Chapter 55
'They were destroying my village.'
Hiruzen was getting increasingly angry at the wanton destruction of his village as shinobi fought each other atop the buildings and through the streets. They made sure that nothing would stand in their way of killing each other. This wasn't what Hiruzen intended to happen.
Every other shinobi, aside from participants, protected the civilians who might have gotten caught in the crossfire and ensured that nobody really died. And that quite surprised Hiruzen as he didn't instruct them to do so. Making him realize that only he didn't think that this would happen.
"Yo! Look at these kids throwin' down in the ring, Clash in' like thunder, doin' their thing! Genin no more, they hungry for more. Every punch, every jutsu — they ready for war! Ya fool!"
Hiruzen turned and shot a hard look at Killer Bee, who was enjoying the show. The maniac thought it was funny. And if Killer Bee weren't the strongest in the room, Hiruzen would have thrown him out of the Hokage Tower. This was his village that was burning, his money.
Dodai, the most sensible shinobi in the room, seemed to recognize that Hiruzen wasn't in the mood for Killer Bee's antics, especially when both the Konoha and Kumo teams appeared to clash with each other more often than not.
"I have to say, it is a brilliant test," Yashamaru of the Sand remarked while observing his genin teaming up with Shisui's team. "Forcing them to make choices on the spot to combat the unfavorable and unexpected situation. They can give up on their teammates and move on to the next test alone, fight others to lessen the competition in other tests, or test their competitors. Or ally with unknown individuals to strengthen themselves and increase their chances of success. None of the choices are wrong, unless they lack the strength to back them up."
"Choices in the heat, that's how legends are made! Trust or trick, fight or flee, Every move's a beat in their destiny! Yo fool! That's the melody. Oh Yeah!"
Luckily, before Hiruzen could get even more annoyed, Killer Bee seemed to find inspiration and went to a corner to write something in his notebook while humming. It already gave Hiruzen a headache to watch him as he still didn't know what Kumo wanted.
And even if he didn't like it, he was forced to watch his village become a battlefield. It didn't look like any of it would subside before the end of the day.
Why were they even fighting? He planned to mess with them, not have them kill each other. There was no antidote; it was just food poisoning, which would wear off just before the time limit. So, basically, everyone would pass the test.
He just wanted them to experience betrayal from their trusted teammates and then for those who left others behind to feel cornered in the next test, as they wouldn't be able to trust their teammates and would be afraid of being betrayed themselves.
In the end, all they had to do was wait and try to save their teammates until the last moment, so all of them could pass the test, strengthening their teamwork and deepening their trust.
So why were they fighting other teams to the death in some cases, while the next test would simply be that? Shouldn't a smarter shinobi conserve their strength?
"A dead weight should be left behind; the importance of a shinobi is the success of their mission, in this case, passing the test. Nothing else matters."
Hiruzen glanced at the Jonin from Amekagure before returning to observe his village and dismissing his existence.
He had more important things to focus on than listening to completely unimportant people, like calculating how much it would cost to fix the village and how much he would need to bet to recover the money he lost today.
"That might be," another unimportant person from Takigaure interjected. "But it is worse to give up on your team while there is still a chance to save them and succeed in your mission. It is nothing but selfishness that breeds distrust among your shinobi."
"Trust never existed between shinobi, and it never will; there is only one law: kill or be killed."
"Fighting so recklessly, as if their lives depended on it," Hiruzen ignored them and voiced his frustration, feeling increasingly irritated at the wanton destruction. "It is nothing but foolishness. Destroying everything around you, what would that even achieve? Nothing but isolation and self-harm. I see there are only fools in this generation."
"Harsh but true words," Dodai decided to chime in. "I can understand caring about those children and contemplating the future they will create. Worrying about their decisions, but isn't learning from your mistakes the most valuable lesson? How many mistakes have we made in our youth, and how much have we learned over the years? Even today, I am learning from my mistake, from misunderstanding the goals you want to achieve through these tests."
'Is that Ichiraku ramen?'
Hiruzen completely ignored the Kumo Jonin as he prepared to send all his ANBU forces to get rid of all the fools who were fighting near his favorite place in the village. The only thing saving them was the presence of other shinobi who blocked any damage that could come to the building.
He will remember those Kusa and even his genin, giving them the most annoying missions that possibly exist in the future. They will not be able to fight for years and will have to babysit some noble brats. Hiruzen will ensure they are stuck with the most spoiled and annoying families while paying them the bare minimum he can.
The rest of the villages are fortunate that he has no power over them; otherwise, he would write invoices before they leave the village. Those bratty kids, fueled by hormones and stupidity, will rue the day they entered his village and chose to act recklessly inside it, ruining his test completely.
"One can learn much from the Hokage's care of their future generation," Yashamaru said, clearly indicating something to the other Jonin, but Hiruzen barely registered it. "Teaching them valuable lessons without using excessive force. The tests were created not only to evaluate them, but also for them to realize their weaknesses and the consequences of their actions. If only others would take note of it, I think the shinobi world would grow in the right direction."
