The Jonin present had actually considered what Rikuya said to some extent.
However, no matter how hard they try, their emotions refuse to admit this harsh reality.
The first strongman to speak, Jonin Aoki, was finally unable to restrain himself from breaking the oppressive silence. In a hoarse voice, he said:
"Even so... we still have to mobilize the entire village to search for Kazekage-sama's remains. No matter how great the killer is, it's impossible for him to leave no traces behind!"
Rikuya glanced at Jonin Aoki, information about him flowing from Rasa's memories.
This man, Aoki, is an ordinary puppet master with a strong body but a simple mind.
However, precisely because of his prime physique and decent close combat skills, coupled with his fairly good puppet control skills, in the current Sunagakure Village, his strength is among the top.
This was evident from the fact that even though he was clearly a puppet master, there was no trace of makeup on his face. Only recognized powerful puppet masters would not need things like facial tattoos to prove their identity.
Because they themselves are the proof.
Rikuya shook his head slowly:
"Of course we can mobilize the entire village to search, but let's not talk about whether or not we can find his tracks."
"Just by taking a big step we mobilize the entire village, won't the other ninja villages find out?"
"It's been ten years since the Second Ninja World War. You are all the backbone of the village. I'm sure you all understand the current comparison of strength between the other ninja villages and our Sunagakure Village."
When Jonin Aoki heard Rikuya's words, he suddenly took a deep breath.
His rough face was filled with reluctance, and other complex emotions were faintly visible.
After thinking for a moment, everyone present understood Rikuya's intentions.
Sunagakure Village has not fully recovered from the Second Shinobi World War.
The other great ninja villages have almost fully recovered.
Konoha and Kumogakure, in particular, had returned to the peak of their pre-war glory.
They weren't kids anymore, so of course they understood.
Once the other ninja villages become aware of the large movements in their village, they will immediately realize that their Kazekage may have met with an accident.
It is very possible that they will take advantage of this situation to carry out looting.
This has nothing to do with morality, or with good or bad relations between villages; it is purely a matter of interest.
Moreover, the relationship between Sunagakure Village and the other great ninja villages was not very good.
Chiyo was silent for a long time. Her wrinkled face moved slightly, and her withered lips opened and closed slowly. However, her voice was no longer as calm as before, but carried a hint of sadness and anger:
"Then, Rikuya, what do you think we should do next?"
As soon as Chiyo said this, all the Jonin around her opened their eyes wide simultaneously and then exchanged glances with each other.
They of course knew what Chiyo's words meant.
However, after staring at each other for a few seconds, they didn't show any objection, but looked at Rikuya again at the same time.
The difference from before, this time their eyes were no longer full of anger, but full of hope.
Pakura opened her eyes, and her emerald red eyes looked hopefully at the young man next to her who was standing straight and exuding a calm aura.
Rikuya's reasoned and calm words continuously destroyed Pakura's impression of Rikuya.
He never thought that his best friend in his imagination, a figure who was always quiet and only knew how to train, would be so calm, far-sighted, and not at all afraid of offending the Jonin present.
This caused Pakura to feel a strange sensation in her heart.
He suddenly felt his heartbeat speed up without realizing it as he sat next to Rikuya.
Pakura felt her heart pounding and a strange emotion welled up in her heart.
The strange feeling went from faint to intense in just a matter of seconds, almost filling his entire mind.
At that time, Pakura just felt confused and didn't know what was happening.
Pakura, who had never been in a relationship and didn't even have many recreational activities, naturally didn't understand that this strange feeling was called love.
Rikuya didn't notice the change in heart of Pakura who was sitting next to him, and he secretly let out a sigh of relief.
He knew that he had almost succeeded in convincing them.
Rikuya had memories of reading the original storyline in his previous life, so he naturally knew about it.
The decision made by Sunagakure Village in the original storyline was to mobilize the entire village and search like crazy for any sign of the Third Kazekage.
If no traces are found in the village, the search will be expanded to the entire Land of Wind, and eventually even to other countries.
The consequences of this action were dire.
Just a few days later, Kumogakure Village soon realized that the Third Kazekage was missing, and then they launched a massive attack.
Ultimately, this incident became the trigger for the Third Great Ninja War.
Sunagakure Village, which had not yet recovered from the Second Great Ninja War, was again severely damaged.
In the following period, Sunagakure Village was even forced to fight several great ninja villages at once and was on the verge of extinction.
