Chapter 225 Reactions from All Sides
By this time, many other forces in the ninja world had also figured out what had happened within Konoha.
After receiving the news, Onoki immediately locked himself in the meditation room of the Tsuchikage Building and pondered over the chessboard all night. To be honest, he didn't understand what A was thinking, daring to directly provoke an Uchiha with a complete Susanoo.
"Father, should we still send troops to aid Kumogakure?" After waiting all night, Huangtu took the initiative to enter the meditation room. However, as soon as he spoke, he saw on the chessboard in front of his father that their king was already surrounded by the opponent, and within three moves, it would be a dead end.
"Is the situation that serious, Father?" Huangtu hurriedly asked. He knew that Onoki liked to use shogi to sort out his thoughts when facing difficulties, but even during the Third Shinobi World War, when the Kannabi Bridge was destroyed and their army's replenishment was in serious trouble, the chessboard that Onoki set up was far less dangerous than today.
At this moment, Onoki also came to his senses, looked up at Huangtu, and then instructed, "Iwagakure, issue a statement in the name of the ninja world, strongly condemning Kumogakure's actions, and then send a message of condolence to Konoha."
"As for supporting Kumogakure... forget it. If we join in, it will be the Fourth Shinobi World War. If we hadn't experienced the war with Takigakure, we could have tried to seize some benefits from it, but now..."
Onoki shook his head, his face full of helplessness: "More importantly, no one in the ninja world can stop Uchiha Tokō now."
"Uchiha Tokō, has he really become that powerful?" Huangtu was somewhat puzzled.
"Fighting two battles in one night, first severely injuring A, and then single-handedly defeating two tailed beasts—this level of strength surpasses even that of a Kage," Onoki sighed. "In my experience, only two people possess such power: one is Hashirama Senju, and the other is Madara Uchiha."
"Decades later, the Uchiha clan produced another figure like Madara Uchiha, but the ninja world can no longer find another Hashirama Senju to stop him," Onoki said. "
However, Father, this Fifth Hokage seems to be a peace-loving person. After all, according to intelligence, they not only accepted the surrender of Kumogakure but also haven't launched a counterattack against the Land of Lightning. It seems they want to let this matter rest," Huangtu said at this moment.
"Heh, a love of peace?" Onoki shook his head as if he'd heard something unbelievable, then said with a wry smile, "If the Fifth Hokage's surname were Senju, I might truly believe he loved peace. But his surname is Uchiha."
"Uchiha..." Huangtu nodded in agreement. "That surname certainly makes it hard to believe they pursue peace."
"No, the Uchiha clan does pursue peace." Onoki corrected his son at this moment. "Those strong individuals born into this clan throughout history, once they reach a certain level of strength, always contemplate the ultimate question of peace."
"Huh?" Huangtu's face showed astonishment upon hearing this.
"Take Madara Uchiha back then, for example. What he sought was to end the chaos of the Warring States period and usher in an era of peace. Otherwise, he wouldn't have started the current era of ninja villages alongside Hashirama Senju," Onoki said. "However, the Uchiha clan's conclusions about peace are not acceptable to everyone."
"We no longer know Madara Uchiha's specific plans, but if his plans were truly acceptable to everyone, even the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju, wouldn't have stopped him," Onoki sighed. "The same goes for Toko Uchiha now. I believe that someone with Uchiha blood flowing through his veins seeks long-term peace, but the impact his plans will have on the ninja world is unpredictable."
If Toko Uchiha were here, he would probably have to admit that sometimes, the one who understands you best is your opponent. Onoki's understanding of the Uchiha clan far surpasses that of most people in the ninja world.
The general impression of the Uchiha clan in the ninja world is that they are powerful, ruthless, and extremely dangerous.
However, Onoki could see beyond this facade the deeply hidden core of the Uchiha clan. The last outsider to understand the Uchiha clan so well was probably only Tobirama Senju.
But it was precisely because of this understanding that Onoki could better comprehend the danger lurking beneath the peaceful facade currently displayed by the Uchiha Touken Ranbu.
After all, to put it bluntly, if the Uchiha clan were merely a group of fanatical warmongers, Tobirama Senju wouldn't have been so wary of them. But the fact that this clan frequently produced a mentally unstable individual with superhuman strength, someone who constantly pondered grand themes like world peace, was truly terrifying.
