In this world.
In the Hidden Mist Village.
Uehara Soma is eager to improve his strength.
And what Uehara Soma relies on is the forging system.
Completing forging can get a reward.
Guiding contracts can also get a reward.
With these rewards, Uehara Soma obtained Familiar level Kenjutsu and Perfect level Water Release talent.
Uehara Soma was able to increase his overall strength from Genin level to Chunin level in such a short time.
It can be said that forging is the fundamental reliance of Uehara Soma.
But the prerequisite for forging is to have a Blueprint.
And Blueprints can only be obtained through the lottery machine.
One hundred reputation points for one lottery draw.
Based on the previous lottery experience, Uehara Soma realized that he would need to do at least ten consecutive draws to have a better chance of obtaining a Blueprint.
Ten consecutive draws require one thousand reputation points.
"After completing the forging of Kiriichimonji last time, I first went to the Mizukage's Building, then returned to Forging Island, met Arafuni, and shortly after, Juzo-senpai came to Forging Island."
"At that time, my reputation was over three hundred points."
"Suddenly, my reputation skyrocketed by over six hundred points."
Uehara Soma's eyes flickered for a moment.
"That time, there's a good chance it was because the Kaguya Clan learned about Kiriichimonji."
"Reputation comes from people."
"The more people who know, the more reputation I have."
"But the more people who know, the more complex and dangerous my situation becomes."
"But if I keep it hidden, I won't be able to obtain new Blueprints."
"Therefore, I must spread the word about Ninjato, let more people know, but also control it."
Uehara Soma pondered for a moment.
"There are several ways to spread the word about Ninjato."
"One, I actively leave Forging Island and tell some people about Ninjato."
"Two, I send someone out to spread the word about Ninjato."
"Three, let people come to Forging Island."
"The first method is definitely not suitable, and the second method is a bit difficult to control."
"So currently, the third method may be the best choice."
"Coincidentally, I still have three slots left for the four forging assistant positions given to me by Mizukage-sama."
"Once I learn the Water Release Ninjutsu that Juzo-senpai mentioned, I can start arranging."
"For many people, these slots should be very attractive."
"This time, I am aiming to gain reputation, but I also need to choose the candidates carefully."
...
The next day.
Biwa Juzo and Uehara Soma arrived at the training ground.
"Soma, today I'll teach you the Water Release: Water Fang Blade Jutsu."
"Yes, Juzo-senpai."
Land of Fire.
Hoshigaki Kisame glanced back at Zabuza and sneered.
"Kid, is this all you've got?"
"You dare to call yourself a genius of the Hidden Mist Village? What kind of genius are you? You're just taking advantage of your group's overall weakness. If you were in my group, you wouldn't even survive the second round."
Hoshigaki Kisame's impression of Zabuza was extremely poor.
The scene where the two faced off on Forging Island was something Hoshigaki Kisame would never forget.
Hoshigaki Kisame wasn't usually bothered by being provoked.
But that time, Uehara Soma was in the midst of forging in the forging room.
Hoshigaki Kisame knew how important that forging session was for Uehara Soma.
It was about the survival of Forging Island.
Of course, Zabuza might not have known the specifics of the situation.
But that didn't stop Hoshigaki Kisame from disliking Zabuza.
Furthermore, Zabuza's attitude changed for the worse after learning that Uehara Soma could forge a Ninjato of the Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords level, which made Hoshigaki Kisame's attitude towards Zabuza even worse.
Zabuza subconsciously wanted to retaliate.
But when the words were about to come out, Zabuza forcibly swallowed them back.
Zabuza didn't want to worsen his impression in Uehara Soma's eyes.
Besides Zabuza's desire for Ninjato, he genuinely respected the forger who could forge a Ninjato of such a high level as the Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords.
Hoshigaki Kisame is Uehara Soma's excellent friend.
Zabuza remained silent, but silently repeated all the retorts to Hoshigaki Kisame in his mind.
Not receiving a response made Hoshigaki Kisame feel a bit uninteresting, so he withdrew his gaze.
A figure approached the two at an extremely fast speed.
An ANBU ninja from the Hidden Mist Village.
"Hoshigaki Kisame, Momochi Zabuza, listen up."
Both of them looked at the ANBU ninja, their expressions becoming serious.
"Sarutobi Asuma and Hatake Kakashi's locations have already been located. Our people are now creating opportunities for you to face them one-on-one."
"Come with me now."
"Mizukage-sama values you greatly and has entrusted this task to you."
"I hope you won't disappoint Mizukage-sama."
Both nodded heavily.
"Please rest assured, we will do our utmost!"
The ANBU ninja took Hoshigaki Kisame and Zabuza away.
An elderly ninja from the Hidden Mist Village came out, deeply watching the direction the three had left, and sighed.
"Placing the future hope of the entire village on you two young people is indeed somewhat unfair for you."
"But, it's also inevitable."
"The great battlefields have continuously fallen into disadvantage."
"The Mist Seven suffered a disastrous defeat."
"We can only strive to regain some momentum in the younger generation of ninjas."
"I hope you can withstand this pressure."
"If even you fail, then the Hidden Mist Village may enter its darkest era."
"I wonder how many years it will take to find a glimmer of new hope."
The elderly ninja looked up at the sky.
"If only we could return to the era when Lord Second was still around."
The worse the situation in the Hidden Mist Village becomes, the more the older ninjas in the village long for the days of the old Hidden Mist Village.
During the Second Mizukage's era, the Hidden Mist Village was in a much better state than it is now.
The entire village was in a different condition.
Previously, even after many defeats, the people in the village never felt hopeless; they believed they could fight back even after failure.
But now, the situation is different; a single defeat can deal a huge blow to the village.
"Compared to Second, Third is still lacking."
"And with the defeat of the Mist Seven, the candidates for the Fourth Mizukage are uncertain."
As an elite team directly under the Mizukage, the Mist Seven hold a high position in the Hidden Mist Village.
Not only are they formidable in strength, but they also have the ability to handle village affairs and lead teams in battle.
Therefore, they are qualified to be considered as one of the successors to the Mizukage.
However, after experiencing the disastrous defeat against the Konoha Genin last time, all members of the Mist Seven have lost this qualification.
"We're here."
The voice of the ANBU ninja rang out.
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