The scenes inside the memory disc fell into the eyes of everyone in the conference room, making them feel dizzy and lightheaded.
Jiraiya beside them clicked his tongue, feeling like the alcohol from last night still hadn't worn off.
Tsunade looked at the rice ball in Ryosuke's hand, then at the sky outside that was still only just turning bright. Her red lips parted, messy, chaotic emotions crowded to her lips, yet she didn't know what she ought to say.
What could she say?
They were still here thinking over tactics, pondering how to deal with enemies coming from the sky, how the villagers should be evacuated.
Each elite ninja had been wracking their brains until they were dizzy, and in the end…
This guy, just in the time it took to go buy breakfast, solved the invading enemy?
Didn't that make them seem… a little stupid?
The Hyuga and Nara clans, meeting Ryosuke properly for the first time, all wore stunned looks.
Just a few minutes ago, some of them had made up their minds to die in battle, some were brimming with fighting spirit, itching to tear the enemy apart with their bare hands, in short, they had been waiting to throw their lives against the Sky Ninja Army in two days' time.
In the end, their mental preparation was complete, yet they were told the enemy was wiped out. Simply put, their mood could be summed up in one phrase, 'drawing the sword, looking around in all directions, heart bewildered.'
Everyone could only scratch their heads and smack their lips, lying around on chairs in boredom, waiting for the meeting to end so they could go home and catch up on sleep, Yamanaka Haiichi had already dozed off, snoring loudly.
The two advisors, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, looked even more amusing.
One second ago, they were saying Ryosuke was daydreaming.
The next second, the disc landed on the table with a smack, like a slap across their faces.
Since Tsunade took office and Danzo suddenly died, the two advisors had already felt their authority being challenged in many ways.
Now they were slapped in the face again, and considering Ryosuke's strength and the record placed right there on the table…
These two old man and old woman, they couldn't act soft, couldn't act tough, so they just froze there, neither soft nor hard, alive like two half-dead worms.
The two could only glance at each other, shrink their necks, and choose silence to cover the helplessness in their hearts.
Tsunade finished watching the memory disc and let out a long exhale.
She lifted her head, meeting Ryosuke's eyes, her gaze sharp and high-spirited.
From each other's eyes, they saw the same thought.
'Next… it's our turn to take the initiative.'
Always being passively beaten, that didn't fit Ryosuke's or Tsunade's personalities.
Only by hurting, killing the enemies who dared stretch out their hands, could they prevent future imitators.
And from General Hōjaku's memories, it was clear, these people came targeting the obstruction of the spread of the "Awakening Trend," they came to destroy the very foundation of the ninja villages' existence.
As long as they held this goal, they could endlessly gain funds and support from various channels.
"Eliminate the Sky Ninja Army," Ryosuke said. "Best if we follow the vine back to the root, find the sponsors hiding behind them, and have a good chat with them."
Kakashi picked up a tea snack from the table, bit into it, and was just about to swallow. Hearing Ryosuke's "chat with them," the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
Jiraiya scratched his head and said, "But, listening to this… don't we sound just like those villains in novels who strangle geniuses?"
"Not the same."
Ryosuke said, "The villains in stories send their subordinates to die one after another, just to give the protagonist room to grow."
"And us?"
Ryosuke pulled out a Polaroid camera he carried from the ghost room,
"I'm heading out right after this to chop people."
After many trials, including Ripple-formed golden flames, water streams, and TV screens, Ryosuke found that Polaroid photos were the most accurate and convenient for Star Platinum to draw in detail.
Ryosuke chopped his palm down on the Polaroid.
"Hermit Purple."
The nen-writing ability activated, and a photo slowly spat out.
Ryosuke picked up the photo, and everyone leaned over his shoulder to look,
Shinnō stood at a podium, arms outstretched, expression impassioned. The background was pitch black, only behind Shinnō there was light, as if a movie was being projected.
Tsunade raised her brows, slammed her fist on the table, "This bastard still has the mood to watch a movie?"
Because of the strong light-dark contrast in the room, they couldn't see clearly what was being shown, but that wasn't a problem.
Star Platinum appeared beside Ryosuke.
It picked up pen and paper that had been used earlier for tactical discussions, and with the other hand holding the photo, it quickly sketched on the paper.
The fine "shh shh" of the pen tip against the paper never stopped, and the drawn scene gradually grew clear.
Hyūga Hiashi's eyes widened pale, he was the first to react, "Isn't this… the scene of Ryosuke fighting the Sky Fortress?"
Under Star Platinum's precision, the battle scene was perfectly restored, thousands of suicide pilots, shouting slogans, charging at Ryosuke.
The Sky Fortress firing a destructive laser.
Ryosuke, encircled and besieged at the center, looked pitifully small and helpless.
Jiraiya snorted, "If Ryosuke weren't standing here right now, just looking at this picture, I'd think the victors were the Sky Ninja Army."
"That's the art of editing."
Ryosuke said, "He's doing a live demonstration battle, showing 'them' the value of the Sky Ninja Army."
No one asked who "they" were.
General Hōjaku's memories had said it clearly.
The so-called "they" were those in various countries, certain plutocrats eager to destroy Ryosuke and the ninja villages.
Tsunade asked, "Can you change the angle, do it again?"
She really wanted to know, who were the ones sitting under the stage listening, who were the ones helping Shinnō create these atrocious terrorist attacks.
Ryosuke nodded.
He took another Polaroid from the ghost room and activated Hermit Purple again.
He couldn't actively adjust the angle, but as long as Shinnō himself moved, the perspective of the nen-writing would also shift.
The second photo slid out.
Tsunade leaned on the table, took the photo.
But…
There was no audience.
Below the stage were rows of cameras, wires trailing from behind them, stretching out of the photo's edge.
Whoever chose to invest in the Sky Ninja Army, they didn't want to expose themselves.
They didn't even want to send a servant.
Hermit Purple, just this one little vine, brought them too much pressure.
"I can see these people's caution."
Jiraiya said, "But we still can't deduce Shinnō's location from this photo."
Hermit Purple could only roughly point out a direction, and this "roughly" was vague, with delay and deviation.
If Shinnō hid indoors, it wouldn't be easy to find him.
"I think… I know where he is."
Kakashi picked up the photo, pointing at a little beetle crawling on one of the cameras, "A desert beetle. They grow in deserts and arid places. In most countries, you only see them in museums. There's only one place where they can fly around outside at will."
"The Land of Wind, the desert country."
Sitting beside him, Might Guy patted Kakashi's back hard.
"Not bad! You even know entomology!"
Kakashi's gaze grew complicated. Staring at the beetle in the photo, he let out a sigh, "Yeah, even this… I know."
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/XenosX
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