The Hidden Rain Village.
Uehara Naraku didn't know about the incidents in Konoha.
As a qualified mastermind, what Naraku needed to do was to check his results, which seemed quite satisfactory now.
A storm of accusations against Uchiha Obito that he orchestrated from behind the scenes directly made his main mission progress jump, reaching twelve percent.
Unfortunately, it could only go so far.
This was Naraku's last attempt this year against Uchiha Obito.
Moreover, despite the Five Great Countries' Ninja Villages making a big scene to denounce Uchiha Obito, they ultimately failed to uncover any traces of Obito, and the storm gradually dissipated over time.
Time moved forward bit by bit.
Naraku's team also gained two teammates, Kaguya Kimimaro and Haku, and this Hidden Rain squad gradually became active in the Ninja World.
Naraku grew day by day, becoming a naive and kind young ninja; Kimimaro's health improved; the only one in the team was Haku, who grew increasingly charming and cute.
Four years passed in the blink of an eye.
In the span of four years, the Ninja World seemed like stagnant water.
The peaceful state of the Ninja World was actually quite normal, after all, Naraku, the dark hand behind the scenes, was also confined by his teacher within the Hidden Rain Village.
Apart from Naraku, whether the Ninja World was chaotic or not depended on the Uchiha.
Unfortunately, neither Uchiha Obito nor Uchiha Itachi seemed to stir up any big movements, quietly staying in some corner.
But this year, a new Uchiha would become a ninja.
It was Uchiha Sasuke of Konoha Village.
Besides Uchiha Itachi, perhaps only Naraku paid attention to Sasuke and the situation of the Seventh Class, as the Seventh Class would become his first batch of harvest.
Everything proceeded as Naraku predicted.
When the Seventh Class led by Hatake Kakashi executed their mission in the Land of Waves, they still encountered Momochi Zabuza's team.
Unfortunately, Zabuza's partner changed.
This time, Zabuza's partner was that guy, Hozuki Mangetsu.
Momochi Zabuza + Hozuki Mangetsu, the combination of two official Akatsuki members, was enough to make the Seventh Class despair.
Due to the scarcity of missions in the Hidden Rain Village, Naraku couldn't find a suitable excuse to go outside for some time. As he grew older, Konan began strictly forbidding his contact with Akatsuki members, worried he might be led astray by those rogue ninjas.
Fortunately, there were still Kaguya Kimimaro and Haku.
Konan didn't mind them having contact with Akatsuki members.
Naraku sat on the cement pipe of the Hidden Rain Village, reached out to take a cup of iced juice from Haku, and curiously asked, "Did Hozuki Mangetsu and Momochi Zabuza return? How did they fare on their mission in the Land of Waves?"
"From the results, it was not bad."
Kaguya Kimimaro nodded, and said in a deep voice, "They killed Caddo and transported his wealth to the Akatsuki base, but there was a small problem in between. The two seniors encountered Konoha's Hatake Kakashi, resulting in mutual destruction."
Naraku couldn't help but shake his head and sighed, "Tsk, that guy really always ends in a draw when encountered!"
Hatake Kakashi's path of balance truly is extraordinary.
Both formal members of Akatsuki were defeated by him, perhaps because during the incident with Uchiha Obito, Hatake Kakashi became stronger again?
The incident in the Land of Waves passed, and Haku survived his destined calamity.
Naraku, on the other hand, completed a side mission lying down.
Side mission: Let Haku survive (1/1), mission completed, reward skill Ice Barrier.
Ice Barrier: Creates a giant ice wall by freezing the air, lasts for 5 seconds, minimum Chakra consumption of 75 points, cooldown of 10 seconds.
Naraku didn't really care much about such skills anymore.
Through his diligent training and time spent safely practicing in the Hidden Rain Village over four years, Naraku finally reaped rewards, making himself stronger.
Well, mostly because he grew up.
After all, Naraku was already sixteen this year, underwent many changes in both height and physique, and his strength slightly increased with the supplements from several side mission rewards.
