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Konoha Memorial Garden.
This was ordered to be built by Tobirama Senju when he returned from the front lines.
With the help of earth escape ninjutsu, the construction of the memorial garden was very fast and it was completed in just a few days.
On the day it was completed, a large number of Konoha villagers and ninjas, all dressed in black, with solemn expressions and flowers in their hands, stood in a neat row in the memorial garden.
The person who presided over this grand ceremony was Uzumaki Mito. In terms of prestige and status, she was the most suitable person other than Senju Tobirama.
And on the night before the memorial service, Chishima Chiba found Uzumaki Mito and gave her a speech.
Uzumaki Mito initially thought it was unnecessary and that such a thing should be discussed after Senju Tobirama returned. But Chishima Chiba insisted again and again, and Uzumaki Mito finally agreed.
Walking in front, Uzumaki Mito turned around and looked around, frowning slightly. She did not see Chishima Chiba and Tsunade.
After stretching for a while, before the two people arrived, Uzumaki Mito was ready to start his eulogy.
"Grandma, please wait."
It seemed like the situation was stuck, as Chishima Chiba and Tsunade came from a distance, with Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and some minor characters from the original work sandwiched between them.
Although their steps were slow, they were very determined, and everyone's face showed both pride and sorrow, which seemed a bit contradictory and strange.
"Qianye, they are..."
"They are the descendants of the ninjas who sacrificed their lives for the village in this war, but after their death, they are not eligible to enter the memorial garden. I think this is unfair and against the will of fire."
Chishima Chiba said this very seriously, and this was the first shot he fired!
As soon as the voice fell, Orochimaru and Jiraiya, who were leading the group, looked at Chishima Chiba on the side with great gratitude, and their eyes instantly became firm, and they raised their heads to look at Uzumaki Mito in the front.
At the same time, Uzumaki Mito also guessed Chishima Chiba's plan at once, and also realized the problems exposed in this memorial service, and immediately questioned it.
"Who is responsible for organizing this memorial service?"
"Mito-sama, it's me."
Following the voice, Uzumaki Mito immediately recognized the man as the current patriarch of the Shimura clan, Hiroichi Shimura.
"And me, Mito-sama."
After another glance, Uzumaki Mito also recognized the man. He was the current patriarch of the Sarutobi clan, Sarutobi Chuichiro.
"Koichi, Chuichiro, please explain."
Uzumaki Mito launched the attack in public, and the villagers and ninjas of Konoha who came to participate in the memorial service focused their attention on the two of them.
"Lord Mito, the space in the memorial garden is limited, and the number of fallen ninjas is too large, so we plan to limit it based on merit..."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Uzumaki Mito suddenly attacked, while Chishima Chiba who was standing behind him felt relieved.
As long as Uzumaki Mito takes the lead, Sarutobi, Shimura and other ninjas will never be able to steal the fruits of this battle!
"Mito-sama, this little thing..."
"It's a small matter! You tell me this is a small matter?!" Uzumaki Mito shouted directly, "Koichi, Chuichiro, have you forgotten the Will of Fire?"
"Leaves are a tiny part of a big tree, but precisely because of this, the more leaves there are, the more the tree will thrive and become successful!"
"To remember only the branches and forget the leaves is to forget one's roots. This goes against the will of fire!"
Taking a step forward, Uzumaki Mito remembered the speech that Chishima Chiba had given him the day before, and spoke some words fluently.
"We must remember the heroes, and we must remember even more the supporting roles that helped the heroes. Although they were insignificant, they also burned themselves to illuminate the village and contributed to the stable lives of future generations!"
"Their blood cannot be shed in vain. They deserve to rest in peace in the Garden of Consolation. No matter how many there are, we should remember their names!"
"Konoha is the joint achievement of branches and leaves, not the voice of one family. He represents all of us, not just a small part!"
"And being ordinary does not mean being mediocre. In fact, because of our remembrance, their ordinariness will become great and worthwhile."
"What is the Will of Fire? It is never a free contribution, but a paid contribution!"
"This compensation is so that their dedication can be remembered, so that the elders and children left behind by their dedication can be protected by us, so that the will left behind by their dedication can be continued, and so that their dedication can make the village a better place!"
