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En no Gyōja's eyes suddenly widened. Large amounts of natural energy flowed into his back from the air. Instantly, the sounds of birds and beasts in the forest seemed to cease, leaving only the terrifying fluctuations of natural energy on En no Gyōja's body.
"This is?!" Jūgo looked somewhat astonished at En no Gyōja. This intensity of natural energy was simply the most he had ever seen!
"Art! Could it be the old man wants to!?" Deidara said excitedly. En no Gyōja's words seemed to indicate one thing to him: En no Gyōja wanted to pull off something big!
"En no Gyōja is going to act!?"
"Is that the technique from our Tsuchigumo clan's most glorious era?"
"Rage? Is this Rage?" Instantly, the surrounding Tsuchigumo clansmen began whispering among themselves. It had been a long time since they had seen their Tsuchigumo clan's most powerful secret technique!
Large fluctuations continuously emerged on En no Gyōja's body. It seemed heaven and earth trembled and roared for En no Gyōja's action.
"Mmm!" When the natural energy gathered to a certain extent, En no Gyōja's eyes suddenly focused. His body shot into the sky like a sharp sword. Subsequently, he stood atop this fortress where he had once lived.
"Since our Tsuchigumo clan has confirmed joining Otogakure, then to show the determination of our Tsuchigumo clan, I will erase all past events!!! Rage!!!" Just after En no Gyōja finished speaking, the natural energy on his body finished gathering once more. The natural energy En no Gyōja could store at this time was not the capacity later forced upon Hotaru by Shiranami. This was genuine, inheriting the name of the Tsuchigumo clan's En no Gyōja, the strongest blow!
Rage!!! Following the appearance of a light that made one involuntarily close their eyes, along with a deafening sound, a violent explosion descended from the towering fortress! In an instant, the towering fortress vanished directly. Moreover, the power generated by this explosion completely erased the entire fortress. It could be said it was directly disintegrated, without even producing a trace of explosion aftermath.
"Art!!! This is true art!!!" Just as everyone watched, Deidara was already jumping up excitedly at this moment. In Deidara's eyes, this was thorough art! This explosion, this terrifying destructive power, Deidara himself knew his current strength was insufficient to produce such powerful destruction! Looking at En no Gyōja descending from the sky, Deidara's entire being boiled up, jumping and cheering on the spot.
"Truly worthy of the Tsuchigumo clan's forbidden technique. This destructive ability really has few rivals," Shinji sighed emotionally, looking at the vanished fortress. In this world, there really weren't many things with such destructive power. But the difficulty of cultivating this was also there. It wasn't something ordinary people could master. This could be seen from the current state of the Tsuchigumo clan. A once famous and prominent clan, now reduced to only 10 Genin and one En no Gyōja. This was truly lamentable.
"Overpraised, Boss Shinji. You also know the activation time for this is somewhat long," En no Gyōja stated calmly.
"Is that so... Then let's prepare to leave," Shinji understood in his heart. En no Gyōja wasn't just bidding farewell to the past Tsuchigumo clan. There was another purpose, which was to display the strength of his Tsuchigumo clan before Shinji and the others. Although En no Gyōja trusted Shinji now, he wasn't unfamiliar with the struggles within villages. Weren't there also dissenting voices in the currently strongest Konoha? Therefore, this display was also telling Shinji about the strength of his Tsuchigumo clan.
"Starting from here, it takes about 3 days to reach Otogakure. Boss Shinji, which route should we take?" En no Gyōja asked somewhat curiously.
"3 days? No, no. We can arrive immediately. Everyone from the Tsuchigumo clan, let's all hold hands," Shinji suddenly gestured to them, himself taking Karin's hand. Although they didn't know why, after glancing at each other, the Tsuchigumo clan members still listened to Shinji's words and held hands. Soon, over a hundred people, along with Shinji and the others, formed a large circle.
"Boss Shinji, this is?" En no Gyōja was still somewhat confused at this moment. What did this mean?
