A day passed quietly.
At dawn, the Akatsuki Village was filled with a grim and ruthless atmosphere.
All entertainment venues across the Land of Rain had closed down, even the ninjas who oversaw them having gathered here.
Yahiko stood on an elevated platform, with Konan and Kakuzu standing behind him.
The Akatsuki cloaks of the three fluttered violently in the wind.
Looking at the densely packed crowd of Akatsuki ninjas before him, Yahiko felt a surge of pride.
Years of tireless effort had not only brought enormous wealth to the Land of Rain but also built up military strength like never before.
Though their numbers might not rival those of major nations, when it came to battle, Yahiko would never flinch.
"You all already know the truth in your hearts."
"That's right. Today, we march out for war."
"All I want is to properly develop our nation, yet someone refuses to let that happen."
"The Cloud Ninjas forced us into cooperation—Nagato went to handle that."
"Now these surrounding countries also want to target us."
"They want our money and our land."
"Can you accept that?"
With a voice full of both passion and pretense, Yahiko completely swayed the Akatsuki ninjas below, leaving them dazed and swayed.
"No way! No way!"
Emotionally contagious, angry cries soared into the sky.
"I won't either!"
"If anyone dares to reach out, I'll chop off their hands. I want the entire ninja world to know this."
"We Akatsuki ninjas aren't easy prey."
"Now tell me, what should we do?"
At this moment, Yahiko no longer resembled a leader, but more like a lecturer.
Even he nearly believed his own lies.
He had genuinely tried hard to find a just cause for war.
Although issuing orders directly would work, his teacher insisted on proceeding with a just cause, so he could only comply.
"Eliminate them!"
"Eliminate them!!"
"Eliminate them!!!"
In response, a thunderous roar erupted, peaking everyone's emotions.
Even some clear-headed individuals had clearly lost themselves—that's the power of a skilled orator.
"Excellent."
"Departure."
Needless to say, this was a powerful war rally.
The large army split into three divisions in an orderly fashion, each heading toward a different direction.
Everyone held their breath, already feeling a threefold advantage even before battle began.
Yahiko's target was the Land of Grass. Those treacherous cowards were beneath his notice.
If everything proceeded smoothly, he would conquer the Land of Grass first, then proceed toward the Land of Taki.
Kakuzu remained silent and expressionless, leading the main force toward the Land of Rivers.
It was a large country, but lacked any real combat power. It held absolutely zero appeal for Kakuzu.
They couldn't even produce a single ninja worthy of the bounty list, despite the whole nation's effort.
Konan flew midair, her destination being the Land of Birds.
Likewise, the Land of Birds posed no real threat—only scattered rogue ninjas remained there.
This posed no challenge at all to Konan.
In fact, the Land of Grass was the toughest of the three targets.
That very day, war flames ignited. The Akatsuki ninjas advanced like a knife through butter, swiftly overwhelming the invaded nations with little resistance.
As the last desperate defenders were picked off one by one, the outcome became inevitable.
In just three days, the territory of the Land of Rain had grown nearly fivefold.
At the same time, news of Akatsuki's large-scale military campaigns spread throughout the Ninja World.
Suddenly, all the minor nations fell into fearful silence, terrified that Akatsuki ninjas might suddenly appear on their lands.
"Lord Akatsuki Shadow, a representative from Kumogakure has arrived."
Inside a modestly luxurious office at the administrative headquarters of Amegakure, Yahiko slouched in his chair, yawning lazily.
"Let him in."
Yahiko straightened himself and tidied his short orange hair.
"Yes."
An Akatsuki ninja bowed and exited. Moments later, he returned with a Cloud ninja in tow.
Due to the intensifying conflict in the Land of Earth, this particular Cloud ninja was not even an influential figure within Kumogakure.
He was merely an upper-tier Jonin—his strength barely adequate.
"I am Ishikawa Eiroku, a Jonin of Kumogakure. It is my honor to meet you, Lord Akatsuki Shadow."
Ishikawa Eiroku bore a slightly fierce expression, which, combined with his muscular physique, exuded additional intimidation.
"Speak if you have business."
Niyako had no intention of remembering this man's name—Kawaki had already briefed him beforehand anyway.
A Cloud ninja who couldn't extricate himself from the war in the Land of Earth could ultimately do nothing more than apply verbal pressure.
"That would be..."
"As wartime allies, our forces are still heavily engaged in combat within the Land of Earth, and yet your side is openly expanding your territory so brazenly."
"Wouldn't you agree that's somewhat inappropriate?"
Although Ishikawa Eiroku felt displeased by Mikahiko's arrogant attitude, he swallowed his irritation.
"Is there a problem with that?"
"Are not Akatsuki also fighting in the Land of Earth?"
Leaning forward against his desk, Minato fixed Ishikawa Eiroku with an intense, piercing gaze.
"If Akatsuki have spare capacity, why not reinforce the frontlines in the Land of Earth?"
"Why not unite our forces and seize the Land of Earth first? Wouldn't that be better?"
Ishikawa returned the glare head-on without flinching.
