Chapter 308 New Year

The next morning, Ye Shan got up early, washed up, looked out the window at the gray sky, and walked out of the house. From today on, it was a new year, and as the Hokage, he naturally would not go to the office to deal with the backlog of official business, but had some personal matters to do.

Konoha Cemetery welcomed a familiar customer early in the morning. Ye Shan took off his coat and started washing the tombstones and toasting to every person he once knew from the entrance. This has been his habit for many years. No matter how many social engagements and official duties he had on the first day of the new year, he would turn them all down and walk around and take a look at this gloomy but warm place, and report on last year's work to the guys who couldn't speak.

It was not until noon that Ye Shan finished his work. After looking at the somewhat faded photo of Hatake Sakumo again, he silently said "see you next time" in his heart, slowly stood up and walked towards the Nanhe River.

Two small wine cups, a pot of steaming sukiyaki, and a pack of opened cigarettes were placed on the grave. Ye Shan knew without guessing that they were prepared by Yamashiro Xing in advance. She was still so meticulous and considerate. The little girl who was ignorant of the world and willful and naughty at the beginning has now become mature. Every time Ye Shan sees her, he deeply realizes that time has passed so much time and so fast.

There was a chrysanthemum stuck crookedly on the grave, probably because it was blown crooked by the winter wind. Ye Shan bent down and stretched out his hand. After trying twice, he finally straightened the chrysanthemum without stepping on the soil of the grave. Then he sat cross-legged in front of the grave, staring at the expressionless man in the photo. A trace of sadness quietly crept into his heart.

Yamashiro Tatsuya, a man who was hurt by the ninja world, but also a man who had hope for the ninja world, died at sea on a sunny afternoon, becoming a real ghost. Yamashiro Tatsuya, a ninja who died many years ago, is also a ninja who often appears in Hayama's dreams. In a sense, he is more important than Hatake Sakumo, although their strength and status are incomparable.

Ye Shan took out a cigarette, lit it and then placed it in front of the grave. The smoke gradually spread, taking his thoughts away and bringing him back to the most difficult period ten years ago.

Climbing on ice and lying in the snow are commonplace, lurking and maintaining one posture for hours without moving is a basic skill, and working together to fight to the death when encountering an enemy is a common occurrence. These are not the most difficult setbacks that Ye Shan and Shan Cheng Chen have suffered; the contempt and ridicule hidden in the eyes of others are.

Prejudice in people's hearts is an insurmountable mountain. An unknown ninja should be appointed and slaughtered, but Ye Shan resolutely chose to say no, so he lost his companions, his relatives, and his dignity. Fortunately, he succeeded. He broke the tradition of judging heroes by their surnames in the ninja world and walked a unique path. Sometimes he couldn't help but wonder, if there was no Yamashiro Tatsuya around to encourage and help him, could he really persist?

The principles and rules of the world cannot withstand scrutiny, let alone ifs and what-ifs. Just like some principles say that it is never too late for a gentleman to take revenge, while other principles say that one should not take revenge overnight. The two principles sound contradictory, and will only add to one's troubles if you think about them carefully.

After one cigarette burned out, Ye Shan lit another one, but this time he did not put it in front of the grave but held it in his mouth, letting the choking smoke linger around his eyes and nose.

"Thank you, Yamashiro Tatsu."

There were so many things to say that he didn't know where to start. After thinking about it, Ye Shan could only say this polite thing. If Shan Chengchen was still alive, he would definitely smile freely, and if he was in a good mood, he would at most curse him.

There was a sound of footsteps. Ye Shan looked back and asked softly, "Why are you here instead of staying at home?"

Kakashi put down the lunch box in his hand and did not answer immediately. Instead, he knelt down devoutly and kowtowed. He knelt on the ground and said, "It's too lonely to be alone. I want to find someone to chat with."

Yeshan stared at Kakashi's white hair with an expressionless face, and his heart was even more sad. Hatake Sakumo had a son to carry on the family line, but the Yamashiro clan was completely extinct.

"Have you been to Sakumo's place?"

"I just came from there. I made some dumplings myself. Would you like to try some?"

Ye Shan nodded, and the two of them sat cross-legged in front of the grave and slowly began to eat their first meal of the new year.

"Do you still hate him?"

Kakashi swallowed the food in his mouth, his eyes filled with tears: "Father was proud of being a Konoha ninja until his death. As a son, I was young and ignorant and used disrespectful words. Now, after experiencing some things, I have become sensible."