"Lord En no Gyōja, you'll know soon!" Shinji looked at everyone already having corresponding contact. Then, Shinji's eyes focused. Instantly, the over hundred people who filled the place just now vanished directly from the spot. If it weren't for some footprints remaining on the ground, one really couldn't prove so many people were here just now!
...
"What just happened here?" Just after Shinji and the others left, a black and white figure with a Venus flytrap head suddenly appeared. Listening to the panting sounds, he had clearly rushed over after traveling a long distance. Yes, this was Black and White Zetsu. He was quite far away just now but suddenly sensed immense natural energy. Then after an explosion sound, they rushed over here directly. Unexpectedly, they discovered this situation upon arrival.
"This is the original residence of the Tsuchigumo clan, right? Where are their people?" Black and White Zetsu was somewhat confused. This?
"Don't know. But one thing is certain, all the people of the Tsuchigumo clan are gone!" Black and White Zetsu said somewhat puzzledly.
"Better go back and report first~"
...
However, what Black and White Zetsu discovered here, Shinji didn't know nor cared. The next instant, Shinji brought the hundred-odd people and appeared in Otogakure.
"This... This is? Space-time ninjutsu?!" En no Gyōja said astonishedly. This was the first time he experienced the subtlety of space-time ninjutsu. Simply...
Just as surprised as En no Gyōja were the Tsuchigumo clansmen. Although born in the Tsuchigumo clan, not many knew ninjutsu. And only one or two people present knew of the existence of space-time ninjutsu. Therefore, upon arriving here, they still looked around, their eyes filled with confusion.
"Lord En no Gyōja can think of it that way," Shinji didn't explain, but directly followed En no Gyōja's words.
"Lord Shinji, since we've arrived in Otogakure, then our Tsuchigumo clan is now a member of Otogakure. This subordinate truly cannot bear the title of 'Lord'," En no Gyōja's heart was like a clear mirror. Before joining Otogakure, the two were people of the same level conversing. But now was different. His Tsuchigumo clan had already joined Otogakure. Meaning from today onwards, the Tsuchigumo clan was an affiliated clan of Otogakure. Therefore, Shinji, as a partner of Otogakure, held a higher status than himself. This was why En no Gyōja corrected his statement.
"Lord En no Gyōja, we are not so particular. Lord Orochimaru, Mr. Kakuzu, since you've come, why not come out?" Shinji stated calmly, his eyes looking towards the entrance.
"Fufufu, truly worthy of Boss Shinji. Perception is as sharp as ever," The door of the All-Purpose Shop opened. Orochimaru walked in with a smile on his pale face, while Kakuzu looked with his green eyes at the Tsuchigumo clansmen in the shop.
Just now, due to too many people, the Tsuchigumo members filled the All-Purpose Shop. Out of necessity, most Tsuchigumo clansmen were outside. Such a large group appearing in Otogakure, Orochimaru and Kakuzu received the news immediately and rushed over. Although the location was the All-Purpose Shop, meaning this matter was likely Shinji's doing, Orochimaru and Kakuzu still didn't relax their vigilance. They rushed over the moment they received the news, just in time to see the conversation between Shinji and En no Gyōja.
"Who is this?" Orochimaru's gaze swept over En no Gyōja. In his impression, there seemed to be no memory of this person.
"Lord Otokage, I am En no Gyōja of the Tsuchigumo clan. Now, under Lord Shinji's persuasion, officially joining our Otogakure, voluntarily becoming a part of Otogakure," En no Gyōja walked forward upon seeing Orochimaru. Since he came to join, naturally, he needed to present the right posture.
"Fufufu, didn't expect it to be the head of the Tsuchigumo clan, Clan Head En no Gyōja. You mean your Tsuchigumo clan wants to join our Otogakure?" Orochimaru looked somewhat surprisedly at Shinji after hearing his words. Unexpectedly, it was people from the Tsuchigumo clan. Orochimaru, having experienced multiple wars and read history thoroughly, naturally knew the Tsuchigumo clan was a very fierce character in history.