Life Energy: 8321 (Standard Kage Level 3000~10000)
Chakra Energy: 10045 (Not within the conventional standard)
Life Recovery: 9/second
Chakra Recovery: 6/second
Skill Cooldown Reduction: 50%
Remaining Gold Coins: 2730
Just when Naraku finished listening to Kaguya Kimimaro and Haku's report and was about to leave, a young girl climbed onto the cement pipe where they were.
Her name was Ajisai, a Genin who just graduated this year from the Hidden Rain Village.
Ajisai stepped in front of Naraku and spoke softly, "Lord Uehara, Lady Angel wants you to be responsible for welcoming the Konoha Envoy."
"Konoha Envoy?"
Naraku couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.
The Hidden Rain Village was always in a state of lockdown, announcing to the outside world that they were still in civil strife, and neighboring countries had long become indifferent to the matters of the Hidden Rain Village.
Yet the arrival of this Konoha Envoy truly had a significant purpose.
Their aim was to invite the Hidden Rain Ninjas to participate in the Joint Chunin Examination, which according to ninja theory, equated to a military competition in the Ninja World.
If the Hidden Rain Village wished to participate, they could directly send a Jonin in charge and Genin participants to the Land of Fire's border.
Once at the border and registered by Konoha Ninjas, temporary access permits to Konoha Village would be issued to avoid unnecessary conflicts.
After the Konoha Envoy left, paper butterflies appeared around Naraku, assembling into Konan's form.
Four years passed by.
Konan hadn't changed much, only gained a touch of mature charm.
Konan raised her head, looking up at her now taller disciple, with a slight frown displaying worry, softly asking, "Will there be any conspiracy in the Chunin Examination hosted by Konoha?"
"To showcase the abundant talents of the Great Ninja Villages, perhaps?"
Naraku smiled and softly continued, "Teacher Konan, help me prepare three registration certificates for Genin, I and Haku will participate in this Chunin Examination."
Upon hearing Naraku's words, Konan's eyes were filled with bewilderment: "Naraku, why would you want to participate in the Chunin Examination?"
Could it be that this disciple couldn't think straight?
After all, Naraku was the future leader of the Hidden Rain Village!
"I want to probe information about Shimura Danzo."
Naraku looked at the worried Konan, shook his head, and softly stated, "Teacher, safety is not a concern."
The Chunin Examination was indeed significant, and Naraku also planned to take this opportunity to sneak out for a while, reaping some earlier planted seeds and new crops.
If possible...
Naraku's eyes darkened slightly, he really wanted to try if he could use this chance to lure Uzumaki Naruto into darkness, maybe even guide him into joining the Akatsuki Organization.
There were quite a few tasks in the side missions involving Naruto's path to darkness!
For example, a certain side mission of having Pain and Uzumaki Naruto sit side by side smoking in the ruins of Konoha, with rewards that were absolutely unimaginably high!
Though the difficulty of completion was also extremely high.
After all, in the Ninja World, minors were prohibited from smoking and drinking, and Nagato was unlikely to manipulate Pain to smoke, right?
This was indeed quite vexing.
While Naraku pondered over this, Konan contemplated the feasibility of her disciple participating in the Chunin Examination; sixteen years old participating in the Chunin Examination also seemed plausible?
Setting aside Naraku's motive of probing Shimura Danzo's intel, it felt more like Naraku wanted to bully a bunch of kids.
As for safety issues, there wasn't much concern.
Under Konan's careful cultivation, her disciple's strength was not much different from Akatsuki's formal members, and he could even summon the Deva Path of Pain.
This disciple has grown up, seemingly ready to be let loose for a while?
After pondering for a moment, Konan raised a question, "You need a Jonin to lead the team, but I'm not suitable to show up..."
"That's easy."
Naraku's face lit up with a smile, "Why not have Hattori Heikawa join us together? After all, he's our old friend."