Chapter 154: Similar memories, different moods
After waking up, the first order given by Shiba Kiyokawa was -
“After counting the results of the battle, I will personally award medals to the members of the organization who died in battle.
All the victims of this battle will be honored as martyrs, and the bodies that can still be found will be wrapped in the flag of the Akatsuki organization and sent back to the Land of Rain along with the medals. "
Shiba Kiyokawa is very clear: no justice can change the cruelty of war, so especially at this time, it is more important to let everyone see the meaning and value of fighting.
He looked at Xiaonan and said, "Remember to tell Kakuzu who is staying in the country not to save money at this time and to make sure to fully publicize our achievements!
The payment of pensions and martyr treatment must also be in place!
The efforts of every sacrifice deserve to be rewarded, and we must make sure that everyone in the country knows the significance of our struggle!
The warriors who lie here have won resources, time, and development space for the Rain Kingdom! They are heroes! "
The premise for the slogan to capture people's hearts is that Shiba Kiyokawa has always fulfilled every promise he made to his subordinates! He has planned a clear path and belief for them!
Empty will can only brainwash for a while. If one cannot see the significance of fighting, then as time goes by, people's hearts will sooner or later be swallowed up by numbness and fatigue.
Just like Konoha at this moment.
It was also after the war, and also after paying huge sacrifices. However, the problem that Minato Namikaze was dealing with at this moment was -
"Lord Minato, many teams have expressed dissatisfaction because when the battle situation was unfavorable, they saw many ninja teams evacuated the battlefield early without holding on to the end.
Lord Minato, what should we do with these ninjas now?"
At that moment, Minato Namikaze only felt a genuine tiredness in his heart.
The words that Shiba Kiyokawa had questioned him on the battlefield before seemed to echo in his ears again at this moment.
"Do you know the meaning of your battle?"
"You keep saying you hate war, but you can't even find a way to end it!"
In the original work of Naruto, almost 90% of the ninjas are tired of war. One of the important reasons is that they have no real sense of the significance of their fighting!
The gains from the Ninja World War were too meager, which made many ninjas simply not understand the meaning of joining this war.
The various villages never promoted this aspect, so in the end, the driving force behind ninja fighting was just pure hatred.
This was true for Minato Namikaze, and it is also true for all the major ninja clans today.
So when they realized that the war situation was unfavorable, they all chose to preserve the power of their own families.
All this is thanks to the retired Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen.
His compromise and weakness largely negated the significance of Konoha's struggle in the last Ninja World War;
His subsequent actions to save the Sarutobi clan opened Pandora's box.
From then on, the atmosphere in the entire Konoha became weird.
In the past, Minato Namikaze would not have been overly harsh on these ninjas. He would have just spoken with a firm look and full of confidence.
"Don't blame them, they just don't have confidence in winning. I will give them hope!"
When the wind is favorable, there is nothing wrong with him saying this!
The original work has long proved that when things are going well, Konoha can be very united, with all the major ninja clans working together and everyone being a firm follower of the Will of Fire.
When the wind is in their favor, the Root can sacrifice their lives, and Danzo is a great loyal subject. But the problem is: what to do when the wind is against you?
The wind is against us, and all the confidence that Minato Namikaze had in the past will turn into indulgence of selfish people!
If he had not punished those ninjas who retreated in the face of danger too harshly, it would have been even more difficult for him now.
After a long while, Namikaze Minato asked tiredly, "Where are those ninja teams that retreated at the last minute?"
The subordinates reported helplessly.
“Several Hyuga teams were urgently called back to the village by their main families before this.
Three more Sarutobi teams also left this morning. We tried to stop them, but they said it was approved by Shinnosuke-sama."
Minato Namikaze once again felt tired and exhausted.
The more this happened, the more he could intuitively feel the gap between Konoha and Akatsuki.
This is the gap between a warrior with faith and a ninja without faith!
That afternoon, Shiba Kiyokawa, whose health had improved slightly, dragged his sick body and, despite his pale face, insisted on holding a medal ceremony for the casualties of this battle as soon as possible!
“Five years ago, the Rain Country was just a dilapidated small country, suffering in the cracks of the war between the big ninja villages and enduring hardships!
Three years ago, our Akatsuki organization was just a poor, weak, and neglected makeshift organization!
But today, we are able to confront the No. 1 Ninja Village, the Hidden Leaf Village! We are able to make the entire Ninja world look at us, respect us, and even fear us!
All of this is due to your efforts! It is the efforts of every member of the Akatsuki organization!
Every one of you, whether alive or fallen, you are a hero of the Rain Kingdom!
And heroes deserve to be rewarded!"
At the same time, in a different place, Namikaze Minato found one of the ninja clan's spokesmen, the elderly elder of the Hyuga clan.
However, the other party took the initiative and asked questions first.
“Minato-sama, five years ago we won the Second Ninja World War, we defeated Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Sandagakure, we won every war around us, but what did we get?
Three years ago, the Hokage signed a series of covenants. For the sake of peace, he returned to the enemy all the things we fought so hard to obtain. In the end, even Lord White Fang, who killed the enemy commander and ended the war, died in humiliation!
And now, you are asking me why our Hyuga clan is unwilling to fight to the last moment...
Haha, what’s the point of fighting until the last moment?
Even if we conquer the entire front and sign a peace treaty after the war, the Grass Kingdom is destined to be returned to the enemy in the end, isn't it?
Our family did have a few teams of ninjas who gave up their missions before the battle was over.
They are trash! They can't complete the task, every one of them is trash!
But they are still ninjas from our Hyuga clan, Mr. Minato, they have been punished, are you still holding on to them?"
Same time, different space, similar memories, but completely different words.
At that moment, the state of mind of Shiba Kiyokawa and Namikaze Minato was completely different.
The former is still firmly following his own path!
"From now on, we will continue to live and die together, and we will continue to make history! We will lead the Rain Country to the top of the ninja world! We are on the right path! One day, we will change this decadent world and create a blue and beautiful tomorrow!"
The latter, on the other hand, could only ask in a tired and empty manner.
"We have experienced so many battles together. We all fought to protect Konoha Village. Elder Hyuga Hideki, are you so unwilling to believe in Konoha's future?"
(End of this chapter)