This also caused the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, in the original storyline to decide to use Pakura, a hero who shone brightly on the front lines of Kirigakure Village, as a scapegoat to appease Kirigakure Village's anger.
He was tricked into going to Kirigakure Village alone to sign a so-called peace treaty.
Pakura, who was loyal to Sunagakure Village and not very sensitive to politics, did not find out until her death.
The condition that Kirigakure Village was willing to negotiate was his own death.
Even if Sunagakure Village took such action, it was too late.
Even when Uzumaki Naruto took part in the first Chunin Exams more than ten years later, Sunagakure Village had not fully recovered.
This also caused Rasa, who was then the Fourth Kazekage, to decide to take the risk of launching a surprise attack during the Chunin Exams on Konoha, using a dangerous approach.
But in the end he was killed by Orochimaru on the way, and his body was left lying in the desert for several days before being found by Sunagakure Village.
From the start, Rikuya observes the events from an outsider's perspective, and with the help of his memories of his past life, he deduces the process from the results.
Of course, it was easy to convince the high officials of Sunagakure Village who were sad and confused about the situation.
These thoughts crossed Rikuya's mind, but he didn't remain silent either, and slowly expressed his thoughts:
"In my personal opinion, we should prepare for war right now. We should prepare small-scale combat equipment first and gather elite ninjas secretly and send them to the various borders to stand guard."
"At the same time, we must immediately double the volume of reserve ninja training and train them to wartime standards."
After saying that, Rikuya looked towards Ebizo.
"Elder Ebizo will play the role of the Third Kazekage in public, but he does not need to appear too often. If he is seen too often, it will be easier to reveal his true absence."
"As long as you appear in public once or twice irregularly every day, no one will notice for at least ten days or half a month."
"Even if the great ninja villages have doubts, they wouldn't dare act rashly."
Rikuya thought for a moment, remembering that Sunagakure Village did not have a divine perspective and did not know that the Third Kazekage was dead, so he added:
"Of course, finding the Third Kazekage is something we must do."
"We can send reliable ninjas without affecting the village's defense capabilities."
"On the surface, they were given various reasons for their mission, but in reality, they were secretly searching for the Third Kazekage."
After hearing these words, Pakura's previously tense expression suddenly changed, and her beautiful eyes were filled with a strange light.
Her breasts were so big that Rikuya could barely imagine them in his hands.
Even though it was tightly wrapped by clothes, it still swayed up and down following the breath of its owner, forming a graceful amplitude.
Pakura's two beautiful, slender, smooth and soft, round and straight legs, one meter long without pores, unconsciously stuck together.
At this moment, in a dark corner of the office.
A slender woman wrapped in a black windbreaker crossed her arms in front of her chest, and her ample bosom appeared even more spectacular in this action.
He wears a mask and his true appearance is not visible.
Only in those open lavender eyes could Rikuya's passionate and confident expression be clearly reflected.
She looked at Rikuya quietly, and as she looked at him, a glimmer of joy appeared in the woman's initially calm eyes, but it quickly disappeared.
The woman nodded slowly, clearly agreeing with Rikuya's words, then she turned her neck gracefully and continued to observe the others.
After hearing those words, Chiyo showed a clear expression of agreement and relief on her face.
He subconsciously looked at Ebizo who was standing beside him, and they both nodded at the same time.
Initially, Chiyo called the senior ninjas living in the village to discuss the matter. Her initial intention was simply to inform everyone of the situation and work together to find the Third Kazekage.
However, Chiyo did not expect that the third generation student who was always quiet and only focused on training according to her impression, namely Rikuya, would actually have such a brain, such courage, and such foresight, even though he was also too calm.
His master suddenly disappeared for no apparent reason and was most likely killed, but there was not a hint of sadness on his face.
This would be a disadvantage for a normal person, but an excellent advantage for a Kage, the village head.
This proves that he will not do something stupid because of a momentary anger, nor will he make a decision that will cause long-term problems because of a momentary impulse.
Although these requirements seem simple, as long as you see the performance of the ninjas on the field, you will know that this is an extremely rare quality.
Because Sunagakure Village's resources are so scarce, and for many other reasons, the idea of quick success and instant profits permeates every aspect of Sunagakure Village.
Therefore, Sunagakure Village is home to many simple-minded, strong-bodied, and rough men.
Chiyo and Ebizo exchanged glances again, then nodded simultaneously again, clearly having made a decision in that silent communication.
"Rikuya, you are amazing. I am very happy to see a genius like you among the younger generation of Sunagakure Village."
