Konoha.
On the street.
"Long time no see! How have you been lately?" Goenji bought a string of candied hawthorns from the street, handed it to Aburame Fuzei, and said with a smile.
"What else can I do? Just hanging around on the battlefield, killing a few enemies now and then. I'm Special Jonin now, not bad, right?" Aburame Fuzei took the food from him and naturally started eating it.
However, the hood of the high street covered her face, preventing Goenji from seeing her clearly, but he didn't care.
Goenji pointed to the Hokage Rock on the back mountain of Konoha, a place where one could overlook the entire Konoha: "Let's go, let's go take a look at the back, and we can catch up while we're at it. It's been several months since we last saw each other, let's see if you've improved."
"Let's skip the sparring. I've finally returned to Konoha; I don't want to fight again," Aburame Fuzei teased.
"Let's go. It's not a competition, just a chance to connect and relax. We're just going there to unwind."
Goenji laughed heartily, and the two of them ate their way down the street as they walked towards the top of the Hokage Rock.
Sitting on the Hokage Rock, a gentle breeze blew over their heads, causing their hair and clothes to flutter in the wind.
Gazing at Konoha in the distance, a sense of exhilaration filled their minds.
"Fuzei, I wonder what you'll do in the future?"
"What do you mean, 'later'?"
"After the war."
"Hmm... maybe, under the family's arrangement, we should raise the insects in the clan's territory. Many of the younger generation need insects, and they're not easy to raise!" Aburame Fuzei took a bite of a dumpling, and her thoughts floated out from her mouth.
Goenji slowly lay back on the soft grass, looking at the distant scenery. Hearing her words, he finally smiled and said, "Insect, I heard that your Aburame's territory, and even many members, have some insect-related businesses. They must be very profitable."
Goenji felt very relaxed being with Aburame Fuzei, and didn't have time to think about anything else, instead focusing his attention on things he wouldn't normally notice.
"Of course, many medical companies in the Shinobi World need the insects cultivated by our Aburame as a medicinal ingredient. Even many of the medicinal ingredients in Konoha are provided by our Aburame, those related to insects."
The Aburame Fuzei.
As members of the Aburame, they are considered a major family in Konoha, with businesses spanning the entire Land of Fire. However, the insect breeding base within Konoha is their most important asset.
They are breeding some important combat insects.
Meanwhile, outside, there are many retired Aburame who cultivate more fun insects, or delicious insects, or insects that are useful in various aspects such as medicine.
It supports a large portion of the companies in the Land of Fire.
It is also one of the important industries that support the improvement of their Aburame.
"That's really amazing. I've never heard of such a thing before. These insects are indeed very useful. With your family's cultivation, their usefulness will definitely be even greater. Ninjutsu is so convenient. What kind of power do you think would be revealed if Ninjutsu were no longer used for combat but for cultivation and creation?"
Goenji smiled, a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth.
Aburame Fuzei was taken aback. "What can happen? It's probably just so-so. Besides, Ninjutsu is for fighting. Using it to cultivate insects to sell is just one of our clan's means of survival. The most important thing is its role in combat."
The purpose of eliminating the enemy.
How could Ninjutsu not be used in combat?
Even if it's not about combat, it's still related to combat, so it can't be used entirely for creation.
"That's not necessarily true. The Shinobi World will definitely return to peace in the future, and may even be unified. So at that time, Ninjutsu will definitely be used for creation, and fighting will only be one aspect," Goenji said confidently.
Aburame Fuzei looked at Goenji with surprise. A gentle breeze lifted her hood, revealing her blue eyes, which were now filled with a smile.
"Really? I think that's possible, but I doubt it'll happen in our generation... Hmm... not necessarily. You're so talented, maybe you'll become Hokage someday and lead us to unify the Shinobi World... If it's you, you should have a chance."
Her azure eyes sparkled with laughter, and her joy was evident in the corners of her eyes.
However, most of the comments were in jest.
No matter how talented someone is, they're still just a ninja. To unify the world, one must possess strength that surpasses that of everyone in the Shinobi World.
That kind of power is probably only something that the legendary Sage of Six Paths could achieve.
The probability of that is much lower than the probability of her becoming Hokage.
Goenji laughed and said, "Yes, the chances are still too small, but who can say what will happen in the future? Maybe I'll accomplish it, something that none of the Hokage or other strong people could do."
"I will be the pioneer, ruling the entire Shinobi World."
"Haha, you're ambitious. If you ever decide to rule the Shinobi World, I'll support you and persuade my clan. I believe they'll be willing, since we, the Aburame, are people who dislike war."
Compared to fighting, we prefer to be quiet, collecting all sorts of bugs we've never seen before, even raising them, occasionally watching a movie, or relaxing whenever we want, like we are now.
Looking at the distant scenery, they talked about the bright future.
She lay down next to Goenji, turned her head to the side, and looked at Goenji with her blue eyes and upturned red lips.
The tenderness in Aburame Fuzei words stunned Goenji.
The previous Aburame Fuzei came from the Root, but now she has such a tender side. Indeed, the existence of the Root is a double-edged sword.
Undeniably, Root did give Konoha a greater advantage in war and increased Konoha chances of survival, but it will inevitably be replaced in the future.
Just like in ancient times, political policies such as the "equalization of land tax and poll tax" changed with the times, so too did the Root.
The Aburame Fuzei's tender side truly touched him.
"Alright, I will make the world beautiful again. It's my dream, and I'm sure Ryoma and Ze will support me. In the Pure Land, I'll tell the First and Second Hokage about how amazing their former teammates were, and then bless me to unify the Shinobi World and fulfill the dream that even the First couldn't achieve."
Goenji raised his right hand high, his five fingers clenched tightly.
Whoosh--!
Just then, the Aburame Fuzei reached out her hand, and their fists touched.
"Come on."
Goenji turned his head to the side and saw her entire face.
With her blue eyes, red lips, and rosy cheeks, still a bit chubby, she was all smiles.