With Orochimaru's ability, it wouldn't have been difficult to make this assassination flawless, but he was too reckless.
Gaining the characteristic of immortality made him act on whims many times, and the caution he had as a Ninja was mostly thrown away.
Just as many counterfeit criminals like to leave their marks inside fake paintings and porcelain, Orochimaru now also has a bit of this tendency: 'I left the clues, and if you didn't find them, that's your incompetence.'
Setting aside the Fourth Kazekage's Bloodline Limit, Magnet Release, which could be used to create clones if a relevant scientist is found in the future, his corpse alone is very valuable.
Corpses can also speak. The Yamanaka Clan's Ninja are very skilled at reading information from the brains of the deceased. Ino naturally possesses this ability, and as the Kage of a Village, the information in the Fourth Kazekage's brain would only be more important.
Secret accounts, the Village's Secret Technique, weapons and equipment, Puppet Technique, Ninjutsu—these things are like a treasure hidden in the Fourth Kazekage's brain. Even with a specialized brain Sealing Technique, slowly deciphering it would yield a vast amount of secrets.
There's nothing more to say about Ino's side; she packed it up and took it away to study later.
Didn't Orochimaru hide his tracks? No worries, I'll help you.
If you, Sunagakure, can't find the body later, that's Orochimaru's fault, what does it have to do with me?
Using Earth Release, she churned the site twice, erasing all traces. Only then did Ino leave the Land of Rivers and return to Konoha Village.
As soon as she returned home, Inoichi noticed that his daughter's mental energy had surged significantly again, now far surpassing his own.
Ino told Tsunade that it was due to a family Secret Technique, but when she returned home, she said it was because Tsunade taught her well.
Anyway, you two can't cross-examine each other.
Inoichi gave a few instructions, telling Ino to rest well at home, not to run around, and to calmly prepare for the final exam.
Fifteen minutes later, Inoichi secretly rushed to the Nara Clan. Not long after, the big fat man of the Akimichi Clan, Akimichi Choza, also arrived.
Shikaku got straight to the point: "I attended Tan Go's funeral, and the Daimyo privately sent someone to hint that he could support me as Hokage, but I refused."
The three clans have been allied for so many years, and they deeply understand the importance of this alliance. Shikaku spoke very frankly.
Inoichi had a lot of intelligence: "The conflict between the Daimyo and the Ninja Village is already very sharp. The Daimyo is far more cunning than he appears. He probably isn't just supporting you as Hokage, is he? There must be other tricks."
Shikaku nodded: "Yes, his people made a promise that Ninja clan members could enter officialdom in the future. After achieving meritorious service, they could also acquire their own territories like samurai, and then recruit their own vassals within those territories. If we wished, we could even establish our own Ninja Village."
Shikaku carefully observed the expressions of his two old friends, and seeing that they were both very calm, he then said: "I also refused. We are not trying to maintain the traditions of the Ninja clan, but rather need a slightly more arduous environment to temper our descendants. With our abilities, it is not difficult to obtain a comfortable life. We of this generation can resist various temptations, but what about the next generation? Surrounded by money, living in luxury, pursuing an extravagant life, perhaps after three generations, there will be no Ninja clan left."
Inoichi and Choza didn't think as far ahead as he did, but both nodded, agreeing with this statement.
Ninja clans and Ninja Villages are capable of acquiring wealth. The reason they limit themselves to the small circle of taking missions and earning commissions is their concern that their descendants will be corrupted by money.
Born into luxury, without the spirit of enduring hardship, how many people would be willing to learn Ninjutsu, train Taijutsu, or hone their skills in harsh cold and heat?
Ninjutsu, and the Ninja who master Ninjutsu, are the foundation of a Ninja family. If all the descendants go to enjoy life and no one is willing to be a Ninja, then the Ninja profession will automatically disappear.
Choza thought for a moment: "Even if we refuse, it's hard to guarantee that other Ninja clans won't be tempted."
Shikaku and Inoichi fell silent; this was the most worrying thing.
On one side is the temptation of money, on the other is a relatively modest life. How many can resist?
"So what is our choice?" Inoichi asked.
Shikaku said in a consultative tone: "I believe that at this time, maintaining the status quo is the choice most in line with our family's interests."
"So, continue to support the Third Hokage?"
"One could say that."
Kakashi led a portion of ANBU Ninja out of the Village to track Danzo's whereabouts, and even with the Chunin Exams approaching, he had not returned.
Naruto had Jiraiya's guidance, so he didn't continue to dwell on Wind Release Ninjutsu. Sasuke could train on his own, so that was also fine. Sakura, however, was in trouble.
She had already been eliminated by Hinata, so she wasn't worried about the exam.
But with her two Team 7 companions training, and her knowing nothing, it was quite awkward.
She wanted to invite Sasuke out to play, but Sasuke was dead set on mastering Chidori and completely ignored her.
Ino, Tenten, Hinata—these Female Ninja were all training hard, and Sakura really couldn't find a reason to be lazy.
In desperation, she could only once again bring out her trump card: writing a letter to the legendary "First Hokage."
The letters she had sent before were like a stone sinking into the sea, without any reply. One day before the Chunin Exams, the "First Hokage" finally wrote back to her.
The other party immediately demanded 100,000 ryo!
Goodness, Sakura checked her wallet and passbook three times. All the rewards from her missions during this period added up to just a little over 100,000 ryo.
This "First Hokage" was truly amazing! He even guessed her savings amount; truly worthy of being the God of Ninja!
The tree-climbing technique taught last time had already earned her quite a bit of attention from Sasuke, so Sakura had some trust in the "First Hokage."
No question, send the money!
After the money was transferred, that afternoon she received an extremely complex-looking Ninjutsu, which Ino called the "Salted Fish Revival Jutsu," a Medical Ninjutsu.
This Jutsu wasn't taught by Tsunade; it was an entry-level Medical Ninjutsu that many people at Konoha Hospital knew, so teaching it to Sakura now was perfectly fine.
Sakura's talent in this area was absolutely top-notch. After realizing it was a Medical Ninjutsu, she also felt it was very suitable for her, and images of herself healing Sasuke already flashed in her mind.
One day passed quickly.
Many visitors arrived in Konoha Village, most of whom were dignitaries from various countries coming to watch the Chunin Exams.
Ino first went to the hospital to visit Gekkō Hayate. This fellow had suffered too many injuries during previous missions and his body was severely depleted. Now, after another near-death experience, he hadn't regained consciousness after a month in the hospital, but his complexion looked much better than before.
Ino secretly sighed. Gekkō Hayate and Yūgao Uzuki's meager savings were all spent at Konoha Hospital. It seemed the Yamanaka Flower Shop would lose another big customer in the future.
"Go for it! I have confidence in you. The Chunin Exams are really no challenge for you." Yūgao Uzuki cheered her on.
This purple-haired young woman truly didn't believe that many Genin could defeat Ino; her encouragement was more a matter of politeness. Ino, however, was quite nervous, because today was going to be unexpectedly busy!
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