He wasn't foolish enough to believe Miyahara dared harm him.
"Akatsuki's role in the Land of Earth was always supplementary."
"We've already diverted Iwagakure's forces for you, yet you still haven't captured the Land of Earth."
"Now you're blaming us instead?"
Miyan sneered coldly, barely holding back from calling the Cloud ninjas outright useless.
"Raikage-sama hadn't anticipated Ōnoki seeking aid from Konoha."
"Nor did anyone expect Konoha would actually commit troops."
"This outcome was not what we wanted either."
Ishikawa struggled for words. Though what he said was undeniably true, Miyanaga remained unmoved.
His aura had clearly weakened—they simply weren't strong enough to conquer the Land of Earth at this moment.
"I don't care whether or not Konoha intervenes."
"I fulfilled my promise to Raikage."
"What remains now is entirely the Cloud's own affair."
"Our forces at the front lines in the Land of Earth cost money to maintain, yet we've seen no returns."
"It's already generous of me not to ask for reimbursement."
"Now I seek opportunities elsewhere, and you Cloud ninjas want to interfere?"
"Do you really believe everything I do needs your permission first?"
Yahiko's fury grew increasingly apparent, his eyes seeming ready to shoot flames.
"That's not what I meant."
"It's just... Your actions have greatly upset Lord Raikage."
"I hope you can provide a reasonable explanation."
"So I can report back properly."
Under Yahiko's overwhelming pressure, Ishikawa Eiroku became even less confident.
Suddenly, he realized this man could crush him like a bug.
Unfortunately, panic led to mistakes—he misspoke.
"Explanation?"
"What kind of explanation do you need?"
"I don't care whether the Raikage is happy or not, but right now, I'm very unhappy."
"You go back and tell the Raikage if he has any issues, let him come talk to me personally."
"Not just anyone off the street is worthy of negotiating with me."
Yahiko almost laughed in anger—this Cloud ninja really was ridiculously bold.
Trying to use the Raikage to pressure him? That showed too little respect for Lord Akatsuki Shadow.
"My Lord Akatsuki Shadow~"
Ishikawa Eiroku had intended to continue speaking but was directly cut off by Yahiko.
"While I'm still being polite to you."
"Right now, vanish from my presence."
"Got it?"
Yahiko suddenly stood up, his icy, emotionless stare sending shivers down the spine.
"My apologies."
Ishikawa Eiroku valued his life after all. He swallowed the words he hadn't yet spoken, suppressing his resentment as he turned and left.
"What a joke~"
Yahiko sat back down and soon yawned lazily.
"Yahiko sure works fast!"
Tsunade tossed a report about Akatsuki ninjas toward Kawaki from behind her desk.
"Not bad."
Kawaki skimmed through the battle report on the Akatsuki operation, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
"What's next on the agenda?"
"Let Yahiko and his team keep fighting?"
Tsunade cracked her neck and continued handling other paperwork.
"Don't worry."
"Eventually, someone will step in."
Kawaki looked confident as ever, inspiring great trust.
"The Land of Wind?"
Shouta piped up. He believed only someone from the Land of Wind would dare make a move so openly.
After all, being nearby, the Akatsuki's actions were clearly putting heavy pressure on the Sand ninja.
"Not necessarily."
"But whoever steps in doesn't matter much."
"When that time comes, the entire Ninja World will turn into a boiling pot of soup. And that means we're one step closer to our grand entrance."
Kawaki spoke ambiguously, actually indifferent about who took action first.
As long as Yahiko and others kept stirring things up, total disorder across the Ninja World had already become inevitable.
"Do you mean the Land of Water?"
"Doubtful."
Shouta frowned. He didn't believe Mist Village would jump in this quickly.
"Everything is possible."
"Don't be anxious. We'll just watch and see."
Kawaki grinned, as though everything was firmly under his control.
"You're impressive."
"You handle this mess."
Tsunade tossed another file onto Kawaki's lap.
"What mess is this?"
Kawaki caught the file and casually flipped it open.
Clearly displayed were pleas for assistance from several small countries that maintained relatively good relations with Konoha.
"Yahiko really spooked them."
"No problem."
Kawaki smirked and shook his head. The big fish hadn't even surfaced yet, and the small fry were already in a panic.
"The Ninja World is going through a turbulent time. Our Konoha ninjas sent to assist the Land of Earth have fallen into a difficult situation."
"Right now, Konoha can hardly manage its own problems."
"However, regarding the Akatsuki's aggression, Konoha will certainly issue a firm denouncement."
"If the Akatsuki doesn't immediately stop these severe acts of invasion, Konoha won't rule out the possibility of military intervention."
"Just reply like that."
"And then release a statement criticizing Yahiko. Also, get the Daimyō to sign it too."
"This will make us appear more like a major village and serve as the moral model of the Ninja World."
After Kawaki rattled off this speech, Tsunade and Shouta both looked at him with newfound respect.
Has this guy's face gotten even thicker?
"It's still you who takes shamelessness to a new level."
