Chapter 224 Inspection and Birds

The young eagles will eventually have to fly alone. Nature is very cruel. Only by jumping off a high cliff can the young eagles truly master the flying skills. Although Ye Shan was hesitant, he still chose to trust the new young eagles of Konoha and looked forward to their excellent performance.

Uchiha Fugaku put out his cigarette and lit up another one. He was addicted to smoking, which was related to living in a highly tense environment for many years: "The morale of the ninjas on the front line is low. They need a reason to regain their fighting spirit. I'm afraid you will have to go again."

Ye Shan nodded, picked up the cup and drank a sip of water, and said calmly: "The war is imminent, and I, the Fourth Hokage, must inspect it. There is nothing big happening in the village recently, so I can leave at any time. It will only take about two days, and it won't delay government affairs."

In the current ninja world, Hayama, Uchiha Fugaku and Namikaze Minato are in the limelight, and even have a tendency to surpass the three ninjas, especially Uchiha Fugaku, who has been fighting on the front line for a long time and is known as the evil eye. His level of terror is no less than that of Minato. Moreover, Hayama, the Hokage, often goes to the front line for no reason, and he will not expose his battle plan if he inspects before the war.

He refused to sit in the office all day reviewing documents and handling government affairs. In comparison, Ye Shan preferred to go out and see and listen more. Politicians hate to listen to one side only and believe in everything. Everything must be seen with one's own eyes, so as to avoid mistakes as much as possible.

Time soon came to evening. Yeshan declined Uchiha Fugaku's invitation to dinner, and did not sit in the office to sign and stamp. Instead, he came to Hokage Rock alone and admired the view of the sunset being replaced by stars from a high vantage point.

There is no end to the work. Having been the Hokage for two and a half years, Yeshan has naturally learned to relax himself. Sometimes he would soak in a hot spring, sometimes he would feast on a delicious meal, but more often he would sit alone and daydream, emptying his mind and relieving stress.

Konoha was very beautiful at night. The lights illuminated most of the Hokage Rock. The bustling crowds on the streets were filled with the atmosphere of fireworks, which made people feel relaxed and happy unconsciously.

Ye Shan lit a cigarette, but did not put it in his mouth. He just held it in his hand, letting the refreshing evening breeze fully enjoy the burnt fragrance of the tobacco. He sat cross-legged on the ground, as quiet as a statue.

It was not until the bustling crowd gradually dispersed and the sparse barking of dogs became the main melody in the world that Ye Shan stood up contentedly, did some simple exercises to relieve the discomfort of sitting for a long time, and slowly walked towards his residence.

After becoming Hokage, Ye Shan refused the luxurious house arranged by the village and chose to live in the old house. Here, he spent a relatively peaceful childhood, and here, he personally sent off his father, uncle and many other relatives. Ye Shan is a sentimental person, of course, some people call him hypocritical. He likes old things because old things carry the beauty of the past.

Back in the bedroom, Ye Shan was lying on his back on the bed. On the table very close to his head was a yellowed photo. In the photo, Ye Shan was wearing a festive kimono, holding a string of candied haws in his left hand, and holding the collar of a resolute-faced man with his right hand. This was his biological father in this life.

"Sixteen years have passed..."

Turning his head inadvertently, Ye Shan saw the yellowed photo. He sat up with a sigh and took out another photo from the drawer. This was taken when Ye Shan's team was established. At that time, his eyes were sharp and his lips were tightly closed. He seemed to be smiling, but his slightly frowned brows revealed his true feelings.

"Ugh!"

The sigh echoed in the small bedroom. Ye Shan put away the photos, covered himself with the quilt and fell asleep.

The next morning, Yeshan put on the long-lost Konoha standard vest and put the Hokage haori into the closet. He decided to go to the Land of Grass today.

"pat"

The wooden door was opened and cold air rushed into the room. When Ye Shan stepped out of the house, the first person he saw was Nara Shikaku who looked surprised.

"Good morning, Hokage-sama. Are you going out dressed like this?"

Ye Shan nodded without saying anything, took a deep breath of the fresh air, then turned around, locked the door, and threw the key to Nara Shikaku.

Nara Shikaku put away the key and quickly followed behind Ye Shan, quietly reporting the intelligence sent last night, but was quickly interrupted: "Don't talk about this, I have to go to the front line to inspect now, you stay in the village to handle affairs."

"Hokage-sama, should we let the Anbu ninja follow us?" Nara Shikaku asked.

Ye Shan walked straight towards the gate without stopping, asking, "Which team was on duty last night?"

"It's Team Ding."

