Three adjacent circular buildings, entirely painted red, with five inward - curved bluestone beams standing on the domes. Below them was a plaque with a large black character meaning "fire" clearly visible from afar.
This is the building where the Hokage, the Village Headman of Konoha Village, is located.
"Orochimaru."
Tsunade held Haruki with her left hand and waved her right hand to greet Orochimaru.
Orochimaru nodded expressionlessly as a response.
"You're here so early. It's not like you."
Haruki sat between the two of them and casually asked, quickly scanning the people in the hall.
Most of the village's Jonin were here, making it a bit noisy and crowded.
"Hehe, I'm giving the teacher some face."
Orochimaru's tone was as cold as ever, and his snake - like pupils glinted with coldness.
Haruki sighed. Nawaki's death had affected not only Tsunade but also Orochimaru.
His mind was no longer fully focused on Konoha, and he turned to pursue the eternity of life.
Otherwise, he and Minato Namikaze might have been in a close race to become the Fourth Hokage.
But at this time, Orochimaru was far from the madness he'd reach during his defection.
A major reason for this was Haruki's subtle influence.
After waiting for a while.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, arrived.
He was wearing a sacred robe, holding a pipe in his mouth and having a black beard on his chin.
He was in his prime at this time, full of energy, and every word and gesture exuded the dignity of the Hokage.
The hall suddenly fell silent, and then voices rose one after another.
"Lord Hokage!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled.
His smile was both measured and amiable.
After exchanging a few words, the meeting officially began.
The first thing to discuss was the pension and inheritance issues of the deceased ninjas.
According to past practice, everything would be left to their families or friends. Especially for the children who had become orphans, the village would be responsible for their upbringing until they graduated from the Ninja Academy.
Hearing this, Haruki couldn't help but glance at Hiruzen Sarutobi.
You old man, you're so cunning.
Naruto Uzumaki ended up having instant noodles and expired milk. Was it because his parents were poor?
That was a huge joke.
Just one - tenth of the rewards from the missions Minato Namikaze had completed would have saved Naruto from such misery.
If it weren't for the protagonist's aura, he would have turned dark long ago.
Some Naruto fans in his previous life even speculated that Naruto Uzumaki had been under the influence of Kotoamatsukami.
The so - called rules were just means to an end for a schemer like Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Two other things were discussed later. One was the still - ongoing local war, and the other was the post - war reconstruction and development of Konoha.
"Everyone, if you have any other suggestions, please speak up."
As time passed, two hours later, Hiruzen Sarutobi casually said.
The tasks were basically assigned, and he was about to end the meeting.
"Lord Hokage, I have a suggestion."
Haruki stood up, wearing an innocent and friendly smile on his face.
"Oh, it's Haruki. Go ahead."
Hiruzen Sarutobi also smiled. He really appreciated Haruki.
Originally an orphan, he had an extremely sunny mindset and behavior. During the war, he worked tirelessly, fearless of danger, and appeared on the frontline with the highest mortality rate, saving many ninjas.
Although he was Tsunade's boyfriend, he held her in high respect.
He perfectly embodied the Will of Fire.
Haruki used Chakra to control the Scrolls and let them land in front of each Jonin representative.
"It's about the changes to the Ninja Academy. All the specific details are in the Scrolls. Please take a look."
"I didn't expect you, kid, to come prepared."
Hiruzen Sarutobi opened the Scroll with great interest. The first sentence at the beginning made him a bit solemn.
When the youth are strong, the village is strong; when the youth are wise, the village is wise; when the youth are wealthy, the village is wealthy.
He read it several times and found it profound.
What followed next was Konoha's version of compulsory education.
The Ninja Academy would be divided into primary and middle schools. The primary school would maintain the original six - year curriculum, teaching basic knowledge. The middle school would last for three years, during which students would learn advanced Ninjutsu based on their Chakra attributes.
In other words, a normal graduation would be around the age of fifteen.
Considering the real - world situation, Haruki didn't directly extend it to eighteen.
