War is Coming (Seeking Collection, Recommendation, Monthly Tickets)

"You're here again?"

Qifeng looked at Asuma beside him with a face full of despair.

Usually, during school days at the Ninja Academy, it wasn't so bad—Asuma wouldn't come every day, just every few days, when his craving for a smoke got too strong to bear.

But now? At most, he'd skip one day. These past two days, he'd shown up right on time every single day. Qifeng was speechless.

He was the son of the Hokage of Konoha, no ordinary status—what was he doing running to the Morgue every day?

The only reason Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't bothered with them yet was that he was too busy. Otherwise, one day or another, he'd make things difficult for them.

Asuma took a drag of his cigarette, looking like he was trying to evolve into a salted fish just like Qifeng.

"I heard you became an Examiner for the Chunin Exams?" Asuma asked.

"So what?" Qifeng shot him a glare.

"Are the Genin from other villages really that strong? The old man's been coming home with a bad look on his face lately."

"A Chunin Exam isn't enough to cause that. Your old man's worried about something else." Qifeng replied flatly.

It seemed the negotiations between the village and the other three villages weren't going smoothly.

That made sense.

By now, anyone could see that Konoha had become a target for everyone. Every village wanted to take a big bite out of Konoha, the biggest piece of meat. Trying to negotiate or discuss terms at a time like this—without paying a price that would make Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart ache—was absolutely impossible.

Besides, in the Ninja World, interests came first. Even if they paid the price, there was no guarantee those Great Hidden Villages wouldn't suddenly strike at a critical moment.

Rather than negotiating with them, it was more like buying time for Konoha.

Lately, Qifeng could clearly feel a grim, murderous atmosphere spreading across the entire village.

Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade, who had been stationed outside, had all returned to the village.

"Worried about what? War?" Asuma stubbed out his cigarette and looked at Qifeng with eager eyes.

Faced with his gaze, Qifeng curled his lips but still handed him a cigarette.

Smoking this much at such a young age—he was asking for lung disease.

"What else?"

Even a student still at the Ninja Academy like Asuma knew war was coming, let alone the ninja of Konoha.

"Heh." Asuma let out a light chuckle and lit the cigarette with satisfaction. "Everyone wants to make a move, but no one dares to be the first. It'll probably take a while."

To be fair, even though Asuma was young, he was still Hiruzen Sarutobi's son. Through constant exposure, he saw things more clearly than most.

"Maybe."

But sometimes, things weren't so easy to control.

Take this Chunin Exam, for example. Konoha wanted to use it to re-establish its momentum, but the other Great Hidden Villages had clearly come prepared.

Kakashi had already graduated and become a Chunin. Other talented geniuses were either still in the Ninja Academy or, like Kakashi, were no longer eligible to participate in the Chunin Exams.

Facing the deliberate targeting from every village, the only ones barely holding on were the Root ninja that Danzo had planted inside.

But two hands couldn't fight off four.

As the Corpse Collector who went to pick up bodies every day, Qifeng knew very well the situation the Konoha Genin were in inside the Terrifying Cave.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were being hunted by everyone.

So, overall, Konoha's situation wasn't optimistic. It almost felt like they'd shot themselves in the foot.

The original plan was good—they just hadn't expected the other villages to be so well-prepared for a sudden Chunin Exam.

"Asuma, you're here too."

As usual, Might Guy showed up, drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, his eyes burning with youthful passion.

By now, Qifeng's Morgue had become his resting spot.

For Guy, physical labor like cleaning was no different from resting.

Not to mention the Morgue had the air conditioning running—the moment you walked in, it was pure bliss.

"Guy, you're a bit early today." Asuma greeted him lifelessly.

Suddenly, he felt that maybe following Qifeng's example and taking some ordinary job to retire in Konoha wasn't such a bad choice.

As for Kurenai Yuhi...

He glanced at Qifeng, whose expression was calm.

Kurenai had been kept close by Yūhi Kurenai lately. He couldn't even get near her, otherwise, he wouldn't have come here to smoke in silence.

Guy grabbed a broom with practiced ease, as if talking to himself or answering, "The Sunagakure delegation suddenly said they were leaving today. My training got interrupted, so I came here first."

