Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 99 Konoha's military expedition lacks a leader.

Aburame Zhicheng pulled out the huge spirit scroll from his pocket and spread it on the ground: "Bite your finger and sign your name on it."

Purple Fly nodded vigorously. She bit her finger and wrote her name on the scroll—Whirlpool Purple Fly.

Golden light emanated from her name, establishing a connection with her.

She could feel something calling to her from the depths of the universe—the Seven-Tailed Fox on the fiftieth floor of the underground palace, the newly born dragonflies, and the entire Holy Land of Spirits.

"From today onwards, you are the first contractor of the Dragonfly Sanctuary." Aburame Shisei put away the scroll. "From now on, you can summon them at any time."

Zi Ling's eyes lit up. But then she lowered her head again and grabbed the hem of You Nu Zhicheng's clothes.

"I...I want to follow you. I don't want to stay here." Her voice was soft, but firm. "I can go to the battlefield, I can fight for the Land of Grass, I'm not afraid to die."

Aburame Shisei knew that the child didn't really want to go to the battlefield. She just wanted to prove herself useful, to prove that she wouldn't be abandoned again.

He crouched down to look her in the eye: "Ziling, do you know what your greatest strength is?"

Purple Flycatcher shook her head, indicating that she did not know.

"You are from the Uzumaki clan," Shisei Aburame said slowly. "Your clan possesses the strongest sealing techniques, the largest amount of chakra, and the most tenacious vitality in the ninja world. Your physique holds countless possibilities."

"But you're still too young, your body is too weak, you haven't trained in chakra, and you don't know anything. If you go to the battlefield now, you'll die."

Purple Fly's eyes reddened: "So..."

"So, I'll give you three months," Aburame Shisei interrupted her. "During these three months, I will use the best nutrient solution to replenish the deficiencies in your body and awaken the physique of the Uzumaki clan. At that time, you will have self-healing abilities, the Adamantine Sealing Technique, and the Kagura Mind's Eye—these are all abilities that will allow you to survive on the battlefield."

"Furthermore, once you learn the Summoning Jutsu, you can summon the Seven-Tails at any time. If you encounter danger, just have the Seven-Tails use reverse summoning to take you away. As long as you don't encounter those real monsters, you won't die."

Purple Flycatcher's eyes widened: "Really?"

"Um."

She nodded vigorously: "I will study hard."

Aburame Zhicheng smiled and patted her head again.

"Okay, come with me."

The three-month training program, though somewhat premature, is crucial because Ziling is a talent of the Uzumaki clan. Even with accelerated training, as long as she leverages her physical advantages and mitigates her weaknesses, she will be more effective on the battlefield than several Jonin, and certainly more so than the Jonin from Kusagakure.

Aburame Shisei suddenly realized that not using the original Jinchuriki method was the wisest choice. Now that the two are separated, not only can the Seven-Tails' combat abilities be perfectly utilized on the battlefield, but in the future, they can also be split into two forces to fight separately.

-

At the same time, in the Hokage Building of Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at his desk, a piece of intelligence lying open in front of him. The intelligence contained only a few words, yet it felt like a thorn, deeply embedded in his heart.

[The Hidden Grass Village (Kusagami) has openly posted a statement accusing Konoha and Iwagakure of bullying a smaller country, and presenting evidence to accuse Iwagakure spies of murdering the Hokage's son. The statement is strongly worded and arrogant, and has attracted widespread attention.]

He put down the intelligence report and rubbed his temples.

Shinnosuke's death was already a thorn in their side, but now the mere Kusagakure dares to jump out and accuse Konoha of being blind and mindless, questioning why they dared not confront Iwagakure head-on. This is a slap in their face, and also a slap in Konoha's face.

"Someone come here."

A member of the secret service appeared silently.

"Go and summon Orochimaru."

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the Hokage Rock in the distance. His back looked much older than it had a day before.

Orochimaru's laboratory is hidden deep underground.

The place was dimly lit, the air was damp, and the air was thick with the pungent smell of medicine.

Petri dishes of all sizes lined the wall, filled with all sorts of bizarre things. There were animal organs, human limbs, and some strange creatures whose names I couldn't even recall.

Orochimaru stood before the experimental table, his scalpel precisely cutting open the chest cavity of a corpse. It was a freshly delivered body of a rogue ninja, still warm from the touch.

"My lord." A member of the secret service appeared at the laboratory door.

"What is it?"

"The Hokage requests your presence."

Orochimaru paused in his scalpel, then suddenly coughed violently, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth and dripping onto the lab table.

"Cough cough... cough cough cough..."

He put down the scalpel, covered his mouth with a handkerchief, and coughed for a while before stopping.

The member of the secret service watched this scene, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes: "Sir, you..."

"I'm sorry." Orochimaru looked up, his face as pale as paper. "As you can see, I am seriously injured and need to rest for a while. I'm afraid I won't be able to see you, Master."

"The Hokage's summons..."

"Please tell the teacher that it's not that I don't want to go, but my health simply doesn't allow it. If the teacher needs someone to lead troops into battle, he can go to Jiraiya. He should be quite free lately."

The ANBU nodded, turned and left. The laboratory door slowly closed, and Orochimaru's smile gradually faded. He looked down at the bloodstains on his handkerchief and suddenly chuckled.

Acting is really tiring.

He tossed the handkerchief aside and picked up the scalpel again. Even if he were perfectly healthy, he wouldn't go.

The waters of the Land of Grass run too deep. He always felt that someone was manipulating things behind the scenes, and their methods were very similar to those of certain people.

Moreover, human modification technology is in a critical research phase, and he doesn't have time to play power struggles.

In a valley in the Land of Rain.

Jiraiya sat cross-legged under the waterfall, letting the water crash against his body, motionless, like a stone statue.

Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan were practicing ninjutsu on the shore. Yahiko was making rapid progress and could already unleash decent water-style techniques; Nagato remained silent, but his chakra control was becoming increasingly precise; Konan was folding paper, and the pieces of paper in her hands were transformed into various shapes.

A ninja hawk descended from the sky and landed on the shore. Yahiko curiously approached and saw a letter tied to the hawk's leg.

"A letter from Jiraiya-sensei!"

Jiraiya opened his eyes and stepped out of the waterfall. He took the letter, opened it, and read it.

Then he laughed, a laugh that contained helplessness and a hint of indescribable emotion.

The old man is sending me back to fight a war after suppressing the Grass Kingdom.

Yahiko asked, "Teacher, are you leaving again?"

Jiraiya didn't answer; he raised his hand and threw the envelope into the fire.

Seeing this, Xiao Nan stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "Teacher..."

Jiraiya turned around, his face now sporting that familiar grin: "Nothing much, just a letter from home asking how I'm doing."