The appointed day finally arrived.
The wide, leveled ground was now packed with people.
Villages and nations from all over the ninja world had gathered. Ordinary civilians, ninja, merchants—anyone with a bit of ability or information had rushed to the rocky plains to witness this unprecedented event.
Previous Five Kage Summits or high-level meetings had always been held behind closed doors. Only a handful of elite figures could attend, and the details were tightly controlled.
Ordinary people only learned about the decisions afterward, filtered through layers of officials. The real secrets were something they would never have access to.
But this time was different.
This was an open-air conference.
Everything that happened during the meeting would be displayed in front of the entire world.
The strategies of the leaders.
The arguments and confrontations.
The political maneuvering.
Even casual conversations among the most powerful figures in the ninja world.
All of it had become a spectacle.
Naturally, it attracted huge attention.
In fact, the elite ninja brought by each faction accounted for less than ten percent of the people present.
The remaining ninety percent were spectators who had traveled from across the ninja world just to watch the excitement.
---
"It's finally starting. I'm so excited!"
"Those fights in the grievance arena a few days ago were incredible."
"The ninja masters were unbelievably strong. Their movements were impossible to follow!"
"You were watching the fights. I was watching the grudges between villages. I used to think the ninja world was peaceful."
"Peace? That's a joke."
"There have always been battles in the shadows. Ordinary people just never see them."
"I heard this conference is supposed to solve all the conflicts in the ninja world. I hope we can finally have real peace."
"Yes… when ninja fight, it's always us ordinary people who suffer."
"Peace… that's easier said than done."
The crowd buzzed with excitement and unease.
Everyone stared at the massive platform in the center of the plains.
They watched the powerful figures gathered there.
Deep in their eyes was a mixture of hope and longing.
---
Among the leaders of the ninja world, however, the atmosphere was far less optimistic.
"Shouldn't a meeting like this be held privately?" one leader scoffed. "Holding it in public like this is ridiculous."
"It was requested by the Akatsuki organization. Konoha didn't have much choice."
"Hmph. Akatsuki is a terrorist group. Every one of them is a criminal. Why should we show them any courtesy?"
"Exactly. We've all arrived, yet none of them have appeared. That's outrageous."
"Why don't we just form a Ninja Alliance right now and destroy the Akatsuki organization together?"
"No matter how powerful they are, they can't possibly fight the entire ninja world."
The voices of the leaders grew increasingly irritated.
Even though Tsunade had previously warned the Kage about Akatsuki's power, the current situation was humiliating.
They had arrived on time.
Yet the other side had not even appeared.
---
Tsunade frowned.
This was exactly the situation she feared.
If Akatsuki failed to show up soon, Konoha would become the scapegoat for deceiving the entire ninja world.
She glanced at Jiraiya, her eyes questioning.
Jiraiya leaned closer and whispered one word.
"Coming."
---
At that moment, everyone in the venue sensed something.
In the previously empty seats across the platform—
A massive swirling vortex suddenly appeared.
One after another, figures stepped out of it.
They wore black cloaks decorated with red clouds.
Members of the Akatsuki organization.
They emerged one by one.
Each person carried a terrifying aura.
Predatory eyes.
Cold expressions.
Overwhelming killing intent.
In an instant, the entire rocky plain fell silent.
Whether it was the noisy spectators or the powerful leaders of the ninja world—
Everyone involuntarily held their breath.
---
"Orochimaru…"
"Uchiha Itachi…"
"Hoshigaki Kisame…"
"Uchiha Sasuke…"
Names whispered through the crowd.
Every one of them was a notorious S-rank rogue ninja.
Just seeing them in person was enough to make people uneasy.
And yet several individuals in the group were unfamiliar.
Despite that, their presence felt just as dangerous.
---
"So these are the Akatsuki members."
"They're terrifying."
"If the Hokage's words are true, a group like this could easily destroy an entire ninja village."
"But which one is their leader?"
"Which one is the new leader?"
Suddenly someone pointed.
"That red-haired man… those eyes…"
"Could those be the legendary Rinnegan? The eyes of the Sage of Six Paths?"
"Then he must be the new leader of Akatsuki!"
Ōnoki, the Tsuchikage…
The Fourth Raikage A…
And the Mizukage Terumi Mei…
All fixed their gaze on Nagato.
Seeing the distinctive ripple pattern in his eyes, their expressions darkened immediately.
---
Nearby, Gaara frowned.
His eyes fell on a blond young man standing at the front.
"Naruto…?"
"Why would Naruto join the Akatsuki organization?"
"And he seems to hold a high position."
Gaara blinked.
Then he exhaled in relief.
"No… that's not Naruto."
"His eyes are different."
"I wouldn't mistake Naruto."
---
Gaara had deep hatred for Akatsuki.
Deidara had once kidnapped him and extracted the One-Tail Shukaku, killing him in the process.
If not for Lady Chiyo sacrificing her life to revive him, Gaara would have died permanently.
If Naruto had truly joined Akatsuki…
The pain would have been unimaginable.
After all, Naruto was Gaara's first friend.
---
At that moment, the blond youth stepped forward boldly and took the seat at the very front.