Just their secret technique Rage was already enough to make the other five great nations wary. This also made the Tsuchigumo clan one of the few independent small villages not governed by a nation. But unexpectedly, Shinji actually recruited such a Tsuchigumo clan into Otogakure. Truly worthy of Boss Shinji. Thinking of this, the gaze Orochimaru directed at Shinji couldn't help but become somewhat more fervent. Indeed, the decision to partner with Boss Shinji to open this Otogakure was truly wise.
"Yes. I heard Otogakure can lead us towards a prosperous life, and the ninja academy education here is free," En no Gyōja stated calmly. This was the main point he considered. Their Tsuchigumo clan suffered greatly from insufficient education, which led to their decline. Therefore, among Shinji's conditions, the free compulsory education was actually what moved En no Gyōja the most!
"Of course. Here, all enrollment is free, and education is also free. As long as one can pass, then we will use even richer resources to cultivate our ninjas. Only this way can Otogakure's strength become stronger and stronger," Orochimaru licked his tongue.
This concept was proposed by Shinji. Orochimaru and Kakuzu went from initial incomprehension to current strong advocacy precisely because. After this policy came out, although a large amount of funds were invested in the early stage, the effect was still very obvious. That was, among the children of those commoners, nearly 10% were found capable of refining chakra.
What concept was this? Remember, even in the current Konoha, the proportion of children capable of refining chakra was only between 12%-15%. And this proportion was achieved under very large circumstances. Meaning, previously many more villagers were actually capable of refining chakra, but lacked the corresponding education and the money to receive education.
"Excellent," En no Gyōja sighed in relief. This was the answer he wanted.
"The Tsuchigumo clan, as the first clan to join our Otogakure, will receive preferential treatment in all aspects. Kakuzu, is there currently a suitable place in Otogakure to serve as the Tsuchigumo clan's residence?" Orochimaru turned his head to look at Kakuzu. Regarding the planning of these matters, no one was clearer than Kakuzu.
"Some time ago, we specifically expanded the area of our Otogakure. Now, the eastern position has a suitable place for the Tsuchigumo clan's residence. The area is also large enough," Kakuzu took out Otogakure's planning map from his space scroll. Dense information was recorded on it. Shinji could even see from the revealed parts that some facilities to attract tourists were marked as ready for construction, and the iron smelting plant from last time was already nearing completion.
"Thank you so much, Lord Orochimaru, Lord Kakuzu, Lord Shinji," En no Gyōja looked carefully. Indeed, the eastern location was sufficient for them to live. Moreover, judging from the blueprints above, the houses there were already completed, ready for immediate move-in. This thorough preparation made the Tsuchigumo clan and En no Gyōja feel a wave of warmth.
"Jūgo, you take the Tsuchigumo clansmen together with Lord Orochimaru and the others to the new residence. I happen to still have some matters to discuss with Kakuzu," Shinji saw there were no other problems between the parties and directly asked Jūgo (likely meant Kakuzu) to take them over. Karin also followed along. Deidara, however, due to En no Gyōja's Rage just now, was currently excitedly planning to research some new art and didn't follow.
"Okay, Lord Shinji," Jūgo immediately said, then followed beside Orochimaru and En no Gyōja towards the east. The group of over a hundred people marched towards the east.
...
...
"Boss Shinji, what did you keep me behind for?" Kakuzu asked only after everyone else had left. Shinji's words just now were already clear; he had some matters to discuss with him.
"Kakuzu, how is our Otogakure's financial situation now?" Shinji asked directly after seeing everyone else had left, not beating around the bush.
"Funds? Still somewhat tight. The money you brought back last time, we actually consumed it very quickly. If no new funds come in, it's highly likely we'll soon face insufficient funds," Kakuzu frowned. This was a big problem. After all, for them, insufficient funds was truly a major weakness.
"I do have an idea. But it still needs you to implement it," Shinji stated calmly, tapping his fingers on the table.
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