The banquet was very enjoyable for both sides. When not discussing politics or military matters, Fumori Masaki and the Third Raikage truly seemed like good friends. Ri Mi and Sora, the two wives, also conversed smoothly, and with Akemi, a young person, present, the meal was a great success.
"Fumori , I'm really looking forward to the upcoming itinerary." The Third Raikage let out a soft sigh. The food in Konoha Ninja Village was truly getting better and better, and it had genuinely satisfied him.
"Haha, no problem. It's getting late today, so you two should rest. Tomorrow, you can have a good look around," Fumori Masaki said.
The Third Raikage and his wife, led by the reception staff, went to the accommodation arranged for them by Konoha Ninja Village. The standards were set as for a ninja village leader, and the other members of the delegation also stayed nearby. Upon entering the room, the Third Raikage carefully looked around and felt very satisfied.
"I thought the changes in the Land of Fire were already significant, but after entering Konoha Ninja Village, I realized the changes here are even greater," Sora said to the Third Raikage, looking at the facilities in the room.
"It's not hard to understand. After all, the root of the changes in the Land of Fire is actually Konoha Ninja Village. Without Konoha Ninja Village, others in the Land of Fire might not have been so innovative. Have you heard about that thing the Land of Fire Daimyo has been up to recently?" the Third Raikage asked.
"The Twelve Guardian Ninja, right? It's an old trick from the Warring States period, and now this Land of Fire Daimyo is playing it again. It's not necessarily bad, but what I find difficult to understand is why Fumori would send his daughter there?" Sora said.
"Hmm, that makes me a bit curious too. Given Konoha Ninja Village's strength, it hasn't reached the point where the ninja village leader's daughter needs to be sent away," the Third Raikage nodded slightly. "At the banquet, Fumori was able to say things that respected his children's wishes, so I think he must love his children very much. Therefore, there must be a deeper reason for this."
"What reason?" Sora asked curiously.
"I don't know, but I think Fumori must have a long-term plan. Perhaps soon, we'll hear some surprising news, and it might be a good opportunity for our Kumogakure Ninja Village to develop," the Third Raikage mused.
"Will it be like that? Are you overthinking it?"
"Whether I'm overthinking it or not, it at least gives me some confidence," the Third Raikage said with a bitter smile. "Otherwise, seeing Konoha Ninja Village like this makes one feel like giving up."
"Even someone as strong as you has such thoughts?" Sora was very familiar with the Third Raikage's strong will, so she was a bit surprised.
"There's no one in the world who is completely unshakeable. Even I sometimes doubt if I can truly win," the Third Raikage sighed softly, saying, "Do you remember the Konoha villagers who lined the streets to welcome us on the way here?"
"I remember," Sora nodded.
"From their faces, I could see a sense of pride and confidence in their own ninja village. This kind of spirit isn't something that can be cultivated casually. Although our ninja village also has it, it's not as widespread as in Konoha Ninja Village," the Third Raikage said.
"That's not too big of a difference, is it?"
"There's also one more thing: the places Fumori will take us to later. Some of those places are forbidden zones for traditional ninjas, yet he intends to take us there. What do you think that means?" the Third Raikage asked.
"Hmm... it means he thinks it doesn't matter if we see them," Sora thought for a moment and replied.
"Exactly, that's the only possibility. No matter what, Fumori is the leader of Konoha Ninja Village, and we are their enemies, not collaborators like Sunagakure Ninja Village. He wouldn't show us core secrets. What he can show us are places where he's confident that even if we see them, it won't affect the overall situation," the Third Raikage said seriously.
Sora knew more or less about some of the places they were going to visit in the upcoming itinerary. After recalling them carefully, she said, "Thinking about it that way, Konoha Ninja Village's confidence is much greater than we imagined. At least our Kumogakure Ninja Village probably can't achieve that."
"Times are progressing, and ninja villages will change accordingly. I have a premonition that the forbidden zones for traditional ninjas will become fewer and fewer in the future," the Third Raikage said. "The new technologies initiated by Konoha Ninja Village will greatly influence the ninja world's landscape, just as the emergence of the explosive cannon has already brought about significant changes in military strength."
After purchasing explosive cannons in Konoha Ninja Village, the Third Raikage and Sora gained a deep understanding of their function. Operating explosive cannons only required ordinary genin, and the power unleashed by explosive cannons on a certain scale could easily blow an ordinary jonin to pieces on a direct battlefield, which was unimaginable in the past.
"I'm becoming more and more curious about what surprise Fumori wants to show us. From the perspective of a ninja village leader, I don't think this surprise will be a good thing for us," the Third Raikage said.
"Now that you mention it, I have a bad feeling," Sora said with a bitter smile.
"Forget it, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. We can only choose to watch for now. How to deal with it later is a matter for when we return." The Third Raikage leaned back on the sofa, finding it really comfortable. He secretly pondered whether to purchase one to take back to Kumogakure Ninja Village later.
"I think we should relax our minds these days, otherwise the upcoming itinerary might be very difficult," Sora shrugged and looked towards the bathroom. It was her first time seeing something like this, and she wondered if it could be replicated in Kumogakure Ninja Village in the future. That would be wonderful.
As everyone rested deep into the night, Hattori Heizo was at the secret training ground for the aerial combat unit, solemnly instructing the thirty people in front of him. When they made their public appearance later, there could be no mistakes. They had to remember that this represented the face of Konoha Ninja Village, and they absolutely could not let the foreign guests laugh at them.
Everyone's faces were tense, understanding what Hattori Heizo meant. This was the aerial combat unit's first public appearance. If their performance was poor, it could affect the unit's future, which was crucial for everyone's prospects. No one would be careless.