Snap, snap, snap.
As soon as Uzumaki Mito finished speaking, there was warm and exciting applause from the audience, while Shimura Koichi and Sarutobi Chuichiro stood there sweating and at a loss as to what to do.
They never imagined that just a small action could cause such a big reaction from Uzumaki Mito.
In fact, their idea was very simple. After winning the first war, although the Senju clan suffered heavy casualties, their reputation reached its peak, seriously squeezing the space for other ninja clans to absorb popular reputation.
However, after the memorial garden was built, Shimura, Sarutobi and other Konoha ninjas had the opportunity to show up and share some reputation among the people.
They did not attempt to compete with the Senju clan for the majority. After all, after this war, nine out of ten of the Senju clan were left empty-handed, and this was what they deserved.
But those nameless and insignificant civilian ninjas, such as the Shimura and Sarutobi clans, were able to overwhelm them and take all their credit and reputation for themselves.
It's just... Uzumaki Mito's reaction was a little too intense. Not only did she reinterpret the Will of Fire in front of so many people, she even made them lose face.
"Lord Mito, we were inconsiderate." Shimura Hirokazu immediately gave in. "I will expand the memorial garden so that all the martyrs of World War I can rest in peace here and be mourned by the whole village."
"It's not too late to mend the fence after the sheep have been lost. Go down and make good preparations. And today's memorial ceremony will be put on hold for the time being. Let's bury the martyrs who were excluded by you first. Once the expansion is completed, it will be the turn of others."
"Of course, this is a bit unfair, so I decided to let the members of the Senju clan who died be the last to be buried in the Memorial Garden."
Uzumaki Mito handled the situation appropriately. With just a few words, he suppressed all the dissatisfied Konoha clan leaders. In the end, they had no choice but to give way and let Chishima Chiba, Tsunade, Orochimaru and others in the rear lead the huge team to move forward.
The following procedures were simple: digging the pit, burial, speeches, and general memorial service.
"Qianye, thank you."
Afterwards, Orochimaru and Jiraiya went together to find Chishima Chiba, bowed deeply 90 degrees to express their gratitude, and did not want to get up for a long time.
"We are classmates, there is no need to say thank you. Besides, I am not saying this just for you two, but for the Will of Fire."
"But I am still very grateful. If it weren't for you, my parents would have been buried in the wilderness."
"Let's not talk about this for now. What are your plans for the future?" Chidao Chiba revealed his other purpose.
"I don't have any big plans. I just want to study hard at the Ninja School, inherit my parents' wishes, and work hard to become a useful person to the village."
Orochimaru said it simply, but Chishima Chiba noticed that Orochimaru's fate had reached a turning point.
Because of Chishima Chiba's intervention, Orochimaru did not initiate the first round of thinking about the meaning of life, but instead strengthened the true Will of Fire perfected by Chishima Chiba.
This is a good thing, and Chishima Chiba will naturally not miss this opportunity.
Then he looked at Jiraiya, "What about you, Jiraiya."
"Actually, I haven't thought about it yet. It should be the same as Orochimaru." Jiraiya was much more stable at this time, but his subjective point was still a little vague.
Nodding, Chidao Chiba extended an invitation to the two of them.
"Orochimaru, Jiraiya, do you two want to join the team I created?" Chishima Chiba explained, "It takes strength to carry out the will of our deceased ancestors, and you are a little weak now. And it happens that I can help you."
"Can I?" Orochimaru's eyes lit up and his words were a little hurried.
"Of course you can. You are the orphan of a martyr. As long as you have good behavior, you should be treated preferentially." Qiandao Qianye affirmed, "And not only you, but all orphans of martyrs should be treated like you."
After saying that, Chishima Chiba patted Orochimaru's shoulder and looked at Jiraiya on the side.
"I'm joining in too!"
"Okay." Qiandao Qianye stretched out his hand, "Welcome to join my team!"
Then, Jiraiya and Orochimaru looked at each other, placed their palms on top of Chishima Chiba's palms, and tossed them up and down heavily.