The entire Hidden Mist Village is talking about this matter.
"Truly a genius!"
"The top of the younger generation!"
"No, he has already surpassed the younger generation."
"Our own Minato Namikaze from Hidden Mist Village!"
"It's no longer appropriate to refer to him as the Bloodthirsty Shark Hoshigaki Kisame."
"The scene of controlling thousands of sharks to attack Konoha ninjas was too shocking!"
"King of the Sharks!"
"That title sounds good."
"And with the Zanpakuto, it was precisely the Great Blacksmith from the Forging Department who crafted the Sword of Wisdom that allowed Hoshigaki Kisame to reach this level; even more importantly, the Sword of Wisdom."
"It is now completely certain that the Zanpakuto is far superior to the Seven Ninja Swords."
"The Shinigami Squad is far superior to the Seven Ninja Swords."
"The current Great Blacksmith is far superior to the Great Blacksmith of the past."
Some people couldn't help but mock the Hozuki Clan.
"The Hozuki Clan is so foolish for choosing the Seven Ninja Swords and isolating themselves from the Zanpakuto."
The Hozuki Clan, already feeling the loss of the Executioner's Blade, became even more frustrated after hearing these comments.
However, they had no way to refute it.
In fact, many members of the Hozuki Clan now believe that Hozuki Kazuhiko's decision back then was wrong.
In response to such voices, Hozuki Kazuhiko showed his tough stance.
"I have my own plans."
"Everything I do is for the long-term benefit of the Hozuki Clan."
"Allies with the Zanpakuto? That's merely a short-term solution!"
"If anyone is dissatisfied, they should leave the Hozuki Clan."
"Our Hozuki Clan does not need such disloyal elements."
Hidden Cloud Village.
The Fourth Raikage looked towards the Land of Water, his eyes flashing for a moment.
"Hidden Mist Village is indeed worth paying attention to now."
"Has there been any progress on the plan to investigate that Blacksmith and the Zanpakuto?"
The Ninja below reported.
"Report to Raikage-sama, Hidden Mist Village has done a good job of defending the Blacksmith, and since Kaguya Neko's attempt to seize Kiriichimonji, the Shinigami Squad members rarely operate alone."
"It's very difficult to gather intelligence."
Biwa Juzo, as the head responsible for the Sand front, naturally had no shortage of ninjas around him.
Then there are Fuguki Suikazan and Kurosuki Raiga.
Fuguki Suikazan's situation is similar to Biwa Juzo's.
As for Kurosuki Raiga, his current style is rather sneaky.
If he has to fight, he first finds a safe position and only then considers the conditions for fighting.
The current Kurosuki Raiga would never risk his life to engage in combat.
For Hoshigaki Kisame and Ameyuri Ringo.
One has regained the top position among the younger generation.
The other is the top female ninja of the younger generation.
The Hidden Mist army places significant importance on both.
"Kaguya Neko..."
The Fourth Raikage pondered for a moment.
"Send someone to find Kaguya Neko and attempt to make contact with him."
Previously, the Fourth Raikage did not see the value in contacting Kaguya Neko because he believed that Kaguya Neko was likely not the real culprit behind the destruction of the Kaguya Clan but rather a scapegoat for Hidden Mist Village.
It is too difficult for a single ninja to annihilate an entire ninja clan overnight.
The Kaguya Clan is no small ninja clan.
However, Kaguya Neko's attack on Hoshigaki Kisame and seizure of Kiriichimonji made the Fourth Raikage reconsider his thoughts.
Additionally, the Fourth Raikage had heard that the Hozuki Clan was attacked, a young genius was killed, and the Executioner's Blade was lost, and that this was also the work of Kaguya Neko.
Considering these two events, the Fourth Raikage felt that even if Kaguya Neko had previously been a scapegoat for Hidden Mist Village, his current intentions might have changed.
"Yes, Raikage-sama."
Hidden Rock Village.
Onoki's thoughts were similar to those of the Fourth Raikage. With no gains from intelligence operations into Hidden Mist Village and no progress in investigating the Shinigami Squad members, the focus shifted to Kaguya Neko, who was considered a potential breakthrough.
Onoki, standing on high ground, recalled some old events. The Second Tsuchikage was no more, having perished in battle with the Second Mizukage.
"It is said that Hozuki Mangetsu's talent is not inferior to that of the Hozuki Gengetsu."
