Iwagakure Takes Action

The shop assistant was quick and brought the new shoes over in no time.

However, she still winked at Uchiha Shingen and said, "Ninja-sama, your girlfriend is really beautiful! She has a great figure!"

Uchiha Shingen silent.

If the shop assistant hadn't been a woman, judging by her expression, he would have thought he'd encountered a pervert.

Marketing shouldn't be like this; just because the genders are different doesn't mean they're boyfriend and girlfriend.

Pakura had already put on her shoes, stood up, and spun around.

"Shingen, what do you think of me wearing this?"

Uchiha Shingen squinted, trying hard to distinguish between good and bad, but...

"Fantastic!" He gave it a thumbs up.

Sigh... I can't tell at all.

Aren't they all the same?!

"The way you're being so perfunctory makes it seem so real." Pakura looked at him approvingly. "No wonder you were able to help your clan leader successfully run for Shadow Assistant."

She could never forget her first day in Leaf Village, when Uchiha Shingen was talking nonsense with the Hokage right in front of her.

I felt from the beginning that this kid had great potential, and sure enough, he did.

They directly equipped their own clan leader with Shadow Support.

That's secondary; the plan is truly brilliant. If Sand Village had someone like that, they wouldn't have to let Rasa, the Kazekage, spend all his time after work Tenten gold rushing around.

"I'll take these shoes. Please wrap them up for me," she said to the shop assistant.

"Okay, please wait a moment." The shop assistant cheerfully wrapped it up, put it in a bag, and then happily brought it to Uchiha Shingen.

Uchiha Shingen: "???"

Oh, I meant for him to take it.

He didn't react immediately, mainly because he had just returned from Daimyo's Court, where he hadn't mentioned anything.

The lives of the nobility are truly corrupt!

After taking the bag and paying, Uchiha Shingen looked at Pakura and asked, "Just one pair?"

Pakura's spending power is really lacking. He used to be quite a spender when he went shopping with girls.

"So generous?" Pakura covered his mouth, his eyes full of laughter. "Be careful, or I'll bankrupt you!"

"That's impossible," Uchiha Shingen said. "You probably don't know, but I'm very wealthy now."

"Never mind," Pakura shook his head. "I won't bother you."

She took Uchiha Shingen's hand again, and the two left the store and continued strolling on the street.

Pakura was in high spirits today; she was drawn to the snacks one minute and tried on clothes the next.

However, she quickly took over the orders, not giving Uchiha Shingen a chance to pay.

Uchiha Shingen didn't mind showing some generosity, but seeing that Pakura seemed to care a lot about it, he didn't care.

"Shingen?"

Uchiha Shingen turned around and saw a familiar face.

"Fourth Generation, are you out shopping?"

He looked at the bags full of water that Namikaze Minato was carrying in both hands.

A splash of fiery red appeared in the store.

Uzumaki Kushina emerged from the fitting room with a battle-ready expression.

Good heavens, it's actually a cheongsam, with a high slit.

In fact, the Hokage world does contain both Japanese and Chinese elements.

Uchiha Shingen glanced at Uzumaki Kushina, then at Namikaze Minato, who seemed somewhat embarrassed.

"The Yondaime."

"Um?"

"You still know how to have fun."

"Ah?"

Namikaze Minato was completely baffled, but felt that this couldn't possibly be anything serious.

"Shingen, you've misunderstood. I went out shopping for clothes with Kushina."

"Yes, I understand." Uchiha Shingen gave another thumbs up. "Quality of life is important, I understand."

"Huh? Shingen's here too." Uzumaki Kushina finally noticed Uchiha Shingen's presence and saw the bag he was carrying.

"This brand... Shingen, is it for accompanying girls shopping?"

Uchiha Shingen stepped aside, revealing Pakura who had already walked up behind him.

"The Hokage's wife," Pakura greeted politely.

She's very familiar with Leaf Village's style now, and when she walks down the street, no one thinks she's not a native.

"Ah... I remember, you're Pakura, right?"

"Yes."

"I've heard of your reputation!"

"No, she's not as good as the Hokage's wife."

The two women began to flatter each other.

Seeing Namikaze Minato's utterly dejected expression, Uchiha Shingen decided to teach him a truth.

"The Yondaime."

"Call me Minato, Shingen."

"Okay, Minato, do you need me to give you a suggestion? Something to make you more comfortable standing here."

"Oh? As expected of Shingen! Tell me quickly!"

"You stand like a pine tree; you still have a lot of room for improvement, my Lord Hokage."

Chapter Twenty-Two: Iwagakure Begins Its Operation

The Land of Earth, Iwagakure.

In the Ninja Country, ninja villages named after "village" are all large cities comparable to the daimyo's Daimyo's Court. Iwagakure) is located in the mountains, where rainfall and snowmelt have formed a relatively stable river, ensuring the city's water supply.

Of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Earth is only slightly better than the Land of Wind. It is vast but barren, with most of its territory resembling the Blue Star landscape of Earth. The north has a tundra climate, and the vast majority of its population is concentrated in the southeast, bordering the Lands of Rain, Grass, and Waterfall. Beyond the border with the Land of Waterfalls, there is a small peninsula that forms a bay area, which is its entire essence.

