At the luncheon, Bunpuku spoke eloquently to the high-ranking Konoha officials.
If he were to discuss politics or diplomacy, he would likely be extremely cautious, but when it came to academics, he was almost unrivaled.
During his years of imprisonment in the tower, besides cultivating chakra, the only thing he could do was study.
The Konoha higher-ups were naturally well-versed in military secrets concerning the Land of Wind, such as ninja matters, but they knew little about the country's culture and customs.
In the past, ninjas didn't need to understand these things, but after Fumori Masaki's ascension to power, he demanded that the higher-ups study more and enrich their knowledge in their daily lives.
Traditional ninjas were akin to mercenaries; they didn't need to understand politics or economics.
At most, they understood some things related to daily life, especially after the establishment of ninja villages, but they couldn't compare to the aristocratic officials who specialized in these areas within the country.
This is also why traditional ninjas couldn't replace nobles in governing the country.
Leaving aside the severe internal strife that would arise from military conflicts, even if they could defeat the nobles, their weak administrative skills would lead the country to collapse before they could improve their abilities.
However, after Fumori Masaki implemented policies to support commerce in the ninja villages, the higher-ups needed to understand some economic knowledge to manage merchants effectively and prevent them from harming the ninja villages' interests out of greed.
As their territory expanded and they began to deepen relationships with other nobles, political knowledge also became essential.
Originally, they didn't need to know much, but as commerce became increasingly prosperous and the number of administrators grew, ninjas with mediocre combat talent began to study relevant management knowledge to improve their other skills.
If the higher-ups didn't want to be deceived by their subordinates, they also had to improve their own abilities.
In the ninja profession, one couldn't completely entrust trust to others; one had to retain a certain degree of control.
This was the inevitable result of the gradual expansion of the ninja villages.
Ninja villages were no longer just villages that obeyed ninja duties, as they were in the original timeline, but began to transform into comprehensive organizations.
In the language of this era, the original Konoha Ninja Village was merely a gathering place for ninjas, forming a ninja military organization, whereas the current Konoha Ninja Village was a tangible territory, albeit not one enfeoffed by a daimyo.
Therefore, the Konoha higher-ups were equally curious about what Bunpuku said.
They seemed to gain a deeper understanding of that vast yet barren country, a country with its own culture, a rich history, beautiful poetry, and moving scenery...
Moreover, Bunpuku also had his own insights into the new Shinobi Sect culture promoted by the Konoha Ninja Village.
He had the good fortune to read about it while in the tower, and later, after becoming Kazekage and deciding to visit the Konoha Ninja Village, he thoroughly researched everything about the new Shinobi Sect culture.
Among these, Bunpuku also had some areas he didn't understand, and he respectfully sought guidance from Fumori Masaki.
Fumori Masaki was one of the proponents, and some of the ninja academy's textbooks were co-authored by him.
In this regard, Fumori Masaki clearly had a significant say.
Fumori Masaki was by no means a scholar; the reason he could promote his ideas so logically was simply because he came from a country with a more advanced era.
What seemed like common sense to him, in a feudal society, shone like a beacon, attracting most people's attention.
To cater to this era, he had numerous discussions with literati of this era, such as Kana, which eventually gave birth to the fruit of the new Shinobi Sect culture.
Fumori Masaki answered Bunpuku's questions, and his responses contained some issues of political thought.
Although he had stated at the outset that this luncheon would not discuss politics, diplomacy, or military matters, discussions of academic topics inherently involve factors that can influence all three.
However, Fumori Masaki spoke very subtly, not making anyone feel uncomfortable.
He was merely expounding on some principles of the new Shinobi Sect culture, and within these principles, various ideas about the nation's future, ideology, and political landscape could arise.
The propaganda ninjas present immediately captured scenes from the luncheon, while the ninjas responsible for drafting reports quickly recorded the conversation between the Hokage and the Kazekage.
They needed to write well, expressing the Kazekage's support and recognition of the new Shinobi Sect culture, and his friendliness towards the Konoha Ninja Village.
They also needed to convey the Hokage's interest in the culture of the Land of Wind, believing it held valuable aspects worth pursuing.
These statements would be published in newspapers, which would be sent to every part of the allied nations, and other countries would not be an exception.
They wanted everyone in the ninja world to understand the friendship between Konoha and Sunagakure, which was also Fumori Masaki's objective.