"Right now, it's okay, but if Hozuki Clan hadn't declined the Zanpakuto, Hozuki Mangetsu, who with a Zanpakuto, would definitely have progressed much faster and become much stronger."
"Even after maturing, he might surpass the Hozuki Gengetsu of that time."
"But the Hozuki Clan is ultimately still a part of Hidden Mist Village."
"If the Hozuki Clan and the Zanpakuto were combined, how terrifying would that be?"
Onoki was very concerned about this.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to Onoki.
"The Kaguya Clan and Hidden Mist Village had many conflicts, and now the Kaguya Clan was weakened under the hands of Kaguya Neko."
"Now the Hozuki Clan also has significant conflicts with Hidden Mist Village."
"If we could push for the Hozuki Clan and Hidden Mist Village to become as antagonistic as the Kaguya Clan and Hidden Mist Village, it would be very beneficial for other ninja villages."
"Konoha's Shimura Danzo is very skilled at doing such things."
"Even the internal conflicts between the Uchiha and Konoha have become more intense under Shimura Danzo's manipulation."
"He perfectly inherited the Second Hokage's hostility towards the Uchiha."
"Always referring to the Uchiha as inherently evil…"
"For Shimura Danzo, driving a wedge between the Hozuki Clan and Hidden Mist Village should be a straightforward task as long as he can find an opportunity to exploit."
Hidden Sand Village.
Rasa had a worried expression.
As Hidden Mist Village grew stronger, the situation for Hidden Sand Village naturally worsened.
After all, they were currently at odds with each other.
Not only are the current adult ninjas no match for Hidden Mist Village, but even the future of the younger ninjas is not a match for them.
Rasa felt that the future was bleak.
"Right now, there's me and Pakura, but what about in the future? Who can Hidden Sand Village rely on?"
Rasa really couldn't think of anyone.
Neither Maki nor Baki seemed up to the task.
Rasa pondered for a long time.
"Hidden Mist Village rose to prominence thanks to the Blacksmith."
"So why can't Hidden Sand Village rise with the Puppet Masters?"
"Even without Sasori, Hidden Sand Village should still be able to cultivate other Puppet Masters."
"They don't need to be able to create Puppets; as long as they can control them, that's enough."
That day, Rasa went to Chiyo's residence.
He knocked on the door, which was opened by Ebizo.
A figure in Hidden Sand Village similar to Konoha's Danzo and Chiyo's younger brother.
"Kazekage-sama."
"Ebizo-san, I would like to see Chiyo-san. There are very important matters that I need to discuss with her."
Ebizo glanced back.
"I'll ask her, but Kazekage-sama, don't get your hopes up too high."
Konoha.
Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned deeply, in a very bad mood.
Hoshigaki Kisame regaining the title of top of the younger generation was not a major issue.
Danzo's defeat was not a major issue.
Hidden Mist Village having a future candidate for Mizukage was not a major issue either.
After all, Konoha already had Minato Namikaze.
In terms of Kage-level ninjas, Konoha was not lacking.
There were also Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and himself.
However, Shinnosuke losing an arm was something Hiruzen could not accept.
Hiruzen had high hopes for Shinnosuke.
He had been training him intensively from a very young age.
All sorts of resources were invested.
And Shinnosuke's performance did not disappoint Hiruzen.
Among his peers in Konoha, he was considered outstanding.
Of course, this was related to the fact that there were no exceptional talents of Shinnosuke's age.
Hiruzen, being a seasoned ninja, understood very well the impact of losing an arm on a ninja. If it couldn't be restored, it would certainly affect their strength.
"Shinnosuke…"
Hiruzen quickly handled the day's paperwork and headed rapidly toward the medical department.
A medical ninja greeted him.
"Hokage-sama."
"How is Shinnosuke?"
The medical ninja sighed.
"Sorry, Hokage-sama, we did our best."
Hiruzen's heart sank, and his expression darkened.
The medical ninja continued, "We used all our efforts, but we couldn't save Shinnosuke's arm."
Hiruzen was silent for a moment.
"I'll go see him."
"Hokage-sama, this way."
Hiruzen entered the ward.
Shinnosuke lay on the hospital bed, pale. Hearing the voice, he quickly looked up.
"Father…"
"Don't move. Rest and heal."
Hiruzen approached.
"Father, my arm… it's gone."