Of the five major villages, Sand Village and Iwagakure are sworn enemies.

The Hokage Continent can be divided into six regions based on geographical factors.

The regions are: the high-altitude rocky wasteland represented by the Land of Earth; the western desert region represented by the Land of Wind; the central plain region centered on the Land of Fire; the northern coastal region represented by the line from Taki, Tetsu, Ta, to Shimo; the large peninsula region represented by the Land of Lightning; and the outer sea region represented by the Land of Water.

As you can tell from their names, the Land of Earth Land of Wind are located in the most desolate places.

Unable to break through the "central transition zone" constructed by the states of Amane and Kusa, nor the "coastal zone" constructed by the states of Taki, Tetsu, Ta, and Shimo, the two regions remained locked in a stalemate for many years.

When Sand Village and Cloud Village attacked Leaf Village together, Iwagakure took the opportunity to attack Sand Village.

The Sand Village then joined forces with the Leaf Village Teuchi the Iwagakure.

The architecture of Iwagakure consists of a series of diamond-shaped fortresses. There are no roads here; the Rock Ninja hollowed out small hills, rebuilt them into fortresses, and then connected them with bridges. They did not build roads because they wanted to leave as much space as possible for water diversion and storage systems.

The most common type of bridge in this village is the suspension bridge.

The tallest tower is the Tsuchikage Building.

Ōnoki stood on the open-air veranda of the Tsuchikage Building, looking down at his village.

Having surveyed all five villages, of the Third still alive, only he and Sarutobi Hiruzen remain.

Today, Iwagakure is the only village still in the era of the Third.

Ōnoki is older than Sarutobi Hiruzen. Sarutobi Hiruzen is fifty-eight years old this year, while Ōnoki is sixty-five.

Among the Third Generation Five Kage, Ōnoki was the strongest in terms of attack power, even surpassing the Third Raikage, who was also skilled in attack.

Ōnoki didn't like Sarutobi Hiruzen very much, thinking he was a petty thug.

How could you, the village's shaman, secretly watch the girls in your own village bathe?

He utterly despises this kind of thing!

Anyway, he's always been short, so he's always looked up from below, and he's long been tired of seeing only peaks and not faces.

What's so interesting about it!?

What's more, this scoundrel is younger than him, yet he can retire earlier, which makes him even more annoyed.

Couldn't Iwagakure) produce even more talented individuals?

As the grandson of the First Tsuchikage and the beloved disciple of the Second Tsuchikage, Ōnoki had to admit one thing—the talent pool in Iwagakure has clearly been lacking in recent years.

Don't get me wrong, the production rate of lower and mid-level ninjas is still pretty good, but the production rate of higher-level ninjas is a bit awkward.

High-end talent is too rare; most people's abilities can only be described as "elite," not "strong."

Thinking of the kid he had discovered, Ōnoki felt quite pleased.

That kid's only flaw is his mentality. As long as he can correct that, he will definitely become an excellent Tsuchikage.

Then his granddaughter wouldn't have to worry about getting married.

"Father." Behind Ōnoki, Kitsuchi opened the door and stepped onto the open-air platform.

As Ōnoki's son, Kitsuchi's strength is undeniable; he is at the level of a "strongman." However, his intellect fails to gain Ōnoki's approval.

Kitsuchi's concept is to ally with Leaf Village and oppose Cloud Village and Sand Village.

However, Ōnoki was a non-aligned advocate.

The advantage of Iwagakure is that it doesn't need to form alliances with anyone, allowing it to flexibly choose its own strategies.

Once an alliance is formed, one becomes constrained and restricted.

Standing on one side with open arms might seem like a good thing on the surface, but in Ōnoki's opinion, it was terrible.

Leaf Village is the least trustworthy one, okay!?

Back then, Senju Hashirama asked him and his disciples to form an alliance, but they were brutally beaten up by Uchiha Madara at the door!

Look! Look! These are the people of Leaf Village!

From that time on, Ōnoki never trusted anyone from other villages again.

This Ninja World, which Senju Hashirama couldn't be trusted, is not worthy of trust.

Senju Hashirama was the only ninja from another village he ever trusted; he admired this great man.

The problem is, none of the people around Senju Hashirama were good people!

"Kitsuchi, how many times have I told you? When you're at work, you have to use your job title!" Ōnoki turned around and looked sternly at his son.

Kitsuchi's expression was one of helplessness.

Why does the old man's menopause come in waves?

Didn't I just tell him, "He's truly my son"?

"Lord Tsuchikage, the troops are ready."

"Hmm." Ōnoki was satisfied. "Regarding supplies, we must ensure there are no mistakes."

"Of course, 'Xiao' will also ensure our route remains unobstructed."

"Ridiculous! How can you trust mercenaries!" Ōnoki was furious again. "What did Hanzo say?"

"Rain Village indicates they are neutral."

I'll remain neutral, you bastard!