Three disciples had each used the Grant-and-Return once — leaving two uses.
Mizuki didn't rush to spend them. No matter how good the returned rewards were, they still needed time to be fully absorbed.
"The village's basic public buildings are more or less finished. It's time to promote Naruto and the others to Chūnin and increase the system's disciple slots."
The system wouldn't allow cheating. To become Chūnin, they had to pass the Chūnin Exams.
That left Mizuki with two choices: either organize a Chūnin Exam himself, or join another country's exam.
"Hosting one ourselves would be easiest. We can copy Konoha's format: first, a written theory test; second, a one-on-one scroll-snatching match; third, a public arena final."
Fushigakure had too few people — there was no need for teams.
Just then, the system spoke again.
[To organize the Chūnin Exams, you must invite two or more ninja villages to participate in a joint examination. The final match must be held publicly. Only then will it meet the requirements.]
"Holy — !" Mizuki exploded.
What the hell was this dog system up to?!
Fine — you said he couldn't just appoint Naruto and the others as Chūnin, that they had to earn it through the Chūnin Exams. He accepted that, so he decided to host them himself. And now the system was saying that if he hosted them, he still had to invite other villages and run a joint exam.
I'll joint your —
It's just a Chūnin Exam. Why did it have to be so troublesome?
[The Chūnin Exams are a stage to demonstrate national power. Letting other villages recognize Fushigakure's strength will benefit the village's development.]
Mizuki rolled his eyes.
Fushigakure had, in total, nine people. Demonstrate what "national power"? If others came to look, they'd only think it was shabby.
[Fushigakure is newly established and needs to build its reputation. That will help attract more geniuses to join Fushigakure. Therefore, holding a joint examination is necessary.]
"Way too much trouble!"
Preparing the exam content and venues was already a hassle. Having to invite other villages made it even worse. He'd rather spend that time cultivating.
"I'd better see if any other villages are holding one."
If hosting was this annoying, the only option was to participate in another village's Chūnin Exam.
Mizuki contacted the Daimyō of the Land of Birds and asked about other nations' exam schedules. Especially when the great ninja villages held the Chūnin Exams, they notified the various Daimyō and invited them to watch.
The Land of Birds was a small, neutral country with no grudges. The great powers were usually willing to invite it.
"Mizuki-sama, the Chūnin Exams are usually hosted by the great nations. They're held twice a year — in March and October. This year's October exams have already ended. The next one will be in March next year."
Mizuki frowned. It was early December now. March was nearly four months away.
"Four months…"
Gloomy, he returned to Fushigakure and asked the system again.
"Other than the Chūnin Exams, is there no other way to make them Chūnin?"
The system answered:
[There is!]
Mizuki's eyes lit up, "What way?"
[The Chūnin Exams are the method used in peacetime to judge whether a Genin is qualified to become Chūnin.]
[In wartime, promoting a Genin to Chūnin is not so complicated.]
[Complete enough missions to prove that a Genin possesses Chūnin-level strength, and that Genin can be directly appointed Chūnin.]
"Wartime?" Mizuki was speechless.
[Correct. You can start a war. Then there will be no need to hold the Chūnin Exams.]
Mizuki: …
"Forget it. I'll just wait four months." He said, giving up.
This system was seriously deranged.
"During these four months, I'll keep increasing my strength and expanding Fushigakure."
The three newly obtained SS-rank ninjutsu — Heaven Grudge Fear, Invincible Flying Thunder God, and Edo Self — were all powerful techniques, and naturally extremely difficult to cultivate. Mastering all of them at once was impossible. He could only take them one at a time.
"I'll start with Heaven Grudge Fear."
Once mastered, his body could liquefy; it could infiltrate other organisms and seize their life force with no upper limit. That life force could restore any injury. As long as it wasn't exhausted, the user wouldn't age or die.
After mastering it, he would be able to steal life force from other living beings. With enough life force, he could even cast Samsara of Heavenly Life without killing himself.
"I can revive Tsubaki… and I can make Neji defect from Konoha. After he gets killed by the Caged Bird seal, I can revive him."
Heaven Grudge Fear was absolutely the number-one priority.
Mizuki began closed-door cultivation. Everyone in Fushigakure entered a state of training.
❊❊❊❊❊
Meanwhile, in the capital of the Land of Birds, an unexpected visitor arrived — one of Konoha's Sannin, Jiraiya.
In a tavern, he ran into Tsunade, who was drinking.
"Jiraiya? Why are you here?" Tsunade was half-drunk. Seeing him, she almost thought it was an illusion.
Jiraiya looked her over — her appearance hadn't changed at all — clicked his tongue, and said, "Yo. At your age, you're still pretending to be young?"
Tsunade didn't get angry, "You came all this way just to mock me?"
Jiraiya sat across from her, poured himself a cup, tilted his head back and drained it, then poured another.
"The old man is dead."
Tsunade fell silent for a moment. Then she said flatly, "Dead is dead. Everyone dies sooner or later. What's so strange about it?"
"Aren't you curious how he died?" Jiraiya asked.