Qifeng, who had been lounging in his rocking chair with his eyes half-closed, suddenly opened them and sat up. "Guy, you said the Sunagakure delegation just left? They didn't even wait for the Chunin Exams to end?"

"Yeah, Qifeng-senpai. Strange, isn't it? Something as important as the Chunin Exams, and they just gave up on it." Guy looked baffled.

Those were Chunin. He hadn't even become a Genin yet.

"I don't know what's going on in their heads. Youth! How can you back down!" With that, Guy charged into the Morgue with a look of unstoppable determination, unleashing his Thirty-Two Way Sweeping Technique.

Asuma, who knew Qifeng best, shot him a surprised glance and noticed his grave expression. He couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

Qifeng said in a low voice, "Things have gotten troublesome. But with the Sunagakure delegation acting so abruptly, the higher-ups should have figured out something by now, right?"

"You mean... you mean..." Asuma's pupils contracted, and he was momentarily stunned.

Qifeng nodded heavily and turned his gaze toward the Hokage Building.

"War is coming."

The Chunin Exams were forcibly halted.

The sudden departure of the Suna-nin made Konoha, as well as the Mist Ninja and Kumo-nin participating in the exam, realize the severity of the situation.

After the Suna-nin left, the Mist Ninja, Kumo-nin, and a host of ninjas from minor Hidden Villages all chose to leave as well.

As if afraid that if they lingered too long, Konoha would stop them.

Hokage Building office.

"Hiruzen! How could you let the Suna-nin leave?!" Danzo pushed open the office door with a grim face, glaring at Hiruzen Sarutobi, who stood by the window smoking, and demanded harshly.

Hiruzen Sarutobi turned around. The smoke curling up from his pipe blurred his face and eyes.

Seeing that he didn't answer, Danzo walked in with his cane. "Do you realize that Rasa, leading the Suna-nin this time, is a disciple of the Third Kazekage and very likely to become the Fourth Kazekage in the future? If we could detain him, Suna would be forced to hold back, and we—"

"Danzo!" Hiruzen Sarutobi cut off his old friend with a low shout.

A sharp gaze shot from his aged eyes, meeting Danzo's squarely. He spoke slowly and deliberately: "We are Konoha!"

We are Konoha!

Konoha, which inherited the will of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama—the Konoha that would rather give up the Nine Great Tailed Beasts than abandon peace, the Konoha that could have looked down on the entire ninja world and crushed the four great nations but chose the path of peace.

Besides, the Suna-nin had only shown some suspicious signs; no outrageous actions had been reported yet.

If word came from the front lines that Suna was launching a full-scale attack on Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi might consider it.

But right now, the ninja world was eerily calm. Detaining a foreign delegation would put Konoha at a moral disadvantage.

The ninja world might be ruthless and allow underhanded tactics, but having a just cause for action was still necessary.

Detaining the Suna-nin delegation would be easy, but doing so would make Konoha's ninjas feel, on the battlefield, that their own village had done wrong. Their morale would drop by three points, and their strength would suffer greatly.

Even if it weren't the Third Kazekage's disciple Rasa but the Third Kazekage himself leading the delegation, they still couldn't do it.

Just like the death of the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, during the alliance signing with Kumogakure. Though it was the private act of the Gold and Silver Brothers, it made Kumogakure the target of condemnation across the ninja world, putting them at a disadvantage in their alliance with Konoha.

That was the best proof.

"Stubborn! Foolish! Obstinate!" Danzo spat out three curses in fury, then slammed the door as he left.

In his view, Hiruzen Sarutobi was utterly stubborn. At a time like this, he was still talking about propriety. If they just detained all the delegations and launched a preemptive strike to destroy Sunagakure, the first step toward unifying the ninja world would be complete.

Yet he still chose to sit back and take the hits.

The Konoha of today was no longer the fragile, struggling Konoha that had to endure right after the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, died.

The Konoha of today could look down on the entire ninja world.

"Hiruzen is getting old. He's lost his drive. The Hokage position needs a new occupant." Danzo strode away from the Hokage Building.