The situation in Iwagakure was giving Ōnoki quite a headache.
Through Konoha's various actions, he had begun to trust that short little Hokage.
At the same time, he started to hope for the possibility of true and lasting peace across the ninja world.
However, this time the other party had gone too far—they actually planned to welcome the members of the Akatsuki into Amegakure.
Even if he agreed, the other high-ranking officials in his village would never accept it.
As the Tsuchikage, he had to take a stance and oppose Konoha's proposal.
After all, both sides had been locked in conflict over Amegakure and Kusagakure for nearly a century.
Now that Kusagakure was effectively under Konoha's control, Iwagakure had already lost one strategic foothold. There was no way they could allow Amegakure to fall under Konoha's influence as well.
"I knew Konoha couldn't be trusted! They're probably using the formation of the Ninja Alliance as a pretext to slowly swallow and dismantle our power, until they alone dominate the ninja world!"
A senior official shouted, veins bulging in his neck, as if he wanted to go to war with Konoha that very instant.
"That's right! We can't just sit back and let Konoha grow unchecked anymore! Tsuchikage-sama, now that Sunagakure and Kumogakure have already taken their side, we absolutely can't retreat any further!"
Ōnoki's mouth twitched slightly at those words.
So you know Sunagakure and Kumogakure are on their side—and you still want to pick a fight with Konoha?
Aren't you afraid the three of them will just gang up and divide Iwagakure among themselves?
You think my Dust Release can take on tens of thousands alone?
The last person who thought they could take on an army solo has grass growing on their grave as tall as I am, you know that?
Ōnoki didn't respond, instead falling into thought as he assessed the current situation.
He absolutely couldn't bow his head now. Even setting aside how the villagers would see him, if their enemies sensed the slightest weakness, Iwagakure would face even greater danger.
But continuing the standoff wasn't a viable solution either.
After the Ninja Alliance was formed, Konoha had proposed a "mutual military transparency" initiative to show good faith, even voluntarily revealing their own armaments.
And what a shock that had been.
Just the strength they'd shown was enough to wipe out any one of the Five Great Hidden Villages on their own.
To go to war against such a terrifying opponent? Forget Dust Release—even if you dragged Uchiha Madara back from the dead, he'd still get smacked around.
The once fearsome Susanoo that had made Ōnoki's legs tremble—Konoha now had two of them.
It was horrifying. Why did the Uchiha clan even exist in this world?
For the first time, Ōnoki felt genuine hatred toward the idea of bloodline supremacy.
So, the difference between people really did start right there in the amniotic fluid, huh?
In his next life, he'd reincarnate as an Uchiha for sure!
A transmigration story was all the rage these days, right? When he finally kicked the bucket, he'd make sure to be reborn as some Uchiha kid and awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan right from the start!
After venting all that internally, Ōnoki finally spoke up, stopping the argument among the officials.
"Regarding this matter, tell Iwatsuchi not to back down. I'll negotiate with the Fifth Hokage personally to find out exactly what they mean by this."
Once Ōnoki had spoken, none of the officials dared continue. One by one, they rose and left their seats.
Soon, only Kitsuchi remained in the meeting room.
"Old man..."
"Call me Tsuchikage."
"Tsuchikage, are you really planning to meet him again...?" Kitsuchi's tone was filled with concern.
Last time, his father had been so infuriated his blood pressure had nearly gone through the roof, his face red as a tomato.
To negotiate again with that poison-tongued little guy—it was a wonder his ears wouldn't start bleeding.
Kitsuchi knew all too well that no one in Iwagakure yet had the strength to take Tsuchikage's place. Naturally, he worried about his condition.
"Hmph, don't worry. His mouth may be venomous, but his heart..."
Ōnoki waved his hand dismissively, though for some reason, an image of Hashirama flickered in his mind.
"Everyone sees him as some dangerous schemer with ulterior motives, but in my eyes, he's no villain. He's rebellious, disrespectful toward elders, his mouth filthy—but deep down, his intentions for the ninja world are sincere."
Recalling all the intelligence reports he'd read, Ōnoki's lips curved slightly.
"You know what's interesting? He actually uses his village's funds to subsidize ordinary citizens. Think about it—ninjas have always been supported by the daimyōs and the common folk. But a ninja village supporting its civilians? That's unheard of.
Thanks to him, commoners from all the major villages are now dreaming of joining Konoha. If it weren't for the lack of proper channels, half our villagers might have already run off there."
Kitsuchi nodded—he knew about this too.
"Yeah, at first I thought the intel was wrong. But the more sources confirmed it, the more curious I became. Why would that Hokage care so much about the civilians?"
To most ninjas, civilians were nothing but laborers—producers who sustained the system. Ninjas used their strength to protect them from outside threats, and in return, civilians paid taxes to support the village's wars.
After all, the daimyō's funding was an external source. Each village needed its own economic foundation as well.
"Someone like that isn't a bad person... but not exactly a good one either."
Ōnoki gave his own assessment.
"Akid who acts purely according to his own convictions—if it weren't for his father backing him up, he would've been..."
He trailed off, remembering Takeshi's overwhelming strength.
"Hmph, forget it. I won't go meet the Hokage after all. Send someone to invite that boy Yahiko here instead. I want to see for myself what kind of person Konoha intends to place in charge of Amegakure."
Kitsuchi immediately understood—Tsuchikage had already decided to compromise. He just couldn't say it outright in front of the other officials.
Meeting Yahiko would serve as the perfect excuse—a diplomatic gesture, a reasoned "middle ground."
Something like: "After a pleasant meeting between Iwagakure's Tsuchikage and the leader of the Akatsuki, Iwagakure has decided to support his leadership of Amegakure."
He just needed a politically acceptable justification.
"Old man, it's about time you started looking for a successor."
Watching Onoki still burdened with the village's affairs, Kurotsuchi couldn't help but hope he'd finally retire.
"Hmph! You think you're ready for me to hand over power? You're nowhere near qualified yet!"
Ōnoki waved his sleeve dismissively, cutting her off on the spot.
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