In addition, a research institute would be added to the school to study new types of Ninjutsu and Ninja tools.
In fact, Konoha had always been working on this.
By the time of the Boruto era, Ninja - Ware had even been developed.
Finally, the real intention emerged. Two theoretical courses, history and politics, would be offered.
Of course, it couldn't be put so bluntly.
They should be "Konoha Hokage Character Encyclopedia" and "The Great Inheritance of the Will of Fire".
The Ninja Academy didn't have these two courses and didn't pay much attention to theory.
Take the Chunin Exams in the original story as an example. Everyone was showing their unique skills like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea. Except for a few, no one took the written exam seriously.
And Konoha itself seemed to advocate cheating.
Haruki's goal was naturally to correct the so - called Will of Fire.
Where the leaves flutter, the fire burns ceaselessly. The firelight will illuminate the village and allow new trees to sprout.
The original meaning of this sentence had been distorted by the actions of Hiruzen Sarutobi and Tanzo Shimura.
It had lost its original meaning.
Moreover, from the perspective of a certain cultural context, the Will of Fire was too abstract.
There were no specific concepts or plans.
In the original story, the most typical example was Itachi Uchiha.
What he did was like being brainwashed by a cult.
What Haruki planned to do was to spread his ideas to the younger generation through these two courses.
There might be no immediate effect.
But in ten or twenty years, Hiruzen would realize what kind of "monster" he had released today.
Oh! This was the so - called 'dragon - slaying art' that people in a certain cultural context knew.
Of course, this was just the first step.
Judging from Hiruzen's expression, the effect seemed good.
The look in his eyes when he looked at Haruki was full of comfort.
What a good boy!
He not only inherited the Will of Fire but also remembered Hiruzen's usual teachings. Now he even wanted to write a book based on his words.
"I disagree!"
A gloomy voice suddenly rang out in the quiet Hall.
Haruki looked at Tanzo Shimura.
As expected.
Tanzo Shimura has always scoffed at the Will of Fire. All he ever wants is to become the Hokage by any means possible.
If Haruki's approach were adopted, the Hokage's reputation would rise to new heights.
Hiruzen Sarutobi squinted his eyes.
But he didn't say a word. He wanted to see how Haruki would handle Tanzo Shimura's provocation.
"If we follow your method and they don't graduate, we won't be able to replenish the Genin in a short time. Not only that, we don't have enough Chunin and Jonin to serve as teachers at the Ninja Academy."
Tanzo Shimura's words hinted that he saw Genin as cannon fodder.
But Haruki had anticipated his question.
"Lord Tanzo is absolutely right," he said, first playing along with him. Then he changed the subject. "But I have two humble suggestions. Now that the Great Battle is over and the situation is stabilizing, the villagers should be encouraged to have more children. If they can't afford to raise their children, they can apply for Konoha to provide financial support for the children's upbringing. In addition, we can recruit the wandering Ninjas who emerged during the chaos. This can increase our available manpower in a short time."
Tanzo Shimura let out a sinister cackle. "After all, you're young. The first suggestion is acceptable, but it's very easy for undercover agents to mingle among the wandering Ninjas."
"I trust Lord Tanzo's Root. With the capabilities of Root, they can surely dig out the backgrounds of the wandering Ninjas. It'll be clear at a glance whether they're undercover agents or not."
Hearing this, Tanzo Shimura was stunned.
He didn't expect Haruki to yield the initiative.
He thought it over carefully.
Under the guise of recruiting wandering Ninjas, he seemed to be able to pull off some shady stuff.
Seeing Tanzo Shimura hesitate for a moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that he was tempted.
Thinking of the increasingly rampant Root, he said, "This matter should be jointly handled by the Anbu and Root."
Tanzo Shimura frowned but didn't say anything.
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Haruki and fell into deep thought. Haruki had made great contributions in this battle, and he was a Medical Ninja who was needed in logistics. Since he was interested in the Ninja Academy, he might as well fulfill his wish.
"From now on, you'll serve as the vice - principal of the Ninja Academy."