Hattori Heizo told everyone to practice extensively there, get into good form, and ensure nothing went wrong when the official event began.
The night passed quickly. The delegation led by the Third Raikage, accompanied by Fumori Masaki and several other high-ranking Konoha officials, successively visited Konoha Ninja Village's scenic spots and the operations of some departments. Although he knew he wouldn't be privy to core areas, the Third Raikage was still very shocked by everything he saw.
The Third Raikage believed that he had been trying his best to learn Konoha Ninja Village's system over the years and develop it in conjunction with Kumogakure Ninja Village's characteristics. However, after witnessing it firsthand, he realized that what he had done was far from enough. Konoha Ninja Village had been many years ahead, and if he didn't take drastic measures, he wouldn't be able to close the gap in a short time.
Fumori Masaki paid close attention to the delegation's expressions. Unlike Sunagakure Ninja Village, he treated Sunagakure as a collaborator, focusing more on encouraging them to learn. Kumogakure Ninja Village, however, was primarily meant to be awed. This distinction alone led to significant differences in the two delegations' tour plans and the areas they were shown.
After two days of visits, the Kumogakure delegation had finished touring Konoha Ninja Village's departments. What remained were Konoha Ninja Village's scenery and local specialties, which left the Third Raikage and others somewhat regretful. They wanted to see more departmental operations to learn from, but Fumori Masaki did not give them that opportunity.
This time, what the Kumogakure delegation saw was Konoha Ninja Village's recently held first sports competition. When he heard about this, the Third Raikage was truly bewildered. He had no idea what it was. After a deeper understanding, he learned that it was a large-scale competition centered around various entertainment sports, similar to the joint Chunin Exams, but it appeared very peaceful, emphasizing the principle of teamwork first, competition second.
This was completely unimaginable to the Third Raikage. Traditional ninjas were combat professionals; using them for entertainment sports was beyond imagination. But then he reconsidered and realized it wasn't incomprehensible. For Konoha Ninja Village, this was a way to demonstrate strength from another angle, especially since military action was difficult to employ within the Southern Alliance. Such entertainment sports could foster relations between allied nations.
And for Konoha Ninja Village itself, it held great significance. These entertainment sports could serve as training for young ninjas, cultivating a spirit of teamwork from a young age, and training in the application of ninjutsu—in Konoha Ninja Village's sports competitions, the three traditional ninja principles could be used, which would bring more exciting variables to the competitions—and when these ninjas grew up, the excellent ones could be selected to enter the combat ninja ranks. Even those with less prominent talent could choose to become athletes, which was a good non-ninja career path. At the very least, it had more prospects than ordinary professions.
These days, the Third Raikage had seen many ninjas with little strength, who could only be cannon fodder, shine in other fields and find their life's worth. The profession of a Konoha athlete offered another path for those who lacked even those talents.
"Lately, I've been thinking about whether we should even retain the name 'ninja' in the future," Fumori Masaki said to the Third Raikage after they sat down at the table.
"Why would you think that?" the Third Raikage asked, slightly surprised.
"Because today's ninjas, frankly speaking, are already very different from traditional ninjas. Although we still retain the name 'ninja' and treat them according to traditional ninja requirements, you should also understand that this approach doesn't work. Can ninjas who live in the light truly be called ninjas?"
"Traditional ninjas certainly wouldn't count. But since they learn ninjutsu and ninja skills, they should still be ninjas," the Third Raikage replied.
"Not entirely. The monks who practice chakra in the Fire Temple also use secret techniques, but are they ninjas? Before ninja clans appeared, those who used ninjutsu were followers of Ninshu. Were they ninjas?" Fumori Masaki asked.
The Third Raikage was silent for a moment. Traditional ninjas emerged because of the numerous Ninshu factions after the split, coupled with the difficulty of chakra training. Bloodline inheritance was beneficial for cultivating people more suitable for chakra training, gradually forming ninja clans. Later, due to sparse population and numerous conflicts, armed clashes occasionally occurred, and chakra training led to a lack of productivity. Slowly, the current ninja clan system was formed.
In other words, ninja clans were formed due to the historical origins of that time. Ninjas were like this, but chakra users were not. The Third Raikage looked at Fumori Masaki and said, "So, you believe that today's ninjas can no longer be called ninjas, but only chakra practitioners?"
"That's all there is to say. The profession of a ninja is very difficult to cultivate, and a qualified ninja even more so. Among so many ninjas now, very few truly meet the standards of traditional ninjas, and it's too harsh to treat them by traditional ninja standards. If that's the case, why not choose to redefine it? That's what I'm considering," Fumori Masaki said.
"But will the ninja clans think that way?"
"Alas, frankly speaking, ninja clans can't be considered the ninja clans of the past either. Ninjas living under the sun aren't just ordinary ninjas; there are also those from ninja clans," Fumori Masaki looked at the athletes below. "Among these people, many are from ninja clans."
"In other words, has the progress of the era reached a point where, just as the followers of Ninshu became ninja clans back then, today's ninjas must also change?" Sora, who had been listening nearby, suddenly asked.
"Yes, so we must also seek change. What profession should those who use chakra be, and how should we treat the people in the village?" As Fumori Masaki spoke, the opening ceremony of the competition began. With the sound of cannons, music, and cheers, everything started. The Third Raikage inadvertently looked up and froze.
He saw a row of dark figures maintaining formation in the sky, trailing smoke of various colors, outlining various patterns in the sky.
"Th-that is…" Everyone in the Kumogakure delegation was dumbfounded.
"This is my surprise for you. Look, this is the first aerial unit in the ninja world," Fumori Masaki smiled, pointing to the people flying in the sky. Amidst the patterns formed by smoke, the cannons, and the cheers of the people, Konoha's first athletic competition began.