On the newly constructed playground of the Land of Stars' Ninja Academy, the sun shone brightly, warming the fresh bluestone pavement.
Fifty-two children of various ages, dressed in uniform deep-blue short tunics and tapered trousers, stood straight. Their small faces carried the tension of a new environment mixed with uncontrollable excitement.
This group included the thirty-seven children with ninja talent scouted from across the Land of Stars, along with Uzumaki Karin, Kaguya Kimimaro, Haku, and twelve children from the original Hidden Star Village.
It had to be said that while the Hidden Star Village was small, it was a community of ninjas. The villagers possessed the innate talent to refine chakra, and their children were naturally more gifted than ordinary civilians.
The air was thick with the scent of fresh wood and paint, mingled with the vigorous, slightly sweaty vitality unique to children. Behind them stood the shinobi of the Land of Stars who had come to witness the ceremony. Further out were government officials and local civilians permitted to attend the opening.
All eyes were focused on the podium at the front of the playground—a structure that, while not towering, symbolized the dawn of a brand-new era. Beside the podium, Uchiha Hikari, Uzumaki Kushina, and other high-ranking shinobi of the Land of Stars stood in quiet anticipation.
Suddenly, a figure appeared soundlessly.
The hem of a black Oshinpō (God-robe), specially chosen by Uchiha Hikari for Menma, swayed slightly in the breeze. The black-and-red high collar covered half his face, and the profound "Nine Masked Seals: Svaha" emblem on his back shimmered under the sunlight.
Today, Menma did not wear his white, three-eyed fox mask. He looked down upon the crowd with his youthful face, exuding an invisible, breath-taking majesty.
"Lord Shura!" Uchiha Hikari, Uzumaki Kushina, and the others bowed slightly.
"Lord Shura!" The other Star shinobi followed suit, their voices filled with awe. Even the officials and civilians further back bowed respectfully like a receding tide.
Every reform in the Land of Stars was brought about by this man; the beautiful life they now enjoyed was created under his leadership. Everyone felt a mix of reverence and curiosity toward this mysterious ruler.
The children on the playground widened their eyes, looking up at the legendary "Shura" who had established their nation and ended the reign of the Daimyo and nobles.
Menma's gaze swept across the tender faces. After being brought to the Capital and cared for for half a month, they looked much healthier than when they were first found—though their eyes still held a lingering alertness and a growing sense of... worship.
"War and hunger have taken your homes and your parents, turning you into orphans..." Menma's voice wasn't loud, yet it clearly suppressed all other noise on the playground. It possessed a strange penetrating power that struck the heartstrings of every listener.
His voice was calm, as if stating a detached fact, yet it made many children instinctively clench their clothes, their eyes reddening. Those pains were the darkest moments they had all lived through.
"Your parents, your relatives... they may have died in some meaningless conflict, perished under the heavy taxes of a noble lord, or fallen in a struggle for a single bite of food."
The crowd was silent; even the wind seemed to stop. Only Menma's weight-carrying voice echoed:
"Why is it like this?!" Menma slowly turned his head, scrutinizing every listener. This young face, with eyes that seemed to see through the world, issued a challenge to the entire shinobi world.
His voice suddenly rose, sharp and decisive: "Because of division! Because countless Daimyo, countless nobles, and countless ninja villages tear at each other endlessly for their own land and interests! They sit high above, using our blood, our tears, and our lives to pave the stairs of their luxury!"
"Only by ending this division! Only by making the entire shinobi world a single whole! Only with one voice and one will can this thousand-year cycle of reincarnation be truly ended! Only then will your descendants not have to experience the pain you went through! They won't have to worry if they will starve tomorrow, if a stray kunai will kill them, or if they will lose their families in their sleep!"
He thrust his arm toward the vast blue sky. Every eye followed his gesture.
"The Land of Stars stands here to break this decaying old world! This school is the place where the foundation of the new world is forged! You are the future! Mastering power is not to continue hatred or to fight over pathetic resources! It is to protect!"
"Protect this land beneath your feet, free from the oppression of Daimyo and nobles, free from the flames of war! Protect everything you wish to protect in the future! And then, use that power to push this peace and this order to the entire shinobi world!"
"Only when the shinobi world becomes a unified nation will war truly vanish! Hunger will become history! Orphans like you will no longer be created!"
Menma's voice was like a beating war drum: "Remember today! Remember why you stand here! Power is for protection and unification!"
After a brief, dead silence, the playground erupted in ear-splitting cheers! The Star shinobi and officials pumped their fists in excitement; the civilians were moved to tears. The children's faces flushed red, and for the first time, a flame known as "conviction" ignited in their eyes—something that transcended mere survival.
They might not fully grasp the grandeur of "unifying the world," but the vision of "no more war" and "no more orphans" acted as a lighthouse, instantly illuminating their young hearts. This man, Shura, had promised them a brand-new world.
In a corner of the back row of new students, a boy wearing round-framed glasses, looking particularly quiet and frail, looked up. His gaze behind the lenses was locked onto the dark-red figure on the podium.
It was Yakushi Kabuto, using the alias "Kumamoto Kabuto."
Shura's words were incredibly provocative, but what bothered Kabuto more was that face and that voice. It gave him an indescribable sense of familiarity. Despite it being his first time seeing the legendary Shura, Kabuto felt... as if he had seen him somewhere before?
He knit his brows slightly, falling into deep thought.
The opening ceremony wasn't grand in scale, but it was profoundly formal. The legend of Shura and the new world he promised would be spread by these people throughout the Land of Stars, radiating to the surrounding small nations, and eventually, reaching every corner of the shinobi world.