Chapter 39: Repairing the City Walls

Konohagakure.

Inside the Hokage Building, the lights were blazing.

A haggard-looking Hiruzen Sarutobi glared at his old friend in the shadows and rebuked, "Danzou, you have gone too far this time. How dare you lay your hands on a comrade within the village?"

Danzou's expression was grim; he had not expected the mission to capture Sasuke to fail. He said, "A comrade? The Uchiha are traitors to the village. Have you forgotten the words of our teacher?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi closed his eyes and said with a pained heart, "Even among the Uchiha, there were partners who possessed the will of the Hokage, like Kagami, Shisui, and Itachi. Your prejudice against the Uchiha is too deep, Danzou."

Danzou retorted, "Sasuke Uchiha is already a player of the Samsara Game. He will eventually learn the truth about the clan's extermination. Are you not afraid that he will strike at the village when that time comes?"

The power of the Samsara Game made Danzou feel fear for the first time.

In the intelligence files collected by Root, Sasuke Uchiha's strength was merely that of a slightly superior Genin.

The Root ninja he had sent out were genuine Jonin.

Furthermore, they were battle-hardened veterans who had long performed difficult missions for Root. If they launched a surprise attack, even an ordinary Chunin would have no ability to resist.

Yet he had not expected that Sasuke Uchiha, at the level of a Genin, could withstand the opponent's offensive, escape into the area monitored by the Anbu, and bring this matter to the Hokage.

It had only been a few short days.

"The mysterious game merchant has already threatened the safety of the village. We must find a way to root him out completely."

"At the very least, we need to bring the ninjas and civilians who have become players under control..."

"Danzou, that is enough!"

Before Danzou could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Hiruzen Sarutobi.

He puffed on his pipe, his expression shifting between light and shadow, and said, "Setting aside the game merchant's motives for now, he does indeed possess mysterious and terrifying abilities. Do not provoke such an enemy for the village, otherwise, for the sake of the village..."

I will kill you!

These words were not spoken aloud, but Danzou understood them clearly, and a chill instantly ran through his heart.

He had not expected the game merchant to be held in such high regard in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind.

"Someone, come."

An Anbu wearing a cat mask appeared suddenly.

Hiruzen Sarutobi said wearily, "Say that ninjas from an enemy country disguised themselves as merchants, infiltrated the village to launch a surprise attack, and attempted to seize the bloodline of the Uchiha orphan. While you are at it, appease Sasuke and do not let him harbor ill thoughts toward the village."

He felt guilty inside.

That child, Itachi, had made such a massive sacrifice for the village, with the sole hope that he would protect Sasuke. Through a moment of negligence, he had allowed Danzou to make a move against Sasuke.

It was not just guilt; deep down, there was also a wariness toward the Uchiha.

As a former teammate of Kagami Uchiha, he deeply understood the terror of those Mangekyo Sharingan. If something were to happen to Sasuke, it would be hard to guarantee that Itachi Uchiha would not attack the village in a frenzy.

"How are the preparations for the Chunin Exams coming along?"

Having been woken up, Hiruzen Sarutobi no longer had the desire to sleep and began to handle the remaining official business.

The Minister of Administration in charge of this matter looked troubled and said, "It was originally a joint exam with Sunagakure, but now it has become the Five Nations Joint Chunin Exams. The required venue has expanded several times over, and it is still under construction."

It just so happened to be the Chunin Exams.

This was a necessary means in an era of peace to probe each other's strengths and weaknesses through non-war methods.

Especially with the appearance of the Samsara Game, it was very likely to lead to the sudden rise of a certain Ninja Village, resulting in many emerging combat forces; these were all intelligence that needed to be gathered.

The location for the Five Nations Joint Chunin Exams was set in Konohagakure.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a puff of his pipe and said, "The two players from the Logistics Department can be lent to you temporarily. I heard them say that there are Metal Puppets in the Game Mall that can improve construction efficiency. I will send a document to the Finance Department to allocate funds for you."

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's head throbbed. Looking at the overdrawn fiscal expenditures, a thick sense of powerlessness welled up in his heart.

Namikaze Minato died in battle, Jiraiya and Tsunade left the village in despair, Orochimaru defected, Hatake Sakumo committed suicide, the Uchiha clan was exterminated...

He was the only old pillar left, gradually decaying, supporting the massive, strongest Ninja Village.

It appeared infinitely glorious, but in reality, it was precarious.

If they could not suppress the other Four Great Ninja Villages during these Chunin Exams, it would very likely make them restless.

Even the Daimyo of the Land of Fire might reduce his support for the village.

"Sasuke becoming a player is a good thing for the village; he can be used to counter the young people from other Ninja Villages."

Hiruzen Sarutobi worried inwardly.

According to intelligence, other Ninja Villages also had players chosen by the Samsara Game, and they would very likely participate in these Chunin Exams.

That was why he had used a hardline stance to refute Danzou and tilt the funds toward the Samsara Game.

Konoha absolutely must not lose the Chunin Exams!

"Master, Sarina is going to attack the Novice Village tomorrow. Aren't you afraid?"

The white-haired loli was dejected; even the fried chicken held to her lips didn't taste good, and she couldn't eat it.

Originally, everything was developing in a good direction.

But after the Ghost General died, it alarmed Ghost Mage Sarina, who was a Tier 2 Pollution Source.

In game terms, she was a level 20 Lord Monster.

The white-haired loli said, "Master, I suggest spending 500,000 Reward Points to reinforce the Novice Village's walls to withstand the Lord Monster's attack."

Once Sarina made a move, the Novice Village's primitive, fragile walls would be unable to resist at all.

A breach in the walls meant the core of the Novice Village would be destroyed.

This was a very serious matter; all of the Master's efforts up to now would come to nothing.

The players would also cease to exist.

Fang Yi, however, looked nonchalant and said, "Don't worry, take a look at the defense level of the walls yourself."

The white-haired loli was puzzled.

After leaning in close to inspect the wall, she revealed a look of shock, her small face frozen stiff.

【Novice Village Wall】

Defense Level: Level 17 (2552/6000 Energy)

Skill: Ghost Soldiers (Summons 100 Ghost Soldiers every half hour; summoned units cannot leave a 500-meter radius of the wall.)

Skill 2: Ghost Giant Cannon (Consumes 200 Ghost Soldiers to fire a blast of Ghost Energy, dealing 800 points of true damage.)

Note: A wall upgraded with various ghost materials, capable of mobilizing a portion of ghost power.

The white-haired loli A Fu opened her mouth wide, took the opportunity to stuff a piece of fried chicken inside, and exclaimed in surprise, "Master, so you had already secretly upgraded the wall; you had me worried for nothing."

A Level 17 Ghost Wall is capable of holding off a Level 20 Lord boss for a period of time.

Fang Yi shook his head and said, "How is that possible? Am I the type of person who would spend money to upgrade a wall?"

Seeing him refuse to admit it, the white-haired loli assumed he was just being stubborn, so she narrowed her bright, watery eyes into slits and teased, "Could it be that the wall upgraded itself?"

Fang Yi curled his finger and flicked her on the forehead, saying, "Dummy, have you forgotten the quest I posted a while ago?"

Dear readers, the trial recommendation is here; you will be able to see me in the recommendation slot this Monday. Without you dear readers, there would be no trial for me, Xiang Yizi. (Cupping hands) Thank you all very much for your tremendous support, love you all.

(End of this chapter)