The rest of the Akatsuki members sat behind him.
He smiled casually.
"Everyone's here."
His posture made it clear—
He was speaking as the representative of Akatsuki.
---
"What?"
"Is he the new leader of Akatsuki?"
"Isn't that Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Uzumaki Naruto?!"
"Then the red-haired man with the Rinnegan isn't the leader?"
Ōnoki, A, and Terumi Mei all straightened up immediately.
Their expressions were full of shock.
They had assumed the Rinnegan user was the leader.
But judging from the seating arrangement—
The blond boy at the front was clearly the one in charge.
---
Their intelligence networks were extremely thorough.
They instantly recognized him.
Uzumaki Naruto.
The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki of Konoha.
---
Several people looked toward Tsunade.
"Lady Hokage…"
Tsunade gave a helpless smile.
"Don't look at me."
"The Naruto from our village is right here."
She gestured toward Uzumaki Naruto, who stood beside Jiraiya.
"This one… is not from our world."
The leaders stared at the two Narutos.
Their minds were completely confused.
---
Finally, the Fourth Raikage stepped forward.
His booming voice echoed across the entire plain.
"Akatsuki!"
"You killed shinobi of the Hidden Cloud!"
"You murdered our comrade Yugito!"
"Give us an explanation!"
Ōnoki and Terumi Mei also stared coldly.
Their villages had lost Jinchūriki as well.
The hatred demanded an answer.
---
Naruto smiled lightly.
"The Jinchūriki and tailed beasts?"
"How about we set that topic aside for now?"
Raikage's face darkened instantly.
"You think you can postpone it just because you say so?"
"Murderers must pay with their lives!"
"You'd better explain yourself right now—otherwise…"
Naruto tilted his head.
"Otherwise what?"
His tone remained gentle.
---
Raikage's killing intent surged.
He was not the type to negotiate with enemies.
The best solution, in his mind, was to kill every member of Akatsuki.
That was the pride of the Hidden Cloud.
Just as he prepared to act—
BOOM!
A massive body slammed into the ground.
Raikage groaned in pain.
His mind spun wildly.
He was completely disoriented.
---
Naruto stood beside him.
No one had even seen him move.
Naruto held Raikage's head with one hand and slammed it into the ground several times.
Then he stood up calmly.
He spread his hands.
"Raikage's head is really tough."
"Not even a scratch."
---
The entire venue fell silent.
Even the Kage stared in shock.
The person groaning on the ground was none other than the Fourth Raikage.
The audience was equally stunned.
No one expected such a shocking scene at the very beginning.
---
"Why won't you listen properly?"
Naruto walked around Raikage.
"This is a conference about peace for the entire ninja world."
"It's not a meeting for the Hidden Cloud to settle its private matters."
"Why can't you understand that?"
His tone sounded almost disappointed.
But the others felt chills run down their spines.
---
Gaara's expression became even more serious.
This Naruto was nothing like the one he knew.
He glanced at the real Uzumaki Naruto nearby.
---
"Bastard!"
Someone finally reacted.
Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, rushed forward in rage.
But he was sent flying back instantly.
Raikage had already been kicked into him.
The two tumbled together across the ground before finally stopping at the edge of the platform.
---
"Damn it!"
Killer Bee roared.
The chakra of the Eight-Tails surged around him.
He prepared to enter his full Jinchūriki state.
But Raikage grabbed him.
"Bee… stop…"
He struggled to stand.
Then he stared at Naruto with fear in his eyes.
---
Silence spread across the entire conference.
Everyone now looked at Naruto like he was a terrifying demon.
Even the Kage felt genuine pressure.
Tsunade's warning had not been exaggerated.
---
Naruto clapped his hands lightly.
"Can we speak normally now?"
"Since no one objects…"
"I'll take that as agreement."
He paused.
"Now where was I?"
---
Orochimaru grinned.
"Lord Fifth Hokage."
"You were speaking about peace in the ninja world."
---
"Ah, right."
Naruto nodded.
"Peace in the ninja world is a huge topic."
"So let's start with history."
"When discussing peace, we must mention two legendary figures."
"The First Hokage, Senju Hashirama."
"And the ninja world's Shura, Uchiha Madara."
"In their era, they ended the chaos and founded Konoha."
"They created the one village per nation system, which other countries later copied."
"The Land of Earth."
"The Land of Lightning."
"The Land of Water."
"The Land of Wind."
"All established their own ninja villages afterward."
---
Naruto continued calmly.
"The First Hokage distributed the tailed beasts among the villages."
"He hoped that this balance would bring lasting peace."
"But unfortunately…"
"His dream failed."
"Soon after his death, the First Great Ninja War began."
"The tailed beasts became strategic weapons."
"Tools for war."
---
Naruto suddenly stomped his foot and smiled brightly.
"I sometimes wonder…"
"If the First Hokage could see the ninja world today…"
"Would he regret his choices?"
"If he could live again…"
"Would he make the same decision?"
Naruto looked at the crowd.
"Why don't we ask him directly?"
---
He turned slightly.
"Orochimaru."
"Please invite the First Hokage to join us."
Orochimaru bowed politely.
"Yes."
"Lord Fifth Hokage."
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