Though Ethan hadn't noticed, Pakura clearly saw the complicated look in his eyes.
Yashalei quickly realized Pakura was watching her.
Their gazes met.
For a brief moment, both women recognized the complex emotions reflected in each other's eyes.
Yashalei was the first to look away, turning her head slightly to the side.
Pakura noticed this reaction, and the smile on her stunning face deepened. For some reason, she felt quietly pleased.
Yashalei clenched her fists without anyone noticing. She glanced down at her own slender frame, so slim she could almost see her toes at a glance.
A surge of irritation rose in her chest.
So what if she had a great figure? So what if she was a Jonin?
With my talent, give me a few more years, and I'll be a Jonin too.
And judging by my sister's build… once I grow a little more, my figure will be just as good as hers!
A few minutes later, just as Ethan stepped down the stairs and turned to say something to Pakura, a rough male voice suddenly interrupted him.
"Rasa, I'd like to spar with you!"
The voice sounded familiar.
Ethan immediately turned toward the speaker.
The man looked to be around forty, broad-shouldered and muscular, with a short beard and a rugged face.
Ethan's heart skipped a beat.
He hadn't redeemed anything from the system to boost his combat strength yet.
Why was someone already challenging him?
Of course, Ethan recognized the man instantly. It was Jonin Aoki, the same one who had taken the lead several times during the meeting earlier.
Ethan frowned inwardly.
Strange. I didn't say anything in the meeting that outright humiliated him.
Sure, a few of my points might've rubbed him the wrong way.
But most of what I said was calm and factual. That alone shouldn't be enough to provoke a challenge.
It's not like I've got one of those punchable faces.
Right now, Ethan was too close to the situation to see it clearly.
His words during the meeting hadn't really offended Aoki.
But Aoki wasn't challenging him over that small matter anyway.
Standing less than an arm's length from Ethan, Pakura immediately understood what was going on the moment Aoki issued the challenge.
She glanced around.
It was only a little past four in the afternoon.
The ground floor of the Sunagakure administrative building was busy with shinobi handling paperwork and various duties.
Ethan, Pakura, and Aoki were all high-ranking figures within the village.
Seeing the three of them standing outside the building as if discussing something naturally drew attention.
Some shinobi glanced over briefly before returning to their work.
But a smaller group quietly paused what they were doing and began watching.
Pakura shot Aoki a sharp glare, her crimson eyes burning with irritation.
.
.
.
How could Pakura not understand the meaning behind Aoki's move?
If he wanted a spar, he could have arranged it privately.
Instead, he chose to challenge Ethan loudly right outside the administrative building, making sure plenty of people would hear.
He might as well have rung a bell.
Still, she had to admit the tactic was clever.
Whether Ethan accepted or refused the challenge, Aoki would still achieve what he wanted.
Pakura watched as more and more people gathered nearby.
Her glare toward Aoki only grew sharper.
.
.
Pakura wasn't particularly sharp when it came to politics, but Chiyo's meaning earlier in the meeting had been obvious enough.
And Ethan wasn't just her closest friend.
Among the younger generation of the Sunagakure, he was widely considered the strongest.
Combined with the calm, logical arguments he had made during the meeting, Pakura fully supported the idea of him becoming the next Kazekage.
She withdrew her murderous glare and leaned close to Ethan's ear. Her voice was soft, her breath warm as she whispered
"He's unhappy about what Lady Chiyo said earlier."
"Don't worry. As your best friend, I'm on your side."
At such close distance, Ethan couldn't help but stare at Pakura's breathtaking face.
Even this close, her skin looked flawless, no blemishes, no visible pores.
And he could easily tell she wasn't wearing makeup.
Even completely natural, she looked better than the heavily edited photos he used to see online in his previous life.
After staring for a few seconds, Ethan's heart began to beat faster.
A flood of distracting thoughts rushed through his mind.
He silently cursed himself.
To regain focus, he turned his head slightly and looked toward Aoki, who was staring at him with open battle intent.
Thanks to Pakura's reminder, Ethan now understood the situation.
They didn't think he was strong enough to become Kazekage.
