"Alright, you can stop now. You've probably reached your limit. Take a break."
The battle of instruction for the three children lasted for about half an hour. Yayoi had basically figured out the children's growth during this period, so she reached out and ended the match.
After all, his job is to monitor these children's growth, not to undermine their self-confidence.
Especially the brothers Tadayuki and Hideyuki, who are the same age, are only of average talent compared to their older and younger brothers.
In a few years, he'll probably only be able to reach the level of Jonin at best—not the best, but not the worst either.
Unlike his younger brother Rikuo, who is still in school, these two brothers have already officially graduated from school and been awarded the rank of Chunin. They are now serving in the same Jonin squad, responsible for daily patrols within the country.
Only as the year drew to a close were they able to return to Nightview City and enjoy a peaceful and happy New Year.
Upon hearing Yayoi's words, the three of them breathed a sigh of relief and stopped their attack, standing there panting.
It took them a while to recover and they went to the side to rest.
"Wow, Rikuo, you're really amazing. I feel like the gap between us and you is widening."
After sitting down, Tadayuki, who hadn't seen his younger brother Rikuo for several months, began to marvel at his brother's amazing growth.
When he and Hideyuki graduated this March, Rikuo's Sharingan was only at the One-Tomoe stage. But after not seeing him for more than half a year, it had grown to the Two-Tomoe stage, and he was using it so skillfully.
Moreover, it wasn't just the Sharingan's Dōjutsu; during their battle with Yayoi, they clearly saw that Rikuo's Taijutsu and Ninjutsu were also incredibly formidable.
This cannot be summarized in just a few words.
It's not that I'm afraid of geniuses being outstanding, it's that I'm afraid of geniuses working hard, because it really leaves no way for others to survive.
"But I still couldn't touch the hem of my father's clothes."
Rikuo's answer left the Tadayuki and Hideyuki brothers looking at each other in bewilderment.
Are they already aiming to surpass their father so early?
The two brothers' current goal is merely to reach the level of an ordinary Jonin.
The three then began chatting casually about everything under the sun.
Especially Tadayuki and Hideyuki, who have been out of school for the past six months and officially joined the military as ninjas, have a lot more to talk about than the Rikuo who are still studying at school.
The siblings all grew up in the same courtyard, and Doichi their elder brother Daoyi keeping them in check, they generally had a good relationship and rarely had any conflicts.
Then, they inevitably talked about Doichi, the elder brother they admired.
The other party was not in Nightview City at this moment, but on the vast sea, some unknown distance away, responsible for the extremely important task of patrolling the sea.
Rikuo is alright. He usually deals more with things among students and doesn't have much exposure to outside information; he only Doichi general outline.
But for Tadayuki and Hideyuki, who had already graduated, their already tall and imposing elder brother seemed even more formidable after hearing news of him from others.
All sorts of outrageous rumors spread like wildfire: a single palm strike could blow away a forest, shatter an island, or two palm strikes could send the next Raikage Hidden Cloud Village kneeling and spitting blood.
Although the rumors are outrageous, they could not have spread so far without solid achievements.
Tadayuki Hideyuki felt that it was mostly true that their eldest brother Doichi, beat the next Raikage of Hidden Cloud Village to the point of vomiting blood, but it shouldn't be as exaggerated as the rumors suggested, to the point of beating someone to their knees.
However, the two brothers felt they were quite lucky.
They were both excited and a little apprehensive about going to the battlefield.
However, unexpectedly, just as they left the school and before their teams were even assigned, the Land of Night signed a ceasefire agreement with the Hidden Cloud Village, ending the war.
To put it simply, it was the graduation of these two brothers that ended the war between the Land of Night and the Hidden Cloud Village.
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"Since the start of the war these past two years, too many young people in the village have sacrificed their lives, and the battle with Konoha has yielded little result. In my personal opinion, a ceasefire with Konoha might be the best outcome for both sides. Continuing to fight will only exacerbate the meaningless sacrifice of young people."
Inside the Hidden Cloud Village Camp in the Land of Frost, the Second Raikage once again used the defeat in the war against Konoha to try to mediate Konoha conflict and prevent the situation from escalating further.
This wasn't the first time he had publicly stated his thoughts at High-Level Meeting —to stop the wars of plunder and focus on developing ourselves was his core demand as the Second Raikage.
This was also the spiritual hope that the First Raikage placed in him, wishing that the Hidden Cloud Village would embark on a righteous path of peaceful coexistence with all nations.
"What kind of statement is this? As the Raikage, are you going to grovel before outsiders?"
Kinkaku, with his long yellow hair, couldn't help but make sarcastic remarks after the Second A spoke.
