Perhaps he should seriously consider taking a position in the Uzushigakure.
A nation that controls the afterlife of the Ninja World will, given time, eventually stand at the pinnacle of the Ninja World!
Perhaps only the Hollows, who stand opposite the Shinigami, could become their opponents... The trip to the Uzushigakure had infinitely broadened Orochimaru's perspective; his mind was no longer focused on the wars between various nations.
He wanted to study Souls, study Hollows, and study every subject related to life!
"Orochimaru!"
Orochimaru snapped back to reality and said, "...What is it, Teacher Hiruzen?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned, looking at his beloved student. Why had he seemed so distracted ever since returning from the Uzushigakure?
Never mind, perhaps he was just tired.
After all, he had just returned from the Amegakure battlefield for recovery, only to be called away to the Uzushigakure for a mission.
He rubbed his temples. He wasn't concerned about the architecture of the Uzushigakure, but the population was something he had to take seriously.
The Uzushigakure was clearly only a small nation, and even though it had defeated the Land of Water and instantly became one of the Five Great Nations.
Its territorial scope was limited; it couldn't possibly support too many people.
Yet Orochimaru claimed the population was vast?
Could they have been transported from the Land of Water?
"Besides that, is there anything else noteworthy about the Uzushigakure?"
Orochimaru pondered, "The Uzushigakure also has dedicated Educational Institutions for training Shinigami, similar to the Second Hokage-sama's Ninja Academy, but..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned, "But what?"
"Their school curriculum, in my opinion, is extremely high quality!"
Orochimaru said earnestly, continuing, "They have four courses: Zankenshō!"
"Zan is Swordsmanship, Ken is Taijutsu, Ki is the Unmarked Ninjutsu mentioned in the reports, and Shō is the Shunpo technique that allows for high-speed movement!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen asked in surprise, "Are you saying that Unmarked Ninjutsu is actually part of the school curriculum? Everyone can learn it? For free??"
Orochimaru nodded heavily.
Hearing this news, not only was Sarutobi Hiruzen surprised, but even Danzo Shimura and the other two were astonished by the Uzushigakure' audacity!
It must be known that although Konoha established a school for training Shinobi based on the instructions of the Second Hokage-sama.
The students there could only learn basic Taijutsu, Tool Usage, and the lowest-level Three Basic Techniques!
Students who wanted to learn more Advanced Ninjutsu either belonged to Shinobi families or had Family legacies.
If a civilian wanted to learn Ninjutsu, besides having an unselfish Squad Leader to teach them, they could only exchange missions that contributed to the Village for Ninjutsu scrolls from the Village!
Even other Shinobi Villages, learning from Konoha, established their own Ninja Academies, but this model remained unchanged!
Because this model not only motivated civilian Shinobi to contribute to the Village but also prevented the Village's Ninjutsu from leaking out.
Furthermore, even if a Rogue Ninja emerged, they couldn't take too many of the Village's Ninjutsu with them.
But this Uzushigakure, why does it dare to do this?!
Is it not afraid of its national Ninjutsu leaking out?
Is it not afraid of the students it trains becoming traitors?
The people present were very confused by the Uzushigakure' generous actions.
But at the same time, they started developing some ideas.
Since the Uzushigakure wasn't restricting this, could they send people to infiltrate the Uzushigakure, disguise themselves as commoners, become students of the Uzushigakure, and learn all those Unmarked Ninjutsu?
If Orochimaru knew their thoughts, he might burst out laughing.
Because the students of the Soul Reaper Academy are all people who have died once.
But Orochimaru was unaware of their thoughts and continued, "In addition, every student enrolled in the Soul Reaper Academy can obtain an asauchi."
Orochimaru glanced at them and chuckled, "After this asauchi undergoes transformation, it becomes those ninja swords with special abilities, which they call—Zanpakuto!"
Zanpakuto!
Orochimaru's voice was like a deafening bell, striking their hearts!
"What did you say!?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen, Danzo Shimura, and even Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado were so shocked they immediately stood up from their seats!
They understood perfectly the importance of the Uzushigakure' ninja swords, the Zanpakuto!
The strange and varied abilities made them incredibly envious.
Every user of a Zanpakuto was essentially a rare Bloodline Limit holder!
Yet, Orochimaru was telling them that such a crucial resource, in the Uzushigakure, could be obtained by everyone simply by enrolling in the Soul Reaper Academy?!!
That's outrageously wasteful!!
It was like Konoha opening up the Forbidden Jutsu on the Seal scrolls, allowing any Ninja Academy student to learn them freely!
Is the Uzushigakure going bankrupt?
Can such a vital strategic resource be handed out so casually?
Their eyes were wide, and they couldn't recover their senses for a long time, seemingly stunned by the Uzushigakure' astonishing generosity!
At the same time, a crazy idea constantly surfaced in their minds.
A wave of greed clouded their eyes.
They absolutely must arrange for people to go to the Uzushigakure!
For the Soul Reaper Academy enrollment in the Uzushigakure, Konoha must offer support to its ally!!
Hooo—
They were panting heavily, seemingly seeing a beautiful future where Konoha obtained Unmarked Ninjutsu and Zanpakuto forging techniques from the Uzushigakure!
Orochimaru understood their excitement perfectly.
Because he had behaved the same way back then... In fact, he knew far more than they did, and his heart was pounding so hard he could barely walk.
Thinking about it now, perhaps the Miss who brought him around was secretly mocking him for looking like a bumpkin.
Fortunately, that Miss had a blank expression, which prevented him from feeling too much embarrassment.
However, judging solely by the reaction of Sarutobi-sensei and the others upon hearing about the Uzushigakure' situation.
The Ninja World is probably about to change dramatically... And most people are likely still in the dark, even the Konoha higher-ups right here.
Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe, forcefully calming his emotions and allowing himself to gradually cool down.
His gaze swept over Danzo Shimura and the other two, finding that their eyes were exactly the same as his had been moments ago.
The Unmarked Ninjutsu and the so-called Zanpakuto were simply too tempting!
He gently tapped the table with his pipe and said, "Let's put the matter of the Soul Reaper Academy aside for now."
Danzo Shimura snapped back to reality, gave Sarutobi Hiruzen a deep look, and then returned to his previous composed demeanor.
He didn't believe that Sarutobi Hiruzen had no intentions regarding the Uzushigakure' Soul Reaper Academy.
But this type of Zanpakuto, which could mass-produce Bloodline Limits, must be controlled by his Root!
Or rather, it could only be controlled by Konoha, led by him!
Sarutobi Hiruzen was unaware of Danzo Shimura's thoughts and continued to inquire, "Besides that, what is the Uzushigakure' military strength like?"
Half a year had passed since the Uzushigakure last mobilized all its forces.
Konoha did not know whether the Uzushigakure' military power had increased again.
Although no Ninja Village could possibly multiply its strength several times over in just half a year.
But the Uzushigakure was a country that liked to create miracles, especially since they could mass-produce Shinigami who were similar to Bloodline Limit Shinobi.
Sarutobi Hiruzen could not afford to be careless about this!
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