Being Kazekage was dangerous, but was being a Jonin any safer?
Ethan silently watched Aoki's departing figure and shook his head.
He didn't remember seeing any trace of this Jonin named "Aoki" in the original Naruto storyline.
Which really left only one likely explanation.
Aoki probably died during the Third Shinobi War.
And since he had no connections to the main cast, his name never made it into the records that survived.
Ethan glanced around at the growing crowd of shinobi gathering nearby.
After exchanging a brief goodbye with Pakura, he turned and headed toward his house.
Right now, he only has 370 Skill Points.
The top-tier combat items in the system store were completely out of reach.
But according to the memories he inherited, Aoki was at least a high-level Jonin, possibly even stronger than Baki would be a decade later.
Still, Ethan wasn't overly worried.
After all…
He had the system.
Sure, it might feel a little shameless to rely on it, but the system was part of his power now.
As soon as he got home, he planned to convert every last Skill Point into Affinity items and raise people's Affinity as fast as possible.
Between tonight and tomorrow morning, he should be able to generate several thousand Skill Points.
That still wouldn't be enough to buy something absurd like the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan or the Rinnegan.
But with a few thousand points, he should still be able to pick up something useful.
After all, he had only seen the first page of the exchange catalog so far.
There were still billions of pages of items waiting to be explored.
.
.
.
"So, a sparring match… Aoki's always had his eye on the Kazekage seat. Looks like he finally found his chance."
Deep within the center of the Sunagakure, inside a plain, unremarkable room, Chiyo spoke calmly from her chair.
"Heh… sister, Aoki's always been fond of clever little tricks," Ebizo replied with a faint smile.
"That's probably why, despite his talent, he's never quite managed to grow up."
Though he appeared relaxed, the cloudy eyes behind his smile held no warmth.
After all, the siblings had already made Rasa's position clear during the meeting.
No one had objected at the time.
Yet the moment the meeting ended, Aoki publicly challenged Rasa.
A move like that was essentially a subtle challenge to their authority.
"Should I go warn Jonin Aoki?" a gentle female voice suddenly asked.
A woman stepped forward from the shadows.
She wore a black cloak and a rabbit-shaped mask.
Even with the loose cloak concealing most of her form, her silhouette suggested a graceful and athletic build.
She stood, wearing dark heeled boots that gave her a quiet, commanding presence.
The faint skin visible at her ankles and the base of her neck was pale and flawless.
Across the exposed portion of her neck were several markings common among Sunagakure puppet masters, a sign of her specialization.
This masked woman had been observing the meeting earlier from the corner of the office.
Her name was Masami.
Chiyo thought for a moment before slowly shaking her head.
"No. Aoki's request for a spar is perfectly reasonable, and Rasa accepted it himself."
"If we step in now, it will only make things worse. Those who doubt him will keep doubting him."
Ebizo nodded in agreement.
"If Rasa had refused the challenge, we would've had a solid reason to support him."
"But he accepted it on the spot."
He sighed softly.
Being Kazekage didn't necessarily require someone to be the strongest shinobi in the village.
But at the very least, they should be among the top five or six fighters.
Otherwise, no one would take them seriously.
.
.
.
Both Chiyo and Ebizo had always been optimistic about Rasa's potential.
But based on Rasa's past record and considering he was only twenty-three years old, it would probably take a few more years before he could realistically rank among the village's top fighters.
Their original plan had been simple.
Delay the coming war as long as possible.
If they could buy even one or two more years, Rasa might grow strong enough to become the Fourth Kazekage naturally.
But now…
By accepting Aoki's challenge so recklessly, Rasa had complicated everything.
Whether he failed to grasp the meaning behind the challenge…
Or understood it and accepted anyway out of pride…
Either possibility suggested he might not yet be ready to lead the village.
Ebizo sighed again.
"At the end of the day, he's still just a twenty-three-year-old kid."
"And he's spent most of his career inside the village, with only a handful of real missions under his belt."