"Then let them go back and rest, and notify Team C to follow."

"Yes!"

Nara Shikaku did not say anything to stop the Hokage from going out. In fact, Yeshan often disappeared suddenly in the village, and he was used to it.

.......

The Kingdom of Grass is located in the northwest of the Kingdom of Fire. It has been known as a fortress since ancient times. There are many rivers of all sizes in its territory, and the climate is warm, so grass plants are lush, which is why it is called the Kingdom of Grass.

Since noon today, the situation on the front line has become a little strange. One after another, the Iwagakure strongholds have been abandoned by the Rock Ninjas, and the teams that were out on missions have been urgently recalled, causing dissatisfaction among many ninjas.

"Captain, this stronghold is located right next to a cliff and overlooks the surrounding area. Moreover, our food and water are enough to sustain us for several months. Why should we retreat?" A young Rock Ninja complained. He had the right to complain because he had moved all the food and water to the stronghold bit by bit with great effort and he had suffered a lot in the beginning.

The captain of the Iwagakure team glanced at the other party, and a look of dissatisfaction flashed across his muscular face. He suppressed his anger and said, "Shut up! Get out of here quickly."

The young Iwa Ninja shut his mouth upon hearing this, quickly packed up the ninja tools, medicines and other precious supplies, then walked out of the base with a look of reluctance on his face.

Before setting off, Captain Iwagakure reiterated the order: "If you encounter the enemy, evacuate quickly. No one is allowed to fight, otherwise you will be punished by military law!"

Similar things were happening on the front line. The Iwagakure Village voluntarily abandoned the stronghold that they had worked so hard to build. There was only one reason for this: that man had come.

Ye Shan didn't care at all about being discovered by the Iwagakure Village. He came to the front line almost without any disguise. He was quite disappointed that there were no short-lived ghosts willing to die along the way.

What the hell is the Will of the Rock? You are all a bunch of wimps! Bring out the same vigor you had two and a half years ago, bah! Cowards!

Two and a half years ago, the ninjas of the Iwagakure Village had organized several assassination attempts against Hayama, but they gained nothing except heavy casualties. So the new Tsuchikage Huang Tu issued a death order, strictly forbidding the Iwagakure ninjas to send their heads off without permission.

Ye Shan, surrounded by dozens of people, came to a hidden base in Konoha, comforted the ninjas on the mission, and had dinner here. The conditions on the front line were difficult, and for the sake of secrecy, Konoha prohibited the ninjas on the mission from making fire and cooking, so the dinner in the base was all cold compressed biscuits and canned meat.

The taste of this thing is just acceptable, and the nutritional value is not bad, but the problem is that you can't eat it every day. It will easily cause constipation and other digestive problems over time. But Ye Shan has no choice. It is winter now, and vegetables and fruits are rare delicacies for the nobles, so naturally they can't be guaranteed for the frontline ninjas.

So don’t think that ninjas who hold kunai and cast ninjutsu all day long are very cool. In fact, they are most likely a group of guys who can’t even poop properly.

Since the Hokage was here in person, the base commander made an exception and took out canned fruit for everyone to use, but even so, each person only got a small piece of pear.

Ye Shan smiled and gave the pear to the youngest ninja. Even though the ninja's hands were covered in blood, it did not stop him from looking very young.

"You have worked hard in the past two years, and I, as the Hokage, feel guilty towards you. But don't worry, the war will be over soon, and there will be great times waiting for you to enjoy," Ye Shan promised.

The youngest ninja looked at his captain, and when he saw him nod, he swallowed the pear in one gulp, chewing it while asking vaguely, "Hokage-sama, is the war really going to end soon?"

"Of course!" Ye Shan replied.

"Can I go home to visit my family? I haven't been back for more than a year."

"Where is your home?"

"My home is in the northern part of the Land of Fire, not far from Konoha. It can be reached in one day."

Not all ninjas in Konoha Village are from the village. A small number of them are recruited and trained from outside the village, but the prerequisite is that there are no problems with their ancestors for three generations.

"I'll give you a month's vacation then, so you can spend some time with your family." Ye Shan said with a smile.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama!"

The visit ended after dinner. Ye Shan said goodbye to the ninjas in the base and came to the camp set up by Konoha. There was no fireworks in the camp, and the ninjas could enjoy hot meals. Their spirits were better, but only a little better. Everyone's eyes were filled with fatigue.

Leaving aside the usual speeches of condolences, when Yeshan announced that the war was about to end, there was a burst of warm cheers in the camp. The ninjas seemed to be easily satisfied. They dispersed with excitement, and did not seem to care about the death that might come soon.

