As for the war... Hoshino just smiled and remained silent.
Although Ōnoki is very strong, he is getting old and now he can't even find a decent successor.
The village's future is fraught with uncertainty, and it simply lacks the confidence to launch a large-scale war against other countries.
Konoha... has never initiated a war against other countries; it has always been a passive response.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was indeed a legendary figure in the Shinobi World, known as Shinobi Hero.
But now they are old and have long lost their former drive. In addition, there are many internal conflicts, and people from top to bottom are not of one mind.
Hoshino even suspected that Sunagakure might use a pretext to invade the border and extort money, Hiruzen Sarutobi might actually compromise, just to maintain a superficial peace.
Needless to say, the situation in Kirigakure was even worse. Obito causing trouble everywhere, even waging wars against other countries. It was a miracle they weren't getting attacked.
There's a saying from a past life that makes a lot of sense.
The First Kage pioneered the ninja village, ushering in a new era for the Shinobi World. The Second Kage developed the village and brought it to its peak. The Third Kage, however, was simply competing to see who could be worse.
Even if we take a step back and say...
If war really breaks out, he can simply max out the cybernetic implants and then have a clearance sale, or he can simply issue an order to force the assembly of cybernetic implants.
With over 200,000 villagers, the village could form a force of at least 20,000 prosthetic soldiers, and with logistical support, its war potential could be maximized.
Although most of them were cannon fodder, they were still enough to fight against the two major powers simultaneously without being at a disadvantage.
However, this method can only be used once. After that, regardless of whether Sunagakure wins or loses, it's all over.
Hoshino could consider moving to a different location to develop his career.
"I hope it won't develop like you described!" Rasa said with a hint of melancholy, knowing the situation perfectly well.
"The fate of Sunagakure was already sealed; we cannot escape it, we can only face it," Hoshino said softly.
"If war were to break out, Sunagakure might suffer severe damage, perhaps even be unable to recover, or even disappear altogether."
"But at least... we won't disappear without a trace."
Rasa didn't say anything more, but just stood silently beside Hoshino, watching the villagers below who were walking out of the shop with excited expressions.
They didn't know how much time had passed when a sudden knock on the door interrupted their thoughts.
After receiving permission, a member of the Anbu pushed open the door and entered, bowing his head to report, " Lord Kazekage, Ebizo requests your presence."
Rasa nodded, signaling the Anbu to withdraw.
Before leaving, he looked at Hoshino and emphasized, "I don't understand the future you're talking about, but I hope you won't disappoint me or the village."
Hoshino watched Rasa leave, and the door to the Kazekage's Office closed gently.
Standing by the window, his gaze remained fixed on the bustling street below.
Disappointed?
Rasa is the Kazekage, the leader of Sunagakure, but he also knows that the village's future is no longer entirely in his hands.
From the moment the village agreed to the prosthetic limb program, it was already on a path of no return.
But whether this path is right or wrong, you'll only know after you've taken it.
Konoha, at the home of Guiya.
Guiya respectfully handed a file to the ordinary-looking girl in front of him.
This was the identity he prepared for the Ice Release puppet.
My distant cousin, whose parents were ordinary people, tragically passed away in an accident.
This fostered her independent and solitary personality from a young age. She didn't know many people, had few friends, and rarely left her home.
Bingkui took the file, quickly glanced through it, and nodded slightly in satisfaction.
Guiya was a spy cultivated by the village from a young age. He had been in Konoha for at least a decade and his identity was perfectly clean.
In order to quickly place people in the village, the village made several preparations, leaving some gaps in Guiya's identity.
The Bingkui perfectly filled that position.
"Okay, I'll go out and take a look. You can go do whatever you need to do!"
"Yes, sir!"
Guiya watched the Bingkui leave the house, then wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
He activated his hidden agent, who had been concealed for over a decade, and even implanted his identity information within himself.
This means the village has a new plan, and the commotion it will cause might be quite significant, so I definitely won't be able to avoid it.
"It seems our peaceful days in Konoha are coming to an end."
Guiya sighed, carefully put away some secret letters containing intelligence, and then left the house.
at the same time.
The Bingkui arrived at the market in Konoha.
The area was bustling with people, filled with the sounds of vendors hawking their wares and laughter.
As expected of the resource-rich Land of Fire, and as expected of Konoha, the number one ninja village, the villagers' complexions are completely different from those of Sunagakure.
The villagers of Sunagakure always wore a look of weariness and sorrow that was hard to shake off.
The Konoha in front of them had bright smiles on their faces.
But thinking about it, it makes sense. In the Shinobi World, only the Five Great Villages are relatively safe. At least during several ninja wars, there were no instances of foreign enemies invading the ninja villages.
Furthermore, Konoha benefits from the resources of the Land of Fire, making its living pressure the least in the Shinobi World.
Aside from the Nine-Tails Attack, Konoha doesn't seem to have experienced any major upheavals.
No wonder people from other places regard Konoha as a land of hope, believing that once they come here, their lives will no longer be in danger.
Like a lighthouse from a past life, it has captivated the hearts of countless wanderers.
Bingkui strolled to the alley entrance, where several excited, childish voices suddenly rang out.
"Monsters should stay where monsters belong!"
She turned her head and saw three teenagers cornering the orange figure against the wall.
The boy in the lead grabbed a handful of mud and threw it at Naruto's forehead, yelling, "You're the fox demon who killed my father! Why don't you just die!"
Mud dripped down his golden bangs.
Naruto hastily wiped his face and loudly retorted, "I'm not a demon fox! I'm going to become Hokage..."
" Hokage? If the Nine-Tailed Fox had been Hokage, Konoha would have been destroyed long ago!"
Before Naruto could finish speaking, another child kicked over a garbage can on the side of the road.
The sour-smelling liquid instantly soaked through Naruto's old T-shirt.
The Bingkui didn't pause for a moment, and after cursing along with the people around it, it left.
After all, Naruto's identity is a taboo subject in the eyes of Konoha High Command, and he must be accompanied by many Anbu.
But in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes...
You can insult Naruto, you can throw things at Naruto, but you can't hit him, and you absolutely cannot have any affection or goodwill towards him.
Or rather, you can only show kindness to Naruto with his permission.
The villagers currently view Naruto primarily with dislike, so if someone were to suddenly change their attitude, it would definitely attract the attention of the Anbu.
That will cause trouble.
After all, the identity of Guiya's distant cousin couldn't withstand scrutiny, and there was absolutely no trace of Bingkui's life in the village.
If it goes unnoticed, it can be fooled, but once it's targeted, this identity will quickly be exposed.
Not long after.
Bingkui sat on a bench by the roadside, his fingertips gently stroking the bamboo skewer of the three-colored dumplings, his gaze inadvertently sweeping across the end of the street.
There stood a row of buildings with distinct styles.
The roof tiles with flame patterns on their upturned eaves contrast sharply with the minimalist style prevalent in Konoha.
Several men dressed in dark blue, high-collared tribal robes hurried past, their tribal emblems, resembling Gunbai, standing out prominently in the sunlight.
The Uchiha Clan!