Naruto: Who made him a ninja?

In a forest within Konoha, Pakura couldn't help but curl her lip as she watched Shūzawa appear, somewhat mockingly noting that he'd brought backup.

"What's wrong, Minister Shūzawa? Afraid to meet me alone?"

"As if. I *am* the minister, isn't it normal to bring guards?"

Shūzawa rolled his eyes. It wasn't that he didn't *want* to come alone, but he certainly wouldn't say it.

"It's *you* I'm worried about, choosing this location to meet me."

"Tch."

This time it was Pakura's turn to roll her eyes. She flicked her hair, which danced in the breeze, and said with a playful tone,

"What does Minister Shūzawa have to worry about? I think I'm the one who needs to be concerned, seeing as I'm merely 'seeking refuge' in Konoha."

Pakura's words were essentially the truth, given how high her reputation was in Sunagakure!

Back then, Sunagakure had mobilized to participate in Danzō's scheme, resulting in the annihilation of all participating Anbu ninja, and both Chiyo and Ebizō being captured by Konoha. This matter simply couldn't be suppressed.

Under Konoha's covert influence, the entire Sunagakure, and even the Land of Wind, were soon fully aware.

What was even more deadly was that Konoha had released information stating their intention to demand all of Sunagakure's small neighboring countries as compensation!

This matter caused an uproar throughout Sunagakure. Some felt Konoha's demands were excessive, while others believed it was their own fault.

They were supposed to be allies, yet they stabbed their ally in the back. It would be strange if Konoha wasn't enraged.

Rōsha was overwhelmed by the situation, especially after hearing that Konoha had also captured the Kage of several other villages. He knew things were troublesome.

He wanted to contact the other villages, but he was well aware that their internal situations were also chaotic.

A power vacuum naturally attracts ambitious individuals. Chaos is a nightmare for ordinary people, but a ladder for ambitious people to climb.

All he could do now was control the narrative as much as possible, steering it in a direction favorable to himself, while also appeasing Konoha as much as possible.

Then, Pakura suddenly returned to Sunagakure, bringing news that was a devastating blow to him!

"Konoha will definitely take the small countries surrounding the Land of Wind. They have their own ideas and deployments.

However, this is the agreement for exchanging Chiyo-sama and Ebizō-sama. Konoha will still regard us as allies.

They have already contacted Amegakure and decided to launch a plan to transport water resources from Amegakure to the Land of Wind.

This will benefit the entire Land of Wind and Sunagakure. We must compromise on some issues!"

This matter shook the entire Sunagakure. Their desire for water resources had already reached an extreme level.

Now, Pakura's news directly stirred up the desires in the hearts of everyone in Sunagakure.

Rōsha immediately knew he was in big trouble upon hearing this news, and after making private contacts, something even more infuriating occurred.

"The Hokage will not be involved in this matter. A minister from Konoha will be in contact and negotiate, and this minister has a close relationship with Sunagakure's Pakura-kakka."

Rōsha knew that this was Konoha's dissatisfaction with him, and they were subtly considering removing him!

Yet, he had no way to stop it and could only let Pakura handle it.

This series of events caused Pakura's reputation within Sunagakure to skyrocket, while Rōsha's plummeted!

Some people were even discussing the possibility of Pakura becoming the Fifth Kazekage.

Rōsha naturally couldn't sit idly by; his heart was already filled with anger.

What he didn't expect was that Pakura would directly announce her intention to go to Konoha after the project was completed.

The reason was simple: as one of the project leaders, she was familiar with Konoha, and communication would be easier.

However, this matter caused quite a stir within Sunagakure. Many people assumed that Rōsha had deliberately arranged it, which caused dissatisfaction among many ninja, and Rōsha couldn't defend himself.

He truly hated Pakura now, because this woman had made his position as Kazekage precarious!

"Enough with the useless talk. What's the purpose of this meeting?"

Shūzawa shrugged, looking at Pakura with some curiosity.

"Is there any news from Sunagakure? Rōsha isn't exactly someone who will stay put."

"Indeed, but the information we got isn't much. You know, Chiyo and Ebizō aren't valued much after returning to the village."

Becoming slightly more serious as the topic shifted to important matters, Pakura nodded.

"However, according to reliable intelligence, isn't Konoha hosting the Chūnin Exams in the middle of this year?

As an ally, he intends to come in person, but he seems to be in contact with some outsiders. It's hard to say if he'll have other ideas during this trip.

Especially since Ebizō emphasized in his message to me that he might have his son participate, especially *that* son."

"The One-Tail Jinchūriki?"

Shūzawa wasn't surprised by this news, or rather, he truly wasn't surprised.

The so-called outsiders are likely Akatsuki and Orochimaru. He knew Orochimaru had never left.

Besides, according to Root's investigation, Iwagakure and Kumogakure were captured by him, and Konoha had detailed negotiations with their villages.

Forcing them to spit out a lot of benefits before letting them go back, but this also indirectly led them to come together in secret.

And they secretly allied with Sunagakure and Akatsuki, obviously filled with unease towards Konoha, or rather, towards himself.

"They really banded together."

The thought of 'banding together' made Shūzawa feel strange, but in any case, this was what he wanted to see.

Or rather, this was what he hoped for.

If they didn't band together and instead became cowards one by one, it would be even more difficult to handle.