Tsunade didn't know what to say anymore. He wasn't lifting a finger but still managed to make others grateful toward him.
Condemning Yahiko? Seriously, how could you even say that?
Wasn't it you who assigned Yahiko to carry out this mission?
Now look at this—he completed the task, and on top of that, he has to shoulder the blame for disrupting peace in the Ninja World.
"I used to scoff at this kind of thing. Now, I choose my words carefully."
"Lord Kawaki, I've written down everything you just said."
Shouta's philosophy was simple—if you can't beat 'em, join 'em—and he truly admired Kawaki's thick skin.
This completely flipped his worldview upside down.
No wonder he got stuck doing all the hard work—he clearly didn't have enough spine or brains.
"You're teachable after all."
Kawaki pointed at Shouta, his smile beginning to look sinister.
"Has Yahiko not contacted you recently?"
"Oh...!"
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Tsunade let out a helpless roll of her eyes.
"Not really~ Probably still busy."
No sooner had Kawaki finished speaking than Yahiko messaged him via video call.
"Your mouth must've been blessed."
Muttering under his breath, Kawaki produced a Katsuyu clone out of nowhere.
"Teacher."
Yahiko's voice accompanied the image appearing before Kawaki.
"Well done."
"Your teacher's wife praised you too."
Kawaki stood up and walked over to Tsunade, plopping himself casually onto the armrest of her office chair.
"Our Yahiko seems to have gotten fatter lately."
Tsunade smiled tenderly—her words almost bringing Yahiko to tears.
In front of others, he might be the leader of the Akatsuki Village, but to Tsunade, he'd always be that child who never really grew up.
"Really?"
"Maybe because things have been going smoothly lately."
Yahiko gave an embarrassed grin as he scratched his head—his commanding presence gone in an instant.
"Putting on a little weight isn't so bad. Means you're doing well."
"That's also because of your effort."
"By the way, when they publish the official statement against you…"
"You'll want to thank your great teacher for that."
Suddenly changing the topic, Tsunade spoke sarcastically while smiling sweetly.
"Haha~ It's fine."
"With that, I guess I'll become famous throughout the Ninja World."
Yahiko didn't let the comments bother him. After all, a few scoldings wouldn't make him lose any skin.
"Do you think it's actually a good reputation?"
Tsunade found it amusing. If anything, even a bad reputation was still a form of recognition.
"I don't care how others see me."
"As long as the people who matter to me care about me."
His words might've sounded clumsy, but they came from the heart.
"Alright, enough with the emotional talk."
"Where are you now?"
"Already heading toward the Land of Iron?"
Men didn't need all that mushy talk. Kawaki cut straight to the point.
Since the Tailed Beast had been taken, Kawaki couldn't be bothered to mention the Land of Taki anymore.
He figured it wouldn't take Yahiko long to crush any resistance there.
"Still in the Land of Grass."
"This place is a total dump."
"It's way too poor—actually terrifyingly impoverished."
"The locals don't give a damn about our invasion."
"What kind of life do they have to be this indifferent?"
Yahiko complained bitterly. To him, it was classic—easy to conquer, hard to rule.
"The poverty in the Land of Grass hasn't developed overnight."
"These problems don't have a quick fix."
"I bet Konan and Kakuzu aren't having it any easier."
"But you shouldn't sweat it too much."
"For now, your job is simply to occupy the area and try to pacify the civilians, avoiding any unnecessary trouble."
"Once things calm down, I'll send someone else to take over, then we can gradually solve those problems."
Kawaki had his reasons. Governing while fighting a war wasn't wise right now.
"Okay, I'll let Konan and Kakuzu know."
Yahiko nodded, relieved in his mind.
If Kawaki made him handle governance himself, he'd really have a headache.
"There's no rush with the Land of Iron either."
"The samurai there are somewhat capable. Don't let them catch you off guard."
Kawaki teased Yahiko slightly, though naturally, he knew the Land of Iron couldn't stop an Akatsuki ninja.
Across the entire Land of Iron, only one person deserved mention: Mifune.
But a single Mifune alone couldn't change the course of a war.
"Don't worry, teacher. I've got this."
Yahiko radiated confidence. After all, how could he fear enemies already beaten by Hanzō of the Salamander? They weren't worth his respect.
"That's good to hear."
"Just finish up with the Land of Grass first. I'm looking forward to hearing news of your victory."
Kawaki truly felt no concern. He had full trust and confidence in his disciple.
"Just wait and see."
"Oh right—I almost forgot to tell you something important!"
"The Raikage sent someone here earlier. I dealt with them as you instructed."
Yahiko suddenly snapped back to reality, recalling what he meant to report.
"Don't worry about it. The Cloud Ninjas won't pull off any big tricks."
"If they can't conquer the Land of Earth, the longer they wait, the more anxious the Raikage will become."
"He won't have the energy or time to send anyone else after you again."
From the moment the Raikage decided to invade the Land of Earth, Kawaki saw them as already out of the game.
In the grand arena of the Ninja World, the Cloud Ninjas' time had come to an end.
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