thought, the more excited Kurenai became. Otherwise, she would have long ago advised Kurenai to find a boyfriend who didn't spend all his time spacing out!

But Li Ke had always been like this—fond of thinking—so she didn't pay much attention to it and asked instead.

"You've been spacing out for a long time today. What are you thinking about?"

I'm thinking about how the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, who founded our Konoha Village, was an idiot; how the Third Hokage will end up being a patch-up artist because of the Fourth Hokage's martyrdom; and how, among all the Hokage of Konoha, only the Second Hokage actually seems like a functional human being.

Li Ke really wanted to say this out loud, because no matter how he analyzed it or from what perspective he viewed it, in the eyes of someone like him, raised on the philosophy of unification, there was only one possible conclusion.

Hashirama Senju was an uncultured idiot, and Senju Tobirama was the only one who could be considered a normal leader.

As for Sarutobi...

He was either stupid or malicious, but based on Li Ke's observations of Asuma and his own personal experiences over the years, he could be certain of one thing.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was not a bad person; in fact, he was a rare good man.

"Hey, hey, you're spacing out again... What on earth are you thinking about that's so engrossing?"

Anko Mitarashi quickly interrupted Li Ke's thoughts, teasing him.

"I was thinking about why we ninjas can't use ninjutsu to farm or manufacture tools. With a ninja's physical stamina, the heavy labor that is so taxing for ordinary people could actually be completed quite easily by us. And compared to the energy required to become a ninja and the dangers we have to face..."

But before he could finish, Anko cut him off.

"Who would want to farm? And if you did manage to farm, what would you do when the ninjas who spent their time training in ninjutsu instead of farming come over to steal your crops? How could you possibly beat them? What would you do then? Isn't that exactly what those Artisan Ninjas are like? They get robbed all the time and even have to hire us to protect them."

Anko Mitarashi was even more speechless at Li Ke. How could he not understand such a simple reason?

"Besides, once you become a Chunin or Jonin, you can decide the duration and danger level of your missions yourself. Even as a Genin, you can afford a meal of grilled meat after just one week of missions, and a Chunin only needs one mission. How is that as hard as you make it sound?"

As she spoke, she took a dumpling from the plate and began to chew it heartily.

Li Ke smiled. He knew Anko didn't really understand his point. His idea was simple: establish a complete system where those with combat ability learn ninjutsu to become professional soldiers, while those without combat talent specialize in production.

But at that moment, the voice of Senju Tobirama rang out.

"Doing that requires a massive amount of money, time, experiments, and manpower. Before we could even finish, we would be on terrible terms with the Daimyo, and other ninja villages would attack us... So, your idea is beautiful, but it isn't realistic."

"Then what if we used genjutsu to control the Daimyo and those officials?"

"A long time ago, some Daimyo suffered from such tactics, so they aren't without their own ninjas; they were sufficient back in the era of the ninja clans. Furthermore, other ninja villages have spies lurking about, and Konoha isn't without those who are friendly with the Daimyo—the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, for instance. As for this era... I don't know the specific situation, but there must be other reasons."

Senju Tobirama paused before continuing.

"Moreover, Uzu Village was exactly the type you described, wanting to hold both ninja and Daimyo power in their own hands. Their number of ninjas back then was not much less than Konoha's... I don't know what the Monkey is thinking, but the destruction of Uzu Village was definitely not the work of the Land of Water alone."

"How truly dark."

"The world of the ninja is just like that. But what comforts this old man is that children in this new world can grow until they are twelve—an adult—before going to the battlefield. The efforts of my brother and me were not in vain."

Twelve years old, an adult, before.

No matter how Li Ke looked at those three words, they felt sinister.

"Isn't that good enough?"

Sensing Li Ke's emotions, Senju Tobirama was somewhat puzzled.

Twelve-year-old ninjas should be preparing to have children by then.

Li Ke: "..."