Oh, they messed up.
Hiruzen was completely livid as he watched Yamato's fight with Kumo's jinchuriki. Even though they were holding back and not using their powers, the walls of the buildings they kept crashing into didn't benefit from that. And when a small shop collapsed on them, Hiruzen became enraged.
They will suffer.
That was a promise Hiruzen made at that moment. Not only had they messed up his brilliant test, but they were also destroying his village. He will ensure that in the next test, they won't be able to rest. And he will even dare them to try to sleep or eat.
He will personally oversee it and make sure that none of them comes out of the Forest of Death intact—physically or mentally. He will destroy them as they are destroying his village.
And even those who make it out, he will match them with the worst possible opponents they could imagine.
If they think they can rest between the second test and the final tournament, they are greatly mistaken. By the end of it all, Hiruzen will make them fear Konoha.
They will hate and fear this place so much that it will haunt them in their worst nightmares. Every one of them will pay, and though he can't ask them to pay with their money, they will pay with their blood and tears.
"There is a fine line between sheltering them and using excessive force against them for the next generation to grow," Dodai said. "And every village has tried to tread that line, some with more success than others. But now I can confidently say that Konoha has mastered walking that fine line. This only proves that the history of producing fine shinobi in every generation wasn't out of luck."
"Everyone can say that when you have the most techniques and unique bloodlines in your village," the Jonin from Ame replied. "Of course, the shinobi produced in such an environment would flourish. But villages that do not possess such resources have to take more drastic measures to avoid falling behind. And then we are criticized for our actions, judged for the decisions we make without knowing what choices we had."
"Really? I can think of another village that has as many secret techniques and even more bloodlines, and still uses the most barbaric and violent ways to raise their new generations," Yashamaru said. "Similar methods to Amegakure, if I may say."
"Survival of the fittest, that's how it has always been and how it will always be," the Ame Jonin didn't back down. "Some understand this better than others, though. And you can't deny the results it brings. As I'm sure you are familiar with it."
"We might live by such rules, but we don't have to," Yashamaru said. "It is our responsibility as the elders to show the new generations that there is another path they can follow. And if we don't pave that path, who will?"
"Destroyed buildings can be rebuilt," Hiruzen mumbled to himself as he watched another building, at least this time an older one, crumble under the pressure of five genin fighting through it. "Or maybe it doesn't need to. It could be anything I want it to be. After all, no matter how damaged it is, the foundation is already built, and it is solid enough to hold anything."
At this point, Hiruzen was coping and trying to think that everything was for the better. Most of the buildings destroyed were either old or abandoned, so it was nothing but free demolition work.
If he were smart about it, he could build even more productive and useful buildings, sell them to businesses, and raise taxes on them. First, he could attract them with promises and then trap them with new taxes.
He could only think about how to make it profitable for the village and had to ignore everyone else in the room; otherwise, he would go mad and start lashing out at those fools who taught their genin to act so stupidly.
And this wasn't the time for it; it could wait until the end of the Chunin Exams when their leaders come to the village. Hiruzen will have his piece said, and they will listen to it.
"The Third Hokage is right," Dodai said. "No matter what path we want the next generation to follow, without a proper foundation to support them, they will only repeat the same mistakes we made. And it is our job to make sure whatever they build in the future will be supported."
"It is typical of you." The Ame's jonin voice was loudest of the lot, so that even Hiruzen had a hard time ignoring it most of the time. "Your villages are the strongest, so you will only listen to those who are as strong as you. Others shall be ignored."
"Aren't we listening to you right now?" Dodai asked.
"No, you are only hearing what you want to hear. My village stood as long as any of yours. Always in the middle of your conflict. Our lands are drenched in blood because of your decisions. Our foundation is mountains of corpses and rivers of blood. There is nothing new you can build from that."
"Nothing is true, everything is permitted," Hiruzen said, silencing them all.
In the end, he had to face the reality of this situation. He permitted this to happen. Without thinking and without understanding, he let this happen to his village. Those children knew no better, but he should have.
"We permitted this to happen," But it wasn't like Hiruzen would not drag others with him. "But the question stands. Who should pay for it?"
Hiruzen knew it wouldn't work to take them all down with him. He couldn't ask for money, as it would look quite like begging. But there were other ways he could make them pay. And he will milk them dry, no matter what kind of underhanded methods he has to use.
With a plan forming in his head, Hiruzen was finally able to calm down. Now, he couldn't wait for the Raikage and Kazekage to come. Surely, they won't bet against their genin. And Hiruzen will talk them into betting everything they have. They shall pay.
A.N. I usually post on Sundays, but I will be gone tomorrow. I have an appointment at the clinic to have my sunburned skin checked. Hopefully, there will be no lingering damage, as I am already super annoyed with this ordeal.
A.N. As always, thanks for reading and supporting me, so I can continue writing without any concerns, and if you want more, up to 7 more chapters and 28 chapters in total with all my other stories, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852.