"So, is there really no way to stop him?" After understanding this under his father's guidance, Huangtu felt a chill run
down his spine. "Given the current situation, we can only hope that another Hashirama Senju will emerge in the ninja world," Onoki said helplessly, glancing down at the stalemate before him.
"The only good news is that this new-era Uchiha Madara isn't particularly ruthless," Onoki said. "If that day really comes, the people of the Land of Earth shouldn't suffer too much harm."
"By the way, remove that Deidara kid's bounty." Thinking of this, Onoki suddenly remembered his troublesome disciple and casually gave the order.
"I understand." Huang Tu nodded. After a while, looking at his father's somewhat desolate figure and the unsolvable chessboard in the quiet room, Huang Tu hesitated for a moment before asking, "Father, when that day comes, will we, the Hidden Stone Village, have no choice but to surrender?"
"Surrender? How could that be?" Upon hearing Huang Tu's question, Onoki's eyes suddenly sharpened. "Even if we, the Hidden Stone Village, have no chance of winning, we will show them what our Will of Stone is. Our Hidden Stone Village has no scoundrels like Takagi Seiman."
"Only in this way can the ninjas of the Land of Earth truly have a place in the new era." As Onoki spoke, he picked up the king, which was surrounded on the chessboard, and with a resolute look, made a desperate move.
...
In Konoha, in the Hokage's office, Uchiha Touko stood by the window, watching the construction site of the Konoha Heroes Memorial outside.
Inside the office, Nagato and Konan sat on the sofa, watching Uchiha Touko's retreating figure without saying a word, quietly sipping the tea that Uchiha Touko had brewed for them.
"Please excuse my rudeness, both of you. I originally thought we could finalize the specific cooperation plan that day, but I didn't expect this to happen." After a while, Uchiha Touko turned around and said, sitting down opposite the two of them.
"Your Excellency, you flatter me. After all, no one could have predicted that Kumogakure would do such a thing," Nagato said. "However, I do have some questions for you to answer. Why don't you take this opportunity to launch a counterattack on the Land of Lightning? After all, for Konoha, the Raikage is seriously injured, and Kumogakure has one Jinchūriki dead and one wounded. Konoha should be fully capable of taking over the Land of Lightning now."
"Yes, Konoha is indeed capable of taking over the Land of Lightning now," Uchiha Touko said. "However, the Fourth Shinobi World War will follow immediately. Although I am confident that Konoha and our allies will be the final victors in this war, how many meaningless sacrifices will there be in the process? How many civilians will lose everything they have worked so hard for because of this hasty war?"
"I understand." Nagato nodded. "I was naive. I shouldn't have questioned your pursuit of peace."
Only after hearing Uchiha Touko's answer did Nagato truly trust everything Uchiha Touko had said before. Before he was fortunate enough to meet Jiraiya and become a ninja, he was a civilian who had truly experienced the pain of war. Therefore, after hearing Uchiha Touko's answer, Nagato also let down his last bit of defense and was ready to fully cooperate with Uchiha Touko.
"Hokage, I will send the Five-Tails to the Tailed Beast Protection Area in the Land of Fire in a while," Nagato said. "After that, what are your plans for the Akatsuki organization?"
"For now, the Akatsuki organization will continue to operate in the ninja world as mercenaries," Uchiha Touko chuckled. "After all, if your organization's full strength is laid bare and you openly cooperate with Konoha, that old man Onoki will get restless. Before we are fully prepared, it's best not to provoke that old man's fragile nerves."
"Alright," Nagato nodded, then glanced back at Konan.
Konan took out a beautiful little box from her sealed scroll and presented it to Uchiha Touko with both hands.
"Please accept this," Nagato said with a smile.
"What is this?" Uchiha Touko curiously opened the box, revealing a pale gold ring lying quietly inside. On the special chakra gemstone above the ring was engraved the character "薇" (Wei).
"This is the medium for casting the Illusionary Body Technique, one of the special abilities of the Rinnegan. With this, if you need anything from the Akatsuki, you can contact me at any time," Nagato said. "As for the meaning of this codename, our Akatsuki's codenames are all named after constellations or divine beasts. I think nothing represents you better than the legendary Emperor of Stars, Ziwei Star. This is also a token of our Akatsuki's sincerity."
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