Case closed. The reason the ninja world isn't unified is truly because Hashirama Senju and Senju Tobirama thought "this is good enough."

Damn it...

Li Ke thought of his own hellish experiences and couldn't help but want to say something, but with the Second Hokage having said that, what else could he possibly add?

How did he suddenly find himself understanding Madara Uchiha?

But at that moment, Asuma spoke up.

"Qingtan, you aren't thinking of something as simple as what Anko said, are you? But have you ever considered one thing?"

A look of earnestness flickered in Asuma's eyes.

"Shouldn't the 'King' that truly deserves to be protected by countless people be the ones who protect more civilians, more innocent people?"

Li Ke felt his scalp tingle. He knew Asuma was a good man, and it was normal for him to feel pity for civilians outside of Konoha, but these words were undoubtedly a blatant suggestion that the Daimyo might be more worthy of protection than the Hokage!

"Asuma, we are ninjas. We are ninjas born and raised in Konoha, and our immense power exists to protect our families and our comrades... Why would you think like that?"

Li Ke's words made Asuma frown. He glanced vaguely at Li Ke's right eye and his right arm, which was wrapped in bandages.

"But in the end, we haven't protected anything, have we? Even now, countless Konoha ninjas and innocent civilians are dying on the battlefield in Kirigakure, and the Daimyo is no longer willing to provide us with support. How are we supposed to..."

Li Ke couldn't listen anymore and immediately covered Asuma's mouth. The reason was simple.

The fact that the Daimyo was unwilling to provide support was a top-secret matter!

It should never have been spoken aloud!

They were still locked in a bloody battle with Kirigakure; if word got out that their logistics had been cut off, it would be a disaster!

Even Senju Tobirama, residing within his body, couldn't help but curse.

"Damn it... Why does this little monkey blurt everything out! It's fortunate that no one else heard!"

Li Ke immediately scanned his surroundings. Only after confirming that the Second Hokage was right did he breathe a sigh of relief, then looked sternly at Yuhi Kurenai and Asuma.

"Asuma, you cannot speak of this recklessly. Kurenai, Anko, you all need to be careful too, or it will be very troublesome."

Both girls understood the gravity of the situation, and worry began to cloud their brows.

After all, Kirigakure was no easy opponent.

Asuma fell silent, gazing up at the sky. His eyes were filled with his father's indifference toward the Konoha civilians harmed by Konoha ninjas, as well as his cold apathy toward the Konoha ninjas who had perished.

When he had begged him on Li Ke's behalf, the man had retorted, "All Konoha ninjas are the same. Even if you had the same injuries as Murata Seitan, I would never violate regulations to save your arm!" and, "Qingtan became this way for the sake of the village; you are insulting his resolve and honor by doing this!"

In the end, it was only by seeking out his clan uncle that he had managed to save his best friend's arm.

Watching him in this state, Li Ke sighed.

"I know you are grieving for the innocent civilians who died, but Asuma, we are Konoha ninjas first, and citizens of the Land of Fire second."

Li Ke's words drew a scoff from Asuma, but before he could say anything, an Anbu appeared before them.

"Jonin Murata Qingtan, Chunin Sarutobi Asuma, Genin Yuhi Kurenai, report to the First Support Unit immediately! Your unit will depart to support the front lines in one hour!"

With that, the Anbu handed a scroll to Li Ke. Li Ke was stunned not only by his promotion to Jonin but even more so by the fact that he had just stepped out of the hospital only to be sent straight to the front lines.

However, he quickly realized the truth.

It seems the Third Hokage intends to silence any gossip about Asuma begging for favors on my behalf, while simultaneously demonstrating his impartiality... It looks like this mission won't be too dangerous.

But the naive Asuma clearly hadn't considered this angle.

"That damn old man!"

Asuma's eyes widened as he stood up in a rage, unable to believe that his father would send their squad to the Kirigakure front lines just because he had sought help from his clan uncle!

"I'm going to have a word with him!"