"But you must not let your guard down because in the near future, our Sunagakure Village will be depending on you!"
Chiyo's words were no longer just a hint, but a clear statement.
If only the title of Third Kazekage wasn't still needed to prevent the surrounding ninja villages from acting rashly.
Maybe Chiyo would let Rikuya become the Fourth Kazekage right then and there.
After Chiyo finished speaking, she looked at the people around her:
"You are all experienced Jonin, so feel free to offer any advice you have. Don't be afraid of saying the wrong thing."
Fellow Jonin, you probably have something to say now.
Maybe they weren't good at anything else, but they were very familiar with war, and they started adding details one by one.
What about Chiyo's explicit statement?
Rikuya was originally the most talented and strongest among the younger generation in Sunagakure Village.
In addition, in the previous meeting, his analysis from start to finish was reasonable and not rushed.
Most of the Jonin present had acknowledged Rikuya's status.
The small number of Jonin remaining did not dare to openly express their opposition due to the immense influence of Chiyo and Ebizo.
Jonin Aoki did not participate in the current conversation, but lowered his head slightly to hide the unknown emotions flashing in his eyes.
Rikuya's words did convince him, but that didn't mean he would acknowledge Rikuya as the future Fourth Kazekage.
Aoki kept thinking in his heart:
"Even though Rikuya is the most talented and strongest of the younger generation."
"But this only proves that he is very talented. What Sunagakure Village needs most right now is a strong Kazekage, not a talented Kazekage."
Thinking about this, Aoki's heart began to warm.
He considers himself to be at the top among the hundreds of official Jonin in the village.
After all, he was only in his early 40s, and he felt that his physical functions had not declined at all. He was in his prime. If...
Thinking of this, Aoki quietly raised his head and glanced at Chiyo quickly, then quickly lowered his head again.
Even though Elder Chiyo's words implied that Rikuya should become the future Kazekage, he did not have the courage to disobey Chiyo.
But if he beats Rikuya in a fight under the pretext of sparring.
In any case, this kid Rikuya would never have the courage to become Kazekage.
At this moment, Rikuya secretly breathed a sigh of relief, as he knew that his position as the future Fourth Kazekage was most likely assured.
Before Rikuya could continue his thoughts, a series of system commands suddenly appeared in his mind.
Rikuya's mind moved slightly, and he began to check a series of commands, while also paying attention to reality.
"Successfully changed the original storyline and obtained 300 skill points!"
"Pakura's favorability increased by five points, reaching twenty-one points!"
"Pakura's favorability increased by eight points, reaching twenty-nine points!"
"The favorability of Chiyo, Ebizo, Benizuki, etc. has been increased!"
"All characters' favorability increases by 80 points, and a total of 80 skill points are obtained!"
Rikuya is not surprised by the change in storyline and skill value rewards.
However, obtaining 300 skill points was a bit of a surprise for Rikuya.
He thought that since he managed to change such an important storyline at once, he should be able to get at least thousands of skill points. However, he didn't expect the amount to be so small.
But Rikuya understood after thinking about it.
His actions this time were only to make Sunagakure Village less passive and prepare in advance.
When war breaks out, the front lines will not immediately collapse due to carelessness.
And the Third Great Ninja War will definitely happen, at most a month or two later than the original.
As for the favorability level towards Pakura, it increased by several points at once, which was in line with Rikuya's expectations.
Although he didn't have time to observe Pakura when she spoke earlier.
But Rikuya didn't ignore Pakura's eager gaze.
After all, even an ordinary person, if he was watched from behind for a long time, the ordinary person would notice it.
Moreover, Rikuya is very close to Pakura.
With this, Pakura had reached twenty-nine favorability points.
Rikuya guessed that by the system's standards, he and Pakura were already good friends.
As long as you work harder, hey...
Regarding the increase in liking for others, Rikuya took a quick glance and stopped paying attention.
Instead, he saw three interfaces in front of him:
"User"
"Character Favorability"
"Exchange"
Rikuya lightly clicked on the user interface, and a series of character data immediately appeared in his mind:
Username: Rikuya
Physical age: 23
Overall combat strength: Ordinary person
Chakra attributes: wind, fire
Skills: None
Skill value: 420
Items owned: None
The character interface may have been what Rikuya expected, but the chakra attributes surprised him a bit.
He did not expect that his body as an Earthling would have wind and fire chakra attributes.
In the early period of Naruto Shippuden, this should be considered an important genius.