The surrender letter signed by the Fifth Kazekage, Pakura, hadn't yet reached Konoha, but the deaths of Kazekage Rasa, the elders Ebizo and Chiyo.
And the Third Raikage A's written surrender sent toward Konoha had already begun spreading throughout the ninja world.
Each event connected to the Iron Fist was like a nuclear bomb dropping into the shinobi world, one after another, and exploding in rapid succession.
The shockwaves were terrifying, shaking the entire ninja world to its core.
In just a single month since Garp stepped out of retirement, three of the Five Great Shinobi Villages had bowed to this hero.
The chain reaction left countless forces across the ninja world utterly stunned.
They suddenly realized that the world they once knew, the era they once recognized, not only no longer felt familiar, but had become completely foreign.
Those who were used to the Five Great Nations standing above all, and the Five Great Villages ruling over everything, even began having one alarming thought:
Was the era of the shinobi villages regressing… Or had the era of the Iron Fist never ended at all?
Perhaps the so-called shinobi village era… had never truly existed.
Once this idea appeared, it surged like an undercurrent throughout the world.
The Five Great Villages were no longer unquestionably supreme, because above the Five Nations, above the Five Villages, above even the Five Kage, there now stood a single man.
The high-ups of the Five Great Villages struggled to accept this, and the one who resisted the most was the future Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure.
Inside the Raikage's office, A slammed his palm on the desk in front of the Third Raikage.
"Father, have you lost your mind.?
Before, you endured humiliation for the sake of the village's shinobi, I understood that.
But we've already withdrawn our forces, and you've already stated we won't step foot in the Land of Fire again, isn't that enough?
Why did you have to sign something as disgraceful as a surrender letter.? This is a shame on the Raikage title."
When A returned to Kumogakure and saw the Third Raikage barely clinging to life after being critically wounded, he fell into rage on the spot.
If not for the Third Raikage repeatedly stopping him, and Killer B physically dragging him back, A would've already rushed out to take revenge on the Iron Fist.
Yet just after he barely calmed down, a piece of news spread like wildfire through the streets of Kumogakure, shocking him, enraging him, and humiliating him all at once.
After hearing it, he immediately stormed to the Third Raikage, who had just been discharged.
"You think I wanted to sign it?
I did it for you, for the future of Kumogakure.
Onoki, that coward, started this. If I didn't sign, how would Garp view me? How would he view our Kumogakure?
Even if Garp himself didn't mind, do you think Hiruzen and Danzo wouldn't seize the chance to stir up trouble?
Don't forget, Onoki folded, I'm crippled, Rasa is dead.
Among the Five Villages, only Kirigakure remains. And do you truly believe a Mist Village drowning in internal strife can keep Konoha in check?
If I don't send in that surrender letter, and the Sannin, the Yellow Flash, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Danzo, and Fugaku all charge forward together, what do we have to stop them?"
When A called it a disgrace to the Raikage title, the Third Raikage's fists clenched, flames burning in his eyes. But he still forced himself to calm down.
"For me? If humiliating me is the price, then I'd rather not be the Fourth Raikage at all.
If Kumogakure must suffer such humiliation… then let Kumogakure be destroyed."
The Third Raikage had always been reckless and straightforward, but his son surpassed him in sheer stubborn ferocity.
"You brat… you'll be the death of me. You think the position of Raikage is something you can refuse anytime you want.?"
The Third Raikage pointed toward the door A had just slammed shut. His face twisted with anger, yet in his heart, he muttered:
As expected of my son, reckless enough.
Though he was furious that A didn't understand his decision, he still admired his son's iron spine.
Which was exactly why he had to shoulder this humiliation, for Kumogakure, and for A.
But very soon, that faint pride disappeared completely.
Not long after A stormed out, C rushed into the Raikage's office in panic, terror written all over his face.
"Raikage-sama, something terrible has happened. Lord A is gone."
Upon hearing this, the Third Raikage instantly felt a surge of dread.
"… Quickly, go check the Valley of Clouds and Lightning. Is he…. "
"I've already checked. The entire valley is empty. I searched it top to bottom, and combed all of Kumogakure. I couldn't find Lord A or any trace of Lord Killer B's chakra."
C's words made the Third Raikage jump up from his seat in shock.
If not for the excellent work of the village's medical ninja, that jump would've torn all his freshly stitched wounds open.
"A is gone… B is gone…
That brat must have left the village. Don't tell me, he took B with him to kill the Iron Fist.?"
After pacing anxiously, his face suddenly went pale. No one knew his son better than he did.
From the moment Iron Fist re-emerged, A had been muttering about killing this 'remnant of the old era' with his own hands.
A's temperament was even more extreme than his, unyielding to the point of madness.
Combined with the argument they'd just had, the Third Raikage was forced to confront the most terrifying possibility.
"…"
C lowered his head silently.
"C, gather every sensory and reconnaissance ninja we have. Move immediately.
I don't care how many troops you deploy, pin A and Killer B inside the Land of Lightning. Even if you have to break their legs, do not let those two step into the Land of Fire."
The Third Raikage's roar shook the entire Raikage building.
"Yes."
C fully understood the severity of the situation and rushed out at once.
"A… B… don't you two do anything foolish…"
After watching C leave, the Third Raikage collapsed into his chair, cold sweat pouring from his forehead, his face, and down his neck uncontrollably.
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[Bonus chapter and next one will be on 400 power stones.]
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Guys do leave some reviews and comments.
Also, if you guys enjoy this story, you can support me on Pat re on and get access to some Advance Chapters, it really helps me to work on new chapters.
pat re on. com / Yhssab
Just remove all the spaces in between and search it.