Mitokado Homura opened his mouth, but suddenly found that not a word could come out.
He was completely stunned by Senju Chen.
Yes, what's different?
They can accept the puppet master playing with traps since childhood, they can accept the children of the Aburame Clan raising bugs since they were young, and they can accept the children of the Inuzuka Clan eating and living together with Ninja Dog... Because these are "traditions" and "secret techniques" within the scope of their knowledge.
But they can't accept it now. Konoha's children have learned how to calculate parabolas and how to replace energy batteries since they were young.
Maybe this is a kind of arrogance and prejudice against unknown and new things that comes from the bottom of my heart.
But now Senju Chen has torn apart their prejudices bloody and mercilessly and put them on the table.
The pipe in Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand was extinguished at some point. In fact, as the old strong men of the village and those who have practiced "traditional Ninjutsu" since childhood, they actually told Senju Chen that they don't think highly of those "Scientific Ninja Tool".
It's to look down upon, not to look down upon.
As "veteran" strong men, they have practiced Ninjutsu all their lives. In fact, they believe more in what they have obtained through hard work, rather than in those "external forces".
But they can't refute Senju Chen, is Puppet Technique an external force? If Puppet Technique is not, then "Scientific Ninja Tool" cannot be regarded as an external force.
He looked at the young man in front of him who was talking eloquently and whose logic was terrifyingly rigorous, and he felt a sense of helpless frustration in his heart.
Because Senju Chen is not debating with them at all.
He is teaching them a lesson.
"My reform is not to abolish Ninjutsu, but to cultivate 'talents' for Konoha." The weight of Senju Chen's words is heavier than before.
"I am selecting talents for Konoha who have the potential to become the 'puppet master' like Sunagakure!"
"It's just that their 'puppet' is no longer a traditional puppet, but a drone, a tactical prosthesis, an electromagnetic gun, and a floating shield! What they want to learn is no longer a single mechanism technique, but a brand new knowledge system covering physics, chemistry, biology, and information!"
"But can we all rely on Mr. Amado alone? What if he leaves? What if he dies?"
"With such a powerful technology, why don't we use Konoha?"
"That's why I proposed reforming teaching and wanted to pass on this technology so that the second and third Amado can appear in the village in the future."
"When Konoha Ninja in the future has Fire Release on his left hand and Chakra Cannon on his right hand, and is still wearing deflection armor that can withstand A-level Ninjutsu... at that time,"
Senju Chen stood up, walked to the window, and stood side by side with Tsunade, overlooking the prosperous village below.
"Let alone a small Sunagakure, even if Five Great Shinobi Villages unite, how can they compete with us?"
Tsunade looked at his brother's profile, his eyes filled with brilliance.
She knew that this confrontation was over.
After a long period of eye contact with several other elders, Hiruzen Sarutobi let out a long sigh, with a hint of relief and a hint of complete surrender in his voice.
"We agreed."
He lit the pipe again and took a deep breath, "However, Little Chen, this matter is of great importance, and we must first open a 'Experimental Class' in the Ninja Academy in a 'trial' way. If after one year, the overall score of this class cannot surpass the ordinary class, then all related courses must be stopped immediately."
"After all, Ninjutsu is the real foundation. We cannot give up the real foundation for First Gate technology."
This can be regarded as the final stubbornness of these "old people from the old era".
"Yes." Senju Chen agreed without hesitation.
One year?
He is confident that in just half a year, this so-called "Experimental Class" will become the "magic class" that all students want to get into.
When the time comes, nothing can be done to stop it.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu looked at each other and could only nod helplessly.
Shikaku Nara, on the other hand, looked deeply at Senju Chen. Throughout the entire meeting, he did not express any opinions or remarks.
After the meeting, Tsunade and Senju Chen walked out of the conference room together, with relaxed smiles on their faces.
"You brat, this time it's your wish, right?" Tsunade said.
"I still have to thank sister." Senju Chen chuckled.
At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi's slightly older voice came from behind.
"Little Chen."
The two stopped and looked back.
I saw Hiruzen Sarutobi standing alone in the shadow of the corridor, with a complex expression on his wrinkled face that Senju Chen had never seen before.
There, there was no longer the majesty of Hokage, nor the kindness of the elders. There was only a pure exploration belonging to an old man.
"You tell me, all you have done is to build Medical Department and engage in scientific research, and now you want to reform the school..."
He stared into Senju Chen's eyes and asked word for word, "Is the terrifyingly powerful Konoha you described... to protect Will of Fire, or to... satisfy your own ambitions?"
Elegy of the old times
The light in the corridor is stretched very long, and the junction of shadow and light just separates Hiruzen Sarutobi and Senju Chen.
Tsunade frowned slightly and subconsciously took a half step forward to block Senju Chen. The aura belonging to Fifth Hokage rose instantly.
"Old man, what do you mean?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi ignored Tsunade's question. His eyes were like a rusty Kunai, nailed to Senju Chen.
That wrinkled face had a complex expression that Senju Chen had never seen before.
The air seemed to freeze at this moment.
The smile on Senju Chen's face slowly faded.
"Grandpa Third," Senju Chen's voice was as calm as water, without any emotion, "What do you think is Will of Fire?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was stunned. He had answered this question countless times and taught it countless times.
"Will of Fire, is the consciousness of protecting the village and companions, and sacrificing oneself for the sake of the village and family!"
Senju Chen nodded, and then changed the subject, "Then let me ask you again, what is the purpose of guarding? What is the purpose of sacrifice?"
"Of course it's for..." Hiruzen Sarutobi got stuck mid-sentence.
"It's for victory, right?" Senju Chen continued for him, "It's for the survival of the village and for the living people to live a better life."
"I admit, I have ambitions." Senju Chen said calmly.
"My ambition is to make the ninjas of Konoha no longer need to sacrifice for a 'tragic victory'! My ambition is to make 'Will of Fire' no longer a tragic slogan that needs to be practiced with life, but a glorious totem engraved on the winner's flag!"
"If the ultimate result of guarding is failure and everyone dies together, then what is the meaning of this kind of guarding? If sacrifice cannot bring victory, then what else can be left of this kind of sacrifice besides tragic and heroic?"
"My ambition is to be the future Konoha Ninja. When I think of my predecessors, what comes to mind is not the cold names on the tombstones, but the legends written on the battlefield with the words 'win with less' and 'the enemy flees'!"
"Grandpa Third, you have guarded Konoha all your life. Do you think it would be better to let our children hold Shuriken and Kunai, shout the slogan 'Will of Fire', and die tragically with the enemy, which would better embody Will of Fire?"
"Would it be better to let them blow the enemy to pieces with one shot and then go home to eat hot pot and sing songs?"
"..."