Tsunade replied indifferently, "How else would he die? Probably brought it on himself."
Jiraiya: …
Damn, you're really good at reading people.
After downing several more cups, he spoke again, "He was killed by the Missing-nin Mizuki — the one who founded the new Fushigakure and became its First Fushikage. Orochimaru and the Fourth Kazekage died with him."
Hearing that Orochimaru was also dead, Tsunade's hand paused on the cup.
"So that kid is a Konoha traitor. No wonder he's an Uzumaki."
"The kid you mean should be Naruto Uzumaki." Jiraiya said, "He's Minato and Kushina's son — and the current Nine-Tails jinchūriki."
"Whatever he is has nothing to do with me."
Even as she said it, her grip tightened. The poor cup almost cracked.
Deep down, Tsunade still cared about Naruto. Every time he was around, her gambling luck improved. That made her extremely interested in him.
She felt that a kid who could influence luck like that had to be special.
In the past, she would stay in one place for at most three days. But because of Naruto, they had stayed in the Land of Birds for more than ten.
"Before Nawaki died, my luck wasn't bad. After he died, my luck became unbelievably terrible. Later, when I met Dan, my luck improved again. But after Dan died, my luck worsened again. And now, someone has appeared who makes my luck better again."
Tsunade felt both anticipation and fear.
She wanted to get closer to Naruto, because she saw Nawaki and Dan's shadows in him. But she was also afraid — afraid that, because of her, Naruto would follow in their footsteps.
She always felt it was her fault that her brother and lover had died.
Jiraiya, being a fool, didn't understand what Tsunade was thinking. He hadn't come to drink and reminisce either.
"There's no suitable Hokage candidate in the village." He said, "The advisors and the heads of the major clans all agree that you're the most suitable person to become the Fifth Hokage."
Tsunade sneered, "Why don't you do it?"
Jiraiya looked awkward, "I'm not cut out for it."
"If you won't do it, why should I?" Tsunade said, "Whoever wants to be the Fifth Hokage can do it. Don't come looking for me."
Jiraiya tried to persuade her, "Konoha was founded by your two grandfathers. The whole village is their life's work. Can you really stand by and watch it decline because it lacks a Hokage? If we don't choose an appropriate Fifth Hokage soon, other countries will seize the chance and start a war."
"What the hell does that have to do with me?"
Jiraiya: …
"The old man is dead. Danzō is dead too. There's no longer any soil for darkness to breed in the village." Jiraiya said, "If you become the Fifth Hokage, Konoha will return to the era of the First and Second Hokage."
Tsunade slammed her cup onto the table, "I said I'm not interested."
Jiraiya didn't get angry, "Alright, alright. If you're not interested, then forget it. Come — drink!"
❊❊❊❊❊
For three straight days, Jiraiya drank with Tsunade every night, probing and trying to convince her to return to Konoha and take the position.
Tsunade got fed up and finally set a condition.
"As long as you can bring Naruto Uzumaki back to Konoha, I'll agree to go back and become the Fifth Hokage."
Jiraiya forced a bitter smile, "That's really difficult. That Mizuki is insanely strong. Back then, the old man, Orochimaru, and the Fourth Kazekage teamed up and still couldn't beat him. In the end, he killed all of them. If you want me to go to Fushigakure and snatch Naruto away, isn't that just sending me to my death?"
"I don't care." Tsunade said, "That's the condition. If you can do it, I'll return to Konoha. If you can't, go find someone else."
Jiraiya was miserable.
At present, among all of Konoha's ninja, Tsunade was the best choice for Fifth Hokage.
"Fine." He said, "I'll go try."
Left with no choice, Jiraiya headed to Fushigakure to meet Mizuki.
❊❊❊❊❊
As soon as he arrived, Jiraiya's expression changed.
"This village… the Natural Energy is so dense. It's not as good as Mount Myōboku, but it's not far off."
The closer he got to the Fushikage Building, the thicker the Natural Energy became. By the time he reached the base of the building, the concentration already felt comparable to Mount Myōboku.
And all that Natural Energy was gathering toward the building.
"Is it because of this building?" Jiraiya examined it, trying to see what was special.
But no matter how he looked, he couldn't find anything. He could only say that the Fushikage Building had a strange design.
On the top floor, Mizuki — who was cultivating Heaven Grudge Fear — suddenly opened his eyes.
In the next instant, he appeared in front of Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya, what brings you here?" Mizuki asked, "Don't tell me you want to join Fushigakure?"
Jiraiya smiled, "No, no, no. I have no interest in joining your village. I'm here to discuss something. Can you let Naruto return to Konoha? If you agree, I'm willing to introduce you to Mount Myōboku — and help you master Sage Mode!"
❊❊❊❊❊
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want 20 chapters ahead of this novel for just $2 or enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations: MrBlackWing (you know where to search)
Take a look at the new books I'm translating on my profile, Cyberpunk 2077: A God-Level Skill Every Day and Infinite Worlds: Building the Strongest Harem! They are also on my website for $5 and $1.5, respectively!
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)