Chapter 34 — Sand Shinobi Delegation
"Hmm?"
The sudden sound of the system notification interrupted Su Li's movements.
"What's wrong, Mr. Su Li?"
Yakumo, who was helping nearby, noticed his expression and asked curiously.
"It's nothing," Su Li said, shaking his head lightly.
But inwardly, he was surprised.
This 'Konoha Collapse' comic hadn't been out for long, had it?
Someone had already cleared the Kage-level difficulty?
It made sense that Kakashi and the other elite shinobi hadn't rushed to try it yet — they were busy mastering their new powers from previous comics. But even so, whoever cleared it this quickly was undeniably strong.
And their success brought Su Li an unexpectedly generous reward.
Of course, at Su Li's current level, an increase in ninjutsu or chakra didn't make much visible difference to his overall combat power. But that wasn't the point.
This was just one person's benefit.
Once a large number of ninjas started clearing the dungeon, the cumulative rewards Su Li received would skyrocket — and his strength would increase by leaps and bounds.
Even if S-rank ninjutsu was weaker compared to Kekkei Genkai, or top-tier Devil Fruits like the Thunder Fruit, Light Fruit, or Flame-Flame Fruit, that didn't mean S-rank techniques were bad — the comparison was simply unfair.
Extra skills were always a good thing. There was no such thing as too many.
But what truly mattered most were the system points.
At this point, Su Li's total had already reached 5.6 million!
Yes — five million, six hundred thousand points.
Enough for five diamond-tier ten-pulls!
But strangely, the more he earned, the less he was interested in diamond-tier draws.
Now, his eyes were set on something greater — the King-tier ten-pull.
As long as he could accumulate ten million system points, he could perform one.
At this rate, it wouldn't take long.
[Ding!]Gang Zitie has cleared the dungeon "Konoha Collapse" (Kage-level difficulty) and obtained the following rewards: tenfold Chakra increase, ten C-rank ninjutsu, five B-rank ninjutsu, three A-rank ninjutsu, and one S-rank ninjutsu. Host receives the same rewards synchronously! (Note: The tenfold Chakra increase is relative, not absolute.)
[Ding!]You have gained 4,000 system points!
"Huh? Gang Zitie too?" Su Li raised an eyebrow, amused. "Seems those two background characters had more talent than expected."
Ordinary ninjas typically comprehended just one general ability.
But people like Izumo Kamizuki and Gang Zitie were different. They didn't just awaken strong powers — they gained multiple abilities, each stacking atop the other.
Their overall combat power had skyrocketed.
In the original story, both had only managed to become Special Jōnin after the Fourth Great Ninja War.
But now…
They'd mastered multiple powers from entirely different systems.
If they continued training, they might even reach the level of the First Hokage one day.
Smiling faintly, Su Li shook his head. "Let's not overthink it."
He turned his attention back to his desk, resuming work on his next comic.
Meanwhile…
On the road not far from Konoha, a group of shinobi moved swiftly toward the village.
At the front of the formation was an elderly woman with lilac-gray hair tied in a bun.
Beside her walked a brown-skinned man with a Sand Village forehead protector and a scarf around his neck — Baki, the elite Jōnin of Sunagakure.
Behind them followed Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro, along with other Sand Shinobi guards.
"I didn't expect we'd be able to approach Konoha so easily," Baki said, his tone cautious yet respectful as he addressed the woman beside him. "It seems the death of the Third Hokage has hit them hard. We haven't encountered a single Konoha patrol since crossing the border. The village must be in complete disarray."
The old woman remained silent for a moment, her face unreadable beneath the hood of her cloak.
She was none other than Chiyo, the former advisor of Sunagakure — a legendary kunoichi skilled in puppetry, medical ninjutsu, sealing techniques, and taijutsu. Her strength was said to be unfathomable.
But right now, her expression was far from pleasant.
And no wonder.
She and her younger brother Ebizō had long since retired from political life, choosing seclusion over the chaos of the shinobi world.
Yet now, tragedy had forced her hand.
The Fourth Kazekage was dead — assassinated by Orochimaru.
With no successor fit to lead and the village teetering on the brink of collapse, the two elders had been compelled to return.
Ebizō stayed behind to stabilize Sunagakure's internal affairs, while Chiyo herself led this diplomatic mission — a delegation to Konoha — to prevent war from breaking out.
The goal was simple: rebuild the alliance between Konoha and Sunagakure before other powers could exploit the situation.
If she had a choice, Chiyo would never have agreed to come.
Her hatred for Konoha ran deep — her son and daughter-in-law had both been killed by Konoha's White Fang, Hatake Sakumo, Kakashi's father.
The irony burned within her.
The one village she despised most… was now the one she had to appeal to for peace.
Her pride screamed in protest, but duty left her no choice.
Despite her words of indifference toward Sunagakure's fate, when the moment came, she couldn't turn her back on it.
And so, here she was — leading the Sand's delegation to Konoha.
Before long, the group reached the village gates of Konoha.
"Stop right there!"
Two guards immediately stepped forward — Gang Zitie and Izumo Kamizuki, standing firmly at the entrance.
Their eyes sharpened as they took in the sight of the Sand Shinobi delegation.
The tension in the air was palpable.