Arata gave a small smile, completely unbothered.
"You should worry about yourself. Forgotten how you lost to me last time?"
The moment these words came out, the two exchanged a glance and laughed, then split up to prepare what they needed.
The unit Arata was assigned to lead — 3000 men —
was scheduled to gather at 1 p.m. at Konoha's North Gate.
It was a force mainly composed of chūnin, with only 10 jōnin in total — and even those 10 were marginal figures with no clan background.
For jōnin like these, even if their chakra level qualified them as jōnin, in real combat they were usually suppressed by clan jōnin.
Calling this force "the old, weak, sick, and leftover" wouldn't be an exaggeration.
It was obvious what the Third Hokage was thinking.
Sending Arata alone with a civilian-heavy unit to block Kumogakure's main force?
That was no different from sending him to die.
Even Jiraiya had sensed something was wrong.
Of course, the Third's excuse afterward would be easy:
Konoha didn't have enough manpower,
we did all we could,
tragic sacrifice,
deep condolences…
The average villager wouldn't question it.
But Arata thought differently.
Since these shinobi were already being treated as disposable,
he might as well take this opportunity to turn them into his own loyal subordinates.
He hadn't forgotten: after the Second Great Ninja War, clan power declined and civilians rose.
Recruiting them now would only benefit him later.
And combined with his recent appearances at the Academy,
his influence among civilian shinobi might soon surpass Sarutobi Hiruzen himself.
At this moment, the system activated.
[Ding! Based on the host's current circumstances, three options have been generated:]
[Option 1: Lead the 3000 civilian shinobi into battle with zero casualties.
Reward: Uchiha Madara's complete bloodline.]
[Option 2: Dislike the 3000 civilian shinobi and request additional manpower from the Third Hokage.
Reward: Byakugan.]
[Option 3: Lead the 3000 into battle, regardless of victory or casualties.
Reward: Mangekyō Sharingan.]
None of these rewards were abilities Arata urgently needed, but after comparing them:
Option 2 was eliminated immediately — he had no interest in the Byakugan or the option itself.
Option 3's Mangekyō was tempting, but still not on the level of Madara's complete bloodline.
Arata thought carefully.
Most of his power came from the One Piece system,
but this world was still Naruto,
and having a top-tier Naruto bloodline path was essential.
The Uchiha lineage + Sharingan was one of the strongest systems in the original story, reaching all the way to the Rinnegan and even Six Paths level.
By contrast, his Garp-style physical arts, Mihawk-style swordsmanship, and Rumble-Rumble Fruit would likely cap at Peak Super-Kage.
Reaching god-tier Six Paths level would require something more.
Which meant:
Madara's bloodline was crucial.
And this option aligned perfectly with his current plans.
Decision made, Arata centered himself and adjusted his mental state.
Tsunade had already left early; Team Jiraiya didn't need to lead troops — they only needed to head straight to the frontlines.
The seven-thousand–strong main force would be commanded by Danzō.
It was the Third Hokage's most trusted elite force.
If that unit suffered heavy losses, Sarutobi Hiruzen would be seriously weakened.
....
When Arata arrived at the North Gate, the three-thousand-man unit was already gathered.
From afar, every one of them looked like they had "death flag" written on their faces — plain black hair, plain looks,
and not a single trace of a kekkei genkai.
Even the jōnin were mostly over forty, clearly stuck at their current level for life.
As for the chūnin and genin — instead of young people, practically all of them were over thirty.
These were Konoha's forgotten shinobi, people like Might Duy.
After years of bloody missions, surviving by luck, their jutsu were limited and their futures bleak.
Arata, coming from a civilian background himself, naturally felt more relatable to them —
and to them, he was a role model.
He stepped to the front, scanned the ranks, and nodded in satisfaction.
Whatever their talent was like, their attitude was the best among all of Konoha's shinobi.
With no gifts and no advantages, they survived only through grit.
The moment these men saw Arata, many grew visibly excited.
He was their legend — the civilian who married Tsunade, the civilian who reached Kage-level.
Arata didn't speak much; they were still within Konoha, and any speech or ideological push would wait until the frontlines.
With a single wave of his hand,
the entire unit began marching toward the border.
...
Since this force lacked high-level power, reaching the northern destination would take at least two days.
During this time, Arata spoke briefly with the ten jōnin to learn their names, and assigned each of them 300 men.
They then split those 300 into teams of three for easier command during missions.
This was Arata's first time commanding such a large force, so he struggled at first.
Fortunately, Uzumaki Mito had previously tutored him, and by the second day he had the entire unit running smoothly.
Still, negative murmurs began spreading through the troops.
The Third Hokage's intentions had been far too blatant.
Since these were all civilians and many already knew each other,
it didn't take long for them to realize they were the discarded ones —
likely sent to die.
Morale dropped sharply.
Yet some still clung to hopeful denial:
The Third Hokage is kind,
He wouldn't really send us as sacrifice,
Maybe he knows Kumogakure's target isn't Konoha…
Arata sensed their morale falling,
but he didn't rush to intervene.
He would wait until the Third Hokage pushed them into a truly hopeless situation.
Only then would his words have real power.
That was when he would win their hearts completely.