Chapter 381: Emergency Meetings of All Factions, Game Village!
"Do your best within your limits, Hinokiri."
Aizen's gentle smile warmed everyone around him as he spoke. "Even if you can't become my adjutant, we're still close companions—friends I could entrust my life to."
"However, since you've decided to become a ninja, you must be prepared to face the changes that may come."
"Are you truly ready, Ri?"
Dropping the surname in his final question, his tone became deeply affectionate.
Hinokiri felt her entire body heat up, blood rushing through her veins. Emotionally overwhelmed, she responded with excitement, "Yes, Lord Aizen! I'm ready to face any change, as long as I can become your adjutant!"
"In that case, do your best, Ri."
Leaving her with those words,
and under the reverent gazes from both sides of the street, Aizen rose and walked toward the Hokage Building.
The title Moonlight of Konoha
had begun to circulate more and more among both civilians and shinobi within the village.
Inside the Hokage Building, within the council chamber,
Aizen took out a gleaming silver pocket watch and glanced at its precisely aligned hands before sitting down quietly.
All the senior members of the ninja clans were already seated, as were members of the Mobile Unit including Asuma, and at the head of the table sat Shimura Danzo, wearing the symbolic "monkey's pelt."
"Everyone, my apologies. I was delayed by a matter on the way."
Even though he was not late, Aizen still apologized to the group.
Asuma maintained his composure and remarked meaningfully, "This is rare. In the history of the shinobi world, it's almost unheard of for a ninja to earn a title during peacetime. Lord Aizen truly has an impressive charisma."
The title Moonlight of Konoha
had already reached Asuma's ears within minutes of Aizen walking through the village.
This was Asuma flexing the Mobile Unit's intelligence-gathering capabilities.
Every time he saw Aizen,
Asuma felt an indescribable heaviness in his heart.
It was as if a vicious wolf had infiltrated a flock of sheep, wearing a lamb's disguise, ready to unleash chaos at any moment.
But—
after thorough investigation, he hadn't found a single flaw.
Every document, every record—even Tsunade was moved by Aizen's profile, saying he embodied the very essence of the Will of Fire.
Even the First Hokage, founder of the Hidden Leaf and Asuma's own grandfather, despite his immense power, had never carried out the Will of Fire as purely and thoroughly as Aizen did.
Such a perfect person,
and yet Asuma couldn't shake the sense of danger he felt. Why?
At times,
he even wondered if this unsettling feeling was born from jealousy—jealousy toward someone too perfect.
Still, as the leader of the Mobile Unit, he couldn't let personal emotion cloud his judgment.
Even if Aizen was truly perfect,
As a representative of the Hokage faction, Asuma was duty-bound to contain his influence.
Especially now—
Asuma had recently uncovered signs that something was amiss.
He suspected that his own father, the current Third Hokage, might have been influenced—possibly even mentally corrupted—by a creature that seized its chance during the battle with the Evil God.
The sudden change in personality during this time was the clearest evidence.
Asuma had already dispatched Mobile Unit players
to investigate the area where the Evil God's head had fallen. Any clue, no matter how small, would be reported back. If they discovered something concrete—
Even if it was his own father, Asuma would not hesitate to act for the sake of the Hidden Leaf.
"I haven't been seeking recognition. I simply act from the heart to help others and carry on the Will of Fire. That's all."
Aizen's response was by the book,
as if he wanted to maintain peace during the council and avoid direct conflict with Asuma.
In contrast, Asuma ended up looking like the aggressive one.
"Well said!"
Shimura Danzo, clad in the metaphorical "monkey's skin," smiled at the perfect moment and added, "Aizen is upholding my will. The Shadow Organization and the Root Organization have spared no effort in aiding the people and promoting the Will of Fire. And you?"
"Scheming, backstabbing!"
"In this critical moment when the village's survival is at stake, all you think about is how many contribution points you'll get out of it. Where is your Will of Fire?"
Normally, even if the Hokage had said such a thing, he would have been met with backlash.
But now, Aizen's selfless actions were seen by civilians and shinobi alike. To argue about contribution points at a time like this,
especially when compared to Aizen, was to risk completely losing public support.
Still—
the discontent among the ninja clans could not be silenced. Hyuga Hiashi's face was cold as he said, "Lord Hokage, you speak boldly. What Lord Aizen has done indeed embodies the Will of Fire—building roads and bridges, caring for civilians. These are things we clans can do and have done. However..."
He trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid.
But every clan leader in the room understood, and so did Danzo.
The millions of contribution points pooled by the clans were no trivial matter. They would rather send junior members to emulate Aizen's actions than give up those rewards.
"This matter will be discussed later."
Danzo was no sentimental fool like the "monkey." Now that he held absolute advantage, he didn't need to consider the clans' feelings.
With Aizen's political finesse
uniting most of the civilians, shinobi, and players under his influence, Danzo had become the most powerful force in the village.
If any clan dared to rebel,
they should think back to the fate of the Uchiha.
Danzo hadn't torn things apart completely because he didn't want to push the clans into uniting.
So long as he left even a sliver of room, these scattered interests could never form a unified front.
Danzo's expression turned serious. "What we need to discuss now is the latest announcement from the game merchants—Game Villages."
He had already made one grave mistake,
failing to take the Reincarnation Game seriously when it first appeared. That led to the Four Great Shinobi Villages breaching Konoha's defenses and Orochimaru framing the Hokage, plunging them into the current mess.
Having learned from that, Danzo now placed great importance on the Pet System and Game Village announcements.
"Your contributions to the village—I, as Hokage, will never forget them!"
The Shadow Organization was Danzo's pride.
Naturally, he wouldn't send them into the fray first. That's why he hadn't said everything outright. Danzo continued, "The game announcement made it clear: the level of the Game Village equals the safety zone within the game."
These safety zones referred to major towns and cities—
places immune to attacks from corrupted monsters, where the lord could freely control every rule within their borders.
Just like in the real world.
This was unlike clan territories, which were tightly restricted. Every action required contribution points.
Once a Game Village was established,
they could implement policies, attract refugees and slaves from that world, issue missions to villagers, and freely build, breed, farm, and reproduce.
They would continuously generate massive amounts of contribution points and unique resources.
If clan territories were stagnant pools of water,
then Game Villages were living springs—the golden ticket that the Reincarnation Game rules provided to allow player factions to extend their influence into alternate worlds.
"If we can successfully develop and establish a Hidden Leaf Village in another world,
then even if the First Hokage were to be resurrected, he'd struggle to match our achievements!"
First, paint the grand vision.
Danzo's words struck like a hammer upon the hearts of the village's leadership.
Even if they knew it was just a fantasy, they couldn't help but swallow their saliva. It was too tempting.
The First Hokage's reputation was already legendary,
but these clan leaders were otherwise destined to be forgotten footnotes in history—mentioned in just a few lines, or even a few words.
But founding a village in another world, just as Danzo described, would be more than enough to secure a place in the annals of history.
Entire pages would be dedicated to them.
That kind of legacy… was a temptation no clan could resist.
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