Ye Shan recalled: "You were still very young at that time, only as tall as a table, and your eyes were full of longing for the future and admiration for your father. I still remember what you looked like."

"Strictly speaking, Sakumo is not worthy of anyone except you, so before he died, he asked me to take care of you and even asked me not to train you to be a ninja because it is not a good job."

"I am not a competent caregiver. I ignored you for a long time and was only concerned with fighting for fair treatment, ignoring your feelings when you were young. So you can hate the incompetent Hatake Sakumo and me, but you can't hate Konoha White Fang."

Kakashi touched his left eye. His former best friend looked out at the world from his eye socket. "It's all in the past. I learned a lot from Obito. It's much more vivid and realistic than what I read in books."

Ye Shan reached out his hand and brushed the snowflakes off Kakashi's head, and said slowly: "A young man's shoulders should be filled with green grass, singing birds, and laughter. You are too mature, and you may lose some of the fun. But you are the son of Hatake Sakumo, and the youngest jonin in Konohagakure. I will not allow you to slack off for even a day, and you will have to explain to Sakumo when you get there."

"Since I have nothing to do now, please report to me the results of my work in the New Rain Country."

Kakashi smiled and said, "Master, don't be so rigid. Today is the first day of the new year. Let's do something interesting."

There was a pleading look in the boy's eyes. Ye Shan smiled knowingly and said, "Tell me, I'll allow it as long as it's not too much."

"How about we have a fishing contest? The loser has to make dinner and clean up."

"It's New Year's Day, please let the Yu family live in peace."

"It's okay. I'll catch the whole family of them in one net."

Ye Shan laughed: "How cruel, but I like it!"

..........

The New Year is like a naughty ghost that people look forward to very much but will leave without knowing it. In the blink of an eye, it is already the end of summer, and more than half of the new year has quietly passed, which makes people sigh in amazement when they recall it.

In the past eight months, there has been little good news in the Konohagakure, except for Orochimaru's departure and betrayal of the village, the daffodil fire, and Hyuga Hiashi uncovering a case of an enemy country trying to murder the Hokage.

Especially the murder case, which made the villagers scared out of their wits. They were grateful that the young head of the Hyuga clan handled the case quickly and accurately, and they were even more grateful that the Hokage was safe and sound, otherwise the village that had just been thriving might never recover.

The Water Country spy colluded with the chef to use spices to poison the Hokage. No matter which era, it was a shocking event, not to mention that the Hokage was the toughest and youngest big man. From then on, the dish of braised lamb in red was despised by everyone in the village and the market was completely cut off. As a result, many mutton shop owners were in tears and could only curse the damn Water Country spy.

Therefore, in January, the month of renewal, the village prison was overcrowded, and the ninjas from the Uchiha Guard, Anbu, and Root were bloodthirsty. They put anyone who knew the spy and the cook in jail, regardless of right or wrong. The villagers did not show any signs of criticism, and some even applauded. If the great Hokage really had an accident, wouldn't their wealth and glory come to an abrupt end?

Finally, Ye Shan reluctantly stopped the killing and said that the main culprit had been killed and the matter was over. However, the red-eyed guys from the Uchiha Guard secretly killed a lot of people before the matter was stopped.

Uchiha Keiji, who always followed the lead of the Hokage and was nicknamed the messenger, showed a rare tough side in the case. He not only dismissed more than a dozen powerful middle-level ninjas in one go, but also scored a big poor in the year-end evaluation of several security departments. He also rushed to the front line to arrest and interrogate people, and even rejected the order written by the Hokage himself, vowing to fight the criminals to the end. The people couldn't help but re-examine this yes-man deputy Hokage, and were surprised to find that he had more than 30 years of front-line fighting experience, which made people admire him from the bottom of their hearts.

The plenary session came to an end, and a middle-aged man named Jing Jingxia appeared on the list of the new leadership team. He became the person in charge of the political affairs of the New Rain Country, causing countless ordinary people to suffer from conjunctivitis overnight.

As for Orochimaru, he is just a rebel. There are ninja masters to hunt him down. The people will not care. They are more concerned about why the price of daffodils has suddenly increased to an astonishing level.

In general, everything is developing according to Yeshan's will, and as Kushina's belly grows bigger, Konoha Village is about to face a big test, a big test on whether the new generation can stand on their own.