"This is outrageous! If it's really unacceptable, you should step down and let that brat 'Ai' take over."
The Ginkaku next to the Kinkaku is also targeting the Second A, the current Raikage.
The Jonin sitting next to the two brothers also started to egg them on. Although their words weren't harsh, they were implying, both openly and subtly, that if they couldn't handle it, they should step down and let someone with the ability and courage take over.
As for the other Jonin, they were not members of the Kinkaku Ginkaku factions, and each had their own demands.
Some were indignant at the disrespectful remarks made by Kinkaku and Ginkaku.
Some wore sneers, waiting to see what would happen.
There were also centrists who said they didn't care about these things, as long as their interests weren't diminished, they would support both fighting and a ceasefire with Konoha.
Faced with the provocation of the Kinkaku Ginkaku, the Second A did not get angry. If he were to get angry because of this level of provocation, he would not have lived to this point. He would have been driven to death by the arrogant attitude of these two brothers long ago.
"My vision for Kumogakure is a harmonious family. As the Raikage, I must be responsible for the entirety of this family. The war with Konoha has not only resulted in numerous casualties, but also failed to achieve the initial objectives. Is there really any point in continuing this fight? Don't forget, because of the events in the Land of Night, the village has very few elite troops left."
The Second A spoke meaningfully.
Sure enough, many people frowned after he said that.
This is indeed true. After the Land of Night landed in the Land of Lightning, the blow to the Hidden Cloud Village Village's fighting force was extremely heavy.
The High-Level Advisors, Yotsuki Kōmon, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Tazbi, the Two-Tails Jinchūriki, Yugito, and the next Raikage, 'A', were almost all beaten into a state of complete isolation.
The head of the Anbu and the Hidden Cloud Village's number one Storm Release ninja Kapui, went to provide support but was killed in battle, further increasing the Hidden Cloud Village's losses.
"Furthermore, everyone, don't forget that now that Hidden Mist Village has withdrawn from the Allied Forces, Hidden Sand Village's attack on Konoha from the west is not as fierce as it was at the beginning. This means that Konoha will have more resources concentrated on this battlefield in the future. Once it develops into that situation, it won't just be a matter of whether the withdrawal can be dignified."
After the Second A finished speaking, he stood up from his seat and continued to scan the Jonin present. Unlike Jonin and Kinkaku, most of them had at least listened to what he said, whether they liked it or not, and were making a final weighing of the Ginkaku and cons.
This was also his goal; continuing the war with Konoha would only result in mutual destruction.
He must push forward with the peace talks with Konoha before Konoha mobilizes more of its forces.
"That concludes today's meeting. Meeting adjourned."
Second A left his seat, several Jonin followed him out; they were all powerful Jonin who clearly supported him.
Even within the Kumogakure, where martial arts factions run rampant, there are still some Hidden Cloud Village who truly inherit the will of the First Raikage and maintain that insignificant little peace.
After the Second A and others left, another group of Jonin left one by one, until only the Kinkaku Ginkaku brothers and the absolute martial Jonin who supported them remained.
"I really want to find a chance to kill this guy, and that Second Hokage, that bastard who plays with people's lives!"
Kinkaku gritted his teeth.
The shift in the tone of the meeting just now made him feel that things were no longer as easy as before.
Ultimately, it was the failure to achieve the desired results after the war with Konoha that began to shake the resolve of some people.
" Ginkaku, isn't there any better way? If this continues, we'll really have no choice but to go home."
Kinkaku looked at his younger brother Ginkaku, hoping that he could use his clever mind to come up with a way to break the deadlock.
Ginkaku frowned, but didn't speak immediately.
When he first noticed the wind direction was off, he had been quietly thinking about how to break out of this stagnant situation, and occasionally some ingenious ideas would pop into his head.
But that glimmer of inspiration always slips through my fingers, impossible to hold firmly in my grasp.
"Don't rush, Kinkaku, let me think about it carefully. After all, this situation is indeed very tricky..."
After an unknown amount of time, just as Kinkaku was about to lose his patience, Ginkaku slowly curled up a dangerous smile on his lips.
"You may leave."
Ginkaku turned his head and spoke to the Jonin around him.
Although the Jonin were curious about what Ginkaku had come up with, they knew their own status and obediently left the meeting room, leaving only Kinkaku and Ginkaku behind.
" Kinkaku, perhaps we can let things develop naturally and encourage the village and Konoha to negotiate peace..."
"Oh?"
Kinkaku certainly didn't believe his younger brother Ginkaku would actually compromise; instead, he was curious about what amazing idea Ginkaku planned to use the peace talks with Konoha to devise.
"Then we can do this..."
In the conference room, only Ginkaku's almost whispered, barely audible voice could be heard.