In the bustling arena, the figures of the flying ninjas slowly receded. Their acrobatic performance had just left a deep impression, and the smoke-formed subtitles immediately ignited the atmosphere of the entire venue, with the crowd cheering continuously.
In contrast, the expressions of the Third Raikage and others were somewhat unusual. As the leader of a ninja village, the Third Raikage naturally recognized the benefits brought by such a flying combat unit. Although the distance was somewhat far, he saw that these were not traditional flying summoned beasts, but rather special ninja tools strapped to their backs.
It seemed to be a new type of ninja tool, similar to the exploding cannon. In other words, this was a unit that could be mass-produced, unlike traditional methods that placed higher demands on ninjas.
The Third Raikage's expression was not very good. He hadn't expected Fumori masaki to give him such a big surprise. He looked at Fumori masaki and said, "Kazamori, this surprise is truly unexpected."
"I think so too." Fumori masaki saw the Third Raikage's expression and knew that the other party had thought of the significance behind this, meaning his goal was halfway achieved. "Although it's just been established and isn't very mature yet, it should be able to slowly develop in the future."
"Is this something your daughter researched?" the Third Raikage asked, immediately recalling Fumori masaki's earlier introduction of Akemi.
"She is just one of the people in charge, a vice team leader. The real team leader is someone else. I wonder if you've heard his name; it's Orochimaru," Fumori masaki replied.
Fumori masaki had no intention of hiding their names. The Kumogakure Ninja Village would find out about such things sooner or later. As for whether the other party would send people to assassinate them, he wasn't too worried. Even if they knew, it wouldn't have too much of an impact. Everyone knew that Tsunade was an important figure in the medical department, but did Tsunade have any trouble? Although Asuna's combat power wasn't too strong, she had Anbu protection arranged by him, and she generally wouldn't leave the village. In terms of safety, she was even more secure than Tsunade, who sometimes had to go out.
As long as she stayed in Konohagakure Ninja Village, Akemi's safety was well-guaranteed, and Fumori masaki also felt that the Third Raikage would not make an irrational choice.
And Fumori masaki pointing out that Akemi was only one of the people in charge, and a vice team leader, was also hinting to the Third Raikage that Akemi's role was not critical. The team leader was the most important one, and that person was Orochimaru, who had also made contributions in the Second Shinobi World War.
"Orochimaru... I've heard that name. It seems the people from Kirigakure Ninja Village gave him a title, 'Snake Lord,' right?" the Third Raikage said.
"Mm." Fumori masaki hadn't expected that Orochimaru, without the legendary Sannin title given by Hanzō, would instead acquire a title that appeared refined but in fact carried a murderous aura.
If one were to disregard the legendary nature of the Sannin title brought by Hanzō, the title 'Snake Lord' might be even more intimidating.
"I never expected that besides his formidable strength, this person also possesses such talent. I truly wish we had such talents within our Kumogakure Ninja Village," the Third Raikage said, shaking his head slightly.
"Talent is something that needs to be unearthed. If I didn't allow ninjas with little combat talent to explore other fields, how would I discover their talents?"
"You're right, I've learned something." The Third Raikage nodded, looked at the flying unit that was almost out of sight, and asked, "When will these people appear on the battlefield?"
"That depends on the order of the ninja world. If it can continue like this, I don't think there will be a need for them," Fumori masaki said.
Just as the Third Raikage was about to ask something else, Fumori masaki raised his hand to stop him. At this moment, the athletes were entering the arena, and it was time to present themselves to the Hokage. Fumori masaki naturally couldn't continue talking with the Third Raikage and the others. He then stood up and reviewed the incoming athletes.
The athletes were mainly senior students from the Ninja Academy, with some being recently graduated ninjas. They were the most suitable for this kind of entertainment competition. Ninjas already serving in departments or combat ninjas, while also able to participate, clearly couldn't become professional athletes. Of course, the competition system might be improved in the future, as this was only the first Athletic Meet.
The entering athletes all cast respectful gazes at Fumori masaki. With their well-prepared slogans, while expressing their determination to fight, they also wanted to show their efforts to Lord Hokage. This morale was truly high.
However, the Third Raikage felt some psychological comfort at this moment. Up until now, in everything he had seen, Kumogakure Ninja Village had more or less some shortcomings, but only in terms of respect for their leader and morale, he was confident that the men of Kumogakure Ninja Village would not lose.
Actually, it's not surprising. Any leader of a ninja village who has served for a certain period and hasn't made too many major mistakes can accumulate such popularity. Konohagakure, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure are all like this. Only Sunagakure and Kirigakure have some trouble.
The leader of Sunagakure is constantly troubled by economic and military issues. Although the ninjas below are generally obedient, they can't help but feel some disappointment. As for Kirigakure, the current Third Mizukage was defeated in the Land of Fire during the Second Shinobi World War, and his prestige plummeted. He is now retreating and consolidating his rule within Kirigakure, making the 'Blood Mist' atmosphere of Kirigakure even thicker.
In this aspect, it might be the area where Konohagakure, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure have the smallest difference. Of course, while it does affect combat power, one cannot rely entirely on it. After all, if the morale of both sides is almost the same, it means that these two factors can be discarded to some extent, so one still needs to look at other differences.
"Alright, let's not discuss other things for now and just enjoy this competition. This is our first athletic competition, and I'm sure there will be some very exciting performances," Fumori masaki said with a smile to the Third Raikage and the others.
The athletic competition designed by Fumori masaki referenced the sports events of his previous life, but incorporated ninja elements. After all, his previous life tested athletic ability, whereas the'sports' in this competition actually referred to ninja abilities. In the respective competitions, the usable ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu would be arranged according to the event. Some could be used without restriction, while others had a limited number of uses. As long as it didn't cause a life-threatening situation, anything was allowed.
To put on an exciting match within such a framework truly tested the abilities of the participants. Fumori masaki was very much looking forward to seeing what kind of performances would emerge in this ninja-world version of the athletic meet.