War Begins!

All the players wore grave expressions, more nervous than they had ever been!

They finally realized how insignificant they were.

In the face of absolute strength, all their flashy tricks were meaningless!

At first, the players had been excited.

They had thought this event would hand them Contribution Points for free.

But as the Grass Ninja pushed farther in, they kept getting mercilessly thrashed.

Everyone discovered a shocking truth.

As ninjas of Hidden Jun Village, they could not even protect their own village!

They even...

Struggled to complete the quest!

Village chief... why aren't you here yet?

If you don't come soon, we won't be able to hold out any longer!

Every player looked desperate and miserable.

Yet they did not hesitate, launching wave after wave of attacks to defend Hidden Jun Village and await Ye Chen's arrival!

[Congratulations to player Raijin for completing the main quest. Awarded 1,500 Contribution Points.]

[Congratulations to player Junyi Ximeng for completing the main quest. Awarded 1,500 Contribution Points.]

As the system notifications rang out, Ye Chen slowly appeared before everyone.

Realizing that the main quest was over, the players erupted in cheers.

"Woohoo! Finally!!!"

Through their relentless efforts, they had kept the Grass Ninja from taking another step toward the village!

And they had successfully received their system rewards.

That enormous sense of achievement left them deeply satisfied.

Defending the village and taking part in a village war.

This was practically a massive event!

Not to mention how generous the rewards were.

They had received a full fifteen hundred Contribution Points.

With those fifteen hundred Contribution Points, their strength would definitely skyrocket!

Every player looked excited.

They looked forward to growing stronger and to the next event.

"Thank you all for everything you've done for Hidden Jun Village. Leave the rest to me!"

Ye Chen smiled faintly, looking every bit the leader as he brought the quest to a close with those words.

"Long live the village chief!"

"Hidden Jun forever!"

"Hidden Jun Village! Hidden Jun Village! Hidden Jun Village!"

The players finally relaxed after the grueling battle they had just endured.

Now, at last, they could relax.

One Sword Opens Heaven could not help marveling, "This game is way too realistic!"

"I almost thought the enemies were being played by real people! They're so smart!"

He had tried circling behind them for a sneak attack, only to be spotted by the other Grass Ninja!

They could even coordinate with one another!

How had they managed that?

At that moment, the Grass Ninja were not particularly tired physically.

The Chakra they had spent eliminating their enemies amounted to barely a thousandth of their reserves!

But mentally, they were utterly exhausted.

The way those Hidden Jun Village ninjas looked at them filled them with unspeakable dread!

To be honest, they were all battle-hardened ninjas.

They had taken thousands of lives, if not tens of thousands, and believed they had long since hardened themselves.

Even the sight of a friend's corpse barely stirred their emotions anymore.

Yet now, merely the expressions on those people's faces and the stares fixed on them...

Were enough to make fear grow in their hearts.

What kind of ninjas were these?

And who had trained them?

Why were they so strange?

While the Grass Ninja were caught up in those emotions...

They barely reacted even when Ye Chen suddenly appeared.

Just as they were about to raise their hands and wipe everyone out with another Ninjutsu...

The group seemed to lose all interest in them.

A moment ago, every one of them had been lunging forward like ravenous beasts, but now they treated the Grass Ninja as though they did not exist!

The abrupt change left the Grass Ninja even more bewildered.

"What Ninjutsu are you planning to buy with your Contribution Points?"

A female player turned to ask the person beside her.

Some players had already begun asking the veterans for advice.

"Village chief, can I ask which Ninjutsu is strongest?"

The crowd gathered around Ye Chen and launched into a heated discussion.

At that point, the squad leader realized that this man must be the chief of Hidden Jun Village!

Had he just heard those people call this man "Jun Kage"?

Using "army" as his Kage title-how arrogant!

"You must be the chief of Hidden Jun Village, correct?"

The Grass Ninja leader put away the Kunai in his hand and assumed a friendly expression.

"My name is Yoshino Ichiro. I'm a Jonin from Kusagakure."

Yoshino Ichiro announced his identity.

Although Kusagakure was not a major ninja village like Konoha, it was still fairly well known.

Yoshino Ichiro believed Ye Chen would be terrified as soon as he heard his name and rank.

After all, when a second ninja village appeared within the same country, there was only one possible outcome.

Death!

The thought filled Yoshino Ichiro with smug satisfaction.

No matter how bizarre this man's village might be, everything was meaningless in the face of absolute strength.

For some unknown reason, its ninjas could keep coming back to life.

But...

So what?

If Kusagakure deployed its entire main force, what difference would their resurrection make?

They could simply restrain them and make them wish they were dead!

"I'm sure you know why I've come."

"Training ninjas and establishing your own Ninja Village without permission from Kusagakure and the Land of Grass is a capital offense."

"You... understand the consequences, don't you?"

Yoshino Ichiro gave him an unsettling smile.

Ye Chen nodded calmly. "I do."

"Good... then let's speak frankly."

"You now have two choices."

"Join Kusagakure, and you may live."

"Or die!"

As Yoshino Ichiro finished speaking, an icy, suffocating sensation instantly enveloped everyone.

At that moment, Yoshino Ichiro felt almost like a god.

One who ruled over life and death!

Whichever option Ye Chen chose, Yoshino Ichiro stood to gain without losing a thing!

If Ye Chen joined Kusagakure, Yoshino Ichiro would gain a talented man like him.

His ability to train such disciplined ninjas, unafraid of sacrifice, proved how skilled he was as an instructor.

And with that secret technique that allowed people to keep returning to life...

Ye Chen was undeniably valuable!

His joining Kusagakure would certainly send its fighting strength soaring.

And Yoshino Ichiro would receive the greatest share of the credit!

But if Ye Chen refused and did not want to join...

That would be easy to handle too.

He could simply slaughter everyone in Hidden Jun Village.

The secret resurrection technique would be his for the taking!

As for Ye Chen, he could die for all Yoshino Ichiro cared!

Were fallen geniuses rare in the Shinobi World?

Choose the first option, and live!

Choose the second, and die!

Yoshino Ichiro had demonstrated the art of threats and enticement to perfection!

At this point, even an idiot would know which choice to make.

Ye Chen would definitely surrender.

That was exactly what Yoshino Ichiro wanted.

After all, taking Hidden Jun Village without spilling any blood would be ideal!

For an instant, Yoshino Ichiro could almost see himself returning to Kusagakure after this great achievement and rising to the top.

Sometimes, life was just that wondrous.

Earning glory and reaching the pinnacle of life could happen in a single moment!

And yet...

Ye Chen laughed.

"What are you laughing at?" Yoshino Ichiro frowned deeply.

He could still laugh at a time like this?

Ye Chen laughed even louder.

"I asked what you're laughing at!" Yoshino Ichiro shouted.

"I'm laughing at how naive you are!"

"Why are there only two choices?"

"Did it never occur to you that I might choose to declare war on Kusagakure?"