A month after the Five Daimyō Summit, the new era officially began.
Effective immediately, the Five Great Villages suspended all commissioned missions. Every ninja, from genin to kage, had just one duty: train, and train hard—for the battles to come.
"Keep soldiers ready for a thousand days, use them for one." The daimyōs of each nation had already steeled themselves for long-term investment.
Funds arrived quickly. Across the continent, every major village broke ground on massive new training complexes.
With that burden off his shoulders, Nara Shikaku made his way to Amegakure to visit Naruto.
Shikaku was a VIP, so Naruto dropped everything to greet his respected elder.
Shikaku leaned against the railing, a rare smile on his face. "I never imagined things would go this smoothly. Kakashi and I even mapped out evacuation routes for the whole village, just in case."
Naruto grinned. "Anyone who can rise to daimyō knows exactly what's at stake. They're sharp—they just have trouble letting go of their pride."
Shikaku nodded. "This time, we really owe Sasuke."
"Yeah." When Naruto heard what Sasuke had done at the summit, he couldn't hold back his tears. Pride and gratitude welled up inside him—words couldn't do it justice.
Naruto wiped his eyes. "Itachi must be proud, too. Sasuke's finally become a true leader—a ninja who stands on his own."
With a flick, Shikaku lit a cigarette, exhaled a swirling plume, and hunched over the railing. "Next, the Five Great Villages will pour huge resources into these training grounds. But facilities are just hardware. In today's shinobi world, you're the only one with real experience fighting the Ōtsutsuki. If we want our ninja on the cutting edge, we need your help, Naruto."
Naruto smiled. "I've already got a plan."
"Oh?" Shikaku turned. "Let's hear it."
Naruto stared out into the rain. "Each village keeps their kage for administration. On top of that, we create 'Combat Advisor' positions—five elite ninja to lead training."
Shikaku raised an eyebrow. "Got candidates?"
Naruto nodded. "I do, but I'll need to talk it out with them."
Shikaku took another drag. "And?"
Naruto continued, "We're scrapping the annual Chūnin Exams. Instead, we'll host a 'Great Ninja Tournament' every year, on the anniversary of the Fourth Great Ninja War. The venue's fixed—Amegakure."
Shikaku's eyes lit up. "That's a great way to spark healthy competition."
Naruto nodded. "Also, the old ninja ranking system doesn't fit the new world. It's time to overhaul it."
Shikaku asked, "So, a new standard for genin, chūnin, and jōnin?"
Naruto shook his head. "Those titles are ingrained, but maybe it's better to scrap them entirely."
Shikaku exhaled slowly. "Breaking tradition… it's like cutting off a piece of yourself."
Naruto shrugged. "No choice. Even the Ōtsutsuki have seven ranks."
Shikaku mused, "We're nowhere near their foundation. No need to copy them exactly. Let's stick to three ranks."
Naruto nodded. "Exactly. We'll replace genin, chūnin, jōnin with 'Mortal Ninja,' 'Earth Ninja,' and 'Heaven Ninja.'"
Shikaku asked, "Any benchmarks?"
Naruto replied, "Not yet. The point isn't to create a hierarchy for bragging rights—it's to push everyone's skills higher. The ranks must reflect real ability."
"My draft plan: every ninja, including me, starts as Mortal Ninja. Each year, a hundred strong ninja are selected for the Tournament. Those who place high become Earth Ninja."
Shikaku nodded. "That's good. Earth Ninja can be flexible, but Heaven Ninja should mean something."
Naruto said, "Heaven Ninja's exclusive—only ten spots, always the top ten in the world. It's a rolling system; you can be replaced any year."
Shikaku's eyes narrowed. "So that means…"
Naruto grinned. "I'll be competing, too."
Shikaku laughed. "That's bad news for all those fired-up ninja."
Naruto winked. "Not necessarily. Depending on the situation, we might go full battle royale."
Shikaku chuckled. "Teamwork matters, too. Can't wait to see you get ganged up on."
Naruto smiled. "Let's leave it there for now. I'll reach out if anything else comes up."
Shikaku flicked his cigarette into an ashtray and pocketed it. "I'll wait for your message."
Naruto gathered Madara, Hashirama, Obito, and Sasuke to explain the plan.
"You want us as Combat Advisors?" Hashirama's eyes lit up. He'd been bored stiff at home, his wife always keeping him on a tight leash—he was desperate for an escape.
Madara, on the other hand, scoffed, legs crossed. "Naruto, you've got to be kidding. Babysitting a bunch of rookies? Find someone else—I'm out."
Naruto was ready for this. "Uncle Madara, strength shows in more than one way. Even against the same opponent, the outcome can change with performance and luck…"
Madara fell silent, brow furrowed.
Since joining Amegakure, his record against Hashirama was seven matches: three wins, three losses, one draw. But that didn't really prove they were equals.
Naruto pressed on. "If the ninja you each train face off, wouldn't that show whose teaching is better?"
Madara mulled it over. "Fine. I'm bored anyway. Might as well kill some time."
Easy win.
Naruto kept his smugness hidden.
He set a box on the table, fingers drumming. "Let's draw lots to decide which village each of you gets."
Obito asked, "Can't you just assign us?"
Naruto shook his head. "That'd be unfair. This is a competition. Each village has its own strengths and weaknesses. For fairness, we draw lots. Once you draw, no take-backs."
Obito shrugged. "Fine. Who goes first?"
"Me, me!" Hashirama shot his hand up like a kid.
No one contested.
Rustle, rustle…
Hashirama closed his eyes, rubbing his hands together, chanting in his head: Konoha, Konoha, Konoha!
He drew—
—Sunagakure!
Clang!
Hashirama wilted instantly. "No way! The weakest village? That's not fair!"
Madara smirked. "Hashirama, don't be so greedy."
He drew his lot.
—Iwagakure.
"Hm… Ōnoki's village. Time for some 'education.'"
Sasuke's turn.
—Kumogakure.
Sasuke scowled. "Tch… why am I always stuck with the Land of Lightning?"
Obito snickered. "Easy to invite a god, hard to send one away. You're their 'plague god.' Watch this…"
Obito drew.
—Kirigakure.
If he weren't an Edo Tensei, Obito might've spat blood. "Bloody Mist… gross."
"Hmph, plague god!" Sasuke sneered, then asked, "So who's going to Konoha?"
Hashirama's eyes sparkled. "Me! Or I'll do two villages!"
Naruto shook his head, pointing to himself.
Everyone stared. "You—you're taking it yourself?"
Naruto smiled. "It's my first hometown, after all."
They all thought, First hometown? It's ours too!
Sensing protest, Naruto coughed. "Ahem, it's also my father-in-law's place. Easier for me to visit."
Everyone: "Fine, fine…"
Naruto grinned. "Alright, from now on, you'll be stationed at your assigned villages. If you get homesick, come back anytime—it's not far."
Hashirama asked, "Naruto, do I have to bring my family?"
Suddenly, Mito appeared behind him, yanking his ear. "What was that? I didn't hear you."
Hashirama's survival instincts kicked in. "Mi-Mito… you're here! I meant, can I bring my family?"
Naruto watched, shaking his head with a smile. "What a character…"
…
Time flew by. Ten years passed in the blink of an eye.
The calendar turned: Konoha Year 75!
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📚 BOOK COMPLETED ON PATREON!📚
This story has reached its conclusion on my Patreon!
🔥 Full story available now
💎 Exclusive bonus content & early access to new books
👉 Join my Patreon community today!
[✨patreon.com/DarkGolds]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━