Sakura shrugged and said, "For example, besides Might Duy, the man who remained a genin his entire life in Konoha, there's also an old man named Kuusuke known as the Eternal Genin. In terms of strength, he's definitely among the top-ranking jonin. After all, he learned ninjutsu from both the Second Hokage and the Third Hokage, and even went on missions with the Fourth Hokage. Although he suffered severe injuries, he's still an incredibly impressive person!"
"How exactly are ninja ranks determined in Konoha?" Zabuza mentally wept. Was Konoha cursed? How come even the genin are monsters?!
"Who knows for sure? Anyway, if the Hokage thinks you're ready to level up, then you get promoted; if not, there's nothing you can do," Sakura didn't quite know what else to say. In a way, Konoha's ranking system really is poisonous. Essentially, anyone labeled 'Eternal Genin' or 'dead last' tends not to be simple at all. Take Might Duy, for example—he could take down four members of the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist. Or Kuusuke, whose power ranked among the best jonin. Then there's Jiraiya himself, once called the dead last; Obito Uchiha, another former dead last; and even Naruto and Sasuke, two genin who saved the shinobi world. Hmm, thinking about it this way, Konoha's ninja rankings and those nicknames really do seem kind of messed up.
"The tyranny of the Hokage," Zabuza scoffed bitterly. Suddenly, he felt a bit of sympathy for the Third—wondering whether he realized how many hidden powerful figures lived within Konoha.
As they traveled, the desolate scenery of the Land of Waves left everyone feeling rather heavy-hearted. A crushing weight pressed down on their hearts.
Dazuna's house was relatively decent compared to much of the country, though it was somewhat remote. Around his house, practically no other residences could be seen.
"Tsunami, I'm back," Tsunami called out as she stepped out from inside the house, visibly relaxing when she saw her father had returned unharmed. "These are the ninja who escorted you back?"
"Yeah," Tazuna said with a slightly uneasy expression. Their abilities were undeniably top-notch, but their intense presence made him uncomfortable being around them.
"Thank you all so much for bringing my father back safely!" Tsunami bowed deeply in gratitude.
"We're ninja. Accomplishing our mission perfectly is both our pursuit and our duty." Sakura let out a slight sigh and continued, "Over the coming days, I'm afraid we'll be troubling you a bit. We'll be staying here for some time and will need to borrow a few rooms. Looks like we're gonna be neighbors for a while!"
"Oh, that's fine! There are a few guest rooms available. Let me go clean them!" Tsunami immediately waved her hand and turned to start preparing the guest rooms but was stopped by Sakura.
"Don't bother cleaning the guest rooms—we'll just set up a temporary shelter here ourselves!"
Sakura went through a series of hand seals and struck the ground hard with her palm.
[Wood Release: Four Pillars House Jutsu!]
A wooden house emerged from the ground. Over the past two days, Sakura had used this technique every night to build a shelter for sleeping in the wild, and she had become far more skilled at it.
"We might cause a bit of inconvenience for the next few days. We hope you'll bear with us."
Sakura and the others strode into the house, ignoring the reactions of those around them. Headman's Granddaughter stood there shocked, while Dazuna secretly rejoiced.
"Thank you," Dazuna said sincerely. He had already lost all hope. If Sakura and her team had simply escorted him and then left immediately, he would never have been able to complete his bridge, and the Land of Waves would have been doomed. Yet fortune had smiled upon him again—Sakura had chosen to stay.
"Don't get the wrong idea. We're staying here just to find a quiet place to train for a while. It has nothing to do with you!"
Sakura said flatly, though Kakashi and the others quietly chuckled among themselves.
Chapter 144: Gato's Foolhardy Move [Mid]
"Hey, Sakura really is all bark and no bite!" Kakashi laughed, his eyes curving into crescent shapes. "Even though you kept saying all the way here that you wouldn't help Dazuna, you still chose to lend a hand!"
"I'm not all bark and no bite at all! I just really hate the dreary atmosphere in the Land of Waves!" Sakura shot Kakashi a glare. There was no way she'd ever forgive Dazuna for what he'd done. "Besides, there's profit to be made here. Once we take out Gato, I'll have the Celestial Society move in. Then we can earn some extra spending money!"
"T-take out Gato?" Kakashi didn't push Sakura on her stubborn words, but when he heard her mention eliminating Gato, his lips twitched slightly. "Sakura, please don't act recklessly. Gato is a wealthy merchant. If you go after him, you'll definitely face a joint attack from all the ninja villages!"
Ninjas had more power than regular folks, sure—but they still had rules to follow. For example, attacking influential individuals was strictly forbidden. If the target was an ordinary person, no one would pay much attention as long as things didn't go too far. But if the target was someone like Gato—a powerful merchant—or a high-ranking figure like a daimyo, they couldn't just strike without consequences. That was an ironclad law of the shinobi world; anyone who broke it would be hunted down by the entire ninja community.
This rule wasn't born from any kindness among village leaders, but rather because ordinary people, despite their lack of strength, were essential to the world's balance. The food ninjas ate and the tools they used were mostly made by civilians. Without commoners, who would serve them? In the end, it was a mutually beneficial relationship—ninja protected the civilians under their jurisdiction, while the civilians provided vital logistical support. After all, just because you're a ninja doesn't mean you're good at everything—combat doesn't help you cook rice or fix a roof.
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