And while they didn't dare openly oppose Chiyo's suggestion, this spar was their way of testing him.
In the original history Ethan remembered, Rasa hadn't become the Fourth Kazekage immediately after the Third Kazekage disappeared.
It was only after the Third Shinobi War began and after Rasa distinguished himself in several major battles that the village accepted him as Kazekage.
So it seemed fighting was unavoidable.
If he couldn't defeat this veteran Jonin…
Then even if Chiyo recommended him as Kazekage, he wouldn't be able to win the village's support.
Just like Gaara.
When Gaara first became the Fifth Kazekage, assassination attempts from within the village continued for a long time.
Many shinobi simply watched from the sidelines, doubtful.
For quite some time, the only faction Gaara truly controlled was Baki's group.
Only after the strongest opposing figure, Jonin Fugi, took his own life did things finally begin to settle down.
Of course, Ethan knew his own reputation was far better than Gaara's in his early days.
But even so…
The first person to stand up and oppose him had to be beaten.
Decisively.
After thinking it through, Ethan slowly nodded to Aoki.
.
.
The moment he saw the nod, Aoki's face lit up with undisguised excitement.
But before he could speak, Ethan cut him off.
"Tomorrow morning."
"Meet me at the village gates."
Then Ethan turned to Pakura with an apologetic smile.
"Sorry. I won't be able to come over for dinner tonight."
"How about tomorrow evening instead?"
Pakura's beautiful face instantly brightened with a smile.
She gently shook her head.
"It's fine."
She understood perfectly.
Ethan needed time to prepare for tomorrow's fight.
After all, Aoki had been a Jonin for over twenty years.
He was one of the Sunagakure's most well-known veterans.
During the Second Shinobi War, not long after becoming a Jonin, Aoki had gained fame by using his puppet techniques to eliminate over a dozen ANBU from the Hidden Cloud in a single battle.
Throughout the long years of that war, he had killed more than twenty enemy Jonin.
Many of them had been rising stars in their own villages.
Even Pakura herself wasn't confident she could defeat him.
If she could last fifty moves against him, she would consider it a strong performance.
In her memory, Ethan had always been somewhat stronger than her, but not by a huge margin.
So if Ethan still went to her house for dinner tonight…
How could he possibly prepare properly for tomorrow's battle?
Besides, dinner could wait a day or two.
Ethan's reasoning was simpler.
Right now, his most important task is stabilizing the village.
Anyone who tried to stand in the way of him becoming Kazekage had to be dealt with first.
Dinner, bonding, and everything else could wait.
And truthfully, Ethan had another slightly selfish thought.
Pakura's Affinity was only a little above twenty.
Even if he went to dinner at her house, nothing meaningful would happen.
But if her Affinity doubled tomorrow…
That might be a different story.
.
.
Aoki couldn't refuse Ethan's reasonable request.
He simply nodded stiffly.
"Fine. Tomorrow morning. Don't be late."
With that, he turned and left without another word.
Just imagining himself becoming Kazekage made Aoki's blood boil with excitement.
For years, the Third Kazekage, the strongest Kazekage in history, had overshadowed everyone.
Aoki had long believed he would live his entire life under that man's shadow.
But then the Third Kazekage suddenly vanished.
Most likely dead.
With him gone, the only people who truly outranked Aoki were the elderly siblings Chiyo and Ebizo.
Aside from them, there were only two or three shinobi in the village who could rival him in strength.
But if it came down to a life-or-death battle…
Aoki believed he would probably be the one left standing.
So if he defeated Ethan, the strongest of the younger generation, and made a name for himself first…
Then his chances of becoming the Fourth Kazekage would skyrocket.
Just imagining it made Aoki grin broadly as he walked away.
Sure, the Sunagakure was the poorest of the Five Great Villages.
And the Kazekage didn't hold as much authority as the other Kage.
Financially, the Wind Daimyo held tight control over the village.
Politically, the elders constantly balanced the Kazekage's power.
Historically, none of the previous Kazekage had enjoyed a peaceful end.
Being Kazekage was practically a high-risk profession.
But no matter how Aoki looked at it…
It still sounded far better than spending the rest of his life as just another Jonin.
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