Shinnosuke's face showed a look of despair.
"From now on, I'm afraid I won't be able to be an eligible ninja."
Shinnosuke was a typical Ninjutsu ninja.
And most Ninjutsu required hand signs.
Most hand signs require two hands.
Losing an arm means that Shinnosuke will be unable to use many of the Ninjutsu he previously mastered.
Unless Shinnosuke can develop techniques for One-Handed Seals.
However, this is an extremely difficult task.
Especially considering that Shinnosuke's strength is based on many Ninjutsu techniques.
Even if Shinnosuke develops all his Ninjutsu into One-Handed Seals, his strength will still be significantly reduced compared to before.
It can be said that Sarutobi Shinnosuke's potential is far less than it was before.
He is even more weakened compared to Kisame losing Kiriichimonji.
"Rest assured and focus on your recovery. You will be fine."
"Shinnosuke, as a ninja, we should never give up hope, no matter the circumstances."
"Don't lose heart."
Hiruzen comforted Shinnosuke.
However, Hiruzen himself felt that Shinnosuke would no longer reach the heights he had once hoped for.
"Hoshigaki Kisame!"
"Sword of Wisdom!"
"Hidden Mist Village!"
"And that Blacksmith."
"I will not let you off easily for injuring Shinnosuke."
Hiruzen glanced at Shinnosuke's severed arm and a thought crossed his mind.
"Perhaps, I shouldn't limit Danzo."
"Let Danzo show Hidden Mist Village just how radical and violent an angry Konoha can be."
This was Hiruzen's true opinion of Danzo.
Radical to the point of madness.
Hiruzen had previously limited Danzo because he felt Danzo was too radical.
Radical approaches yield high returns but come with high risks.
Hiruzen believed Konoha did not need to be so radical.
Stability combined with subtlety is the true path.
Hiruzen had always handled external and internal village relations according to his principles.
But this time, Shinnosuke's severe injury had pierced Hiruzen's heart.
"Unforgivable."
Back home, Hiruzen had to consider another issue.
That is, Shinnosuke's "future" is likely ruined.
So, should Asuma be cultivated?
If so, how should Asuma be trained?
Hiruzen suddenly realized that he had never seriously understood Asuma.
He was surprisingly unfamiliar with this son of his.
"Have I really shown too little concern for Asuma?"
"But, as Hokage, it's unavoidable."
"I have too many things to deal with."
"If Asuma, as my son, can't understand this much, it would be very disappointing."
Not long after Hiruzen left the medical department.
A young man also left the medical department.
He looked up at the sky.
It was somewhat dim.
Only some residual rays of the setting sun.
Kakashi rubbed his eyes, feeling somewhat disoriented.
"Obito…"
When the Sharingan was still there, Kakashi felt as though Obito was still by his side.
The death of Konoha's White Fang plunged Kakashi into isolation.
After joining Minato's team, Kakashi had managed to pull himself out of it.
He had come to accept his two comrades, Obito and Rin.
But Obito had died.
Rin had also died.
Now even the Sharingan, the only thing that proved Obito's existence, was gone.
"If it were another ninja village, they would have never spared my life."
"So it's very likely, as they said, it was Uchiha Clan."
"They cannot tolerate having their Uchiha Clan's Sharingan in others."
"I had clearly promised Minato-sensei."
"I just wanted to carry Obito's hopes and witness the changes in this ninja world."
"Can't they even accept this?"
"It's too narrow-minded."
Kakashi withdrew his gaze.
"However, losing the Sharingan doesn't have a big impact on my strength."
"On the contrary, I feel a sense of relief."
"My whole body feels lighter."
"Now, I should be stronger than before."
Kakashi clenched his fist.
"Something that doesn't belong to you is never truly yours…"
"And what I have are only the Lightning Release techniques I developed myself, the ninjutsu I learned, and the body I inherited from my father. Perhaps I should follow in my father's footsteps."
"The Hatake-style Kenjutsu is not inferior to your Uchiha Sharingan!"
Losing the Sharingan suddenly gave Kakashi a desire to prove himself.
"First, return to the battlefield and put an end to this so-called debate about the number one."
At this moment, a murmur reached Kakashi's ears.
The discussion was about Hoshigaki Kisame.
When Kakashi heard the details, his expression instantly froze.
---
You can read up to 50 Advanced chapters and support me at patreon.com/Lookar