Now that they've banded together, the leeks are bigger, and it will be more comfortable to harvest them!

【Shūzawa Shihare】

【Overall Physical Quality: LV14】

【Chakra: LV13】

【Abilities: Wood Release LV10, Flying Thunder God Technique LV10, Taijutsu 10, Yin Release LV10, Scorch Release LV10, Yang Release · Chakra Mode LV10, Omitted...】

【Free Points: 20】

He glanced at his stats panel. Although he hadn't experienced any major missions in the past three years,

he had gained some improvement through accumulating small tasks, integrating small ninja villages, and building water supply projects, along with a series of other miscellaneous things.

Now, he was constantly waiting for a big opportunity so that he could fulfill his most desired wish!

And that day seemed to be getting closer and closer.

"I understand. Thank you for the information."

Shūzawa closed his stats panel and smiled, nodding at Yekura, who also returned a smile.

"How do you feel about this 'sincerity'? Are you satisfied now?"

"This kind of sincerity, huh..."

Shūzawa tilted his head, then said with amusement,

"Actually, I think my 'sincerity' is greater. After all, after this is over, you will most likely become the Fifth Kazekage.

Don't be surprised. If Rōsha really dares to participate and dares to come, then his fate is already sealed."

Speaking of which, Shūzawa paused for a moment, looking at Yekura with an even brighter smile.

"So, I think you can do even better."

"Tch, how troublesome. Does that Rōsha really have bad intentions?"

Inside the Hokage Building in Konoha.

Tsunade leaned back lazily on the sofa. After listening to Shūzawa's report, she supported her chin with one hand and tapped her nails with the other, asking strangely.

"I don't know what he's thinking. Does he really think he can do something? What an idiot."

"Don't be too careless. After all, they have suffered so many problems. Maybe they've joined forces with Akatsuki."

Shūzawa looked at Tsunade and smiled, then said jokingly,

"If Akatsuki really comes, with your Wood Release, Teacher, I'm afraid it will be difficult to cause any trouble, right?"

"You really are a bastard. I think you should stop calling me Teacher."

Tsunade rolled her eyes when she heard this. She had to admit that her use of Wood Release was somewhat sparse.

She had changed a lot in the past three years.

Perhaps it was after she bit Shūzawa hard that her mentality began to change.

Since she couldn't avoid it, she would let it be. Anyway, there wouldn't be a worse result than this.

With a change in mentality, she naturally slowly returned to her original state, and Shūzawa had been helping her change her own bloodline all these years.

Wood Release was the best result!

It's just that she was somewhat helpless that her Wood Release seemed completely unable to reach Shūzawa's level.

"Is it a talent issue?"

Delving into the reasons would only make people more desperate, so Tsunade simply stopped thinking about it. However, although her Wood Release was average, her changes in other aspects were significant.

She could clearly feel that her body seemed full of vitality. In the past, she always needed to rely on the chakra within the 'Yin Seal' to maintain her physical condition.

But as Shūzawa gradually helped her change, she suddenly realized that she seemed to no longer need to use the 'Yin Seal'.

She had truly begun to return to a youthful level. Such a feeling could truly be said to be incredible!

And all of this was thanks to Shūzawa.

For some reason, she now slowly disliked hearing Shūzawa call her Teacher.

Walking outside, their age looked no different from siblings. Calling her Teacher obviously made her sound old.

"Tch, hypocritical."

Shūzawa rolled his eyes. He just liked calling her Teacher.

"What did you say?"

Tsunade obviously didn't understand such sentiments, and her eyes widened immediately.

"Nothing. Ah, Teacher, what are you looking at?"

Shūzawa shook his head quickly. He glanced at the scroll on the table and asked curiously, and Tsunade didn't bother to pursue it.

"The team assignments for those little brats. It's such a pain. They dumped this kind of thing on me."

"Team assignments, huh?"

Shūzawa became interested. He casually picked up the scroll, then walked back to the sofa, pushed Tsunade's legs aside, and sat down with a thud.

Seeing this, Tsunade was also very direct. She retracted her legs, and after Shūzawa sat down, she directly placed them on his legs, making her feel much more relaxed.

"..."

Shūzawa was momentarily speechless at this scene. Was his teacher too casual?

But soon his attention was attracted by the scroll, because he saw something interesting.

"Why is Karin in here? Doesn't she already have a team?"

Karin had graduated last year, but neither Shūzawa nor Tsunade had given her too much special care at the time.

She joined a seemingly unpromising team, and the leader wasn't even a Jōnin!

In fact, for most ninjas, their lives cannot have as many stories as Naruto and his friends.

The normal process is that as long as they pass the assessment and complete the registration, they can become a formal Genin.

Although there will also be team leaders, they are basically Chūnin leading the team.

Jōnin are valuable resources. A village has tens of thousands of people, and more like Konoha has more than 100,000 people, but there are only a few hundred Jōnin!

After all, cheats and geniuses are still in the minority. Jōnin is actually the ceiling for most people in their lives.

Even if they accumulate qualifications, Chūnin may only be the limit.

Basically, the children who are being given key training are the ones who can get Jōnin guidance.

And the Chūnin who lead the teams, their mission is to let the newly graduated Genin become familiar with the ninja lifestyle faster, know various work processes, and then they will no longer care about them.