The camp burst into unprecedented vitality, and smiles returned to the faces of the ninjas. They gathered in twos and threes to discuss future plans. Sometimes it is very simple to boost morale, as simple as a few words.

Ye Shan sat in a chair, tilting his head slightly to listen to the commander's report, but his eyes were always fixed on the gate and his mind was not on his work at all.

When Kakashi Hatake's iconic white hair appeared in sight, Yeshan waved his hand to interrupt the commander's report. He sat up straight with his eyes flashing.

"Team Kakashi has been ordered to come here, please give instructions, Hokage-sama!"

"Ok!"

Ye Shan motioned for the others to leave. The huge command room became empty. He quickly walked up to Kakashi, stretched out his hand to pull him up from his half-kneeling position, patted him on the shoulder, and said with joy, "He's grown a lot taller. It looks like he'll be taller than me soon!"

"Stop kneeling like that, everyone. Stand up."

Uchiha Obito chuckled, jumped up and jumped in front of Ye Shan, and said with a smile: "You may be disappointed, sir, Kakashi will be a shorty all his life, I am still taller than him."

Ye Shan smiled and nodded the goggles covering the latter's forehead. His eyes involuntarily looked at the girl standing in the best position. For a moment, he was involuntarily stunned: "Resemblance, it's really too similar..."

Yamashiro Hoshi was wearing a Konoha standard vest, a Konoha forehead protector, and a ninja sword on his back. At first glance, his beautiful face was 60% similar to the late Yamashiro Tatsu.

The girl twisted her body uncomfortably under Ye Shan's scorching gaze. The little lotus just showing its pointed corners made Ye Shan come back to his senses. What's the use? After all, she is not him.

"Look what I brought you." Ye Shan smiled and took out a scroll from his ninja tool bag and handed it to Uchiha Obito who couldn't wait.

Uchiha Obito made a seal and opened the scroll. Four buckets of instant noodles appeared in the command room. He cheered and said, "These are the seafood instant noodles I've been dreaming about!"

He took it in his hand happily, and then screamed: "It's still a collector's edition! Thank you, Master!"

Kakashi was much calmer, but he also grabbed a bucket and held it in his arms, obviously liking Ye Shan's gift very much.

"You guys were clamoring for this a year ago, and I had to go through a lot of trouble to buy it."

"Hehehe, Master is the best."

"I think it should be the chef who brings instant noodles?" Ye Shan joked.

"Any time is fine!" Uchiha Obito yelled, and then his eyes swept around the command room, extremely anxious.

Ye Shan smiled and shook his head. Without forming any seals, four balls of water appeared out of thin air and instantly became boiling: "Open your instant noodles, the hot water is here."

After a while, the four of them sat contentedly in the commander's chairs, waiting for the instant noodles to soak, like people who hadn't eaten for hundreds of years.

Ye Shan just sat on the chair with a smile on his face, and even a fool could see the love and care that was revealed in his eyes.

After the four of them had eaten and drunk their fill, Ye Shan suppressed his smile and asked, "If you have any problems with your cultivation recently, feel free to ask me. This is a rare opportunity, and I want to experience the joy of being a teacher."

For more than two years, it has been Minato Namikaze who has been in charge of teaching them, and Ye Shan has been so busy that he has become dizzy and has completely let go of the task.

Kakashi pulled up his mask and said in a deep voice: "I have developed a new ninjutsu, but I don't know why I always feel that there are some problems. Minato-sensei has not been on the front line for a long time, and no one has asked him. Please give me some advice, Master."

Ye Shan became interested. It was rare in Konoha's history for a teenager to develop a new ninjutsu. Kakashi was indeed a genius: "Unleash it once and let me see."

Kakashi nodded, walked to the middle of the command room, and formed the "丑,卯,申" seal with his hands. As he shouted, a ball of dazzling lightning appeared on his right hand.

The violent thunder and lightning kept making piercing noises, as if thousands of birds were singing together, which made Ye Shan marvel in admiration.

Compared to the twelve-year-old Kakashi, Yeshan was extremely stupid at that time. Not to mention developing his own ninjutsu, he didn't even fully master the earth escape hardening technique. He relied on fancy traps to save his life all day long, which was simply ugly.

"What is the name of this technique?"

Kakashi struggled to maintain the technique and said the name of the unique secret technique he developed: "Chidori!"

"Good name!"

Ye Shan clapped his hands and laughed, feeling genuinely happy in his heart. Kakashi was indeed the son of Konoha White Fang and could be considered an expert in the art of Lightning Release.