A Rainbow Dragon soared through the clouds. Its massive body cut through the thin cloud layer. White scales gleamed silver in the sunlight.
Haruki sat behind Suguru. He heard Suguru sigh in relief from in front of him.
"The monkey smell is finally gone."
Haruki: "..."
Just how deep was Suguru's obsession with monkeys?
Suguru's black hair danced wildly in the strong wind. He turned his head, his purple eyes slightly narrowed, staring at Nagato behind Haruki.
"But there's still one little monkey."
Haruki pretended not to hear Suguru's words. He looked down at the vast, clear territory of the Land of Grass below. The high-altitude view was awesome.
"Where is this place? It looks very backward. There aren't even any Cursed Spirits."
Suguru's voice sounded from in front of Haruki, his wide monk's robe sleeves flapping in the wind.
Hearing Suguru's words, Haruki explained, "This is the Ninja World, there are no Cursed Spirits here."
Suguru stroked his chin, and thoughtfully said, "Ninja World? Those monkeys just now said they were ninja. I didn't expect ninja to actually still exist."
Nagato held onto the back hem of Haruki's top, sitting quietly on the Rainbow Dragon. His Rinnegan reflected the cloud shadows rapidly receding behind them, and a hint of joy actually appeared on his usually expressionless face.
He looked at the back of Haruki's head and smiled slightly.
This is great!
He had said that Haruki could do everything Haruki said he would. He would always believe in Haruki.
Nagato lowered his head, looking down.
At this moment, the Rainbow Dragon gradually began to descend, passing through the clouds, and the scene below gradually became clear.
The towns of the Land of Grass looked like scattered building blocks from high above, with crisscrossing streets and neatly arranged houses. Upon closer inspection, many buildings were in ruins, pedestrians were scarce on the streets, and occasionally a few wisps of black smoke rose from the edge of the town.
Haruki looked at the scorched areas below, a heavy sigh in his heart.
The Rainbow Dragon continued to fly forward, and the edge of the town was gradually replaced by a battlefield.
The land here had been thoroughly churned, with craters and scorched earth everywhere. Broken weapons were half-buried in the soil, and shattered forehead protectors were scattered everywhere.
"It seems that even without Cursed Spirits, there are things more terrifying than Cursed Spirits." A hint of sarcasm flashed in Suguru's eyes.
Without Cursed Spirits, humans would kill each other. The destruction caused by war was greater than that caused by Cursed Spirits.
It seemed that no matter the era or space, humans could never live truly peaceful and tranquil lives.
"Yes." Haruki nodded in agreement.
"Those who start wars are not necessarily qualified leaders."
"But those who maintain peace are definitely qualified leaders."
Suguru's hands were tucked into his sleeves, his eyes narrowed, his expression relaxed.
Although there was war in this era, he still loathed Cursed Spirits the most, more than war itself. A world not contaminated by Cursed Spirits was wonderful.
Suguru smiled contentedly.
"Haruki is the most qualified leader." Nagato's voice sounded from behind Haruki.
Haruki almost lost his balance and fell off the Rainbow Dragon's back. He turned to look at Nagato behind him.
Nagato's eyes gleamed with firm light. He stared unmoving at Haruki and repeated, "I believe a world led by Haruki will have no wars."
Nibi no Utsu was the best example!
Haruki's mind was full of various ingenious ideas. He always knew how to eliminate conflicts between people.
[Ding!]
[System detected Nagato's Faith Value +3000.]
[Your Cursed Spirit Suguru's rank has increased to 74.3%.]
Haruki hadn't expected Nagato to have such confidence in him. He gracefully accepted Nagato's praise.
"I don't want to lead the world. I just want the world to develop peacefully and stably." Haruki clenched his fists.
Suguru looked back at him, a subtle smile on his lips. "Naive belief."
How could the world develop peacefully and stably?
As long as humans existed, conflict and desire would always exist.
Haruki said to Suguru, "Let's find a place to land where we won't be seen."
They couldn't just keep flying in the sky. He and Nagato needed to eat.
Under Suguru's control, the Rainbow Dragon began to circle down, approaching a small town located at the edge of the battlefield.
Haruki and the others could see from the air that half of the town was severely damaged, while the other half was crowded with makeshift tents and shelters.
Half of the people scurried like ants through the ruins, transporting supplies and rescuing the injured, while the other half sat in undamaged houses, leisurely and condescendingly watching these people busy themselves.
The Rainbow Dragon gracefully swooped down, finally landing in a forest far from the town, a forest that separated the town from the battlefield.
The three of them leaped from the dragon's back. The Rainbow Dragon disappeared beside Suguru.
Haruki looked at Suguru, wondering if he should let Suguru leave too.
Suguru seemed to read Haruki's intentions and said, "Let me stay a bit longer. I'm very curious about this world."
Haruki was not one to be harsh with his Cursed Spirit, so he nodded generously. "Alright."
The three of them walked towards the town.
There were many traces of battle left in this forest.
Although it was a buffer zone between the battlefield and the town, when war truly broke out, not all ninjas could control themselves.
Just like the ruins in the town and the injured civilians within them, they were all innocent victims of war.
Explosive tags, which ninjas could avoid, could easily destroy their gardens and take their lives.
They walked out of the forest and arrived at the town. Their arrival did not attract much attention.
People calmly, or more accurately, habitually glanced at them before looking away.
This town had clearly been caught in the ninja wars multiple times.
The walls of many houses were covered with the marks of shuriken and kunai. Some were burned to mere frameworks by fire.
(End of Chapter)
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