On the side of the younger generation, they didn't discuss too many ideological theories, mainly focusing on interesting stories between the Konoha Ninja Village and the Sunagakure Ninja Village, such as situations encountered during missions, gossip within the villages, and other intriguing topics.
The participants in this luncheon were the children and students of Konoha's higher-ups.
Most of them were of similar age, though there were some older individuals, like Hatake Sakumo, who spoke little, allowing their peers to converse more, while they simply supervised and observed from the side.
The younger generation's cunning wasn't deep, but as children of high-ranking officials, they were exposed to such matters daily and were generally more mature than ninjas from other families.
Those with a humorous and witty way of speaking often elicited laughter from others, creating a good impression.
Mitokado Homura's son, in particular, was very skilled at this; after all, Mitokado Homura was a traditional diplomat of Konoha, and his son wouldn't be far off.
Meanwhile, the young members of the Sunagakure delegation, while participating in the conversations, also observed others.
Karura, while chatting and laughing with others, also had some thoughts of her own.
As Bunpuku's student, she absolutely supported Bunpuku's position, and to maintain his position and the future relationship between Sunagakure and Konoha, she needed to build strong connections.
Karura recognized the person named Hatake Sakumo; he was one of the members, and also one of the leaders, in the battle where she was captured.
She also knew that Hatake Sakumo was Fumori Masaki's student, and he might very well become the next Hokage of the Konoha Ninja Village.
The inheritance laws upheld by each ninja village were based on bloodline tradition and master-disciple inheritance.
This evolved from the ninja inheritance system; the successor to the Kage would either be the former Kage's student or the former Kage's student or close attendant.
Hatake Sakumo had made great achievements in the Second Shinobi World War and was the Hokage's student, making it very likely for him to inherit the Hokage position.
Just like Karura, who was originally an ordinary Sunagakure ninja, after Bunpuku became Kazekage, more people started to curry favor with her.
This was not only because she was Bunpuku's student, but also because as Bunpuku's student, she was highly likely to become the Kazekage.
After all, Karura's talent was not bad; she was able to give birth to Gaara and even impart special chakra to him before her death, which was not her father's doing.
Under Bunpuku's careful guidance, Karura had deep attainments in Wind Release ninjutsu and had also researched improving Wind Release's sand manipulation secret techniques.
Due to her relationship with Bunpuku, there was no one among her peers who could compare to her or surpass her in strength, so Karura could almost certainly be the next Kazekage.
Moreover, there weren't many talented individuals in Sunagakure to begin with.
In the original timeline, after the unexpected death of the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, Sunagakure couldn't find a Kazekage for three years, until Gaara gained recognition and was reappointed Kazekage.
It makes one wonder what would have happened to Sunagakure if Gaara hadn't been freed from his hatred of the world and grown into a wise, brave, and open-minded person.
Although Karura didn't know that Sunagakure's talent shortage would be so severe, from what she saw now, there weren't many people in Sunagakure who could compete with her.
With the end of the Second Shinobi World War and the return of prisoners by the Konoha Ninja Village, Sunagakure barely managed to restore its ninja force to a thousand.
Among them, excluding the elderly, there were truly not many young and talented individuals left.
Karura originally had no ambition, but after Bunpuku's ascension, she, intending to share her teacher's burden, also began to consider her future position.
To better assist her teacher and ensure his posthumous reputation remained untarnished, she naturally began to seek status and power.
Therefore, Karura truly had the idea of becoming the Kazekage's successor.
As the village's supreme leader, she could accomplish many things.
Currently, the village was in a state of revival after much destruction, and most of the older high-ranking officials had lost their original positions due to the war, making it the time for young people like them to shine.
Facing Hatake Sakumo, who was also a potential successor, Karura naturally wanted to build a good relationship with him.
Next to Hatake Sakumo, there was also a girl around her age, whose status was no less than Hatake Sakumo's.
One of them was even Fumori Masaki's daughter.
Girls clearly had more common topics, and Karura was also very enthusiastic with the girl named Asuna.
Although Asuna's demeanor wasn't overly eager, her actions undoubtedly conveyed goodwill, which made Karura very happy deep down.
Besides the joy brought by the strengthening of their relationship, Karura was also very satisfied with the hot pot, which she had never seen before.
The taste was delicious, and it brought warmth to her body.
If it were in Sunagakure at night, it would definitely be an excellent meal, as the desert nights are very cold.