Chiyo remained silent for a moment before looking up at the masked woman standing in the center of the room.
"Masami, attend their spar tomorrow."
"As soon as it's over, report the result to us immediately."
Behind the rabbit mask, Masami's dark eyes showed a trace of hesitation.
Chiyo noticed at once and softened her tone.
"Don't worry. My brother and I can still look after ourselves."
"And whoever killed the Third Kazekage is long gone by now."
"As the deputy commander of the Kazekage Guard Platoon, it's only right that you meet the man who might become your future commander."
At that, Masami finally nodded.
She bowed her head slightly toward the two elders.
In the next instant...
She vanished.
The Kazekage Guard Platoon answered only to the Kazekage.
But with the Third Kazekage missing and presumed dead, the unit temporarily followed the orders of Chiyo and Ebizo.
Even so, as the elite guard assigned directly to the Kazekage, Masami only needed a slight nod when greeting or departing from the elders.
That privilege was one of the many perks of serving in the Kazekage's personal guard.
After Masami left, the room fell silent.
Nearly half an hour passed before Ebizo spoke again.
"Sister… Aoki may rely on tricks and lack long-term vision."
"But with war on the horizon, perhaps it would be better for the stronger shinobi to take the Kazekage seat."
Chiyo sighed.
"I just wish Rasa had refused the challenge."
"At least then we could've salvaged the situation."
She thought for a moment before continuing.
"Let's do this. If Rasa can last ten minutes against Aoki… then we'll do everything in our power to keep the Kazekage position vacant for another year."
Ebizo raised an eyebrow.
"And if he can't last ten minutes? Or even five minutes?"
"Then Aoki becomes the Fourth Kazekage."
"As for Rasa… we'll place him in an advisory role."
"He's still young. He'll have plenty of opportunities in the future."
Ebizo nodded slowly.
"Besides… Aoki isn't the only Jonin who wants that seat."
"But he's the first one bold enough to challenge Rasa openly."
"In that sense… I suppose the boy does have some nerve."
Meanwhile, news had begun spreading through the village.
The Third Kazekage had been missing for a full day.
And there was a strong possibility he had already been killed.
The information quietly circulated among senior chunin and higher ranks.
Before anyone had time to fully process the shock…
Another piece of news followed.
Rasa would be sparring with Jonin Aoki.
Put the two together, and the meaning was obvious.
Even the slowest shinobi could read between the lines.
Within hours, ambitious chunin had already begun sending gifts to Aoki's home through intermediaries.
Some Jonin delivered presents personally.
Only the powerful Jonin remained silent.
They knew Aoki's flaws well.
Even if he did become Kazekage, it would probably only be temporary leadership for a few years.
As for Rasa…
Most people were pessimistic.
Everyone acknowledged his potential.
Perhaps in a few years, he would surpass Aoki.
But right now?
A twenty-three-year-old shinobi simply wasn't expected to defeat a battle-hardened veteran like Aoki.
Ethan walked calmly through the village streets.
Whenever shinobi or civilians greeted him, he nodded politely in return.
The reactions were almost identical every time.
First surprise.
Then disbelief.
Finally, gratitude.
It wasn't their fault for reacting that way.
The Sunagakure was a rigidly hierarchical place, and most shinobi had notoriously short tempers.
Someone like Ethan, who treated everyone with equal courtesy regardless of rank, was extremely rare.
Fifteen minutes later, Ethan arrived home.
The house felt both familiar and strangely unfamiliar.
He walked straight into the kitchen...
And disappeared.
.
.
Moments later, Ethan was sitting in a hidden underground chamber, seven meters below the house.
He sat on a stone platform and shook his head.
He truly hadn't expected Rasa to be this paranoid.
The man had actually bought a house with a secret underground training room just to ensure he could cultivate in peace.
Ethan couldn't remember seeing anything like that in the original series.
But then again…
Considering how little screen time Rasa actually had in the story...
Maybe it wasn't so surprising after all.
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